Volume 1 - CH 1.1

Act I: My Ex-girlfriends Come to My House – Part 1

Oi oi oi! This is a lie, right?

I almost scream even though it’s the middle of the opening ceremony. My heart is beating fast and I’m sweating like a waterfall.

The newly appointed teachers were lined up on the stage of the gymnasium. Among them are two people I know.

One is a gentle-looking female teacher. She is a petite, busty beauty with soft brown hair that reaches her shoulders. She looks at her students with kind eyes and smiles like a holy mother.

The other one is a feisty-looking female teacher. She is a tall, busty beauty with silky black hair that reaches down to her waist. Her interesting face looks straight ahead, and her lips are set in a straight line.

They are my ex-girlfriends.

It’s hard to believe that they are someone else. On top of that, the new teachers were introduced to us, and we found out their names were ‘Shirasawa Kohaku’ and ‘Akamine Akari.’

Is this for real? Are they really Kohaku and Akari? What’s going to happen now? I’m going to take my ex-girlfriend’s class? It’s going to be so awkward!

As I was freaking out,

“Seeing those two again… It’s like a dream…”

The man sitting next to me talked to himself dreamily.

Two beautiful teachers had just arrived at the school, and I can understand why he would want to grin happily. But what does ‘again’ mean?

“Hey, do you know about Shirasawa-sensei and Akamine-sensei?”

I called out to the boy next to me, and his relaxed face scrunched up.

I’m tall and I have an intimidatingly strong face, so I must have scared him off.

Of course, it’s only my appearance that is scary, and I haven’t done anything wrong, but… It seems that no eccentric person likes to associate with someone who looks scary, so I have no friends.

“Ye-Yeah, I guess Nijino-kun doesn’t know because he’s a transfer student. They were both interns.”

They both came to the school last spring–about four months before I transferred here.

“It’s so lucky to have two beautiful teachers like that. Ah, by the way, I heard that neither of them has a boyfriend.”

“Really?”

I thought they had found another guy they liked. So they just like him, but they haven’t confessed to him yet? Or did they confess but it didn’t work out?

No, this information is from a year ago. They might have a boyfriend now. I mean, it’s none of my business if they have one or not.

I want to get back together, but I can’t have a relationship between a student and a teacher–I don’t even know which one I should get back together with.

Well, there’s no reason to worry about it. I’ve been dumped anyway.

“……”

After he finished explaining to me, he looked at Kohaku and Akari with a fascinated face again. The other students have the same look on their faces. I understand how they feel. They are both super cute and adorable.

I was dating two such girls. As a man, I feel proud of myself. …But, I have no intention of boasting like, “Actually, I dated them! Amazing, right?!”

It would only be a waste of time and would cause both of them a lot of confusion and embarrassment.

If it was found out that they were dating a student, they would be looked at with a cold shoulder, and in the worst case scenario, they might have to resign from their teaching position.

I knew that their dream was to become teachers. I don’t want to be an evil influence on the two of them who have made their dreams come true. Even though we’ve broken up, I still love them both.

I don’t want to ruin their bright and glorious lives as teachers. I will support Kohaku and Akari’s life as teachers from the shadows.

Well, since we’re going to spend time at the same school, we’re bound to run into each other sooner or later. It would be awkward, so I’ll try to stay low as much as possible.

While I was making up my mind to do so, the opening ceremony was over, and I headed back to the third grade class. Then homeroom ended, and the day came to an end.

“Those two were as cute as ever!”

“I can’t wait for Shirasawa-sensei’s class!”

“As I thought, Akamine-sensei is really cool!”

“I could hurt myself everyday~!”

After school, the classroom was still buzzing with talk about the new teachers. By the way, Kohaku is a home economics teacher and Akari is a school nurse.

Since there’s only one home economics teacher, the students are obliged to take classes with Kohaku, and if they were injured, they would have to be examined by Akari.

Although I can’t skip Kohaku’s classes and avoid seeing her, I can avoid going to the infirmary. I just have to be careful not to get hurt!

With these thoughts in mind, I finished getting ready to leave and went out into the hallway. Then, I see a blonde girl in front of me.

She is carrying a tote bag on her shoulder, and her body is leaning forward as if it was very heavy.

“Do you need help carrying it?”

I might scare her, but I didn’t want to let her go through with it. I called out to her from behind, and she turned around.

She’s a girl who looks like a gal. Her school uniform is worn out and her skirt is short. She has a strong look in her eyes, but her face is quite well-defined.

She glared at me with all her might. …Why the glare?

“I won’t give you the contact info even if you hit on me!”

“No, I’m not hitting on anyone.”

Of course I want a girlfriend. But I’m not so hungry for love that I’d hit on girls whose names I don’t even know.

However, even though I don’t know her name, it doesn’t mean I’ve never met her before. We’ve been classmates since this semester, and we’ve passed each other in the hallway a few times during our second year.

