A Case in Which My House Is a Gathering Place for Girls - Chapter 40: Thank You for Waiting

I, Hanazono Kanna, was staring at the seat of my childhood friend, which should have been occupied by him, but was empty.

It’s been a few days since the article went up in flames in some parts of the neighborhood because of a trivial remark. Starting with the eyes of my classmates, the eyes that are directed at me in school are not very pleasant, even though it is my own fault.

“Jinpei-kun… where and what are you doing?”

I muttered in a low voice so that nobody would hear me. I was happy that Jinpei-kun called me and said, “I’ll take care of it, leave it to me,” almost made me burst into tears.

However, after that conversation, there was no contact from Jinpei-kun. Even when I sent him a message, it was never read, and when I went to his house, the lights were off, and there was no sign of anyone being there. I asked Asakura-san and Sasazuki-san, who might know the situation, but all they said was,

“It’s alright as long as you believe in Itsuki.”

They didn’t tell me anything else.

Moreover, after we formed our alliance, the two of them, who had been coming over almost every day, stopped visiting Jinpei-kun’s house. As a result, I ended up spending time alone in a house where even the owner wasn’t present.

“What on earth are you up to, Jinpei-kun?”

In the end, even when school started, Jinpei-kun didn’t show up. I asked our homeroom teacher, Misuta-sensei, after the morning assembly, but she just smiled and brushed it off, saying, “I think Itsuki will be back today.”

As the homeroom teacher, isn’t she being a bit too careless?

The only thing I found out was that Jinpei-kun had gone somewhere far away. I couldn’t imagine that he was skipping school to go on a little trip, and the mystery deepened.

Despite my growing anxiety and worry, Jinpei-kun didn’t appear even during the lunch break, and before I knew it, the afternoon had arrived.

Normally, this would be when we would all disperse, but Misuta-sensei called the class president and suddenly, a meeting was scheduled to discuss the upcoming bazaar this weekend.

“There’s nothing left to discuss at this point, is there?”

“We already agreed unanimously to bring unwanted items, right? We aren’t going to choose anything else.”

“Well, thanks to someone, the class atmosphere got all messed up.”

Amidst the murmurs, complaints, and snide remarks, I noticed Asakura-san and Sasazuki-san looking at me. At the same time, they both mouthed something.

“I’m sorry.”

When I was about to ask out loud I didn’t know what it meant. The door of the classroom rattled open.

“Ah, I’m sorry, president! I’m late!”

It was none other than Jinpei-kun who entered the room, panting as if he had been in a rush. However, more than that, what caught my attention was the cardboard box he was holding in both hands. He placed it on the teacher’s desk with a loud thud.

I wonder what’s in there. Jinpei-kun opened the cardboard box and took out a white-horned necklace about the size of his finger.

“Itsuki-kun, what is this?”

The class president, who was the closest to him, asked.

“It’s a pendant made of deer horns. How about making this and selling it at the bazaar?”

“””───Huh????”?””

It was probably the first time the entire class spoke in unison, though this only applied to a small group—Asakura-san, Sasazuki-san, and Misuta-sensei were the exceptions. As we all stood there, filled with question marks over our heads, Jinpei-kun began to explain.

“My family is in the countryside, and there is a mountain nearby. Wild deer live there, and they drop horns every spring.”

I remembered that when I was younger, I had eaten wild game dishes like venison and boar that Jinpei-kun’s grandfather had hunted from the mountains. But I didn’t know the deer shed their horns.

“When deer breed in autumn, males fight fiercely over female deer because they bump horns with each other. And when spring comes when the breeding season ends, the horns fall after having served their purpose.”

Jinpei-kun said that this corner is generally called a falling angle and that it also has the meaning of lucky charms and amulets to ward off evil spirits.

“My grandfather has always liked to collect these falling corners. He picks it up and collects it every year.”

“Could it be that what’s in the cardboard box, by any chance?”

“It’s a good guess, class president. That’s right. Inside the box are horns that have been cut and processed to be used as decorations.”

Jinpei-kun smiled slyly as he said this. It seems that the reason he had been absent from school and missing from his house these past few days was because he had gone back to his family home to prepare for this.

“Handmade accessories made by deer, which are rare in the city, are more likely to sell than to bring unnecessary goods. And don’t you think it’s even better if there’s nothing the same in shape or pattern?”

“It would be a great topic of conversation if such things were sold at the bazaar that we do every year. There’s no doubt that they’ll sell, including them even more valuable.”

While everyone is making a fuss, Wada takes the lead and agrees with Jinpei-kun’s proposal. This triggers the air to gradually begin to change.

“But the only problem is time.”

“Ah… The only thing I’ve managed to do in the past few days is process the horns, but the actual accessories aren’t done at all.”

It’s easier said than done. Even just making accessories is difficult without experience. And when the material is deer horns instead of something like beads, the difficulty only increases.

“─That’s why we need everyone’s cooperation and Kanna’s help from here on out.”

“My help?”

I was confused when my name was suddenly called. At the same time, all of my classmates turned their attention toward me. But Jinpei-kun continued, as if he had been waiting for this moment and his expression became serious.

“Although things are different, Kanna knows how to make earrings because her company makes them, right? If we focus on Kanna, we should be able to get enough by next week’s production.”

“That’s true, but…”

Jinpei-kun’s explanation made the classroom roar again. I don’t think everyone will cooperate in a situation where their preference for me is negative, let alone zero confidence. Indeed, I could hear small voices saying things like, “What the hell?” and “Unbelievable.”

“About what everyone’s concerned about—Kanna’s remark that the bazaar is just for fun—that wasn’t her true feeling. She just didn’t explain herself properly.”

“Then what did Hanazono-san really want to say?”