For a moment, the air between them felt a little off. Neither of them spoke: one had nothing to say, and the other didn't know what to say.
After a long while, Karuizawa finally worked up the courage to speak.
"Hey, Shintō-kun, could you... be my... boy... boyfriend?"
"I..."
Before Katsuya could finish, Karuizawa hurriedly explained in a quiet voice:
"It's not for real! Actually, I... you can probably tell, right? I used to get bullied a lot, so I started acting like this to protect myself. But I know it's all just an act, and I don't have the confidence to back it up... I thought that if I had a boyfriend, maybe I could..."
This was the first time Karuizawa had told anyone the past she'd never wanted to talk about, all in one go. Maybe it was because their fates were so similar, or because they'd spent so much time together.
Or maybe it was because that boy had really protected her from a group of delinquents just now!
Whatever the reason, it was enough to show that Karuizawa trusted Shintō Katsuya.
But when she looked up at his expression, she saw him mumbling to himself:
"Fake..."
"You really are disappointed, aren't you, Shintō-kun?!"
The blank look vanished from Katsuya's face, replaced by his usual smile.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed, but mostly I was just teasing you."
"You! You're so mean..."
Her soft words sounded more like a pout. It was the first time the girl had felt something that might be called love.
And wasn't it the same for Katsuya?
"So, will you say yes? I know I'm asking a lot..."
"Honestly, I guessed you might have a past like that the first time we met. All right, I'll do it. But I'm going to charge you a certain fee for your request!"
Karuizawa's face lit up, then turned awkward.
"But you know what my finances are like. I really don't have any points to spare."
"No, I don't want money. I want..."
If he didn't want money, what else did Karuizawa have?
!!!!!!!
She sprang to her feet, covering her chest with one hand and pointing at him with the other.
"Y-you don't want my..."
"What kind of person do you take me for...? Actually, I want you to join my Yorozuya."
Yorozuya?
Realizing she'd misunderstood, Karuizawa hurriedly apologized to Katsuya. But the unfamiliar term still left her a little confused.
"Simply put, we charge a fee to help clients with their requests. Basically, people pay us to do things for them. But it takes three people to start a club, and right now I'm the only member. That's all."
"Oh! I get it! Like the private detective in Detective Conan, right?"
"Uh, more or less."
Karuizawa nodded. "That's all you want as payment?"
To Karuizawa, this actually meant something else. Joining a club was just a matter of signing her name on a form.
Meanwhile, he'd be protecting her all the time and showing up with her at events to keep up the appearance that they were a couple.
However she looked at it, he was the one giving her a great deal for free.
Then she thought of Katsuya's disappointed expression from earlier, and understood!
[This man must like me!]
[But if that's true, should I accept... or am I being forced to accept...? No! Karuizawa! You're a girl; how can you be so easy? At the very least, we should go on a few dates first...]
Katsuya had no idea what she was thinking. Even if he had, he wouldn't have minded, because he seemed to be thinking along the same lines himself.
"Ah, if you can, it'd be great if you could find a third person for me. Anyone will do; they'd just have to put their name down. I'd really appreciate it!"
"I can do that!"
Her quick reply caught Katsuya off guard.
She was so confident because she'd already decided to force her two best friends to sign the club application!
"Then, since we're a couple... should I call you Karuizawa, or... Kei?"
!!!!!!
[H-he wants to call me by my first name?! Isn't that a little too intimate? But couples do call each other by their first names... so I should agree...]
Karuizawa nodded almost without thinking. "In that case, can I call you Katsuya?"
"Of course."
Katsuya wasn't willing to admit that he'd been a virgin until now, but she seemed even more innocent than he was.
Afterward, to celebrate becoming a couple, Katsuya reluctantly treated her to a big meal, then they wandered around the shopping district.
Though the two of them had both admitted they were only pretending to be a couple, in the eyes of outsiders—and in their own hearts—they'd already tossed the word "pretend" aside.
"Oh, right! Katsuya, who's Ayanokōji?"
"Huh? Don't tell me it's already been a month and you still haven't learned all your classmates' names."
Ayanokōji's presence was about as noticeable as air, and he seemed to deliberately keep a low profile. Still, it was ridiculous to say she didn't know him at all.
But from Karuizawa's bewildered expression, it was clear she really didn't.
"You mean this Ayanokōji is in our class?!"
"But if that's the case, why did you give Ryuen his name?"
Was this some kind of occupational habit?
Katsuya rarely used his real name outside, especially when he knew someone might come looking for trouble. Even if giving a fake name probably wouldn't help, he still did it out of habit.
"Uh, that guy's really impressive! If Ryuen actually went after him, Ryuen would be the one in trouble!"
Katsuya glossed over it, but what he said wasn't wrong.
Karuizawa couldn't be bothered to worry about someone she didn't even remember, and sensibly didn't ask any more questions.
That night, the two parted reluctantly, then spent half an hour chatting on the phone. Most of what they said was pretty meaningless, but to the two of them, every punctuation mark meant a great deal.
Karuizawa also took the opportunity to embellish her story and leave out a few "little details" before telling her two good friends, Matsushita and Satō.
Both of them said in unison, "I knew it!"
Class 1-C,
"Ayanokōji! Now that's a fine catch!"
"Ryuen, that guy might have been fooling you."
?????
Ryuen, who had been laughing maniacally, froze. He gave Manabe a dangerous look, urging her to continue.
"Because earlier, I heard Karuizawa call that guy Shintō-kun..."
"I don't care what his name is! Shintō or Ayanokōji! I won't let either of them get away!"
Just then, Ayanokōji, who was chewing on some hard bread, suddenly sneezed.
"That's strange. Can I get sick too?"
Before you continue