Episode 176: Girl Talk

Sara, completely unaware of the stunned state of the three girls, continued her conversation with Takanashi-kun as if everything were normal.

「Kazunari-san, did you eat a proper dinner? Cup ramen is a no-no, okay.」

Thump, thump, thump!!

The three girls who had been sitting on the bed tumbled onto the floor in perfect synchronization.

Their reaction was like a comedy trio, quite amusing to watch.

「Wai, wait, wait…」

「She said no-no… she just said no-no, right? You’ve gotta be kidding me… that’s Satsukawa-san.」

「He-hey, am I dreaming?」

「Satsukawa-san is being so incredibly sweet… what even is that…」

They began whispering to each other with incredible intensity.

Well, I guess that’s only natural.

「That is good. I am sorry, but please bear with it for just a week. Once I am back, I will make you lots of your favorite things, Kazunari-san.」

Sara, not caring about us at all, continued to drop bombshells without even trying to hide her true self.

It was the kind of impact that would shatter the image Sara had built up until now into tiny pieces.

「…Um, didn’t she just say something totally insane?」

「Yeah. Hey Natsumi, did we mishear her? From the way she said that, it sounds like Satsukawa-san makes meals for Takanashi-kun?」

「…No comment.」

「No way!? Satsukawa-san cooking for a guy… if the other boys found out about this, they’d be doing a lot more than just tearing up!!」

「I’m starting to feel like… this conversation is actually really dangerous.」

「I, if this gets out, how many boys are going to fall into despair…」

It seemed the reality was finally catching up to them, as the three girls forgot to even reach for the snacks and resumed their conversation.

And they finally realized, but the more you know about this story, the more dangerous it is.

If this spread, it wouldn’t just be a matter of boys being in despair. It would undoubtedly cause a massive uproar at school.

Even though I intended to keep it a secret as much as possible until I heard Takanashi-kun’s declaration of resolve to turn every boy in school into an enemy… the truth is I’ve started feeling like a fool lately since the people themselves don’t seem to have any intention of hiding it.

「It has been a while since I have looked at charms at a shrine, but there were so many cute ones that I almost wanted to buy them all.」

Ignoring me being exasperated and the three girls panicking over the gravity of the situation, the topic shifted to the shrine.

Meaning, the talk turned to the charms.

By the way, the reason I chose that charm for Sara was, of course, as a thank you for bringing up Tachibana-kun’s name.

It would be interesting to see what Takanashi-kun would say if he saw that.

「I, I see. I am really curious, but if you don’t like it, Sara-san, I won’t ask.」

「Dislike? Ah!? N, no, that is a misunderstanding! I do not dislike it at all! It is just that it might be a bit too soon, or rather, it is a bit premature, but I do have feelings of wanting that to happen eventually… Hah!? O, honestly Kazunari-san, this is so embarrassing…」

Sara started making a fuss all by herself like she was panicking, then turned bright red again and looked down.

「Hiiiiiieeeeeeee!」

Yuri, who had been watching Sara, suddenly let out a scream and collapsed onto the floor, rolling around while covering her face.

What is this girl doing?

But looking closer, the other two were also blushing and covering their faces, shaking their heads back and forth like children throwing a tantrum.

「It, it’s so embarrassing even just listening to thissss!」

「Satsukawa-san has turned into a moe character!?」

「N, no, it’s too much, Sara-tan is so cuuuuute!!」

「Hey, who is that!? That’s not Satsukawa-san, right!?」

「The Satsukawa-san I know doesn’t use that kind of voice with boys!!」

「No, more importantly, it’s that charm! Isn’t she totally serious!?」

「Wait!? We’re still in high school!!」

Ah, they’ve finally reached their limit.

The three of them seemed to be panicking in a different way. They were all pressing towels or pillows against their faces, struggling to keep their loud voices from echoing while still making a huge fuss.

The conversation between these two is enough to make anyone listening embarrassed.

Even for me, though I’ve built up a tolerance, I get fed up every time I’m shown this.

And to think I was happy when they first became a couple…

「Me too. It is a shame I cannot touch you, though… Once I am back, let us do lots of hugging to make up for the time we could not meet.」

「Gwah!?」

Yuri let out what sounded like her soul escaping before collapsing onto the floor and starting to twitch.

Well, I’m glad I have company in this. At this point, I might as well just embrace it too.

「Yu, Yuriiiii!」

「Get a hold of yourself, or rather, don’t you dare try to escape alone!」

「I can’t take any more… what is that conversation, that’s not Satsukawa-san…」

「I will be looking forward to it too. Well then, Kazunari-san, goodnight… I love you… Chu…」

「「「Gwah!?」」」

Yuri, who had been lying on the floor, let out another soul-crushing sound, and as if in sync, the remaining two also coughed up their invisible spirits.

