An Introvert's Hookup Hiccups: This Gyaru Is Head Over Heels for Me! Volume 2 E-Book

Yuishi

• Herausgeber: J-Novel Club
• Serie: An Introvert's Hookup Hiccups: This Gyaru Is Head Over Heels for Me!
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023

Seitenzahl: 336

Beschreibung

Yoshin Misumai, the perennial introvert, is now dating one of the most beautiful girls in school—Nanami Barato, the clean-cut gyaru who confessed to him on a dare. With a surprise stamp of approval from Nanami’s parents, the two are on their way to super flirty, ooey-gooey romance. But in the midst of a boba date and an accidental kiss, the two run into Yoshin’s parents, and Nanami learns that he’ll be home alone while his mom and dad are out. It’s time to amp up the mood with late-night meals and an impromptu sleepover. This introvert had better prepare himself because things are getting cushy—fast!

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Cover

Prologue: A Slight Change in Us

Chapter 1: An Unexpected Meeting

Interlude: Her Feelings

Chapter 2: A Little Courage and Just the Right Words

Interlude: The Day He Told Me He Liked Me

Chapter 3: Nanami-sensei’s Cooking Class

Chapter 4: Our Aquarium Date

Chapter 5: An Unexpected Continuation

Interlude: At the Baratos’ House

Chapter 5.5: Steamy Gossip

Afterword

Color Illustrations

About J-Novel Club

Copyright

Landmarks

Table of Contents

Color Images

Prologue: A Slight Change in Us

It was the day after my successful first date with Nanami-san and my unexpected meeting with her parents—the day that marked a whole week of us dating. It was on that day, after school, that I got called into my teacher’s office.

I didn’t get called in because of poor grades or bad behavior; I got called in because of my relationship with Nanami-san.

Of course, I was a little taken aback at first, this being the first time I’d been sent for like this, but I was even more surprised by the fact that a student could be called in for their dating life.

Did even teachers keep up with the latest gossip? No, that couldn’t be it. My teacher’s face was serious.

Once we were alone together, he hesitated for a moment and then leaned in to address me.

“Misumai, I just wanted a quick word with you. You’re not...being bullied by Barato, are you?”

“Excuse me?”

I couldn’t help my dumbfounded response. What he’d said was just too unbelievable. How in the world had he gotten the idea that I was being bullied by Nanami-san?

No, wait. I guess to the people around us—especially to the adults—the fact that Nanami-san and I were spending time together could only mean that she must be bullying me somehow. That was how strange it was for us to be seen together. The fact wasn’t really news to me, but it did sting a little to have it thrust in my face like this.

Nonetheless, I maintained my composure as I denied the possibility. “Nanami-san and I are in a very healthy romantic relationship, with no bullying of any kind. Dating isn’t against school rules, is it?”

Well, I was trying to maintain my composure, but my words came out kinda uncontrollably, making it seem like I was trying to argue. Wait, dating isn’t against school rules, is it?

Oh shoot, I’d said that all confidently without even knowing what the rules even were. But then, who actually looked up stuff like that? I figured that the best they could do was to prohibit sexual misconduct. My relationship with Nanami-san wasn’t improper, and it certainly wasn’t sexual either. Then again, maybe it was improper in a way, not that I could share that with the teacher.

“Is that so?” my teacher asked, unable to hide his suspicion. It seemed that no matter what I said, he just couldn’t believe that she and I were actually dating. That...I couldn’t blame him for. But I insisted that there was absolutely no bullying involved.

In fact, in the second half of our conversation, I spent more energy trying to convince him that Nanami-san and I were actually going out than I did trying to deny any bullying accusations. It was beyond embarrassing having to sit there telling him about all the things she and I were doing as a couple. Why in the world am I having such a TMI moment with my teacher? I wondered, but despite my misgivings about sharing all those lovey-dovey details, I was desperate not to accept such slander against either of us.

After all my efforts, the teacher sighed with relief. “I see, so that’s what it was. My apologies for the offensive question.”

With that, he bowed to me deeply.

I wasn’t at all accustomed to having an adult apologize to me, so I ended up getting more flustered. At the same time, I couldn’t help feeling dissatisfied—I mean, if my words alone were enough to convince him that Nanami-san wasn’t bullying me, then I wished he hadn’t thought to suspect she was in the first place.

