My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong, As I Expected

...How should I put this?

Going by the logic of The Lonely Gourmet—a Japanese manga that was also adapted into a TV drama—you were supposed to look happier and more content while eating. I had no desire whatsoever to step in, but seeing a girl I knew on the verge of tears right in front of me made my stomach twist up, ruining the taste of my food.

People wanted their food to taste good, after all! Besides, I was the one who should have been getting attacked like that. How could I casually let someone else take my place?

Ah, right. And besides... she was really getting on my nerves.

So I shot up from my seat.

"Hey, that's enough—"

"Shut up!"

Just as I was about to say she should stop, Miura shot me a venomous glare.

"...I-I think it's about time to go buy a drink. B-but maybe not~~"

That scared the hell out of me! Where had this giant python come from...? I almost blurted out, "S-s-s-sorry!"

I silently sat back down. Miura completely ignored me and looked contemptuously at the timid Yuihama.

"I'm doing this for your own good. That vague, wishy-washy attitude of yours is irritating to watch."

Miura claimed she was doing this for Yuihama's sake, but it was really about her own feelings and interests. Her words were completely self-contradictory. Yet it was no contradiction to Miura, because she was the queen of that group. In a feudal society, the ruler herself was the absolute rule.

"...Sorry."

"Apologizing again?"

Miura sounded both angry and exasperated as she let out a loud, mocking laugh, making Yuihama shrink back even further.

Wasn't this enough already? How annoying! Even bystanders got dragged into it emotionally. I couldn't stand scenes like this. Could they stop pulling the audience into their teenage drama?

So I gathered what little courage I had left. I was already hated beyond repair anyway, so a zero-risk confrontation didn't sound too bad.

I stood up to walk toward the two of them. At the same time, Yuihama looked at me with tearful eyes. Seizing the chance, Miura demanded coldly,

"Hey, Yui, where are you looking? You've been apologizing this whole time—"

"You're apologizing to the wrong person, Yuihama-san."

That voice might have been even colder than Miura's last words. Like an Arctic gale, it made everyone who heard it hunch their shoulders, yet it was as beautiful as the aurora.

She had merely appeared at the classroom door, yet she drew everyone's eyes as though she stood at the center of the world.

There was no one in this world besides Yukino Yukinoshita who could make a voice like that.

My half-risen body froze in place, like I was holding a horse stance. Compared to this, Miura's threat from earlier had been child's play. If it had been Yukino, I probably wouldn't even have had time to feel afraid. The sensation went beyond terror and entered the realm of beauty.

Everyone present was entranced. At some point, Miura stopped tapping the desk, and the classroom fell silent. Then Yukino spoke first.

"Yuihama-san, you invited me out yourself and then stood me up. Don't you think that was wrong? If you were going to be late, you should have informed me beforehand."

Hearing that, Yuihama looked at Yukino with a relieved smile.

"S-sorry. But I didn't know Yukino's phone number..."

"...Is that so? Then I can't blame you entirely. Let's forget about it this time."

Without caring in the slightest about the atmosphere around her, Yukino simply continued speaking. Her utter self-assurance made me want to applaud.

"W-wait! We're not done talking yet!"

Miura finally came to her senses and protested to Yukino and Yuihama.

The Queen of Fire grew even angrier. Her flames roared all the more fiercely.

"Is there something you need? I don't have time to talk to you. I haven't even had lunch yet."

"W-what? You suddenly came in here to interfere, and now you're spouting nonsense? I'm talking to Yui!"

"Talking? Wasn't that more like shrieking? Do you honestly think that counted as talking? It looked more like a hysterical episode, forcing your own opinion on someone else one-sidedly."

"Huh?"

"My apologies, I failed to notice. Since I wasn't familiar with your customs, I naturally assumed a hominid was making a threat display."

Even the enraged Queen of Fire could not escape being frozen when she encountered the Ice Queen.

"Grrr~~~"

Miura glared fiercely at Yukino, burning with rage, but Yukino merely met her with indifference.

"You may puff yourself up and play mountain king if you wish, but please do not stray beyond your own hill. Otherwise, just like your makeup, you'll be exposed immediately."

"...Hmph, what are you even talking about? Who could understand that?"

Though defeated, Miura still refused to back down. Then she plopped back into her chair, shook her long curled hair, and angrily began fiddling with her phone.

No one spoke to her. Even Hayama, who was usually good at reading the room, covered it up with a yawn.

Yuihama stood nearby, clutching the hem of her skirt tightly, looking like she had something to say. Noticing this, Yukino deliberately left the classroom first.

"I'll go on ahead."

"I-I'll go too..."

"...Do as you please."

"Okay."

Yuihama smiled then, but she was the only one in the room who did.

Hey, hey, what was with this atmosphere? The awkwardness in the whole classroom was beyond normal, almost unbearable. Most people pretended they were thirsty or needed the restroom and left, until only Hayama, Miura's group, and a few bored spectators who loved drama remained.

