Do You Think I'd Turn You Down?

"Why do you ask?"

Hoshino En set down Jane Eyre, the book Shiina Hiyori had recommended, and looked up at her complicated expression.

"Because I realized that even though Hoshino-kun likes reading, too, you're different from me. Your main purpose is to learn, so aren't the books I recommend just wasting your time?"

"But you still indulge me and read with me, even though I'm lonely, so I thought..."

"You're overthinking it."

Hoshino En cut off Shiina Hiyori's self-pitying words.

"To be honest, at first, I did find you a bit troublesome. You were like a little girl much younger than me, with hardly any common sense, and a lot of trouble."

He reached out and patted her head. It felt just as soft and fluffy as he'd imagined.

"But reading with you was my choice, and I have no plans to end this relationship. So you don't need to feel guilty about it."

"Besides, I've benefited from it, too. You can keep bothering me as much as you like!"

At his words, Shiina Hiyori's already misty eyes grew even hazier.

"Hoshino-kun..."

She tilted her head up and looked at Hoshino En, visibly moved.

Seeing Shiina Hiyori looking so adorable she could melt, Hoshino En felt his heart turning to mush.

This was dangerous. Faced with a Shiina like this, it was getting even harder to say no to her.

Besides, according to the Shiina Hiyori Investigation Report he'd received from Karuizawa Kei a few days earlier, she wasn't like Kushida, a girl who wore a mask and thrived socially. She usually read alone in Class C, too, which fit the image she showed now. So there might not be some drastically different side hidden behind her "airheaded" demeanor.

Now she was feeling guilty about causing Hoshino En trouble. It was possible she was deliberately using that to test him, but if she was sincere, then she was simply a good girl who meant no harm to anyone she considered a "friend."

Maybe he could keep this relationship going...

"Oh my~ What are you two talking about?"

A third party had intruded on their cozy time together!

The sadistic little girl leaning on a cane, accompanied by her masochistic subordinate, had invaded this peaceful, quiet sanctuary.

"Hey, Sakayanagi. It's been 28 days and 5 hours since we last met. Have you been enjoying yourself this past month?"

"More precisely, it's been 28 days, 4 hours, and 26 minutes. As for whether I've been enjoying myself..."

Sakayanagi Arisu casually sat down across from Hoshino En and gave Shiina Hiyori a sharp look. Shiina was still staring blankly at her appearance. Sakayanagi gritted her teeth and spoke in exasperation.

"Someone promised to take me along, but didn't come looking for me even once. Do you think I've been enjoying myself?"

She set her cane within easy reach on the table, as if she might swing it at him at the slightest provocation.

As for Kamuro Masumi, who was holding her bag for her... There was nowhere for her to sit, so she had to stand obediently behind Sakayanagi Arisu.

"It's been a while, Kamuro. Though I see you every day, this is the first time we've actually run into each other since last time."

"Ah, yes... Wait!"

Kamuro Masumi had been about to answer Hoshino En's greeting, but she froze when she realized what he meant.

"You see me every day? What does that mean?"

"What do you mean, what does it mean?"

Hoshino En widened his eyes as if he'd seen something unbelievable, and he and Kamuro Masumi stared at each other in mutual bewilderment.

"Haven't you been following me every day since April 3? You kept it up all the way through yesterday..."

Seeing the disbelief on Kamuro Masumi's face, Hoshino En was speechless.

"Don't tell me you thought you'd been following me for a month without me noticing?"

"No wonder Sakayanagi didn't even save you a seat this time. You've gotten stupid, Kamuro!"

His remark didn't seem to affect Kamuro Masumi. She was more concerned that he'd noticed her long ago and hadn't said a word.

"If you'd noticed me, why didn't you talk to me sooner? Why ignore me?"

"Do you know what I've gone through for Sakayanagi's assignment? I got up earlier than the chickens and went to bed later than the dogs. And you're such a pain—you get up early to exercise every morning, then go to the gym with a girl at night, and you have your regular Swimming Club practice in the afternoon. Your schedule's as regular as a machine's. You haven't even slept in once... Where the hell did a Self-Disciplined Alien like you come from?!"

Apparently provoked by Hoshino En telling the truth, Kamuro Masumi forgot all about her surroundings and vented her complaints at him in front of Sakayanagi Arisu.

"And Sakayanagi's a freak, too. I have to report your whereabouts every day, and she still expects me to wait on her like a young lady! Do I have three heads and six arms? Can I split myself in two? She—"

"Stop, stop, stop!"

Before she could say anything even more shocking, Hoshino En cut her off.

"Kamuro, calm down. This is a library. We have to be quiet."

They were in a secluded corner, but Kamuro Masumi had been speaking loudly enough that people were starting to look over.

"Also, about what you just complained about—could it be that Sakayanagi meant for you to recruit people to help gather information about me, while you only had to take care of her every day?"

"She knows what I'm like, and she even made you get my attention. Why would she ask you to do something like follow me, when you'd obviously get caught? She must have wanted you to find someone I don't know to follow me instead!"

Hoshino En's explanation struck Kamuro Masumi's mind like a heavy hammer.

She turned to look at Sakayanagi Arisu, seated nearby. The silver-haired girl was now staring irritably at the boy across from her, who had calmed down again, seemingly sulking because he'd paid her no attention.

But there wasn't a hint of surprise on her face. That meant Hoshino En's "guess" was right.

"So... all that suffering was actually my own fault?"

Kamuro Masumi looked at Hoshino En in disbelief.

