My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 130

The discussion reached a stalemate, and the class monitor sighed again. I could sense the sorrow of the middle management.

"Or how about this?"

Ye Shan, who had remained silent and observed the situation without offering any opinion, spoke up without raising his hand. Everyone's attention naturally turned to him; even the class monitor's glasses lit up, reflecting their high expectations of him.

"Please assign this task to someone who can demonstrate leadership qualities."

Hayama's words were quite reasonable and safe. Since he was in charge of all the details of the school anniversary celebrations, he naturally needed someone with excellent leadership skills. If there was any problem, it was that he was subtly implying I lacked leadership ability. But he wasn't wrong; I only had a cold, damp cloth, not much leadership ability (Note 22: The Japanese pronunciations of "cold, damp cloth" and "leadership ability" are similar).

However, after he said that, the job would inevitably have to be filled by someone from the upper class. But I had already taken the male vacancy, and as for the female vacancies, the upper class had already indicated that they had no interest in them.

Logically speaking, if the person at the top of the campus hierarchy is unwilling, then the position should be moved down one level to the person in the second-highest hierarchy.

The Ministry of Revenue accurately grasped what Ye Shan wanted to express.

"So, that means it's Sagami?"

"Hmm, not bad, she should be able to do a good job."

Hayama subtly led the conversation to this conclusion before agreeing with the Ministry of Revenue's view. The Ministry of Revenue, smugly saying "Right?", was so naive it was heartbreaking.

On the other hand, Sagami, who was suddenly called out, quickly waved his hand lightly in front of him.

"Huh? Me? Can I do that...? Absolutely not!"

Although she outwardly feigned refusal, that wasn't what she really meant. Hey, don't think you can fool me, a master of rejection assessment! When a girl is truly going to refuse, she'll give you a cold look and say expressionlessly, "I'm serious, can you please stop?" It's chilling and terrifying.

Hayama probably understood that his refusal was just for show, so he played along, putting on an apologetic expression and pleading with her.

"Please, Sagami."

"Hmm... if no one else wants to do it, then it's unavoidable... but, shall I take the job...?"

Sagami muttered loudly on purpose, his cheeks flushed with excitement. "Are you a character from Misawa Hell (Note 23: A Japanese male manga artist whose characters are characterized by their eyes, nose, and mouth crowding the center of their faces, and who often utter obnoxious lines)?"

To be asked a favor by someone like Hayama—or rather, "I was actually asked a favor by someone like Hayama"—must be a very pleasant thing.

"Okay, I'll do it~"

She pretended to reluctantly agree, and the class monitor finally breathed a sigh of relief, his glasses fogging up.

"Well then, that concludes today's meeting..."

Exhausted, the class monitor adjourned the meeting, and the students got up and left the classroom.

× × ×

The anniversary celebration executive committee begins operations today.

It's 3:45 PM now, and I'm checking my schedule in my mind one last time.

To maintain an aloof attitude on campus, the most important thing is self-management, because no one will be there to remind you. You must have complete control over everything, from attending classes in different classrooms to holiday schedules and after-school activities. Incidentally, I remember things related to holidays most clearly.

The time for the Executive Committee meeting was approaching, so I headed to the meeting room.

The executive committee members from each class arrived at the meeting room in twos and threes, some of the male and female representatives chatting as they walked. Honestly, those lost souls on the path of life, can't you find the meeting room without walking with others?

This meeting room is specifically used by the school anniversary executive committee. It is about twice the size of a regular classroom, and the tables and chairs are much more luxurious. It seems that it is usually used for faculty and staff meetings.

When I entered the meeting room, I found that half of the people had already arrived. Sagami was among them; it turned out she had left even earlier than me.

She had formed a trio and was chatting happily. It was unclear whether she and those people were already friends, or if they had only recently met.

"Yui, it's so great that you're on the committee too. I was really worried about what to do after being nominated as a committee member~"

Sagami brought up the topic first, and the other two echoed him.

"I came here because I lost a game of rock-paper-scissors!"

"Me too! Ah, Sagami-kun, can I just call you 'Minami'?"

"Sure. How should I call you?"

