Too Many Losing Heroines! - Volume 1 - Chapter 2.3

I didn’t start on my way home until the sun was well on its way below the horizon, even with how long the days had gotten. Red tinged the sky, the buildings, and the streets, and that would soon give way to purple, which would quickly give way to night. This time of day was always the loneliest to me for some reason. I picked up the pace.

A girl in a familiar uniform appeared in front of me. Streaks of the setting sun illuminated Kaju’s profile in deep orange. A plastic bag hung heavily from her fingers. I hurried forward on lighter feet and took the bag from her.

“Oniisama!” she yelped. “You scared me. Just now on your way home?”

“Yup. Late day for you too?”

“Mom and Dad said they wouldn’t be home until after dark, so I got caught up in talking with a friend,” Kaju said.

I peeked inside the bag. Udon noodles, onions, quail eggs, yams—all the ingredients for our family’s favorite dish: Toyohashi-style curry udon.

I noticed my sister peering up at me. “What?”

“I found out today that I’ll be away from home over the weekend. Is that okay?”

“Uh, sure. Why are you asking me?”

“I was worried you might get lonely. You won’t cry, will you?.”

Seriously, what was with everyone treating me like a sad little puppy all of a sudden? Where was that attention a week ago?

“I’ll manage,” I said. “Won’t be home this weekend either. Going on an overnight field trip with the club I’m in.”

“Wait, you are?!” Kaju hollered. “Are you telling me you have friends now?!”

“I dunno if I’d go that far…”

Kaju scampered off and flew into a nearby grocer. “Your finest adzuki beans, sir! We’re having red rice tonight!”

“Well, hey there, Kaju-chan.” The owner sauntered over, wiping his hands on his apron. Since when was she that popular? “Celebrating something?”

“Yes, sir! My brother’s made his first friend!” Kaju proclaimed with glee. “Whoever they are, I need to whip them up something special!”

“That’s just wonderful.” He looked at me. “And you’re the guy I’ve heard so much about? All of us business owners have been mighty worried about you.”

I can never come here again.

“We were even thinking of making you a checkpoint for the big stamp rally,” the owner said. “Guess we won’t need to anymore.”

Please, God, end this.

“My congratulations,” the man went on. “Kaju-chan, go ahead and take some mochi while you’re at it.”

“Thank you, sir!” Kaju’s eyes twinkled like stars. “So who are they, Oniisama? What are they like? Are they half as amazing as you are? Oh, I bet.”

“I, uh…”

“Is it a girl?! Oh, goodness, I’m not ready. I’ll need to plan meetings, set dates…”

“Listen, there’s no friend,” I interrupted. “I’m just going with some people in the literature club.”

“You…haven’t made any friends?”

“Um. No.”

Things got uncomfortably quiet. A motion-detecting light went out, casting us in darkness.

“Make it soybeans, sir,” Kaju said solemnly. “I’ll boil them with some kombu at home.”

“It sounds like you’ll need the luck,” the owner said real low. “I’ll throw in some rolled barley.”

Why was it starting to feel like I was attending my own funeral?

“I’ll, uh, hang in there,” I said.

“You do that, son,” said the owner. “Don’t be too hard on yourself.”

That was the tone we left on. We were on our way back home.

“Still, a club? A field trip? That’s all totally new for you,” Kaju commented.

“First time I’ve done anything like it since I got forced into the Boy Scouts in fifth grade.”

We didn’t speak of that summer. Nightmare.

“Baby steps, Oniisama,” said Kaju. “You’re making progress.”

“Maybe. Feels more like things are happening around me and I’m just along for the ride.”

“That’s fine too. Nothing wrong with seeing where it takes you, is there?” She grinned and patted me on the head. “I’m very proud of you, Oniisama. That’s my big brother.”

She then yoinked one of the bag loops from my hand.

“Feel like helping?” I said.

“Just feel like spoiling you a little today.”

Kaju smiled brighter than the sunset. I couldn’t help but smirk back, slowing my pace to match hers.

