The next few days blurred into a strange routine.
Every afternoon, Reiji found himself in the clubroom with Sena, engaged in their so-called 'lessons' about love and relationships. To his own surprise, they weren't as unbearable as he'd expected. Annoying, yes. Frustrating, absolutely. But not unbearable.
Sena, for all her sharp words and sarcastic remarks, was surprisingly thorough when it came to teaching him.
And Reiji… found himself actually listening.
He hated to admit it, but there was something oddly fascinating about the way she explained things—like she had everything figured out, as if the complexity of human relationships was nothing more than a simple puzzle she could solve.
That didn't mean he agreed with her methods, though.
"Alright, let's try something," Sena said one afternoon, arms crossed as she leaned against a desk. "You're at a café with a girl you like. What do you talk about?"
Reiji stared at her. "Food?"
Sena groaned. "Oh my god, you're hopeless."
"I'm being serious," Reiji said, leaning back in his chair. "Why does it have to be so complicated? If I like her, and she likes me, shouldn't conversation just… happen naturally?"
Sena sighed, rubbing her temples. "It should, but you're missing the point. Attraction isn't just about liking someone. It's about making them feel comfortable, making them enjoy being around you. If you sit there and only talk about food, she'll think you have the personality of a brick."
Reiji frowned. "Okay, then what should I say?"
Sena smirked. "That depends. What do *you* want her to think about you?"
Reiji hesitated.
That was a question he never really asked himself.
Did he want to be seen as interesting? As funny? As dependable?
Before he could answer, Sena continued. "Most guys mess up because they either try too hard to impress a girl, or they don't try at all. You need to be somewhere in between."
Reiji raised an eyebrow. "You sound like you've done this before."
Sena scoffed. "I *am* dating Aoi, you know."
Reiji exhaled. "Right."
That was something he tried not to think about too much.
Sena didn't miss the slight shift in his expression, and her smirk faded. She studied him for a moment before speaking again.
"Why Aoi?" she asked suddenly.
Reiji blinked. "What?"
"You said you don't understand it yourself, but there must be something," Sena said, tilting her head. "You look at her differently than other girls. You talk to her differently, even if you don't realize it."
Reiji was quiet.
He *had* thought about it before, but he never came to a real conclusion.
"I don't know," he admitted. "It's not just that she's pretty."
Sena rolled her eyes. "Of course not."
Reiji ignored her. "It's… the way she carries herself. She's gentle, but she's not weak. She doesn't need to be loud to be heard. There's something… calming about her."
Sena's expression shifted, but she didn't say anything right away.
After a moment, she sighed. "I see."
Reiji glanced at her. "What?"
"Nothing."
Her tone made it clear that it *was* something, but she wasn't going to tell him.
He let it go.
—
After the meeting, Reiji packed his things and started heading home.
As he walked through the empty halls, he thought about the past few days. About Sena. About Aoi.
Things were shifting.
He didn't know how, or why, but they were.
And that made him uneasy.
"Oi."
A voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
Turning around, he found Kaito jogging toward him, his usual grin in place.
"Yo, you free?" Kaito asked, adjusting his bag strap.
Reiji sighed. "What do you want?"
Kaito smirked. "Geez, so cold. Can't a guy just ask his best friend to hang out?"
Reiji gave him a skeptical look. "You're scheming something."
Kaito laughed. "Maybe. Come on, let's grab something to eat."
Reiji was about to refuse, but his stomach betrayed him by growling at that exact moment.
Kaito grinned. "See? Even your body agrees."
Reiji sighed in defeat. "Fine."
—
They ended up at a small ramen shop near the station.
It was a quiet place, tucked between two larger buildings, but the food was good and cheap—perfect for high school students on a budget.
As they waited for their orders, Kaito leaned back in his chair. "So. How's club life?"
Reiji exhaled. "Tiring."
"Because of Sena?"
"Obviously."
Kaito chuckled. "She's been bugging you a lot, huh?"
Reiji thought about their conversations. About the way she smirked when she teased him, the way she seemed to see through his thoughts before he even spoke.
"She's… persistent," he admitted.
Kaito nodded. "Yeah, she is. Kinda makes sense, though."
Reiji raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
Kaito shrugged. "She's always been like that. Even before she started dating Aoi, she never backed down from anything. If she sets her mind on something, she *will* see it through."
Reiji considered that.
It *was* true.
Sena never did anything half-heartedly.
Which meant… she was serious about helping him.
The thought was oddly unsettling.
Before he could dwell on it, their food arrived.
Kaito immediately dug in, while Reiji stirred his noodles absently.
After a few minutes, Kaito spoke again, his voice more casual.
"You know… You don't *have* to force yourself."
Reiji looked up. "What?"
Kaito met his gaze. "With this whole thing. The lessons, the effort. If you're doing it just because Sena is telling you to, then it's pointless."
Reiji was quiet.
Was he doing it just because she told him to?
At first, yes.
But now…?
He wasn't so sure anymore.
—
Later that night, as he lay in bed staring at the ceiling, his mind kept going back to Sena's words.
"You need to stop being so fixated on Aoi and open your damn eyes."
He had brushed it off at the time.
But now, for some reason, it didn't seem so simple anymore.
—