Episode 381: The Wall Before Winter Break

The excitement from our recent group chat about the upcoming Christmas lasted only a moment.

The reality was the final wall standing before us, the「final exams,」and our student council decided to hold another study session after the success of the last one.

「So, I think we should get started right away…」

The current student council members were lined up at the long meeting tables, and even the seniors who had already retired, the third-year group, were all gathered together. The one taking command while looking over everyone was this person…

「Hey, why is Uesaka-kun the one running things?」

「Shouldn’t that be the current president, Satsukawa-san?」

「Well, it’s not like I don’t think so myself, but…」

Uesaka-san, the former student council president and today’s commander, showed a slight, awkward smile while casting a glance our way.

As for what the current president Sara-san was doing…

「My apologies, but as a rule, I have no intention of teaching anyone but Kazunari-san.」

「Whoa, she actually just said it straight out!?」

「…I mean, it’s not exactly a surprise at this point.」

「Right, right. Even last time, Satsukawa-san ended up being one-on-one with Takanashi-kun.」

As a basic policy for this study session, the student council president was supposed to manage the overall situation and provide backup when needed (this was decided at some point), and for anything else, those who understood the material would take the lead in teaching those who didn’t.

Because of that, last time Uesaka-san was overwhelmingly the one handling the overall support, and since Sara-san has the top academic ability in the grade, she should logically be doing the same… but asking her for that role is actually a bit difficult.

In fact, right now, she has already casually taken a seat right next to me, looking completely ready to be my exclusive private tutor.

「Haha… well, it’s fine for now. I’m here, and it looks like all the third-years are joining in too.」

「Yeah. I’ve already been accepted through recommendation, so there’s no reason for me to panic now.」

「Wait, was that a dig at me!?」

「It’s your own fault for trying to aim for a higher-ranked school than you could handle. If you’d just aimed for a safe zone, you’d be on this side of the fence by now.」

「Gugh… that hits where it hurts.」

As they said, the seniors have some room to breathe (except for one person, maybe), so they often show up whenever they have free time.

Since they’re helping with the work(?) like this, we’re actually very grateful…

「But once we graduate, Satsukawa-san will have to steel herself eventually, won’t she? New first-years will be coming in, after all.」

「I suppose. Well, I will try to do my best to manage… theoretically.」

「Oh, she’s definitely not going to do it.」

「If I happen to have a spare moment while looking over Kazunari-san’s studies, I wouldn’t mind.」

「Sigh… Satsukawa-san really has changed. In a bit of an interesting direction.」

「True. Well, at least she said she’d try her best, so that’s something, right?」

「Th-then Satsukawa-san, if you have that spare moment, please teach me!!」

「H-hey, I was first…」

「I believe I stated clearly that I have no intention of teaching anyone but Kazunari-san… are you two blind? Besides, you didn’t seriously plan on joining a study session with only that one textbook, did you?」

「「………」」

The answer to that question was the silence of the two, while Sara-san glanced at them with a look of blatant contempt that made me feel a chill just watching.

As for the guys themselves, they must have expected this, yet they still hung their heads in total defeat…

「Well… it’s your choice if you want to throw away a perfectly good opportunity, so feel free.」

「Yes…」

「We’re sorry…」

「Now, shall we start our preparations, Kazunari-san?」

「Y-yes!!」

「Hehe… if you work hard on your studies, I’ll give you lots of rewards later♪」

「Y-yessir. I’ll do my best!」

Shifting gears completely from before, Sara-san returned to her usual self that I love, wearing an infinitely gentle gaze and a soft smile…

「「Uooooooooh!!!!」」

Suddenly, two seniors burst out of the student council room at full speed with heavy footsteps… while the rest of the council watched them with looks of pity.

In my heart, I sent a little cheer to the seniors… hang in there.

「Man… she’s as merciless as ever.」

「I don’t care. I’m not so bored or whimsical that I’d bother with people who don’t even have the will to study for themselves.」

「Ahaha… that is so Satsukawa-san!」

「Right. The gap between how she treats Takanashi-kun and everyone else is basically a comedy skit.」

「Please don’t use Kazunari-san as a comparison. It’s rude.」

「…Takanashi-kun, you really are loved to the extreme.」

「Ha, haha…」

The seniors were looking at me with lukewarm eyes, so I tried to hide my embarrassment with a polite laugh. I’m well aware of it without being told, but I don’t have the heart to say it out loud…

「That goes without saying, even if you don’t say it.」

But it seems Sara-san is just fine with it, yeah.

「Thanks for the feast, again.」

「It’s not even teasing anymore, is it?」

「Ha, haha. Come on, we’re wasting time, so shall we get started?」

「Y-you’re right. I’m honestly grateful to have more time to study.」

「Oh, Takanashi-kun is fired up. I guess having a clear goal makes a difference in your motivation?」

「No, I heard that grades for designated school recommendations are looked at starting from the first year, so I just can’t afford to let my guard down.」

It’s a matter of innate intelligence… I don’t want to put it that way, but for someone like me who isn’t exactly good at studying, letting my guard down on test prep could be a fatal mistake.

