My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 398

Only after I actually said it did I realize that the answer was surprisingly apt.

This is exactly the feeling that has been bothering me.

It always surfaces unexpectedly, a feeling distinctly different from the past. Whenever I'm talking to someone, this feeling suddenly surges up, questioning me—is this really right?

"Does something feel off...? I hope you don't forget this feeling."

Ms. Hiratsuka looked into the distance and said with a touch of nostalgia, "She seemed to be speaking to me, yet also to someone else I don't know."

However, she did say those words to me, and her gaze returned to me.

"I think this is a sign of growing up. Once you become an adult, you won't care about this feeling anymore. So I hope you can face it. It's important."

"But some people say that what is truly important cannot be seen with the eyes."

I made a joke to change the subject, and Hiratsuka-sensei gave me a smug smile.

"Don't use your eyes, use your heart to see."

"Does 'Don't think, just feel' mean? It's not like it's the Force..."

Don't give me that "please give me points" look, okay... You just want to say lines like those in a shonen manga, right...? Under my cold gaze, Hiratsuka-sensei seemed a little embarrassed and deliberately coughed twice.

"It's the other way around. Don't feel, think."

She corrected herself, her face no longer bearing the frivolous expression from before, only a sincere and gentle look in her eyes, her words...

The atmosphere was calm and peaceful.

"Think about that feeling all the time."

"Every single moment...?"

I repeated the sentence, carefully pondering its meaning. Teacher Hiratsuka nodded to me.

"Yes, that's right. In that case, maybe one day we really will find the answer. People who keep moving forward don't look back to see how far they've come. For those who stop, the further they've gone, the stronger the feeling of betrayal will be..."

After pausing for a moment, Professor Hiratsuka looked at the people in the cooking room in turn.

"It's wonderful to be able to see this scene so closely."

After saying that, Hiratsuka-sensei stood up.

She patted my back lightly and whispered:

"...I can't keep watching you like this forever."

I turned my head to look, but Ms. Hiratsuka was already stretching and relaxing her shoulders, so I couldn't see her expression.

She twisted her neck a few times, and when she looked at me again, she had returned to being the Hiratsuka-sensei she always was.

"Alright, I should probably go back to work now."

"Aren't you going to finish your meal before you leave?"

"No, I still have work to finish... There's not much time left until March, and I want to get it done as soon as possible."

Ms. Hiratsuka scratched her cheek, smiled sheepishly, and then waved goodbye before leaving the cooking room without looking back, her high heels clicking crisply in the breeze.

I watched her retreating figure and popped the chocolate into my mouth.

The chocolate I grabbed melted along with the teacher's words, leaving a slightly bitter taste.

Volume 11, Chapter 6: The genuine object remained beyond his reach, continuing to be riddled with errors.

The oven and timer went off one after another. Whenever a sound rang out, cheers and exclamations would erupt in the cooking room, accompanied by a sweet aroma.

I looked at the group of people gathered in front of the oven, and it seemed that Miura's hard work had been successfully completed.

Miura carefully opened the oven, took out the chocolate cake, and placed it in front of Yukinoshita.

Yukinoshita was confirming the results. As she took the time to carefully evaluate them, Miura looked restless, and Yuihama, who was accompanying her, held her breath anxiously.

Finally, Yukinoshita let out a soft breath, raised her head, and said:

"...Very good, the final product is beautiful."

Hearing Yukinoshita say that, Miura finally breathed a sigh of relief, and his shoulders relaxed.

"Yumiko is amazing!"

Yuihama hugged Miura tightly, and Miura smiled.

"Yes, thank you, Yui... Yukinoshita too..."

She turned her head to the side, only glancing at Yukinoshita. Although this way of thanking her was quite strange, Yukinoshita's response wasn't much better.

"It's impossible to say for sure until the actual taste test. But let's just say it's acceptable for now?"

Couldn't this guy just say "you're welcome" honestly...? But Yukinoshita's words do make sense. Because the purpose of this activity isn't just to learn how to make desserts.

"Yumiko".

As if to encourage him, Yuihama put her hand on Miura's shoulder. Urged on by her, Miura forgot to take off his heat-resistant gloves and carefully picked up the chocolate cake, walked up to Hayama, and shyly swayed his body.

"Hayabusa... Hayato... could you... taste it for me?"

Miura dared not look directly at Hayama, only daring to steal glances at him. Hayama gave a gentle smile and replied:

"If you don't mind, of course you can."

"Uh-huh."

Miura searched his mind for a while, but in the end he still didn't know what to say, so he just nodded with a blush.

"You've already tried your best"—just as I was silently praising her, a groan suddenly came from beside me.

“Wuwuwu…”

"What are you whimpering about?"

I glanced sideways at Isshiki, who was clutching her creation—a beautifully packaged platter of baked goods complete with a small card—and staring at Miura with a resentful look.

"Miura-senpai is really something..."

"Yes, that chocolate cake was surprisingly good."

Hearing me say that, Isshiki gave me a suspicious look. Please don't give me that "Huh? What nonsense is this guy talking about?" look... I had barely thought that when Isshiki cleared his throat and started gesturing to explain what he had just said.

"No, that's not what I meant. I meant the contrast. She's usually so fierce and seems to have a terrible personality, but then she acts cute like this, it's so despicable!"

"I see……"

Truly a master of petty tricks. But Miura probably doesn't even have that kind of cunning. She's just an old woman with a girlish heart. Isshiki seemed to understand this too, muttering, "Besides, her personality isn't bad at all." Yes, the one with a bad personality is you…

After complaining for a long time and venting her dissatisfaction, Isshiki suddenly put on a smile.

