The Library Girl

"Is Amasawa already becoming vice president the moment he joined the Student Council? That's amazing!" Ichinose's mouth formed an O.

"I'm not sure. I suppose the president and vice president each choose one person from all three grades to keep things balanced."

It seemed more reasonable to say the position was chosen for balance than to admit that he'd fought his way into becoming vice president.

"That's great! Now we don't have to ask Senior Nagumo for help after all." Ichinose smiled, as if a great weight had finally lifted from her heart.

"Did you meet Nagumo, Ichinose?"

"Yes. Senior Nagumo said he'd faced plenty of opposition when he joined the Student Council, but he'd pulled through in the end. He said we were alike because we were both from Class B, and that he'd help me get into the Student Council." Ichinose recalled her conversation with Miyabi Nagumo that afternoon:

"After that, he seemed to have something to do, so we exchanged contact information and said goodbye."

Helping Ichinose get into the Student Council was probably the spot he could recommend as vice president.

But why did Nagumo want to help Ichinose join the Student Council? Was it, as Horikita Manabu had said, to expand his influence among the first-years?

"Anyway, from now on, we're partners working together. I look forward to it, Ichinose." Amasawa Yuto offered his hand.

Ichinose nodded and energetically shook it. "I look forward to it too, Vice President Amasawa~"

Today, Sakayanagi Arisu had been invited by the girls in her class to go out for coffee.

Yuki also seemed to have something to take care of. Being able to do something for Class D appeared to make her happy.

Amasawa Yuto took it as a good sign.

Sometimes he wondered if it might be nice to quietly spend all three years of school together with Yuki.

Perhaps Yuki's depression would simply fade away amid the uneventful routine of school life.

Today, he would go to the library.

Amasawa Yuto had no particular preference when it came to reading. As long as a book had some value, he would read it.

But since he had some rare free time, he might prefer a light novel like The ABC Murders over something like General Covariant Derivatives and Invariance in Flat Spacetime.

He'd been in a good mood, but the moment he entered the library, he heard a commotion that didn't belong there.

"What did you just say?!"

The deafening shout made the sign at the library entrance that read "Please Keep Your Voice Down" seem like a joke.

It also drew the displeasure of the people around them.

Amasawa Yuto followed the sound and spotted Class D's study group.

Ken Sudō was standing there, losing his temper at Horikita Suzune.

"Was I wrong?" Horikita Suzune didn't back down. "You can't even solve a simple system of two linear equations. Your skills are worse than an elementary school student's!"

"You little—after I even skipped club activities for this!" Ken Sudō roared.

Kushida Kikyo, Kanji Ike, and Haruki Yamauchi were seated at the same table. The rest of Class D's study group was at another table.

None of them seemed able to calm Ken Sudō down.

If this continued, the other people in the library might get fed up, and the situation could turn into a major disturbance.

"Enough, you there. You're disturbing everyone in the library. Please follow the rules and keep your voices down!"

A girl with water-blue hair suddenly stepped between Ken Sudō and Horikita Suzune.

Amasawa Yuto had seen her before. He'd played chess with Sakayanagi so many times, and almost every time, the girl had been there too. She was practically a library ghost.

But Amasawa Yuto had never spoken to her.

The girl held books in her arms. Her cute face didn't look intimidating at all, but her serious expression was earnest.

Ken Sudō didn't seem inclined to waste any more time. He picked up his bag and left. "Damn it, what a waste of my time!"

"Let's go too, Kanji?" Yamauchi said to Ike.

"Yeah. Horikita, if you're going to teach us, then teach us properly. We came to study because Kikyo invited us, not to listen to you insult us."

Horikita folded her arms and didn't move. "Hmph. Suit yourselves. Don't come crying to me when you get expelled."

And so the commotion in the library ended with everyone parting on bad terms.

The water-blue-haired girl seemed to be heading back to the reading area on the second floor, and Amasawa Yuto followed behind her.

She was halfway up the stairs when she suddenly stopped, standing still on one of the steps.

Amasawa Yuto went around her and continued upstairs.

In the second-floor reading area, he picked up a copy of The Da Vinci Code, then headed back downstairs to find a quiet place to sit and read for a while.

But on his way down, he was surprised to find that the girl was still standing where she'd been before. She hadn't moved for the past five minutes.

Amasawa Yuto approached and saw that she was looking down at a book, absorbed in reading.

Was she so engrossed that she'd just stood there reading? She really was a little bookworm.

"How about finding a chair to sit in? It's a bit dangerous to read here while standing."

Amasawa Yuto warned her.

It would be dangerous if she forgot she was standing on the stairs.

"Huh?" The blue-haired girl seemed to have been suddenly called back from the world of her book. She looked a little dazed.

Like she'd just woken up.

Then, apparently thinking she was in Amasawa Yuto's way, she instinctively shifted to the side to let him pass.

But she forgot that the stairs behind her led down.

"Huh?" The blue-haired girl stepped into empty space, about to fall backward.

But the pain of falling that she'd expected never came.

A strong hand caught hers and pulled her back from the brink of a fall.

"Sorry. I shouldn't have interrupted you."

The boy's voice seemed right beside her ear. Pulled back by his hand, she was carried by her momentum straight into his arms.

"No, I'm the one who's sorry. I shouldn't have been reading on the stairs." She shook her head, seemingly unconcerned by how close they were.

"Here, your book." Amasawa Yuto picked up the book she'd dropped and handed it back to her. "It's Chandler's Farewell, My Lovely."

"Mm. I really like this book. I got so absorbed in it just now without realizing."

"Be careful next time."

"Mm, thank you. This is your first time borrowing a book today."

"Hm? Oh, right. Usually I come here to play chess, don't I? I see you here often too."

"Because I come to the library every day. The book you're holding is The Da Vinci Code. It's also a famous mystery-adventure novel."

"Mm, I've heard a lot about it, but I've never read it. I thought I'd give it a try today."

And with that, their conversation ended. The girl headed to the second floor, while Amasawa Yuto went downstairs.

It wasn't until she reached the second floor that Shiina Hiyori remembered she'd forgotten to ask the boy's name.

She glanced downstairs, but she couldn't see him anymore.

What a shame. She'd have to ask next time.

He seemed to come to the library often and liked reading too, though most of the time he was there to play chess with a white-haired girl.

A faint hope stirred in her heart. Could she finally make a friend who would read with her?

At the thought, the chest that had just been pressed against his arms began to grow faintly warm.