The Gal Next to Me Is Trying Too Hard to Make Me Fall in Love With Her
“This is Saeki’s family home!? Wow, it’s got so much character!”
“My great-grandfather built it, so it’s easily over eighty years old. It looks old, but it’s been renovated a few times, and the toilet and bath are brand new, so don’t worry.”
A two-story Japanese-style house. Complete with a garden and a storehouse.
Amagi-san looked at the gate with intense curiosity, scanning it as if licking it, and even after entering the entrance, she couldn’t stop looking around.
“We’ve got some time before the family gets back, right? I wanna see Saeki’s room!”
“Mine? Sure, but it’s nothing special, you know?”
“Just seeing the room of someone I like is interesting! Please, let me see it♡”
So, I led her up to my room on the second floor.
A four-and-a-half-mat Japanese-style room. A bunk bed, bookshelves, and a table. I tidied up half-eaten snacks and unfinished manga, then pulled out some cushions from the closet.
“Alright, I’ll go make some tea downstairs.”
“Yeah, thanks!”
“…Just so you know, this place is still in active use. Not everything here is my personal stuff, so don’t go rummaging around.”
“…………”
“You were planning to rummage, weren’t you?”
“N-No way!”
She seemed caught red-handed, her eyes darting around frantically.
Sighing once, I headed downstairs.
I prepared some tea and a few snacks, then brought them up to the room.
“…I did tell you not to rummage around, right?”
“N-no way! It was just on the bookshelf… I… I just picked it up!”
“That’s what I mean by rummaging.”
What Amagi-san had opened was my junior high graduation album.
Well, I figured you’d want to see it anyway, so whatever.
“This is Saeki in first year? You weren’t that big back then.”
“Ah, yeah. I shot up in second year.”
“Whoa! This is Subaru-chan, right?! That aura is insane… doesn’t even look like a middle schooler…!”
“No exaggeration—every girl in the school confessed to her. High schoolers would show up after class, adult fans would sneak into the school during lessons… all sorts of things happened.”
“Holy crap! That’s basically a crime scene!?”
Whether Subaru got better at handling her fans or the fans’ overall maturity level just improved, there haven’t been any major incidents lately. But back then, it was really bad.
I heard after graduation that some parents even stormed the faculty room demanding Subaru be transferred. That seems a bit extreme, but I get wanting to remove the source of trouble for their child’s safety.
“Hm? Oh?”
“What is it?”
“The sports festival, the cultural festival… Saeki, you’re not in any of the photos, are you?”
“Eh, well, yeah…”
“Wait a minute. You’re not in the school trip pages either?”
“Ahaha… well, you see…”
“Did you maybe miss it because of a cold or something?”
“I… I didn’t go, I guess…”
Amagi-san stared intently at me.
A thin film of tears covered both her eyes, and she trembled slightly, looking terribly worried.
“…I’m not really good at lively events like sports festivals or cultural festivals. I hated causing trouble for others, so I tried my best to stay out of the spotlight.”
I realized I couldn’t keep dodging the question, that staying silent was pointless, and confessed honestly.
“…The school trip, well…”
My voice caught as I recalled that time.
I cleared my throat to shake off the unpleasant feeling, like a fishbone stuck there, then looked at her and opened my mouth.
“Subaru wasn’t going either… so I was left out on my own. The teacher put me in some random group, but then someone said, ‘We don’t need this guy here’…”
The school trip. Deciding the important groups you’d travel with.
The class was buzzing with excitement, told to pair up with friends, but for me, it felt like a death sentence.
Sure enough, I was left out and ended up with a group of boys I had zero connection to.
They said awful things, but they were probably going through their own unfair treatment too, so I didn’t get angry or hold a grudge.
“So I… I couldn’t go on the day. I was scared of what the group members would say…”
That morning, I made up excuses like stomachache or headache and holed up under the covers.
I didn’t say anything else, but Mom seemed to understand the situation and let me stay home without much fuss. Even though it meant wasting a pretty hefty amount of the savings we’d put aside…
“So that’s why there are no photos from the school trip—wait! Whoa!?”
Thud! My body took a hit.
Suddenly, Amagi-san hugged me. Hard, almost painfully so.
“We absolutely have to go on the sophomore school trip! I’ll make sure I’m in the same group as Saeki!”
“N-no, no, you can’t be in the same group unless you’re in the same class…”
“Then we’ll be in the same class! I’ll bribe the teacher and make it happen!”
“That’s impossible, you know!?”
Bribing for class reassignment sounds ridiculous, but Amagi-san might actually do it…
Even without that, she’d probably have no qualms about going straight to the source. To avoid unnecessary trouble, I’d better pray we end up in the same class now.
“I’ll definitely go on the next school trip.”
As she said this, she gently released the arm holding me.
“Thanks to you, Amagi-san, I’ve learned deep down that if I try hard, everyone will recognize me. Even if I don’t know anyone in the next class, I’ll make friends with everyone on my own. I plan to be in lots of photos for the high school yearbook, so don’t worry.”
My LINE contacts used to be just my family and Subaru.
But now, over half my class is registered. I get messages not just for school stuff, but sometimes random, meaningless ones too. I have people to chat with.
This is a huge step forward for me, and it’s a step I could only take because Amagi-san was there. I’ll never forget this way of walking, this way of moving forward.
“Uuuuuuuu!! Muuuuu!!”
“Wh-What are you on about? Why are you growling like that…”
“I’m happy that Saeki has so many friends, but I don’t want that! Everyone will find out that Saeki is cool, kind, and good at spoiling people!! He’ll be popular!!”
