Episode 28: Feelings I Still Don’t Understand

It seems Takanashi-san and Natsumi have successfully hit it off.

Natsumi is generally easy to get along with, so I figured they would become friends quickly.

It is a happy thing for my friends to get along.

「Then is Natsumi-senpai okay?」

…………Wait… what about me…

「Ah, Natsumi-senpai, sorry it’s late」

Natsumi-senpai… Natsumi-senpai…

I wonder what this is… it feels like the two of them have become very close…

……I was first…

What am I thinking, they are just friends.

To care about such a thing, I’m being so narrow-minded… narrow…

…I am only called Senpai.

Only Natsumi…

No… the way people address each other is different for everyone, isn’t it?

To think about this…

I felt those「feelings I don’t understand」coming out again.

This won’t do, thinking like this isn’t like me at all… I must be careful.

The conversation seems to have reached a lull.

Takanashi-san turned toward me.

「Well then, Senpai, let’s g… Senpai?」

……What is it?

「Um… Senpai? Seriously… did I do something…?」

……He hasn’t done anything wrong? ……But ……Natsumi is…

「Senpai?」

Only Natsumi, that’s unfair!

(Puff)

……Eh???

Senpai… Senpai… puffed out her cheeks!!!???

Wait? What!? What is this, she’s cute!? Way too cute!?

Wait, no, is she mad? Why so suddenly?

Wait, what!?

Why is this girl pouting like that!?

We’ve known each other a while, but I’ve never seen that face…

I mean, I’m surprised she was the type to do something so childish!

Let’s see… she’s never made that face at me…

It definitely has to be related to Takanashi-kun.

…So you can see a side like this when Takanashi-kun is involved.

This is amazing, if Sara’s fan club found out about this, wouldn’t they cry tears of blood?

Oops, more importantly, what was it that she didn’t like…

Takanashi-kun hasn’t really done anything different, so it shouldn’t be his actions.

Which means, did he say something?

We just introduced ourselves, then there was the rooftop story… and I told Takanashi-kun to speak casually… to call me Natsumi…

Ah!

Right before she started pouting… Takanashi-kun called her Senpai, didn’t he?

No way… wait… Sara, are you actually jealous?

Uh, what do I do… she’s cute, but I can’t just leave it like this…

I wonder if Natsumi-senpai knows anything… eh?

She’s showing me something on her phone screen… Na? Ma? E? ……Name?

She’s pointing at Senpai… does she mean Senpai’s name?

Wait? She wants me to call Senpai by her name?

「Satsukawa-senpai?」

No reaction… no, if anything she seems a bit grumpier?

But I did say her name… wait? Is it her first name?

Well… but I called Natsumi-senpai by hers, so is it okay…

「Sara…senpai?」

Senpai made a surprised face…

Did it work?

Let’s try one more time.

「Um, Sara-senpai?」

「Yes!! What is it?」

She’s all smiles now…

That means it was the right answer.

Natsumi-senpai is doing some air-clapping too.

I see, because I called only Natsumi-senpai by her name, it felt like I was leaving Senpai out… I’m sorry.

Then, I should just call her Sara-senpai from now on.

「I’m sorry, I should have asked first, but is it okay if I call you Sara-senpai from now on?」

「Yes, of course. Ufufu…」

I got to see a new, cute side of Senpai today…

Anyway, I’ll be careful from now on.

Looks like that was the right answer.

I see, okay, yeah, maybe I’ll try probing a bit.

Judging by his actions the other day, Takanashi-kun must feel something for Sara too.

Since Sara has been constantly troubled by men,

I’ve tried to keep the weird guys away as much as I could.

But after seeing that incident, I trust him.

Even though Takanashi-kun must have been going through a hard time psychologically with everything happening between him and Sara, he pushed through and protected her desperately.

Besides, he’s someone who can pull out a hidden side of Sara that even I didn’t know about.

Depending on Sara’s feelings, I’m planning to help out.

This is getting a bit more fun…