Episode 143: Karaoke as a Bonus

「Hey Sara. I hate to rain on the parade, but what are you doing just naturally kissing him like that?」

「S-she’s right! How can you just do that so naturally?! Aren’t you embarrassed in front of everyone?!」

Natsumi-senpai and Nishikawa-san both spoke up.

It felt so natural to me that I was nothing but happy, but it’s true that everyone was watching.

Hanako-san and Tachikawa-san were whispering something to Todo-san, and Hayato was giving his usual wry smile.

「? As long as it makes Kazunari-san happy, why would I be embarrassed?」

What kind of obvious question is that?

Sara-san’s expression said exactly that, and the two who’d spoken up ended up being the ones at a loss for words.

「I see, Sara isn’t the Sara I used to know anymore… You’ve really gotten way ahead of me. Why is it that for me…」

The sound of Nishikawa-san’s voice, even through the phone speaker, sounded strangely resonant.

Well… considering the guy hitting on her right now is Yamazaki, it makes sense she’d feel that way.

「Well, we’ve finished the talk we can do for now! So there’s only one thing left to do!!」

Natsumi-senpai declared triumphantly as she pulled out the control terminal.

I guess she’s planning to start the karaoke.

It’s true that it’d be weird to come to a karaoke place and leave without singing a single song, but…

More importantly, I should probably talk a bit more with Hanako-san and Tachikawa-san.

Especially since Hanako-san is such a mystery.

「Hanako-san, Tachikawa-san, want to talk for a bit? Even though it’s about a past we’d both rather not remember.」

When I spoke up, the two of them looked at each other and gave a small nod.

「Yeah. I knew Takanashi-kun through the rumors, but you seem totally different.」

「I’ve got things I want to ask too, so it’s perfect.」

「Ah, in that case, let me join in too!」

And so, the four of us decided to talk.

When I told the others we were going to go chat, Sara-san tried to come along, but Natsumi-senpai grabbed her arm and captured her.

「You’re staying here. You’re always glued to Takanashi-kun, so hang out with us for once.」

Sara-san made a troubled expression.

For my part, I want Sara-san to have a breather once in a while.

In that sense, this might be a good opportunity.

「Sara-san, I’m just going to go talk. Please keep Natsumi-senpai company for a bit. She’s probably lonely.」

「Gaaah! Just get out of here already!!」

When I said that to tease her, Natsumi-senpai kicked me out.

「Hayato, sorry, but keep an eye on Natsumi-senpai so she doesn’t do anything too crazy to Sara-san.」

「You got it. Just make sure to fill me in later. Also, that person Natsumi-senpai called earlier… tell me about them too.」

Ah, Hayato doesn’t know Yuji yet.

He spoke in a serious tone, which was rare for him.

Did he misunderstand something?

「Got it. I’ll tell you about that later too.」

For now, if I leave Hayato with Natsumi-senpai, it should be fine.

So, we left the room and moved to the free space, starting a conversation that felt like a contest of who had the most miserable luck.

Tachikawa-san’s story was almost the same as what I’d heard from Todo-san, but her closing statement was a grudge about how she could still never forget the nasty look on Yuzuha’s face while she stood there when Yamazaki dumped her.

I can pretty much guess what that looked like.

And as for Hanako-san…

Yeah, it was different from what I’d expected.

Apparently, it started when she saw Yamazaki buying a novel she liked and reflexively spoke to him.

Thinking she’d found a fellow fan, she got excited and talked to him by herself, but then one day he suddenly insulted her, saying「You’re just a plaything, don’t get the wrong idea,」and even mocked her hobbies. Her classmates saw the whole thing, and she was made into a laughingstock when she went back to class.

After that, she was mocked constantly and eventually stopped going to school.

He might have just assumed she was hitting on him, but…

Thinking about it, it might’ve been around the same time Yuzuha publicly condemned Yamazaki in class, just like with Tachikawa-san.

If so, the「sudden」part makes sense.

By the way, the reason for the fake name was that she’d sealed away her past self… or that she’d be freed once she got revenge on Yamazaki?

It was a reason that I kind of understood but also didn’t.

And finally, it was my turn.

