Chapter 28

Maharun♪:Good morning

Maharun♪:Senpai

A break.

Yes. Today is a break. No school. Holiday.

The day when I am freed from boring school lessons and can do whatever I like. That’s what Saturday, the holiday is.

However, why should I wake up because of LINE notifications sounds in the morning? Seriously.

The sky was still dark… or not. But, somehow it looked darker than usual?

It was 8:30 in the morning, too late if I have to go to school, yet still quite early for holiday. That’s what my standard is.

There’s no choice but to wake up now. I crawled out from my blanket (it was pretty cold), and opened the curtain.

The sky was dark. Also, when I listened carefully, there were pattering sounds. No, not frying rice sound!

It was raining.

Iguchi Keita :Morning.

Maharun♪:So senpai had woken up!

Iguchi Keita :Even stupid people has their days off

Iguchi Keita :You woke me up, okay

Maharun♪:Oh my, is that so?

Maharun♪:It might be the case, but

Iguchi Keita :Yeah, it’s raining

Maharun♪:It’s raining, senpai

While she was still typing her message, I predicted her words and slipped her message. It was a success.

But then, there was no particular reaction for that.

Maharun♪:We have a plan to meet up at the park today, but

Maharun♪:What should we do now?

Right. In the end, we would hold the bicycle riding class in a nearby park on Saturday.

The teacher is me, and the student is Kouhai-chan.

But, well. I don’t think learning bicycle is so important that we have to do it in the middle of the rain.

It will be cold, and I don’t want to be drenched.

Iguchi Keita :Isn’t a cancellation appropriate for this situation?

Maharun♪:As I thoughtー

Maharun♪:Then, we’ll cancel it today.

Maharun♪:It would be nice if tomorrow is sunny

Iguchi Keita :Yup

Now then, will it come now?

She would definitely say something like, please make up for it♪, right?

One minute passed,

Five minutes,

Ten minutes, and the letters on my smartphone screen didn’t move up at all. Is this serious.

I wonder why.

Is she playing it with「Only meeting each other once in the weekend」play? How mysterious.

# # #

Suddenly, I became free.

I usually would still be lazing in my blanket, but it was really cold, and the curtain has been opened, so my eyes were completely awake. What should I do now?

When I was muttering dazedly, I heard a LINE notification. Nn? In the end, did she…?

The sender was someone who I exchanged my LINE with even before with Kouhai-chan. His name is Idezuka Yasuhiro.

Idezuka Yasuhiro :Are you free?

He is my classmate, and also an otaku.

I replied immediately.

Iguchi Keita :Very free

Our attendance numbers were close(Because both of our name starts with「i」), and after talking a lot, we knew that both of us often watch anime, and so on. Before long, we ended up exchanging our LINEs.

Idezuka Yasuhiro :Let’s go to karaoke

Idezuka Yasuhiro :With sushi

Iguchi Keita :Eh? You’re going to treat me sushi?

Idezuka Yasuhiro :I just wanna eat it

With that, we definitely won’t eat sushi this time.

Both of us know that we like anime. There’s no need to hesitate. I will sing my hobby’s sound as much as I like.

By the way, I am the type of person who went to karaoke alone quite often. Most of those class meetings, alumni associations, or whatever-karaoke-is-that, I never went there twice in my life.

After singing『Welcome to Japari Park』, we repeatedly continue with『Love Live! Sunshine!』songs. The second season had already started too. Idezuka played Idolm@ster’s songs repeatedly. There are a lot of songs from Idolm@ster’s anime, the Cinderella Girls one, and the Million Live Theatre Days. Honestly, I didn’t know a lot of them.

After both of us were completely satisfied, we went out from the karaoke. It was just past noon. As high school boys, our belly was already screaming. I didn’t realize it at all since I was too focused on singing.

We went to sushi-go-round… no way (there was none in our neighborhood anyway), and ended up choosing a Saizeriya1. Cheap, cheap, cheap, student’s ultimate best friend.

Idezuka bought me juice from the drink bar and we healed our burdened throat. After that, he started to talk.

「By the way, Iguchi, I was surprised.」

Nn?

「You always came early since you are the student council president, but suddenly you came on the verge of being late, and rushed to the school together with Yoneyama.」

I didn’t spurt out the orange juice in my mouth so much that it made my shirt dirty just like in those manga scenes, but I coughed so much after hearing what he said.

# # #

「Why do you know……」

「I could see the back gate from the classroom,」

「Not that, why did you know Kouhai-chan’s name?」

「Me, art club, work hard. Her, art club, a ghost.」

Ah, that’s right.

