After I Picked up a Notebook Filled With Intense Emotions, the Girls Started Acting Strange - Chapter 12

I feel like I really messed up.

Getting involved in someone else’s love life… that was a mistake.

But I couldn’t just stay quiet. Not when I know how Sena-san feels.

Still… It’s going to be awkward seeing her. Not Shindou, but for Sena-san.

And who knows? Maybe Shindou will treat her even worse because of this. If that happens, how am I supposed to apologize to her? There’s no doubt that I’m the one who messed up her pure feelings.

They always say it, right? That people who get in the way of someone’s love… something bad will happen. What was it again?

“Hmm…”

“Why the troubled look?”

“No, I’m wondering how I should apologize to Sena-san.”

“Me? Apologize for what?”

“…Whoa!? Sena-san!?”

“Ahaha, what a weird sound!”

Like that day long ago, she shows me that awkward but beautiful smile.

On the way to school. I didn’t expect to run into her now.

…Wait, she’s not walking with Shindou today? And she looks unusually happy. Did she manage to get him to hang out or something?

“Um, what are you doing here?”

“Is it bad that I’m here?”

“No… what about Shindou?”

“Who knows? Maybe he got kicked by a horse or something.”

Why a horse?

“I thought I’d walk to school with Shiomi-kun today! I even made lunch! I packed chikuwa tempura!”

“???”

My head is full of question marks.

Why is she walking with me? Why did she make lunch? And why chikuwa tempura?

I have no idea. So many things I don’t understand.

“Shall we go then?”

“Ah, yes.”

There’s no way I could refuse her when she tilts her head cutely like that.

◆

When we got to school, I became even more aware of everyone’s staring.

People were whispering and gossiping, and I could see it in their eyes.

“Huh? Sena-san?”

“Oh? Isn’t it rare for her not to be with Shindou?”

“Why is she with Shiomi?”

And so on. Up until now, she had always been glued to Shindou like… well, almost unnaturally close as childhood friends. But today, she came to school with me.

I guess it’s no surprise people would say things.

Honestly, it didn’t feel very comfortable, but Sena-san didn’t seem bothered. She kept her usual expression.

Well, I myself didn’t really understand why this was happening either.

“Good morning!”

Even after we got to the classroom and she greeted her friends, for some reason, she came over to my desk.

Of course, that made all the classmates stare even more.

“Um, Sena-san?”

“Yes?”

“Aren’t you going to Shindou’s desk?”

“Shiomi-kun, come on. I don’t always hang out with Arata, you know?”

“Oh? Oh. Right.”

…Right? As far as I know, she was always with him. They were almost inseparable.

After that, she kept bringing up little, ordinary topics, and I responded. We kept talking for a while.

“Ah, the bell’s about to ring. I should probably head back.”

Sena-san looked at her watch and said that.

I glanced at Shindou’s desk, but none of the usual classmates were there. It looked like he hadn’t even come to school yet.

“Then, see you later.”

Sena-san waved and started going back to her seat.

But at that moment, the classroom door burst open with a loud noise.

Everyone turned to see what had happened, and there was Shindou, out of breath.

“Haa… Haa… Haa… I made it just in time…”

Looks like he had overslept and rushed to get to school.

“Ah, so you made it after all.”

“…Huh?”

In a small voice, I thought I heard Sena-san say something to Shindou.

I couldn’t catch the words, but her tone sounded completely emotionless.

Meanwhile, Shindou was catching his breath and looking around nervously.

“―W-why…?”

Then he saw me and Sena-san, and his face twisted.

The moment he looked at me, his expression clearly soured. He quickly looked away and walked over to Sena-san.

“Mizuki. That’s awful. You didn’t wake me up!”

“But, Arata. You just wouldn’t wake up. It’s exhausting for me too to stay with you until you do every morning.”

“…!”

“See, the bell’s about to ring. You should get back to your seat. Bye, Shiomi-kun!”

“Ah, yeah.”

Sena-san delivered that perfectly reasonable punch and waved at me before returning to her seat.

“…Tch.”

After watching this, Shindou glared at me for some reason before heading to his own desk.

…Why is he glaring at me?

◆

This is so weird, so weird, so weird. Why? How did this happen?

This morning…

I woke up naturally. The sunlight spilling through the gap in the curtains was unusually strong.

Looking at the clock, it was just before eight.

Even on a day off, I would normally be woken up much earlier. That’s when I realized right away, I was going to be late.

Why didn’t Mizuki come to wake me up?!

I was so angry, so I jumped out of bed, quickly got dressed, and ran out the door.

Even though I usually run in club practice, running right after waking up was tough.

Why did I have to run so much first thing in the morning?

I was hungry and my energy was low. I hadn’t even had a glass of water yet.

Naturally, anger toward my childhood friend, who caused all this, started bubbling up. When I got to school, I would give Mizuki a piece of my mind. She’d probably apologize desperately.

Thinking that, I somehow made it to school on time.

But what I saw shocked me.

Mizuki, the one who hadn’t come to wake me, was talking and laughing with Shiomi.

That’s when I remembered what happened yesterday.

The argument with Shiomi. Mizuki is acting strangely.

Cold sweat poured down. Could it be… no, no way. Mizuki likes me. She wouldn’t just switch to someone else so easily because I didn’t notice her feelings.

I decided to check if Mizuki was acting differently around anyone else.

During class, and even during breaks, she seemed normal, just like always.

Even at break time, the usual group gathered around me, including Mizuki, was talking normally.

…Huh. Was I just overthinking? She probably did all this today on purpose, just to get my attention. Honestly… She really knows how to push my buttons.

―At least, that’s what I thought.

Lunchtime.

“Shiomi-kun, do you want to eat lunch together?”

There was Mizuki while holding her lunchbox, and she invited Shiomi.

I couldn’t even close my open mouth.