My Fiancée is a Cool-Headed, Peerless Angel - Chapter 54
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Chapter 54: Returning The Gift To My Fiancée
TL: lime
ED: Spynine01
The scenery in the classroom on March 14th was no different from that of everyday life. Even so, I could sense that the atmosphere was a little bit, just a little bit, more buoyant than usual.
Unlike the boys, the girls seemed to be more relaxed this time.
This is because women have a higher mental capacity than men, or perhaps it’s because White Day is just an add-on to Valentine’s Day.
As I was thinking about when to give her the gift I bought the other day, I thought it would be safer to give her the gift at home, but when I went to school with the gift tucked into my blazer pocket, I felt strange.
I sat down without knowing what that feeling was.
As I hung my bag on the hook next to my desk, I saw Touma in my field of vision, so I waved and said “Good morning,” to him and he replied “Good morning” back.
Fumu… As usual, Touma is fiddling around with his phone in his seat.
I put my right elbow on the back of the chair as an elbow rest and looked at Shiori.
“Hey? What are you listening to?”
Shiori, who was wearing headphones, was startled for a moment, but she immediately made her usual expressionless face, took off her headphones and asked, “What?”.
“What are you always asking me?”
When I asked the same question again, Shiori looked at me with a frown, then said coldly, “Anything is fine,” and put on her headphones again.
Fumu… Shiori is acting as usual.
――Then what is it?
As I was twisting my neck in thought, I felt a tug on my right shoulder.
“Are you curious?”
“――Hmm? About what?”
“The song I’m listening to.”
“Ah… I’m curious but… I’m don’t care about that right now――”
“Is that so?”
Shiori frowned, then said, “Then I’ll never tell you for the rest of your life,” and pressed the button on her headphones.
No good… I’ve made her angry…
“Ah, no. I’m curious. I’m really curious. I’m really curious about what you’re listening to.”
Manager Gomasuri spat out a line in a tone of voice that seemed to put the president in a good mood, but Shiori completely ignored it, as if it was just onomatopoeia in the background.
“Ahaha! Kojiro. You made her angry.”
Touma, who was watching us, laughed and said,
“You don’t understand a woman’s mind, do you?”
“I don’t want to be told that by you of all people.”
After saying something to taunt Touma, I waved my hand in front of Shiori’s face, saying “Hey” or “Shiori-chan”, but she still didn’t show any reaction to me.
“You’re an idiot. She’s not going to react to that.”
Touma, who had been upset with me, got involved again, and I responded in a slightly aggressive manner, “An?”.
“I told you, you don’t understand the heart of a woman. I’m sure you’ll get a response if you say ‘my dearest fiancée’ here.”
“How can you talk to me like that with such a pompous tone?”
“Try it, try it.”
“Who would try that!”
While we were having this silly conversation, the school chime rang to announce the start of the day.
In the classroom, everyone quickly took their seats and waited for the homeroom teacher.
“Everyone. Good morning!”
Minami-sensei walked into the classroom with a voice more energetic than the students’, it was as if the school’s Madonna was arriving at school.
My classmates, including me, greeted each other in different ways, saying good morning to everyone.
Minami-sensei put the attendance book on the table, looked around the class and nodded.
Then she looked next to me and said, “Ah, Shijo-san is absent――”
When she said that, I realized what that strange feeling earlier was.
That’s right, Shijo was not present today.
I wonder if she caught a cold or something?
♢
Recently, Touma has been dedicating his lunch break to his club activities in order to catch up on his club activities.
That’s why, when he went out to the second-floor corridor to go to the school cafeteria alone, Shiori and a slightly sober male student were having an exchange at the end of the corridor.
The boy seemed to be handing over a package of some kind…
“Ah…hey…”
“Okay, then!”
The boy quickly ran away like a rabbit after that.
I walked up to Shiori, who had a troubled look on her face, and asked, “Is this a return gift for Valentine’s Day?,” she looked at me and turned her face away with a pout.
“You don’t talk to me at school, do you?”
