CH 10

I was able to get Takagaki's, a girl's, cooperation which I had never done before. Having her was reassuring, but I wasn't going to put her on the spot. I had to get her advice, and be the one to put them into practice. It really wasn't because I was too afraid that she'd lash out at me if I relied on her too much.

That aside, it was currently the first semester. Soon would be the our first ever midterms as high school students. If one was to get a poor result, their character would be established (prejudice) up until the next exam.

And so, it was very easy to read that from my best friends who were showing those concerns from their behavior.

"Help me study for the test. I was too absorbed in tennis that I haven't been able to review."

"Please teach me, too!"

"No problem. But Tasuku, please move that notebook away from me first."

It was currently after classes, and Tasuku, who had the day off from his club activities, approached me at my seat, shoving a notebook into my face with his pencil case in hand. Ayane seemed to have moved over here as well before I knew it, but all I could see was a sliver of her light, cherry red hair on the edge of my notebook-filled vision, so I couldn't really identify how she went on about asking me.

"What are you guys up to?"

"What is Asami and...Harube-chan doing?"

From the right, I could hear the voices of Takagaki and Kuramoto. I could imagine Tasuku holding the notebook with a somewhat blank expression on his face. It was only natural for such an airhead. On the other hand, I was more worried about Ayane. I wonder what she was doing that made her hair bounce so much.

"I thought I'd ask Hiro-kun to help me study."

"Same with Tasu-kun~.”

"No, shouldn't you pull back that notebook away first before you reply to them?"

Tasuku answered back while still in this situation, so I set aside that notebook exasperatedly. Sure enough, Tsauku had a blank expression on him, while Ayane was standing there, an imposing stance with a notebook under her arm. Why?

"Why?"

"Because Hiro-kun is good at teaching."

"Hmm, hmm."

They instinctively replied what they were thinking, but both Tasuku and Ayane meant differently. Tasuku was looking smug, while Ayane nodded twice while she had a sly look on her face.

These guys were strangely enthusiastic today.

"Oh~, so the library, then?"

"Hmm~, that should be okay? As long as we study quietly, they shouldn't get mad at us, right?"

"Yeah. I'm fine with that."

"Roger that. Wait for me there. I'll head to the library after I'm done preparing."

Since I had an appointment all of a sudden, I picked up my bag and got ready. As I watched them leave the classroom, I remembered that I had left Takagaki and Kuramoto out and turned my attention to them.

"Ugh. Damn it! Why am on the baseball team!! If I wasn't, I could have studied with Harube-san as well, the most beautiful girl in our class!"

"..."

Kuramoto, his hands on my desk, wept as he plopped down, and Takagaki looked at him as if he was trash...and also, the glasses girl nearby, who must have been reading a book, was bent over her seat, perhaps surprised by Kuramoto. Additionally, she seemed somewhat teary-eyed.

Now then, I still had something else to do.

"What about you, Takagaki? Are you coming?"

"I've got some business to attend to, so I'll pass."

"Ughhhh..."

"Okay~, bye then~."

"Bye."

"B-bye?"

The glasses girl also returned the greeting, so I waved to them all three and left the classroom.

Kuramoto must have wanted to get close to Ayane. That was given, because she was cute.

That's why he could talk to her and she might even invite him, but I wouldn't say any of that myself. But would Tasuku even allow for it?! Wait, but if it was Tasuku, he would probably just say, 'Isn't that fine?', huh...

In the distance, I could hear, 'I won't forgive! I won't forgive you Shindowoo!', but my name was Shindou, not Shindowoo, so I guess that shout must have been for someone else. Later, the owner of that desk he slammed was so scared by what he did. I wasn't going to tell who, though.

☆☆☆☆☆☆

I quietly opened the large door and took a look around. Inside the library, many students were already occupying the lengthy desks in the middle of the room. Some were reading books, some were studying with textbooks spread out, and some were probably members of the library committee as they carried piles of books to the shelves over at the back.

When I scanned around to see where they were, I found them sitting side by side by the window seat a bit further from the other students, all their study materials spread open.

Although they did need to talk with each other when it came to studying, I assumed that they sat there because they wanted to avoid being noticed, and they let out an air as if they didn't want to be approached. Although I could see some students glancing over their direction.

I might have been seen as a devil difiling that sanctuary, and at the edge of my vision, some people had astonished looks on their faces as if to say, 'Just who is this guy...!'

Eh, was it really that big of a deal?

"Sorry to keep you waiting~."

""Shh.""

I called out to them in a whisper while paying attention to my surroundings, but the two still gestured for me to be quiet.

Huh, I couldn't even speak like this? Was this the pattern where we would just study silently? Was that even necessary?

Thinking about it, if we were going to study in a library where we weren't even allowed to talk, it might have been better instead to just have held this session at the classroom where I could speak without any hesitation.

I might have made a mistake. With this thought in mind, I sat down on the opposite of them.