Then they collapsed onto the floor in a pile, twitching… and finally, it went quiet.

What is this, a comedy sketch?

「Haa… I wish to see Kazunari-san. Oh, what happened to everyone?」

Sara, returning from the lingering glow of the phone call, noticed the disaster in the room and asked a question.

「No, this is your fault.」

「??」

She was oblivious as usual, tilting her head in wonder at my comment.

Honestly, you’re something else…

The three girls who recovered after a while stood up weakly and unsteadily, supporting each other as they returned to their room for a moment.

After avoiding the teacher’s rounds, they came back once again.

「I thought I was going to die from vomiting too much sugar…」

「That just now was a hallucination, right… right?」

「Satsukawa-san’s character changed way too much…」

「? I do not quite understand, but I was simply talking with Kazunari-san as usual…」

For Sara, that was just their normal interaction, and she hadn’t done anything particularly unusual.

Therefore, she reacted with genuine confusion to being pointed out about the way they were talking.

「…Eh, usual? It’s always like that?」

「Yes, I had no intention of changing anything specifically.」

「Al, always… that.」

「The ‘no-no,’ or ‘let’s do lots of hugging’…」

「By hugging, you mean that kind of hugging?」

「Haa, of course I mean I will hold Kazunari-san close.」

「B, by the way, what exactly does that feel like?」

Yuri, who for some reason suddenly switched to polite speech, stuck her nose into a topic even we usually avoid.

Talk about a daredevil…

「Even if you ask what it’s like, it’s just… I wrap my arms around him and squeeze… fufu. I had heard that men are interested in chests, and when I do this for Kazunari-san, he looks so very happy, you know? Though, he misbehaved a little bit the other day…」

As she said that, Sara’s cheeks flushed a bashful red, and she fidgeted self-consciously.

「Misbehaved? …Teasing!?」

「Eeeeeeeh, wait, Satsukawa-san, why are you blushing!? What did he do to your boobs!?」

「Nooooooooo, blushing because a guy touched your boobs, our Satsukawa-san is crumbling!?」

「He-hey, Sara!? I didn’t know about that either!!」

I couldn’t help but interject at that outrageous statement.

T, Takanashi-kun teased Sara’s chest!? Teased… wh, what did he do!?

「No, Kazunari-san just nuzzled his face against my chest… and well, I was a little embarrassed too, you know? Therefore, I scolded him and told him it was a no-no to misbehave… but if Kazunari-san desires it, I wish to do it for him. Besides, when I hold him, even though he looks embarrassed, he leans his body against me and acts like a pampered baby! It is truly adorable, so I just stay like that and say ‘there, there’ to him…」

「「「Gwah!?」」」

It seemed Sara’s happy talk about Takanashi-kun had exceeded their limits, as the three of them once again coughed up their souls and collapsed.

I wonder what exactly they are coughing up…

Wait, that doesn’t matter!

Th, this is bad. I thought those two were strictly in a platonic relationship, but hasn’t their physical contact increased!? Since Sara’s stance is basically to allow anything… I have to give Takanashi-kun a warning!!

「When I give Kazunari-san a lap pillow, he falls asleep immediately. His innocent sleeping face is so precious… well, I end up wanting to give him a kiss. Since our first kiss hasn’t happened yet, it is just on the cheek… a small peck.」

Sara’s「I love Kazunari-kun」talk wouldn’t stop.

The three girls were being dealt finishing blows while already down, occasionally twitching under Sara’s verbal assault.

「I, I’m sorry, please have mercy…」

「Ta, Takanashi-kun sure is a lucky guy…」

「I fully understand how much Satsukawa-san cares for Takanashi-kun now…」

「Eh? O, oh, to be told that I care for him so formally makes me a bit embarrassed… but… I love him so much.♥」

「「「Gbuoh!?」」」

Vomiting something out for a third time, the three girls collapsed, completely exhausted.

「Do, don’t ask unnecessary things…」

「I… wasn’t exactly asking… Satsukawa-san just started on her own…」

「T, to think Satsukawa-san would change this much.」

「No way!! This isn’t the Satsukawa-san we know!!」

While exhausted, they were pinching their own cheeks or rubbing their eyes, but unfortunately, it was neither a dream nor a hallucination.

I can understand their disbelief, but that is Sara’s true nature.

「Haa… haa…」

「Th, that was rough… that’s the first time I’ve ever heard a love talk that was this exhausting to listen to…」

「That wasn’t a love talk, Satsukawa-san was just gushing.」

「That’s the point, Satsukawa-san gushing is at the level of a natural disaster…」

Ignoring the three who were already in a groggy state, Sara, having finished bragging about Takanashi-kun, was cheerfully drinking Oolong tea.

