A Beautiful Girl Confessed Her Love to Me as a Punishment Game, but After We Started Dating, She Started Getting More and More Obsessive - Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Minami let out a soft yawn.

“Good morning, Hiyori… and Numata-kun. Did you two come together?”

After discussing Kiryu-san on the train, we hadn’t talked much. Since we happened to walk at the same pace and deliberately avoiding him felt rude, I just walked beside him. That’s when she called out.

“Yeah. We just happened to take the same train.”

“I see.”

I took a step away from Minami. Kiryu-san moved between us, almost bumping into my shoulder. As I instinctively stopped, Kiryu-san stopped two steps ahead.

Our eyes met.

“G-Good morning.”

Kiryu-san smiled in satisfaction.

I assumed it meant we were going together, so I followed a step behind.

Walking three abreast would be a nuisance, after all.

I avoided looking at their conversation.

Once you’re left out of a conversation, you can’t help but feel like fading into the background.

It felt awkward to be seen walking with some of the class’s most beautiful girls.

Even though I knew neither of them cared about such things.

“Kirino, you’re too uptight. Numata, you have your phone, right?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, no, I don’t.”

“Of course not. It’s against school rules, and we don’t need them.”

“What about emergencies?”

“There’s always the school’s phone.”

“Numata, you’re serious, too!”

“Numata-kun is serious.”

Chatting with friends while heading to school in the morning—it could be fun. Who cares what people think?

“Good morning, Kiryu! Minami!”

As soon as we entered the classroom, Yasumura greeted us with a bright, cheerful tone.

But Kiryu-san ignored him, and Minami awkwardly averted her gaze when she saw Kiryu-san’s lack of response.

“Good morning.”

“…I wasn’t talking to you.”

Feeling the discomfort, I greeted him instead, only to get a half-angry glare in return.

Kiryu-san sighed in exasperation.

“Oh, um, good morning, Tanuma.”

“It’s Numata-kun. Can’t you even remember your classmates’ names?”

Kiryu-san’s words froze the atmosphere.

I quietly took my seat and averted my eyes. Awkward. Was this my fault?

“Well, well. Kirino, Daichi didn’t mean any harm…”

“Fujisaki-kun, you still love your sly ways with words, don’t you?”

“W-What’s that supposed to mean?”

Kiryu-san shrugged, clearly unimpressed, as Fujisaki struggled to hide his annoyance.

This tense atmosphere was unbearable. I wished they wouldn’t fight.

Though, honestly, considering Fujisaki had planned to corner me behind the gym on Friday with Yasumura, I wasn’t sure he had the right to talk.

The classroom felt tense.

The usually lively group at the center of the class was fractured, silencing everyone else.

It wasn’t just Kiryu-san leaving in anger.

Yasumura was the only one hanging around Fujisaki’s desk. Saigo was out for morning practice, and Date-san sat at her seat, reading.

Kiryu-san, meanwhile, had a different reference book open and was studying.

Minami lay face-down on her desk but peeked at me, giving a small wave.

A girl waving at me when our eyes met? Nice!

I almost felt a flutter in my chest.

But her slightly lowered gaze looked a little lonely.

At lunch, Kiryu-san ignored Fujisaki’s attempt to stop her and, as if it were the most natural thing, sat across from me.

“Kirino, can I join you too?”

“Sure, I don’t mind.”

Their gazes turned to me. Oh, so they were waiting for my approval too.

“Uh, yeah.”

When I nodded, Minami pulled a nearby desk over and joined us.

Lunch with two friends. Since starting high school, I’d eaten lunch alone, so it felt nice. But the stares from others were piercing, especially from Fujisaki and Yasumura.

I always dreamed of sharing lunch with friends, but this much attention made it hard to even taste my food. Ideally, I wanted an introverted guy friend to chat about light novels with quietly.

Kiryu-san’s lunch was as usual: a conscious effort salad of shredded chicken and various vegetables in a Tupperware container. Minami’s lunchbox was simple but balanced, with sausages, tamagoyaki, and broccoli. The pink salmon flakes shaped like a rabbit on her rice radiated a subtle “girly” charm.

“Minami-san, your lunch looks great. Did your mom make it?”

“Yeah.”

“Even the rabbit?”

“That’s mine. You place the mold and sprinkle the flakes.”

“Ah, I see.”

That’s neat.

Though plain rice with a single pickled plum wasn’t bad, cute designs lifted your mood and sparked conversation.

Such small touches could encourage someone to say, “Hey, nice lunch,” when they noticed it.

Since I lacked the courage to start conversations, subtle invitations like that might be important.

I wanted to start by trying to be more outgoing.

“Can I join ya’ll? Mind if I eat with ya?”

Just as I started to forget about the stares, a voice interrupted.

A big, stocky guy with a buzz cut and a thick countryside accent.

“Saigo-kun.”

Kiryu-san glanced at him disinterestedly as she slowly nibbled her vegetables. Minami tapped her on the shoulder.

“Kirino, it’s okay, right?”

“I have no reason to refuse.”

I didn’t have any reason to refuse either, so I nodded.

Saigo-kun pulled out a bento box that looked like a stacked lunchbox.

One layer held at least two cups of rice, while the other was packed with mostly brown-colored side dishes and a hint of vegetables—a hearty meal.

He picked up the box and ate energetically, using meat rolls as his side dish.

So this was one person’s meal.

“You always eat this much, huh?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

“By the way, Saigo-kun, what clubs are you in?”

“Baseball and judo.”

“Your dad made you do judo, right?”

“Yeah, but I wanted to play baseball too, so I do both.”

“I see.”

Minami seemed to like Saigo-kun, but did he join us because he liked her too?

Or maybe there was something he needed to talk to me about Fujisaki?