CH 241

Japan has four seasons, but it is difficult to distinguish between them clearly.

This is because it is more of a physical sensation than most people judging it by the calendar.

If it is cold, it is winter; if it feels a little warmer, it is still autumn.

The crosswind blowing in the residential area feels cold to me, so winter has already arrived in this town.

My criteria, my decision.

I won’t accept any objections, because I think it’s okay to judge the seasons on an individual basis.

I think to myself as I walk through the residential area on my way to school.

The school festival is over and it is the middle of November.

The school excursion was coming this weekend.

Today, too, the topic of the school trip will probably be the hottest topic of conversation in the school.

Classes were crowded with people talking about the school excursion.

As one would expect, it was a school trip.

For three days and two nights, away from parents and close friends, they can have fun around without worrying about travel expenses.

The only things they were concerned about were the opposite sex beside them and the contents of their wallets.

I wonder how many students have spent their allowance from their parents as a result of just leisurely walking around eating and wasting money.

When I go on these outings, I realize how lucky I am to have a small circle of friends.

Because there is no need to buy gifts.

In my case, I only need to buy one to send to Kaede and my parents.

The rest can be used freely.

In fact, it may even evolve into future spending money if I don’t use it too much.

I confirmed that the pedestrian light in the direction I was going had turned red, and when I stopped, I took out my phone.

Smartphone-kun, which I don’t normally use, has been active lately.

Before I could enter my destination in the search field, I was announced verbally by the person beside me.

“Is it warm in Okinawa, even in this season?”

As a matter of course, Shizuku, who I share my morning commute to school with, asked the same question that I had tried to search for on my phone.

I can’t even consider what to wear or, frankly, how far away it is.

“I hear it averages over …twenty degrees.”

Isn’t it too warm?

I was thinking of getting a regular jacket or something, but maybe I can spend the day in short sleeves.

Shizuku’s voice is more cheerful than usual, as if she also has high expectations for the school trip that is just around the corner.

Next to her, another joyful voice reaches me.

“Let’s eat all the real Okinawan food, like Okinawan soba noodles and Okinawan donuts.”

Yuuto, carrying the school bag on his shoulder, made a thoughtless proposal.

After the festival and the incident at the coffee shop, our relationship has recently been repaired to the extent that we go to school together as we used to.

However, the vague relationship between me and Shizuku still hasn’t been resolved.

The distance between Yuuto and Shizuku is more detached than the distance between me and Shizuku.

In the past, we would have walked a step further and stood side by side from this, but I assume this is what has changed.

“If you buy me a drink, I’ll go with you…”

“Seriously, …I wonder if I have enough pocket money.”

Yuuto, who took the joke seriously, makes a gesture to check his wallet, and while Shizuku smiles.

She must have realized I was joking.

When we saw the light turn green, the three of us resumed walking side by side.

Today is the day when we decide on our group and the route for our activities.

Naturally, it was easy to imagine how noisy it would be.

Time passed, the lunch break was over, and it was time for the last homeroom class.

There was no homeroom teacher at the teacher’s table.

Instead, for some reason, I was standing there.

Why…?

This kind of thing would be the job of a class committee member or something.

The classmates’ gazes were on me, and my back was sweating.

This is the downside of not being used to talking to other people on a regular basis.

The homeroom teacher, on the grounds that I was on the student council, handed me the job of facilitating group assignments and went back to the teacher’s office to get the paperwork.

The class is noisy and only three people, Shizuku, Yuuto and Kirasaka, are paying  attention to me at the moment.

“Well, …we will decide on the groups…”

“I’d like to be with Ogiwara-kun.”

“Me too!”

I was just about to open my mouth when a female student said so at an inconvenient time.

The other female students also raised their hands to run for the team.

I was wondering if it would be okay if you could go to elementary school again and learn to shut up and listen to what people have to say first.

You’d better shut up before my inner personality comes out… is what I would have said like an eighth grader, but I managed to regain my composure.

“Then, for this school trip–“

“Have you decided on a group yet, Kanazaki-san?”

“I was going to ask you too.”

…No, that’s fine.

They’re wondering who the opposite sex they’re interested in is going to share the group with.

I don’t know how you feel about wanting to ask, but I do.

Even if it’s a roundabout way of saying I understand, don’t you guys have the mental capacity to listen to the end of what the person standing in front of you on behalf of you has to say?

If it were a manga, my veins would be completely ruptured and I’d be bursting with anger.

But I pride myself on being calmer than the students around me.

Calmly, yes, coolly.

I exhale and calm my raging heart.

“It’s annoying… is this a zoo?”

It was impossible.

After I calmed down, I came to the conclusion that it would be difficult for me to take the direction of containing this situation and advancing the agenda.

As a student council, I can’t deny that I’m not competent enough.

However, it is not like me to make it up with a bunch of smiles and remarks in front of others.

My voice was low and cold.

The students looked around for a moment to see who said it, but when they realized it was me standing at the teacher’s table, their eyes widened.

Taking advantage of the slightly quieter situation, I continued my statement.

“If you want to form a group with people of your choice, then you… stand up there and proceed with the talk as you please, you too… if you don’t stand up, then you’re wasting your time quietly discussing among yourself.”

I said, pointing to the male and female students who had just broken off the conversation and announced their opinions.

I had seen the female student at the election, but I forgot her name.

I don’t care because I’m sure she is the same.

The male student was also one of the groups that was always making a lot of noise near Yuuto.

“We didn’t ask you to do anything.”

A female student says back to me in a troublesome manner.

She distorted her mouth as she draws in her friends and urges them to agree with her.

“Aren’t you getting carried away just because you happened to be elected to the student council?”

As if to represent the consensus of the class, the female student crosses her legs and leans back against the backrest.

I’m very skeptical about what makes her so confident, but I’m wondering if I can properly divert the topic and proceed with the agenda.

I was worried, annoyed, and honestly thought about handing the baton over to Yuuto and going back to my seat, but then I noticed Kirasaka looking at me with a grin in the corner of my eye.

…She’s having a good time.

I wonder if she is interested in what I would say or how I would respond in this situation.

I don’t really care about impressions from the class, or from individuals, or anything else.

Rather, I would judge that it would be more mentally draining to go back to my seat poorly and be told a single cold word.

That person has a great talent for precisely gouging out people’s hearts, you know.

Unconsciously, I release a breath from my chest and switched my thoughts.

“…Then, basically, it’s the same as boldly claiming that Yuuto lost in a match that he should have won easily in front of everyone, but did you think about that, right?”

“Huh? It’s different–“

“The interpretation of words varies from person to person… if you are talking about someone you are friends with, be a little more careful.”

Then she turns her gaze to Yuuto.

The female students are caught up too and look at Yuuto, but he smiles bitterly at their suddenly collected gazes.

He waved his hand at the girls as if to say, ‘I don’t care’, and the other student, who had just been confidently flouncing around, quietly shrank back.

“I’m just the facilitator…and I’ll be leaving as soon as I’ve explained the rules of group assignment, so please bear with me until then.”

The noisy classroom turns quiet as I look around at the entire class without emotion.

It doesn’t have to be that quiet…

Well, now that the problem of not being able to talk has gone away, so I told my classmates about the rules that had been given to me in advance by my homeroom teacher.