Chapter 6: Who are you Smiling for?
Under Itsuki’s leadership, preparations for the cultural festival were proceeding smoothly. This was their second time preparing for a cultural festival, so they were used to the procedures, but more importantly, the boys and girls in the class were all clearly focused and worked together in unison to fulfill their selfish desires.
Amane was busy preparing while also taking care of his daily class schedule, but for once, he felt so content with the work that he didn’t feel busy at all.
“Hey, there’s a typo on the pamphlet. It hasn’t been printed yet, so make it again. It’d be bad if we got the school’s address wrong.”
“Do you know where the tablecloths are? I heard we bought some, but they’re nowhere to be found!”
“Even if the cost is set to be low, the amount will be about this much…”
Amane and the others were also feeling the clamor of their classmates, who were each doing the work they’d been entrusted with, and were also receiving instruction from the waitress in charge of teaching them.
“Fujimiya-kun, umm, smile!”
*…smile*
“It’s twitching, it’s twitching.”
Amane, who could only muster up a fake smile, looked at Kido Ayaka, a girl from the class who was working part-time at a café, in charge of preparing the costumes and training those on customer service. But she gave Amane an awkward expression, seeing the way he smiled.
They had a few conversations before summer vacation, but they hadn’t had any particular contact since then, and now that they were interacting like this again, he was having a hard time dealing with her. She was doing her best to teach him the basics of customer service, despite how anti-social Amane seemed to be, but he still couldn’t get used to things he wasn’t comfortable with.
From Amane’s perspective, it wasn’t like he couldn’t smile, but from Ayaka’s point of view, it looked somewhat awkward.
“Hmm. Your usual smile is much better, though. You’re giving an awkward smile because you’re being overly conscious of it. Relax, relax.”
“You say that, but when I think about serving customers, I just can’t help it.”
“Just think of them as potatoes.”
“Potatoes, huh?”
“It looks like you’d prefer eggs, Amane-kun.” Mahiru, who was similarly receiving instructions for how to serve customers, chuckled and teased him.
Given that she had cooked for him for nearly a year, Mahiru was well aware of his fondness for eggs. Though, it wasn’t like he was just going to start smiling at eggs, so nothing changed in the end.
That’s not the issue here, he thought, but Mahiru seemed to be having fun, so he decided to stay quiet and simply scratched his cheek.
“Well, I’ve heard some say it looks better when you’re naturally smiling than when you’re forcing one, so let’s try and find a way for you to relax.”
“And who said it’s better when I act natural?”
“The girls from our class? You know, the smile you give when you’re with Shiina-san.”
“Can’t say I enjoy being watched.”
“You weren’t flexing?”
“Not a chance.”
He glared at Itsuki, who had assumed it was on purpose, but the latter was exasperated and said, “You’re not aware of this, are you?” so Amane just replied, “Shut up.”
Mahiru’s cheeks were slightly flushed as she smiled modestly. Her embarrassed eyes were aimed at him, and her cheeks were even more flushed than before. Likely, Mahiru was aware of it herself. Starting with Ayaka, the other girls nodded in agreement.
“Though I’m sure you’re most relaxed when you’re with Shiina-san, Fujimiya-kun.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Your atmosphere. You know, the kind of vibe that you give off when you’re with her.”
“Vibe?”
“Yep, your vibe. I’m stunned by it sometimes.”
He wasn’t too sure what she was saying, but Mahiru had an idea of what she meant and was trying her best to hide her embarrassment. It was just that her eyes seemed to waver slightly in the midst of that shame, and Ayaka, who seemed to have noticed the change, smiled and waved her hand dismissively.
“Shiina-san, Don’t worry, don’t worry. I have a boyfriend. I’m not interested in getting another.”
“I-I wasn’t worried about that.”
“You don’t have to hide it. I’d be worried if my boyfriend got attention, too. But I won’t be interested in someone unless they’ve got muscle. Fujimiya-kun’s too thin, so he’s out of the question!”
“I feel like I’ve just been called a bean sprout.”
He thought he’d gained more muscle recently, but his reputation for being too thin made him a little depressed. Itsuki had praised him for having more muscles than before, but it could have been him having low standards for praise.
“A-Amane-kun isn’t a bean sprout. I do think he is fair-skinned, but… umm… w-when he strips, he has… a lot of muscle.”
“Eh? He’s amazing when he strips?”
“Don’t say it like that, Mahiru! You don’t want people to get the wrong idea!”
“…But you’re very firm, it’s true.”
“Fine, then. You’ll be so embarrassed later, though, Mahiru.”
Mahiru had just confirmed in front of others that she’d had chances to touch his bare skin at least once before, and Amane wished she had realized her little slip-up. The reality was that they were clinging to each other in swimsuits, so it wasn’t like anything risqué happened, but depending on who heard her, it wouldn’t be strange for them to think they’d already gone further. Despite this, Mahiru had mentioned that Amane was very gentlemanly, so they probably realized that he hadn’t done anything.