That meant I had no choice but to go with the flow. Or rather, if things got any worse, I might suffocate to death. I tried to sneak as quietly as possible past Yuihama. Then she whispered to me,

"Thanks for speaking up for me."

When I left the classroom, I found Yukino leaning against the door. Her arms were folded across her chest, her eyes closed as she listened carefully. Maybe because she gave off such a cold impression, there was no one around her. It was very quiet.

That was why we could hear the voices from inside the classroom.

"...Um, sorry. If I don't go along with other people, I get anxious... and then I end up always watching everyone's reactions... Maybe that's why I made you angry."

"..."

"Huh? How should I put this? I've always been like that. When we played Ojamajo Doremi games, I wanted to be Doremi or Note, but because the other girls wanted those roles, I chose Hazuki instead... Maybe it's because I grew up in a big housing complex. Being around people every day made me think that was just how things were supposed to be..."

"I don't understand what you're trying to say."

"I-I figured. I don't really understand it myself... But after seeing the shut-in and Yukino, I realized that even though they didn't have friends, they seemed happy. When they bickered, neither of them held back, but they got along really well..."

Broken sobs followed. Yukino's shoulders trembled, and she slightly opened her eyes, trying to peek into the classroom. Idiot, you couldn't see anything from here. If you were that worried, just go inside! She really wasn't honest with herself.

"Seeing them made me feel like I was wrong to try so hard to please everyone else... Look, the shut-in is such a shut-in. Every break, he sits alone reading and grinning stupidly... It's kind of gross, but he looks really happy."

She called me gross... Still, Yukino smiled when she heard that.

"I thought that strange habit of yours only showed up in the clubroom. So you do the same thing in the classroom. It really is disgusting. I suggest you stop."

"If you noticed, you should have told me back then..."

"No. It was disgusting enough already. I had no desire to speak to you on top of that."

I really had to be more careful next time. I would never again read Light Novels featuring evil gods at school.

"So I want to try living more freely too, without forcing myself so much... But I don't hate Yumiko, so could we... still be good friends from now on?"

"...Hmm, is that so? Sure."

Miura snapped her phone shut.

"...Thanks. Sorry."

And just like that, the conversation in the classroom ended. Then came Yuihama's pattering footsteps. The moment Yukino heard them, she immediately pushed herself away from the wall.

"...Honestly, she can say it when she wants to."

For an instant, a faint smile appeared on her face, and I couldn't help staring.

It was neither self-mocking nor reproachful, nor did it come from sadness. It was an utterly simple smile.

But the smile vanished in an instant, and she returned to her usual icy expression. While I was still staring, she briskly walked down the hallway without a care, surely heading for the place she had arranged to meet Yuihama.

Just as I wondered what I should do next and took a step forward—the classroom door suddenly flew open.

"Huh? Shut-in, what are you doing here?"

"Hey."

I awkwardly raised my right hand in a fake greeting, while Yuihama's face turned bright red.

"Did you hear everything?"

"H-hear what...?"

"You really were eavesdropping! Gross! Stalker! Pervert! You, you... disgusting creep! I can't believe it! So gross, gross to the extreme!"

"Enough already!"

Even I got hurt when I was insulted that much to my face. And stop saying the last part with such a serious expression. It really hurt.

"Hah! Of course it's not enough! Think about whose fault this is, idiot!"

Yuihama stuck out her pink tongue, cutely taunted me, and ran off. Were you an elementary schooler? And don't run in the hallway!

"Whose fault... Obviously Yukino's."

I muttered to myself. Since I was alone, that was only natural.

I looked at the clock. There was little break time left, and the parched lunch break was about to end. I should buy a can of SPORTOP to moisten my dry throat and soul.

On the way to the school store, I suddenly thought of something.

Otaku had their own communities. They weren't lonely.

Being a Normie was hard. You had to pay attention to everyone's status and the balance of power.

In the end, I was the only one who was alone.

Hiratsuka-sensei didn't even need to isolate me specially. I had already been excluded by my class. So sending me to the Service Club had no meaning at all.

...What kind of miserable conclusion was that? Reality was far too harsh.

The only thing that gave me sweetness was SPORTOP.

Yukino Yukinoshita

yikino yukinoshita

January 3rd (Because her birthday fell during winter break, no classmates had ever helped celebrate it.)

Cooking, laundry, cleaning, and all kinds of housework; Aikido.

Reading—general literature, British and American literature, classical literature—horseback riding.

Holiday activities

Reading, watching movies.

Yuihama Yui

yui yuigahama

June 18th

Texting, karaoke, reading the room.

Karaoke, cooking (working hard at it).

Holiday activities

Shopping with friends, karaoke with friends, taking photo booth pictures with friends, slacking off with friends.