Chastity Reversed: Part-Time Life by the All-Girls High School

The next day, I went to school as if nothing had happened.

“Wait, you twerp! Hey, stop!”

“…”

This was what he told me yesterday.

[Don’t respond. Even if you can handle it now, feeding those types is the worst thing you can do.]

“Hey! You little loser, you dare—”

“…”

[Ignore him. That’s what hits them the hardest.]

Sato-san was right. Shota’s face was turning red right before my eyes.

“If you’re going to do that, I won’t bother with you anymore.”

“…”

“Don’t ignore me!”

I realized I had always reacted to his words. Shota was just that good at provoking. “The boys in class”, “baseball”, and since starting high school… “virgin”.

I used to love baseball. And in addition to that… I was interested in boys too.

Of course, that hadn’t changed. The reason I entered a co-ed high school was because of this. Shota, who always said he would go to an all-boys’ school, turned out to be lying.

[Too bad, you’re stuck with me, loser.]

It was shocking back then, but I found that a tiny part of me was glad he was there.

[Subaki Koharu can’t be without Inoue Shota.]

By that time, I must have already been caught in Shota’s trap. Without baseball. Without any popularity amongst boys.

I had no charm. Yet, everyone envied me even though I had nothing.

…I was a truly weak person, wasn’t I? As a girl—it was embarrassing.

“…”

“Enough already, you weakling. You’ll regret this.”

So, no matter what happened, I would trust in the ‘me’ that Sato-san believed in.

****

At school, just as I expected—Shota sought refuge among the boys.

“…Hey, Koharu, are you okay? Inoue looked really upset.”

“Yeah, I’ve never seen him like that.”

“Haha, don’t worry, it’s fine. Oh, and—”

“—Tsubaki!”

While chatting with my girlfriends, predictably, the boys surrounded me.

“We heard from Shota-kun.”

“He’s been crying all morning. Says you won’t talk to him anymore.”

“Isn’t that too much? Aren’t you his girlfriend?”

The barrage of comments came, as if protecting Shota behind them.

“I’m not his girlfriend. Did I give him a response yesterday?”

“…”

The room fell silent. So I continued.

“Sorry, Shota, for the late reply. I won’t date you.”

I declared it just like that.

And—

“That’s awful.”

“No way, you didn’t seem like this even yesterday!”

“Still playing the ‘girl’ card!?”

The classroom buzzed back to life with voices of condemnation.

But I didn’t care… Well, it hurt a little.

“I really dislike you, Shota. So don’t come near me again.”

Right after I said that—the bell rang.

“Hey, what’s with her…?”

“How can she do that?”

“Seriously…”

The atmosphere in the class remained tense as time moved forward. Ignoring Shota’s glare, the lessons continued.

Even during breaks, the tension in the air was thick, hardly feeling like a break at all. His friends surrounded him, offering support.

My female friends… naturally found it hard to approach me and kept glancing my way.

“Okay, end of the fourth period! Everyone’s so quiet today.”

Eventually, the unaware teacher left. It became lunch break—

“—Tsubaki, come here for a moment.”

“We’ll have you make up with Shota-kun!”

“Hurry up.”

Instantly, tirelessly, Shota’s male friends approached again. Naturally, with Shota hanging his head behind them.

“I’m sorry. As I said this morning, I have no intention of getting back together.”

“!?”

“Hey, that’s enough already!”

“Think about how Inoue-kun feels.”

“If you’re a woman, take responsibility—”

“I’m sorry.”

[Don’t get emotional. Stay calm, stay calm. And then—]

“Hey, just stop it already…”

“Koharu’s made it clear. You can see she doesn’t want this, right?”

“Yeah, stop making it seem like she’s the villain.”

It wasn’t just my friends. Some of the class girls were supporting me, even if just a little.

This too, as Sato-san had said.

[Even the people around will begin to notice that the odd one out is Shota.]

[It’s okay. Koharu, you’re more respected by the girls than you think.]

[Otherwise, you wouldn’t be able to take a picture like this.]

He smiled gently, pointing to a photo on his phone from my middle school days, surrounded by friends.

[No matter what anyone tries to suggest—’Tsubaki Koharu’ is ‘Tsubaki Koharu’.]

That was what he taught me.

“Everyone, I’m sorry. We’ll handle this between us. It’s our issue.”

“!”

“Shota. Let’s talk at my house after school. Is that okay?” I said that and left the classroom, feeling refreshed in contrast to the tense classroom atmosphere.

[Are you ready for the showdown at 5 p.m. today?]

“I’m looking forward to it, Sato-san,” I murmured to myself as I walked down the hallway, alone.