The Story of How I, a Guy Who Couldn’t Care Less About School Castes, Somehow Ended Up Making All the Five-Star Gals Fall for Me - Chapter 07; Interlude 02

Interlude 02-1: Admitting Him

Ikoi’s question back at the family restaurant had been spot-on.

The truth was, they couldn’t possibly answer it.

—Because not a single one of the four actually had a boyfriend.

Forget boyfriends. They didn’t even have any real dating experience to begin with.

For all their flashy, larger-than-life vibe, the Five-Star Gals were surprisingly pure.

On top of that, they’d all been lying to each other out of pride.

One little slip had triggered a chain reaction, making it sound like each of them had a boyfriend.

And once that happened, none of them could find the timing to admit the truth.

So they just kept lying, and lying… until now.

For high school girls, love talk was as essential as oxygen.

And today, once again, they ended up talking about dates with boyfriends who didn’t even exist.

But in reality, ever since middle school they’d always gone everywhere together—at school, in private, the four of them were inseparable.

There had never been a chance to sneak off and go on an actual date with a guy.

With no real experiences to draw from, they just borrowed ideas from TV dramas, manga, reality shows, or random posts on social media, dressing them up as their own stories.

But in the end, it was all just amateur make-believe.

Without realizing it, each of them was basically describing her own ideal date.

Something that, when they looked back years later, would absolutely be branded as cringe teenage black history.

Nothing more than a glorified imagination contest.

And now… they were almost completely out of material.

Their lies were starting to reach the breaking point.

So the girls began using tricks—keeping things vague, dragging out details, dodging questions.

But the more they blurred and stalled, the more holes opened up in their stories, making them easier to poke apart.

Lying to your closest friends wasn’t exactly easy.

In trying to cover for each other, they got overly competitive—until it naturally twisted into, “Okay, so whose boyfriend is actually the best?”

And that was how the whole “ranking contest” idea was born.

And the unlucky judge chosen to settle it all was none other than Ikoi Kizuki.

☆☆☆☆☆

After leaving the family restaurant, Ikoi headed home first.

The four girls, meanwhile, lingered at the station for a bit of post-game talk.

And of course, their topic of choice was Ikoi Kizuki.

“See? Making Ikoi the judge was the perfect call! My instincts never fail☆”

Hinawa wore a smug grin, clearly fishing for praise.

“You really are bold, Hinawa-chan. After Hari-chan cried, I thought Kizuki-kun would be super tense. I was honestly nervous about how it would turn out.”

Miyu sighed in relief, glad it had all ended safely.

“Still, I’m surprised Kizuki-shi even agreed. Did you blackmail him? Or maybe try seduction as a tag team?”

Platina removed her glasses and casually wiped the lenses.

“As if we’d ever do something like that. Hinawa just bulldozed him into it.”

Hari shot her down flat, sounding exasperated.

“But you know, Kizuki-kun was really easy to talk to. He doesn’t change his attitude depending on who he’s with. It’s like he’s not tied down by the whole school caste thing, and he doesn’t make weird assumptions either. I like that.”

Miyu’s gentle way of speaking softened the mood.

For a girl who usually tensed up around boys, she was surprised at how fun it had actually been.

“Kizuki-shi is that rare type who can drift between any group—gals, otaku, whoever—while staying caste-free.”

Platina’s comment even carried a kind of academic air.

Coming from someone who usually couldn’t care less about others, her positive take caught the other three completely off guard.

“Right? Ikoi’s go-with-the-flow style makes him super fun!”

Hinawa lit up, delighted to have Platina’s logical words backing her up.

“…Well, true enough. Kizuki was… surprisingly normal. Sure, it was awkward after I cried, but even with all five of us talking, it didn’t feel as weird as I thought it would.”

Hari admitted it reluctantly.

Interlude 02-2: If We Dated a Boy in Class?

Hari’s blunt, almost anticlimactic tone actually revealed something else—without realizing it, she was giving Ikoi more credit than when he’d been standing right in front of her.

Ikoi Kizuki was the kind of guy who treated the Five-Star Gals the same way he treated anyone else in class.

Calm, steady, never freezing up, never fidgeting, never overselling himself.

He listened properly to all four of them, gave the right nods and cues, and answered in ways that fit the moment.

“Most guys just get tossed straight off the ride when Hinawa kicks into high-tension mode.”

Platina chuckled at the memory, nodding along.

Ever since middle school, she’d seen boys try—and fail—to keep up with Hinawa’s full-throttle, machine-gun chatter.

By the time Hinawa finally ran out of steam, the poor guy usually looked like he’d been hit-and-run by words alone.

