My Popular-as-Hell Best Friend Is Annoying, So I Want to Get Him a Girlfriend and Shut Him Up - Chapter 158 & 159 & 160

Chapter 158: Misono Izumo’s Recollection (Part 1)

From the moment Misono Izumo enrolled at Yourei High, she was overwhelmed by the presence of her classmates, even before introductions began.

Having served as class president in middle school, she intended to take on the same responsibility in high school, but the quirky characters in her class made her hesitate.

The first to catch her eye was a girl with golden hair cascading to her waist, exuding confidence. Clearly breaking school rules, she seemed fearless from the entrance ceremony. Her sharp eyes suggested she’d stand her ground if anyone dared mention her hair.

Beyond the blonde, Izumo was astonished by the number of strikingly attractive students in the class.

The one captivating the girls’ attention was Aoyagi Uryu, who had just delivered the freshman representative speech at the entrance ceremony.

His looks were undeniable, his height and model-like physique making him seem like he belonged on a fashion magazine cover. Izumo half-seriously wondered if a celebrity had wandered into school.

What made him even more formidable was his role as the freshman representative, a position reserved for the top scorer on the entrance exam. In other words, he was the most academically outstanding student in their year.

With his appearance and intellect, he’d naturally draw attention, not just from girls. If he excelled in sports too, he’d be the undisputed star of the grade.

Even if he had no such intentions, his presence could disrupt the school’s discipline, making Aoyagi Uryu a person to watch.

But in terms of looks, the girls in the class weren’t to be overlooked either—two in particular stood out, leaving Izumo even more on edge. She wondered if any other class had such distinctive students, fixating on an odd detail.

Chatting cheerfully with classmates was a girl with a neat ponytail and an innocent, radiant smile. Her presence lit up the room like the sun, her beauty likely to easily capture boys’ hearts.

In contrast, another girl sat at her desk, reading with a soft expression. Her long, lustrous black hair and fair skin gave her a fragile, almost ethereal aura, as if she might vanish. She was the kind of girl who inspired a protective instinct—her first impression.

With two exceptional beauties of different types, Izumo dreaded the chaos boys might cause over them.

Though overshadowed by these four, a few other classmates piqued her interest. Izumo was genuinely anxious about whether she could manage this class.

“Hirose Yukiya, that’s all.”

Caught up in these worries, Izumo barely noticed a classmate who gave a curt, bland introduction.

At that moment, he was as unremarkable as air.

*

Three months into life at Yourei High, the incidents Izumo feared hadn’t materialized.

Uryu’s popularity with girls and the boys’ fascination with Kamishiro Haruka and Tsukikage Miharu were even more intense than expected, spreading to other classes and grades. But since none of them were exclusively attached, the situation hadn’t spiraled into chaos. Though, unseen by Izumo, there might be rivalries brewing somewhere.

More than romantic issues, behavioral concerns weighed on her.

Natori Mayoi’s golden hair showed no signs of changing. The homeroom teacher, Hasegawa-sensei, wasn’t strict about it, and Mayoi’s boldness was part of the problem.

Her friends from other classes also dressed sloppily or wore flashy makeup, leaving a bad impression, so Izumo knew she’d need to keep an eye on them. Still, she doubted Mayoi was the type to bend under anyone’s influence.

While Mayoi’s issue was a long-term concern, Izumo was most worried about something else.

She suspected bullying was happening in the class.

“Bullying” might be an exaggeration, but she’d witnessed behaviors close to it.

Two classmates, Akimoto and Miyoshi, were interacting with Horimoto Shoki in a way that didn’t seem friendly.

The three were often together since the start of the year, but to Izumo, it didn’t look like a friendship.

She’d seen teasing in the classroom that couldn’t be ignored.

Izumo had called them out, but Akimoto and Miyoshi dismissed it as “playful roughhousing” and refused to acknowledge any issue. The problem was that Horimoto Shoki himself didn’t confirm or deny it. Being shy and non-assertive, it was hard to tell his true feelings.

Since he didn’t ask for help, Izumo’s hands were tied. She was certain he was uncomfortable, yet she couldn’t address it effectively.

