Chapter-8

Childhood Friend and Committee Decision

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For a while after that, Kotoba didn't speak to me at all. If I tried to talk to her, she would turn away, and when I tried to look at her face once, a strong slap came at me. It hurt.

It wasn't until we arrived at the school that Kotoba began to respond to my conversations again.

"Tsuzuri-kun, that woman is definitely suspicious!"

"That's the first thing you say to me..."

I smiled bitterly. I thought Kotoba, who had been silent for a while, was going to correct her "I won't give you Tsuzuri-kun" comment.

The more I muttered to myself, the more unhappy Kotoba became.

"What is it? Maybe you're too stupid to understand, but that's the face of a con artist! That attitude... when you first meet her, is absolutely suspicious!"

She gave Ichijo Asuka a terrible evaluation. It's true that she's not a very good person, and I don't have a good impression of her either.

Even I, who wasn't actually attacked, felt that way, so I'm sure the person who was attacked must be quite upset. I can understand Kotoba's frustration, and I don't blame her for letting it show.

However, it is not possible to look at Kotoba, who is oriented like a child no matter how much time passes.

Because this is a school, there is no telling who might be watching, and she probably doesn't want to make a bad impression here. She was too upset to notice, so I better tell her.

"Kotoba, since we're already on campus, why don't you calm down for a moment?"

When I said that, she came back to herself.

"Tsukuri-kun, you should have said something like that earlier!"

"Well, uh, I just wanted to see when you'd notice."

"That's mean! Tsuzuri-kun, I can see your true colors now!"

"I'm sorry. But Kotoba, if I hadn't warned you here, you would have walked into the classroom with that attitude. Now, why don't you say thank you to me?"

"Thank you....."

Despite her words of gratitude, Kotoba seemed to be in a very bad mood.

In the classroom, Kotoba and Ichijo were at peace, with no sparks flying. I was relieved to see that. However, it would be premature to let our guard down now.

"Then, while I was chatting with Kotoba, the homeroom teacher came in. Her name is Matsue Kana. She is a teacher who is a bit strict despite her appearance, and just the other day she scolded us for flirting with each other in public. And when the teacher came in, that means.... We were about to start our first class of the semester. The first period is for committee decisions. You can never be too careful. I pulled myself together, imagining the ordeal that could happen in my first class."

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As I mentioned earlier, our first class was to decide on the committee. Incidentally, Kotoba and I had already discussed what committee we would join. After all, we want to be on the same committee and live a lovey-dovey life together for as long as possible!

"First of all, who wants to be the class president? All male candidates, please raise your hands."

Class committee members are a pain in the ass. There are very few people who want to do it willingly, so inevitably the chances of being on the committee with Kotoba are high. On the other hand, if you think about joining a popular committee, your chances of getting on it will be low, and honestly, anything is fine as long as I can work with Kotoba!

As I look around, it seems that no one else is willing to be a class president. So I raise my hand vigorously!

"Yes!"

I answered cheerfully, and Matsue-sensei opened her mouth as if she was impressed.

"Good reply, Sasaki-san! After what happened yesterday, I was a little worried about you personally, but now I'm reassured!"

When I heard that, I felt guilty.... I'm sorry Sensei, I don't really want to work as a class president, I just want to be with Kotoba. Sensei, who had no way of knowing how I felt, proceeded to talk in a good mood.

"Alright! Then Sasaki-san will be the male class president! Next, I'd like to decide on the female class president! Is there anyone who is willing to take on this task?"

Now surely I can be on the same committee as Kotoha if there are no other girls running for it. The same committee as Kotoha...! After school, in an empty classroom, alone with Kotoba! I'm getting excited all by myself. However, what confronted me was a cruel reality.

""Yes!""

The candidate's cheerful reply echoed through the air. It was for two people. The other girl who ran for office, besides Kotoba, was━

━the representative of the freshmen, Ichijo Asuka.

Sparks fly again between the two of them.

My good mood was broken, and the ordeal was coming back.