It seemed the teacher had noticed my look of mild frustration, because he smiled wryly and took a moment to explain. “You see, some of the other teachers became rather concerned after your episode in the nurse’s office. They thought that perhaps you were pretending to date in order to hide something.”

“Oh... Is that right?”

“I realize that it was just a rumor, but since someone raised that possibility, I had no choice but to follow up on it.”

Since the circumstances were somewhat peculiar, rumors like that were to be expected. At least I finally understood why he’d called me in here to ask about bullying.

“And you know, maybe I shouldn’t say this, but...” The teacher hesitated for even longer this time, but he spoke to me sincerely. “The two of you are, um...quite different types of people, you know? And you didn’t seem to interact much before all this, so I guess I worried that you started associating with one another for an unsavory reason.”

He may have chosen his words carefully, but I really felt he was saying all this in good faith. We were, after all, “The Gyaru” and “The Introvert,” who truly hadn’t so much as spoken to one another before any of this had happened. It was only natural for the teachers to find that peculiar. But this also meant we couldn’t have them finding out the actual truth.

We’re actually only dating because of a dare.

It was sad that they were more likely to believe that truth than that we were going out for real, but we absolutely couldn’t let them find out. There’s no reason to tell them, so I might as well keep my mouth shut. Silence is golden, after all.

Even so, the fact that someone would consider Nanami-san bullying me felt like an insult to her.

“Nanami-san is truly kind and sweet. I’m lucky to be going out with her.”

The teacher’s eyes widened at my sudden remark.

“I even got to meet her parents after our date yesterday. There’s nothing sketchy going on between us, so please don’t worry.”

My tone was much more forceful than I’d intended; the teacher blinked a few times in astonishment. Yeeeah, there was definitely no need for me to keep talking about how great our relationship was, but I just couldn’t help myself. Perhaps because he’d never seen me act this way, the teacher grinned a little.

“It seems she’s been a good influence on you,” he said, finally reassured about the circumstances behind our relationship. “Despite the way she presents herself, Barato’s attitude in class is excellent, and her grades are even better than yours. I know she’s not the type to get mixed up with unsavory things like bullying, but as your homeroom teacher, I just had to ask. Once again, I apologize.”

He bowed to me a second time. I guess being a teacher is harder than it looks. Still, his incessant apologies unnerved me a little, making me feel somewhat guilty myself, so I apologized back for having been so direct.

And with our exchange of apologies, my meeting with my teacher came to a close. However, as I was leaving, the teacher called to me one last time.

“To think you’d go from being so reserved to speaking your mind so easily! It probably wouldn’t hurt to have Barato tutor you with classwork too. Her grades are top-notch, you know.”

Had I really changed that much? I didn’t feel any different. Still, I had no idea Nanami-san’s grades were that good. Maybe I really should ask her to tutor me.

I bowed to the teacher as I left his office and headed back toward the classroom. Would Nanami-san even still be there? I’d told her to go on ahead without me, but she’d said she’d wait so that we could go home together. My “short” diversion had taken longer than I’d expected, so I picked up the pace so as not to keep her waiting any longer than necessary.

When I finally reached the classroom, I took a moment to steady my breath and reached for the door handle. But just as I was about to open the door, I heard voices coming from inside. I froze, overcome by a mild sense of déjà vu. The only difference was that the door had been open last time, while this time, it was closed.

“I so didn’texpect you to go for a total introvert like Misumai. I mean, for real, did you just pick his name out of a hat or something?”

“Did you know that the guys Nanami rejected before are now on this weird ‘introvert’ kick because they think that’s somehow more popular with girls? Seriously, guys are so dumb.”

“But don’t the guys who were always introverts seem way cuter? But come on, why are you dating Misumai? Does he have cash to blow or something?”

The voices I heard were all female—but none of them belonged to Otofuke-san or Kamoenai-san. Were these more of Nanami-san’s gyaru friends? I didn’t recognize any of them, but all the girls seemed to know me. Their teasing comments came one after another, including many that made fun of Nanami-san.

I guess that’s just how it goes. I mean, she’s going out with me, so of course they’d say stuff like that.

