Chapter 33 – When I Called Senpai by Her First Name, She Almost Ate Me

Morning classes had ended. During lunch break, Shinta was eating on the roof. Or to be more accurate, it might be more appropriate to say he was being fed.

“Here you go, Shinta-kun. Say ahh~♡”

With a fully beaming smile, Ichizu held out a piece of fried shrimp pinched between her chopsticks right to Shinta’s mouth.

“A-Ahh.”

Feeling even more embarrassment than when they had locked arms, even Shinta’s usual sour expression blushed slightly. If there had been anyone else on this roof, he never would have shown such behavior. He was acting like a baby bird waiting for food.

Ever since she declared she was going to come on strong, he felt like their sense of distance had completely glitched out. It definitely wasn’t just his imagination. He absolutely didn’t hate it. Having her devote herself to him so single-mindedly made him feel a little ticklish. Ichizu really was living up to her name.

The two of them showed off their flirting as if they were already an established couple. Forced to watch this spectacle, the other two girls accompanying them openly displayed their dissatisfaction.

“Jeez, it’s not fair that Ichizu gets to do all that.”

“Indeed, isn’t this a bit unfair?”

Accompanying them as rivals, Miina and Kaoru puffed out their cheeks at the sight of her feeding him her home-cooked meal right in front of them. Ichizu answered confidently to the two girls floating such frustrated expressions.

“But I made the bento that Shinta-kun is eating right now, so you should at least allow me this much of a perk.”

Ever since advancing to their second year, Ichizu had been preparing a handmade bento for Shinta every single day. She had been bringing him lunches even before confessing to Shinta. Miina and Kaoru were visibly anxious about the massive advantage Ichizu had compared to them. Faced with the sight of her feeding him her handmade lunch as if to openly flaunt it, Miina made a proposal.

“Okay, here’s a big pro-posal! From now on, I want to introduce a rule where we make Shinta’s bento on a rotation!”

“Wha—!?”

“Ooh, that is a good idea.”

At Miina’s sudden proposition, Ichizu panicked. Meanwhile, Kaoru raised a voice of joy.

“No, no way! It’s already been decided from the start that this feeding role belongs to me!”

(Hey, hey, Ichizu-san. I don’t think you should be so blunt about calling it “feeding” right in front of the guy in question. Well, I can’t strongly deny the fact that I’m becoming captivated by your lunches, though…)

Even while accidentally leaking her true feelings, Ichizu crossed her arms into an X and continued to reject Miina’s proposal. However, Kaoru-senpai fired back head-on.

“However, Arai-san, didn’t Kamiji-kun say he intends to get to know us better and choose equally? And yet, don’t you think it’s inappropriate for you to act like you’re trying to get a head start all by yourself?”

“Ugh!”

“Besides, both Chikai-san and I also have the desire to have our beloved eat our home-cooked meals. Won’t you please understand?”

“Uuu… Understood…”

Having a sore spot accurately struck, Ichizu immediately shut her mouth. Besides, as someone who also wanted to treat her beloved to home-cooked meals, she could painfully empathize with their feelings. At Kaoru’s covering fire, Miina gave a firm thumbs-up.

“Nice one, Kaoru-senpai!”

“Not at all. I merely stated a completely reasonable argument, Chikai-san.”

“Ah… You don’t have to use such a stiff way of calling us. Let’s be more frank, Senpaaaai! Right, Ichizu? Isn’t it easier to interact that way?”

“Umm, yeah. If Nakamu—Kaoru-senpai is okay with it…”

“Of course I don’t mind. Then, from now on, I suppose I’ll call you two by your first names as well.”

Upon receiving her consent, Miina immediately placed a hand on Kaoru-senpai’s shoulder. She was acting just like a classmate. Thinking about it again, Miina’s communication skills were quite something. Shinta had also been saved by her approachable personality, so he couldn’t help but stare in admiration.

“Oh my, you’re staring so hard at me. Could it be, Shinta, that you’re getting turned on by my figure?”

Saying that, Miina playfully stuck out her tongue. She grabbed the edge of her skirt and let it flutter.

“Don’t do such suggestive things as a joke.”

“Ahaha~… I’m not joking♡”

It was only for an instant, but her eyes gleamed dangerously and sent a shiver down his spine. She quickly returned to normal. While grabbing Kaoru’s shoulder, she said this.

“By the way, if we’re calling Senpai by her first name, shouldn’t you do it too, Shinta?”

Miina suggested this while looking back and forth between him and Kaoru.

“You want to be called by your first name by Shinta too, right, Kaoru-senpai?”

“That is… No, I should stop trying to poorly hide it. Um… Would you mind if I called you Shinta-kun? And, if possible, I’d like to ask that you drop the formalities with me, just like those two.”

She looked up at him with pleading eyes like an abandoned puppy. There was no way he could say no to Senpai. Besides, it wasn’t something that would cause him any trouble.

“Yeah, I don’t mind at all. Then I’ll casually call you Kaoru-senpai, too.”

“Hauah♡!?”

The moment he used her first name, Senpai let out a bizarre squeal. While he was bewildered by her unexpected reaction, Senpai suddenly lunged at him.

“W-Wait, Kaoru-senpai!?”

“Ahh, I never thought being called by my first name would feel so incredibly delightful♡ That one word just ignited a fire inside me♡”

“That’s way too shameless, even for you!”

“I’ll take that as a compliment♡”

Saying that without a shred of deterrence, Kaoru-senpai reached out toward him. Her hands moved in a suggestive manner. She looked just like a carnivorous plant. Realizing he was going to be eaten in a dangerous sense if this kept up, he tried to resist. Before he could even react, her two rivals refused to allow such lawlessness.

“You’re getting way too carried away!!!”

Grabbing Kaoru from both sides, Ichizu and Miina frantically began peeling her off him with desperate expressions. Having avoided the crisis of nearly being preyed upon, Shinta let out a sigh of relief for the time being.

At that moment, Shinta was so completely distracted by Kaoru-senpai’s actions that he failed to notice it. The door to the roof was cracked open slightly. Through that gap, someone was peeking in at them.