After Distancing Myself From the Childhood Friend Couple Who Looked Down on Me, I Started Interacting With a Small Animal-Like Beautiful Girl - Chapter 5

“I’m off!”

“Take care.”

I greeted my mom, gave Maru a quick pet, and left the house.

It’s a morning like any other.

“Yoshizaki, hey there!”

“Good morning, Kubo.”

As I arrived at school, Kubo called out to me.

This is just like always. Even the artistically tousled bedhead.

“So… Did you read the ‘It’s Me’ I lent you?”

As soon as I put my school bag on the desk, Kubo turned his expectant gaze towards me.

Just thinking about Kubo’s reaction to what I’m about to say makes me feel very sorry.

“…Actually, I haven’t made much progress in reading yet. I have always been a slow reader. Sorry about that.”

Out of awkwardness, my gaze naturally drops.

One reason is that the shock of yesterday’s events was so overwhelming that it broke my concentration.

However, the main factor was indeed my reading speed.

Somehow, I managed to finish the prologue and the first chapter, but there are still so many pages left.

I recall the time when I borrowed a manga from Daiki.

Just like now, the day after I borrowed it, I was asked if I had finished reading, and when I replied that I was still halfway through, he snatched the manga away, saying, “I shouldn’t have lent it to you.”

“No, it’s totally fine. You can return it whenever you want.”

“Huh?”

I stared at him in surprise.

There was not a trace of negative emotion on his face. Rather, he looked genuinely puzzled.

“Eh, did you think I would get angry?”

“That…”

“How narrow-minded is the version of me inside you?”

Kubo said with a bitter smile.

“I don’t have the guts to borrow something from Yoshizaki and not return it. No matter how long it takes, I don’t mind.”

Even though the tone is teasing, I can tell that he trusts me.

Kubo dislikes the loud, outgoing types like Daiki and Serika.

I thought he would feel the same way about me, being childhood friends and part of their group…

“…Thank you, Kubo.”

I express my feelings as it well up.

Kubo widened his eyes slightly before pushing up the bridge of his glasses.

“You, you’re being too straightforward. I feel really embarrassed for some reason.”

“Why…?”

“Oh, right. Give me your impressions of ‘It’s Me’ up to where you’ve read.”

“Just the prologue and the first chapter?”

“Enough. I’m curious about the impression you had at the beginning.”

The bedhead at the back of his head sways, reflecting his excited demeanor.

I chuckled at that antenna-like thing and began to share my impressions of “It’s Me” up to that point.

Even to my clumsy impressions, Kubo nods and says, “Ah, that part,” “I really get it~.”

It felt just like having a normal friend, and I was really happy.

“So, at the end of chapter 1–––”

Cling.

The sensation of something touching my left arm. It felt like a light tap.

The one I turned to face was a girl smaller than anyone else in the classroom.

“Good morning, Yoshizaki.”

Saitou-san raised one hand.

She clearly called my name.

I freeze for a moment, but soon start speaking.

“…G-Good morning.”

“Yeah.”

With a nod, Saitou-san takes off the school backpack she is carrying.

The black cat strap attached to the chocolate-colored backpack swayed.

“Wh. Did Saitou just greet him?”

“I’ve never seen anyone talk to her like this since she started school.”

“Moreover, to a guy…?”

“Getting a greeting from Saitou, I’m so envious…”

The surrounding murmurs reached my ears, and I suddenly looked around.

Almost all of my classmates’ gazes were focused on us. The closest person, Kubo, had his mouth wide open, alternating his gaze between me and Saitou-san.

I had no experience being in the spotlight, so I had no resistance to it, and my eyes just darted around in confusion.

At that moment, my eyes caught them.

A group huddled in the diagonal left position, just like during lunch break.

They were all looking at me, but the one who was radiating an incredible aura among them was–––Daiki.

The usual friendly, handsome smile is nowhere to be seen. However, his gaze is filled with quiet anger. Compared to Serika, who is showing little interest with a “hmm,” Daiki looks like an Asura.

My instincts as a lifelong childhood friend are telling me. Later, it will definitely become a hassle.

When I glanced sideways at Saitou-san, she was already slumped over the desk.

“Hey, Yoshizaki! When did you start a relationship with Saitou?!”

Kubo asks in a hushed voice.

Without even the luxury of answering that question, I simply stared into the void.