My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 368

"...Never mind, as long as you're happy."

Upon hearing this, the woodcutter's eyes widened like copper bells, blinking incessantly.

"Th-what was that line that only an ex-boyfriend would say...? Hey, stop, don't do that, we're not like that..."

"What are you blushing and your heart racing for? It's disgusting! Shut up! I can't stand you, you idiot. Anyway, hurry up and write it. Do you want to spend the night here?"

"Hmm. That's true... Oh well, I guess I'll have to get started."

The imposing manner he had displayed earlier, with his shouting and yelling, was gone. He shrugged, his spirits dampened, and began scribbling dejectedly in his notebook. Oh, so this guy still has a thing for writing light novels, huh? That's surprising.

Even Zaimokuza, who seems to make no progress and only knows how to avoid and take detours, is gradually changing himself and moving towards his goal. Although he is still hopelessly obsessed with "marrying a voice actor" as his ultimate goal.

Even so, as long as we keep working hard, the day when we can be independent will eventually come, just like a novel built up word by word, which will eventually be completed.

I have one year left until I graduate from high school. Assuming I get into university and graduate smoothly, it will be five years before I enter the workforce.

Five years.

This period seems long and aimless, yet it also seems to vanish in the blink of an eye. As people grow older, the perceived length of a "year" will become shorter and shorter. Perhaps this year will feel different in length compared to next year.

Not only are they different in length, but their values ​​are also completely different.

Perhaps even a short period of time spent gazing at the sky in a daze has its own value.

So, for now, let me gaze up at this dry, beautiful, cold sky.

Volume 10.5, Part 2: Isshiki Iroha must be made of sugar, spices, and all things beautiful.

The electric heater emitted a series of piercing noises.

The electric heater in the corner of the office is quite old. I don't know if it's because the fan is stuck, the motor is faulty, or the frame is crooked, but it starts to make a strange noise after running for a while.

After school, as dusk approached, the electric heater in the Service Club would start to vibrate slightly, reminding us that our club time was about to end.

Nevertheless, when I'm concentrating on reading or chatting with Yui and Yukinoshita, the noise is not easily noticeable. However, when the office quiets down, the noise immediately becomes obvious again.

Yukinoshita, who was flipping through a paperback, stopped and glanced at the electric heater by the window. It seemed she was also quite bothered by the noise.

"It feels a bit quiet today."

"Yes, it feels quite peaceful."

Yuihama, who was playing with her phone, reached for her mug, and I followed suit, picking up my teacup and downing the cooled black tea in one gulp.

After we both sighed contentedly, the office fell silent again, the annoying vibrations starting to linger in our ears once more. This time, even Yui Hama started to notice, glancing towards the electric heater.

It's probably because Isshiki has been coming to the club office so often lately that we haven't noticed this noise.

I'm not complaining that Isshiki is noisy or annoying, that she always has so much to say, or that she has a disease that she'll die if she doesn't talk. If she weren't in the clubroom, everyone would just shift their attention elsewhere. Speaking of which, whenever Isshiki comes to this clubroom, troublesome requests usually follow, causing chaos in the clubroom, so it's normal that no one has time to pay attention to the noise of the electric heater.

This office has not been this peaceful in a long time.

I sipped warm black tea, ate delicious snacks, listened to the conversation between calm and steady voices and lively and cheerful voices, buried in my paperback notebook, occasionally interjecting a few words.

No visitors, no work, just a relaxed atmosphere. For someone who's been living like this for a long time, it's nothing special, but I haven't enjoyed this kind of daily life in ages. Thanks to that, the intermittent sounds from the electric heater, like the rhythm of an afternoon rain shower tapping on the eaves, sound quite poetic.

I closed my book, listened to the vibration of the electric heater, and looked up out the window.

As I admired the sky painted red by the sunset, Yukinoshita spoke up:

That's enough for today.

"That's fine, anyway, no one will probably come."

After Yui answered, Xiaoxiao said, "I'll take the last cookie," and started clearing away the leftover snacks on the table.

Yukino and I quickly finished packing our schoolbags, checked that all the doors and windows were closed, and turned off the electric heater.

"Thank you for your hard work."

After saying goodbye to the electric heater, I pressed the power switch, and the vibration stopped. The cold days are going to continue for a while, so it seems best to ask Mr. Hiratsuka to report it for repair as soon as possible.

The three of them put on their coats, wrapped scarves around their necks, and tidied their clothes before moving to the corridor outside the clubroom. Yukino took out her key and locked the clubroom door.

Today's club activities are now concluded.

