Episode 53 – I fell in love

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The School’s Top Idol Is Acting Like She’s My Childhood Friend for Some Reason and Just Keeps Closing the Distance on Her Own…?! ~Stop Getting All Gloomy on Me Just Because I Turned You Down!~

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Eighteen days until the cultural festival.

The next morning, the moment I spotted Rino in front of the convenience store, I instinctively looked at her forehead.

Naturally, there was nothing there.

There was no way any trace of my lips from last night could still be there. Yet, as soon as Rino noticed my gaze, she gently placed her hand on her forehead.

“Were you looking here?”

“No, I wasn’t.”

“The spot where Seita kissed me yesterday.”

“Don’t bring that up first thing in the morning.”

“It hasn’t gone away.”

“What hasn’t?”

“The feeling.”

Rino’s cheeks flushed as she smiled happily.

Please stop.

Don’t make me relive yesterday’s memories so vividly before school even starts.

I’d spent the whole night replaying that moment in my mind.

Hugging Rino.

Telling her I’d missed her.

And kissing her on the forehead.

I chose all of it.

I wasn’t swept up by the moment, nor did I give in because Rino was pressuring me.

That’s exactly why it’s so devastating.

A man who deals a fatal blow to his own teenage insecurities through his own actions. That was who I was now.

“Seita.”

“What?”

“Do it again today.”

“No.”

“You answered right away.”

“I have to go to school.”

“What about on the way home?”

“It’s not just a matter of changing the location.”

“Then Seita’s place.”

“That’s even worse.”

“But you came to my house.”

“I was only planning to look at the cultural festival photos.”

“But you hugged me.”

“That’s because Rino barged in.”

“You hugged me back.”

“……I guess so.”

Seeing that I didn’t deny it, Rino’s eyes narrowed happily.

In the past, I would have tried to downplay the meaning of those words.

It was an accident.

It just happened.

There’s no deeper meaning.

I would have made those excuses over and over, trying to get back to a place where I could walk away at any time.

But I didn’t want to pretend yesterday never happened.

“Did you hate it?”

“I wouldn’t do it if I hated it.”

As I answered naturally, Rino stopped in her tracks.

I took a few steps forward before turning around.

“What’s wrong?”

“Seita, say that again.”

“Say what?”

“‘I wouldn’t do it if I hated it.’”

“If you heard me, that’s good enough, isn’t it?”

“So, does that mean you wanted to do it?”

It was a verbal trap.

I was completely being led on.

“……Let’s go to school.”

“You ran away.”

“I’m trying to avoid being late.”

“Seita, your ears are red.”

“It’s the morning sun.”

“It’s cloudy today.”

Rino happily walked up beside me and linked her arm through mine.

“You’re so close.”

“You were even closer yesterday.”

“That’s not a fair comparison.”

“Seita’s chest was warm.”

“Don’t bring that up.”

“Your heart was beating really fast.”

“Don’t go telling anyone!”

My heart had been working overtime since this morning, too.

※　※　※

As soon as we entered the classroom, Hara and Shinozaki immediately sensed something was off.

To be precise, it was Rino who was acting strangely.

Even after sitting down, she kept touching her forehead repeatedly, and each time she did, a smile would spread across her face.

No matter how you looked at it, she was behaving like someone who’d been up to something.

“Rino.”

Hara rested both hands on the desk and leaned in close.

“Did you go to Takahara-kun’s house yesterday?”

“No, I didn’t.”

“So Takahara-kun went to your house, Rino?”

“Yeah.”

“Seita!”

Called by name so forcefully, I reflexively shrugged my shoulders.

“What?”

“Did you go to Rino’s house yesterday?”

“I just checked the photos from the cultural festival.”

“You went all the way to her house just to check photos?”

“It just happened that way.”

“Tell me exactly how it happened.”

“That’s personal.”

Hara shifted her gaze back from me to Rino.

“What happened?”

“It’s a secret.”

Rino answered, still touching her forehead.

“It’s an important secret just between Seita and me.”

The classroom atmosphere grew tense in an instant.

“Watch how you say that!”

“Rino, the way you put it makes people imagine all sorts of things.”

Shinozaki pointed this out, looking sleepy.

But Rino seemed rather pleased.

“Even if they imagine things, only Seita and I know the truth.”

“Rino.”

“What?”

“Stop it—you’ll ruin my reputation too.”

As I pressed my hand to my forehead, Hara narrowed her eyes.

