My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 628

Ignoring the bewildered Daishi, Yukinoshita, and Yuihama, the brother and sister arbitrarily communicated telepathically. Isshiki, probably finding it strange, finally raised a question.

"What is 'that'?"

"April Sickness."

"A disease I've never heard of..."

"Your family medicine book is particularly thick..."

Komachi and I said in unison, Yuihama gave a wry smile mixed with helplessness, and Yukinoshita sighed, pressing her temples with her hand. As for Isshiki, she tossed out a listless "Oh, is that so?" and completely ignored us again.

Only Dazhi was dumbfounded. Well, let me explain...

"The so-called 'April Sickness' is a condition that middle school students, high school students, college students, or working professionals experience when they enter a new environment and become so enthusiastic that they start doing unnecessary things. They think, 'I'm an adult now...' and engage in half-hearted mental reforms, such as learning English, writing in a diary, going to the gym, etc. In short, they start doing unnecessary things."

I explained in great detail, and Yuihama frowned, looking confused.

"It doesn't sound bad at all..."

"Those people were naively thinking, 'It's April, so let's get something done.' How could that last long? The result was a bunch of guitars they'd never touch or leftover protein powder..."

The terrifying aspect of "April Sickness" lies in its lingering, slow-acting damage, much like a chronic poison. For example, while doing a thorough cleaning, seeing the remnants of dreams like guitars and protein powder can trigger feelings of "I can't do anything right..." leading to self-loathing. A fragment of a half-finished dream can suddenly wound you. The power of a diary is greatest in this regard. Oh... I live... my diary ends here.

However, the fact that it doesn't end is a consequence of the April sickness.

"If the patient just quietly falls ill on their own, Komachi won't have any objections. However, patients usually 'show off that they've started doing something,' and their way of being proud is very noisy. As a family member, I have to say it's a bit annoying."

Komachi's expression was extremely serious. Hmm... so that's what Komachi was thinking... My brother seems a little taken aback...

"No, no... I didn't have that kind of thought... Well, I used to participate in club activities seriously... although my grades were just so-so..."

I looked at the person who was stuttering, and Dazhi's whole face turned red.

Yeah, guys always have that kind of experience once or twice, right? I'm sorry, I feel like I embarrassed you in public. While it's not exactly atonement, I need to listen more attentively to his troubles.

What club did you attend in junior high school?

From what he just said, I could tell that Dazhi had participated in clubs. He specifically mentioned it, which suggests it was a significant memory for him. When I asked about it, Dazhi quickly looked up and answered with a cheerful expression:

"Soft tennis! We made it to the prefectural tournament!"

He glanced at Komachi, not forgetting to show off how great he was. Komachi responded with a casual clap of her hands. Okay, Taishi, just cheer up. Very good. But I heard a word that bothered me.

"...I see. Then the tennis club has to be ruled out."

"Huh, why?!"

Dazhi was completely confused. But Dazhi was the only one with questions. Everyone else nodded in agreement as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"Ah—Totsuka-senpai…"

"Totsuka-nii-san..."

"There's nothing we can do for Xiaocai..."

With a look of impatience, Komachi remarked that Yuihama was nearing enlightenment. Ugh, I've been given up on… But no matter what they think, I can't let a frivolous guy like Taishi join that sacred tennis club. I want to protect that smile…

However, only one person neither doubted nor nodded in agreement.

Yukinoshita brushed aside her long hair that fell over her shoulders, revealing a smug smile.

"I think Totsuka-kun will be very happy to have a new member joining the club, right?"

"Hmm, yes, it's certainly possible..."

As expected of Yukinoshita... She hit my weakness perfectly... Not only that, her offensive showed no signs of abating.

"He'd be really sad if he knew you ruined his chance to get a new member..."

Yukinoshita's tone grew even more sorrowful, and she quietly lowered her gaze. The gesture was exaggerated, almost theatrical, but for a beauty like Yukinoshita to perform it so convincingly was rather perplexing.

Besides, Yukinoshita is right. That means it's inconvenient for me to interfere anymore. Okay, alright, I'll still chime in a few words.

