CH 47

“Ah, are you alright… Kaede?”

Recently, I had returned home from the amusement park and was sitting upright in the living room. It wasn’t as if I was instructed to sit up straight, it was just a situation where I had to be like that just because of the atmosphere.

Kaede is sitting comfortably on the sofa, while glaring at me.

“Mii-kun was actually into older people? I didn’t know that.”

“N-no, that’s not what I meant.”

“It’s terrible. You went to the amusement park with Mizuna-chan and cuddled with Yumi-nee during a free moment, and then left me alone.”

“I-I’m sorry, that was thoughtless. Even if it was just a coincidence, I should have thought more about the timing.”

I was able to go to the amusement park today thanks to Shinozuka-san. As a result, I ended up becoming a couple with Sakuramiya-sensei and even went to the haunted house. Objectively speaking, I was being selfish.

If I wanted to make excuses, I could come up with a lot of them.

It’s simply a matter of waiting until another day to give an answer to Sakuramiya-sensei’s confession. Well, it’s difficult to say whether I could have postponed my answer in that situation.

“Yumi-nee was just pretending to be your fiance, right?”

“That’s what it was, but after being confessed to… “

I gradually lower the volume of my voice as I sink down.

Then, Shii-chan, who is sitting on Kaede’s lap, interjects.

“But originally, it was Onee-chan’s fault.”

“What? Why me?”

“Because Onee-chan invited Yumi-nee—”

“Wah! Stop, stop! Don’t say that!

“Funyu?!—”

Kaede covers Shii-chan’s mouth with both hands and prohibits her from making a sound. Shii-chan continued to speak, but I couldn’t understand what she was saying because she was mumbling.

But I have a good idea of what Shii-chan wanted to say.

From here on out, my speculation is mixed in, but it’s probably the case that the reason Kaede and the others came to the amusement park today was to tail me.

Kaede obtained information in some form that I would be going to the amusement park with Shinozuka-san today. She then called Sakuramiya-sensei and came to the amusement park to confirm whether I had gotten a girlfriend.

After that, as they were tailing me, Sakuramiya-sensei retired halfway through and Shii-chan and Kaede continued their tail on us.

If that is the case, then it was Kaede who was the catalyst for Sakuramiya-sensei being at the amusement park today. That’s probably what Shii-chan was trying to say.

Since there’s no point in digging deeper into that matter, I change the subject.

“So, is it okay if I criticize you now?”

“What do you mean?”

I timidly say and cut in.

The truth is, ever since I returned home, there’s been something that’s been on my mind. No, it’s not something, it’s someone.

“Well, she is technically my girlfriend, but… why did you do something like that…”

In the corner of the living room, Ms. Sakuramiya is sitting cross-legged, confined by the curtains. She’s wearing a mask with a red “X” on it and a card that says “I am a bad child. I laid my hands on a student” hanging around her neck.

When I entered the living room, Sakuramiya-sensei was already in that state. From the looks of it, the relationship between Sakuramiya-sensei and me is already common knowledge.

Well, I didn’t think I could hide it from Kaede and the others.

“Ah, don’t worry. It looks like your foot is already much better. I put a cushion for you to sit on just in case.”

“I’m not worried about my foot. Well, a little bit, but…”

Sakuramiya-sensei had said that she sprained her foot earlier because she was not used to walking that much.

Well, she was able to walk on her own when we returned, so it wasn’t twisted that badly. Actually, there’s no sign of Sakuramiya-sensei’s face contorting in pain. Her foot is numb and she looks uncomfortable, but that’s it.

Kaede looks away with a pout adorning on her face.

“Hmph. Well, I guess this is what you could call my counterattack after being constantly ignored. I’ll have Yumi-nee experience some pain too—”

“It’s just a cheap shot.”

“T-that’s not it! This is justified! It’s impossible for a teacher to lay their hands on a student!”

“…”

At Shii-chan’s remark, Kaede blushes for a moment and quickly opens her mouth.

When I briefly look at Sakuramiya-sensei, she looks out of place and has a bad expression while swimming her eyes.

As Kaede becomes unnecessarily angry, Shii-chan looks at me.

“Well, I think Minato-nii and Yumi-nee look really good with each other.”

“Oh, I see… thank you, Shii-chan.”

Come to think of it, I feel like I’ve heard something like that before. That I’m suited to be with Sakuramiya-sensei or something.

Shii-chan seems to be welcoming the fact that I’m dating Sakuramiya-sensei.

But Kaede, turning her head away and crossed her arms in front of her chest, and siad,

“Pfft, I don’t think so! Just because she’s pretty, has nice skin, and a good figure, she’s just trying to seduce Mii-kun. No matter whatever happens, you can’t date him! Seriously, it’s unbelievable… it’s better if this whole thing blows up sooner or later.”

By the end, she mutters to herself and stands up from the sofa. Then, glancing back and forth between me and Sakuramiya-sensei, she points her finger at us.

“You two had better reflect on this. I’m going to bed.”

“Uh, this posture is kind of tough—”

Without looking at me, Kaede left the living room. 

Shii-chan also stands up from the sofa and says, “Shiina will be with onee-san for a while, so I  won’t be coming back to the living room. But even if it’s just the two of you, don’t ‘get lovey-dovey.’ Absolutely, don’t ‘get lovey-dovey’.” Shii-chan emphasized much more on the last part.

Satisfied with herself after saying that, she also left the living room. In an instant, the living room was empty with just me and Sakurmiya-sensei.

An indescribable atmosphere that is different from before flows through the room. It might be similar to the restless atmosphere on the first day of a class change.

Glancing at Sakuramiya-sensei, I noticed that she’s also looking at me, even though she was wearing the mask with the X sign, I can tell that her cheeks were beet red. She looked away, averting her gaze.

I still can’t fully grasp the situation, and help but feel a little embarrassed.

Sakuramiya-sensei speaks up, breaking the silence.

“Erm… I’m sorry for what Kaede said earlier. But, what are you doing here, Sakuramiya-sensei?”

To dispel the unbearable atmosphere, I called out to Sakuramiya-sensei. Of course, I mostly imagined the reason why she was here.

The timing when Sakuramiya-sensei and Kaede returned home was almost the same. She came home with them and has been subjected to Kaede’s questioning since then.

“…Segawa-kun, why did you take a long time coming home? Did you take a detour with Shinozuka-san?”

However, Sakuramiya-sensei did not answer my question and asked a question in return, what she asked me was relatively harder to answer.

In fact, after leaving the amusement park, I was forced by Shinozuka-san to have dinner at a nearby restaurant. That’s why my return home was significantly delayed. It’s now almost 9:21 PM.

“I wouldn’t say a detour, but we had dinner together…”

“Hmm. Even though you have a new girlfriend.”

“I’m sorry.”

“…Can you make up for leaving your girlfriend behind?”

Sakuramiya-sensei looked up at me and spoke in a slightly pleading voice. Currently, there are only two of us in the living room, me and her.

When I am faced with such a protective face, I cannot remain silent and just overlook it.

“I hope you’ll keep it a secret from Kaede and the others.”

Saying that, I broke my correct posture and headed towards Sakuramiya-sensei.