Um, her name is…

“What are you doing looking at my chest? That’s disgusting.”

“You’re wrong! I’m just checking your nametag to make sure it’s correct.”

Besides, you’ve been talking so rudely since a while ago. You’re so aggressive… Did I do something to make you hate me?

…Eh? This girl, she’s Shirasawa?

She doesn’t look like Kohaku. But when we were dating, she told me she had a sister my age.

I’ve never met her sister because I never visited her house, but maybe she’s heard stories about me. Maybe that’s the reason why she’s so foul-mouthed towards me.

“Shirasawa-san, are you Shirasawa-sensei’s little sister…?”

Her eyes became even sharper.

“I knew it, you approached me with that intention. You’re so persistent! Even if you hit on me, I won’t give you my Onee-chan’s contact information!”

I see. That’s what she meant.

Kohaku is a very popular teacher. She won the hearts of first-year students just by showing her face, and apparently, she won the hearts of second and third-year students during her teaching internship. It’s not surprising that some boys tried to befriend her little sister in order to get close to Kohaku.

She’s often approached by men who want to get close to her sister, and she’s fed up with it.

“I’m not hitting on you. I just found out you’re her little sister.”

“You’re so pretentious. How could you not know after all the talk about it last year?”

“I’m a transfer student. I moved here last year after the summer break.”

Shirasawa-san blinked her eyes. With a scowl on her face,

“Ah, I see. Then, what’s the point of you calling me out?”

“Your luggage looks heavy, so I thought I’d help you carry it.”

“Do-Does that mean you’re hitting on me?”

“As I said, I’m not hitting on you. I called you purely out of kindness. I have no ulterior motives whatsoever.”

“Hmm, kindness, huh…?”

A still gaze. She’s doubting me. How distrustful of men are you…?

“Well, okay. Um… Nijino-kun? If you want to help, I’ll let you help.”

When she said this in a bossy manner, Shirasawa-san crouched down and began to rummage through her tote bag.

…Um, I can see your cleavage pretty clearly. Also, I can see your pink underwear.

I don’t think she’s showing them off, but… She’s a girl with a lot of openings for someone who distrusts men.

Shirasawa-san then took out a cookbook from her tote bag. There were quite a few more she took out.

“Are those from the library?”

“Yeah, I borrowed them during spring break. The due date is next week, but since I don’t have class today and I don’t have a lot of baggage, I decided to return them all together. Are you confident in your strength, Nijino-kun?”

“I am.”

I’ve been well-built from a young age, and my first acquaintances always look at me as if I were three grades older than them. I am now 5’8″ tall and well muscled for a go-home club member.

“Then, take these 10 books please.”

After handing me the books, Shirasawa-san quickly started walking. I don’t know how many books there are in total, but they still look heavy. Shirasawa-san is slender, so maybe she’s simply not strong enough to carry them.

“If they’re heavy, I can still carry them.”

“I’m fine. Rather, don’t walk next to me. If we walk side by side, people will get the wrong idea that we’re dating.”

I don’t think they’ll get the wrong idea, but they might think we’re close. If Kohaku sees me in such a situation, she might think, ‘He’s messing with my sister.’

I don’t want my ex-girlfriend to get the wrong impression of me, so I decided to take the distance as she suggested. Passing the heavy-footed Shirasawa-san, I went down the stairs and–

“Hyaa!”

The moment I stepped down onto the stairs, a scream echoed through the air. I turned around and saw Shirasawa-san had slipped and fallen. I quickly held her and–Thump, we landed on my back.

“Ow..!”

“A-Are you okay?!”

She stood up hurriedly and looked into my face worriedly.

“Ah, yeah, I’m fine… Are you injured yourself, Shirasawa-san? Did you sprain your leg?”

“I’m fine. Thanks to Nijino-kun. …Thanks for helping me.”

“……”

“W-Why are you so spaced out? Could it be, you hit your head…?”

“N-No, just my back.”

The only reason I was in a daze is because I was surprised by Shirasawa-san’s unexpected straightforwardness. I was sure she would blame me for hugging her.

“Let’s go to the infirmary just to be safe.”

“I said I’m fine.”

“No, you mustn’t judge for yourself. You have to go see the nurse.” (T/N: She said ‘Sensei.’ It can mean doctor, but also Akamine-sensei.)

That’s why I don’t want to go! If I go to the infirmary, I’ll run into Akari! Though I can’t tell Shirasawa-san that.

It can’t be helped. I’ll go to the infirmary even if it’s awkward.

“Okay. I’ll go.”

I went downstairs with Shirasawa-san and opened the door to the infirmary.

I expected the room to be crowded with students who want to get close to Akari, but the infirmary is deserted. Well, this is the right place. They probably thought that it would be a nuisance to barge into the infirmary where there might be sick people, so they hesitated to do so.

