Volume 1 - CH 1.3

“Charlotte-san, do you want to go out with us after this?”

“What do you mean, hang out?”

“You see, we’re going to karaoke and have a welcome party for Charlotte-san!”

As soon as homeroom was over, my classmates started to gather around Charlotte-san once again.

If you look closely, you can see that not only our classmates are there, but also people from other classes as well.

It seems that they came to see Charlotte-san because they heard rumors about her, and this fact shows just how popular she is.

“Ah, I’m sorry. My little sister is waiting for me at home…”

However, Charlotte-san, who was receiving invitations from everyone, was very apologetic and said no to her classmates, as if she had to go home early.

The classmates looked disappointed at Charlotte-san’s words, but they understood that it was not a good idea to ask her out, and no one tried to force her.

―Except, of course, for one person.

“Then why don’t you just bring your little sister along? We don’t mind!”

Akira, the only one who couldn’t read the atmosphere, suggested an alternative plan to get Charlotte-san to come to the welcome party.

I’m sure he didn’t mean any harm, but Charlotte-san had a troubled expression on her face.

And because Akira took the initiative, he started to invite other people to join him.

………………It can’t be helped, can it?

If this continues, we won’t be able to recover and Charlotte-san, who wants to go home as soon as possible, won’t be able to leave any time soon.

When I realized this, I sat up from my chair and went over to the girls.

“Akira, stop it. And everyone else. We don’t have time for this when the tests start next week, do we?”

I stopped my classmates with a plausible reason so as not to bother Charlotte-san.

I can’t help but feel a little bad about it.

But I know that this will make things even more complicated, so I signaled Akira with my eyes only.

“Aoyagi-kun, you’re the worst. Isn’t it natural to have a welcome party for your classmates? Is studying really that important to you?”

“You really can’t read the atmosphere, can you? The class unanimously decided to have a welcome party, so it’s fine.”

My classmates complained to me, one by one.

If you speak out against the answer everyone wants, you will be immediately criticized, that’s the group mentality.

But I knew what I was doing, so it didn’t hurt too much.

I don’t have a good relationship with anyone but Akira, so there’s no need to worry about it.

However, if I let him say whatever he wants, it will make a huge fuss.

I’d like to get this under control, but it’s not up to me.

There was only one person in the room who could take on that role.

“Sorry, my bad! You’re right, we have a test coming up soon, so it’s better to have the welcome party after the test is over!”

It was Akira, who had just taken the lead, who clapped his hands together and shouted loudly.

Akira bowed to Charlotte-san and everyone else with an apologetic look on his face.

“Ehh~, you’re giving priority to the test too, Saionji-kun?”

Naturally, our classmates voiced their dissatisfaction.

But Akira was not the kind of guy who would be upset by that.

“No, you see? Akihito has a point, doesn’t he? If the class average scores go down, Miyu-sensei will get angry and Charlotte-san might feel responsible for that outcome. If that’s the case, why don’t we just have a welcome party after the test?”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“You’re right…”

Akira’s words, spoken with his hands outstretched as if to persuade, gradually began to convince everyone.

It’s the words of the class’s popular mood-maker that everyone agrees with.

If I had said it, it wouldn’t have gone like this.

That’s why it’s better to leave this kind of role to Akira.

Well, when Akira says something, people tend to take it the wrong way, so I have to be careful not to let it go in a strange direction…

―My position in the class is like a stopper to keep Akira from going off in the wrong direction.

I don’t mind that I’m often the one who gets the short end of the stick.

I’d much rather have people complain about me than have a problem and have our class or Akira’s reputation suffer.

“―Thank you!”

After confirming that the commotion was over, Akira whispered that into my ear.

Earlier, I noticed that Charlotte-san was troubled to which I sent Akira a signal with my eyes, so he returned the favor and went to my side.

I guess this was his way of thanking me.

If I hadn’t noticed and he made a fuss, he might have made a bad impression on Charlotte-san.

I nodded my head and started to get ready to leave.

There’s nothing special about it, but it would be better for the atmosphere of the class if I left as soon as possible after upsetting everyone.

However―

“―Hoo~, for Saionji who has the lowest average score in the class, you’ve got a pretty auspicious attitude, don’t you think?”

Just as everyone was getting ready to leave, Miyu-sensei’s voice came out of nowhere, smiling wickedly and looking very happy.

“M-Miyu-sensei…? Didn’t you go back to the staff room after homeroom…?”

Akira turned around in a cold sweat as Miyu-sensei suddenly appeared behind him.

Apparently, Akira was still traumatized by what he had been told today.

I don’t know what she said to him, but judging by the way he looked at her, he must have been wrung out pretty hard.

“Don’t look so frightened. I didn’t come back for you this time.”

“Ah, then, why didn’t you just say so? You’re a bit of a menace, you know that?”

“Fufu, if you hadn’t done anything wrong, I wouldn’t have any reason to be angry with you, much less be terrified of me, would I? Would you consider coming to the staff room again to put yourself on the pedestal?”

Miyu-sensei smiled and squeezed Akira’s shoulder, anger marks on her forehead, because Akira, feeling relieved, said something unnecessary.

From the sound of the creaking and the way Akira’s body was shaking from the intense pain, it seemed that Miyu-sensei was gripping Akira’s shoulder with such great force.

“Miyu-sensei, didn’t you come here for something else, and not just to deal with Akira?”

Miyu-sensei is the kind of person who won’t stop until she’s satisfied, so I intervened to help Akira with another topic.

She’s also a surprisingly simple teacher, so this should be an easy distraction.

―However, I was going to regret reminding Miyu-sensei of her business.

“Oh, that’s right. I came here because I have an errand for you, Aoyagi. Come with me now for a moment.”

“Eh…?”

I was at a loss for words when I heard that it was me who was needed.

Could it be―?

“I thought I’d punish you for this morning.”

I knew it…

Miyu-sensei, you said it was okay as long as we didn’t get noticed…

I had such a feeling, but I was reluctantly taken in by Miyu-sensei because rebellion would prolong the process.