Still, since I’ve been working hard on my regular studies, I can feel that I’m much better off than I used to be…

「Alright… I have to at least work half as hard as Takanashi-kun.」

「Marina, your goal is too low. You should at least say you won’t lose to him.」

「Uugh… but studying is my weak point.」

「I’ll look after you, so try to work as hard as Kazunari just for today.」

「Hanako-san… thank you!!」

「It’s fine. Since his wife is sticking to him anyway, I can’t look over Kazunari’s studies myself.」

「A-ah, right…」

Even as she said that with a small smile, Hanako-san’s expression seemed like she was hiding her embarrassment… so whether it was about me or not, Hanako-san probably would have helped Todo-san with her studies anyway.

…And surely Sara-san would have too.

「Well… a toast to this heartwarming friendship.」

「Then we should roll up our sleeves for our cute juniors too.」

「P-please! I can’t afford to let my grades drop any further…」

「M-me too…」

At the reliable words from the seniors, the two who had been watching quietly until now spoke up in a hurry. Those two were taught by the seniors last time as well, so I guess they’re even more eager…

「Alright~ then you two work hard with us.」

「By the way, what about the two who ran out?」

「They’ll probably be back soon enough.」

「True. Let’s just leave them be~」

Those two will probably come back acting like nothing happened (there’s precedent), so we’ll just ignore them.

Uesaka-san will probably look after their studies… maybe.

「Then let’s focus… and start the study session.」

「「Okay!!!!」」

Alright, time to fire up and get some studying done!!

「Let’s see… I think this goes like this…」

「Hehe… you’ve completely overcome the problem you stumbled on last time, haven’t you?」

「Ahaha, it’s thanks to you teaching me the tricks, Sara-san.」

An hour had passed since the study session began.

I was steadily working through a test prep workbook (Sara-san’s special edition) that also served as a review, with the best private tutor in the world sticking by my side. Lately, the number of times I stumble in the middle has decreased enough that I can feel it myself, which makes me happy and fills me with gratitude for Sara-san all over again…

「Alright, this should be… done.」

「Yes, that’s correct♪ Hehe… good boy.」

After confirming my answer was right, Sara-san happily reached out and carefully gave me a「there, there」reward…

「…Something’s wrong. That tutor was supposed to be all whip and no carrot until this spring.」

「…Now it’s all carrot.」

「…It’s more like sugar than carrot, isn’t it?」

「…Dammit, how long are they going to keep that up?」

「…I’m jealous… I’m seriously so jealous…」

Since the start of this study session, Sara-san has basically been stroking my head the entire time… I can feel the slightly fed-up atmosphere from everyone else.

But for me, nothing takes priority over a happy Sara-san, so it can’t be helped!

「Alright, let’s take a break.」

At the same time Uesaka-san spoke, the alarm on a set smartphone blared loudly. Everyone put their pens down on the table, marking exactly one hour since we started and the end of the first half.

I’d been concentrating so hard that the time really flew by.

「I probably don’t even need to ask, but how are things on Takanashi-kun’s end?」

「Kazunari-san will be just fine. He’s handling the slightly tricky trap questions well enough.」

「I see, that’s good. In any case, it’s a relief that Takanashi-kun’s grades are stable. For various reasons…」

「Various reasons?」

I could understand if it meant my path to university was stable because my grades were up, but was there anything else to be happy about?

「True. We don’t know what will happen next year.」

「There was no one who could compete with Satsukawa-san this year, after all.」

「Takanashi-kun has extreme name recognition, for better or worse, so it’s important to increase the number of things that give people a good impression.」

「Um, what on earth are you talking about…?」

I felt a somewhat ominous air in the casual conversation the seniors were having… to be blunt, I had nothing but a bad feeling.

「Hmm? What else? The student council president election for next year, of course.」

「We think it makes the most sense for Takanashi-kun to do it.」

「I also think I’d like Takanashi-kun to be the president next year.」

「Eeeeeh… even Uesaka-san!?」

As I thought, it was the subject I had expected.

But I never expected the third-years to be thinking that far ahead alongside everyone else. And me as student council president… I can’t imagine it at all…

Honestly, what’s the deal?

「There’s no problem with that. It’s already decided that Kazunari will be the president next year.」

「Oh, we’ve got a word from the reliable brain trust!」

The one who immediately joined the conversation was, of course, my big sister Hanako-san. She said it with strange confidence, as if it were a given…

「The way you say that, has the topic already come up among you guys?」

「Natsumi-senpai and the Pretty Bo… Yokogawa have declared they will join the election campaign. So the female vote is already guaranteed.」

「Ah, that makes sense. If Takanashi-kun runs, Natsumi and Yokogawa-kun will definitely support him. And that means their fan clubs will follow suit?」

「Exactly.」

I did feel like Natsumi-senpai and Hayato said something like that back then… but I haven’t decided to run yet. To begin with, I’ve only been the vice president for about two months, so this is way too early.

「Come to think of it, Takanashi-kun is secretly popular with the upperclassmen girls.」

「Eh?」

A senior suddenly said that and gave me a nasty grin while looking at my face.