"Just call me 'Yao'."

"Oh, so you're on the women's basketball team like Yui?"

"Yes, that's right."

"Great! I should have joined a club too! My class has terrible luck."

"Oh right, Class F has Miura and his group, right?"

"Yes~"

While it's terrifying to see Sagami making an expression of utter disbelief, it's equally terrifying to hear a girl casually mention Miura's name after hearing her say she has no class luck.

If you look at each sentence individually, it doesn't seem like much. But when those sentences form a complete dialogue, they become highly toxic. This is precisely the terrifying aspect of girls' conversations. This phenomenon is similar to how trace amounts of toxins from different organisms accumulate in a pufferfish, forming extremely toxic tetrodotoxin.

"But isn't it great to be in the same class as Hayama?"

"That's right, I only took this job because he asked me to. It's really a headache~"

So I've always been curious, are you a character created by Misawa Sagami? Should I call you "Mizawa Sagami"?

If you calm down and listen carefully, you can also hear what other people are saying.

As the meeting time drew near, more and more people arrived, and the previously quiet conversations turned into a noisy commotion.

Every time someone opens the door and comes in, everyone looks over, then immediately looks away when they realize it's not someone they know. That natural, dismissive attitude is really annoying... It's like telling the person who comes in, "I wasn't waiting for you at all," or "I have absolutely no interest in you."

However, when the next person came in, everyone's attitude changed.

The moment the conference room door opened, the chatter ceased.

Then, in the silence, the girl—Yukino Yukinoshita—entered the room without making a sound.

She didn't exude her usual majesty at this moment, but everyone held their breath, as if watching the accumulated snow gradually melt away.

When Yukino saw me, she paused for a moment, but then immediately turned her face away, took a few steps forward, and then remembered what she was supposed to do, and sat down in the empty seat next to her.

Time seemed to stand still in the meeting room until she sat down.

Even I, who should be used to such scenes, was momentarily captivated, probably because it was rare to see her in a different place, or because I was surprised to see her in such a setting.

Time began to flow again, and out of consideration, everyone lowered their voices to continue their previous conversation, the sounds now sounding like waves of tide. I glanced at the clock; the meeting was about to begin.

Amidst the sounds of conversation, the conference room door opened again.

A group of students carrying large stacks of materials, seemingly belonging to the same group, walked in, followed by physical education teacher Atsugi and Hiratsuka.

Why Hiratsuka-sensei...? I looked over, puzzled, and our eyes met. She smiled at me, a smile that made her look younger than her actual age, and quite adorable.

In other words, it was a malicious smile.

Was I really framed...?

The group of students gathered in front of the conference room and looked at one of the girls. The girl, who gave a gentle impression, nodded in response.

Two students, who appeared to be first-year students, were instructed to begin distributing materials to all attendees. After confirming that everyone had received their materials, the girl who had spoken earlier stood up and announced:

"Now, let's begin the meeting of the school anniversary executive committee."

Her hair was shoulder-length, her bangs held in place with hair clips, and her smooth, beautiful forehead shone brightly. Her uniform was neatly worn, perfectly in accordance with school regulations. The collar badge on her shirt and the colorful hair tie on her wrist added to her overall cuteness. She gently squinted her eyes, smiled gently as she looked around at everyone present, and gently announced the start of the meeting. Everyone straightened their posture accordingly.

"Um... I'm the student council president, Shiroko. I'm very happy to have everyone's help this year to make the school anniversary celebrations a success... Um... Well then, let's all work together! Okay~"

After a brief greeting and a pep talk, the student council members immediately applauded, and the other attendees joined in. She nodded gently in satisfaction.

"Thank you very much, everyone. Now, let's decide on the chairperson."

Upon hearing this, everyone began to stir.

It's not unreasonable for people to be surprised; I myself thought that the chairman of the committee should naturally be the student council president.

Seeing the reactions of those present, Senior Xun gave a slight wry smile.

"I think many people understand that, according to past practice, the chairperson of the school anniversary executive committee is a second-year student, while I am already a third-year student..."