We were as far as a couple could get from being a good match. I already knew that, but hearing it like this, it was obvious. That’s why I felt kinda sorry for Nanami-san, but...I couldn’t hear her objecting. The girls continued, speaking their minds without interruption.

They weren’t insulting either of us per se, but they were quite eager to compare me with guys Nanami-san had rejected in the past. And all the while, I just stood there, frozen outside the door, listening. Everything they said was true.

I wasn’t tall.

I wasn’t good-looking.

I wasn’t rich, and I wasn’t particularly good at sports or academics.

I could only be described by all the things I lacked.

The girls weren’t trying to insult me—they were just curious about why she’d chosen me—but even so, I couldn’t help feeling just a little bit bummed. Besides, what did Nanami-san think of all this?

I quickly gave up trying to guess and resolved to head into the classroom when I heard Nanami-san speak up for the first time.

“Well, all I can say is that compared to all of the guys who asked me out, Yoshin is hands down the best.”

I felt a shiver run up my spine.

The girls all laughed, oblivious to Nanami-san’s slight transformation, but she simply ignored them and carried on.

“That’s why I confessed to him. I guess compared to Yoshin, those guys are all so...ordinary.”

Hearing Nanami-san’s assertion that left no room for debate, the other girls grew silent for a moment...and then burst out laughing. Their laughter alone implied the utter ridiculousness of thinking that I was better than those other guys. Yeah, even I wanted to tell Nanami-san that that was a touch too far...

“And besides...”

Nanami-san continued chatting with the girls, her tone completely different from before. Earlier, too, her voice had sounded deeper and more serene than I remembered it, but now it was like the voice of an entirely different person.

Her words carried a kind of allure and sexiness that made everyone in the classroom grow silent. This wasn’t like the silence that had preceded their laughter earlier. No, this was a silence that came from them being completely captivated by Nanami-san.

I couldn’t resist cracking the door open to peek inside. The opening was such that I could just catch a glimpse of Nanami-san’s face—which bore a look that I’d never seen before.

Re-crossing her legs, Nanami-san began to explain. “When Yoshin takes his shirt off...he has an amazing body.”

Nanami-san?! I just about choked on air, but Nanami-san didn’t stop there. No one could stop her.

“So much so that, once you’ve been held by him, you can’t possibly think about anyone else holding you. Don’t you think guys like that are hot?”

Her expression was just as sensual as her voice. With that bewitching smile on her face, she looked so irresistible, I couldn’t take my eyes off her.

The girls around her had likely never seen Nanami-san like this before either. They sat there in silence, with bated breaths. Some of them, swallowing hard and blushing, looked as if they, too, were as in awe of her as I was. She looked so beautiful in that moment that words couldn’t have possibly described her.

Yes, she was undeniably alluring, but... Nanami-san, why are you telling them such a bare-faced lie? I’d only shown her a glimpse of my upper body, and even that had been completely unintentional. Plus, I’d only hugged her to comfort her, not in order to do anything more like she was implying. And even then you were all red and embarrassed about it, Nanami-san! I mean, you weren’t the only one...

In that moment, I felt like I’d glimpsed a very scary side of women. But perhaps I could also interpret it as an angry response to the other girls saying all that stuff about me. By now, the room had grown pretty quiet, so I took that as my cue to head inside.

I made extra noise as I opened the classroom door, calling out to Nanami-san as I entered. “Sorry to keep you waiting, Nanami-san. We’re all finished up, so shall we get going?”

“Yoshin!” Nanami-san exclaimed, greeting me like her usual, bubbly self. “Jeez, took you long enough. I waited for you for sooo long, will you treat me to some ice cream as a reward? I think I want a monaka one.” Her expression had blossomed into her usual, bright smile, as if I’d only imagined her sensuality a moment ago. She got up and hopped over to my side, pouting a bit as she took my hand.

Nanami-san, you’re teasing the girls too much. Now they’re looking at me funny too...

“I’ll see you all later, girls. Bye!”

“Oh, um, thanks for keeping Nanami-san company while she waited for me. See you around, everyone.”

Nanami-san and I took each other’s hand and said our farewells as we left the girls behind. Our fingers immediately intertwined, as if we were showing off just how intimate we were. Nanami-san had initiated it so unexpectedly that I had a hard time keeping my cool.

“See you guys tomorrow...” the girls mumbled in a daze, waving after us as they watched us leave.

