My Ex-Girlfriend Who Dumped Me, the Top Student, Is at Risk of Failing and Repeating a Year—but I’m Too Busy Tutoring a Former Shut-in Beauty To Get Back Together With Her - 18

Chapter 18: Being a Tutor Is Just a Cover

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The first day of summer vacation. In the morning, as a pleasant sun poured down, I stood in front of my closet with my arms crossed for a good thirty minutes.

“No, not this one.”

I picked up clothes on hangers only to put them back, tilting my head as I checked myself in the mirror. Normally, I would just grab whatever T-shirt and jeans were closest and be done with it. I have no interest in fashion, and besides, it wasn’t like I had anyone to show off to.

But today was different.

“Because my companion is that young lady, after all.”

The person I was meeting today was Kotone Kisaragi. I had only ever seen her in her school uniform at school, but her family home was magnificent, and above all, her natural “raw materials” were just too good. If I were the only one in a tattered shirt while walking beside her, I might end up embarrassing her.

Yes, this was a consideration to keep my student from being embarrassed. It was absolutely not because I wanted her to think I was “cool” or any other such vain reason.

…Definitely not.

While telling myself that, I chose a clean-looking collared shirt and slacks that my mother had bought on her own a while ago. I looked in the mirror. Yeah, not bad. It was simple, but it shouldn’t look unkempt.

Suddenly, I found myself imagining. I wondered what Kisaragi would look like when she wasn’t in her uniform. I knew what she looked like in her loungewear and jersey at home. That blouse with plenty of ruffles had been cute, too. But today was “outside.” It was summer. Would it be a cool dress? Or maybe surprisingly active short pants? What if her slender white limbs or defenseless collarbones were exposed—?

“Wait, what on earth am I thinking!?”

I slapped my own cheeks with both hands—smack!

Dispel those worldly thoughts. I am a tutor. Today is strictly a business matter of going to buy reference books for the second semester. It’s not a date. There’s no way it’s a date.

For someone like me, who was dumped by my ex-girlfriend, Rina, as a “boring man,” to have a date with such a beautiful girl was something that wouldn’t happen even if the heavens and earth were turned upside down.

“Alright. …Let’s go.”

I took a deep breath and stepped out into the stifling heat outside.

＊＊＊

The meeting place was the clock tower plaza in front of the station. The promised time was 10:00, but I had arrived fifteen minutes early. As a teacher, it was a natural duty to be waiting before the student. It was certainly not because I was so looking forward to it that my pace quickened.

The station front on a holiday was bustling with many people. What particularly caught my eye were, as expected, couples. Men and women walking hand-in-hand, pairs looking happily at a smartphone. It looked as if a pink atmosphere was drifting only around them.

I’m different. I’m working.

As if to protect myself from the surrounding aura of happiness, I opened an English vocabulary app on my smartphone.

I must clear my mind. Only strings of words are my friends.

“—Sensei!”

At that moment… As if cutting through the bustle, a clear voice like a ringing bell echoed. I looked up reflexively. Beyond the crowd, I saw a girl running toward me at a light jog. In that instant, my thought circuits completely shut down. The English vocabulary app was blown away to the far reaches of the galaxy.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Sensei!”

The girl who stopped in front of me—Kotone Kisaragi—was panting with a dazzling smile.

Her destructive power was in a different league entirely. Today, she was wearing a pale light-blue dress. The neat and cool design made her translucent white skin stand out even more. The waist was cinched tight with a ribbon, and from the softly spreading skirt, her legs—just as I imagined, no, even more slender and beautiful than I imagined—extended. On her feet were white sandals. Her neatly maintained toes sparkled, reflecting the summer sunlight. And on her head was a straw hat with a large brim.

What is this? Is she a young lady at a summer resort? Or is this a movie shoot?

I could see the surrounding passersby, regardless of gender, turning back to do a double-take. I could hear whispers like, “Whoa, look at that beautiful girl,” and “Is she a celebrity?”

“Sensei? …What’s wrong?”

Peering into my stunned face, Kisaragi tilted her head curiously. The black hair spilling from her hat swayed silkily. The scent of shampoo mixed with a faint scent of sweat, and that violently shook my reason.

“Ah, no…… well.”

The words wouldn’t come out. I felt that commonplace words like “It suits you” or “You’re cute” would be disrespectful. However, saying nothing was even more unnatural. I cleared my dry throat and desperately spun some words together.

“…I just thought you looked, well, different. Um, it… really suits you.”

“Really!?”

At my best attempt at a compliment, Kisaragi’s smile bloomed like a flower.

“I’m so glad……! I wanted Sensei to think I was cute, so I turned my closet upside down since this morning to pick this out!”