This guy is good at painting. What he draws is mainly beautiful girls. It seems like he even upload them to pixiv. I never checked it before though.

And then, Kouhai-chan was also in the art club, So it was really true when she said that she just registered it for the sake of it?

「Have you fallen in love with her?」

Idezuka said that with a very good smile.

「No way.」

I don’t think I have fallen in love with her. Maybe.

Looking at her laughing face makes me have those kind of strange feelings, but I could still go back to normal again. I’m sure of it.

「Oh well, I thought we were friends, but finally, it’s spring for Iguchi as well.」

「By the way, her first name is Maharu.」

「Oh?」

「Nothing. It won’t come anyway. Winter will come before that.」

Look, it’s getting colder now. When I left home, I was wondering whether I should wear a thin coat.

「But spring will come after winter, right?」

I want him to stop making those faces as if he had won.

「I wonder when it will come.」

「Oh, you didn’t reject it? As I thought, you really like her.」

Uwuwu.

「Which part of her do you like? Heyー」

「I won’t tell you.」

「And here is Keita-kun who didn’t say that he doesn’t like her.」

I don’t hate her. It was definitely not indifference too.

Then, is it「like」?

But.

If I acknowledge it in front of a (mostly irrelevant) friend, it’s likely to become「real」, and it makes me scared.

If it becomes real, I’m afraid that I won’t be able to control myself, and I’ll just throw my reasoning, position, obligation, and those kind of things only to head towards her. It’s scary.

That’s why, I won’t say it.

I’m sure this is for the best.

「Looking at you now, you haven’t confessed to her, eh.」

「There’s no way I will.」

By the way, I haven’t told this guy about that.

I explained to him about the school regulations, and how I shouldn’t violate it as a student council president.

「Just that?」

When I finished telling him my thoughts, Idezuka widened his eyes, and asked for my confirmation.

「Just that.」

It’s just my boring obstinacy.

「Uhn. Then, just change the school regulations if it will make you more convinced to go out with her.」

「Kouhai-chan also said that before.」

「Then change it already.」

He continued with saying that there’s no way I can’t find as many reasons and excuses as possible in this era. Well, that’s certainly true.

For example,『Article 51. This school didn’t allow any sexual action with opposite sex.』Looking at the sentence itself, there are many holes I can point out. There’s something like「If sexual action with opposite sex is prohibited, then is it okay for male-male or female-female to do it?」

In the first place, how can I revise it anyway?

Idezuka called me out from my deep thoughts.

「Well, whatever I am saying now, in the end, it’s up to you to decide what you want to do. I’ll cheer you on whatever your decision.」

Should I thank him? Or maybe, should I tell him that he is being nosy? I don’t know.

* * *

I ate dinner, took a bath, and spent my time relaxing at my home.

It should be okay to contact senpai now, right?

Maharun♪:My「today’s question」

Maharun♪:Senpai, what did you do today?

Iguchi Keita :I went to karaoke

Maharun♪:Senpai must be going alone, huh

Iguchi Keita :Not really?

Eh?

Iguchi Keita :I went with my classmate

Maharun♪:Senpai, so you have friends too!?

Iguchi Keita :How rude

Iguchi Keita :Of course I have a few too

According to my observation, senpai had the image of someone who would go out with someone on his holidays. He really surprised me.

Hmm, huh? But he did go out with me every week as well. Maybe, it is my fault?

…Well, that’s good. It can’t be helped that senpai will be infected with me. I feel a little happy, though.

Maharun♪:Is it just that?

Iguchi Keita :We also talked about you

Maharun♪:Haa

Iguchi Keita :It’s with Idezuka, you know

Maharun♪:?

Iguchi Keita :You are really…

Iguchi Keita :Isn’t it your senpai in the art club? At least remember him

Art club?

Speaking of which, I feel like I had heard that name before. I remember it a little because I feel like he is more fit in manga club rather than art club.

Maharun♪:He is

Iguchi Keita :Your reaction is so light…

Maharun♪:Then?

Iguchi Keita :He told me to just quickly change the school regulation already

There’s still that topic left, eh.

Iguchi Keita :Hey.

Senpai asked me a question.

Iguchi Keita :『Today’s question』.

Iguchi Keita :If I said that I can change the school regulations, do you want me to change it?

Rather than the question itself, I felt happy that senpai asked me this question.

My answer ended up being a little messy.

Maharun♪:Yes! Of course!