I Chose the Plain Girl Instead of the Class’s Top Three Beauties, and Somehow She Became the Heroine - 37

Chapter 37: Friends

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《Hiroko Anno’s POV》

This was the morning at the start of the week. On the edge of the blackboard, the words “Answer Sheets Return Date” were written. There were only a few classes today, and school would end by noon. Before taking my seat, I wiped my glasses. Coming in from outside into an empty classroom made my fingertips feel slightly sweaty. When I remembered the weekend celebration, my chest felt warm.

“Hey, Anno-san.”

When I turned around, Miura-san was there. I hadn’t really talked to her before. She was the flashy type and stood out in the class. She was also one of the Three Great Beauties. She was a beautiful person, completely unlike me. Today, her makeup looked more subdued than usual.

“Good morning. Do you have a minute?”

“…Good morning. Um, me?”

“Yeah, I want to talk with you.”

My heart rate suddenly spiked. What did she want to talk about? Since we’d never talked before, it was a little scary. Standing beside my desk, Miura-san gave me a small smile.

“The other day, when I passed in front of the library, I saw you. You were studying with Mukei-kun, right?”

“…Yes.”

My throat felt a little dry. I couldn’t lie.

“You two looked kind of close, didn’t you?”

“N–No, not really… He was just tutoring me.”

As I spoke, my gaze drifted away. Miura-san only gave a short “Hmm.” in return before continuing.

“Anno-san, you’ve been looking prettier lately, you know?”

“Eh?”

I never imagined she’d say something like that to me.

“It suits you.”

But I also felt like she was probing me a little. Her voice was gentle, though. Not knowing how to respond, I took off my glasses and wiped the lenses. When I got nervous, I always did that. At that moment, Miura-san’s eyes widened.

“W–Wait, hold on, stay like that…”

I heard the sound of a sharp inhale very close by. I froze.

“What a waste!”

Her voice rang louder than expected in the classroom, and she immediately clapped a hand over her mouth. Then she lowered her voice.

“Sorry, it slipped out. Um, Anno-san, you’ve got amazing base material. Your eyes are so pretty. Your skin is beautiful. Sure, you’re cute with glasses, but without them, you’re really cute.”

“…Eh?”

My mind went completely blank. I wasn’t used to being praised. When I didn’t respond immediately, Miura-san shrugged lightly as if she was just joking around.

“I don’t mean anything weird, okay? I’m just the type who notices these things. So I thought it was a waste. I’m not telling you to take your glasses off either. You should do what feels comfortable for you.”

“…Thank you.”

The words finally came out. Miura-san took out a small round container from her bag. A mint-colored lid.

“This is tinted lip balm. It barely shows any color. If you want, try it once after school. If it doesn’t suit you, you can throw it away.”

“Eh… That’s too much…”

“I’m not forcing you. It’s just… Anno-san, I didn’t realize it, but you’re really nice. Your current hairstyle and the way your glasses hide your face… To be honest, it’s really a waste. I like doing makeup and want to be a beautician someday, so I want to learn more. That’s why I get curious about good ‘materials’ like you!”

I ended up taking the case from her. It felt small in my palm. It wasn’t that I couldn’t refuse. It was that I was a little happy.

“…Um.”

“Yeah?”

“You and Mukei-kun are close, so… Uum…”

My voice trailed off. I didn’t want to say the word jealous. Miura-san continued first.

“Were you worried? About me?”

Our eyes met. Her gaze didn’t waver. My heart pounded again.

“You know, he helped me before. I was being groped, and Mukei-kun saved me. So I’m really grateful to him. He’s the type any girl would be interested in. I feel like I can rely on him too… But I’m not going to steal someone from anyone or anything like that. I’m not good at that kind of thing. Besides, you seem like a good person, just like Mukei-kun, so I thought we could be friends.”

Hearing it clearly said out loud made the tightness in my chest loosen a little. Miura-san smiled and told me she wanted to be friends with me.

“I like makeup and all that, but… I’m actually bad with boys, so I do the gyaru makeup thing.”

“Eh? You’re bad with boys?”

“Yeah. I know it doesn’t look that way, but I really am.”

“I’m the same!”

My voice came out louder than I meant. I felt strangely happy…

“Yeah, I kinda thought so. I’m actually pretty timid. I’m not good at acting strong alone. So when I see someone like you trying hard, I genuinely want to cheer you on.”

“…Do I look like I’m trying hard?”

“You do. Even the way you place your hairpins, your greeting voice… It feels like you’re choosing things for yourself more than before. I like that. So… If you want, will you be my friend? If you ever need help, tell me. I probably will too.”

Her words were straightforward and didn’t clash with the anxieties inside me. I took a deep breath and nodded.

“…Please. I’d like to be friends with you too.”

“Yay!”

She lifted her hand and gave me a small high-five. I felt a little embarrassed, but I didn’t dislike it. In fact, my chest felt lighter.

“And also, another thing that’s a waste… Your glasses. If you’re ever okay with taking them off sometimes, like you just did while cleaning them, you’d look cute either way. You could even choose a day to go without them, like only Fridays, or only after school.”

“I…I will think about it.”

“Take your time.”

More students began entering the classroom, and Miura-san handed me a small packet of mint gum. There was a tiny sticker on it.

“This is a charm. Chew it when you get nervous. The flavor’s strong, though.”

“Thank you.”

“No problem. Okay, let’s talk again later.”

I watched her as she walked back to her seat. My heartbeat gradually calmed. I placed the little case in the shadow of my pen stand and at the same time, I felt like I’d gained just a little more courage.

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