My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 136

Besides me, there were other people also observing everyone applying makeup.

Looking at Hayama and his group, Miura suddenly remembered something.

"By the way, what about the photos? We still need to make promotional posters, right?"

When Ebina heard Miura's question, she excitedly gave her a thumbs up.

"Yumiko, brilliant! You're absolutely right! Since it's a musical starring handsome actors, posting character photos online is the best way to generate buzz. Releasing the cast list little by little is crucial! This time, 'The King's Voice' needs to shed the baggage of the original work as much as possible and conquer the audience with the actors' charm!"

"Wang Yin" (Note 40: The musical "The Prince of Tennis" is abbreviated as "Wang Yin," hence the musical "The Little Prince" is abbreviated as "Wang Yin.")? What kind of abbreviation is that...? And what kind of industry am I in?

The conversation between Miura and Ebina led the class to another topic.

"So, what about the clothing? Will you rent it?"

"But renting might make it dirty."

"Um……"

The girls pondered for a moment, when Ebina joined the battle once again.

"No, no, the Little Prince's concept image is already fixed, so at least his part can't use existing costumes. As for the other characters, renting is fine."

"Is it alright? There might be some audience members who haven't read the original work..."

"Do you look down on original work fans (Note 41: 'Fan' is derived from the Japanese word 'nakabo,' a derogatory term for someone who behaves or speaks childishly)? Do you want to be bombarded online?"

Ebina went berserk, baring his teeth and brandishing his claws, and then someone else offered their opinion.

"Hmm! But our budget is very limited, and renting clothes might be difficult. I'd prefer to use the money elsewhere..."

Yuihama scratched her head with a ballpoint pen while typing on the computer and writing a bunch of things in her notebook, looking just like a housewife.

"Why not do it yourself?"

After listening to everyone's opinions, Her Majesty the Queen proposed this policy.

Then, the people began a new round of discussion.

"Does anyone know how to sew?"

"I only learned a little bit in class."

Wow, this kind of discussion is really predictable.

Just as I was standing by the window, looking at everything with admiration, I happened to notice a black and blue ponytail swaying back and forth in the corner of my line of sight.

Ah, it's Kawagoe, I think that's right. Kawashima seemed quite interested in the girls' conversation, constantly glancing over there intentionally or unintentionally. This surprised me a bit; I had thought Shimazaki would be uninterested in this kind of activity.

I continued to observe Okazaki out of curiosity for a while, and she reacted whenever the girls mentioned words like "making," "clothing," or "tailoring." Even though I felt that it didn't seem like her at all, I still spoke up to Okazaki:

"Hey, if you want to do it, just say so, right?"

"What...what are you talking about? I don't want to do it at all!"

I couldn't stand it anymore, so I spoke up. Kawasaki, upon hearing this, was so excited his chair clattered. Hmm? That's right, you finally guessed correctly! The correct answer is "Kawasaki"! Who said "Okajima" just now? That's way off.

I finally remembered her correct name, but no matter what I said, she would never admit to wanting to help make clothes. That's when I had to resort to underhanded tactics.

"Yuihama~"

"Wow! Wait a minute!"

Kawasaki tugged at my sleeve, begging me to stop talking, but that only awakened the little devil inside me, so it was best not to do that.

"What's up?"

Yui heard me call her, put a red pen behind her ear, and came over. "Excuse me, are you the uncle from the racetrack?"

Kawasaki said she wanted to give it a try.

"What?! What are you talking about?! That kind of thing is too complicated, I have no idea how to make it! And I've never made clothes before... I'll definitely be a burden to everyone..."

If she says "I've never made clothes," does that mean she's made other things?

Yuihama looked at Kawasaki thoughtfully. Kawasaki, probably feeling embarrassed, awkwardly shrank his slender body. At that moment, Yuihama's gaze stopped on one spot.

"Huh? Did you make that hair tie yourself?"

Kawasaki nodded.

"Could I take a look?"

Before Kawasaki could say yes, Yuihama took off her hair tie, and Kawasaki's long hair, which had been tied up, came loose.