Finally, they could leave work and head home. As the group left the office and walked down the corridor of the special building, Yuihama shivered and pulled her coat tighter.

"...It's so cold! The hallway is so cold!"

The entire corridor was deserted; just looking at it sent chills down my spine, and the cold air seemed to seep up from my feet. I pulled my scarf around my neck tighter once more.

"Because the office is so warm, the corridor feels very cold in comparison."

"And there's no heating in the hallway either."

Yukinoshita strode forward quickly, as if implying to Yuihama that it was more practical to give up sooner rather than later. Yuihama, following beside him, reached out and touched her scarf, seemingly lost in thought.

"Hmm... Ah, right!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she immediately hugged Yukinoshita's arm tightly.

"That way you won't be cold!"

"Wait, wait a minute, Yuihama-san..."

Yukinoshita lost her balance and swayed slightly. She then turned to Yuihama with a protesting look, her tone slightly sharp. However, when she saw Yuihama's warm and happy expression, she could only give up resisting and sigh deeply.

"...Oh, it's so warm!"

"It's so hard to walk..."

Yuihama's actions, of course, didn't change the actual temperature, but they certainly increased the perceived temperature considerably. Just watching their interaction made me feel warmer!

After the group went to the faculty office to return the keys, Yuihama still clung tightly to Yukinoshita.

I followed the two people who were engrossed in their conversation toward the building entrance. As I passed the student council office, a familiar face peeked out from behind the door.

"Huh? It's Iroha. Hello—"

Yuihama continued to hold onto the snow with her right hand, while raising her left hand to wave to Isshiki. Isshiki noticed us and immediately jogged over.

"Ah~ Hello everyone. I'm so glad you're all still here~"

"We're already heading back."

Yukinoshita, still holding him, said, "If anyone else saw me like this, I bet they'd have all sorts of strange thoughts." However, Isshiki seemed quite used to this kind of situation; she was completely unaffected and answered Yukinoshita naturally.

"I've almost finished taking care of my business, and I was just planning to visit you guys."

"Is there something you need?"

Yes, that's right.

Isshiki nodded, glanced at Yukinoshita and Yui, then beckoned to me and lowered his voice to speak:

"Senior, could I borrow a moment of your time?"

"Huh? Ah... that's fine, then..."

I gestured to Yukinoshita and Yuihama to go first, and they nodded in response. Then Isshiki grabbed my sleeve and led me to the window at the end of the corridor.

The sky outside the window was tinged with the pale hues of dusk, and the north wind rattled the windows, adding to the chill in the air. With her back to the window, Issei continued their previous conversation in a reserved tone.

"Um, about the work I asked you to do before, what's your decision? I want to make a decision quickly..."

"Okay, leave it to me. I'll help you figure something out."

The word "work" reached my ears, and I subconsciously exhibited the typical behavior of a corporate slave—pretending to be energetic and dodging the question, trying to get away with it. Why did you have to bring up work right after get off work hours? The service club is already closed today, and it's so cold. I want to go home early, so please come back at another time.

After giving a few perfunctory replies, I turned to leave. Just then, I heard Yise's voice again from behind.

"Really? Then, shall we meet at Chiba Station at 10 a.m. tomorrow?"

"Huh, tomorrow?"

I unconsciously turned my head to look at Issei.

Tomorrow is the weekend. The Hikigaya family operates on a full two-day weekend, so when it's a day off, it's a day off, no questions asked. However, the Service Club isn't on a "full two-day weekend," but rather a "two-day weekend." In other words, if it's the Service Club, as long as the order comes from above, you have to work even on weekends, with no room for complaint… Wait, does that even count as a two-day weekend? The Service Club's activities are way too grueling…

"Um, I'm a little..."

To save my precious holiday, I had no choice but to make up some excuses and pray that she would let me off the hook. Upon hearing this, Isshiki put her index finger to her chin and tilted her head.

"But I should be free tomorrow, right?"

"You're asking me? Who am I supposed to ask? You know best whether you have the time or not..."

I've always wanted to ask, why does Isshiki always assume I know everything whenever she talks to me? Whether you're busy or idle, I don't know, and I'm too lazy to know. I'm not omniscient, I just happen to know. (Note 18: A catchphrase of Hanekawa Tsubasa from *Bakemonogatari*.)

Upon hearing this, Isshiki puffed out his cheeks in a mock manner.

"I meant my senior."

"Ah, so you were talking about me... Wait, that doesn't quite make sense, does it? How do you know if I'm free or not? Although I certainly am..."

"Just as I thought~ Then I'll leave everything to you tomorrow. I'm really looking forward to seeing what you've got to do! That's all!"

