Chapter 54 - Suitableness

– That just earlier was, um… incredible, right…?

Last night was a blast, I want you to please not speak like that.
I was earnestly beating the chicken meat with a hammer, while receiving Komatsu-kun"s comment, that was rubbing salt into my wounds, from the back.

I"m feeling just like a legendary blacksmith who is forging a holy sword.
Considering that my loner trait is the only persistent one, this is an ideal occupation for me, isn"t it so? If I went to another world, I have confidence in being able to swiftly find a town smithy and successfully enroll there. Becoming a hero sucks, handwork is the best.

Actually, I have never wanted to be run over by a truck as strong as I do now.
Because no matter what, after having been seen at the scene like that…

– So Ichijou-kun is popular… And here I thought he was a loner like me…

– … Don"t say as if friends are having a falling out. I"m still a loner inside…

– Hmm. Normally, you wouldn"t call someone with a girlfriend a loner

Startled, I turned around.
With a hand on his waist, my loner fellow stood with a displeased face and puffed out cheeks.

Well, girlfriend. Girlfriend, huh…
I have already lost the position where I can downright deny it.
Although, speaking of the conclusion, she"s not my girlfriend. Even so… The words that have rushed out of my mouth because I have been seen doing that stuff with Tachibana, they probably shook the entire cla.s.s.

To start with, the very first witness Tenjuin has asked the following.

"Umm… Sorry for interrupting you so suddenly…"

The feeling of trying to guess that is seeping out from her face and the atmosphere.
As if not accustomed to directly looking at that image, despite avoiding our faces, cla.s.s representative has said this while glancing at us.

Tachibana in the swimsuit was still sitting on my lap, with only swimming shorts on me.
A thin arm was around my neck.
A cheek was stuck with another cheek.
Crowd of cla.s.smates could see that directly.

"… But everyone is interested, so…… Are you… like that?"

I mostly understood the meaning of her question.
I answered to that question. But because of my communication ability, I ended up giving an awful reply.

"My…… Gi-, girlfiend…"

"Ah… Is, is that so… We-, well, I wish you happiness for many years to come…"

It would be too awkward to notify them about the "before we leave this hut" condition.
Rather, even if I told them about this rule filled with sense of private matter, they wouldn"t understand. However, even if they do misunderstand because of that messy way of speaking, I can"t make any complaints…

Naturally, Tachibana is not the one who would sit silently in that situation.

"Jun… Chu…"

That touch that I can feel on my cheek, I"m already used to it.
After several seconds… by the time when her lips separated from me, a pink colored ribbon that doesn"t match me was tied to my hair.

"Ehehe. I will do the lovey-dovey courage test with my boyfriend…♪ By the way, everyone. This is not an exhibition, so quickly go that way, okay? Fufu…"

Like this, one lie became and open fact within the cla.s.s.
A misunderstanding of being rejected, a misunderstanding of going out… The situation became so complicated, that it wears me out. In order to avert my eyes from the knot which cannot be untied, I am still continuing to beat the meat.

That we were found out, do I… dislike it?
I would run away if I didn"t like it.
But lately, I have remarkably stopped running away.
How I was flirting with Tachibana, it has been seen, you know.
No… have we shown it?

Even I am already not sure which one is correct.
It"s just that, I had a feeling like something that I was desperately trying to suppress has exploded and strangely, I even felt refreshed.
Seriously, what"s wrong with me?

– Yo, Cla.s.s prince!

The one who lightly poked me in the back was Tachibana"s best friend, who"s thoughts I can never understand, Hyoudou.

Ah, by the way, what I"m doing right now is preparation of the dinner.
The air around the beach is completely dry as everyone is making BBQ or something.
And it seems our group is preparing some unknown food called tandoori chicken. Everything is because I couldn"t catch any fish.

– I didn"t think that Ichijou would go so far. It helped that you have rushed about half of my plans. … All this time. Have you been lovey-dovey like that while we didn"t know?

– … Well, as expected, not to that extent.

