■V2 Chapter 1 ◆Part 1【Restart】 - 【The Extraordinary Is Now The Ordinary】

Translator: AJ1703

Editor: Matsu

■Chapter 1【Restart】

◆Part１【The Extraordinary I s Now The Ordinary】

Lunchtime.

I was sitting on the fire escape as usual, which was noticeably rusty and reddish brown.

As I have almost no one to talk to back in the classroom, this is always a place of relaxation for me.

The dimly lit space between the ground and the gym warehouse is perfect for a loner like me.

Because it’s such a deserted place, it’s sometimes used in an insane way for more than a perfectly legitimate reason: to have lunch and study alone, away from my classmates.

A confession is currently taking place.

“─Please, please go out with me…!”

Right now, on the ground above me, someone is making a confession.

This place is so dark and quiet that it is often used as a place for confessions.

Conversely, there’s no one who would come to this place except to confess.

I’m the only one who would be so peculiar.

“I’m sorry, but I’m having more fun with my friends right now.”

The response from the confessed person was as if she was simply brushing off his passionate words.

The woman’s voice sounded convincing enough to make me think that she really cared more about her friendships rather than just saying a routine refusal.

“I’m so close to that person that I go to their house almost every day, and we even eat dinner together. Besides, when I stayed with their sister the other night, she was so cute and adorable.” [TLN: I’m having trouble whether to use “him” or “their” here since the gender wasn’t exactly stated.]

The quick speech from my “Girlfriend” was filled with passion as she lost the words to say next.

I’m not sure why my cheeks are burning as well…

Or rather, stop. Let’s leave it at that. You’re talking to me, who’s downstairs, not the person in front of you. Your voice is so loud that it could be heard by me…

“I see… If you’re having so much fun then you won’t have time to think about your boyfriend…”

The person who confessed left the fire escape looking dejected but satisfied.

The confession ended, and a suitable silence came over the unpopulated place.

…Except, of course.

“Hey Shinji, let’s hurry up and have lunch~!”

My “Girlfriend” came running down the stairs, making noisy footsteps.

She came with a big smile on her face, sat down on the step I was sitting on, and wrapped her arms around me as if she was hugging me from behind. In her hands hung a lunch bag, probably containing a lunch box.

“Yua…”

The feeling on my back, which I’ve never gotten used to, made my eyes wander around, and I tried to call out her name to rebuke her, but Yua was unconcerned.

Yua Takarai is my classmate and a friend of my step-sister.

She was a tall, busty girl with long, almost golden hair, white skin that looked even more radiant because she was wearing summer clothes that showed off her skin, and makeup that made her look like she had strong eyes.

“Whaaat is itt?”

Yua waved her lunch bag in front of me.

“…Don’t say anything too dangerous.”

No one in the school knew that Yua and I were in a “relationship”, except for one person. If anyone else finds out, I could be the target of an attack from all the boys in the school.

“But I was able to say no, right? That way I didn’t have to hurt him, and it was the truth.”

“Well, Yua’s safety is important, too.”

There are numerous men who are trying to confess to Yua, and some of them might be bad guys who try to take strong measures even if she refuses, and if she can get through it without any problems, that’s a good thing.

She had been turning down a lot of confessions, and for a while the number of confessions she was getting was decreasing, but now it was starting to increase again.

I had a vague idea of the reason for this.

Yua’s expression seemed to be softer than before.

She had always been cheerful and kind to everyone, and that was why she had received an unbelievable number of confessions, but in the past few days, her cheeks seemed to be relaxed all the time.

The only thing that had changed during that time was that I had given her my duplicate key and she had been promoted to a regular member of the Nagumo family, but I couldn’t honestly admit that it was arrogance and hubris to find a reason for this.

“Forget that, Here, I’ve made it for you, okay?”

Yua sat down next to me. The stairs are only wide enough for two people to stand side by side, so when we sit down, it feels cramped and our arms hit each other hard.

Yua leaned forward to peer into my face, and in her hands were two lunchbox packages that she had just taken out of her lunch bag.

“I see. Yua is no longer hiding her appetite and is now willing to openly eat twice as much as normal people. Eating a lot is a good thing.”

“No, it’s not! This one’s for Shinji!”

She pushed a package with a fancy rabbit design on it towards me.

“The other day, I told you that I’d make you lunch, didn’t I?”