"Don't worry. Let's find a compromise. If I join the tennis club now, it'll be a matter of subtracting one and adding one, canceling each other out..."

Unfortunately, this sentence couldn't be finished either.

"Hikigaya-san."

Yukinoshita stared straight at me.

Her cheeks flushed slightly. A radiant smile bloomed on her lips. She gently parted her beautiful pink lips.

Like a magnificent yet gentle flower in full bloom, it said to me:

"turn down."

I think so too. I know I was just saying it for fun. To be honest, if you hadn't rejected it, I really wouldn't know what to do.

"...Alright, discussing it with Totsuka isn't a bad idea. Although I'd like to avoid using that tactic as much as possible."

I surrender. Dazhi quietly raised his hand. Okay, Dazhi, is there a question?

"Um, is the tennis club very busy?"

"Hmm—I don't know. She seems to practice quite a lot. Xiao Cai even practices during her lunch break."

"Yes, he works incredibly hard. Whenever I invite him out, he always says he's too busy and can't find the time."

Especially lately, Totsuka seems to be incredibly busy taking care of students getting their first experience at the club and recruiting new members, so he hasn't had time to go out and have fun. As long as I don't have work, I can have as much fun as I want with Totsuka… I hate it, I hate work. I hate deadlines. It's all work's fault… I'm not wrong, work is the fault.

But why is Iroha tilting her head, as if she has doubts? Isn't that "Is that so—I don't think so—" reaction a bit off?

Thinking of this, Isshiki adopted an attitude of having figured something out on his own and said:

"Sigh, when people who aren't interested in you ask you out, most of them will say things like, 'When I've taken care of things,' 'I'm very busy lately,' or 'I'm asleep—see you at school—'."

"Only you would do something like this..."

What happened with that last one...? Was it a LINE message I received around 8 PM that I read but didn't reply to, and then received the next morning...? I clearly sent a question, but the other person didn't mention it at all, just casually attached a sticker with that sentence. It wasn't just the end of the conversation, there was no chance to exchange LINE messages with them again...

"You're the only one who would do something like this..." I thought to myself, glancing around at everyone who was deep in thought with serious expressions.

"Huh...why isn't anyone saying anything..."

"I have other things to take care of, I have other plans... I would indeed use that as an excuse... No, I really do have other plans, that's why I would turn someone down like that..."

Yukinoshita put her hand to her mouth and said with annoyance, while Yuihama played with the bun on her head with a wry smile.

"I... I don't say that often, but if someone asks me out, I'll say, 'Sure! Let's all go together next time...'"

"Ah—that's such a common excuse."

Komachi nodded and smiled in agreement, but Daishi and I couldn't laugh.

"If I get rejected like this next time, I'll really be a little sad..."

"It would be better to just refuse outright."

I felt a connection with Taishi for the first time. Let's call it a bond...

Just as I was deeply moved by the beautiful friendship between the men, a voice from the side poured cold water on my feelings.

"You often say, 'I'll go when I have time.'"

"Yes...that's really troubling, should I go or not..."

Turning around, I saw that not only Yui-no-Shin but also Yui-no-Hama was pouting unhappily. The two of them together brought twice the chill; it was no longer cold water, but liquid nitrogen.

"It is highly inadvisable to refuse someone even when you have no other plans."

"Well, you'll definitely go in the end anyway..."

Yukinoshita and Yuihama looked at each other, tilted their heads, and agreed, "Right—?"

However, they immediately realized something was wrong, "...Huh?" This time they tilted their heads in the opposite direction.

"...Yuihama-san, when was that?"

"when……"

Upon hearing her question, Yui looked up and opened her mouth. But she quickly closed her mouth and waved her hands forward violently.

"Ah, no, it's nothing...hehehe."

Yuihama retracted her previous statement, smiled shyly, and touched her bun to hide her embarrassment.

Haha, what is it? Is something wrong? But she said nothing. What is it exactly? What is it? When and what happened...?

I felt no guilt, and I was completely clueless, but Yuihama's shy expression as she gently covered her mouth with her fingers and looked away, along with Yukina's sharp, icy yet slightly melancholic eyes, made my stomach rumble.