"Whoa whoa……"

Isshiki flashed a sweet, charming smile, waved her sleeve at me, and left without a trace. Oh dear, ma'am! Look at Iroha's expression! That's 100% a clear indication that she doesn't allow me to ask questions or confirm anything, let alone refuse!

Come to think of it, did I make any promises with her before...? Judging from the word "work," it must be that she came to ask me for help with something again... Oh no, I really don't remember at all...

Because of the invisible power emanating from Issei's smile, I had no choice but to give up resisting and turn around to continue my journey home. After walking a few steps, I secretly turned my head to glance at Issei a few more times, only to see her still standing by the window, waving at me.

Sigh, I know my own personality very well. I guess I just made a casual promise to her to appease her, like how I accidentally agreed to help her out tomorrow.

That said, what exactly was the "job"...? I buried my face in my scarf, making strange noises as I racked my brains, but I just couldn't remember.

I tilted my head in thought, then walked to the shoe cabinet near the front door, where I saw Yui and Yukinoshita standing and chatting. It seemed they had been waiting for me.

"Ah—excuse me, you can actually go first..."

When Yui heard my voice, she suddenly turned around, and Yukinoshita, whose hand was hooked, was also pulled towards her, looking like an active little dog dragging its owner around.

"No, I was just chatting with Yukino, so... right?"

“…Right.”

Yukino turned her face away, her movements like those of a cat being picked up but looking unwilling.

"Really? Anyway... thanks."

I expressed my gratitude, and they both nodded. Their feigned indifference made me feel a little embarrassed, so I quickly changed into my leather shoes and hurried out of the school building.

The sun had already set, and it was dark outside. Although the beginning of spring was approaching, the days were still short.

As I walked toward the school gate, Yui Hama quickly walked up to my side.

"What did Iroha just say?"

"I didn't understand either...it seemed to be about work."

Your explanation is as good as no explanation at all...

Yukino followed behind with a smile, her tone sounding somewhat helpless.

Isn't that often how work is? Those above you never give detailed instructions; you have to figure everything out yourself. To date, no one has ever given us a pre-event explanation for any of our service activities… If we knew the details of the work beforehand, many things wouldn't be so difficult to solve. Therefore, reporting work matters truthfully, maintaining regular communication, and consulting with superiors when encountering problems you don't understand—these three points are extremely important.

Conversely, as long as you can truly do the above three things, it won't be a problem to neglect your work. If your superiors complain, you can simply retort, "Didn't I report, contact, and discuss everything?" and you might avoid being held accountable!

Okay, let's do the same thing tomorrow and just muddle through like this!

× × ×

The winter sun hung high in the sky, and people came and went in front of Chiba Station, creating a vibrant atmosphere.

Although it's far from being comparable to central Tokyo, for someone like me who doesn't often go out on weekends, this level of crowding is already enough to drive me crazy.

I glanced sideways at the crowd to confirm the time—10:05.

Five minutes had passed, but Yise was still nowhere to be seen. I really wanted to call her to ask where she was, but unfortunately, I didn't have her phone number.

If people agree to meet at a station, it usually means the east exit where I am now, but she might have gone to the west exit... no, she might even have gone to Keisei Chiba Station. Keisei Chiba Station used to be called National Railways Chiba Station-mae Station, which is quite long and easy to confuse... In addition, there are Nishi-Chiba, Higashi-Chiba, Hon-Chiba, Chiba Port, Chiba Park, Chiba Chuo, Chiba New Town, and other stations... Why does every station want to cram "Chiba" into its name? And with such complicated routes, it's unfriendly to people from other places.

When a resident of Chiba Prefecture says, "I'm going to Chiba," they absolutely mean, "I'm going to the vicinity of Chiba Station." People from other regions probably wouldn't understand this nuance. After all, if a Hokkaido resident said, "I'm going to Hokkaido," it would sound completely strange to others; and if a Tokyo resident said, "I'm going to Tokyo," it would sound like they were going to pursue their dreams and achieve great things.

In conclusion, the meeting point should be here, there's no mistake—I firmly resolved this in my heart, and stood still to warm myself up. Then, I finally spotted Iroha in the crowd.

Isshiki was wearing a beige trench coat, all the buttons on the front fastened, and a leather scarf around her neck. Although her pleated skirt was a bit short, she was also wearing high-heeled boots, so she probably wasn't too cold.

She noticed me, walked quickly to my side, and her heels clicked crisply. She readjusted her scarf, brushed her bangs aside, and then looked up.

"I'm sorry to have kept you waiting, senior. It took me a little time to prepare..."

"You're only just realizing how long I've been waiting."