“No, no. I didn’t say anything about that, did I? I’m just trying to keep the fact that you’re my Fiancée a secret――I mean, you talk about it every day at school, right?”
“Well, if you don’t talk, they won’t know. So why don’t you just not talk?”
Uwaa~ She’s cold. She’s angry.
“A-, haha… ――It’s… It’s a return gift for White Day, right? Obviously.”
“It’s none of Kojiro’s business.”
“Eh? Did you give that guy chocolate then?”
“I-I didn’t give him any!”
She made an impatient voice and quickly denied it.
I knew the answer in my heart, but I was still relieved to hear it from her mouth directly.
“Then what?”
“――I don’t know…”
Shiori looked at the package and made a confused voice…
“But he said, ‘I want you to accept it’…”
“You didn’t even give him a valentine’s chocolate, but he’s giving a return gift?”
“Eh…”
Shiori constricted her face at the thought…
That’s right. It’s usually weird to receive a gift in return from someone you haven’t given any chocolate to.
“W-Well… Why don’t you just take it?”
“I don’t like anything given to me by someone I haven’t given chocolate to.”
“Really…”
The answer is so normal that it makes me chuckle…
I hold out my hand to her, giving her that look.
“I’ll give it back to him. Maybe he’s a 1st year student, right?”
“Yeah. That’s the color of his tie. ――Are you sure?”
“Well, it’s too much to give it back to him, so I’ll just ask his friends or classmates. ――You don’t want to do that, do you?”
She nodded her head and said, “Well,” and handed me a palm-sized rectangular package from her blazer pocket.
“Instead, what about a real White Day gift?”
“――Eh?”
Shiori was surprised, looking as if she were a pigeon that had been hit with a peashooter.
“No, because the only thing I can do in return is pet you on the head… What?――And after all, I’ve only petted you once, right?”
When I said it in a way that sounds like an excuse, Shiori looks at me and then says with a blank expression.
“――Then pet me now.”
“――Ha?”
“Kojiro said that, didn’t he? Kojiro said, ‘Anytime’.”
“N-No… I did, but… But here is――”
Shiori puts her index finger to my lips in the middle of my words.
“It’s useless. I’m taking your word for it.”
“What do you mean…?”
“You’re breaking your promise?”
“――A-All right! I’m going to pet you.”
I looked around. There doesn’t seem to be anyone around at the moment.
I took a deep breath and began petting Shiori’s head.
Her hair is as pleasant to the touch as ever. Her hair is so smooth and fine.
Even though it’s the same shampoo as ever, the scent of her hair has a luxurious quality to it.
“――T-That’s enough, right?”
“No. Just a little more.”
“I-I’m so embarrassed…”
“Really?”
Apparently she still wanted me to continue petting her, so I did, and Shiori’s face looked like a cat being petted by a person.
“――T-That’s it!”
I was so embarrassed that I pulled my hand away soon after, but Shiori forgave me, saying, “It can’t be helped.”
“I-I’m hungry, so I’m going.”
“Ah, I’m going to the cafeteria today too.”
“Really? That’s unusual. You always eat convenience store food.”
“Once in a while I differ. ――Let’s eat together.”
“Eh?”
“What? You don’t want me to say you’re my fiance, do you?”
You’re saying the opposite of what you said earlier――.
I raised my hand and made an exaggerated gesture, “Good grief.”
“I can’t help it. I’ll eat with you if you want to.”
“Yeah. I’ll be quick then.”
Shiori coldly said and walked away.
She’s such a dull woman…
“――Hey.”
She stopped and looked at me and tried to return the gift I had for her.
“What’s this?”
“Hmm? Well, you’ll have to wait until you open it――. It’s not much, though. If you don’t like it, just throw it away.”
She smiled and said, “I won’t do that.”
“I cherish everything Kojiro gives me. So this is no exception.”
I wonder what was the expression on my face the moment she said that…
I don’t know what it looked like on the outside, but on the inside I was overflowing with joy.