That frustration and helplessness gnawed at her most.

*

“Zuu-chin, you look grumpy.”

During a break between classes, while Izumo prepared for the next lesson, Kamishiro Haruka spoke to her. Haruka crouched to meet Izumo’s gaze as she sat.

“…I’m just wondering if there’s a way to fix it.”

“…Horimoto-kun?”

“Yeah…”

Their eyes turned to the three gathered at Horimoto Shoki’s desk.

During breaks, the trio often clustered like this. Hidden by Akimoto and Miyoshi’s backs, they were up to something.

Izumo nearly clicked her tongue. What was fun about such low behavior? She genuinely didn’t get it.

Determined to resolve it before summer break, she was stewing in those thoughts when—

“—Cut it out already.”

Though not loud, the voice reached Izumo’s ears clearly.

It came from the seat next to Horimoto Shoki.

Chapter 159: Misono Izumo’s Recollection (Part 2)

Glaring at Akimoto and the others with a stern expression was the boy seated next to Horimoto Shoki, Hirose Yukiya.

With a delicate, androgynous appearance and modest height, he always wore a grumpy expression, giving the impression of being unapproachable.

He rarely interacted with anyone in the classroom, often stayed away until the last minute during lunch breaks, and frequently arrived late to class. He was on the verge of landing on Izumo’s watchlist.

Currently, he had a cast on his left arm, secured with a bandage around his neck, possibly from a mishap in a club activity. When Izumo tried to ask about it, she couldn’t get a straight answer.

So, when someone as aloof as him spoke up to defend Horimoto Shoki, Izumo was taken aback.

“Hey, Hirose, we’re just messing around as friends. No need to call us out, right?”

“Yeah, exactly. We’re just playing. Right, Horimoto?”

“Uh, yeah…”

Akimoto and Miyoshi deflected, tossing the conversation to Horimoto, acting as if they’d done nothing wrong. Normally, Horimoto’s agreement stopped Izumo from pressing further, but—

“Huh? What are you guys misunderstanding?”

Hirose Yukiya, not hiding his irritation, pointed his right thumb toward the classroom door.

“You’re being loud next to me, and it’s annoying. If you’re gonna mess around, do it outside.”

It wasn’t a lifeline for Horimoto. It was merely a complaint about their noise in the classroom.

Izumo felt a pang of disappointment in Hirose. Even seeing his seatmate being harshly teased, he only cared about himself.

Akimoto and Miyoshi, initially caught off guard, started laughing at his misplaced complaint.

“Haha, got it! That makes sense!”

“Sorry, man! Thought you were misjudging our playtime with Horimoto!”

As the two laughed heartily, Horimoto’s forced smile didn’t match their energy. No matter how they dressed it up, his expression was his true feelings.

How was this a misunderstanding? Izumo bit her lip lightly. She wanted to intervene right then, but Hirose’s conversation wasn’t over.

“There’s nothing to misunderstand. Just bottom-tier roughhousing.”

“…What?”

The atmosphere shifted. Akimoto and Miyoshi, who’d been clutching their stomachs with laughter, now shot sharp glares at Hirose.

“Bottom-tier? Who’re you talking about?”

“Who else but you guys? Screaming like kids—maybe you should redo elementary school.”

“Hey, you better watch your mouth.”

Akimoto leaned close to Hirose, lowering his voice menacingly.

“We could switch to ‘playing’ with you instead. That left hand might not work anymore.”

“Doesn’t bother me. But you guys get it, right?”

Hirose’s face was filled with such rage that it made you want to step back.

“Don’t lump me with that bottom-tier Horimoto. If you come at me, I’ll hit back with everything I’ve got. You’re ready for that, right?”

“…!”

Akimoto instinctively backed off. This shorter, almost girlish-looking guy instilled more fear than anyone else. If Akimoto tried to mess with him, retaliation was certain. A few exchanges made that clear.

But backing down now would be embarrassing. Akimoto shifted his approach.

“Well, whatever you say doesn’t matter.”

“Yeah! It’s break time—we can be loud in the classroom if we want!”