Since my story’s long, I explained it by picking out the main parts… but

While Hanako-san was asking me things like「What happened after that?」I ended up having to talk about my days of isolation and how I left home the very day I graduated.

Thanks to that, the atmosphere got heavy. Todo-san was even tearing up a bit.

And for some reason, Hanako-san started patting my head, which was another mystery.

「There, there. Takanashi-kun worked hard. Even though you had a much worse time than me, you didn’t run away until the end. This Onee-san will praise you.」

Being patted on the head by Hanako-san, who looked like an elementary… or maybe a middle schooler, was a sight that probably didn’t look very good to onlookers.

「Until a bit ago, I thought you were just a unreliable boy who was totally dependent on that girl, but now I see you’re leading the way and have the backbone to not run away even when things are tough. I’ve decided I like you.」

Apparently, Hanako-san has taken a liking to me.

She still speaks in that flat tone, so I can’t really tell if she actually likes me or not, though.

「I’ll cooperate fully, so take down Yamazaki. If you do, this Onee-san will give you a reward.」

Onee-san… when Hanako-san says it, it’s almost endearing.

No, I’ve got a precious person named Sara-san, so I’m all set on rewards.

「A-um, Hanako-san. It’s actually pretty dangerous to get too close to Takanashi-kun…」

Todo-san timidly warned Hanako-san, her voice dripping with fear.

「? Is it because I’m so charming that Takanashi-kun will turn into a wolf?」

「N-no, that’s not it. Just… before you get caught…」

Todo-san was fearfully telling Hanako-san this while constantly checking the hallway.

Seriously, there’s no way I’m gonna pounce on anyone.

She’s talking about Sara-san, isn’t she…

Yeah, if she saw me like this right now, who knows what would happen.

「Kazunari-san…」

When I returned to the room, Sara-san ran over as if she’d been waiting for me and hugged me. I was surprised by her rare, slightly pampered tone of voice. Did something happen?

「Natsumi is being mean. I’ve never done karaoke before and I hardly know any songs, yet she just picked out all sorts of songs on her own and forced the microphone on me…」

I guess because I’d told her to keep her company, the serious Sara-san didn’t give up and stuck with Natsumi-senpai. And Natsumi-senpai took advantage of that to make unreasonable demands…

「Natsumi-senpai?」

「Ugh…」

When I glared at Natsumi-senpai, she flinched and stepped back. Come to think of it, I put Hayato there for exactly this reason.

「Hayato.」

「Sorry Kazunari. Well, Natsumi-senpai begged me, so…」

I don’t know exactly what happened, but it looks like Hayato was neutralized. Well, I know all too well how hard it is to be firm with someone you like.

What should I do? Now that we’re here, I actually do want to try singing with Sara-san. But I’ve got zero interest in singing either, so I don’t know any recent songs… I’d be better off with old anime songs, but that’d probably be a turn-off.

「By the way, what kind of songs can you sing, Sara-san?」

I figured it’d be faster to check what songs she actually knows, so I decided to ask first.

「Um… well, you won’t laugh?」

I was nervous to hear what kind of song a slightly embarrassed Sara-san would name… but I guess it’s an anime song. It’s from a really famous anime that’s popular with everyone regardless of age or gender, and the song is a classic. In a way, it’s a cute choice that’s very Sara-san-like, and it’s quite endearing.

「Ah, you’re laughing… Kazunari-san, you’re mean.」

Looks like she switched out of big sister mode for the first time in a while. This side of Sara-san is cute too.

「Sara-san, I’m totally hopeless at karaoke too, but I know that song. So, want to sing it together?」

When I said that, she nodded with a very happy smile.

「Yes! If I’m with you, Kazunari-san, I’ll do my best to sing it!」

And so, in the end, it turned into a situation where everyone was singing together once we started. It was memorable seeing Sara-san holding the microphone looking so happy next to me.

Sara-san’s singing isn’t especially good, but… it’s really cute. It fit the image of the song perfectly, and I wanted to keep listening. I guess everyone really does know the song from To*oro.

Sara-san seemed to have fun too, so in the end, we all enjoyed karaoke until the very last minute before the free time was up.