“Takahara-kun, that reaction… something really did happen, didn’t it?”

“Nothing happened.”

“Seita.”

Rino called out to me.

I had nothing but a bad feeling about this.

“It’s not like nothing happened.”

“Rino!”

“Something happened that I’ll never forget.”

The murmur in the classroom grew louder.

I buried my face in my desk.

It’s over.

My high school life is going up in flames right before the cultural festival.

“But I won’t tell anyone.”

Saying that, Rino intertwined her little finger with mine under the desk.

No one around us could see it.

A connection just between the two of us.

Recalling what had happened yesterday in the empty classroom, I couldn’t say another word.

Rino isn’t hiding a secret.

She’s cherishing it as something that belongs only to the two of us.

Thinking that, my heart warmed just a little.

“Your face is red, Takahara-kun.”

“It’s hot in here.”

“But the window’s open—”

“Don’t go digging into my business.”

I had no allies anywhere.

The only person next to me, Rino, was on my side—but she was also the mastermind behind the whole incident.

　※　※　※

After school, a meeting of the cultural festival planning committee was held.

It was a meeting to check on each class’s progress and share information about the day’s campus layout and important guidelines.

Rino and I grabbed our materials and headed to the special classroom.

Inside the classroom, two students—one boy and one girl—selected from each class had gathered.

Feeling a little nervous, I sat down in an empty seat.

Rino was next to me.

Just that made it a little easier to breathe.

However, as soon as the meeting began, another problem arose.

“We’ll be featuring photos of representatives from each class on promotional posters around the school.”

A senior who appeared to be the executive committee chair explained from the front.

“Next week, after you’ve prepared the costumes and props for your performances, we’ll take photos of the two representatives. Basically, we’d like the two members of the executive committee to be the representatives.”

I looked up from the materials.

Representative photos.

Posters.

Displayed around the school.

In other words, a photo of Rino and me standing side by side in matching aprons would be seen by the entire student body.

No way.

“Let’s ask someone else.”

When I whispered that, Rino turned to look at me.

“Why?”

“There’s no need for me to be on the poster. Rino and Hara-san would look great together.”

“I want Seita.”

“It’s for publicity, so we should prioritize how it looks.”

“I want to be in the photo with Seita.”

Rino’s voice stiffened just a little.

“The Culture Festival Executive Committee is me and Seita.”

“But—”

“Are you going to put someone else next to me?”

The light in her eyes slowly faded.

It was less jealousy than it was anxiety.

Yesterday, Rino said she’d treasure the group photo she took with me.

Rino had hoped I’d be part of her memories of the cultural festival.

For someone like her, my stepping aside to let someone else take my place in the representative photo probably isn’t just a simple role change.

“Seita, do you hate having your picture taken with me?”

“No, I don’t.”

“Then why are you running away?”

Those words made my heart ache deep inside.

Running away.

That’s right.

Once again, the moment I felt scared, I tried to step out of the picture.

If I’m in the photo, I’ll draw attention.

People might say something.

They might laugh at me, saying I don’t measure up standing next to Rino.

Imagining that future, I tried to make myself disappear.

“…Because I’m scared.”

I answered honestly.

A quiet voice during the meeting.

Even so, Rino heard me.

“I’m still scared of being seen by the whole school. If someone like me were sitting next to you, I think people would say something.”

“Don’t say ‘someone like me.’”

Rino’s fingertips brushed against my hand under the desk.

“Seita, you’re the person I want standing next to me.”

“But everyone else might not think so.”

“No matter what anyone else thinks, I’m the one who chooses.”

Rino’s finger slipped between mine.

“I want to stand next to you, Seita. And I want you to stand next to me, too.”

Her words were straightforward.

At work, Rino stands beside many people.

Actors.

Models.

Other idols.

But at our school’s cultural festival, she says she’ll choose me.

“If you don’t want to take a photo, you don’t have to.”

Rino’s voice softened slightly.

“But don’t back out just because you think we’re not a good match. I don’t want you to disappear, Seita.”

The words sank slowly deep into my heart.

I squeezed Rino’s hand in return.

“…Okay.”

“Will you take the picture?”

“If it’s with you, Rino.”

Rino’s face lit up instantly.

“Yeah.”

“But don’t get too close, okay?”

“We’re checking the costumes, so our shoulders will be touching.”

“Is that already a done deal?”

“Should we hold hands, too?”

“Are you planning to put that on a poster?”