“I thought the same thing! If other boys in class could talk normally like Ikoi, that’d be great. But for some reason, there’s always this weird wall between us.”

Hinawa tilted her head, genuinely puzzled.

Hinawa Hiwatari was endlessly cheerful and never put up barriers with people.

But because her own guard was so low—and because she naturally closed distance so fast—guys often misread it.

Sometimes they even got carried away, and things would spiral into trouble… stalker-level trouble, at that.

“It works out fine. We don’t need outsiders.”

Hari’s stance never wavered. As long as she had her close friends, that was enough.

“Hari’s basically like Medusa. Any guy who gets stared down by her turns to stone—perfect for keeping the creeps away.”

“Who are you calling a Greek monster?”

Platina tossed out her trademark witty remark, and Hari immediately snapped back.

“Honestly, having that wall is just right. Thanks to it, you avoid bad matches. Not everyone can be like Kizuki-shi.”

Platina coolly analyzed the situation.

In class, students naturally split into groups with shared tastes and interests, which created an invisible power structure—like a school caste system—whether people wanted it or not.

“Then why not be nice to the guys who hit on you in the city?”

Annoyed that the others kept siding with Ikoi, Hari let a little venom slip out.

“Flirting guys are nothing but rude. They look down on us, their conversations are boring and obnoxious, and their ulterior motives are obvious as hell. Plus, quit staring at my chest already. It’s gross.”

“I get that. Since I’m short, people treat me like some kind of mascot right from the start, and it really bothers me.”

Hinawa’s complaint struck a chord with Miyu, who nodded along.

Miyu’s cuteness was something everyone acknowledged—but because of that, she often got treated in ways she didn’t want. For her, it was a real complex.

“Miyu, you’d be fine if you just stopped worrying about your looks, like me.”

Platina’s messy appearance was completely intentional.

She carried a quiet contempt for people who judged others by appearances alone.

In her words, it was like running an experiment—testing just how much humans relied on their eyes.

Even girls who stood out had their own troubles.

Being at the top of the caste didn’t mean high school life was automatically easy or endlessly fun.

“At my house, if I don’t keep myself neat and proper, everyone freaks out and makes a huge deal about it. So it’s kinda hard.”

Miyu refused gently.

The Chigira family—her parents and her two much-older brothers—doted on her endlessly as the youngest.

That deep love was a blessing, but also stifling at times.

“On the contrary, Platina, you’re too careless about appearances! Even if it’s just to keep guys away, it’s a waste to let such good material go unused!”

Hari, with her strong sense of aesthetics, hated to see beauty left buried and unpolished.

That was exactly why she naturally took on the role of looking after the others, becoming the group’s de facto leader.

And that quiet, protective kindness even made other girls admire her like some kind of prince.

“I’m just naturally gifted, y’know.”

Platina smirked, brushing off Hari’s concern with her usual fearless grin.

Platina Kongouji was what people called a “can-do-if-she-tried” type.

As a kid, she was so good at everything that her relatives praised her as a prodigy.

But somewhere along the way, laziness became her default setting, and now she almost never put in real effort.

“Don’t dress up your sloppiness like it’s some kind of virtue!”

“Hari, you know what I can do when I get serious. That’s why I passed the same high school as you.”

Platina gave her glasses a sharp push up the bridge of her nose, striking a mock-genius pose.

Hari just looked at her with narrowed, unimpressed eyes.

“Please. It was mostly me and Miyu helping you study! Be grateful!”

“Then help me with college exams too. Let’s all go to the same university—that’s the easiest route.”

Platina shamelessly declared it like it was a done deal.

“How much babysitting do you expect us to do?”

“My whole life.”

“Too heavy! I might just stop being your friend.”

“Then I’ll get in on a recommendation,” Platina backpedaled just a little.

“And if you don’t?”

“Then I’ll just live off my parents’ money as a NEET, no problem.”

“Don’t proudly build mooching off your parents into your life plan, you spoiled rich girl!”

Platina Kongouji’s family really did have money to spare.

“At worst, I’ll just find someone willing to support me. For now, let’s add Kizuki-shi to the candidate list.”

“…Even you, Platina? Why is everyone suddenly praising him so much?”

Hari frowned, clearly not happy with the way the conversation was turning.

“Kizuki-shi’s lack of quirks is actually a solid personality trait.”

“Yeah. And Kizuki-kun’s grades weren’t bad either. On the last midterms, he ranked about the same as me.”

Miyu added the detail casually. Since she was smart enough to place near the top of the year, her words carried real weight.

“Like, how do I put it—Ikoi’s the kind of guy who feels just right, someone you can relax around. He listens seriously when I talk, and since he doesn’t try to act all cool, I don’t get drained being around him!”