The girl with a slender body laughed as if in a good mood.
It seems that the mood of people getting put off has been cleared with great difficulty and a cheerful gahaha laughter is resounding in the vicinity. Well, only me and Komatsu-kun are silently doing our work at the side.

– I say… Everyone rushing in great numbers, is it your doing? Like, Tachibana has consulted you or something.

– … Karen, she was seriously worried. That she was rejected.

– … I feel sorry for that

– Well, isn"t it a thing of the past already? Haven"t you clearly become a boyfriend now?

– By any chance, has it been you, who made the shower fall when I was fishing…

– Haha, stop saying stupid things. Wasn"t it Momoko who told you to go fishing?

Ugh, does that mean that cla.s.s representative has come up with some bad idea?
Demote and isolate both of us and check on us later. If she told Tachibana to flirt in the meantime, later, when she would come to check things, it would have turned into being caught red-handed.

She understood everything up to the shower and the hut and inspired Tachibana, didn"t she…?
No, no, that"s impossible… right?

– I just… thought that if I have shown your strong point of being skilled in outdoor activities before the cla.s.s, then everybody would approve.

– Approve…? Everyone…?

– As Karen"s boyfriend, okay? What I"m saying, do you understand…?

– I don"t. That kind of thing, it is our problem. Why is there this "everyone" …?

– Because… Hey, look there. Yeah, there…

Tachibana was standing with another team.
She is smiling so happily in the center of a circle. It"s so like her to be like that. Being surrounded by everyone, no matter boys or girls, and having fun.

It seems that she is very happy that we were caught. She is sparkling.

– Hey, hey, since when have you been dating!?

– Eeh? In my mind, it has been forever. Ehehe…

– Have you always been hiding and flirting like that with Ichijou-kun…?

Tachibana silently nodded. Shouts of kyaa, kyaa started just from that.
However, Hyoudou pointed in another direction again. The group of people who can be together with Tachibana are innocently clamoring, but apparently there are some guys who are barely away from that circle.

– Tch… Like this, I"m about to play the role of the ghost…

– I wonder, why is it Ichijou…

– Does he have some sort of a trump card? I just can"t agree with this…

… Does the cla.s.s normally look like this?
n.o.body cares about me. They can"t see me. I"ve always thought like that.
No, it probably really was like that. Bookworm at the edge of the cla.s.s. I only know of one oddball in this world who would be interested in that. Well, she is, however, called Tachibana Karen.

– … Your thoughts? This, is what it means to be the boyfriend of a girl like Karen.

– I see. I am not suitable… Ah, agreeing with it so readily, I"m so pathetic.

Everybody is looking at Tachibana. That is why, there is a suitable cast for standing beside her. She probably wants to say that.
I know very well my own standing so, well, it"s not like I don"t understand.

– … Ichijou-kun, you"re… a good person, you know?

The one who interjected with a small voice from behind was, unexpectedly, Komatsu-kun.
Both me and Hyoudou were equally surprised by this. Still, he continued, albeit with difficulty.

– You help people, no matter what kind of person asks you… Umm, how should I say, I can"t properly put it into words, but…

– Komatsu-kun, you don"t really have to push yourself…

– Cause… you know. Is it so important to stand out and sparkle? After all, everyone got helped by Ichijou-kun… Isn"t it fine to at least have a cute girlfriend…?

Hyodou sighed and her admonishing look softened.
It seems that Komatsu-kun is frightened due to the fact that the other party is a girl. However, what is with this youth? It was the same when he first tried to talk with me. He can muster unneeded courage. Such a courage that you wouldn"t think he is a loner.

– I too, am not saying that it is a mismatch if it is Ichijou. There are good points in everyone. I mean, I just wanted you to have confidence and display them, and even though I have come up with various things, they have vanished because of that flirting love, haa… Hey, Ichijou?

– What?

– I hate this tiresome way of speaking, so I"ll just ask normally

Hyoudou grinned.
I gulped and stopped the hammer from beating the meat. On the other side, Tenjuin-san was about to return and take Tachibana along with her.

– Do you… like Karen?