"Wow..." Yui Hama exclaimed, looking at the hair tie in her hand. The curled-up hair tie looked a bit like underwear, which made me inadvertently excited.

"Himena, come and see this."

"Here it comes~"

Ebina rushed over quickly, looking at Kawasaki's hair tie with great curiosity.

"These are... sewn by myself... I also sewed some with a machine."

Kawasaki took another hair tie out of his backpack pocket. This hair tie was also shaped somewhat like underwear.

"Hmm~~ The stitching is beautiful, and the color scheme is adorable... You can sew by hand and by machine too... That's amazing! Kawasaki, you're the one! I'll leave the costumes to you~"

"Huh? Wait a minute! Why are you being so casual..."

Kawasaki, her hair tied back up, looked uneasy and unsure of what to do after being so casually given the task by Ebina. Yuihama, standing nearby, comforted her:

"Don't worry, Hina didn't make this decision lightly. Didn't you also modify your uniform? For example, your top is a little different from ours. I think she understood that, which is why she gave you this job."

...That's impressive. It turns out Yuihama had been watching all along.

"Ah, um... huh?"

Kawasaki's mind went blank for a moment, and she responded blankly with incomprehensible words. She must have been both surprised and delighted to discover that Yuihama had noticed such subtle details.

"Absolutely right! You know how to maximize the value of limited resources, and you have considerable technical skills, which is why I think I can entrust this to you. Don't worry! I'll take responsibility for any problems that arise!"

Ebina patted her chest and told Kawasaki, "Leave it to me." Despite her personality, her thinking was surprisingly clear, leaving me unsure how to evaluate her. Did she usually hide her shrewdness and deliberately pretend to be a fujoshi (a female fan of BL)?

"In that case, I...am willing."

Kawasaki blushed and lowered her head in agreement. Ebina immediately grabbed her shoulders tightly.

"Okay! Thank you for everything! Oh, and also, please alter 'my' jumpsuit, add some stains to make it a little dirty, remember, stains that can never be erased... Hmm!"

At this point, Ebina let out a strange laugh, his shrewdness vanishing completely. I really still don't understand this person…

After the costume part started, the students in the class got to their respective tasks, and now I really have nothing to do.

However, I have another important task to do, which is to sacrifice myself and take on the role of executive committee member for the school anniversary celebration, a position that no one else wants to take.

I'll go and carry out my mission too.

Just as I was about to leave the classroom, Yui noticed the commotion, turned around to look around the classroom for Sagami, and said to her, "Sagami, aren't you going to the executive committee?"

"Huh? Oh, that's alright."

"But……"

"Hmm...or is it that I'm not of much help here, and might even be a hindrance to you?"

"No, you've helped us a lot. It's just that you seem very busy, so I think it's better not to put too much pressure on yourself."

"Don't worry, don't worry, there's the super reliable Yukinoshita over there! Besides, filling out the class project application form is also part of my job."

I listened to their conversation and gently closed the classroom door.

As soon as I arrived outside the classroom, I saw Ye Shan walking back.

Are you going to the Executive Committee?

Ye Shan was wiping his face with makeup remover tissues, it seemed he had just gone to the restroom to clean his face.

"……Um."

"Oh, then I'll go with you."

"..."

I gave him a silent, questioning look: "What nonsense are you talking about? Why do you want to come with me? Okay, actually, I have no problem with you going, but you don't have to come with me. No, to be precise, you don't need to go at all. Why do you want to go to the Executive Committee? Tell me your reasons first."

Hayama smiled and replied:

"I need to go get the application form for the group performance."

"Oh, I see."

This reason was very much in Hayama's style. He was well aware that he was in a rather conspicuous position. Needless to say, he would be required to be in that position during this school anniversary celebration, and at this moment, he was tasked with fulfilling everyone's expectations.

I didn't ask any more questions, and Hayama didn't say anything more either. The two of us left the classroom together. I felt a burning gaze on my back, but it was probably just my imagination. Right, Ebina?