Regaining their confidence, the two fired back rapidly. As they said, making noise during a break wasn’t an issue. Other classmates were chatting too, and being a bit loud didn’t mean they had to go to the hallway.

“Don’t care. Your voices are making it hard for me to focus.”

“Focus? What, studying during break?”

“That’s rough. Bottom-tier grades must mean you need every second.”

“Gahaha!” Akimoto and Miyoshi mocked Hirose. They didn’t know his exact midterm scores, but they’d seen teachers scold him during grade returns. The idea of this cocky guy desperately studying during breaks was hilarious.

“You idiots. Who studies during a break? Besides, if I wanted, I could ace any test.”

—And when Hirose spouted what sounded like a boast, their laughter grew uncontrollable. Even Horimoto looked at him with pity.

“Haha, ‘if I wanted’? That’s such a kid’s excuse!”

“Then do it! Ace the next test and beat Aoyagi!”

Miyoshi brought up Aoyagi Uryu, who’d topped the post-enrollment test and midterms. Compared to Hirose’s grades, the gap was astronomical.

“No way. There’s no point in it for me.”

“You mean you can’t! How do you even brag like that with a straight face?”

“Chill, Akimoto. If there’s ‘no point,’ ‘I-can-do-it-Hirose-kun’ won’t bother.”

“How about this? If you beat Aoyagi on the next test, we’ll stop messing with Horimoto. You’re annoyed by the noise, right?”

“Nice! We’ll give you a reward, so do it, Hirose-kun!”

“Gahaha!”

“…This is stupid. I’m done.”

Deciding further talk was pointless, Hirose stood up.

He glanced at Izumo, who’d been watching from a few seats away.

“Class rep, I’m feeling sick, so I’m skipping class. Tell the teacher.”

“Huh? Wait a sec!”

Before Izumo could stop him, Hirose bolted into the hallway. Seeing this, Akimoto and Miyoshi doubled over laughing.

“He ran! Couldn’t handle it, so he bailed!”

“Didn’t think he was that much of a talker! Man, that was hilarious!”

“Poor Horimoto, stuck next to that guy!”

“We’ll stick with you so he doesn’t roast you, don’t worry!”

“…Y-Yeah.”

In the end, nothing changed, settling back to normal. Considering Hirose claimed to be “sick,” it was a net negative.

Izumo let out a heavy sigh.

“First time really seeing Hirose-kun talk, but he’s kinda intense.”

“Not intense, just running his mouth.”

Izumo replied curtly to Haruka’s comment. Between Akimoto, Miyoshi, and Hirose, she felt powerless against the class’s troublemakers and was a bit worn out.

“Zuu-chin, don’t stress too hard, okay?”

“Thanks. Sorry, Haruka, I snapped a bit.”

“It’s cool! I know you’re working hard!”

“R-Really?”

“I’m gonna check on Miha-chan. She’s near all the noisy ones.”

“Yeah, please.”

“Ehehe, leave it to me!”

Beaming, Haruka headed toward her best friend, Tsukikage Miharu.

“…Gotta pull it together!”

Energized by Haruka, Izumo slapped her cheeks to psych herself up. To fulfill her duties as class rep, she had to shift her mindset. Dwelling wouldn’t fix anything—she’d face it head-on with everyone’s help.

—But both Izumo and Haruka forgot this exchange. Akimoto and Miyoshi’s teasing of Horimoto was so routine that, while they vaguely recalled Hirose’s clash with them, the details didn’t stick. With summer break starting, it faded from everyone’s memory except those involved.

So Izumo was genuinely shocked.

She was purely astonished when Hirose Yukiya scored a perfect mark on the post-summer break test, taking first place in the grade.

Chapter 160: Turbulence

Back in the boys’ room, I pulled out a folded futon for myself and flopped onto it. The lack of a pillow felt off, but I didn’t have the energy to go get one.

Closing my eyes, I replayed the day’s events in order.

Tricked by Dad into joining this study camp, borrowing Horimoto Shoki’s phone to play games on the bus, arriving at the Aoyagi family’s villa for lunch prepared by Toritani-san, a long study session, a bath at the ryokan, that absurd mock trial sparked by Tsuyu’s natural blunder.