Oh, I see. After entering the third year, I have to start preparing for university exams, and besides, it's already autumn, so I really don't have time to do these things anymore.

"Okay, is anyone willing to volunteer?"

No one raised their hand.

Such a reaction is not surprising.

Although the students are not uninterested in the anniversary celebrations, I believe many are eager and excited to make the event a success. However, they are more interested in working hard in different places and showcasing their talents.

If possible, everyone will always want to do their part in the class or in the club.

It's only natural to want to work together with close friends towards the same goal, or to want to spend a touching carnival with someone you have a crush on.

The question now is how to leverage the strengths of all the different groups gathered here.

"Is there no one willing to volunteer?"

The senior student asked again with a troubled tone, but the meeting room remained silent.

"Um...cough!"

At this moment, the physical education teacher, Atsugi, cleared his throat with a hearty laugh.

"Hey, what's going on here? Can't you guys pull yourself together a little? You're so unmotivated! You need to understand, this school anniversary celebration is your own event!"

The teacher spoke with great enthusiasm, and I could almost hear him say "Goodbye~" at the end of his sentence. (Note 24: The original text is "じゃあの," which is a farewell phrase in the Hiroshima dialect.) It seems he was the instructor for the school anniversary event, and the teacher sitting next to him, with his hands clasped and eyes closed, was probably doing the same.

Atsugi looked around the room, observing each of the attendees.

His uninhibited gaze stopped abruptly when it swept over the snow.

"Oh, aren't you Yukinoshita's sister? I'm really looking forward to this year's school festival being just as amazing as last year's!"

The teacher's implication was: "So you'll definitely become the chairperson, right?"

Senior student also noticed Yukino and murmured, "Ah, so she's Senior student Haruno's younger sister."

Yukino Yukinoshita is truly remarkable; she managed to leave such a deep impression on both the teacher and the junior student.

"I will do my job as an executive committee member diligently."

Yukino gave such a brief response out of courtesy, but I didn't miss her displeased twitch of her eyebrows.

Atsuki-sensei was coldly rejected and could only respond vaguely with "hmm" and "oh" before closing his mouth and saying nothing more.

However, the one who was really troubled was Senior Xun, who exaggeratedly crossed her arms and pondered thoughtfully.

"Hmm... By the way, there are actually many benefits to being a chairperson. For example, it can add points when applying to schools, which is quite advantageous for those who plan to apply for school recommendations."

Is this person an idiot...? How could anyone accept that kind of temptation and voluntarily step forward to become the chairperson? Wouldn't that be tantamount to admitting, "Yes, that's what I value, so I volunteered to become the chairperson"?

"Hmm... what do you think?"

The senior student looked at Yukino and asked her.

Whether Yukinoshita noticed the senior's grammatical error or not, she simply maintained her usual attitude, without any reaction, and stared straight at the senior.

Yukinoshita doesn't like standing in front of everyone, and her personality isn't suited to be a chairperson.

However, the senior student always looked at Yukino with a smile. After a while, the person being looked at would inevitably feel uneasy and shift her body slightly.

This is precisely the pressure created by an innocent and pure smile.

Nothing in the world is more wicked than the gaze of an innocent and naive person.

If things continue like this, Yukinoshita might give in...

Just as Yukinoshita let out a deep sigh, about to raise the white flag and surrender—

"that……"

A hesitant voice broke the silence, instantly easing the tense atmosphere.

"If no one else is willing to take on this role, I can do it."

The person speaking was Minami Sagami, who was three seats away from me.

When the senior student saw that someone had finally volunteered, she clapped her hands happily.

"Really? That's great! May I ask you to introduce yourself first?"

Urged on by his senior, Sagami adjusted his breathing before speaking.

"I'm Minami Sagami from Class 2-F. I'm somewhat interested in this job... and I hope to grow through this school festival event... Although I'm not good at standing in front of a crowd... Ah, if I say that, people might think I'm talking nonsense, like I shouldn't do it at all, but I want to change that... How should I put it... I think this is an opportunity to hone myself, so I want to do my best."

—It's your family's business if you want to grow up, why should I have to help you?

Although that's what I thought, no one else seemed to have any objections.