Chapter 25: Encounter with a New S-Class Beauty (Rin Part)

Haruya felt a sense of discomfort from Yuna’s statement, but it didn’t cause any particular changes. 

During his weekday school life, he usually spent most of his time alone, so even if Yuna knew the school rules, it didn’t affect Haruya’s life. 

However, recently, he had been bothered by Yuki, who sat next to him, with constant talk about “S-Class Beauties.”

In the past few days, there was a big news about one of the “S-Class Beauties” – Sara Himekawa and Yuna Takamori – that the boys they like attend this high school. 

This rumor caused chaos in the class, but Haruya, who was not really  interested in the class dynamics, only thought of it as a trivial matter. 

He casually brushed it off when Yuki brought it up and continued his peaceful high school life.

♦︎♢♦︎

“… Geez, it’s pouring suddenly.”

As it started raining suddenly, Haruya stopped by a nearby place to take shelter from the rain. 

It was currently Friday evening after class. He was on his way home alone, but was caught in a sudden shower. 

Even though it was just a passing shower, the rain was coming down hard, soaking his uniform, bag, and hair, causing him to feel down.

(….Sigh, this is the worst.)

Though he sighed heavily, he lifted his hair, which had become heavy with the rain, to improve his visibility, and squeezed the water out of his clothes. 

He looked up at the overcast sky that had covered the entire sky and his mood just worsened. The downpour seemed like it’ll take some time to stop.

Feeling annoyed by the weather, Haruya tried to distract himself by dressing up. 

He had tucked earrings in his pocket, which he put on both ears. However, he still felt down and kept sighing. 

He stared blankly at the gloomy sky, took a deep breath, and soon a girl was running towards him or more specifically to where he was at.

“It’s raining hard, why did it suddenly rain like this?”

Running through the wet ground in the rain, she arrived at the rest area in the park where he was currently taking shelter in. 

The petite and charming girl had a familiar feel to her, but Haruya also felt that she had a well-put-together appearance.

Her cherry-colored eyes were wide open, and although her hair was wet from the rain, it still had a shine to it. Her lips were also a beautiful color, and her appearance was more on the cute side than on the beautiful side. 

Haruya thought that she had the kind of look that would make her popular with the boys.

“Oh? Someone’s already here.” 

Said the flustered female student, and Haruya looked up at her face, their eyes, as expected, met with each other.

“Yeah, I’m using this place.”

Haruya briefly considered whether to speak politely but ultimately decided to match Rin’s friendly tone. 

This was also influenced by Rin’s innocent appearance, which didn’t require the use of honorifics.

“Oh no, the rain is terrible. The weather forecast didn’t say anything about this.”

“Yeah, and for a passing shower, it doesn’t seem like it’ll be stopping anytime soon.”

The clouds seemed to tell a story – it wasn’t going to stop raining anytime soon.

As Haruya looked up and smiled wryly, he noticed Rin staring at him intently. 

“That uniform, we go to the same high school, right? Sorry, I just realized.”

“Yeah, it seems like it.”

“You’re wearing earrings, so you’re a delinquent, I’m guessing? What grade are you in?”

Feeling overwhelmed by Rin’s intense questioning, Haruya couldn’t help but flinch. 

(…She’s really good at closing the distance. It’s like she’s pushing and coming closer to me or something.)

Haruya inwardly thought that Rin must be what people commonly refer to as a “sunny person” or “extrovert.”

“Well, I’m a first-year student.”

“We’re the same age! A first-year with an all-back hairstyle and earrings, how cool!”

Haruya acknowledged Rin’s bright smile, showing her white teeth, but at the same time, felt a sense of urgency. 

(This is bad. If she finds out my name and class, and comes to the classroom…)

He may be overly self-conscious, but it’s possible with Rin. 

If she’s someone who is this close in distance upon first meeting, then it’s likely that she will casually interact if they see each other at school.

For Haruya, who leads a peaceful school life on his own, this is an unavoidable crisis.

 Above all, if something like this happens, he can already envision the barrage of questions he would get from Yuki, who sits next to him. 

His instincts are telling him to avoid any more private conversations.

“So, what’s your name and class—”

“Sorry, but I can see it a little.”

Haruya interjected, turning his gaze away and blurting out the words with a pained expression.

Perhaps it was an issue with the material of the uniform, but her current attire was slightly see-through. 

As a result, the bra marks were clearly visible. 

Rin tilted her head in confusion, but when she looked at her own body, she realized what had happened.

” —W-wawa…”

In an instant, Rin hunched over and clutched her own body in embarrassment. She pursed her pretty pink lips and murmured “ecchi” while looking down.

(… I was hesitant to tell her, but I had no choice… please forgive me.)

Actually, Haruya had noticed what had happened since Rin had burst into the spot, but he deliberately didn’t mention it. 

However, in order to distract from the question he didn’t want to answer – “name and class” – he reluctantly brought it up.

After acknowledging Rin, who had suddenly shrunk and become quiet with her back turned to him, the awkward atmosphere suddenly filled the air. 

Until now, the cheerful voice of Rin had dominated the surroundings, but now only the empty sound of rain was audible to Haruya.

(…I made her feel uncomfortable, so there’s no helping it.)

Out of regret, Haruya opened his bag and took out a long-sleeved jersey, placing it over the small girl’s back.

“For now, I won’t look, so if you want to wring out your clothes, go ahead. And if you want to wear my jersey, feel free to wear it however you like.”

“…?”

Haruya stated this matter-of-factly, and when Rin turned to look at him, her eyes were slightly trembling. 

Despite grumbling about it, it seemed like Haruya had decided to meddle in her affairs.

Rin