“No, no, I’m not popular…”
“Then what if you did get popular? Would you marry me?”
“Why would that happen!?”
“I’ll make a huge concession—an engagement is fine too.”
“That’s practically the same thing!?”
Sighing, I shrugged my shoulders.
Noticing Amagi-san’s face was completely clouded with worry, I gently stroked her head.
Roughly, a little too hard. Yet, as gently as handling an egg yolk.
She lifted her face, meeting my gaze, and a smile bloomed that held both joy and frustration.
“You think petting my head will make me happy, huh? That Saeki… getting so cocky…”
“Then should I stop?”
“…If you stop, I’ll cry.”
“I can’t have you crying, so I’ll keep going.”
“…Ehehe♡”
Her lips stretched into a grin, as if they might melt off any second.
Her eyes held nothing but adoration for me, and that’s precisely why sharing the same air felt unbearably pleasant. A single breath felt irreplaceable.
Gently, Amagi-san took my hand.
She squeezed it lightly to feel its warmth, then rubbed her cheek against mine before pressing her nose to mine, sniffing like a cat. After teasing my embarrassment like that, she gave me a soft, gentle kiss.
A damp, marshmallow-like sensation. A warmth I desperately craved.
Before I knew it, I was tightening my grip on the hand she’d been playing with, wrapping my fingers around the back of her head to cover one ear, pulling her small, delicate face closer.
“Wanna kiss?”
“…N-no.”
“Then what’s this hand doing?”
“…H-hey, um…”
“Saeki, you’re getting less and less shy, huh? At first you were super nervous touching me, but yesterday you tried to attack me while I was sleeping.”
“I didn’t try to attack…”
“But you touched me, right?”
“…I’m sorry…”
“No need to apologize. I want a kiss♡”
“No way! I’ve told you countless times that’s improper dating—”
“Waaah!! Shiro-nii, you brought a girlfriend home!?”
A familiar voice echoed through the room.
Peeking at us secretly was our fourth son, Soma, a sixth grader.
“S-she’s not my girlfriend! And don’t peek without saying anything! Also, when you come home, say ‘I’m home’ properly!”
“Ahahaha! She’s your girlfriend! Your blonde girlfriend!”
“Hey, wait!”
Thud, thud, thud—he left with no regard for the noise his footsteps made.
I let out a sigh and shifted my gaze to Amagi. “I’m sorry…”
“That’s my younger brother, Soma. He’s still just a bratty elementary school kid, noisy and… Huh? Amagi? Is something wrong?”
Amagi’s eyes widened, and she froze stiff.
When I asked what was wrong, she flinched after a few seconds.
“Oh, your brother? Isn’t this room shared with Ouran-chan…?”
“Even within the family, we do separate rooms for boys and girls. Also, this isn’t a two-person room, it’s a three-person room.”
“…Th-three? In this room…?”
“Yeah, it’s cramped, isn’t it? Those bunk beds are for my two younger brothers, and I slept here on a futon.”
“You have… two younger brothers…?”
“One older brother, two older sisters, two younger brothers, and three younger sisters. Including me, my parents, and my grandparents, there are thirteen of us in the family. Just the people living in this house could form a soccer team.”
I wanted to say it’s big, isn’t it? Rare, isn’t it?
I wanted her to laugh and say, “Wow, that’s amazing!”
But instead.
The blood drained from Amagi-san’s face visibly, sweat broke out on her forehead, and her eyes, fixed on me, wavered dangerously.
As if she’d forgotten how to breathe, not a sound escaped her slightly parted lips.
Her expression was like she was about to vomit.
Her mouth opened and closed. She tried to form words, but couldn’t, making a foolish motion like a starving fish.
“…Amagi…? Are you okay?”
After I asked, there was a slight pause, then she stood up.
She put on her coat, gathered her things, and gave me a smile… a completely empty, charmless smile.
“Sorry, Saeki. I just remembered something urgent.”
“…H-huh?”
“I’m going home. Sorry!”
“No, no, no! Wait, Amagi!?”
She rattled off her words unilaterally, brushing aside my attempts to stop her, and walked out of the room.
I tried to chase after her, but my feet tangled and I fell. I hit my forehead but got up immediately, shouting “Amagi-san!” as I ran out into the hallway and down the stairs.
“Huh? Amagi-senpai, what’s wrong?”
“S-sorry, Ouran-chan. I have to go home.”
“Amagi-san, are you okay? You look really pale…”
“I’m fine, Mashiro kun’s mother! I’m fine… I’m perfectly fine!”
It seemed the entire family had just returned home. Amagi-san’s sudden appearance and equally sudden departure caused a stir.
By the time I reached the entrance, she was already outside, heading for the gate.
I squeezed between my younger and older sisters, using my annoying older brother as a stepping stone, and dashed outside.
“Wait! Did I say something to upset you!?”
“No! Saeki, you didn’t do anything wrong!”
“Then why did you suddenly say you were leaving!?”
No reply. She kicked off the ground with force and dashed through the gate.
I took two steps to chase after her, then realized I had no shoes, no winter gear—nothing.
“Mashiro.”
My father’s voice called from behind.
The moment I turned around, shoes flew into my arms. While I put them on, he came over with my coat and phone.
“Thanks. Well, I’m off.”
“Mm… Be careful.”
He gave my back a light pat, and I used that as momentum to dash off.
The sky was already beginning to turn night-colored.
Maiban