Please Do Not Say “I Love You” To Me - 3 - First Meeting
Flashback
“Crap, I gotta review, or I’ll get myself another zero score. Can’t let my allowance get deducted, man. I’m so gonna get that weapon skin.”
It’s just another day in June. Last night, we played another round of CSSTOP with the guys in my class, but boom, reality check—exams are coming up on Friday.
Today’s Monday, the last week of June, so that means summer break is on the horizon. However, if I fail this test, I’ll have to take a supplementary exam, which means no more gaming sessions for a while. That’s bad news for a guy like me. Nope, I won’t let that happen.
“I need to borrow some books for review in the library,” I mutter to myself as I walk towards the library with my handbag.
It’s already afternoon, and most students have gone home. Clubs aren’t allowed to operate this week to let students focus on their upcoming tests, a sensible move.
I arrive at the library and quietly enter. The place is filled with books, as expected. The library desk is on the left side of the entrance area, and I notice someone on duty—it’s the librarian, Shimiko-san. With her long, glossy black hair and a figure that catches attention, many want her as their partner, even some male teachers in our school, though I don’t see any progress from them. Must be hard to win her over.
Anyway, I decide to ignore her and try to find the book I need, then get out of here.
“Science, Science, Science book, where is it… Ah, here it is.”
As I reach for the book on the shelf, someone else’s hand also reaches for it, resulting in our hands touching.
“Ah, sorry. You were about to borrow the book, right?”
I glance towards the voice and find a girl—a girl with snow-white hair and cerulean blue eyes standing beside me. She looks around the same age as me.
“Yeah, gotta review for the test. Science was my lowest score last time. I won’t flunk this time, though, hopefully.”
“Heh. I see.”
She observes me from top to bottom, and she looks at me with a smile written on her face. I got a bad feeling about this.
“Say, how about I help you review for your test?” suggests the unknown girl.
“Uh, what do you mean?” I inquire.
“Exactly what I mean.”
“It’s an attractive offer, but surely there’s a catch, right?” Judging by her appearance, she appears to be someone for whom academics aren’t a problem. But something tells me that this contact is going to forever change the course of my life. But I just tucked it away in my mind.
“Of course. Just help me with some paperwork. Simple task.”
Paperwork? Manageable, I suppose. Wait, paperwork?
“Paperwork? You work for the government?” I jest.
“Yeah—no. Haven’t heard of me?”
I examine her but can’t recall any previous interactions with her.
“No, unfortunately.”
“Well, you’ll get to know me soon. Follow me.”
“But what about the review?”
“Leave it to me after you finish the paperwork.”
I followed her outside the library, acting as her sidekick. We eventually arrived at our destination, which is a familiar one.
“The Student Council Office. Wait, are you—”
Rumors about the current Student Council President flood my mind—a stern, cold figure. Guys attempting to confess to her get shot down mercilessly. She even took down a dangerous Third-Year with her bare hands.
“Ah, I forgot to introduce myself. Kawamoto Shiroi, the current Student Council President. Nice meeting you, Ishikawa Hiroki.”
Back to the present
So, there you have it—a bit of a weird but wild first interaction with her. It’s been a year since the first time we met. That was back when I was a first-year high school student.
“I don’t know if that meeting was a curse or a blessing” I ponder as I start putting my money into a vending machine. I press the specific number three times, and it drops the can loudly. Well, there goes my money. But, hey, I get paid anyways.
I return to the Student Council Office to grab the MaxCoffee that Shiori requested. As I enter the office, she’s already working at maximum speed, and almost half of the paper mountain I saw earlier has been devoured by the workaholic President.
“Here’s your MaxCoffee, Kawamoto-san.” I set down the three cans at her table and begin organizing some papers on mine.
One might think that I’m part of the Student Council. Fun fact—I was about to become one during this year’s election, but nah, I backed out because it’s not really my thing, and I don’t want to end up like the President.
“Finally, it’s over!”
I shout at the top of my lungs as I finish sorting out the paperwork. I’ve always wondered how Kawamoto-san gets these kinds of paper piles, but then I remember—our school has more than 50 clubs. Yep, not kidding, fifty. Five and zero.
“You know, it could’ve been easier here if you were my Vice President, Hiroki-kun,” says Kawamoto-san as she places an object on the neatly arranged papers at the main table to prevent them from being blown by the wind.
Fortunately, my task was merely sorting out papers alphabetically, mostly containing club budgets, upcoming school activities, and such. It’s tiring work when you think about it.
“There are no free lunches, Kawamoto-san. I must get paid for my hard work.”
“You truly are the worst guy I’ve ever met, but I like that honesty of yours.”
By the time we finish our work, it’s already evening. Ughhh, I don’t like the cold wind in the evening. It gives me chills, literally. We both walk outside the school, bicycle at my side. As expected, it’s cold, and the streets are nearly empty.
“Come to think of it, Kawamoto-san, where are the other members?” I ask. The only person I didn’t see, other than the President herself, is the Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
“You know, you can stop calling me that. We aren’t strangers.”
“Uhh, what are talking about?”
“Call me by my name. Now.”
“Alright, alright. Shiori-san.”
“Uh-uh. Remove the ‘san’.”
“…Shiroi.”
“There we go.”
What the hell’s with this conversation. But I can now call her by her first name. Pretty neat.
“Anyways, to answer your question, I told them I’ll handle the heavy load with you while they’ll take care of the aftermath of our work starting tomorrow. Which means, Sunday, I can finally take a break.”
“Is that so. So you’re coming back here tomorrow, huh? That’s kinda rough.”
“I love this position, especially now that you’re here. I think I’m enjoying my role as the President of the school.” she bluntly says.
“Really? Well, you’re welcome.”
“It’s a shame you’re not part of the council, but,” she comes to a halt in front of me and smiles at me.
“I’m glad you’re here with me.”
As she says that, I feel a short burst of happiness in my heart. At least I know that someone appreciates me, and it’s none than the Ice Queen herself.
I escorted Kawamoto to the train station until we arrived. She usually rode a car with her escort, but for some reason, she prefers taking the train back home with me.
“So this is where we part ways.”
“Yeah. Thanks for helping me out. I couldn’t have done it all without your help.”
“It’s all for the money, Kawamoto-san. It’s all for the money.”
“Come on, you sound like a greedy old man,” she says while pinching my sides. Her small hand deals a painful blow.
“Even without the money involved, I’d still help you anyway,” I reply.
“Is that so? I’ll keep that in mind.”
Everything goes silent for a while until Kawamoto-san breaks it.
“Say, are you free on Christmas Eve?” she asks.
“Yeah, I’m free. Why?”
“If you don’t mind, maybe we should hang out together.”
Wait, isn’t this a date?
“Sure, what time shall we meet?” I ask, hiding the fact that the Ice Queen herself invited me on a date.
“6 PM. At the bronze statue in the park.”
“Yeah, sure. So it’s a date then, very cool.”
“I-It’s not a date! It’s just friends hanging out with each other!” she denies the date part. Looking at her embarrassed face, she looks pretty cute.
The train arrives, and Kawamoto—I mean, Shiori, boards the train. She then takes another look at me for the last time.
“Then, I’ll see you on Christmas Eve, Hiroki-kun.”
“Yeah, I’m looking forward to it.”