The Story Of How I, A Gloomy Guy, Ended Up Surrounded By the Top-Tier Beautiful Girls In Class After A Seat Change - Chapter 41-42

Chapter 41:

“……”

Kuroki’s use of “Ryota-kun” makes the cold stares from Miyama in front of me and Yuria to my left pierce through me.

It’s inevitable that their stares would hurt. I have connections with all three girls in this beautiful group because I know each of their secrets, but I am not allowed to reveal these secrets to the other two.

So, the three of them don’t know that I share ‘secrets’ with the others and have grown somewhat close because of it. Yet, in this situation where Kuroki called me by my first name so casually, it appears as a strange phenomenon to the other two.

Previously, when Miyama mistakenly called me “Ryota,” the atmosphere became the same.

(It’s natural to be suspicious… This situation is very bad.)

“Hey, why is Rui-chan also calling you Ryota? Rui-chan, you never talked to Ryota in middle school, right?”

“That’s true, but since Airi also calls him Ryota, I thought I’d give it a try. Besides, if everyone in nearby seats calls him different names, Ryota-kun might get confused. I figured this would be better.”

As expected of a genius with both brains and beauty… She comes up with an excuse seamlessly. With no hint of anxiety in her expression, it almost seems believable… But only I know that she deliberately called me by my first name.

(Kuroki must have taken measures because she wants to call me by my first name in front of everyone.)

This kind of cleverness is part of Kuroki’s greatness… As a perfectionist, she leaves no loose ends.

“That’s right. Yuria, you should call Ryota-kun ‘Ryota’ too.”

“Huh? M-Me?”

“Come on.”

Prompted by Kuroki, Yuria turns to me.

“Then… Ry-Ryota.”

Yuria calls me while slightly pouting her lips. The way she deliberately makes it seem unfamiliar shows that Yuria has her cunning side too.

And so, not just in private but regularly, I ended up being called ‘Ryota’ by all three girls.

“Anyway, back to the topic, which one are you voting for, Ryota-kun? The play or the café?”

“Huh? I… I…”

Kuroki naturally tries to include me in the conversation of the top-tier beautiful girls’ group in the class hierarchy.

“I was thinking of voting for the café since Miyama asked me.”

“Oh, the café. So, you were really talking about the cultural festival earlier, Airi.”

“Y-Yeah! Come on, Rui-chan, don’t doubt me!”

It seems Kuroki is suspicious of our relationship.

(Well, it’s true that Miyama and I have been seen together not just in the cafeteria but also at Sno-To, so it’s not strange for people to suspect things…)

“So, both Airi and Ryota-kun are voting for the café. Yuria, you’re on the executive committee, but you said before that you prefer the play, right?”

“Y-Yeah… Because if we go to the café, the procedures for handling food are troublesome… And the inspections are kind of gross.”

Inspections… She means that, right? I should refrain from thinking about strange things, but indeed, gathering those is the committee’s job, and Yuria must find it unpleasant…

“How about you, Rui?”

“Me? Hmm, I’m still undecided.”

Kuroki said that while glancing at me sideways.

(Wh-what’s with that look…?)

When I glared back, she smiled sweetly and looked at Yuria again.

“I think I’ll vote for the play for Yuria’s sake.”

“No way! Rui-chan, choose the café with me. Let’s be maids together!”

“Really? But I’m not as cute as Yuria or Airi~”

Kuroki said this while staring straight at me.

Could it be that Kuroki has figured out that I’m having improper thoughts about Miyama’s big boobs and Yuria’s thighs…?

Though, a girl as beautiful as Kuroki saying she’s not cute just sounds like sarcasm…

“No, no, if Rui isn’t cute, then all of us girls are less than background characters.”

“Hehe, what is it, Yuria? Are you complimenting me?”

Kuroki approached Yuria, extended her beautiful left hand to Yuria’s face, and lifted her chin.

“When a stylish gal like Yuria compliments me, I get embarrassed.”

“N-no! I was just stating the truth.”

Y-Yes, yuri alert!! No, wait!

That Kuroki… she’s doing this on purpose.

(And Yuria, you’re blushing like you don’t entirely mind it!)

“Hey, Ryota, Ryota! Should we choose the play after all?”

“What, Miyama? You’re fine with not doing the café with the big boobs… I mean, the café?”