It didn’t feel right letting my little sister spoil me. There was something…oxymoronic about it. Maybe I needed to do a little more than just “hang in there.”

Current tab: 2,367 yen.

***

Literature Club Activity Report: Tsukinoki Koto— Is It Painful to Be the Person Who Waits? Or Is It More Painful to Be the Person Who Sleeps Alone?

The clicks and snaps of game pieces on a board echoed down the hallway. A man in military garb slid open the door and entered. There, on one side of a shogi board, sat a cross-legged man in loose, unkempt kimono robes. He simpered, a familiar expression, and felt his stubble.

The military man barked, “Why are you here?”

The man in the kimono regarded the intruder with surprise, then, upon recognizing the uniform, shook his head and returned to the game board. “Mishima-kun. We meet again.” He picked up a piece and admired it, a melancholic calm gracing his visage. “My wish is granted. Here I am. Though the people…perplex me.” Clack. The noise simply entertained the kimono man. “Our clothes. Our games. I’ve yet to find something they cannot replicate. The elves are a rather versatile people.” A knowing glance at Mishima. “Especially their women.” A smirk. Clack.

Mishima sat opposite him. “Do you have any idea what this is, Dazai-san?”

“A world beyond our own, yes, though not so different from Tsugaru. Wouldn’t you say? Granted, a certain General Mori would delude himself otherwise.”

“You’ve met?”

“More than met. He likes his pretty little blondies, doesn’t he? Some proclivities never change, no matter the world.” Dazai rattled a pair of shogi pieces in his hand amusedly.

“I won’t play your games. What is the meaning of this? Why are you idling about here? You know he can give you a second chance.”

“Did you come to see me, or did you come to chat about the general?” Dazai brought his bristly face next to Mishima’s when the military man said nothing. “I heard what you did. Sliced your gut right open. Did it hurt?”

Mishima moved his king one space forward without heed. “I’ve never liked you, Dazai-san.”

“And yet here you are. We both know how you really feel.” Dazai pushed aside the shogi board and gripped the only game piece he truly cared to play with—Mishima’s hand.

“Dazai-san, I—”

“I know you do.”

With strength born seemingly from the ether of Dazai’s sickly body, he toppled Mishima to the tatami, his chiseled physique at the mercy of

[The following contents redacted by discretion of the club president.]

***

Friday. The classroom was buzzing more than usual. Friends greeted friends, sharing weekend plans, figuring out who was free to hang out with who. Phones made that particular social dance a little easier, but there was something intangibly important to the tangible, to talking face-to-face. Humans were social creatures, complete with all the limitations therein.

I leaned my elbows on my desk, hands clasped together. “Speaking of freedom…”

To be truly free was to be alone. Like yours truly. I didn’t have a dance to dance, plans to share, obligations to get in the way of my carefully concocted weekend.

Until recently, that is.

Since our oh-so reliable Tsukinoki-senpai couldn’t be trusted with it, I had spent the better part of my evening last night working out train and bus schedules for the field trip tomorrow. I also checked out some popular sightseeing spots but only out of curiosity. I was already looking stuff up anyway. Nothing to read into.

“Morning, Nukkun!”

“Huh? O-oh. Morning?” I stammered. Yakishio Lemon plopped down at the desk in front of me. Something wasn’t computing in my head. “Can I…help you? What’s going on?”

“Uh, nothing? It’s morning, so, you know. Good morning.” It was morning. She wasn’t wrong. But since when were we close enough to exchange greetings? Yakishio didn’t elaborate. “So hey, I remembered that thing in the shed yesterday.” She leaned her head thoughtfully to one side. “I was thinking today—”

“Y-you remember?!” I blurted. How in God’s name was she so composed? “I wasn’t looking, for the record! Not even a little!”

I did, however, remember the way it felt. The softness. The springiness against my back. The…everythingness. I couldn’t look her in the eye.

“Ya lost me, dude,” Yakishio said. “I’m talking about the books.”

