Translator: Lilo
Editor: Ryuubii

Chapter 5: Makabe Shizuru Is Not Cut Out For Romance

Act 2(1)

The next day.

When I got on the train to go to school, I found Takinami Ruika there.

She’s standing with one hand holding onto a strap above and her other hand holding a textbook. It must be a reference book since it’s a different size from school textbooks.

It looks like she’s completely focused on reading, so she hasn’t noticed me. Let’s just get away from here while she’s still not looking. Just when I was thinking that, she looked up as if something was calling to her. Naturally, she recognizes me.

“Oh, good morning, Makabe-kun.”

“Good morning.”

I missed the timing to leave.

“If you were there, you should have called out to me.”

“I didn’t want to disturb you.”

“Geez, this is embarrassing…”

Takinami-senpai murmurs.

We faced each other near the door.

“Do you always enter through this door?”

“No, I try to ride any openings, so it’s not fixed.”

Apparently, some people keep things fixed, not only time for waking up and walking to the station, but even a specific door to go through. My classmate, Heshikiri Sakura, has the same idea. It seems like she’s anxious when doing anything different.

“Is that so? Since you told me before that this is your usual time. I tried to delay my departure a little… I guess it’s fate, huh?”

“If you say it like that, a guy would misunderstand you. It’s just a coincidence.”

Although, in this case, she’s deliberately saying it like that, knowing I wouldn’t misunderstand her.

And then, the train shook.

“Ah.”

Unless she was standing in a very unstable position, she would have been able to stand on her feet. Nevertheless, Takinami-senpai lost her balance and with a small scream, she fell onto my chest.

“?!”

I suddenly felt a very soft sensation. Not to put it strangely, but it’s as if Takinami Ruika was made of something soft. And her elegant scent tickled my nose, which I could smell due to the distance between us.

“…Are you okay?”

“I-I’m sorry. What am I doing…”

How blatant.

Moreover, instead of moving away, she leaned even further.

“Takinami-senpai.”

“Come on. Last time, you were getting hugged by Takajou-san.”

When I whispered her name to warn her, she looked up and spoke in close range.

I let out a small sigh.

“Makabe-kun?”

As expected, she couldn’t stay attached to me forever, so Takinami-senpai let go of my body. Then, perhaps sensing something suspicious about my behavior, she tilted her head.

I fell silent.

The train arrived at the Kobe Sports Park station and the doors behind opened.

The number of passengers at this station is small. No one got on or off at this door either.

An announcement is made that the door will soon be closed.

Then, just before the doors closed―I got off the train.

“Shi…”

Takinami-senpai’s voice.

I looked back and saw her face behind the closed door, her eyes were wide open. The train started to move, and soon I couldn’t see it.

“That should do it.”

I deliberately voice out my words.

There are many trains in the morning. The shortest interval is about three minutes and the longest is six minutes. As usual, I’m not running late, so if I catch the next train, I will be on time for school. I might be able to make up for the delay just by walking faster than usual.

The problem was Takinami-senpai waiting at the station.

Naturally, the probability that she would want to hear the reason why I did such a thing is high. The thought of it made me dejected and hate myself.

Suddenly, my phone got a notification. It was a message from a chat app.

I opened it up.

『I’m sorry. I took my joke too far.』

While I was reading and staring at that careful text, two more messages arrived.

『I’ll go on ahead.』

『I will apologize again this afternoon.』

She felt bad about it. She must have thought that I got angry because of her joke. However, I was simply imposing my ideals onto her. And I will continue doing so.

Because of the guilt I felt, I couldn’t reply.

§§§

After school.

After class, I looked around the classroom as I began putting away my stuff.

Naoi’s group has already gathered. But they will now separate from there.

First, Naoi and his self-proclaimed partner, Murodo, are off to their club. The Handball club. There is another core member, Tatsuno, but he’s not a member of a club, so he will join up with a friend who was in the same class as him in the first year after this. And Izumikawa will be leaving school alone.

Naoi’s group is united when the leader is present, but the ties of the others are thin.

They exchanged some words and then dispersed. I followed Izumikawa out of the classroom.

“Izumikawa.”

When I called out to him when he was alone, he jumped and turned around.

“Wh-What is it? You want something from me…?”

Why is he so nervous? Is it because his friends aren’t around, or is it because there’s something he knows? 

“I need to ask you something.”

“……..”

Izumikawa was silent, perhaps wary of my appearance when I suddenly talked to him.

“It was you who spread that rumor, right?”

“H-Huh?! W-What proof do you have to say that?”

Izumikawa probably knew that I was going to ask him about this topic. Even though he was prepared for it, he panicked because I hit the bull’s eye. In a sense, this reaction could be said to be proof.

At his voice, the gaze of other students suddenly gathered around him, he backed down with an annoyed look on his face.

“Izumikawa, you’re mistaken.”

“Mistaken?”

“That’s right. I’m not a cop. Even if I don’t have any proof, I will still insinuate that it’s you. You’ve been spreading rumors with no proof, so we’re even, right? All I have to do is ask Naoi to do something about you, Izumikawa.”

“S-Stop it!”

Izumikawa screams.

There’s no need to tell a teacher since we’re high schoolers. If that’s the case, the only thing left to do is to tell the leader of the group to which Izumikawa belongs, namely Naoi. He is a man of integrity, so he would not leave anything unjust and would confirm the facts with Izumikawa. And Izumikawa is more afraid of Naoi’s disapproval than receiving guidance from a teacher.

“I-If it’s proof, I have it. I saw it. I saw you and Takinami-san at Harbor Land last Sunday.”

“……”

It seems like he didn’t start a rumor out of nothing. Izumikawa saw us. On Sunday, he saw me and Takinami-senpai meeting outside. Hasumi-senpai was there that day, but she had already left.

In fact, that alone does not mean that I’m stalking Takinami-senpai, but Izumikawa dared to bend the facts there deliberately.

“What’s with you? You both get along with Hasumi-san and Takinami-san. I feel sorry for Kyouhei-kun. After all, Kyouhei-kun is…”

Perhaps afraid to speak out, Izumikawa was vague about the last part.

“So that’s how it is…”

I was mumbling to myself.

Izumikawa stuck to Naoi not because he just wanted to have a fun high school life. He also purely admired Naoi. That’s why he noticed his faint infatuation with Hasumi-senpai and sensed the recent change in him.

As Karube had deduced, Izumikawa was afraid that Naoi’s liking for me might cause a relative decline in his own reputation, and that he might be dropped from the group. But more than that, he was thinking about Naoi and trying to get rid of me. That’s why he spread bad rumors about me.

I may have slightly misjudged Izumikawa Satoshi a little.

“What?”

“Nothing really. I just thought that you really care for your friends.”

“H-Huh?!”

He cares for his friends. That’s why I have to say this.

“But Izumikawa, Naoi is a man of integrity. He won’t be pleased about what you did.”

Immediately after that, Izumikawa stopped dead in his tracks.

I stopped as well and faced him.

“S-Shut up. Besides, if only you weren’t around―”

“I know. That’s why, leave the rest to me. I’ll take care of Naoi.”

Like Izumikawa, I too want to do something about Naoi. The problem is that I have yet to come up with a concrete plan.

I found myself near the stairs. Izumikawa will go down from here to go home. I didn’t go downstairs, but went to the library.

“Later, Izumikawa. See you tomorrow.”

“H-Hey…”

I tapped Izumikawa twice on the shoulder and left him.

At the moment, only the members of his group are aware that something is wrong with Naoi. However, Naoi is in the limelight. If this continues, sooner or later, it is bound to spread throughout the class.

I would like to do something before that happens.