My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 380

I believe concentration isn't continuous, but rather instantaneous. Therefore, simply pulling an all-nighter for a day or two won't significantly improve work progress. Planning ahead and taking things one step at a time is the most important thing. However, only realizing this right before a deadline is practically meaningless. The same applies to the eve of an exam, really.

I was completely drained of my power and could only stare blankly at the ceiling. Just then, someone knocked on the door of the student council office. I had no strength to respond, and simply turned to look at the doorway. Without waiting for me to speak, the person walked in.

"Are you finished writing?"

Yukinoshita, with her schoolbag slung over her shoulder, asked me.

"...I already told you what I had written."

"That's true."

Yukinoshita seemed to understand what I meant. She came over and took out the documents with red pen marks from her bag.

"I just got the draft from you. Here, the article is only half-finished; the second half is missing."

"Whoa whoa."

I took the materials and glanced through them, finding several errors besides the missing text. As I began correcting these errors, the person beside me showed no sign of leaving.

"...Is there anything else?"

"Ah, um... it's nothing important."

Yukino looked a little disheveled. She put her hands behind her back, took a step back, pulled out a chair from the next seat, and sat down. After rummaging through her bag for a while, she took out a folder, placed it on the table, and began to work.

It seems Yukinoshita plans to work here, and also keep an eye on whether I'm working diligently. Her arrival here indicates that my schedule is already extremely tight, with no room for maneuver.

Without needing to exert pressure from Xuexia, I am well aware that the deadline is fast approaching.

After correcting the errors by referring to the information, I scrolled down the screen to continue with the remaining 20% ​​of the content.

It only takes a few hundred words to complete.

Simply writing a few hundred words to fill the space is a piece of cake for me.

However, if the quality of this column is too poor, the one who will have to bear the criticism is Isshiki, the editor-in-chief. I was the one who promised to help in the first place, and I can't just stand by and watch that happen.

Therefore, I can only try to improve the quality of my articles. However, even if I submit a poor-quality article, it will probably be rejected by Yukinoshita, the editor, and Isshiki, the editor-in-chief, and I'll receive instructions to rewrite it. If that's the case, it's easier to just write seriously from the beginning.

I used my last bit of strength to frantically type on the keyboard. The clock at the bottom of the screen ticked away, and line after line of text was filled in.

Finally, my hand stopped moving completely. Then, I unconsciously uttered a weak sound.

"...It's over."

"Really? Finished writing?"

Upon hearing my voice, Yukinoshita happily prepared to get up. I raised my hand to gesture for her to sit back down, then leaned forward and slumped onto the table.

"It's all over. I'm done for, I'm doomed. I have absolutely no inspiration... I can't squeeze out a single word..."

"So that's what it means..."

Yukino sighed helplessly and sat back down in her chair.

"That's a problem. We barely have any time left!"

"I know it very well..."

Of course, I'm perfectly aware of this fact. But my brain just won't cooperate; it simply won't work. There's nothing I can do about it; my brain has always lacked the will to work. I haven't written a single word; it's like a wrung-out towel—no matter how hard I try, I can't squeeze out a single drop of water.

I leaned back in my chair and stared up at the ceiling. It was all over…

My hands remained motionless on the keyboard, but I showed no intention of moving them away. This posture resembled that of a lifeless insect. Yes, I am a useless insect… an insect that can't even meet a deadline. Starting tomorrow, I'll change my name to Insect Hachiman, and then I'll throw everyone's cards into the sea… (Note 36 is from the Yu-Gi-Oh! character "Insect Hachiman," who, upon his first appearance, tricked Yugi by throwing his Dark Magician Monster card into the sea.)

As I stared blankly at the ceiling, Yukinoshita suddenly appeared from the corner of my field of vision. She looked down at me, her expression somewhat uneasy.

"...This is for you."

As Yukinoshita spoke, she placed something wrapped in a handkerchief against my chest.

I looked up, picked up the bundle made of a handkerchief, and felt a gentle warmth spread to my palm. I unwrapped the handkerchief, which had a cute cat paw print, and found a can of MAX coffee inside. It seemed she had put some thought into keeping it warm.

