Chapter 219

"Although I already knew Gotou-san was cute, I was still surprised to see her in person."

After regaining their senses, the three of them walked into the school together, talking as they went.

Even though Kita was looking at her through Ishikawa Hayato, Hitori was so nervous that she almost clung to Ishikawa Hayato like a koala.

She clearly gets nervous even when seen by people she knows.

"Kita- kun... please stop staring at me..."

Seeing Hitori shyly closing her eyes and hugging Ishikawa Hayato tightly, Kita suddenly felt as if he had returned to the scene Hitori first started clinging to Ishikawa Hayato last semester.

She couldn't help but smile. It seemed she would have to trouble Ishikawa Hayato again to bring Gotou-san back to the normal world.

The thought of Ishikawa Hayato having to go through all that trouble made her happy.

Seeing that Hitori didn't want to talk to anyone except Ishikawa Hayato, she changed the subject to Ishikawa Hayato.

"By the way, Hayato-kun, you didn't already see through Gotou-san you started dating her, did you?"

"No way! I've known for a long time that Hitori is very pretty, but that's not why I'm dating Hitori."

Ishikawa Hayato categorically denied Kita's words, and continued with considerable pride.

"While they're not quite as good as Hitori, they're not that much worse. I met a few of them when I was fighting all over Tokyo."

As soon as he finished speaking, the two girls, one shy and the other smiling, suddenly stopped and pondered his words.

"Know..."

"How many?"

Seeing the two people's probing gazes, Ishikawa Hayato sighed.

"Why bother with that? I was just bragging..."

The three of them walked into the school building while talking.

Because the scope of the conversation had expanded and the content had caught Hitori's attention, she was no longer as nervous as before and gradually returned to her normal behavior.

"I feel there's a good chance she'll like the falcon..."

Hitori said, conflicted.

She was clearly acting from her own perspective, believing that any woman would be captivated by Ishikawa Hayato.

Kita's gaze turned wary, and she asked.

"Bragging? Haven't you had any contact with them?"

"It's nothing."

Ishikawa Hayato shrugged indifferently.

Kita still believed Ishikawa Hayato's words, she said with a slight surprise.

"Really? That doesn't seem like Hayato-kun anymore."

After she finished speaking, she saw the helpless look in Ishikawa Hayato's eyes, and she smiled happily, having successfully gained the upper hand.

The three of them shifted their conversation from Hitori topic of changing places to exploring Ishikawa Hayato's understanding of women.

Ishikawa Hayato reluctantly introduced a few people, and indeed they were all unimportant.

The three of them turned the corner and arrived at Ishikawa Hayato and Kita's classroom, where it was time for them to part ways.

Kita turned and walked towards their classroom, waving to Hitori.

"Gotou-san, see you after school."

"Um."

Hitori responded to her words, but she seemed to have no intention of leaving at all, and put on that awkward and forced smile again.

Instead of turning to the classroom, Ishikawa Hayato looked at Hitori's expression, gently patted her head, and asked...

"How about Hitori come to our class? I'll go find someone to let you switch classes right now."

"Ah, no... no need."

Hitori moment, then quickly shook her head in refusal, indicating that she could take a step forward.

Seeing that she still looked uneasy, Ishikawa Hayato walked over to her and spoke to her.

"Then I'll walk you to your classroom."

Hitori's heavy expression relaxed considerably, and although she was still somewhat reluctant, she responded with a happy smile.

"Um!"

Upon arriving at the classroom, another wave of activity ensued.

"May I ask who you are?"

"Gotou-san?!"

173. The commotion before the school festival (2)

Quickly leaving the classroom, Ishikawa Hayato went to the hallway but didn't see Hitori. However, he wasn't in a hurry and turned towards the space under the stairs where he and Hitori had lunch.

But as soon as he turned around, he saw a beautiful girl squatting among the gloomy and boring desks and chairs, illuminating the entire corner.

She hugged her knees, her long hair almost sweeping the floor, and squatted quietly.

Hitori hid at the entrance of the pile of desks. When Ishikawa Hayato approached, she looked at him with a slightly shaken and forced smile, and prepared to get up.

"Falcon..."

She seemed to have already recognized Ishikawa Hayato from the footsteps.

Ishikawa Hayato waved and said with a smile.

"Hey, I've come to pick up my wife and take her home."

The girl's unease vanished instantly, and she happily ran over to hug his arm, dissolving all the stress she had endured that morning.

She didn't pay attention to whether Ishikawa Hayato was talking about going home, going to the stars, or going somewhere else; she simply responded softly.