After we’d walked some distance from the classroom, I turned to Nanami-san and whispered, “So, why were you saying such nice things about me earlier?”

“Oh, you were listening?” Nanami-san stuck her tongue out at me and smiled like a little girl who’d been caught mid-prank. There wasn’t a hint of the allure around her that had radiated from her moments earlier—she truly looked like an innocent child.

Where in the world did she learn to look like that?

“It’s just that no one else seems to get how awesome you are! That’s why I thought I’d give them a little hint of your various charms. You really should be praising me a little more for going through all that trouble.”

She swung around our linked hands in a large semicircle, looking at me with a sidelong glance.

“All right, I get it. Thank you. But I really don’t know what various ‘charms’ you could have possibly shared. Besides, I really only need you to know any of that stuff.”

It was true that she’d stood up for me, which I felt it was important to thank her for. Even so, her valiant efforts probably weren’t going to change other people’s evaluations of me. More importantly, there won’t be any weird rumors going around now, right? Though I supposed the only thing that mattered was that I could be with Nanami-san.

All of a sudden, I noticed that our surroundings had grown silent. Wait, why wasn’t Nanami-san saying anything? She was looking down at her feet, her cheeks flushed.

“Seriously, why are you always like that? How can you say something like that so casually?”

I had to stop and think for a moment to figure out what she was referring to. Oh, right. I get it. I hadn’t thought much of it, but I guess it was a cheesy thing to say. It seemed I was more easily influenced by others than I thought.

We fell silent as our eyes met, but soon we were both laughing. Nanami-san squeezed my hand. It tickled a bit, but the warmth of her hand was soothing.

When I looked at our hands, linked like those of lovers, I couldn’t help recalling our date from yesterday. I’d taken her hand, and today, she’d taken mine. Now that I thought about it, I was pretty impressed that I was able to do that at all.

Nanami-san seemed to be in an excellent mood as she hummed a little song about ice cream. She really did seem like an innocent child.

After that first date, our relationship seemed the same as ever, but it had also changed slightly. I couldn’t really decide if that change was for better or for worse. Actually, it might be for the worse, given how much my heart was pounding, but I wanted more than anything to believe it was for the better.

“Speaking of which, where did you, um, learn to act all sexy like you did earlier? I was really surprised,” I said.

“Oh, that? It’s no big deal. I was just channeling my mom.”

“Have you seen her look like that before?”

“Well, you know, now and then. Actually I was hoping you’d come back sooner, ’cause I was getting kind of embarrassed.” Nanami-san blushed and smiled shyly. It was true—all the girls had been in awe of her.

“In that case, I’ll present you with an ice cream as a reward.”

“Yay! Let’s split it!”

Seeing her get so excited about ice cream made me smile. Her joy really made my small gesture worth it. Of course, I wasn’t thinking a gift of ice cream would be enough to thank her for all she was doing for me, but even if it was just a drop in the bucket, I wanted to do something to show her how I felt. I wanted to grasp every opportunity I had to do that.

Chapter 1: An Unexpected Meeting

It had been three days since my date with Nanami-san had gone off without a hitch. Well, perhaps there had been a few hitches, but I was pretty sure it had gone well nonetheless.

I had been called into the teacher’s office the next day, but nothing really major had happened since then. All things considered, we should have been enjoying our days of peace, but that wasn’t how things were developing.

Not that I could honestly say that things weren’t peaceful. No news was good news, and things really were quite calm. But the small change I’d felt the day after our date couldn’t just be my imagination. How can I put it...? It seemed that, well... Nanami-san seemed way more assertive, so to speak. Maybe I was just imagining things, but it certainly felt like her behavior had changed since our date.

First, there was the way we held hands on our way to school. Before now, we had just held hands normally, my hand cupping hers and vice versa, but after our date, we’d begun only holding hands in the way that lovers do—you know, the one where you intertwine your fingers.

I know I’d done that when I’d gone to her house too—in front of her parents, no less—but who could’ve imagined that Nanami-san would start doing it of her own accord and all the time? She sure was setting the bar high for someone like me. I mean, just because I’d done it once didn’t mean holding hands with her like that would become any easier. But even with my hesitation, Nanami-san would tilt her head and follow up with another blow.