“……I see.”

“Un! Sensei, your clothes today are wonderful too. Somehow, you look more grown-up than usual… It makes my heart throb.”

She blushed faintly and fidgeted with her fingers.

Please stop. If you stare at me with those eyes, my mask of “tutor” will peel right off. I am a healthy high school boy. I haven’t undergone enough training to remain unruffled after being told by such a beautiful girl that I “make her heart throb.”

“……A-at any rate. Let’s go. Our destination is the bookstore.”

“Hee-hee!”

I started walking as if to hide my embarrassment. However, a soft sensation and weight were immediately added to my right arm.

“Wait, Kisaragi!?”

“Hmm? What is it?”

Looking down, Kisaragi was hugging my arm and clinging to it as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Through the thin dress, her body heat and soft curves were transmitted to me.

“Let go! This isn’t school!”

“That’s right, you know? Since it isn’t school, we don’t have to worry about the eyes of teachers or other students, right?”

“That’s not the issue! There are people watching!”

“It would be terrible if I got lost, wouldn’t it? There are so many people today… If I get separated from Sensei, I’ll cry, you know?”

She turned her upturned, teary eyes toward me. She was a calculated offender. Even though she definitely had no intention of crying, she was fully aware that I was weak to this expression.

“……Sigh. Fine, just this once.”

“Ehehe, I love you, Sensei!”

When I gave up and relaxed, she happily entwined her arm even more strongly. The murderous intent from the surrounding men, screaming “That bastard, just explode already,” pierced my back as physical pressure.

Sorry, comrades. I feel like I’m going to explode, too. My heart, that is.

With our arms linked (looking like a complete lovey-dovey couple to anyone else), we headed toward the large shopping mall in front of the station. 

＊＊＊

Upon entering the bookstore, the air-conditioned atmosphere cooled my flushed body. However, only my right arm, which was in close contact, remained hot.

“The reference book corner is this way.”

“Okay.”

We headed toward the study reference book corner. When we stood in front of the target shelf, she finally let go of my hand. To be honest, I felt a complex mix of relief and a bit of loneliness.

“From the second semester, we’ll be getting into calculus for Math II. To start by solidifying the basics, this series would be good.”

I picked up one reference book from a stack. When I did, Kisaragi lined up next to me and peered in.

“Hmm, hmm…It’s quite thick.”

“There are many diagrams. It should be easier to visualize than the ones with only text.”

“If Sensei teaches me, I can understand even with just text, you know?”

“It’s so you can study even when I’m not around.”

“Muu…But I don’t want to have any time when Sensei isn’t there.”

She pouted her lips in dissatisfaction but obediently accepted the book.

“Then, I’ll treasure this as ‘Sensei’s alter ego’.”

“It’s a book. It only has meaning if you write in it and use it until it’s worn out.”

“I’ll write in it. Like heart marks.”

“Just study.”

When I gave her a light hand-chop, she exaggeratedly held her head saying “Ouch,” and giggled. Every single one of her gestures was cute. The narrow aisle between the bookshelves. The quiet space. Choosing books together side-by-side, I fell into the illusion that we were really on a date.

…No, it’s not an illusion.

I suddenly realized. Back when I was dating Rina, had we ever come to a bookstore like this? No, we hadn’t. She would say, “Bookstores are boring,” or “My feet hurt,” and always waited at a cafe. I would choose them alone, buy them alone, and simply hand them to her. Choosing together, worrying together, and laughing together. To think that such a commonplace thing could be this much fun…

“Sensei? I wonder what do you think about this English workbook?”

Kisaragi brought over another book. Seeing those sparkling eyes, I couldn’t stop my lips from naturally softening.

“Yeah, that one’s good too. Since you’re a hard worker, Kisaragi, I’m sure you’ll finish it in no time.”

“Ehehe. For the sake of being praised by Sensei, I can do anything.”

Her smile soaked into the depths of my chest.

Ah, I might as well admit it. Buying reference books was just an excuse. I simply wanted to be with her. While I intended to draw a line as student and teacher, the one who was looking forward to this time the most might have been myself.

It was at that moment, while I was savoring that happy time….

“……Oh? Could it be Kashiwagi-kun?”

A sticky, familiar voice broke the silence of the bookstore. My spine froze in an instant. I didn’t want to look back. However, the owner of that voice approached, her heels clicking on the floor.

“I knew it! What a coincidence! Who would’ve thought we’d meet in a place like this!”

Standing there was Rina Aikawa in a flashy miniskirt, and Hasegawa, who was being made to carry her bags with a listless expression. It was the moment the worst possible intruders burst into our date—under the guise of an “extracurricular lesson.”

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