I Ended up Getting Close With the Class Madonna Who Keeps Rejecting Confessions, Saying She Doesn’t Plan to Date Anyone - Chapter 20

Rumors spreading fast isn’t anything new, but this time it was way too fast. I couldn’t help thinking that.

The moment Shinoba and I walked into Class 2-3, every student inside turned toward us, their faces full of curiosity, and started closing in.

“Hey, Kokonoe-san, is it true you’re dating that guy!?”

“Why would you go out with someone like him?”

“You must be crazy to date some gloomy loser like that!”

“What’s so good about him!?”

Does no one here even know my name?

Mostly, the guys surrounded us.

If more people gathered, I really would have no way to escape, so I looked for an opening and tried to slip out.

Since all the boys were focused on Shinoba, getting away was easy.

“W–wait, Sousuke-kun!?”

“I leave the rest to you. Good luck.”

“Ehh!?”

Leaving Shinoba behind, I moved quickly through the gaps.

In no time at all, I escaped the crowd and headed toward my seat.

Please handle that yourself.

Since it’s a new school year, the seats seem to be arranged in attendance-number order. 

I usually end up in the second row from the window, near the back, and sure enough, that’s where I was again.

Thankfully, I got the very last seat.

I pulled out my chair and sat down.

As I set my school bag on the desk and took a breath, I noticed a girl walking toward me.

Her silver, shoulder-length hair swayed softly as she moved; it really stood out.

Maybe she had business with someone else?

That’s what I thought, but I was the only one sitting around here right now.

As expected, the girl stopped right in front of me.

“Who are you?”

I didn’t recognize her.

At the very least, she wasn’t in my class last year. I didn’t talk to most of my classmates back then, but I could still match most faces with names.

Her presence had this cool, fairy-tale-like white color that made me think of Frozen.

Any boy walking past would probably stare at her.

Objectively speaking, she was the type you’d call beautiful.

If Shinoba was the cute type, then this girl was the beautiful type. Two very different kinds of beauty.

“My name is Fuyutsuki Tsubaki.”

I didn’t recognize the name she said, so it took me a moment to react.

But she didn’t seem to care about that at all and continued speaking at her own pace.

“May I ask you something?”

Even though the classroom was noisy, mostly around where Shinoba was, the air around us felt strangely quiet, like we were in a different place.

“I don’t mind, but make it quick.”

From her expression, I could tell she wouldn’t leave without an answer, so giving her the silent treatment wasn’t going to work.

Fuyutsuki turned her gaze toward the group of boys crowding near the classroom door. No, she was looking past them at Shinoba.

“Is it true? Are you Shinoba’s boyfriend?”

Her voice spread out softly, like ripples across a calm lake.

She didn’t speak loudly, but her words reached my ears clearly.

Her eyes held no doubt or confusion. It was just a clear and sky-blue calm.

It wasn’t a teasing question made out of curiosity.

I could tell from her attitude and the atmosphere around her.

She was probably Shinoba’s friend.

More than that, someone Shinoba considered special.

“Did she say something to you?”

Following her lead, I also looked toward Shinoba, who was still surrounded by the boys.

“I overheard those boys over there talking.”

Rumors really do spread fast. Shinoba revealed our relationship only about five minutes ago.

I thought for a second about what to say, but there was no need to lie or hide anything.

There was only one answer I should give.

“It’s true. Kokonoe and I are dating.”

It’s going to get out anyway.

And even if I denied it or stayed quiet, she would just go ask Shinoba and get the truth.

“…I see. So it really is true.”

Fuyutsuki murmured this with a serious and troubled expression.

Judging from her reaction, she wasn’t happy about it.

Not that I could blame her.

“How did that happen…”

“Ask Kokonoe about that. She’ll explain it better than I ever could.”

I wasn’t about to tell some classmate I didn’t know the whole story of how we got together.

I had better things to spend my time on than that.

As I spoke, I checked on Shinoba again, and it looked like she had finally escaped the endless questions.

And now she was marching toward me with the face of a demon.

“Hey, don’t you think that was kind of mean!?”

“So, did they accept your explanation?”

“…Well, sort of. For now.”

Her vague answer made me curious, so I glanced around.

The suspicious looks from the boys were now all aimed at me.

“By the way, is this your friend?”

“Huh? …Ah!”

She must have been so focused on being angry at me that she didn’t notice Fuyutsuki beside her. When she finally saw her, she jumped in surprise.

“Tsubaki-chan!”

“…I’m a little hurt.”

Fuyutsuki looked down sadly and clearly disappointed she hadn’t been recognized.

It actually made her look a bit cute.

“I-I’m s-sorry! I was so ready to yell at Sousuke-kun that I didn’t see anything around me!”

“Kokonoe, I’m not angry yet.”

“That’s right!!”

Great. I made things worse.

While Shinoba puffed her cheeks and threw complaints at me one after another, Fuyutsuki watched her quietly, almost like she was studying her.

“Sousuke-kun, are you listening?”

“I’m listening. My bad.”

“There’s no feeling in your apology.”

“Because I didn’t put any feeling in it.”

When I said that, Shinoba lit up again like a flame coming back to life, and kept grumbling.

Seriously, she reacts exactly as expected.

“Anyway! From now on, you could at least try to be a little more cooperative, don’t you think?”

“I’ll do my best.”

“That’s exactly what someone who won’t try says!”

Trouble is the last thing I want.

There’s such a thing as the right person for the right job, and Shinoba is much better suited for dealing with crowds.

Besides, no one would believe anything I said anyway.

While I was thinking that, Shinoba was called over by another friend and left.

That left only me and Fuyutsuki.

How long is she planning to stay here?

“…Sousuke-kun? You two really seem close.”

“You can tell that just from how she says my name?”

“It’s not only that. I’ve been around her since we were little, but I’ve rarely seen her call a boy by his first name. And she doesn’t usually look that happy when talking to someone.”

So they’re childhood friends.

If she says that, then it must be true.

Maybe Shinoba’s acting skills are natural-born. It was good enough to fool even her closest childhood friend.

“I believe you’re really her boyfriend. After seeing her just now, it’s obvious she wasn’t lying.”

But then.

Fuyutsuki’s gaze sharpened as she looked straight at me.

Cold eyes, but with a faint warmth deep inside them.

Still, the way she stared at me to judge my worth sent a chill down my spine.

“I still don’t know if you’re good enough to be Shinoba’s boyfriend. But if you ever make her sad, I won’t forgive you.”

Correction.

There was no warmth at all; her eyes were completely cold.