"Forget it, it's only interesting when competitors have this level of strength. Some people simply aren't qualified to be my rivals."

She sighed, then, as if suddenly remembering something, pulled something from her apron pocket and tossed it over.

"Senior, please have this."

I took the package and saw that it contained cookies in a small plastic bag. Apart from a small ribbon tying the bag together, there was no other decent packaging, a world apart from the luxurious and colorful baked goods platter in her hand.

"What? This is for me? Can I say thank you?"

Because she gave it so casually, I didn't know whether I should honestly thank her. Come to think of it, she seemed to have said that whether or not a guy receives a chocolate as a token of appreciation is closely related to his dignity. Wow, Isshiki is such a good person! I was just thinking you had a terrible personality, I'm so sorry!

After I thanked him, Isshiki smiled faintly, gently raised his index finger, and placed it in front of his lips.

"...Don't tell anyone else, okay?"

She flashed a mischievous smile, playfully closed one eye, and said, "Otherwise, things will get complicated," before quickly leaving. She seemed to intend to go directly to Hayama.

As for me, I was stunned by Yi Se's actions and expressions, and stood frozen in place. This time, she didn't try to be clever, but instead used a direct approach, which was even more terrifying... If it were the old me, I would have been completely won over long ago.

While trembling with fear at the destructive power of the little devil junior, I also turned my gaze toward Hayama, ready to admire her struggle.

Isshiki used all her charm, looking pitiful as she handed the baked dessert platter to Hayama.

"Senior Hayama, would you like to try my finished product too?~"

"Haha, I wonder if I can even eat it."

As Hayama ate Miura's cake, he greeted her with his usual cheerful smile and mature demeanor. He was once again sandwiched between the two women.

Hobe, who was taking a big bite of a checkered biscuit, gave Hayama a thumbs up.

"Hayato, if you can't finish your food, I'm always ready to come and help."

"But I didn't prepare a portion for Senior Hubu..."

The Minister of Revenue's enthusiastic words were frozen by Isshiki's icy voice. Having been treated cruelly, the Minister of Revenue couldn't help but complain to Hayama.

"Iroha is so mean! Hayato, speak up for me too—"

"I appreciate your kindness, but you should just focus on eating your food."

Ye Shan whispered in the Minister of Revenue's ear. The Minister of Revenue listened, gave another thumbs up, and grinned.

Oh—I see. It seems those checkered cookies were probably made by Ebina. I was slightly surprised and turned to look at her.

"Hmm... Hayato pairing... it doesn't really look cute..."

Ebina chewed on a checkered biscuit with a disgruntled expression, frequently tilting her head to the side. It seems things aren't looking good over there either…

Alright, it's about time to check on the others. I looked towards the Seaside Comprehensive High School, which was in the opposite direction from Miura and the others. They had also mostly finished their work and were chatting loudly with Senior Xun and the old and new student council members of Soubu High School.

One of them—Kaori Orimoto—noticed me and waved. She's still the same as back in middle school, waving at times like this… It doesn't matter, anyway, I won't misunderstand now.

Zheben touched the countertop a couple of times and then ran over quickly.

"Hachiman, this is for you."

She brought me a chocolate brownie on a paper plate. This looked like the chocolate she'd said she'd given me. But it wasn't wrapped at all… Oh well, I should be grateful I even got the chocolate.

"Then I won't stand on ceremony..."

After I whispered this, I put the brownie in my mouth. Just then, a figure appeared behind Zheben.

"Yes, this kind of exchange is good. Seamless relationships that transcend the school framework will likely become increasingly important in the future."

Just from the way he spoke, I could immediately guess his identity—Tama-rope, the student council president of Seaside Comprehensive High School.

After Zheben discovered the jade rope, he also brought the paper plate to him.

"Ah, the president is here too. Please, have some too."

"Th-thank you... I also have something to give you..."

While expressing their gratitude, Yu Sheng also took out something. It was a neatly cut chiffon cake, which looked like they had made it themselves.

Zheben stared at the wind-blown cake, a question mark appearing above his head.

"Huh? Why are you giving me this?"

When asked this question, Yu Sheng coughed twice, and his hands started turning like a well, gesturing wildly as he began to launch into a long speech.

"Abroad, Valentine's Day is usually celebrated by men giving gifts, and I think this event should also embrace this global awareness. This is what Japan calls influenceza."

"Right……"

However, Zheben's reaction was somewhat lukewarm, unlike his usual "That's right." Yusheng noticed this and continued to explain to her while speeding up the turning of the winch.

"Is it a difference in mindset? There's a significant cultural gap between Japan and other countries. For example, in France, a skirt is something you wear in front of important people, you know what I mean."

Oh...so that's why Totsuka hasn't changed into a skirt yet? Looks like I'll have to try harder! Okay, I get it!

I secretly made up my mind that even if it meant losing money, I would still grab that chiffon cake.

"It's delicious! Thanks!"

"Ah... um, you're welcome... They're having a coffee break over there, we should probably head back."

"What coffee break? That's hilarious."

Zheben chuckled twice, waved goodbye to me gently, and walked back to the Seaside Comprehensive High School. Then, Yusheng, who was left behind, glared at me.

"Then... let's have a fare showdown next time."

With that nonsensical remark, Yu Sheng left with a dashing air.

"Who cares about you..."

Did he hear my whisper? I think he probably didn't. He seems unable to understand unless I use some English.

That said, judging from Yu Sheng's attitude, could it be that he's launching an offensive? It's just a pity that the folded book doesn't seem to be of any use... Oh well, anyway, Yu Sheng's affairs are none of my business!