“Do you...hate it?”

“Not at all.”

My response had been immediate, with zero hesitation. Of course I didn’t dislike it! If I had any reason to hesitate, I would’ve rejected the very idea of holding hands like that in the first place. It was just that...the psychological bar presented to me was an entirely different issue.

A man’s heart is complex and delicate, indeed... No, maybe I was just a wuss. In the end, I’d ended up holding hands with her despite my inner turmoil, but I still wondered if I’d ever get used to it.

I knew Nanami-san had changed, but I also felt like I was changing too. But was all this change a good thing? What kind of results would these changes bring about? It was no use thinking about it now, but what was happening to us felt both scary and surprisingly comfortable.

As for the looks from the other students as we made our way to school... I dare say they needed no explanation at this point.

The changes weren’t limited to just the way we held hands. My bento now included dessert. It wasn’t store-bought either—it was handmade specially by Nanami-san.

When I told her I felt bad about having her make me both lunch and a sweet treat, she had told me not to worry about it because making the dessert was something she’d been doing with her mom.

When I’d made a face like I didn’t quite understand, she’d explained that her mom wasn’t much of a morning person, so it was Nanami-san’s job to make breakfast and prepare the family’s lunches in the morning. Apparently, this used to be her dad’s job, but nowadays he, along with her younger sister, mostly just lent Nanami-san a hand. All the other housework was then done by Nanami-san’s mother, who was a full-time housewife.

And that, Nanami-san had explained, was how housework was divided up among her family. That was why Nanami-san had told me not to worry about the whole dessert thing—because apparently Tomoko-san did the prepwork while Nanami-san was at school, and when she got home, the two would make it together.

But although she’d explained it to me like it was no big deal, I couldn’t help myself worrying.

“I do it because I like it,”Nanami-san had said with a smile—but boy, I really did have to step it up for our next date. If only I could decide where to take her...

Finally was the last change—perhaps the biggest change of all. It was a little embarrassing to think about, perhaps because it could all be my own imagination or self-consciousness, but...

I realize this preamble is getting a bit long, so let me just get to the point. It hadn’t actually happened yet, but Nanami-san...seemed to be trying to kiss me on the cheek.

I mean, really. Maybe it was just my imagination. But it just seemed like there had been very, very little physical distance between us lately, and whenever the mood got kind of romantic, she would look at me all expectantly. Slowly, she’d lean in closer, and I wouldn’t be able to move. But in the end, she’d just turn all red and freeze. Then she’d just sit there, her eyes glued to my cheek. The fact that her attention didn’t seem to be focused on my lips was very Nanami-san, but that’s beside the point.

Please stop! This is too embarrassing... No, wait. I don’t really want her to stop. But her continuing on like this is... That was the cycle of complicated emotions that I’d been going through lately. Given the sudden shift in Nanami-san’s behavior, I could almost hear her leveling up before my eyes—accompanied by the appropriate sound effects from a certain tokusatsuwork.

“...So that’s how it’s been lately. What do you think, Shibetsu-senpai?”

“You sure have some gall asking me that, knowing that Nanami-san flat-out rejected me. It’s to be respected, I suppose...”

It was lunch break, and on this rare occasion, I was hanging out with Shibetsu-senpai. Since I’d come to see him, I thought it was a good opportunity to seek his advice. Nanami-san was currently with Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san—most likely gossiping about any developments in our relationship.

“Though, since you’ve given me such a wonderful gift, I suppose I have no choice but to help out...”

Shibetsu-senpai was holding—very preciously, I might add—a clear cellophane bag filled with sweets. They were sweets handmade by Nanami-san—cookies for today’s dessert. I’d come to see Shibetsu-senpai in order to share some with him.

I know it wasn’t quite the dish I’d promised him, but even knowing I lacked the generosity to match his, I still wanted to keep Nanami-san’s cooking my own special privilege. So, as a compromise, I’d suggested giving sweets to him instead, and he’d gladly agreed.

When I’d brought the idea up with Nanami-san, she hadn’t seemed to mind at all. In fact, she had also accepted, and quite willingly, at that.

“You’re right. We have to thank senpai for helping make you look so cool. Yeah, it’s important to thank people,” she’d said, smiling and clenching a fist of determination.