Mahiru calmed down after he pointed it out, and Amane was relieved. He looked around and many warm stares were directed at them, so he clicked his tongue; mostly at Itsuki.
“Huh? Why are you looking at me like that?”
“Your grin pisses me off.”
“Hey, you can’t just blame me for everything. Come on, let’s stop fooling around and get practicing.”
Putting his affairs aside, he clicked his tongue at the provocative Itsuki once more, and when he looked at Ayaka with a sullen expression, she started laughing.
“Well, I understand how passionate you two are, no problems there. It’ll be fine as long as you greet the customers with a smile. Your mannerisms are elegant to begin with, so I think there’ll be no problem if I show you around like I taught you.”
“Never thought my mannerisms were elegant, though.”
He doesn’t think he acted rough, but he wouldn’t go so far as to call them elegant, so he could only tilt his head in confusion when she said it in such a way, but Mahiru understood and smiled at him.
“Amane-kun, it must be because you grew up watching your parents. Those two are very refined.”
“I’m not sure if Mom acts elegantly or not, but her movements aren’t dull.”
“So you went out with Fujimiya-kun and his whole family, Shiina-san.”
“K-Kido-san…”
“Sorry, sorry.”
Amane turned to her with a sour look on his face as Ayaka giggled at him, but that only amused her more, and in the end, neither Amane or Mahiru could escape the heartwarming smiles of their classmates.
✧ ₊ ✦ ₊ ✧
Just two weeks before the cultural festival was planned to be held, they received word that their ordered outfits had arrived.
“Okay, these are the costumes that arrived. I’ll hand them out to everyone, so wait a minute! I’ll give you instructions on how to properly wear them, so hold tight~”
Ayaka smiled as she handed each of them their outfits, and she came over to Amane to hand his outfit to him while smiling cheerfully, saying, “Here you go.”
“Ah, Fujimiya-kun, there’s a different classroom for you to go change in. Head there later.”
“Why am I alone?”
“Hmm. Special measures?”
“What do you mean by that?”
“It’s just a small request from Shiina-san, and I want to grant it to her. Shiina-san said she wanted to show it to you first, Fujimiya-kun, so...”
“All the other girls agreed too, of course.” Amane felt a little guilty at the lengths they went to grant her request, even if there wasn’t much need for them to be concerned about it. At the same time, though, Amane was thrilled that Mahiru had gone to such lengths to make sure he was the first to see her.
Amane smiled, “Thank you,” as he thanked the girls, starting with Ayaka, who gladly accepted Mahiru’s wish.
✧ ₊ ✦ ₊ ✧
And so, at a special time given to him, Amane waited in front of the door to the classroom where Mahiru seemed to be changing.
The curtains were closed, of course. From what he heard, the original plan was to have everyone head to the changing room, but they borrowed a spare classroom to put their costumes on and to practice serving customer meals afterward. Additionally, not only would they stand out in their maid dresses and fluffy skirts if they went into the hallway, but as it was overflowing with various equipment and paint, they could easily tear or stain their clothes, which would be a big problem.
I’m kinda nervous.
It was somewhat awkward and nerve-wracking to think that a girl was changing on the other side of the wall. She was his girlfriend, and it was true that he had seen her in an underwear-like appearance once before, but that aside, he still couldn’t calm down.
As he leaned back against the door and waited in silence, he heard a somewhat stiff voice from the classroom saying, “You can come in now.”
“Maybe Mahiru’s nervous in her own way, too,” he murmured with a small smile and followed her urging into the classroom; only to find Mahiru standing a short distance away from the door.
Closing the door behind him, he looked at Mahiru, who was standing directly in front of him. The maid dress that Mahiru was wearing was the type with a long skirt that reached down to her ankles, and also had long sleeves. It was a classical type of maid dress that also incorporated a moderately modernized style in some parts, and it was a combination of long sleeves, a long navy blue one-piece dress, and an apron that puffed up around her upper arms, looking as though there was air inside.
Kido once mentioned that when it came to wearing miniskirts, they would often wear another skirt underneath to prevent it from swaying upward; but as Mahiru was wearing a long skirt, she didn’t do so, and the dress formed a lovely and neat silhouette of her figure.
Though she wore frills on her apron as a decoration, there was almost no skin exposed, giving her a prim and pure air. He could see that her ankles were covered in black tights through the hem of her long skirt. The black tights themselves must have been from Mahiru’s personal belongings. At school, she wore them all year round so she could hide her skin, and that was exactly what she was doing here.
“What do you think?”
Mahiru tilted her head freely, and her flowing hair swayed about smoothly as she did so.
