Takahashi and Ichinose found an empty table and sat down. Every so often, Takahashi glanced over at Ayanokouji and the other two.
Why did Horikita and Kushida seem to be having such a good time talking? Had Horikita's personality changed?
"Takahashi, what set meal do you want?"
"I'll have the same as you."
Suddenly, Ichinose leaned over, pressing her cheek against Takahashi's. Following his gaze, she asked, "I remember that boy. Isn't he the classmate who was with you in the office before?"
"Yeah, he's my classmate Ayanokouji. The other two girls are classmates, too." Takahashi quietly shifted away a little.
"Oh, I see. What a coincidence. Want to join them?"
"No. This is a date for the two of us. Why would we let them tag along?"
"T-Takahashi?" The speakers were Ike and Yamauchi, who had just arrived. Ike stared at Takahashi and Ichinose in disbelief. "Why? Takahashi, are you abandoning the group? I was determined to be the first guy in the class to get a girlfriend. Why did Hirata find one first, and now you, too...?"
"Hold on, Ike. Don't get worked up. You shouldn't jump to conclusions before you know what's going on. It wouldn't be right to ruin a girl's reputation."
Noticing that someone was watching him, Takahashi decided not to explain anything to Ike. Ike had been loud enough to draw plenty of attention in the cafeteria, including from Ayanokouji and the others. But what was with that resentful look on your face, Kushida?
"Takahashi-kun helped me, so I'm treating him to lunch," Ichinose explained.
"Phew! At least you haven't betrayed the group." Ike let out a sigh of relief.
"You guys were invited by Kushida, weren't you?" Takahashi asked.
"Yeah, Little Kushida's the one who called me over," Ike said proudly. Clearly, he thought it was something to boast about.
"Me too, me too," Yamauchi chimed in.
"Then you'd better get over there. You don't want to keep her waiting and make her like you less."
"Oh, right! Then we'll head over first, Takahashi."
"Hey, Yamauchi, Ike." Sudo's voice rang out.
Wow, was Kushida really that popular?
"Sudo." Takahashi gave him a brief greeting.
But Sudo still seemed bothered by Takahashi standing up for Horikita earlier. He merely nodded at him, then went with Yamauchi and Ike to join Kushida.
The three of them reached Ayanokouji's table. Before long, Takahashi heard Sudo shouting:
"I'm busy with basketball! Even during exam season, my teammates are training hard. I can't fall behind them."
"I know how important basketball is to you. I won't cut into your free time. I've put together a study plan just for you based on the questions you got wrong on your quizzes."
"Give me a break. I don't think there's any way to balance studying and having fun."
"Maybe other people can't, but you can. You have a lot of room to improve. I've been watching you. Even if you don't sleep or play on your phones in class like before, you still don't pay attention. You just sit there spacing out until class ends, right?"
"Uh... yeah, that's about right."
"So I want you to pay attention in class. It'll help you improve a lot."
"But even if we listen, we won't understand."
"I know you won't understand everything. So after every class, we'll all get together and report what we didn't understand. I'll explain it to you. Kushida and Takahashi will help, too."
Takahashi, shoveling food into his mouth, glanced at Horikita. That sounded like bad news. He was about to become one of the hottest commodities in a seventeenth-century prison. Hopefully, when he tried to slack off, Horikita wouldn't reward him with a hundred-pull gacha.
"But we only have ten minutes between classes."
"I'll break down and organize every point the teacher covers in class so it's easy to understand."
"Sorry, but I've decided not to join. I can't focus on the teacher during class at all."
"Sudo, you work hard at basketball every day. I know it's your passion, but I hope you can put that same effort into studying. Then you won't have to face being expelled and losing the chance to play basketball."
Takahashi took a sip of Ichinose's drink, keeping his eyes on Horikita and the others. It looked like Horikita had already made a concession. Nice—she was making progress. He hoped she and Ayanokouji could get the class back on track. That way, he could rake in plenty of points without lifting a finger.
As he watched the three of them hesitate, Ayanokouji asked:
"Kushida, do you have a boyfriend?"
"Huh? No. Why?"
"If I reach my target score on this exam, will you go on a date with me?"
"Ayanokouji, what are you talking about?" Before Kushida could answer, Ike and the other two panicked, all speaking up at once:
"Kushida, I'll definitely score higher than Ayanokouji!"
"I'll score higher than Ike!"
"I'll score higher than Yamauchi!"
Seeing their reaction, Kushida immediately understood.
"I don't judge people by their grades. But if you want a reward for working hard, come join the Study Group."
"I'm in!"
"I'm in, too, Little Kushida. I'll work hard!"
"Me too! I'll work even harder than those two!"
Watching the three of them go wild, Horikita gave a small snort and muttered to herself:
"Ha. Men really are such tedious creatures."
Before you continue