I’d been so certain that she would resist the idea, I was taken aback by her response. But even that couldn’t have readied me for what she’d said next.

“And...being considerate toward your surroundings is important for when I become a wife...”

I was pretty sure she’d only said that to herself. But no matter how quiet that mumble had been, the words had traveled straight to my ears. It seemed I wasn’t destined to be the protagonist who struggled to hear things...

My cheeks flushed the moment I heard her. I have no idea how I’m supposed to respond... Please, someone, help me...

Since I couldn’t very well pretend I hadn’t heard her, I said, “I’m a lucky guy for having such a thoughtful wife”—to which she responded by blushing and slapping me on the back multiple times.

I wanted to believe I’d made the right choice, at least. Even the pain in my back where she’d slapped me had felt reassuring. And no, I was not a masochist.

With that settled, Nanami-san had baked a few extra cookies for Shibetsu-senpai. She really was speedy when it came to things like this.

And here I was, having presented the cookies to him.

At first, Nanami-san had offered to give them to our upperclassman herself, but that was when a side of me that even I hadn’t known about had surfaced. I’d told her that I didn’t want her giving handmade treats to a guy other than me. I never thought I could conjure up such an embarrassing display of possessiveness.

I know I should be more generous, but considering the other side of me that had no interest in sharing Nanami-san’s cooking, I never knew that I was such a jealous type.

I’d been kind of scared that she might be turned off by my jealousy, but Nanami-san had just blushed and conceded—and so, here we were.

Narrowing his eyes, Shibetsu-senpai sighed and responded in an exasperated manner. “You asked me what I think, but you’re enjoying all this, aren’t you? I don’t see what the problem is.”

In fact, it wasn’t that he did so in an exasperated manner—he was exasperated.

“I am kind of enjoying it, but I’m not sure how I’m supposed to respond...”

“Hmm...neither do I!”

Well, that was quite the declaration.

Senpai was fiddling with the bag of cookies I’d given him, but rather than eating them, he continued speaking. Even with the preface that this was just his personal opinion, he answered my question with sincerity. “Based on what you’ve told me, it seems like you’re starting to panic ’cause Barato-kun’s making shot after shot. She’s pulling further and further ahead, which is making you anxious, and that anxiety is wiping out your composure.”

He’d translated the situation into basketball-speak, but for the most part, he was correct. Right now, I was receiving so much from Nanami-san that I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to repay her. This wasn’t a relationship on an equal footing. I was taking so much, my heart was starting to ache.

Shibetsu-senpai seemed to have seen right through me. When he next spoke, his voice was a bit more gentle. “It’s especially at times like these that you have to remain calm and take your time with your next shot. The more anxious you feel, the more composed you must aim to be.”

“More...composed?”

“That’s right. That’s how you make an upset possible.”

So we’re still talking about basketball, huh?

But he was right about the fact that I’d been behaving a little bit off lately. Nanami-san and I weren’t playing a game of basketball. This was really just my one-sided challenge. It was the biggest challenge of my life—to get Nanami-san to like me.

Despite that, I felt like I was only taking from Nanami-san, and I was starting to panic at the thought that there was no way she’d come to like me if I kept this up.

Yeah, it was a good thing I brought this up with Shibetsu-senpai. Talking to him made me feel a little calmer—until he dropped a bombshell, that is.

“That’s why you should be the one to kiss her. On the cheek will do, but on the lips would be just as good.”

I felt a burst out of dry, empty laughter escape me. Wow, that was such a classic move. I didn’t realize people actually did that when they were surprised.

“What are you saying, senpai?!”

“I just figured that if you’re aiming for an upset, that would be the only way to do it.”

He says it like it’s no big deal. This is why good-looking guys are so hard to talk to! I wouldn’t be in this dilemma if I could do that in the first place. I was completely flustered and useless just thinking about a kiss—doing it in real life would be damn near impossible.

That was when I realized that Shibetsu-senpai was still fiddling with the cookies. What’s going on? Is he not going to eat them?

“By the way, Misumai-kun, can I ask you something this time?”

“Um, sure, go ahead. If it’s something I can answer.”

“What should I do with these cookies? I want to eat them, but I also want to treasure them.”

“Please eat them. If you want to keep them, why not just take a photo?”