× × ×

Hayama and I left the classroom and headed towards the conference room. Today wasn't the day for the executive committee's regular meeting, but unfortunately, the members of our miscellaneous tasks group had work to do, which was really frustrating.

What's even more heartbreaking is that I walked with Hayama.

"..."

"..."

We didn't talk much along the way.

Hayama probably sensed my "don't talk to me" aura, so he complied and didn't speak to me. I glanced at Hayama sideways; he didn't seem bored or bothered at all. He looked no different from usual, humming a song as if he didn't care at all that I was there.

That composed attitude is truly remarkable; I could never be as composed as him.

The thought of being with Hayama brought back memories of the summer training camp in Chiba Village.

One night after an event, in a dark cabin, he said something very cold.

So it turns out that the same feelings exist in Hayato Hayama's heart—just thinking about this sent a chill down my spine.

Hayama himself is not scary. What is truly terrifying is that someone who is so perfect, who does everything so well, and who is considered a good young man by everyone, actually harbors such feelings.

We remained silent and walked together around the corner of the corridor.

Upon arriving at the conference room, I saw several people standing at the door peering inside, wondering what was happening. Although the incident didn't occur in the conference room, it should have happened on-site (Note 42: a line from Shunsaku Aoshima in the movie version of "Bayside Shakedown").

"What happened?"

Ye Shan casually asked a question. The girls at the door, who had initially ignored him, turned around, but their attitude changed drastically as soon as they saw Ye Shan. They became nervous and stammered, trying to explain the situation to him. I said, "What are you all blushing about?"

The girls explained shyly, but judging from the situation, it would definitely take quite a while. Instead of listening to their explanations, it would be much faster to just go in and see for myself.

I put my hand on the doorknob, and the person next to me immediately made way for me.

However, the moment I opened the meeting room door, I immediately regretted it; I should have listened to the majority opinion.

The meeting room was filled with a tense atmosphere, as if a storm was brewing.

Several people gathered in a corner of the conference room, forming a crowd of onlookers.

There were three people in the center of the conference room.

One is Yukino Yukinoshita, another is Shiroko, and the third is Haruno Yukinoshita.

Yukino and Haruno stood facing each other three steps apart, while Megure hid behind Haruno, looking bewildered.

"Sister, what are you doing here?"

Yukinoshita questioned Haruno in a stern tone.

"Oh, come on over! I heard you were looking for groups interested in performing. I'm an 0G who used to be in the orchestra!"

OG... This word reminds me of a certain series from Super Robot Wars, but that's probably not quite right; I also thought of Australian meat, but that's definitely not correct either. My impression of OG is actually... Old Girl? Hey, stop talking bad about Hiratsuka-sensei! (Note 43: Here, OG (Old Girl) refers to a female classmate. In the "Super Robot Wars" game, there's a series called "ORIGINAL GENERATION"; also, the Japanese pronunciation of OG is the same as "Aussie," meaning "from Australia.")

At this point, the senior student on patrol interjected to smooth things over.

"N-I'm sorry, actually, I was the one who asked Haruno-senpai to come. We bumped into each other on the street by chance, and since we hadn't seen each other for a long time, we talked about a lot of things. It just so happens that we're facing a shortage of performance groups for the school festival right now, and I thought..."

Yukino Yukinoshita is the only person in the entire world who could never "accidentally" meet someone. The fact that people would actually believe that is what makes her so terrifying.

"Yukino-san hadn't enrolled yet at the time, so she probably doesn't know. However, when Haruno-senpai was a third-year student, she formed a group and performed at the school festival, and that performance was fantastic. That's why I was thinking... should we invite her..."

The senior student looked at Yukino with a worried expression and asked her, "What do you think?"

"I was there too, so I know about the performance at that school anniversary celebration. But..."

Yukinoshita gritted her teeth, her gaze fixed on the ground, avoiding eye contact with the worried senior student, causing a brief silence to fall over the scene.

At this moment, Yang Nai's embarrassed laughter broke the silence.