“Mm-hm. I think his calmness makes him feel mature and really nice.”

Hinawa and Miyu praised him without holding back.

“You two are awfully eager to hype up Kizuki-shi. Well… not that I don’t get it.”

Platina smirked, amused at how much her friends seemed to like the boy.

But Hari didn’t like it one bit.

It felt like her friends were being pulled away by someone else.

“Okay then, forget about imaginary boyfriends for a sec. If you had to date one of the guys in our class, who would it be?”

Hinawa suddenly flipped the topic, bouncing along like an overexcited puppy.

Interlude 02-3: The Four Begin to Notice Him More

“For example, Ikoi’s exactly the kind of rough diamond Hari would normally like. Don’t you think if he dressed up a little, his whole vibe would change?”

Hinawa took the lead, tossing out a concrete example.

“Listen, what really matters is how improving your looks polishes your insides. If the inside is empty, then just fixing the outside is pointless.”

“Uh-huh, says the girl who’s not even interested in guys. Not very convincing.”

“Well, yes, my standards for romance are strict.”

“Huh. But can you even put conditions on falling in love with someone?”

Hinawa never overthought things.

Her heart always gave her the answer, and because she followed it honestly, she never got stuck.

“My bare minimum is someone who isn’t childish, who’s naturally kind, and who I can talk to without getting exhausted. Some impulsive love-at-first-sight thing like Hinawa’s style? Totally impossible for me.”

Hari stuck her tongue out with an exaggerated blegh.

Even among kids the same age, views on romance varied wildly.

“Well, for someone as beautiful as Hari-chan, it makes sense your standards would be high to match.”

Miyu gave her a soft smile.

“Hari’s just cowardly, yet her ideals are sky-high.”

Platina muttered it under her breath, earning herself a sharp frown from Hari.

“So then, if you had to date one of the guys in class, who would it be? For me, it’s Ikoi, no contest! He’d probably help me study, and he’s not bad at sports either, so I think he’s a pretty solid pick.”

Hinawa kicked things off, only for Hari to instantly shoot back, “Your standards are stuck at elementary-school level!”

“But… I think I’d pick Kizuki-kun too. Not long ago, when I was in trouble, he casually helped me out. It was really cool.”

Miyu chimed in with strong agreement.

“Kizuki-shi’s precision with words is impressive. Sloppy communication stresses me out, so in that regard, he’s good.”

Even Platina praised him outright.

With three of them naming Ikoi Kizuki again, Hari finally lost patience and snapped.

“Listen, peel back one layer and he’s just like every other guy—his head’s full of nothing but dirty thoughts!”

“Well, personally, I’d feel sadder if the guy I liked didn’t want me that way.”

“That’s exactly the problem,” Hari sighed.

“But seriously, don’t you feel like he’s kind of hard to figure out?”

Hari just couldn’t get a solid grasp on Ikoi Kizuki.

“That’s only because you haven’t opened your heart, Hari.”

Hinawa tossed it out casually, like she’d just handed down the ultimate answer.

“I don’t have that open, everyone’s-a-friend spirit like Hinawa. But really, why do you even like such a plain guy?”

“If you look closely, Ikoi’s actually pretty handsome. Hari, do you only like super-hot guys?”

“No. Once I’m really in love, looks don’t matter anymore.”

“Then tell us—who in class would you pick? The three of us already answered.”

Put on the spot, Hari fell silent.

Now that she thought about it, she barely even talked to the boys in her second-year class.

She couldn’t immediately match most of their names to faces.

But that couldn’t be helped—she just wasn’t interested in other people.

Back when she had her sights set on becoming a professional ballet dancer, her life revolved around lessons.

Day after day, she cut away everything that wasn’t about her own growth.

That stoic lifestyle had stuck with her, even now after quitting.

Still, Hari recognized that Ikoi Kizuki’s way of talking equally to everyone was impressive.

His voice was calm, his tone expressive without being rough, his word choices clear, and his thinking free of the kind of biases that made people uncomfortable.

By process of elimination, if she had to choose someone she actually knew, someone she could talk to without irritation… the only option left for Hari was Ikoi Kizuki.

But deep down, she knew choosing someone meant more than that.

“…For me, as long as it’s the four of us together, that’s enough. Friendship matters more than romance.”

Meeting these three had saved her.

Hari Suitengu had been able to step out of the darkness of loneliness.

Hearing that, Hinawa, Miyu, and Platina all squeezed her in a tight hug.

The four of them really were close.

“Our friendship’s forever—’til the day we die! So don’t you worry!”

Hinawa declared it with fiery confidence.

And yet… there was no denying that today, each of the four had begun to strongly notice one boy in particular—Ikoi Kizuki.