“The books?”

“You’re the one who told me to tell him to come pick ’em up! Still fuzzy for you or something?”

“Oh. No. Yeah, I remember that. That sure did happen. It’s all you.”

“Cool! We’ll be there after school!” Yakishio casually waved as she trotted off to her seat.

The tension drained away before immediately coming back, because that was when I noticed all the eyes on me. Mostly male eyes. Jealous, angry eyes. All of a sudden, everyone wanted a piece of the poor background character, and I didn’t even know why.

“…So like, what the hell’s that about?”

A few hours later, Yanami and I were sitting on the fire escape stairs.

“Lemon-chan’s got admirers,” she said, digging out a lunch basket. “And, well, you guys were getting all friendly.”

“Admirers? Huh. Admirers.” Admirers, huh? “Wait, who’s got admirers?”

“Lemon-chan, cotton ears. Do you need to see the nurse again?”

Yakishio? Admirers? Literally how? She was cute, granted, but did anyone know her on any level other than skin-deep?

“She’s pretty and fun to talk to,” Yanami went on. “I mean, okay, yeah, she can be a bit, y’know, and how she even managed to pass the exam to enroll here is one of Tsuwabuki’s seven wonders, but that stuff aside.” She nodded matter-of-factly. “She’s pretty and fun to talk to.”

Pretty and fun to talk to were powerful traits, for sure. I was convinced.

I inspected today’s lunch. The basket was packed with onigiri, sausages, karaage, broccoli, and various finger foods with toothpicks for easy eating. And easy sharing, at that.

“Why wasn’t this the first thing we tried?” I said.

“Yeah, Anna, come on,” she muttered curiously. “Could’ve been so easy.”

“Agreed.”

I went for one of the onigiri. A paper bento box, a half-mochi rice glob, and the remnants of ravaged omurice flashed before my eyes. So many stupid solutions to an easy problem. Albeit the omurice was an entirely unrelated matter.

“Anyway, so you’re going on an overnight trip? That sounds fun.”

“We’ll see,” I said. I took a big bite. “The only bullet point I’ve been told is ‘canned goods.’” I felt a crunch, stopped chewing, and looked down at the rice ball. Q-chan pickles, a Mikawa regional specialty.

“You’re only staying the night, right?” Yanami asked. “Are Tsukinoki-senpai and Komari-chan the only girls?”

“Yeah. Guys are me and Prez Tamaki.”

Yanami pulled out her phone and started swiping. “Looks like there’s a beach nearby. Cool. Wonder if I can get away with last year’s swimsuit.”

“What do you mean ‘last year’s’? Do they expire?”

Also, wait, was she going?

“To be fair, it’s not like I need a new one every year,” she said, “but who doesn’t like new swimsuits?”

“Sure, I guess. Didn’t you literally just buy one though?”

“I—what? No?” Yanami cringed hard and scooched away. “Literally what are you talking about? You’re being creepy, Nukumizu-kun. Like, it’s kinda gross.”

Gross and creepy. A new record…

“But you did,” I argued. “You literally had to buy one for school.”

“Oh. Oh, that’s what you meant!” She unscrunched her nose then shook her head. “No one wears their school swimsuit to the beach, are you kidding me? I’d honestly rather go in my underwear.”

“It can’t be that bad.”

By her logic, the education system was subjecting its students to cruel and unusual punishment every day.

“It literally is,” she asserted. “Also, don’t ever do that again. Ever. You’re lucky I realized what you meant, but even still. That was almost cancelable levels of creepy.”

I was three-for-three on the insults. I changed the subject before we hit four. “You know this trip’ll take up your entire weekend, right? Don’t have any plans already?”

“That’s just the thing.” Yanami’s eyes became cast in shadow. “So I ran into my auntie the other day…”

“Who?”

“Oh, Sousuke’s mom. We’ve been friends a long time, so our families are close.” I prepared myself for more nonsense. “Anyway, she asked me why I haven’t been coming by in the mornings.” She chuckled exactly twice at herself. “Which is funny, y’know, ’cause like, why would I? He’s got a girlfriend. It’d just be weird for me to keep waking him up.”