"Um."

The two left through the soon-to-be-busy stairwell. Ishikawa Hayato led Hitori out of the school building and walked to the wasteland next to the school building, intending to wait for Kita there.

After Ishikawa Hayato stopped here, Hitori looked around the corner, seemingly checking to see if anyone else would come.

Then she looked thoughtful.

"What's wrong?"

Ishikawa Hayato only came here to avoid being noticed, but seeing Ichiri Hitori, he couldn't help but ask.

"Hmm..." Ichiri hesitated for Hitori, then turned to look at Ishikawa Hayato.

"This feels like a corner in a comic book where someone confesses their love."

Ishikawa Hayato patted her shoulder, feigning surprise.

"Impressive, it's incredible that even Hitori could say something like that."

"Eh... ah..."

The cute girl paused, realizing she was being teased, and gave a mournful look.

Indeed, she used to break down whenever she heard anything related to romance.

In the past, during Valentine's Day and Christmas, I was asked to play love songs online. After playing a few, I couldn't stand it anymore and brought out a Buddha statue to burn incense and chant sutras.

Seeing her resentful look, Ishikawa Hayato hugged her tightly and told her...

"Hitori guessed right, this is the second most popular confession spot in our school, but since it's the first day of school, probably no one will come here to confess."

"Ah..."

After thinking for Hitori, Ichiri suddenly looked at Ishikawa Hayato expectantly.

Ishikawa Hayato noticed her expression, paused for a moment, and then smiled slightly.

"Hitori has changed a lot now."

At this moment, she was completely different from before. Hearing his words, she hesitated for Hitori and then gave a faint smile. She was very clear about her own changes.

Looking at the brand-new scenery Hitori, Yili said with certainty.

"It's all because Falcon is by my side that I was able to make this change."

She paused for a moment, then looked at Ishikawa Hayato and met his gaze.

"Although I still feel a bit out of place, I think I'm starting to like myself more and more now. Hayabusa, thank you."

Looking at her, who seemed much more composed now, Ishikawa Hayato smiled and tapped his cheek.

"Hitori, you haven't forgotten what you said last night, have you?"

In Hitori instant, she remembered what Ishikawa Hayato had told her last night: no need for thanks, just some mushy words would do.

Having already expressed some anticipation, she looked around to make sure no one was watching, then, seeing Ishikawa Hayato already half-squatting down in front of her, she still stood on tiptoe and, instead of touching his cheek as he had pointed, lightly touched his lips.

A moment later, Ishikawa Hayato asked Hitori how she felt about the day.

How did it feel to attend half a day of classes?

Hitori, who had just made such a grand statement, looked increasingly grim as he reflected on what had happened in the classroom that day.

She covered her face, crying.

"I really want to go home and glue my hair back on..."

That's a really quick retreat!

Ishikawa Hayato chuckled twice. Although this statement contradicted what she had just said, it was clearly the truth.

He was quite happy that she was able to express her feelings.

"Does everyone stare at you during class?"

Yili glanced back for Hitori, then shook his head.

"No... I didn't seem to get a lot of attention, but during break I was surrounded by all the girls in my class asking me so many questions... I felt like I was about to have a mental breakdown."

As she spoke, it seemed she was about to reveal that same broken expression from before.

"This is the treatment of a campus star! Congratulations on your successful high school debut!"

Upon hearing Ishikawa Hayato's words, Hitori merely smiled slightly before quickly suppressing her laughter.

She asked hesitantly.

"Hayabusa, I've done the right thing, haven't I? Hayabusa... will you still like me now?"

She was still somewhat hesitant about making the change.

Ishikawa Hayato could see the unease about the future in her eyes, but what worried her even more was whether he would still like her after the changes.

He avoided her gaze and said with a casual smile.

"I like Hitori who likes me, I like all of this that makes up Hitori."

He omitted more details, simply recounting his initial confession.

Hitori Ishikawa Hayato's slightly embarrassed expression, Ichiri repeated, as if to accompany him, the words she had said when she confessed her feelings for him.

After saying that, they both felt embarrassed, but they smiled and quickly moved on from the little incident.

At that moment, Ishikawa Hayato heard Kita's footsteps approaching amidst the commotion of students leaving school.

But it was at this moment that Hitori spoke up and asked a question.

"Falcon, what should I do next...?"

Even with sound masked by the Hitori, Ishikawa Hayato could still hear Kita's movements.

She walked to the corner, seemed to hear a sound from Hitori, and stopped, standing there as if intending to eavesdrop.