After I Picked up a Notebook Filled With Intense Emotions, the Girls Started Acting Strange - Chapter 42

The stamp rally booklet was something the teacher gave each group as soon as we got off the bus. It had a simple map inside.

If we visited all three checkpoints on the way to the lookout point and collected all the stamps, we could get a small gift at the top. We didn’t have to visit all of them, but the teacher said we must go to at least two.

But it looked like everyone in my group wanted to visit all of them.

…Including Shindou.

“Hey, Shiomi. If you walk too slow, we’re leaving you behind.”

Shindou, who had somehow gotten his energy back, spoke as usual. Since the test, and even on the bus earlier, he hadn’t looked so lively. Whether this is a good thing or a bad thing… I’m not sure.

“Mizuki. If you get tired, I can carry you on my back like I used to.”

“That’s gross.”

“Yukina, if you can’t read the map, I can teach you.”

“Whoa, you talked to me!”

“Hehe, well, you’ll all have to rely on me eventually. I have the most stamina.”

The two girls ignored him as if it were a natural skill. Even so, Shindou never gives up. Is he going to start something weird again? Well, maybe not…

“This trip might actually be fun.”

“…Yeah.”

Kuroe-san gave a fearless smile.

“First stop, Kirimi Pond! Come on, everyone. Follow me!”

“We can ignore the idiot. Kirimi Pond is the closest. Yuu-kun, look at the map. Is this the right way?”

Kuroe-san slowly followed Shindou, who marched ahead alone. Ignoring that, Mizuki opened the map and ran over to me.

Her being so close made me freeze for a second, but I looked at the map and checked the direction.

“Yeah, probably. The pond is past that forest. It rained earlier, so watch your step.”

“As expected of Yuu-kun! So reliable!”

She praised me a bit too much, which was embarrassing, but she always talks like this, so I decided not to think about it. And it looked like Shindou was at least heading in the right direction.

“Alright then, let’s go too.”

“─Yeah.”

“Hey, not fair!”

Yukina naturally hooked her arm around mine. Then Mizuki followed and grabbed my other arm.

This is hard to walk.

“Shiomi! What are you doing back there!! Those two are─”

Shindou turned at the worst possible moment, saw us, and got angry. He tried to walk back toward us.

“Gaugh!?”

But as soon as he turned and took a step, his foot sank into the mud, and he slipped in a big and dramatic way.

That was a strange noise, is he okay…?

“Ugh… ngh…”

Shindou stood up with a pathetic groan. His tracksuit, which had been perfectly clean earlier, was already covered in mud. His face too.

“He looks like a catfish.”

“I think he looks more like a diving beetle.”

The two girls’ comments were sharp as always.

Anyway, that was quite an accident right at the start. I just hope he didn’t hurt himself.

“Are you okay?”

“I don’t need your concern!”

“Huh? What did the catfish say?”

“M-Mizuki, calm down.”

That was a mistake. Even if I was worried, maybe I shouldn’t have talked to him.

“Shindou-kun, are you alright? Here, use this.”

“T-thank you, Rei.”

This time, Kuroe-san stepped forward and handed him a towel. It was a clean and pure white towel.

Shindou didn’t care at all and wiped the mud off his face with it. As he wiped, he looked at me with a proud expression.

…Why is he acting so smug? He still has mud on his face.

After that, we pulled ourselves together and headed toward our first destination again. His face was clean now, but his tracksuit was already dirty.

I sometimes do my own laundry, so I know how hard it is to wash mud out of gym clothes by hand. I heard Shindou’s parents are always busy and rarely home. Mizuki used to wash his clothes for him, but who knows…

Well, it’s not really my problem.

Soon, we reached our first checkpoint. Kirimi Pond. Except for Shindou slipping a few more times in the mud, everyone else made it without trouble.

…Why does Shindou always ignore my warnings and then self-destruct? I know he doesn’t like me, but it’s harmful for him and everyone else. He should just listen.

The pond was surrounded by trees. A thin mist still hovered over the surface of the water. Whenever the wind blew, the mist drifted, and when sunlight hit it, it shone like a rainbow.

“Wow… it’s beautiful…”

Mizuki gasped. Yukina ran ahead to the stamp station and pressed the stamp onto her booklet. A small cloud and a rainbow appeared on the page.

“This place is perfect for photos!”

Yukina looked around for a moment, then quickly opened her phone camera.

“Come on, Yuu-kun! Let’s take one together!”

She waved me over. Looks like she plans to take pictures at every spot.

After taking a picture with Yukina, she switched with Mizuki, and then we took one together with all three of us.

When they showed me the photos, both girls were smiling brightly.

“Ah. Mizuki-chan, let’s take some over there too!”

“Wait for me, Yuki-chan! Come on, Yuu-kun, let’s go?”

“I’ll rest here for a bit. You two go ahead.”

“Yeah? Then, we’ll be right back!”

The two of them ran off happily and looked for a good photo spot. Seeing them play around so innocently made me smile without realizing it.

Why do the two of them like someone like me?

That question has come to my mind many times. I still haven’t found the notebook, and unless I ask them directly, I’ll probably never know for sure.

“But… still.”

If I’m not mistaken, both of them have feelings for me. I understand that much. But hearing their true feelings from their own mouths. That still scares me.

My old trauma comes back.

The girl I liked back then didn’t actually like me.

…If I had told her how I felt, would things have turned out differently?

I glanced over at Shindou.

“R-Rei. Why don’t we take a picture too? My latest phone takes really nice…”

“I hate photos.”

“Um.”

The only one who knows what happened that day is Shindou.

The only one who told me about her and our relationship was also Shindou.

I wonder where she is now… what she’s doing.

Not that it matters anymore.

I don’t even have the right to think about her.

―Click.

“…Gasp.”

A sudden shutter sound.

“Kuroe-san…?”

“You look troubled. Here, take a look.”

“Why did you take a picture?”

“Who knows? But since we’re here, keeping a memory isn’t a bad idea. Do you want to take one with me?”

“What!?”

Before I could reply, Kuroe-san stepped right up close to me. Ignoring my surprise, she took another picture.

“Hehe. You really make funny faces.”

“…Didn’t you say you hated photos? You told Shindou that earlier.”

“I hate being photographed by others. If I’m the one taking the picture, I don’t mind.”

What’s with that?

If they’re lovers, she should at least take a photo with Shindou too…

Speaking of Shindou, where did he go? The moment I looked away, he slipped out of Kuroe-san’s reach and wandered off somewhere.

“Hey, you two, let’s take a picture together. The quality will be with my newest phone―”

“Mizuki-chan, let’s go over there. There are too many little bugs here.”

“Yeah. I hope he falls into the pond.”

He’s bothering them again.

That wasn’t part of the deal.

“I’m sorry. I can’t watch him all the time. I’ll talk to him later.”

“…Yeah. Please do.”

“Now, let’s hurry to the next checkpoint.”

Kuroe-san smiled mysteriously, wrapped in that strange aura of hers. Led by her, we headed toward the next checkpoint.

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Afterword

Thank you so much for reading up to this point!

Thanks to all of you, I’ve reached 8,000 followers and 3,000 stars.

I’m really happy to receive such warm support again.

I’ve also gotten many reviews, and I’m truly grateful.

To be honest, I haven’t been feeling well lately… So I haven’t been able to write as much as I planned.

I might have to take a day off tomorrow.

Thank you for understanding.

The field trip is still peaceful(?) for now, but the story is actually entering its final part.

I’d be happy if you could stay with me just a little longer.

Thank you, and please continue to support me.