Before we knew it, more than half a month had passed since the start of the school year.
During that time, nothing much had changed in Class D. Problems like tardiness and whispering during class continued to crop up. If anything, some students took the teachers' silence as encouragement and only got worse.
Hoshino had tried hinting to Karuizawa and the others that they should rein in their spending, but it seemed to have little effect. They kept swinging between "Oh, this is a necessary expense" and "I've been spending way too much; I need to rethink things." It might have been a common affliction among people who spent money carelessly.
From what he could tell, this situation probably wouldn't go on forever. If anything, he had an increasing sense that the end was drawing near. What would the class be like when that day came? Hoshino found himself looking forward to it.
The other biggest development was that, by chance, Hoshino had stumbled upon a confrontation between his classmate Horikita Suzune and her older brother, Horikita Manabu, the Student Council president. That had given him an opening to strike up a conversation with Horikita.
It might not sound like much, but Horikita always wore a scowl around everyone. So far, only Hoshino and Ayanokoji had been able to talk to her normally; even the sociable Kushida couldn't manage it. Seen that way, it was quite an achievement.
Though Hoshino's original intention had only been to use Horikita as a way to get more chances to talk to Ayanokoji, who sat next to her. But the more he interacted with her, the more he found the girl genuinely interesting.
He had another person worth observing. Hoshino truly felt that coming to Class D had been a good thing.
And today had brought the ultimate test of his powers of observation.
"Hurry up, Kanji. What's taking you so long?"
"I'm coming, I'm coming!"
The two trading those remarks were Kanji Ike and Haruki Yamauchi, two members of the class's so-called "idiot trio." The third member, the red-haired Ken Sudō, hadn't joined their conversation, but he'd changed into his swimsuit faster than anyone, all in one smooth motion.
"Are they really that eager for swimming class?"
"No. They've obviously got other reasons."
Hoshino wasn't in a hurry at all; he took his time getting undressed. Ayanokoji was beside him, and Hirata was beside Ayanokoji.
Hoshino and Hirata chatted casually while Ayanokoji listened in silence.
"There's no point in being the first one out. The girls won't change that quickly."
"I can understand why they're so eager, though."
"Hirata, you have thoughts like that too?"
"I'm a perfectly normal high school boy, after all. It's only natural, isn't it?"
"So behind that righteous expression of yours, you're having lewd fantasies about the girls in our class? Is that what they call 'holier than thou'?"
"Cut me some slack. Or are you telling me you don't have any thoughts like that?" Hirata smiled wryly.
"That would be abnormal. I've definitely imagined what the girls would look like in swimsuits, so don't worry."
"How is that reassuring? The girls absolutely mustn't find out. It's rude to fantasize too much about people behind their backs."
"Of course I know that. Anyway, neither of you took part in yesterday's vote, did you?"
Hoshino was referring to a poll Ike had started the night before in a group chat made up entirely of the boys in their class. The poll asked them to choose the three girls they most wanted to see in swimsuits.
So far, the top three were Kushida, Horikita, and Hasebe. Karuizawa was fourth, and Matsushita fifth.
"I still think a poll like that is a bit disrespectful," Hirata said with a frown. As a kindhearted person, he found it hard to accept the idea of judging the girls like that. But he couldn't bring himself to stop them, either.
Ayanokoji looked bewildered. "What poll? I didn't even know about it."
"Huh? Ayanokoji, you're not in the group chat?"
"I go to bed pretty early, so I didn't see it."
Ayanokoji looked completely innocent. Hoshino pulled out his phone and showed him the poll. He fell silent for a moment, then shrugged helplessly.
"I can't choose. I've only talked to Horikita and Kushida out of the girls in class. I don't know the others at all."
"In that case, don't be so rigid." Hoshino patted him on the shoulder. "Just vote for either Horikita or Kushida."
"You really are something..."
Hirata couldn't help smiling wryly, though he also turned to Ayanokoji with some curiosity. Ayanokoji thought for a moment, then pointed at Kushida.
Hoshino let out a whistle.
"You didn't just go along with the crowd because Kushida's in first place, did you? I'm curious."
"Since Horikita's been bullying me, I can't really see her feminine charms right now."
"Pfft, hahaha! That's so you."
The three of them finished changing amid laughter and walked out of the changing room together.
"Hey, Hoshino, you're taking forever!"
Sudō was the one who called out to him. He'd acted uncooperative on the first day of school, but deep down, he was just a short-tempered, simple-minded jock. Once you saw that, it wasn't hard to get along with him.
In Class D at present, Kushida was undoubtedly the best at socializing. Among the boys, Hirata and Hoshino stood out.
There was a difference between the two. Hirata was kind to everyone without exception and extremely popular with the girls, but that also earned him the jealousy of some of the boys. Hoshino was also close to many girls, but he showed just enough of a flirty, lecherous side that the boys didn't ostracize him.
"Ayanokoji ran into a tricky problem just now, so Hirata and I were helping him figure it out. That's why we took so long."
"Ayanokoji? Who cares about that. Come look at this!"
Sudō grabbed Hoshino and led him over to where Ike and the others were huddled together.
"What's this...?"
Just from the way Sudō had inadvertently shown wariness toward Hirata, Hoshino realized that whatever they were planning wasn't exactly aboveboard. Even so, when he saw what was on the tablet in the middle of the group, he was taken aback.
The Excel spreadsheet on the screen listed all the girls in the class, along with all sorts of information. The most eye-catching entry was "bust size."
"You guys... are you planning to use swimming class as an excuse to record the girls' measurements?"
"Yeah. Professor's going to sit out, saying he doesn't feel well, and we've got the equipment ready to record everything."
"Professor" was a nickname. His real name was Sotomura, and he was a somewhat chubby boy.
"Hey, hey, just staring at the girls is rude enough. You're planning to take pictures too? That's crossing the line, no matter how you look at it."
"Keep your voice down! Don't let Hirata hear you."
If he found out about their plan, the honest Hirata definitely wouldn't stand by and do nothing.
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