And then—the thing that just happened.

“Why, Dad…”

Burying my face in the futon, I muttered those words.

I still don’t get it. Why did Dad side with Tsuyu?

Dad knows me better than anyone. He knows I don’t want to be in this kind of situation. Yet he chose to make me join this study camp.

Dad never does anything I hate. I’m confident we’re closer than most families, and I know he dotes on me.

That’s why I desperately wanted to know why he sided with Tsuyu.

—I kept feeling out of place here, and I wanted answers.

“Hirose-kun, you asleep? Nah, you’re awake, right?”

As I stewed over it on the futon, a carefree voice came from the door.

It was Horimoto Shoki, the self-styled high school sophomore heartthrob.

Glancing at him while lying down, I saw he was holding not just study materials but my laptop.

“This was outside the door—yours, right? Why was it in the hallway?”

“…”

“Wait, were you experimenting or something!? Sorry, I’ll put it back!”

“…It’s fine. Just leave it somewhere around there.”

“Huh, really?”

“Don’t make me repeat myself.”

“Oh, okay. If it’s fine, cool, but why was it out there?”

“…”

Clueless about the situation, Horimoto tilted his head curiously but placed the laptop on the desk.

So, Kirita Akari went out of her way to bring it to my room.

Even after the awful things I said, she carried my stuff.

“Man, I’m in a bind.”

Packing his study gear, Horimoto took a sip from a tea bottle and spoke up.

“They’re doing the study session, but I feel totally out of place… I ended up coming back here.”

Grinning and scratching the back of his head, Horimoto laughed. I couldn’t see what was so funny.

“Aoyagi-kun’s something else, though. So confident in a room full of girls. Maybe it’s because he’s got a sister? If I had an older or younger sister, maybe I’d be smoother with girls. Nah, probably not, haha.”

After that, a ten-second silence fell. I thought he’d realized I wasn’t in the mood to talk, but I was wrong.

“Hirose-kun, something up?”

Horimoto looked at me, brow furrowed. He wasn’t interested in his own story—he wanted to talk about me.

“…What’s that outta nowhere?”

“Well, usually when I say something lame, you chew me out. I thought maybe you’re feeling off.”

“You can see I’m tired, right? The bus ride and all that’s got me beat.”

“Oh, that’s it? Yeah, it’s pretty late.”

I thought he was sharper than that, but Horimoto backed off easily at my excuse. Probably because he’s tired too—he let out a big yawn.

But his words didn’t stop there.

“You say you’re tired now, but if something’s up, tell me anything. I wanna help you out.”

His words brought back the one thing I least wanted to remember.

“I… I like you. I like you, Hirose-kun.”

Kirita Akari’s confession, which shocked me just moments ago. Feelings I never thought I’d receive threw my head into chaos again.

“Why?”

“Huh, what?”

“Why do you wanna help me? That’s weird.”

I’d forgotten this guy’s face until recently. He’s that insignificant to me—there’s no reason for him to say he wants to help.

Him, her—why do they keep showing me kindness?

“It’s not weird. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t be who I am now.”

Oblivious to my thoughts, Horimoto gave me a gentle smile.

“Because of you, I got out of that mess. I can’t thank you enough.”

“I told you before, me getting first was just luck. You got out of it on your own.”

“Even so, you gave me the push to take that first step. ‘There’s nothing you can’t do if you try’—you taught me that, and it’s why I could stand up.”

“…”

Horimoto’s hyping me up unnaturally, but I never meant to teach him anything. If that were true, I wouldn’t have broken my arm right after starting high school.

Horimoto’s the one who got serious and kept at it. He should praise his own effort, not thank me.

That’s what I’ve always thought.

“What am I getting all serious for, haha. Anyway, I’m serious about wanting to help if you’re in trouble. Tell me anytime!”

“…”

“You can sleep first. I’ll wait for Aoyagi-kun. If we’re both asleep when he gets back, even he might get mad.”

So now, being thanked like this, all sorts of emotions are swirling inside me.

What’s right, what’s wrong—I can’t keep up with sorting it out.

As my heavy eyelids slowly closed, I suddenly missed Dad like crazy.