The room reeks of disinfectant, and the only person in the room is Akari, a female teacher wearing a white lab coat over a pants suit.

Akari, who’s sitting on a chair looking over papers, looked at me with slitted eyes and–

“!?”

Her eyes widened in surprise and she stared at me intently.

“Come on, get yourself checked out. I’ll wait for you.”

Shirasawa-san pushed my back and I went to Akari.

…Akari looked sad for some reason as she gazed at me.

The man who she dumped is right in front of her. Normally, people would make a disgusted or awkward face. So why does Akari have a sorrowful look on her face?

This, does this mean she still loves me by any chance–

“You look like you’re about to die.”

I’ve been told it’s a bad omen! That’s a very punchy greeting. This means she hates me to death, right?!

“Eh? You’re going to die?”

“I’m not going to die!”

“B-But, Akamine-sensei said you were…”

Shirasawa-san is anxious, perhaps mistakenly believing that I’m dying because of her. There’s no way I’m dying… Akari isn’t the type of person to tell jokes, so she can’t help but believe her.

“You…look pale. Go to bed and rest.”

Shirasawa-san took her seriously, so Akari reiterated.

It seems that Akari wants to keep me around. She wants to talk to me alone. I’m sure she wants to keep me from revealing our relationship.

By the way, I’m seriously ill. I was full of energy when I arrived at school, but seeing my ex-girlfriends again has made me so nervous that I feel like I’m going to vomit.

“I’m really fine. I’m sure Sensei has work to do, so we’ll get going now.”

I quickly told her and we left the infirmary. I kept up the pretense of the first meeting until the very end, which should’ve let her know that I have no intention of revealing our relationship.

“Hey, are you sure you don’t need to rest?”

“Don’t worry about it. Maybe the lighting just makes it look like I’m sick.”

“I see. Okay then.”

Shirasawa-san looked relieved. I thought she was a foul-mouthed girl earlier, but she really seems to have a gentle personality.

Walking down the hallway with a better understanding of my classmates, we reached the library. The door opened and–

Kohaku came out.

“Whaa!?”

Kohaku screamed when she saw me. The book she was holding in her hands fell down, but she doesn’t seem to care, she just stares at me.

“Onee-chan? What’s with the sudden yelling…?”

Shirasawa-san followed her gaze suspiciously, and then she reached me.

“This is my classmate, Nijino-kun. He’s helping me carry some books. He’s big and intimidating, but he’s not such a bad guy, so don’t be afraid of him.”

“You’re a student of ours. Thank you for taking care of my sister! I’ll make you a pot of tea as a thank you, shall we go to the home economics room?”

The thank-you tea is just an excuse to be alone with me, and the real purpose is to keep my mouth shut. But I can’t be alone with Kohaku. If someone sees us talking alone, they might think we’re having an illicit relationship–

“I want to drink Onee-chan’s tea too.”

We won’t be able to talk about the past with Shirasawa-san with us anyway.

“In return for your help, I’ll let you have some of my Onee-chan’s tea.”

She said as if to say, “You should be honored.” In actuality, for the boys, Kohaku’s tea is truly something to drool over. It’s one of those teas that they would be willing to humble themselves to drink.

To be honest, I want to drink it, but…

“I’m good. I want to go home and do my laundry.”

“You do your own laundry?”

“Well, yeah. I live alone.”

Six months have passed since I moved here, and my family had to move again for work. This time, it was an overseas transfer.

Since I’m not comfortable living abroad, I decided not to follow my parents and started living on my own this spring.

“I know you’re tired from helping carry those books, right? If your house is far away, I can give you a ride!”

“I’m fine. I live in an apartment nearby.”

“Nearby… Could it be a green apartment?”

“Yes, but–“

“It’s the same apartment as mine.”

Kohaku said excitedly. (T/N: Excitedly!!! YEAH BOIII!)

She seems to be somewhat pleased about it, but… That can’t be true. She just reunited with her ex-boyfriend, and on top of that, discovered they live in the same apartment building. The tension must have just gotten crazy.

“By the way, I’m in room 503.”

I didn’t even ask her and she gave me her room number. By the way–

“That’s next door…!”

I never thought my ex-girlfriend would be living next door!

“H-How long have you lived here?”

“It’s been about two weeks. I came to say hello when I moved in, but no one answered…”

Two weeks ago… It was the time when the whole family went to visit my grandma’s house.

I could hear them going about their lives, and I knew someone had moved in, but I didn’t go out much during spring break, so we never ran into each other. I can’t believe it was my ex-girlfriend.

I am at a loss, and Shirasawa-san sharpened her eyes at me.

“You’re not thinking of going to Onee-chan’s room, are you?”

“I’m not thinking about that. I’m just in the mood to relax at home today.”

“Then it’s okay. You helped me today. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Then see you tomorrow. Shirasawa-sensei too… Excuse me.”

Bowing my head, I headed home.