It was so sudden that I didn’t understand what she was saying…

Popular?

Me?

No way, you’re joking.

「Ah, I was curious about that too! Even in our class, people say Takanashi-kun is cute… hieeeee!?」

And then, the other senior who was looking at me with a smirk… suddenly let out a scream with a face twisted in terror and jerked her head away.

I wonder what the reason was…

I haven’t checked yet, but…

「Satsukawa-san, about that.」

「Pardon? I am not bothered by a single thing?」

「Liar!! That is definitely a lie!!」

I hadn’t seen Sara-san’s face yet, and I was only going by her voice…

But I’m sorry, I also think that’s a lie.

「Hehe… so even Satsukawa-san gets jealous?」

「That is incorrect. The wife is quite a jeal…」

「Ha. Na. Ko. San?」

「M. My. Mistake.」

When even Hanako-san shut her mouth and looked away in a hurry… just how much terror was existing right next to me.

…Wait, no, that’s not right.

I know Sara-san is feeling bad, so I have to do this.

「Sara-san. No matter what anyone says, it has nothing to do with me.」

「Kazunari-san…」

I have no intention of believing such a dubious story, and making Sara-san feel bad is out of the question.

So right now, there is only one thing I should do.

「I only have eyes for you, Sara-san.」

「Yes… Dear.」

「「Dear!!!!??」」

Regardless of the reason, it’s nice to have people look at you favorably, but that doesn’t mean anything special is going to happen.

So I never want to do anything that would make Sara-san anxious over something like that.

「…What was that exchange just now!?」

「…Satsukawa-san called Takanashi-kun ‘Dear’!!」

「…Wait, Hanasaki-san, those two…」

「…It’s a bit late for that.」

「「Ah… true.」」

I felt like the outsiders were saying whatever they wanted, but as long as Sara-san’s mood was restored, that was the most important thing to me. Well, I felt like it might have been restored a bit too much… isn’t Sara-san getting closer? Is it just my imagination?

「Takanashi-kun… jokes aside, would you consider being the student council president next year?」

「Uesaka-san?」

Uesaka-san spoke up again, but unlike the other seniors, he seemed somewhat meaningful.

「There’s still time, so you can think about it slowly… but to be blunt, it’s a positive factor if you’re aiming for a designated school recommendation. Beside, you have talented people and reliable supporters around you, and above all, I think it will be for your own sake in the future.」

「For my sake?」

「Yeah. This is just my intuition, but this kind of experience will surely help you in your future. Right, Satsukawa-san? Hanasaki-san?」

With a tone that「implied」something, Uesaka-san sent a meaningful look not just to me but to Sara-san and Hanako-san… and the two of them gave small nods in agreement.

「Kazunari-san. I will support you with everything I have, so won’t you seriously consider the matter of the student council presidency? Of course, there is the future talk, but personally, I feel there is no one else but you to take over for me.」

「Sara-san…」

「Even after the wife graduates, I can support you until the end. And I agree with what the former president said. Kazunari, you should experience being the student council president for your own sake.」

「Hanako-san…」

To be honest, if the two of them go this far… especially if Sara-san says she wants「me」to do it, then that alone is reason enough to accept.

And even if I don’t know how the「experience of being student council president」Uesaka-san mentioned will help my future, there’s no doubt it’s a rare experience (the same goes for vice president), and throwing away an opportunity like that isn’t what I should be aiming for… I think.

If that’s the case…

「I understand. I’m not even doing my job as vice president properly yet, so I’m not sure if I can really handle such a big role… but I will consider running.」

「Yeah, that’s good. I’m glad… now I really have nothing left to regret.」

「Uesaka-kun, you sound like an old man.」

「Gugh… please don’t say that. Natsumi tells me that all the time too.」

「Ahaha… but that’s good.」

It seemed he was satisfied with my answer… despite his smile twitching at the interruption, Uesaka-san gave a large nod and a direct gaze.

To think he’d care not just about the regular student council activities, but about what happens after graduation and even my future… I’m truly humbled.

「Kazunari-san, let’s work hard together.」

「Yes. But first, I’ll do my best as vice president for another year.」

「Hehe… I’m counting on you, Dear?」

Setting next year aside for now, I’ll focus on my current role… supporting the president Sara-san with all my might. After that, I can think about it again.

「…Satsukawa-senpai and Takanashi-kun have really settled into their roles as a married couple lately, haven’t they?」

「…A high school married couple as student council president and vice president… just how many legends are those two planning to leave at this school?」

「…First the Miss Contest Crasher and the stage proposal, now the student council president attending school wearing an engagement ring. What’s next…」

「…Hey Hanako-chan. I’m really counting on you with those two, okay?」

「…You don’t have to tell me, just leave Kazunari to me.」

「…I’m a bit worried on this end. Todo-san, you look after them too, okay?」

「…Eh!? I-I’ll do my best.」

「Now then, the break time is almost over, so let’s switch our focus back.」

「「Okay!」」

But for now… let’s do our absolute best on the final exams!