Mahiru’s tasks were to both serve the customers and carry their food to their table, so she had tied her long flaxen hair into dumplings so they wouldn’t cause any problems while she was working.
Her styled hair was supported by a maid-themed chignon cap for good measure.
“…You look a lot better in it than I imagined.”
“Is that so? I’m glad. This is my first time wearing a costume like this…”
Amane praised her without a hint of flattery, and she replied bashfully.
Mahiru’s innate beauty was a major reason that it suited her, but more than that, Mahiru’s atmosphere matched the maid dress much more than he was expecting. She had always been the type to take care of others, and that nature of hers complimented the look even further.
As Mahiru smiled at him softly, Amane couldn’t help but believe it would be ideal if she wasn’t sent out to serve customers.
“Amane-kun?”
“Huh…? Oh, sorry. It looks so great on you that I didn’t want to show it off to anyone else. It’s way too effective.”
“Hehe, what is it effective on?”
“My sanity?”
“I’ll give you headpats later, so please bear with it for now. I don’t want anyone else to see you in your butler uniform either…”
“They won’t be coming for me, so don’t worry.”
“It’s not okay!”
For some reason, Mahiru got rather heated, so he obediently apologized, “Sorry,” and Mahiru seemed to think she went too far, “I should be the one apologizing,” and softly gave an apology of her own.
“…You’ve become easier to get along with since you changed your image, and, um, I’ve heard other girls talking about how good-looking you are now.”
“First time I’ve heard anything about that, though.”
“Of course, they won’t tell the person himself. It’s something girls will only talk about among each other… I’m here with you, so they can’t be so open about it.”
A slight shiver ran down his spine, wondering just what girls talked about when they gathered, but from the way Mahiru talked, it seemed that he was generally favored positively. Despite that, he didn’t dare think they fancied him. At best, they were simply giving them warm stares. In the first place, it was hard to accept a woman who would try to seduce a man who was already dating someone; or rather, it warranted a definite refusal. There were no female students like that from what he saw, though, so Mahiru’s words didn’t strike him as reality.
Mahiru pursed her lips cutely, apparently sensing from her expression that Amane wasn’t taking all her words at face value.
“Did you know that when a group of girls get together, they can talk very bluntly? They chat about which boy has a relationship with which girl, their personalities, and experience. Honestly, they’re all things they don’t want men to hear about.”
“Just what is my girlfriend involved with?”
“That’s how girls talk. They tend to be very frank, without much sugar-coating. …I’ve heard them say you’re a wonderful person, Amane-kun, so I can’t help but feel uneasy.”
Mahiru began to fidget and had a hard time saying it. To Amane, she resembled the image of a lovely and adorable maid, and he felt a little sadistic at the thought, but also guilty nonetheless.
“By the way, what did they say about me?”
“Umm, that you’re kind, or very gentlemanly… And that when you love someone, you won’t pay attention to anybody else.”
“Well, that might be true. I only ever look at you, Mahiru.”
It was only natural to only look at your lover. It would be rude and dishonest to be interested in someone of the opposite sex when you’re already dating someone else.
Amane hadn’t started dating Mahiru with such half-hearted feelings. He had heard that the personalities of those in the Fujimiya family were often of the affectionate sort, and they would only ever be interested in one person; and as it turned out, Amane had no intention of looking at anyone but Mahiru, either.
“It’s the same for you, isn’t it, Mahiru? Would you ever steal glances at any other boys?”
“That’s impossible!”
“Then, there’s nothing for either of us to worry about. You’re the only one for me, Mahiru, and the only girl I’ve ever fancied. But putting that aside, I still don’t want others to look at you the same way, and that’s why I was against letting other boys see you wearing this outfit.”
Mahiru frowned a little as Amane returned to the original topic. She then pressed her forehead against his upper arm several times, as if headbutting him.
“…Let’s both put up with that.”
“Yeah, let’s.”
“But still—I want to monopolize you, Amane-kun.”
“Same for me,” Amane gently patted Mahiru on the back as she pressed her forehead against him, and she looked up and stared at him.
“…I want to see you in your butler uniform as soon as possible, Amane-kun.”
“The boys will be renting a room for the unveiling next, so please wait just a bit.”
This time, thanks to the kindness of Itsuki, Chitose, and Ayaka, Amane was allowed to be the first to see Mahiru in her dress, but the original plan was a simultaneous unveiling.
It was time for the boys to put on the clothes they had borrowed as well.
“…It’s nothing special, okay?”
“That’s not true. I’m looking forward to it.”
Mahiru wasn’t flattering him; she really felt that way, and it was clear in the way she smiled at him. Amane felt an indescribably ticklish feeling and scratched his cheek, “Don’t get your hopes up, just wait,” and replied so.
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