Chapter 1: Preparations for the Eika Festival
Some time had passed since the basketball incident with Yuna.
The students of Eika High School were immediately faced with regular exams.
It was a case of “out of the frying pan, into the fire.”
(I wished they’d give us a break…)
Once exam week started, Haruya had no time to rest, with his days consumed by test preparation.
During this time, he occasionally taught Sara on the rooftop, but Haruya mostly studied for the exams on his own.
(Studying together with friends… that usually doesn’t work out, so it was convenient for me. Studying is normally done alone anyway. It’s not like I’m bothered about being alone or anything. Not bothered at all.)
Perhaps due to his thorough exam preparation, his scores were quite good.
This was probably because he had studied quietly by himself.
“Man, my scores were terrible~”
“I bombed this exam”
“Yeah, it’s over for me”
Hearing such comments from classmates who had done poorly, Haruya internally declared victory.
“Oh? Oniisan. You seem to be in a good mood today.”
A familiar voice reached Haruya’s ears.
A maid uniform in monotone colors. A petite and graceful figure. A face still retaining a hint of childishness.
This was the coffee shop Haruya frequented as a regular customer.
As a reward for finishing exams, Haruya had come to this place alone.
The girl facing Haruya as he savored his coffee was named Kohinata.
She was an employee of this coffee shop and an acquaintance of Haruya’s.
While they could tell they were around the same age from appearances, neither Haruya nor Kohinata knew exactly how old the other was.
Haruya and Kohinata continued their relationship under the condition of not revealing personal information.
“…I did well on the exams. Didn’t you have exams at your school, Kohinata-san?”
“Eh, are you really asking me that, Oniisan?”
“I don’t think it’s anything improper to ask about.”
Haruya murmured casually while sipping his coffee.
“Um, well, we did have exams, but I was kind of sleep-deprived…”
(Ah, there it is, that technique)
Kohinata poked her fingers together and blatantly averted her eyes.
The “I didn’t sleep” appeal.
She had resorted to that forbidden technique.
It’s the flow of “I didn’t sleep well, so my scores weren’t good~”.
It’s not something to be proud of, yet somehow it can be said proudly… a magical phrase.
Haruya narrowed his eyes and sighed.
(There was someone like that in middle school too. Come to think of it, Kazamiya said something similar.)
Kazamiya was Haruya’s classmate who sat behind him.
As he recalled this, Kohinata looked down with a serious expression.
“…Well, to put it simply, my scores weren’t good.”
Her expression changed completely from the previous flustered look.
Confused by her grave expression, Haruya apologized.
“…Were they that bad? If so, I was insensitive. Sorry.”
“Ah, no… it’s not that. By the way, for the sake of my honor, I’ll have you know I did score above average.”
“Oh, uh, is that so…”
Judging from how dejected she seemed, Haruya had thought her scores were failing level, but apparently she had scored above average.
Haruya inadvertently let out a surprised voice.
“Sigh… Despite how I look… I’m actually quite good at studying.”
After deliberately puffing out her chest, she puffed up her cheeks in a pout.
“You’re the type with high ambition, huh, Kohinata-san.”
From what he usually saw of her, Haruya could easily imagine her casually handling things and shrugging them off.
Even if her scores were bad, he thought she would be the type to brush it off with a “No biggie, no biggie.”
Haruya couldn’t help but chuckle at this unexpected side of her, but Kohinata, seemingly embarrassed, averted her eyes and changed the subject.
“W-well… Anyway, Oniisan. I actually have something important to talk about today.”
“Huh, what? Why so formal all of a sudden?”
Kohinata gulped audibly and glanced at him repeatedly.
Quiet breathing. A sudden tension in the air.
Objectively speaking, it was like the flow of a confession…
No, there’s no way, Haruya thought as he froze with his coffee in hand.
“────Actually, I’m thinking of taking a break from the shop for a while starting today.”
“Eh…”
As he understood the meaning of her words, Haruya looked at Kohinata again.
” taking a break from the shop for a while… seriously?”
“Seriously.”
An immediate answer.
And with a straight face, too.
“…Can I ask about the reason, by any chance?”
“Well, I found something I really want to do, so I’m thinking of taking a break until that’s done.”
“…I see.”
While he wanted to ask about this thing she really wanted to do, he figured she wouldn’t tell him.
Haruya’s shoulders visibly slumped.
Then… she teased him playfully.
“Oh my, could it be that you’re feeling sad about me taking a break from the shop, Oniisan~?”
“Well, a little… I do feel that way a bit…”
Embarrassed at being hit right on the mark, Haruya took a sip of his coffee.
Losing someone he could casually talk to with his true self, his hidden face, was a blow.
Especially at this time, it was even more of an issue.
While he had managed to solve Nayu-san’s basketball problem, her joining the basketball club meant she had less free time, resulting in fewer opportunities for offline meetings.
…So naturally, Haruya found himself with more free time.
He had hoped to fill that time by spending it with Kohinata, but things don’t always go as planned in this world.
“I’m happy you feel sad… but couldn’t you spend that time with that girlfriend of yours?”
“…You’re right about that.”
“That’s what I’m saying.”
“That girlfriend” referred to Sara.
“…So I really won’t be able to see you for a while, Kohinata-san?”
“Well, that’s how it’ll be~ When I come back, please let me know if there’s been any progress with that girlfriend of yours.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
She’s still as interested in love stories as ever.
Haruya brushed her off casually.
After finishing his coffee, he moved to the cashier with a tinge of loneliness in his heart.
As he finished paying at the register, Kohinata deliberately switched to her little devil mode and called out to him.
“…Oh, by the way, Oniisan. When I say ‘for a while,’ it’s only for about a month.”
“Huh?”
“I’m sorry, it was hard to say because it felt like the atmosphere was suggesting I’d be taking a really long break…”
She stuck out her tongue slightly, like a child caught in mischief.
Haruya had thought she’d be taking a break for two or three months, so he frowned involuntarily.
“Kohinata-san, you were teasing me…”
“You looked so cute when you were feeling lonely, Oniisan~ Thank you for coming today~”
Faced with her devilish smile, Haruya roughly ruffled his hair.
Someday, I want to break that composed attitude of hers.
Damn… Kohinata-san is as coy as ever.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
The classroom curtains were exposed to the summer breeze.
The homeroom was buzzing with activity; it seemed the time for students to fret over their test results had passed.
— Eika High School [Eika Festival].
You could say the reward for finishing exams had arrived.
Lately, notices about the cultural festival posted all over the hallways had been become a common sight recently.
At the podium, our homeroom Sensei, Tokoyami Meika, was now giving announcements about the Eika Festival.
“…Well done on your regular exams. It’s about time for the Eika Festival. We need to decide on our class project and select one boy and one girl as executive committee members. We’ll be using homeroom and after-school hours to prepare for the festival, so keep that in mind. …Enjoy the Eika Festival to the fullest, my dear students… ha, haha.”
Sensei concluded her speech while directing a gaze at the students that seemed somewhat envious of youth, mixed with a hint of personal grudge.
[“…Sensei really doesn’t have any prospects for romance, huh?”]
[“I hope the next test won’t be made harder… No, that’d be unreasonable.”]
[“This is bad, sensei’s emitting a negative aura.”]
Such anxious voices from classmates could be heard from various corners of the classroom.
(Well, the Eika Festival, huh…)
Although mindful of the Sensei’s envious gaze towards their youth, most students were excited and giddy at the news of the cultural festival.
Haruya watched his classmates with somewhat detached eyes.
(Isn’t it early for a cultural festival…?)
He quietly grumbled to himself.
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