A smile involuntarily appeared on my face.

"Try to change your mindset. Staring at the screen won't solve anything. It's better to take a break."

Yukino turned her face away in dejection, sat back down in her chair, and continued with the work she was only halfway through.

"Thanks..."

I gratefully accepted the treat, pulled the tab, and sipped my MAX coffee while staring blankly at Yukinoshita's profile.

Yukino remained silent, quietly grading papers; the only sound in the office was the scratching of red pen on paper. After a while, I noticed something—the frequency of the grading was unusually high.

"...I'm sorry, it was that bad."

"what?"

Hearing my voice, Yukinoshita turned to look at me, then glanced down at the papers beside her. She seemed to understand what I meant, pressed a red pen to her upper lip, and said:

"...Hmm. However, it's just some typos and omissions, nothing too serious. Besides, if we're talking about typos and omissions, the other two people have more than you."

Yukino chuckled softly, half-jokingly. She looked even more youthful than usual, making it clear she was indeed a high school student.

"No, it's just that seeing you keep drawing with the red pen makes me a little uneasy."

"You forgot to add the kana, so I just added them for you. Proofreading was just something I did on the side."

"I'm sorry to have troubled you."

I casually replied, but Yukino stopped what she was doing, put the red pen on the table, and slumped her shoulders, looking somewhat dejected.

"...I should be apologizing to you. I should have checked the work progress more carefully. Even you make mistakes—I know that perfectly well."

"Ah, no, that was just because my calculations were too naive. Speaking of which, what kind of masterful satire was that?"

Upon hearing this, Yukino smiled and gently shook her head.

"You're right... but that also means my estimates were just as naive."

She was definitely mocking me...

Regardless, we both made the wrong assessment. We still can't say we understand each other, either ourselves or each other. It's like the twilight outside the window, indistinguishable between day and night. By the time you finally discern it, the sky has already changed color.

"In the end, I was the one who accomplished the least."

He gazed at the sunset beneath the snow and murmured to himself.

"You've already done a lot. Neither Yui nor I are good at planning schedules, and our progress is a mess. Isshiki is good at making grand promises and negotiating, but he's not one to follow a plan either..."

I replied, gazing out the window. Even if it were the same sunset, the colors reflected in my eyes and Yukina's eyes would surely be completely different. What color did she see—red, pink, scarlet, vermilion, dark red, or orange?—Actually, I wouldn't care what color it was.

"So...you really helped me a lot."

I looked away and returned my gaze to the office.

The setting sun cast a fiery red glow into the office. Sitting beneath the snow next door, her head bowed, I couldn't see her expression. However, her ears and the back of her neck, peeking out from her black hair, were also tinged with crimson.

"...If that's the case, then that's good."

Yukino sighed, and said in a low voice, as if lacking confidence and somewhat sulking.

The next second, she raised her head, brushed aside the long hair that had fallen over her shoulder, and spoke in her usual stern tone:

"I'll adjust my plans for the future and try to buy some time."

"Ah, oh... wait, you have a way to buy some time?"

Although I asked her a question, Yukino didn't answer. Instead, she picked up her phone and started making a call.

"...Yuigahama-san? I need to change my plans. If I can't submit the manuscript on time, I'll use a fake article to make up the length of the original, then send it to the printing press. Once they confirm it, I'll finish the original manuscript with corrections. That's all. Could you please inform Isshiki-san...? Okay, thank you."

After hanging up the phone, Yukinoshita turned around and looked at me with her eyes, asking if I had heard what she just said.

"……May I?"

"This is just an emergency measure in case we can't deliver the manuscript on time. Although asking the printing company to make corrections will incur extra costs, we've already factored in the possibility of unforeseen circumstances in the estimate, so it's not a problem. The only concern is that doing this means we won't be able to proofread the final draft... If an error does occur, there's nothing we can do about it."

Yukinoshita said with a smile. She had prepared a contingency plan and a last resort, just in case.

Honestly, always saying others are too naive, but who is more naive (Note 37: This is a pun; the original word "甘い" means "gentle" in addition to "naive")?

