I asked him to be my pretend-boyfriend but after a while I fell for him, but I can't seem to admit that fact!

Declaration of War!?

Imamura Itsuki, 16 years old.

Just before the summer vacation of my sophomore year of high school, I finally had a boyfriend.

I finally had to say goodbye to my “no boyfriend” profile.

I was so worried about it until I confessed my feelings to him, but now I feel great and refreshed.

I really wonder why I didn’t do this sooner… but I can only say that because I’m happy now, and I was desperate then.

But the only thing that has actually changed is how we see our relationship and our closeness..

We were already supposed to be in a relationship, afterall.

Well, what it means is that the jealousy situation is still the same, even though we were dating.

…I think that really going out has made me more possessive of him and perhaps more jealous than before.

“Senpai~ I need help with this part of the video…”

With calculated charm, Otomura-san approaches Akira during every break.

Before they started dating, she used to think that if she were his actual girlfriend, she could boldly tell him to pay attention or something. But in reality, now that they’re together… she can’t really say anything bold.

Whether she was his girlfriend or not, some things are just hard to say.

…Well, she became his girlfriend, so she did consider asking Akira to pay attention to her in a subtle way.

“Otomura-san, you’re really close! Like, really close!”

“Oh, come on, I have bad eyesight, so cut me some slack.”

Akira was already paying attention, though.

In other words, saying something would be futile.

…And wait, why does this feel like déjà vu?

—A showdown with her might come someday, but she can bear it for now. It’s not the right time.

Since lately, what Itsuki is more wary of than Otomura is…

Serizawa Akane, from the outside-school practice. She’s in the same group as Akira.

With her bangs hiding her eyes, glasses, quiet demeanor, and not quite fitting in with the rest of the class… she somehow reminds her of the Akira from when they first became friends.

That girl has somehow grown attached to Akira since they were assigned to the same group.

During break times, Akira spends a lot of time with her.

She tried asking Akira about Serizawa subtly.

“Oh, Serizawa-san? She’s really nice. And you know what, our music tastes match perfectly. She even said she wants to get along with Itsuki too.”

(E/N: Change of POV from narrator to Itsuki. This is one of the more confusing parts of this novel, the subtle and instant change of POV, I’ll just try to add extra notes like ITSUKI POV for these changes.)

…She wants to get along with me?

Akira said that, but that’s definitely not happening.

Because every time our eyes meet, Serizawa glares at me with sharp eyes and a faint smile.

Even people like Kakimoto and Otomura-san don’t openly oppose me to that extent… she’s an unexpected dark horse.

—One afternoon, on a day like that.

I was waiting in the classroom for Akira’s club activities to end, and before I knew it, I was alone with Serizawa.

…It’s awkward.

Although, what is she doing in the classroom at this time… waiting for someone?

Could it be… Akira?

Anyway, I pretended to look at my phone to pass the time.

“…”

Silence filled the classroom.

—There’s a comfortable silence and an uncomfortable one, and this silence is the latter.

I’m not exactly shy around people, but I can’t casually chat with someone who’s been openly antagonistic against me like that.

—Usually, when I look at my phone, time passes quickly, but today time seems to be moving very slowly.

And after a while…

“Um…”

Though she’s at a distance, Serizawa called out to me.

Even in the empty classroom, her soft voice reaches me clearly.

“…Yeah? What is it?”

I couldn’t just ignore her when she started talking to me, so I gave a minimal response.

“Are you dating Asai-kun, Imamura-san?”

“Yeah… we’re dating.”

She’s a classmate, yet she’s using formal language!

Wait, asking that… is this some kind of declaration of war?

“Asai-kun… he’s a really good person, isn’t he? I envy you, Imamura-san.”

Is she trying to say she wants me to back off?

I’m definitely not backing off, though.

“Yeah… he’s got some quirks, though.”

“That’s what makes him great!”

Serizawa eagerly latched onto my words.

“His range of music knowledge is so vast.”

“That’s true!”

This time, I enthusiastically agreed with Serizawa’s statement.

“…”

“Talking to Akira makes me feel warm inside.”

“It does! It really does!”

“…”

I wonder… about this atmosphere.

I continued to chat with Serizawa about Akira for a while.

I never imagined it would turn into a competition between classmates, discussing the good points of my boyfriend.

Serizawa might have special feelings for Asai, but they’re different from what I feel.

Talking to her made that clear.

“I’ve always heard about you from Asai-kun and thought it would be nice to talk with you someday…”

Huh? Does that mean…

“I’m glad we got to talk today.”

She said that, and it turns out Serizawa wanted to stay in the classroom to have a conversation with me, all based on what Akira had told her.

And I had misunderstood Serizawa.

Those sharp looks and faint smiles she directed at me… it was just her nearsightedness causing her to squint, and her smile was an attempt at friendliness.

You can’t really understand people until you talk to them.

I thought about that deeply.

If we get a little closer, I’ll tease her about that smile being so creepy, because seriously, it’s terrifying!