“Hmm. If Yuria, who’s on the organizing committee, says the play is easier, then maybe I’ll vote for the play. Airi doesn’t mind either way.”

“…Yeah, you’re right. I’ll do that too.”

The play… huh.

The heroine will probably be Kuroki, and I’ll just end up doing odd jobs as the loner introvert.

Kuroki as the heroine… huh.

I have a bad feeling about this… or am I overthinking it?

—

Chapter 42:

Since our second period modern society class became a self-study session, we decided to discuss what our class would do for the culture festival.

The girls’ executive committee representative is the high school’s No. 1 gal, Yuria Ichinose. On the other hand, the boys’ executive committee representative is Yamato Hino, a charismatic and leadership-oriented handsome guy.

“Alright, let’s continue talking about the culture festival today! Last time, we narrowed it down to either a play or a café. Everyone thought about which one to choose over the weekend, right?”

Hino smoothly led the discussion with his excellent communication skills. Yuria, who disliked talking to boys, silently supported him by writing various things on the blackboard when Hino asked.

(Is Yuria not even opening up to Hino?)

Thinking about it that way, I might be amazing after all…

I couldn’t compete with Hino in looks, height, or social skills. The only thing I could surpass Hino in was academics. But excelling only in studies made me ‘just a nerd,’ so it was almost impossible to be higher in the class hierarchy than the popular kids.

I, a reclusive otaku who had always been at the bottom of the class hierarchy, undoubtedly feel that I am on a higher stage than the popular kids now.

(Is this thanks to the seating change that put me close to Yuria, Miyama, and Kuroki?)

Until recently, I had a strong sense of discomfort around the three, but sharing a secret brought us closer together. Initially, I resented the seating change, but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

“Alright, I’m going to pass out papers, so write down which one you prefer.”

While I was basking in a sense of superiority with a grin, the voting had started before I knew it.

“Here you go, Ryota.”

Receiving a palm-sized piece of blank paper from Miyama, who sat in front of me, I quickly wrote ‘play.’ After the papers were collected, the tallying results were announced after a while.

“Alright, I’ll announce the results. Our class 2-1 will do a play for the culture festival!”

The class erupted in applause at Hino’s announcement.

(Oh, as expected, it’s going to be a play.)

Miyama and Kuroki exchanged smiles.

Yuria, the executive committee representative, had said that a play would be easier, so they were probably happy that it was chosen. Their friendship is genuinely pleasant to see.

“Since we’ve decided on the play, let’s choose the performance. Does anyone have a suggestion—”

Before Hino could finish, a hand shot up from my right. Kuroki…?

“Original scripts are hard to prepare, so I think we should go with a classic. How about ‘Snow White’…?”

S-Snow White…? Is she talking about the story where the girl eats an apple, falls asleep, and can’t wake up without a kiss from a handsome prince? It sounds like a tale of a high-maintenance girl with unrealistic expectations.

(Seriously, why suggest a play with a kiss scene… No one will come to see a class play anyway, so why not something like ‘Momotaro’?)

“Oh! Snow White is a great idea! Excellent! What does everyone think?”

Hino praised Kuroki while asking the class.

“Yeah, if Kuroki-chan says so, I’m in!”
“Me too, me too!”
“I’m okay with it!”
“I want to wake up from Kuroki-san’s kiss!”
“Me too!”

Though there were some creepy voices, almost the entire class nodded in agreement.

(Is this the overwhelming influence of Rui Kuroki…?)

When Rui Kuroki says right, it’s right. When she says left, it’s left. When the most popular girl in school and class president, Rui Kuroki, speaks, it becomes the consensus.

“Alright, Snow White it is!”

The class erupted in applause once again.

(Since we have Airi Miyama, the busty beauty who appears once in a thousand years, we should make her the protagonist of a slightly erotic play…)

As I entertained an unlikely wish, the busty girl in the front seat greeted me with a “Hello.”

“Hey, Ryota, let’s be dwarfs if it’s Snow White!”
“Dwarfs? There’s no way someone like you could be a dwarf.”
“Why not? Dwarfs are cute.”

You’re… clearly a busty giant.

“And—just doing a play would be boring, so I have another suggestion.”

Another suggestion? Knowing the perfectionist Kuroki, she probably wants to play Snow White herself.

“Let’s have the boys play Snow White and the girls play the prince! How about that?”

(…Huh?)