“R-right.”

“And then she asked if we were fighting. We did used to do that a lot. Get in little arguments over stupid things.” Yanami watched a passing cloud float by. “Wish it was that simple.”

I had no idea how to respond to any of this.

“So apparently my parents had the same idea, because turns out they’re planning a friggin’ surprise barbecue together. Totally out of nowhere!” She got right up in my face. “I need you to take me away from here! Take me to the ocean, Nukumizu-kun!”

This was sounding a little too much like a cheesy soap opera.

“Isn’t there a much easier way to achieve the same effect?” I said. “Can’t you just step out while it’s going on?”

“You haven’t seen my dad at a barbecue, okay? That man will grill for hours and hours until I get home!”

“Uh, okay, then plan a sleepover with some friends?”

“And not talk relationships? Listen, Nukumizu-kun, that just doesn’t happen, and unlike you, I actually care about what my friends think of me!”

First of all, that was plain rude. Second, I had no friends. I racked my brain for a way out, any escape whatsoever.

Yanami wasn’t having it and gave me an unamused look. “You sure are bending over backward to keep me from coming.”

“Not on purpose,” I insisted. “It’s just, can’t you tell the situation to one of your buddies and have them bail you out?”

“I mean…” Yanami frowned. “It’s hard to explain. I don’t want them caught up in all the drama.”

“Oh. You haven’t told anyone? Even a little?”

“I can’t, really. Everyone kind of already knows, and they’re trying to keep things feeling normal. I don’t wanna be the one to make things heavy.” She let her eyes fall a little. “I can read the room sometimes, thank you.”

“Not with me, apparently.”

“Well who else am I gonna vent about all this with?” she grumbled.

“O-oh. Um…” She’d said something similar to me a few days ago. I dug for my phone. I knew when to throw in the towel. “I’ll have to ask to be sure. You’re technically not a member and all.”

“I can be! I’ll do it right now, even!” Yanami blurted. “Send me Tsukinoki-senpai’s ID. I’ll talk to her.”

“I, uh… I know Senpai’s from the group chat we’re in, but I don’t have yours.”

Yanami stared blankly at me. “Just check the class chat, dude.”

Duh, of course, I’ll just—

“I don’t have that.”

“Huh?” There were no words for an uncomfortable length of time. Yanami fled from the tension by staring down at her phone. “I, uh… Huh. Sorry, this is…awkward.” She blinked and darted her eyes around. “But hey, like, that’s just you, y’know? Classic Nukumizu-kun. Doing his own thing. Right?”

That was the saddest attempt at consolation I’d ever seen.

“It’s fine. Doesn’t bother me. I’ve only just recently started using LINE anyway,” I said.

“Y-yup! Classic Nukumizu-kun!” she repeated, a little more affected this time. “Here, add me. Do you know how?”

“Yeah, I got it. It’s that ‘shake it’ thing.”

Tsukinoki-senpai had done all the behind-the-scenes of getting me in the club group, but I made sure to do my research. I was a veritable friend-adding pro.

“The what thing? There’s no ‘shake it’ thing.”

“There’s not?”

Then where the heck had it gone? Did someone lose it?

“Just show me your QR code,” she said.

Where do I…?

Yanami reached over and tapped a couple of things. “There. You should’ve gotten my friend request. Now you accept it.”

“Okay. Done. And now you’re added?”

“Yep. You can add me to the lit club group chat now.”

I slowly navigated my way through the menus, and when I was done, Yanami nodded in proud approval.

“Back to Lemon-chan,” she said, counting what remained of the karaage with a toothpick, “when’d you two get all buddy-buddy?”

“Do we look like buddies?”

“I mean, she gave you a nickname.”

Nukkun, she’d taken to calling me. It came out for some reason in her heatstroke-related delirium back at the shed, and evidently it stuck. Surprisingly irrelevant in the story of how we knew each other.