And just as we were starting to settle down, reaching for snacks and drinking juice, finally showing signs of recovery, Yuri stood up.

「Alright, let’s reset and start the girl talk for real.」

「Eeeeh, you still want to hear more?」

「I’m so full my stomach is about to burst…」

「You idiots!! Natsumi’s interrogation isn’t over yet!」

Eeeeh!?

Yo, you didn’t forget? I thought we were done for today after Sara’s talk…

But even if you say it’s my turn, I honestly don’t think there’s anything that serious to tell.

「That’s right! We still have that!」

「Satsukawa-san’s shock was so big I almost forgot.」

Choosing to run while the three were excited, I checked to make sure no one was looking my way and slowly tried to climb off the bed to move… wait? Three of them?

Grab!

Something grabbed my arm firmly, pulling me back so I couldn’t move.

I knew it, only Sara could do something like this.

Wh, when did she get so close…

「Natsumi, it seems everyone wants to hear from you as well, you know? Also, since it is a good opportunity, I wish to hear it too. How are things going with Tachibana-san?」

Don’t use his name so directly!

「Hey, hey, Satsukawa-san, who is this Tachibana-san?」

「He is Kazunari-san’s best friend. A very caring person who supported Kazunari-san during his middle school days.」

At that moment, I realized a grave fact.

Even if I ran, as long as I didn’t shut Sara’s mouth, there was a high chance she would expose everything in some weird way.

Meaning, I had… no choice.

「Heh… so, what kind of relationship do the two of them have?」

「I do not quite understand it myself. It is a fact that they are close, so I am curious as well.」

「Hoho… Natsumi…」

「No, um…」

What should I do… to be honest, since Tachibana-kun goes to a different school, our interaction is mainly through RAIN, and we’ve only met in person a handful of times.

But I think the boy I’m closest to is probably Tachibana-kun.

I was panicking because I couldn’t even think of a way to deflect the topic, but I realized that my best bet was to just get through it with a harmless answer… or so I thought.

「I don’t really get it myself.」

「But were you not doing an ‘ahhh’ for Tachibana-san the other day? That was the first time I have ever seen Natsumi act so intimately with a man, you know? Besides, before I realized it, you two seemed to be talking alone.」

Just as I feared, Sara’s unconscious exposure had already begun.

Why did I do that… or rather, I’m shocked she noticed us even after that!

「Th, that was just the mood of the moment… you were doing way more than an ‘ahhh,’ you were even wiping his mouth afterward!!」

「I do that for Kazunari-san all the time, you know? But Kazunari-san and I are lovers, after all.」

「You were doing it before you became lovers!!」

「That was simply because I had not realized it myself, for I have adored Kazunari-san since the time we met. Come to think of it, looking back, you were acting intimately with Tachibana-san since we went to the pool, weren’t you? You were walking around playing alone together while holding hands.」

「That was just me pulling Tachibana-kun along because I wanted to leave you two alone!!」

「Is that so? You seemed to be holding hands firmly, teasing Tachibana-san, and looking quite lively.」

「G…」

「Natsumi, if you like him, you should just be open and dignified about it, you know? It is not something to be ashamed of, for it is a very wonderful thing. You like Tachibana-san, don’t you?」

「I, I told you I don’t know!! It’s true I’m curious about Tachibana-kun, and I think he’s the guy I’m closest to… ah!?」

The smirking faces of the three girls entered my vision, and my composure suddenly returned.

With that, I realized we had been having an exposure battle.

Getting caught up in Sara’s pace, I forgot that I’d decided to just brush it off and got all heated up.

「…Ooh, Natsumi is having a youth moment.」

「…An ‘ahhh.’ My, oh my, Natsumi-san holding hands and going on a date in a swimsuit.」

「…Even Natsumi has attained the power of lovey-dovey vibes.」

Ugh… in the end, I told them everything.

Realizing I had completely lost to Sara, I started frantically thinking about how to get through this situation out of embarrassment.

But before that could happen, Yuri’s phone suddenly rang out, and because the alarm for the teachers’ lights-out patrol went off, the party was abruptly ended.

Suddenly it was just me and Sara, and a silence followed as if all the commotion before was a lie.

「Fufu… I have received much help from you regarding Kazunari-san, Natsumi, so please feel free to consult me anytime, okay?」

The words Sara said before going to sleep were too embarrassing for me to even answer.

And so, having survived the climax that came right from the first day, I quietly drifted off to sleep… but not before secretly sending a RAIN message to Tachibana-kun.

Haa… I’m exhausted.