Shibetsu-senpai looked at me as if I’d blown his mind, and then proceeded to take photos of the star-shaped cookies. I, too, had taken photos of my cookies before eating them.

I looked at him out of the corner of my eye as I sat there scrolling through the photos. The cookies that I’d gotten from Nanami-san had been shaped like hearts. Nanami-san always does stuff like this with zero hesitation. Jeez, it makes me so happy.

Shibetsu-senpai soon finished taking his photos and began eating the cookies and getting deeply emotional. “Aren’t you eating too, Misumai-kun? Would you like half of mine?”

“Oh, no. I’ve already had some. Those are all for you.”

“Is that right? Then I don’t mind if I do.”

I smiled at my upperclassman for being so thoughtful, but then I remembered something. Whatever happened to senpai finding his next love? He’s so bowled over seeing the cookies Nanami-san made him, does that mean he’s not completely over her yet? No, that couldn’t be it. But...maybe I should check, just in case.

“So...how’s your search for love going, senpai?”

“Ah, love. About that: I’ve given up looking,” he said bluntly through a mouthful of cookies.

Huh? What happened?

Seeing the suspicion on my face, my upperclassman smiled reassuringly, sporting a cookie crumb on one corner of his mouth. Even that didn’t detract from his dashing good looks. Life was so unfair.

“Oh, I’ve no lingering feelings for Barato-kun, so don’t you worry yourself,” he said. “I’ve decided to focus on basketball for the time being.”

“Huh? What happened?”

“I realized when I lost that match to you that I’m not ready to think about things like love and relationships.” He tossed another piece of cookie into his mouth and looked up at the sky with a faraway gaze.

Um, no, we can’t say you actually lost that game. The result was mostly down to me pulling cheap tricks.

“My dream is to become a professional basketball player,” he said. I’m pretty sure the fire in his eyes wasn’t an illusion. “But in playing against you, I realized I still lacked the devotion and diligence to achieve that. So...love is on hold, for now.”

As I watched him speak so passionately, I came to a sudden realization.

So that’s why the girls in his class glared at me when I came to give him the cookies! That was seriously scary! Senpai, I only won because I damn near cheated. There’s really no need for you to be so stoic about this.

But seeing him like this also made me somewhat envious. This guy’s heart and soul belonged solely to basketball. There was nothing I felt so passionate about, so I felt genuine respect for him.

Things were a little different now, though. I’d been able to find something I could be passionate about. But if the upperclassmen girls were upset with me for making Shibetsu-senpai uninterested in dating, that might cause problems for Nanami-san too. Shibetsu-senpai was pretty popular, and I didn’t know what kind of revenge they could concoct, so I thought it best to try to remedy the situation a little.

“That’s no way to think, senpai,” I said sharply.

Shibetsu-senpai returned my remark with a suspicious look, the cookie in his hand frozen inches from his mouth. There were quite a lot of cookies, but he was prepared to go through them all. He remained still, awaiting my next words.

I took a slow, deep breath and opened my mouth with a serious expression on my face. “We become stronger when we have something to protect. That’s why I believe you should strive for both love and basketball.”

“What do you mean, Misumai-kun? Go on.”

All right, he took the bait. Maybe I can pull this off.

“Let’s imagine it’s the final quarter of the game. You’re exhausted, but it’s gonna take just one more shot to turn everything around.”

Shibetsu-senpai closed his eyes, picturing the scene. Whoa, is he actually starting to sweat? His mind must be completely absorbed in the game.

“At that moment, if you heard your girlfriend cheering for you from the stands, don’t you think that that would give you the strength you needed, right then and there?”

Shibetsu-senpai was mumbling something while fumbling with his hands. His body assumed the same posture as the day when he showed me all those free throws. And, after demonstrating an absolutely splendid form, he slowly opened his eyes.

“Hmm... I see. Perhaps you are right...”

Shibetsu-senpai remained still, as if ruminating on the situation he’d imagined. I gave him one last nudge.

“Of course, there’s no need to force yourself to be with someone, but I don’t think there’s any reason for you not to be with someone either. If you like someone, I don’t want you to miss out on the opportunity.”

My upperclassman listened to my words in earnest. His expression made me feel a bit guilty, but this really was how I felt.