“If you don’t like it, Seita, we’ll hold hands where no one can see.”

It looked like we’d be holding hands after all.

I let out a small sigh.

Even so, my anxiety had eased a bit compared to earlier.

The meeting ended, and we left the special classroom.

As we walked down the hallway, Rino didn’t let go of my hand.

“Seita.”

“What?”

“I’m looking forward to the photos.”

“I’m nervous.”

“Just look at me.”

“You’re not going to look at the camera, even though we’re taking a picture?”

“Just keep looking at me until right before the shot.”

It was just like our group photo before.

If I looked at Rino, I could manage a slightly more natural smile.

She remembered that.

“If that’s the case, maybe I’ll be okay.”

“Then when we take the picture, I’ll tell Seita that I like him.”

“That’ll just make your face look even weirder.”

“I’ll smile.”

“I’ll just blush.”

“That’s fine. It’s a face you only show me.”

Rino stopped and stepped right in front of me.

There were few other students in the hallway after school.

She reached for the collar of my uniform and straightened the part that was slightly crooked.

“On the day of the photo shoot, I’ll fix that for you, too.”

“I can do it myself.”

“I’ll fix your hair, too.”

“It’s not that messy.”

“I’ll tie your apron, too.”

“I can do that myself, too.”

“I want to do it all myself.”

Her hand, which had been touching my collar, remained there, resting on my chest.

Rino looked up at me from close range.

“Because I want Seita to be the one standing next to me.”

My heart pounded loudly.

I had a feeling that wasn’t just about the costume.

“Rino.”

“What?”

“It’s unfair of you to say it like that.”

“Seita was being unfair yesterday, too.”

Rino touched her forehead.

The spot where I’d kissed her.

“If you do it again today, we’ll call it a tie.”

“What kind of contest is this?”

“The number of times I’ve let you do whatever you want.”

“If that’s the case, I’m clearly losing by a landslide.”

I froze at the words that had slipped out of my mouth.

Rino stopped moving, too.

“Seita, just now…”

“Forget it.”

“Did you just admit that I’m making you fall for me?”

“It was just a figure of speech.”

“Do you like me?”

“No, that wasn’t what I meant.”

Rino took a step closer.

I took a step back, my back pressing against the wall.

My escape route vanished.

Rino isn’t holding me down.

She’s just looking up at me from point-blank range.

“Seita.”

“…What?”

“Are you starting to like me?”

I can’t answer.

If I say no, it’ll be a lie.

I’m still too scared to say yes.

As I remain silent, the look of hope in Rino’s eyes fades just a little.

I didn’t want to see that look on her face.

So, before I could even think, I reached out.

I grabbed Rino’s wrist and pulled her closer.

Her body brushed against my chest.

“Seita?”

“…I am starting to.”

I whispered the answer softly into her ear.

Rino’s body trembled.

“Do whatever you want.”

“Don’t make me say the whole thing.”

“I want to hear it.”

“This is as far as I can go right now.”

“But you admitted it.”

“Just a little.”

“Even a little is fine.”

Rino buried her face in my chest and wrapped her arms around my back.

I put one arm around her back, too.

“I’m going to like you even more.”

“Don’t go declaring that.”

“Let’s make lots of memories before the cultural festival.”

“The purpose of the cultural festival has changed.”

“It’s the cultural festival where Seita falls for me.”

“Don’t drag the whole class into this.”

Rino gave a soft laugh.

Her voice resonated directly against my chest.

“Seita.”

“What?”

“Thank you for falling for me.”

“It’s still a work in progress.”

“Even if it’s a work in progress, you’re coming toward me.”

Hearing those words, I tightened my grip around her just a little.

I’m still scared.

Of putting a name on our relationship, and of clearly acknowledging my own feelings.

But I could no longer deny the direction we were heading in.

It’s not that I want to pull away from Rino.

I want to get even closer to her.

It’s just that my heart hasn’t caught up with the pace yet.

“Don’t rush.”

“Okay. I’ll wait until Seita is ready.”

“What if I runs away?”

“I’ll chase after you.”

“Weren’t you supposed to wait?”

“Running away is different from standing still.”

“That’s tough.”

“I’m Seita’s girl, after all.”

We hugged for a moment, then pulled apart before anyone came.

Even so, we immediately held hands again.

Eighteen days until the cultural festival.

Next week, the two of us will take the representative photo together.

And today, I finally admitted out loud that I’m starting to have feelings for Rino.

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Maigetsu

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