“Remember the guy who showed up in the nurse’s office?” I said. “Ayano Mitsuki, from class D.”

“Oh, right, the guy Lemon-chan was making eyes at. He was pretty handsome.”

“The lit club has some books he wants to borrow. Yakishio-san’s kind of acting as the go-between.”

Yanami hummed in mild interest, then tossed a piece of ­karaage and broccoli into her mouth. “I can start calling you Nukkun too, if you want.”

But why?

“Fifty yen a day,” she added. A shrewd twinkle sparkled in her eyes.

I looked away. “No thanks.”

Kaju’s questionable friends may have been on to something.

***

Fifth period came and went. I was killing time until the next bell, wandering the hallways away from all the people.

One more period, and then we’d have to go over all the weekend plans in the club room. Ayano and Yakishio were coming at some point too. Things were busy. Long gone were the peaceful doldrums of yesterweek.

I stepped outside. There was a water fountain next to the athletics field where students fresh off PE class usually thronged to. Not today though. I turned on the faucet, feeling like a king. Today was pool day, and I was in heaven. It was the perfect distance from the classroom. Its outdoor location bestowed upon it a kind of holy distinction from other, less pilgrimage-requiring water fountains. And hey, there was a charm to that rustic taste.

I stood back up and wiped my mouth—just in time to meet eyes with a familiar someone doing the exact same thing.

“N-Nukumizu,” Komari Chika grumbled from the opposite fountain. She was not happy to see me. “What are you doing here?”

“Quenching my thirst,” I said.

Komari eyed me suspiciously. “A-all the way out here?” She was too sharp for her own good.

“I could say the same to you. You’re trying to get away from the classroom too. Going on your own water fountain crawl.”

“Wh-who asked you? I-I did my research, I’ll have you know.”

Intriguing. My inner scholar chuckled ever so condescendingly. She knew not who she was talking to.

“Oh, my dear Komari,” I said. “I, too, am particular about my water. Admittedly, I am curious as to your findings.”

“O-oh really?” She narrowed her eyes at me. “Wh-which fountain did you use this m-morning?”

The Tap Water War had begun.

“Around first and second period, you’ll find the one on the fourth floor next to the third-year classroom, on the east end, is of superior quality.”

“Your r-reasoning?”

“The water that early will have been sitting in the tank overnight. This goes for all water in the building, but that spot in particular will be lower in chlorine and still somewhat cool in the summer sun. It’s the best water on the fourth floor, bar none.”

Komari hummed with interest.

“The closer you are to the tank, the better,” I continued. “The one trade-off is you’ll have more chlorinated water. That location is the exception. It offers maximum freshness with minimal drawbacks.”

I ran my hand through my hair like the savant I was. My victory was assured.

It should have been.

Komari scoffed. “S-so naive.”

“What? How so?”

“E-east side of the fourth floor is best i-in the afternoon. Just before lunch.”

Before lunch? That was madness. The upper floors were suboptimal that late in the day.

“Explain yourself,” I demanded. “The chlorine content is higher. The water is warmer. What benefit is there?”

“N-naive. So naive. The higher temperature m-makes it easier on the stomach.” Komari wore her victory on her expression. The tables were turned.

“B-but the chlorine!” I objected. “It’s too bitter! The smell!”

“E-exactly. It dulls the senses.”

“The senses?”

What reason would she have for “dulling her senses” just before lunch? And then it hit me.

“I-it makes it…easier to eat in the bathroom.”

There it was. How I wish I could have unheard it.

“You have a whole club room!”

“W-we’re not allowed to use it during lunch,” she said. “People were using it to sk-skip class.”

Here was sloth in its worst form. The indolence of one had led to the tragedy of another.

“Look, Komari, how about you come to my spot?” She made a gagging noise. Lovely. “Hey, I’m not inviting you to eat with me. There’s a set of stairs to a fire escape around the old annex. Pretty deserted. You can take a different floor or something.”

