Chapter 74: No Way
#18ZenkouSeitoNo Way
Suzaku-sensei’s words left both Kiriha and me utterly speechless.
As the meaning finally sank into our heads—
"“Huh?!””
An exclamation far too loud for the staff room burst out of me.
“What do you mean by ‘organizing the library shelves’?!”
“Exactly what it sounds like. You know how the library is still in the old school building? They’re moving it to the new one. So, we’re recruiting volunteers from the library committee to help out. In short, it’s a volunteer job.”
“And why exactly do I have to be dragged into this?”
Kiriha shot Suzaku-sensei a glare full of dissatisfaction.
“Exactly! Do we look like the kind of people who’d willingly volunteer for something like that?”
“Yeah, probably not. Especially Kiriha.”
“—! Don’t rank me below Kyogoku! I’ll sue you for defamation.”
“Well, that would be defamation against me.”
I shot back, and Kiriha glanced at me before quickly looking away.
“Anyway, there’s no way I’m doing library shelf organization. And if it’s a volunteer job, even less so. Besides… I just don’t want to.”
“Yeah, I feel the same. Who in their right mind would willingly come to school during summer break just to organize books? Even if it were a paid job, it’d still be a pain.”
And this was unpaid.
There was absolutely no reason to do it.
“Come on, Sensei, you know we’re not going to do it, right?”
“Yeah, no thanks. We’re leaving now.”
Kiriha turned on her heel, ready to walk away.
“Hmm, I see, I see. I thought you’d say that.”
Suzaku-sensei nodded, then spoke in an eerily calm tone.
“—Unexcused absence from committee duties.”
“…”
“Not to mention, I covered for you as class representative before, didn’t I?”
“…”
Kiriha froze in place.
“And let’s not forget how you skipped your assigned duties, leaving me to pick up the slack.”
“…”
“Oh, and Kiriha, your attendance record and missing assignments are already enough to put your promotion to the next grade in jeopardy.”
“Ugh…”
“And Kyogoku, despite showing up to school, you never do your homework, your test scores are barely passing, and you sleep through class. Wow, you two are quite the little delinquents, huh?”
““Gulp.””
Suzaku-sensei leaned back in her chair, folding her hands behind her head as she smirked.
“Now then, how should I make you two atone for your sins?”
“…”
We had forgotten.
Just how meticulous this woman could be.
And that we never won against her.
Against this logically armed, a🬀cohol-loving demon of a teacher.
I took my shoes out of the locker.
Then let out a deep sigh.
“A special summer break assignment… This is way too cruel.”
I’d been looking forward to spending my vacation holed up at home.
And now, my plans were ruined before summer had even begun.
“…”
Kiriha stood frozen, still holding her locker open.
“Kiriha?”
“Eek—!”
She let out a weird noise, her ears turning bright red as she looked at me.
“…Eek?”
“S-Shut up! Don’t just start talking all of a sudden!”
“Uh, okay…?”
“…Annoying.”
Muttering that single word, Kiriha quickly grabbed her shoes and stormed past me.
I still couldn’t quite figure out how to navigate my relationship with her.
Not that our relationship had ever been particularly clear to begin with, but it had never felt this awkward before.
As I tilted my head, watching Kiriha avoid me, I grabbed my own shoes.
Just then, a loud commotion echoed from behind me.
And the person approaching was—
“Ah, Arata-kun!”
Akari beamed as she ran up to me.
Even in a mundane place like the shoe lockers, she had a way of making everything feel like a scene from a drama.
“Yo. You’re out late today.”
“Yeah! I was making plans to hang out with my friends, and before I knew it, it got this late!”
“I see.”
That was such an Akari-like reason.
“What about you, Arata-kun? You usually head home right away.”
“Committee stuff, unfortunately.”
“Sounds rough.”
“…Yeah. Seriously, it’s the worst.”
“You really look like you’re struggling! Are you okay!?”
“Somehow…”
Akari looked genuinely worried for me, flailing around in concern.
She really was kind.
Unlike a certain a🬀cohol-loving adult and a grumpy headphone-wearing high school girl who only ever said “annoying.”
“Irara-chan! We gotta go!”
“Ah, right! See you, Arata-kun!”
“Yeah, later.”
Akari waved and left through the school entrance.
Watching her go, I tossed my shoes onto the floor.
“…”
Kiriha was staring at me.
“W-What?”
“…Nothing.”
She muttered, then swiftly turned her head away and walked off.
Kiriha left in an unusually bad mood.
“What was that about…?”
Still baffled by her cryptic behavior, I finally started heading home.
Kiriha Kirino’s Perspective
Why?
Seeing Kyogoku and Irara talking again made me feel all muddled inside.
It annoyed me, but at the same time, it made me sad.
“…No way.”
I shook my head and shoved my headphones on.
But the music, which usually flowed so smoothly into my ears, seemed to slip right through me.
“…No way.”
Pressing my headphones tighter against my ears, I squeezed my eyes shut.
—And so, their summer vacation began.
Carrying their own emotions, their story moved forward, radiating its own heat.