“Yes, I remember. Thanks.”

That’s why I came here empty-handed.

“But wouldn’t it be a burden on you?”

Yua usually had lunch from the grocery store or convenience store. Because of this, Yua’s habit of buying lunch from the said stores had still not changed. For Yua, who lived alone, I felt sorry for her because she would have to cut down on her precious time in the morning if she had to make lunch. It would have been better if I had prepared lunch for her.

“Oh, you still care about that?”

Yua, who had just opened her lunch box and was chopsticks deep in white rice, raised her eyebrows.

“I had to wake up a little early, so it was a bit of a hassle, but it was fun to do it for Shinji, you know?”

Yua said with the biggest smile on her face.

“I’m not very good at mornings, but when I thought, ‘Oh, I have to make Shinji’s lunch,’ I was able to wake up easily. It’s different when you have a goal.”

Rather than being a burden, Yua seemed to be enjoying it.

Knowing that my presence was having a positive impact on her made me feel hot inside.

I couldn’t look directly at Yua anymore, so I looked down at the lunch box in my hand. White, green, red, yellow, and brown accents. If it were up to me, I’d be focusing more on calories than color, so it would end up being a plain, gloomy lunch box, but Yua made it look gorgeous. Just by looking at it, my eyesight seems to be getting better.

However, there was something that bothered me.

I moved my gaze to Yua’s hand.

“I’m sorry to interrupt you… but mine and Yua’s are reversed, aren’t they?”

My lunch box was a single layer, but Yua had a double layer. It’s the kind of thing where the top and bottom of the box are neatly zoned for side dishes and white rice.

“No, it’s right. This one’s mine.”

Yua said with a dignified look on her face. Is it my imagination, or did she seem to move the lunch box from her lap to a place I couldn’t reach?

“I’ve never made a bento for two people before, so there was a little left over. It would be a waste to leave it as it is, so I thought I’d pack it in the second tier.

“…I’m not sure but didn’t you consider giving the larger portion for me, the boy?”

“I’m the one who made it though?”

Yua suddenly proclaimed herself as a manufacturer.

I’m sure this person felt fulfilled making lunches not only for me, but also because she had a good reason to satisfy her own appetite more than usual.

“I get it, Shinji’s a picky eater.”

Perhaps realizing the significance of my gaze, Yua put her own lunch box back in its original position.

“It’s not frozen food, I made it last night.”

Then Yua picked up a piece of fried chicken, which had been reigning king in the side dish zone, and brought it to my mouth with her chopsticks.

Is she… telling me to eat this?

The chopsticks in Yua’s hand are the same chopsticks that she used.

I’m very concerned about indirect kissing, so I didn’t feel like easily jumping on it.

“The reason there are so many for me is because there’s one in here for Shinji.

Yua said.

“Well, after Shinji misunderstood me as someone who eats a lot, you won’t believe me.”

When Yua smiled sadly in front of me, the option of refusing because I was embarrassed disappeared.

What’s the point of an indirect kiss now?

I’ve already kissed Yua directly, if not indirectly, even if it was just for fun.

I made up my mind and jumped on Yua’s chopsticks like a fish caught in bait.

When Yua saw that I had a whole piece of fried chicken in my mouth, she smiled in satisfaction.

“How is it?”

“…Delicious!”

It had been a long time since she had made it, so of course it wasn’t warm, but I could tell instantly that it was delicious, even if the batter was moist.

As I was munching on it, thinking that my cooking skills were no match for her, Yua suddenly leaned forward and brought her nose to mine.

When Yua’s lips came close to mine, I was reminded of the incident with the surprise kiss, but Yua started to sniff.

“Okay, I don’t smell any garlic”.

“G-Garlic…?”

“I kept it low.”

It’s spicy, but I can’t really taste the garlic.

I guess she took that into consideration since she still had afternoon classes to attend. I rarely open my mouth in the classroom, so I don’t have to worry about the smell.

“If Shinji’s mouth smells yummy, I might suck on it…”

It seems that I was wrong, and she throws in a comment that makes me think she’s trying to turn herself into a glutton.

I was about to say something like, “Yua, I think your appetite and sexual desire are mixed up.”

But Yua reminded me of our kiss the other day, and I felt too embarrassed to say anything, so I was forced to go back to my meal.