“I-I’ll consider it.” She hurried off. I didn’t even get a passing glance.

For all her quirks, I was maybe starting to think she was warming up to me. At least compared to when we’d first met. She was talking to me more without her phone, and that was something.

Right. Class.

I jogged back inside.

***

It was after school, at the club room. Ayano Mitsuki grabbed the last of the Abe Kobo volumes.

“They’re impressive works,” he said. “I don’t know where to start.”

Tsukinoki-senpai crossed her arms haughtily. She was in a good mood. The lit club had found a new member in Yanami and had two new visitors. “Start wherever you like. They’re all yours to borrow.”

“Have you read all these, Senpai?” Ayano ran his fingers along the many spines lining the shelf.

“Only The Woman in the Dunes and The Box Man, unfortunately. I dropped The Wall around the beginning of The Crime of S. Karma.”

“So the very start of the book,” Ayano laughed. I wasn’t convinced it had been a joke. He picked one of the volumes. “I’ll go with the twelfth collection for now.”

Yakishio peered over his shoulder. “How’re you gonna tell who’s who ’n stuff, Mitsuki? Shouldn’t you start at volume one?” she asked, completely unironically.

“Hm? Oh, I’ll be able to tell,” he replied. “It’s not all one story.”

“So not like One Piece.”

“Not quite. This particular volume just happens to have a few works I’m particularly interested in.”

That guy had Yakishio down to a science. Whatever was going on between him and Asagumo, those two made a surprisingly decent pair.

I turned to Yanami, who was off on her own wearing a goofy paper crown with “New Member” scrawled across it. She munched on some Pocky, humming to herself. At least she was easy to entertain.

“Say, Ayano-kun,” Tsukinoki-senpai began ominously, “how do you feel about our little club here?”

“I have to admit, it’s comfortable,” Ayano said. “But I’m already so busy with lessons at cram school. I’m afraid I wouldn’t be around very often at all.”

“Why, that’s perfectly fine! Pop in whenever you like, steal a few books, leave, whatever you need to do. Nukumizu-kun will handle the formalities. You just consider these shelves your own. In fact”—her glasses gleamed—“we’ve got connections with the library. Let’s just say certain strings can be pulled to get you what you need.”

“Wait, seriously?”

“I’m a woman of my word.”

Ayano looked over the recruitment flier with interest. The vice prez had made an impressive case. “I’ll consider your offer.”

“Your cute girlfriend there’s free to join too,” she added, setting her sights on Yakishio. Aggressive, this one.

“Wha—me? I-I’m the girlfriend? Oh gosh, oh jeez, I dunno what to say.” Yakishio floundered bashfully. She took the flyer quite readily. “I’m already on the track team though, so, y’know.”

“Not a problem,” Senpai continued. “In fact, you’d fit right in! We’re all doubled up, as a matter of fact.” Was I in another club without realizing it? That was news to me. “Say you’re not feeling it one day, just can’t get those legs moving. That’s where we come in. Throw our president under the bus. Tell the track team he’s forcing you to come in, and boom, you’ve got an excuse to ditch!” Tsukinoki-senpai sneered. This was what people meant when they said not to talk to strangers. “C’mon, it’ll be fun. School’s better when it’s fun, yeah? Nothing wrong with having options. And you get to see your boyfriend more. That’ll make him happy.”

Yakishio lit up like a Christmas tree. “It will? It’ll make Mitsuki happy?” She made no effort to deny the obvious.

Ayano laughed softly, stowing the book in his bag. “I can’t put that kind of pressure on her. We’re not even dating.”

“Oh, was I mistaken?” said Senpai.

“She’s got way better options than me. She’s always been popular.” He swung his bag over his shoulder. “Thank you for the book. I’ll be back again when I’m not—”

Yakishio suddenly nabbed his shirt. “I’m not seeing anyone, though! And I wouldn’t go out with just anybody!”

Ayano blinked at her. “O-oh.” A sun-kissed face blinked back at him. “Sorry, I…didn’t mean to imply anything.”