I don't deny that I'm somewhat naive in my dealings with people. However, I also love to contradict others (Note 38: this is a pun, as the original word for naive, "甘ちゃん," and the original word for contradicting others, "天邪鬼," both begin with "AMA"). If someone treats me so gently, I can't help but want to retaliate.

I finished the rest of the M can in one gulp and slammed it back onto the table. The aluminum can collided with the aluminum desk, making a crisp sound.

"I will finish writing it."

After I finished speaking, I turned around and faced the computer again.

"...Is that so? Well then, good luck."

Although her words were brief, they still reached my ears clearly.

× × ×

I don't know if it was the effect of rest or the sugar from the MAX coffee that successfully reached my brain, but my hands never stopped, and the blank pages were filled line by line.

I ignored the clock on the desk and just kept writing. When I came to my senses, I realized that Yui and Isshiki had also come to the office.

Three girls sat side by side diagonally in front of me, silently watching me, waiting for the moment I would submit my manuscript.

It will distract me...

Even so, I continued to accumulate words one by one until I typed the final period. However, even after pressing Enter, my hands didn't immediately leave the keyboard. I read the article several times to confirm its overall quality before the feeling of accomplishment finally washed over me.

"This time it's really finished..."

I suddenly felt weak and slumped back in my chair, letting my arms hang down. I let out a sigh of relief, and Yukinoshita immediately came over and sat down next to me.

"can I see?"

"……good."

I shoved my laptop over, and Yukinoshita immediately began checking it, while Yui and Isshiki watched her nervously. In contrast, I felt no nervousness at all. Because I was free! Deadline? What's that? Is it delicious? Hahaha! I'm free! (Note 39: Subtitle of the final volume of the manga *Makuhari*.) I suppressed the urge to shout and waited for Yukinoshita to finish reading the manuscript.

After a while, Yukinoshita looked up from in front of the screen.

"...No problem. Isshiki-kun, could you please double-check?"

“Okay, okay!”

Isshiki then proceeded with the final proofreading. However, since Yukinoshita said there were no problems, then there really weren't. My work was officially finished. Ah~ It's so great that there are no deadlines! (Note 40 combines the title of "A Dark World Where Dirty Jokes Don't Exist" with the line "Elementary school students are awesome!" from the anime/manga series "Ro-Kyu-Bu!")

I was reveling in the liberating feeling of successfully escaping from work when Yuihama and Yukinoshita came over and started talking to me.

"You've had a tough time, you autistic guy."

"……Thanks for your hard work."

"Ah, everyone, thank you for your hard work. I'm sorry for the delay."

To be honest, the feeling of relief was so wonderful that I almost thought, "I did this all by myself." However, if they hadn't been watching me, I probably would have run away halfway through.

If that's the case, then it could even be said that I was able to experience this intense pleasure thanks to the watcher.

In other words, editing and deadlines are like drugs; they absolutely must be strictly controlled. Value your life, stay away from deadlines.

"I've checked. No problems."

Isshiki closed the lid of his laptop, and Yukinoshita nodded in agreement.

"We made the deadline on time. Let's go to the editorial office for some black tea."

"A victory celebration, right?"

"Great!"

Yuihama and Isshiki replied happily. However, Yukinoshita gave Isshiki a cold look.

"You're also responsible for doing a final check of all the content and having it reviewed by Professor Hiratsuka. That's the editor-in-chief's job."

"Huh—"

Yukinoshita frowned as she looked at Isshiki, who was clearly dissatisfied. Yui noticed the awkward atmosphere and quickly tried to smooth things over.

"Okay, okay, we'll be staying for a while longer. You can come over when you're done with your work."

"Ugh... I understand. I'll get it over with in no time and be there right away."

No sooner had she finished speaking than Yise immediately grabbed a red pen and began proofreading, her eyes wide as saucers. We glanced at her and then left the student council office.

On the corridor leading to the clubhouse, Yukino sighed softly.

"...Isshiki-kun, why didn't you just show that kind of enthusiasm from the beginning...?"

"If Iroha has the will, she can still do it."