“You’re right,” he finally said, nodding a few times. “I felt like that situation really did give me strength. In that case, there’s no need to force myself to find someone, but if I do come across someone I like...I hope you’ll let me come to you for advice.”

For better or for worse, he was very simpleminded... At least with this, both Nanami-san and I wouldn’t be subject to any retaliation from our female upperclassmen.

But that wasn’t all. Senpai and I had met under strange circumstances, but he was actually a very good person. I really did want him to be happy. That was why I didn’t want him to get hung up on his loss against me and miss the chance to fall in love with someone.

I knew what I’d said had been very self-centered, given that I’d taken Nanami-san from him, in a way. But being asked for advice by senpai himself seems like way too hard of a task for me. Even so, I’ll do my best to offer support.

“It’s funny, though,” Shibetsu-senpai said thoughtfully. “You said the exact same thing as the manager of our team. Maybe I’m making other people worry about me.”

“Your manager? Is she a girl by any chance?”

“Yeah. She’s a tall, quiet, and kind girl who looks out for me. I hope she meets someone nice as well.”

Um, how should I put this...? Let’s just say I felt relieved that he might be able to find his next love sooner than we thought.

After that, I parted ways with my upperclassman and went back to meet up with Nanami-san. She was already back in the classroom, chatting with Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san.

“Nanami-san, I gave the cookies to senpai. He seemed really happy. Thanks again for doing that.”

“O-Oh, yeah? Good. Yeah, really, that’s good.”

As she looked up at me, I noticed her face was red, and Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san were grinning. “Did you two say something weird to Nanami-san, by any chance?”

“Huh? I don’t think we said anything weird, did we? Though we did ask her one or two things,” Otofuke-san said.

“Oh, yeah we did! Enjoy your walk after school, ’kay?” Kamoenai-san added.

Kamoenai-san, you definitelysaid something to Nanami-san, didn’t you?

Our lunch break ended just as I was trying to ask for details, so I would have to wait for another time to interrogate her. In the end, though, school finished before I could learn what they’d talked about, but as we were leaving, Nanami-san spoke up.

“Hey, Yoshin, would you...come grocery shopping with me today? My mom asked me to pick up stuff for dinner...”

“Oh, yeah, of course. Should we go to the mall we went to the other day?” I’d heard that Nanami-san’s mother usually picked up ingredients for dinner during school hours, but maybe she’d been busy today.

“Uh, yeah, and, um...do you want to get boba together too?”

“Boba? You mean those...round, bubbly things?”

“Yeah. You’ve never had it before, right? There’s a boba place in the mall. The hype around it has kinda died down, so we probably don’t have to wait in line for too long.”

So this is what those two were grinning about...

There was such a contrast between Nanami-san’s appearance and the way she kept stealing glances at me while bashfully fidgeting, that I couldn’t help feeling overwhelmed by how adorable she was. It was such a cute, modest request, there was no way I couldn’t honor it.

“Sure, let’s go for it. If it’s something you want to do, I’m happy to do anything at all.”

She smiled at me brightly, looking a mix of happy and relieved.

Gosh, I’d be happy to fulfill requests like this anytime... Nanami-san really is the cutest. All right, I’m gonna treat her to boba. That’s something a boyfriend should do.

But just as I was thinking such grandiose thoughts...

“And let’s, um, get different flavors, and, uh... Let’s trade a bit, okay?”

For a moment, I didn’t quite understand what she’d said, but when I finally did, my face turned a deep crimson.

♢♢♢

After school, we made our way to the mall—the same one we’d visited on our movie date and bought our ingredients from for our gyoza dinner. This time, we were at a completely unfamiliar place inside—though to be specific, I was the newbie of the two of us.

The shop before us was clearly going all out on their aesthetic, with rows and rows of colorful little descriptions of its trendy products.

“Come to think of it, I’ve never had boba before,” I said to Nanami-san.

“Really? I thought that might be the case.”

“Yeah. I didn’t feel like getting in line back when it was really popular, and it wasn’t like I had anyone to come get it with.”

“Then it’s your first time! I’m really glad to be your first.”

“Nanami-san, that sounds a bit...”

...questionable. I wasn’t sure if she knew what she was really saying, but since she was blushing, it felt even more awkward.

You should probably think before you speak, Nanami-san. Then again, maybe I’m the one overthinking it.