He answered by nodding in agreement.

Then her mind went blank.

"Hoshino-kun, I was the one who greeted you first. Why did you ignore me?"

With Kamuro Masumi's "departure," Sakayanagi Arisu finally found an opening to join the conversation.

"Could it be that you prefer Kamuro's medium-sized... assets to my petite figure, Hoshino-kun?"

"But you said before that you preferred petite girls you could scoop up in your arms..."

"All right, all right, stop! It's my fault. Please don't say any more."

After Kamuro Masumi's earlier complaints, some of the other people in the library had already started paying attention to them.

Now, with Sakayanagi's unrestrained accusation, they'd completely abandoned what they were doing and were listening intently to the commotion.

Every so often, they murmured among themselves.

"Whoa, was she here to catch him cheating?"

"No, no. I think the girl who came to catch him cheating has a friend who's also involved with the guy."

"Huh?! Then doesn't that mean... three girls fighting over one guy?! A Love Triangle Conflict plus!"

"Damn, I'm so jealous of that guy for having three girls fighting over him!"

"He said, 'Bind the traitor to the stake.' He said, 'Kindle the flames of revenge.' He said, 'Those who hoard happiness for themselves will fall into the deepest night...'"

"..."

The others were one thing, but that last one... Were you trying to commit a crime or something?

The "quiet" accusations from the people around him made Hoshino En decide he had to turn the tide. If he let Sakayanagi dominate the rumors, he felt like some jealous mob might actually tie him to a stake one day.

So he struck back.

"Dear sister, my beloved sister, Father did ask me to look after you since you're unwell, but we're not even in the same class. Our class assigned me to tutor struggling students, so I can't just drop everything to take care of you!"

"Besides, I've already found you a thoughtful maid. What more do you want from me?"

"Your possessiveness is too much. Be careful you don't end up an old maid!"

He returned Sakayanagi Arisu's accusation in an equally "loud" voice.

At his "explanation," the people around them immediately lost interest.

"Oh, they're siblings. I thought it was a Love Triangle Conflict. Boring."

"Probably just a sister upset that someone's taken her favorite toy away, so she's making a scene on purpose."

"That guy's really unlucky. He's got his time taken up by class assignments, and on top of that, he has such a possessive sister... His whole high school life is going to be ruined!"

"Eh? How do you know so much? Don't tell me..."

"Because I have a sister like that. Luckily, she didn't get into this school. I'm finally free!"

"..."

Hoshino En's reply drew different reactions from the three girls around him.

"So that's how you fight back? Hoshino-kun, I underestimated you."

That was Sakayanagi Arisu's response.

After the coffee shop incident, she'd thought he'd be helpless against this kind of thing. She hadn't expected that he could handle it after all.

She also realized that Hoshino En seemed to care about his reputation more than she'd thought.

Come on, they were practically putting a black robe on him and handing him a scythe. How could he not get a little worried?

"When did I become Sakayanagi's maid?"

That was Kamuro Masumi, whose brain still hadn't caught up. She continued to accuse Hoshino En directly.

Come on, if you really were Sakayanagi's maid, you wouldn't have to worry about your future for the rest of your life!

Hoshino En thought to himself.

"Hoshino-kun, who are they?"

Shiina Hiyori seemed not to have noticed their "fight"—or perhaps she had noticed but didn't care. She only wanted to know who the two people were who'd interrupted their "reading" time.

This girl was a little slow on the uptake.

I'm spent. I'm out of advance chapters. I just saw how few clicks the story had, and it got to me a little. I kind of regret it... Oh well. As long as someone's reading, that's enough.

First Semester of First Year

Chapter 37: Chapter 035: Do You Think I'd Turn You Down?

"I'm Hoshino-kun's girlfriend!"

Sakayanagi Arisu gave Shiina Hiyori a sweet smile.

Her saccharine expression made Hoshino En feel that if she were sitting beside him, she'd definitely reach out and hug him.

It'd only been a month. How had she gotten even better at this?

"Eh? Hoshino-kun, is... is that true?"

Shiina Hiyori looked at Sakayanagi Arisu, who'd spoken, then turned to Hoshino En. Suspicion and confusion flashed in her big eyes, along with a hint of guilt and remorse.

Hey, didn't she think she'd gotten in the way of their "sweet romance" and feel guilty about it now?

"Don't listen to her nonsense... And Sakayanagi, how long ago was that? What's the point of bringing it up now?"

"Ah~ Arisu's become an ex-girlfriend now."

Sakayanagi Arisu lowered her head, looking just like a heartbroken girl.

At her words, Shiina Hiyori lowered her head, looking even more dejected. She seemed to blame herself for realizing she'd broken up someone else's relationship.

This girl was way too innocent!

"Shiina, Sakayanagi's joking. Don't take her seriously."

"I never dated her, and you didn't ruin anyone's relationship!"

Shiina Hiyori jumped at the sudden urgency in Hoshino En's voice.

"Eh? I-is that so?"

"That's right. So don't get the wrong idea."

Hoshino En ruffled Shiina Hiyori's head again, messing up her smooth silver hair and the thoughts flying wildly through her mind.

"Also, Sakayanagi Arisu is a fake little girl. Don't believe a word she says about relationships. She likes teasing innocent girls like you and Kamuro."

After giving Shiina Hiyori a warning, Hoshino En finally looked at Sakayanagi Arisu across from him.

"All right, Sakayanagi. You didn't come all the way here just to tease us, did you? Bring out what you came to show me."