I finally managed to read a good portion of the book Ayame-san lent me. So today, I had lunch with her to talk a little about what I read.
"...When she received the flower from the man she always admired—it was really sweet how flustered she got."
"You're right. At the same time, it's sad how her friend had to hide her feelings for the same guy. And the jealousy the main lead's brother felt just made everything harder to deal with."
"..."
"Tomoki-kun?"
"Her friend liked the same person as the heroine!?"
"Yeah, there's a whole chapter describing her thoughts—the happiness she always felt when talking to the main lead, and at the same time, the guilt toward her friend."
"Now that makes sense. I thought it was the heroine. I didn't realize it."
"Fufu~ That's okay."
"And the main lead had a brother!?"
"Yes, it's mentioned in the first chapter and hinted at throughout the book."
"Oh my god. No wonder I got an F from Ryuichi. I didn't notice any of that."
"Sorry, Tomoki-kun. I should've picked a more suitable book for beginners."
"Don't worry, Ayame-san. I'm the one who needs to read better. Besides, it feels like I'm listening to gossip from the heroine's life, so it's kinda funny, you know?"
"Fufu~ If you think that way, I'm glad you're enjoying it."
"But I see... I really need to pay attention to which characters the book mentions. It's hard for me to imagine how they look, or the places they're in. If there were drawings or pictures, that would help a lot."
"If that's the case! How about light—well, I mean, there's picture books too."
"Ayame-san... I'm not in elementary school."
"Just a small joke, fufu~"
"Anyway, class starts in a few minutes. We should head back."
"As expected of the scholarship student—how diligent!"
"Right? My attendance will be flawless. At least I'm confident in that."
"Fufu~ But if you ever need help studying, you can count on me."
"Thank you."
As we walked back to the classroom, I saw Tachibana-san. We just greeted each other briefly—we haven't talked since that day.
"Did something happen?"
"Oh... no, nothing happened."
"I see..."
What happened with Tachibana-san should stay a secret. It'd be rude to talk about her indirect confession—even to friends.
By the way, I never told Ryuichi who it was that confessed.
Ding dong, Ding dong
"Everyone, good afternoon. Before we begin the lesson, I want to remind you that some students still haven't applied to a club. If you're having trouble choosing, feel free to consult me. Okay?" - said the homeroom teacher.
Crap! I forgot about the club. I got so caught up in Ayame-san's book and gathering the boys' concerns that I didn't even think about it.
What should I do?
Cooking club? I was interested at first, but with everything that happened... I'll just ask Mom to teach me.
Literature club? I do need to improve my reading skills, but I'm not that into reading.
Sports clubs? There's only a boys' baseball club. That's to be expected, I guess.
Should I creat a new club? Must be something that I can do with my common sense. But I'm not confident enough to apply.
Whatever the case, I don't know what to pick. This sucks.
"So... have you decided which club to apply to?" - Ayame-san whispered.
"Not yet. I'm really having trouble deciding."
"If you do decide, could you tell me?"
"Sure, no problem."
Let's focus on the lesson. Otherwise, I'll fall behind.
"So today we'll have a surprise test. Everyone, put your books and notebooks under the desk."
...HUH!?
I'm totally unprepared. How is everyone so calm? They're even smiling and wishing each other luck.
"Tomoki-kun, are you okay?"
"Ayame-san, would you say this counts as an evaluation?"
"Yes, it does. Though, to be fair, it's not that surprising. Just take it easy."
That's not comforting at all... but I have to act cool.
"You're right. Good luck, Ayame-san!"
"You too!"
Well, it's not like I didn't study at all. I just need to stay calm and do my best.
"Everyone, I'll hand out your tests now. I don't think I need to remind you what you can and can't do—you're all grown up at this point, right? Now... good luck!"
Okay, let's focus. The goal is to at least pass, like I always do. No need to rush. First question...
...
Okay it´s cool. I didn't understand the passage at all. Let's skip it.
Now on the second question...
...
No problem at all... after all I COMPLETELY forgot the word that describes this concept. Kinda unfortunate that I have to WRITE it instead of choosing.
Third question... Nice! I know this one. One down. Let's keep going.
...
...
...
It looks like everyone's already done. They're just waiting for me. I can feel the teacher's gaze burning into me.
Sometimes, Ayame-san glances over with a worried look. Meanwhile, Ryuichi is just... chilling.
"There are only five minutes left!" - the teacher said, looking directly at me.
I already answered all the questions. Some of them I could easily solve, while a bunch of them I answered with the first thing that came to my mind. But now, there's one last question that could decide my fate.
Is it A or C? I think A is right... but C too.
I chose C in the previous question, so maybe A makes sense now. But maybe that's a trick to lure us in... maybe it's C again...
You know what? There's only one way to decide.
I grab my eraser and write A on one side and C on the other. Let's roll—
Crap! My eraser falls off the desk. Then the teacher suddenly appears.
"Here, Tomoki-kun."
"Thank you, teacher."
"By the way, it landed on C. Pffft."
"Thank... you..."
Did she just laugh? Does that mean C is wrong? Wait—maybe A's wrong too.
Let's reread the question... I see now—it's B!
♦♦♦
Ding dong, Ding dong
"Finally, it's over. Let's grab something to eat!"
"I want chocolate ice cream!"
Everyone's talking about what to do now. But no one's talking about the test. I guess it was easy for them.
"Hey Tomoki, how did it go?" - Ryuichi asked.
"...So-so?"
"That bad?"
"Let's just say, when the scores are announced, I'll know if it was bad or not."
"You... well, wanna grab something to eat before heading home?"
"Sure... Can I invite Ayame-san too?"
"Of course, go ahead."
"Ayame-san, Ryuichi and I are going to grab something to eat before heading home. Want to come?"
"Is that okay? If so, I'd love to."
So we headed to the cafeteria and waited in line since Ayame-san couldn't skip it. The three of us grabbed strawberry ice cream and watched the sunset.
"By the way, Tomoki, which club are you going to join?"
"Tomoki-kun, how was your test?"
Why are you both hitting me with the hard questions!?