I had to come up with something—I squeezed out every explanation I could think of from the depths of my gut.

"No, it's a misunderstanding. Although I don't know what the misunderstanding is, it's all a misunderstanding. There are times when I genuinely don't want to keep an appointment. That is to say, it's a superposition state where the answer can only be determined after observation that morning. This principle is also proven in the thought experiment known as Schrödinger's cat."

"Xerding? What's that?"

Upon hearing the unfamiliar words, Yuihama raised a question mark above her head, while Yukinoshita lowered her head in frustration.

"...Why did they use cats in that experiment? It breaks my heart."

"Because the cat will jump into the box."

Komachi casually comforted her, while Isshiki, standing next to her, stared at me dumbfounded.

"What a brilliant way to brush someone off..."

"Hahaha, what are you saying, hahaha."

I broke out in a cold sweat, let out a dry laugh, and mumbled "Hmm—" while crossing my arms and looking down, lost in thought.

"So, we'll keep that one a secret too. Got it—☆"

"Hahahaha, what are you talking about? Hahahaha, I'm completely out of the loop! Hahahaha, I really don't know what you're talking about!"

Isshiki winked at me and gave me a affected salute. Then she quickly lowered her hand, raised her index finger to her lips, and gave a soft "shh—" sound. Her slightly narrowed eyes sparkled with mischief, and her expression turned into a devilish smile.

...Oh no. I'm starting to feel like something's really wrong. This is really bad. Yukinoshita and Yuigahama are both looking at me suspiciously; this is very bad. Even Taishi is staring at me with a "what's wrong with this guy..." expression. Male friendships are so fleeting...

As I sank into the abyss of despair, Komachi sighed helplessly across from me. Then, she flashed a bright smile at Isshiki.

"I understand about the tennis club. How's the soccer club? Is it busy?"

"Well done, Komachi! I have no choice but to ride this wave!" I looked at Isshiki, just like Komachi, and Isshiki spoke as he thought.

"The amount of practice is average, but it might be a bit tiring to get used to the relationships between superiors and subordinates and to get along with senior students."

"Huh—that's unexpected. I never thought the soccer club would have this happen..."

Yuihama opened her mouth wide in surprise, but I wasn't surprised at all.

"No, I understand. It's that, right? Hayama would gently say to him, 'Taishi, do you think that's the right thing to do?' Right? That guy clearly refuses to tell people the right answer, but he always likes to condescendingly offer his opinions, acting like he's spouting some profound quote. It's really tiring..."

"What a serious prejudice!"

"No, it's experience."

I calmly responded to Yuihama's condemnation.

Once you've actually tasted that flavor, you won't think it's prejudice anymore... I thought to myself with emotion, and Yukino murmured:

"...using the same argumentative method as my sister."

Yes, yes, really. I nodded silently, and Isshiki, seeing this, put on a sour face.

"What kind of image do you have of Hayama-senpai... I'm not talking about him, I'm talking about Tobe-senpai."

"The Ministry of Revenue... the Ministry of Revenue is, um, uh, um..."

Yuihama seemed to realize something, looked away, and stammered. She's so gentle…

"That guy always acts like a senior... Maybe he's happy to have more juniors, or maybe he wants to act like a big brother. He's so arrogant, thinking he's superior to everyone else..."

But why did Iroha say it? And why did she say it so harshly?

"Ah—that kind of arrogant guy..."

Komachi, looking like she knew everything, casually chimed in. "That...what's that new ride at Disneyland (Note 44)? That's terrifying...Look, even Taishi's got a wry smile..."

"I'm a bit... averse to that kind of person."

I wanted to yell at him, "You modern brat..." but I also felt a bit... unqualified to say anything to that kind of person.

"I think sports clubs all have similar situations. People who go down the sports route can't escape hierarchical relationships and vertical social structures no matter what... In that case, how about considering humanities clubs?"

Yukinoshita rested her chin on her hand, lost in thought. However, upon hearing her murmurs, Isshiki smiled faintly.

"...The culture of humanities clubs is more deeply rooted. And many humanities clubs are gender-neutral, so it's easier for disputes to arise."