Stereotypes

Horikita Suzune and Sudō had a huge fight, and to make matters worse, neither of them thought they were in the wrong.

From Horikita's point of view, the reason their class had fallen behind the others was that it had a bunch of undisciplined, lazy idiots who didn't care about studying.

And now she was supposed to give up her precious time to help them pass their exams. They weren't grateful, and on top of that, they refused to cooperate!

Worst of all, she, who had always thought so highly of herself, had been judged by the school as being just like them—an idiot.

From Sudō's point of view, there wasn't much more to say. His terrible personality had earned him criticism and disdain from others for as long as he could remember, leaving him with a deep distrust of strangers and a tendency to avoid people.

He knew he wasn't good at studying, but he couldn't help feeling that she'd said it in front of everyone just to attack him!

And that ice-cold Horikita had dared to attack his most precious dream! That was absolutely unforgivable!

The frosty atmosphere between them lasted for several days. Perhaps because neither of them had many friends, nobody stepped in to try and patch things up.

And then, at this crucial moment, a man named Ayanokōji stepped forward!

"Horikita, have you ever wondered what would happen if someone dropped out of this school, when even being late or skipping class brings severe penalties for the whole class?"

"Um..."

"Besides, you really did go too far that day..."

It took the one who tied the knot to untie it. Compared to Sudō, who clearly wasn't using his brain, Horikita Suzune was much more reasonable.

So if Horikita took the initiative and apologized, even the macho Sudō probably wouldn't hold a grudge... right?

Meanwhile, after half a month of burning the midnight oil, Karuizawa had made rapid progress with Shinjo's help!

"Not bad, Kei. Keep this up, and in less than six months, you'll have mastered everything you're studying now!"

It was hard to tell whether Shinjo was mocking her or genuinely congratulating her, but Karuizawa couldn't shake the feeling that he was insulting her.

"Six months..."

"That's already good. At least if you took a test now, you'd definitely score higher than last time. So there's no need to worry about midterms!"

At that, Karuizawa tossed her pen onto the desk and stretched out happily. All those sleepless nights had paid off. She'd practically studied with a rope around her neck and an awl prodding her thigh.

"Thank you, Katsuya. I couldn't have done it without you."

"That's right. But your hard work mattered just as much."

"Um...I thought you were going to say, 'It was all thanks to your own hard work.'"

Shinjo pointed at the dark circles under both their eyes, earned from staying up late.

"It was all thanks to your own hard work."

After several days of intense studying, Karuizawa didn't want to do anything but rest. Shinjo, too, had finally found himself with some rare free time.

Before he knew it, he had ended up at the library again, thinking he might pick out a novel or a magazine to unwind with.

As soon as he went upstairs, he spotted a gray figure in the distance, standing on tiptoe and trying to reach a large, dusty book on a high shelf.

"Is this the one you're looking for?"

It was no trouble at all. Shinjo took the book down and handed it to the quiet-looking girl.

"Ah, thank you."

The girl really was the literary type. She took The Moonstone in both hands, held it to her chest, then bowed to Shinjo in thanks.

So graceful. Truly graceful!

"You're welcome. I wouldn't have guessed that a cute girl like you would enjoy detective novels."

"Y-yes...I read a little bit of everything."

Then she noticed the white-covered novel in Shinjo's hand.

"Do you like Higashino Keigo's Journey Under the Midnight Sun, too?"

"I've been a fan of his for ages..."

That wasn't an exaggeration, considering the author had written nearly a hundred novels.

"Really?! I love Higashino Keigo, too. Which of his famous works is your favorite?"

"Uh...I..."

A moment ago, the girl across from him had been as calm and elegant as a peony. Now she was as lively as if someone had given her a shot of adrenaline. Her sudden enthusiasm and outgoing nature left Shinjo, who was pretending to be cultured, a little overwhelmed.

She seemed to realize she'd gotten carried away. Her face flushed scarlet, and she took two steps back.

"Ah! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I got too excited. I never thought I'd meet someone here who likes the same things I do, and I forgot myself."

"Heh, it's fine. I understand how you feel. I may not look it, but I get really excited when I meet someone who shares my interests, too!"

(Especially when someone's snatching up limited-edition desserts! "Put down my doughnut, you jerk!")

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Shinjo Katsuya from Class 1-D. Nice to meet you."

The girl paused when she heard that. Lately, Ryuen had been constantly mentioning names like Shinjo and Ayanokōji.

Could this Shinjo be the very person standing right in front of her?

"My name is Shiina Hiyori. I'm in Class 1-C."

As if he'd just heard something unbelievable, Shinjo's pupils contracted and his eyes widened.

"C-Class..."

'How could Class 1-C have such a cute, bookish girl?!!! Wait...I think I've fallen into a stereotype again.'

Shinjo had met a fair number of people from Class 1-C, but not so many that he'd lost count. Still, every single one of them had either acted like the world owed them something or been a hulking, brawny tough guy.

So in his stereotypical view, Class 1-C was supposed to be a gathering of delinquents.

Shiina's eyes shifted. So this was Shinjo, the person Ryuen had mentioned. Could he be so afraid of Ryuen that he was afraid of everyone in Class 1-C, too?

[Please don't let that be the case! I finally met someone who likes the same things I do...]

"Shinjo...is there something...wrong with Class 1-C?"

"Huh? Uh, no. I-I just didn't expect it. I was a little surprised, that's all."

"Is that so...I thought that once you found out I was in Class 1-C, you wouldn't want to get to know me."

As she spoke, a hint of sadness and melancholy crossed Shiina's eyes.

Once, she hadn't been good at hiding her feelings either. She used to excitedly tell her friends about the books and authors she loved.

But girls her age weren't interested in those things.

After being turned away again and again, she gradually lost the courage and desire to reach out to others. In the end, she simply shut herself away in the library or wherever there were books, cutting herself off from the world.

"It's not that. Some of the students in Class 1-C don't seem very approachable, but I can tell you're different, Shiina. After all, what's that saying...? Ah, people who love reading can't be bad people! Right?"

"People who love reading can't be bad people...Ah! Do you really think so, Shinjo?"

Clearly, Shinjo's attempt to comfort her had struck a deep chord in Shiina's innocent heart.