The Gal Next to Me Is Trying Too Hard to Make Me Fall in Love With Her
The day after I fully recovered, midterm exams began, and today, all exams have ended.
I couldn’t study as much as I wanted to because of my cold, but I don’t think there will be any problems.
What worries me is… of course, Saeki.
He took care of me until my fever went down, and after my fever went down, he told me to rest and studied by himself.
If I don’t make him into the top ten, I don’t know how I’ll be able to face Saeki…
Anyway, tonight I’m going to thank him for taking care of me.
I’ll treat him to whatever he wants, whether it’s sushi or pizza, and we’ll have a great time.
“Saeki!~”
After homeroom, I headed straight to the second group’s classroom.
He had just finished getting ready to go home, and when our eyes met, he looked away awkwardly.
“Um… I’m sorry, Amagi-san. I can’t go home with you today.”
“What? Why? Do you have something to do?”
“It’s not that I have something to do, but… Ah, ahaha…”
It felt strange.
Since a moment ago, he hadn’t tried to make eye contact with me at all.
When I looked at his face, he turned away, and when I turned to look at him, he turned away again.
I could even sense an atmosphere of “don’t get involved with me.”
“C-could it be…”
An unpleasant thought crossed my mind.
Cold sweat ran down my spine, and I held my breath.
“Do you hate me now… ? Because I caused you so much trouble… I said I’d help you study, but I was useless…”
It’s possible.
In fact, it’s only natural that he hates me.
I caused him so much trouble during this important period before the exam that will determine whether I can continue living on my own.
There’s no excuse for what Saeki did on his own initiative.
Considering his personality, there’s no way he wouldn’t get involved in my illness.
“I’m sorry! I’m really sorry! I’ll do anything to make it up to you… so please don’t hate me!”
“No, that’s not it! It’s not that I hate you or anything…”
“Then what is it…?”
I asked, but he just looked away.
I was completely confused and didn’t know what to do.
Seeing this, Subaru stepped between us and sighed, “Oh, come on.”
“Mashiro, that’s not good. Arisa chan is worried.”
“No, but…”
I looked back and forth between the two of them.
Saeki held his head in his hands, and Subaru laughed amusedly.
“That was the night Arisa collapsed, wasn’t it…”
◆
“Hello. It’s rare for you to call me.”
“Yeah, I have something I want to ask you… Do you have time right now?”
“Sure, no problem. It’ll be 3,000 yen, though.”
“Please let me pay you back later…”
It was past 10 p.m.
When I answered the phone call from Mashiro, he sounded unusually serious.
I stopped studying for my exam and asked, “So, what do you want to ask me?”
“I want to do something for Amagi-san… I’ve been thinking about it, and I think it would be good to give her a present. So, I want to consult with you about what to give her…”
“Consulting about a present before the exam? You seem to have a lot of free time. I’m impressed.”
“I’m not relaxed… I’m just so anxious that I can’t study unless I do something.”
I sighed inwardly, thinking, “He’s still the same.”
Mashiro has always been worried about someone, whether it’s me, his family, or even strangers.
That’s his good point, but I worry that it must be hard for him to live like that.
“First of all, what’s the intention behind the gift? Is it for her birthday? Or to show your gratitude for her daily efforts?”
“She was really upset because she couldn’t go to an important audition due to poor health, so…”
“Do you feel sorry for her? Do you want to encourage her?”
“No, it’s not about feeling sorry for her…”
I gave him a small sigh as he stammered.
“I don’t think that would make Arisa happy. Taking care of her health is part of her job, and she’s smart enough to know that. I’m being harsh, but there’s no room for sympathy for her missing work. If she’s serious about her job, she shouldn’t be pampered. In fact, it would be rude to do so.”
I don’t want to trample on Mashiro’s kindness.
If Arisa is taking this job lightly, then I think it’s fine to sympathize with her. I would do the same.
But she is serious.
It would be rude not to treat a serious person seriously.
A model’s body is her tool of trade. It is her responsibility, and no one else’s, that she neglected to take care of it and ended up crying.
She should reflect deeply on her actions, and even if she gets fired for this, she can’t complain, and at the very least, there is no reason to be lenient with her.
“…It’s not sympathy. It’s not that kind of thing.”
“Then what is it?”
“… ”
“Mashiro?”
After a few seconds of silence, I heard him take a deep breath on the other end of the phone.
“I thought it was cool…”
Hesitantly, he stammered,
“This might sound weird, but… seeing her cry, I thought she was cool. so dedicated to her work that she cry, and serious about me too… I can’t do that myself, so I want to support her.”
“So, this isn’t a gift for Arisa-chan who messed up this time, but a gift for her to move forward from here on out?”
“Yeah. I think she is already trying her best, but I want her to try even harder. I want to see that side of her, Amagi san, so I want to give her something.”
“I see.”
Mashiro doesn’t realize it.
It’s a talent to be able to sincerely praise someone when you see them working hard, to think they’re amazing and want to encourage them. This is especially true when you’re young.
He always supports me… He’s my best friend, but he’s also a really good guy.
Nothing has changed since then.
Nothing has changed since that day, at that place, when he helped me.
I really think I’ve met a good person, and I don’t think Arisa’s eyes are deceiving him
But that’s why… it’s a little frustrating.
“If that’s the case, you should give her something wonderful. The day after the exam, we’ll be free, so let’s go pick something out together.”
“Really!? That would be a huge help!”
“Then study hard until then. If you get a bad grade on the exam and have to go back home, Arisa-chan will cry, thinking it’s her fault.”
“T-That’s true… Thank you, Subaru!”
◆
“So, from now on, Mashiro has to buy a present for Arisa-chan. You can just relax and wait at home.”
“Ehh~~~♡♡♡? What is it? What is it? If that’s the case, you should have told me that from the beginning!”
After hearing Subaru’s story, Amagi threw her arms around me, her whole body covered in heart marks. In contrast to earlier, she was now smiling brightly like the midsummer sun.
I put my hand on her forehead and sighed deeply.
“…I don’t have that much budget, so it would be bad to get your hopes up and then disappoint you. That’s why I wanted to keep it a surprise…”
“If Saeki chose it, I’ll be happy with anything♡ There’s no way I’d be disappointed♡”
“Well, I hope so…”
“Well, I’ll go home first. I’ll forget about the present, so I’ll look forward to the surprise♡ Bye-bye♡”
Amagi-san blew me a kiss and left with such light footsteps that she seemed to be floating.
Anything would make her happy…
Even if she said so, unfortunately, my head wasn’t able to accept it so easily. The hurdle was too high, and I just had a headache.
“Hahaha. Good for you, Mashiro. This should be fun to choose.”
“H-Hey, don’t treat it like it’s none of your business…”
“Relax. Your gift advisor is Sei-sama, who makes all the girls in the world scream with excitement. Making one girl happy is no big deal for me.”
She said it with a smile that would make anyone swoon and lightly patted my back.
Is everything really going to be okay…?
…No, I guess it’ll just have to play out as it will.
Maiban