“No, it’s okay. I-I didn’t… Sorry.”

Tsukinoki-senpai glanced between them for a while. “Are you sure you’re not dating? You definitely look like it to me.”

She was surprisingly dense—and bad at keeping thoughts to herself.

“C-c-come on, Senpai, you heard Mitsuki!” Yakishio said, grinning all flustered.

“Right,” said Ayano. “And I already have a girlfriend.”

Yakishio froze solid in an instant. It was like a bomb went off.

“Um, guys? Is everyone okay?” Ayano said.

The door clicked open. “H-hello.” Komari took one look at the state of affairs inside, and the door clicked back closed.

“D-did I put my foot in my mouth again, Lemon?” Ayano asked.

“Y-you—you have a…girlfriend now?” Yakishio came back to life like a robot on half-dead batteries. “S-since when?”

“Just recently, actually. I guess I never told you, did I? I’ll ­introduce you soon. Promise.” He scratched at his cheek shyly, then lowered his head. “Excuse me, I didn’t mean to ramble. I’ll go ahead and excuse myself.”

“Hold on,” I spoke up. “Is it Asagumo-san?”

“That obvious, huh? I’ll introduce you too before long.” Ayano smiled in his charismatic way before turning back to Yakishio. “Ready to go?”

“Go?” Yakishio parroted.

“You said you wanted my help shopping. I’ve still got time until my lesson.”

The man had only innocence in his expression. There was no malice. Only densely packed neutrons in that head of his.

“Something, er, just came up earlier. And I was sorta thinking I might join the club, so I-I’mma stick around here.”

“Yeah? All right, then I should get out of your hair. I’ll see you later.” He bowed one last time, and then he was gone.

We were left to pick up the pieces, and boy were there many. The silence went on for what felt like an eternity, until Yakishio finally started to crumble. I hurriedly shoved a chair beneath her, stopping her from hitting the ground at the last second. She held her hand out to me.

“Uh, what?” I asked.

“Gimme one of those sign-up sheets.” I did. She scribbled her name, rambling under her breath. “Girlfriend… He’s got a girlfriend… Mitsuki has a girlfriend… Ha. Ha ha. Boy, do I look stupid.”

Just a little, I thought to myself.

Yanami unceremoniously plopped the “New Member” crown from her head to Yakishio’s. “You, uh… You did good.”

“It sure doesn’t feel like it.” Yakishio wrapped her arms around Yanami’s waist and buried her face in her stomach.

I dragged Tsukinoki-senpai out of the room before the sobbing could start.

She threw a few timid glances at the door. “Hey, um, so, was that my fault? Just now?”

“Yes. Extremely.” I pulled out my phone, sighing. “About tomorrow. I looked up the bus and train schedules. I’ll send the details in the group chat later. Still meeting at Aidai-Mae?”

“Er, yeah, but hey—”

“Make sure you send a complete list of what everyone needs to bring well in advance. Also, I haven’t been able to get in touch with the president. Can you make sure everything’s good on his end?”

“Nukumizu-kun, is now really the time for this?”

I gave her a look. “Who’s the one who royally screwed everything up?”

She flinched. “You don’t mince words, do you?”

Something told me I wouldn’t get far with her otherwise.

“I’ll handle things here, so you can—” I spotted a figure peeking out from a wall down the hallway. Komari was still feeling out the mood. “Go check on Komari actually, please.”

“Can do. That’s my specialty.”

Senpai whipped toward Komari, hands out and fingers wiggling. Komari booked it. Senpai gave chase.

Times like these were why some loners were hermits by choice—specifically to avoid crap like this. It was always something.

I leaned my back against the wall and zoned out at my phone. A message came from Yanami. She was asking if I wanted to stop and grab something on the way home. No idea why she’d thought to invite me. I was about to turn her down when another message came that made me do a double take.

They were going to a very special dive, far away from school—the family restaurant Yanami’d had her heart torn out at just days prior.