The Charm of the Popular Beautiful Succubus in Class Doesn't Work on Me ~ For Some Reason, This Beauty Keeps Trying to Hold My Hand ~ - 21

Chapter 21: Rainy Days Really Make You Think About All Sorts of Things, Huh?

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It seemed the rainy season was about to start since it started to rain around noon, making the sky look so gloomy. The rain continued to fall steadily, turning the schoolyard into a large puddle.

I took out my foldable umbrella from my bag and, upon doing so, I noticed a girl standing by the shoe lockers.

“Ah, Sarashina. What are you doing?”

She glanced at me. She looked obviously upset. 

“You can see what I’m doing, can’t you?”

She said curtly. Indeed. It was a pointless question. The rain came out of nowhere today. If I hadn’t received a LINE message from Kokubun, I definitely wouldn’t have brought my umbrella with me. 

Thank you, Information Broker.

“The rain is not showing any sign of stopping soon…”

“…”

Without giving me any response, she glared at the sky. The rain was still pouring incessantly. After a brief silence, she shifted her gaze toward me. 

“Hey, if there’s a girl staring at the pouring rain by the entrance and she clearly doesn’t have any umbrella with her, what should a gentleman do in that situation?”

She said while looking and sounding obviously irritated at the situation. 

“Don’t you know? British gentlemen don’t use umbrellas. They think of umbrellas as dapper. Not wearing one is considered as the height of fashion of that time. 

“What kind of useless trivia is that?”

She snorted, looking clearly unimpressed. 

“Well, then, I’ll take my leave first. Good day, young lady.”

I pretended to open my umbrella and she showed a look of panic before walking over to me briskly.

“Wa-Wait a minute! What do you mean by a ‘British gentleman’ with a face like that?! Your face is 100% Japanese!”

“Merci.”

“That’s French. Are you really planning to leave a girl without an umbrella?? You’re not afraid that I might get drenched and catch a cold in return??”

She blocked my way, seemingly determined not to let me leave as she said so rather forcefully. Seeing this, I let out a big sigh. 

“Then you should’ve said that from the start. Here, get inside. I will let you use my umbrella together.”

I said as I offered her the umbrella.

“Huh?”

“Hm…?”

“You’re supposed to say ‘Please use this umbrella’ you know?”

She said in a slightly sulky tone while averting her gaze from me. 

Here it comes. Sarashina’s signature move, her arrogant and insolent behavior. That said, this is just Sarashina’s way of putting on a tough front. This is just my guess, but she probably does this to hide her true feelings. Because… After watching Sarashina recently, she’s definitely not the kind of girl who would seriously take my umbrella away from me. 

“British gentlemen need to go home and take a siesta, so I’ll excuse myself here. Adios.”

Of course, I also didn’t have any intention to leave a girl behind in this pouring rain. However, Sarashina’s flustered expression was so amusing, so much so that I couldn’t resist teasing her a bit.

“Wait a minute!”

“What is it, Your Highness?”

I said with a smirk.

“Well, fine. I will make an exception and compromise with you this time, but in return! You have to carry the umbrella!”

“And how exactly should one ask for favor again?”

“-!!!”

“Now then… Siesta time. Nap, here I come!~”

“…Fine.”

Her bold attitude vanishes entirely, replaced by her shy, awkward demeanor. She avoided making eye contact with me, but I could see  her cheeks turning a faint shade of red.

“Excuse me… If you wouldn’t mind, could you share your umbrella with me?”

Huh? She’s being more demure than I expected? Sarashina… So you can make that kind of face, huh?

Seeing her face like that somehow made me feel more flustered than I thought. By the time I realized it, I was the one looking away, embarrassed at the situation myself.

“S-See?! Yo-You can do it if you want. Here, take my umbrella-sharing virginity.”

“You know… Do you really have to say it like that? Seriously, do you even think about what you’re going to say before you say it? Give me my innocent feelings back!”

Despite her sarcastic retort, Sarashina let out a small chuckle. Her expression softened with relief. I opened the umbrella and held it out to her. 

“Pardon the intrusion.”

She said before stepping under the umbrella in a delicate motion. That simple gesture almost knocked the wind out of me, even though I had always thought of Sarashina as just a “friend.”

No, looking this cute in such a casual and unintentional way… This is a foul move. She’s much more charming like this, compared to how she usually acts. After all, Sarashina tends to be overly obvious when she tries to flirt. Honestly, if only she could be a bit more honest, I might admit her as a fully certified “beautiful girl.”

“…”

Nonetheless… Sharing the umbrella like this made her surprisingly close to me. We were so close, making me feel as if our skin might touch at any second now. 

This is bad… It’s totally obvious that I’m still a virgin. This… Ah, it can’t be helped. 

I shifted my umbrella slightly toward her, sacrificing my left shoulder. With this, I was able to create a bit more distance between us. 

Ah, there goes my British gentleman’s jacket. My jacket is ruined by the rain now. 

“Your umbrella is smaller than I expected. Is this what they call a ‘loner exclusive umbrella’?”

Sarashina said as she edged closer, gradually encroaching on my space even though I had purposely created some distance between us. I could feel the warmth of her arm against mine where I was holding the umbrella between us. 

“Dearest customer, we’re at over capacity here. So if you’re not the ‘loner’ type, then please kindly vacate the premises.”

At this, she glared sharply at my sarcastic comment, but quickly averted her gaze. Her expression turned complicated. 

“You’re right… Recently, I feel like I’ve stepped into the ‘loner’ world myself.”

“Come to think of it, I haven’t seen you talking to guys lately. Are things not going well with your friends?”

“That’s not really the case, but…”

“Did something happen?”

Sarashina hesitated for a moment. Her expression wavering, but then she quickly flashed me her mischievous smile again. 

“I wonder whose fault it is. I’d like to see them take responsibility.”

Responsibility? Wait, hold on. She’s blaming me for that? Don’t tell me… Because a yankee-looking guy like me is hanging around Sarashina, the other guys are feeling too intimidated to approach her…?

“Oh, speaking of responsibility…”

Her mischievous smile grew wider than before. 

“Wha-What now?”

“Actually… This is my first time sharing an umbrella with someone. I can’t believe my first time would be with this ‘loner exclusive’ umbrella…. What a letdown.”

“Wait, this is your first time? Aren’t you supposed to be super experienced in love and something like this?”

“Oh? Are you interested in my love life?”

At my question, she gave me the most playful smile of the day. She leaned in close, peering into my face, but I couldn’t bring myself to nod in response.

It’s not that I’m not interested in Sarashina’s love life. It would be a lie to say I wasn’t curious, but… Somehow, after hearing all those things from Akanashi, I can’t summon the courage to ask Sarashina about her love life right here and now.

Seeing my hesitation, she let out a soft chuckle for some reason.

“You know… Rainy days really make you think about all sorts of things, huh?”

She said while stepping forward out from under the umbrella and kicked up a puddle on the road.

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