My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 744

"No, no, no, it still hurts to be disliked, right? Hearing negative rumors or bad things said about yourself really makes you feel frustrated, doesn't it?"

Isshiki waved his hand in front of his chest, completely contradicting Komachi's words. Komachi gently placed her hand on her chest, closed her eyes in ecstasy, pretending not to see, and continued:

"Komachi has always thought that Iroha-senpai, who insists on being himself even when others dislike him, is so cool..."

"Wait a minute? Can you please stop portraying me like that? Can you stop giving the impression that you wouldn't care if I disliked the person in question?"

"This is the part about Komachi's deep respect for Iroha-senpai."

"Mi, listen to me. I want to be liked, I really want to be loved. So, Mi, do you hate me?"

Isshiki asked sullenly, while Komachi tilted her head in thought.

However, she immediately replied nonchalantly:

"In a way, Iroha-senpai's part is actually surprisingly quite likable."

Perhaps because she blurted out a roundabout answer, Isshiki blinked a couple of times. However, not long after, she seemed to realize the meaning behind her words.

She tightly closed her wide-open mouth, making indistinct muttering sounds, and kept adjusting her bangs.

"Oh, oh...is that so..."

Komachi looked at her with a smile.

I watched over the two of them with a cool and mature gentleman's smile.

Inside, however, she was sobbing at the sight of this noble scene. Oh dear, how wonderful! How annoying! Iroha, who is usually the best at teasing people, has been ridden on top of Komachi, who is also a master of teasing.

Komachi probably teased her partly as a prank, but it wasn't entirely a joke. She wasn't wrong. Isshiki truly possesses a cool, unwavering demeanor, regardless of others' reactions.

On the other hand, just as Isshiki himself said, it's true that he gets upset when people talk about him. But after feeling down and troubled, he still manages to show his cutest smile, which is what makes Isshiki so charming.

Oh no, at this rate, we'll have to start a second "What You Like About Iroha Isshiki Contest"! I have to win next time...

I was filled with a fighting spirit to avenge myself. I cleared my throat to hide my embarrassment and pushed the paper cup forward.

"...One more cup."

She murmured, the paper cup beside her already empty.

Just now she was saying that Komachi's black tea had a down-to-earth, homey flavor, but she still drank it all up.

Seeing this, Komachi smiled happily.

"OK!"

She hurriedly picked up the teapot and diligently poured a second cup of tea for Isshiki. Isshiki whispered, "Thank you."

After reading this, I immediately started thinking about the members of the executive committee for the third "What do you like about Isshiki Iroha?" contest.

× × ×

After drinking black tea and eating some snacks, and regaining my energy, it suddenly occurred to me.

Speaking of which, didn't Isshiki only come here because of something? It's just that because of the Service Club's imitation contest and the "What do you like about Isshiki Iroha?" contest, we ended up having a crazy tea party.

"One color".

"Um?"

I called out to Isshiki, who was chewing on a biscuit she was having with her tea and was about to grab another one.

"Didn't you want to discuss something with us?"

Her hand stopped instantly.

"ah."

"ah."

Isshiki and Komachi both looked like they'd forgotten everything. I'd forgotten everything too, so I had no intention of blaming them.

She silently withdrew her hand from the tea and snacks, placed it on her thigh to smooth out the wrinkles in her skirt, straightened her back, and started over.

"I suppose I'm here for work. There's something I'd like to discuss with you..."

She raised her index finger to her chin and said the same lines as before.

"Oh, please go ahead."

However, Komachi learned her lesson this time and did not imitate Yukinoshita. Instead, she earnestly urged Isshiki to continue.

Isshiki nodded in response, but his eyes remained fixed on the seats of Yukinoshita and Yuihama, who were absent today.

"Actually, it would be best to say this when Yukino-senpai and Yui-senpai are also here..."

"We can talk about it another day. Next week, the week after, or even next month is fine. How about that?"

I looked at Komachi, and she nodded in agreement.

"...My brother really wants to postpone dealing with this until later. What do you think?"

"Hey? Could you please not spell out my intentions so precisely?"

Ugh! If my sister works in the same company, I can't use the usual ways to avoid work. It's so frustrating! You've already called me out on it, so no matter how I explain later, it won't make a difference, right?

Surprisingly, Isshiki didn't seem to care much and impatiently shook his hand away.

"Ah—it's okay, it's okay. It's not like it'll only be a day or two anyway."

Ugh! It seems like it was destined from the start that no matter how I explained, it would be useless! Well, after all, I've known Isshiki for a while now, so it seems she knows exactly what I'm going to say.

In fact, she was wearing a calm and composed smile.

"And I also know how to handle situations like this."

After speaking, Yise coughed a few times to check the state of his throat, then straightened his posture. He moved his chair with a clattering sound and sat down directly in front of me, facing me.

"Senior..."

Then she called to me in a slightly trembling, delicate voice. Her lips, coated with tinted lip balm, glowed with a pale pink sheen, and she exhaled warm breath. Her large, watery eyes gazed up at me.

"...Is that not allowed?"

She spoke softly, her words broken and fragmented, her trembling fingers clutching my uniform at the chest. Her tone, actions, and expression all conveyed intense emotion.

They asked me to do this, and I really felt bad ignoring it...

While I was hesitating, Isshiki's attitude changed instantly, and he revealed a disdainful smile.

"See, that's it."

"Oh~"

Isshiki puffed out his chest in smug pride, while Komachi clapped beside him. All I could say was indignantly:

"No, you underestimate me. I'm used to it. Your attitude is too casual... I can tell whether you're serious or not."

Even though I'm used to it, it doesn't mean I won't get nervous!

I kept these thoughts to myself and put on a grumpy face.

Upon hearing this, Isshiki narrowed his large eyes, and the smug smile on his face instantly turned into a cold expression.

"oh."

She spoke with a hint of doubt, as if to say, "It's hard to say..." Then, as if she had thought of something, an alluring smile appeared on her lips.

Then, she reached out and grabbed my sleeve, pulling me closer. She whispered something in my ear as my upper body leaned to one side.

"...Can I show you my true abilities?"

The barely audible voice was sexy and sweet, sending shivers down my spine, not just my ears. I tilted my head back in shame and looked at Issei's face. She placed her fingertips on her delicate lips and smiled sweetly.

I shook my head slightly, shaking off that gaze that seemed to be testing me.

"No, no, it's so scary. I'll listen to you, so please stop."

I spoke quickly to hide my embarrassment. Isshiki, probably pleased with my flustered appearance, released my sleeve, puffed out his chest, and gave Komachi a victorious smile.

"Look."

"My brother is so easy to deal with~"

Komachi looked at me dismissively. No, it's a misunderstanding. There's absolutely nothing between Isshiki and me, it's just my ears... My ears are a little sensitive...

If I were to explain while stating my sexual fetish, Komachi's gaze would most likely change from disdain to contempt.

While avoiding Komachi's gaze, I took the opportunity to stretch my neck and shoulders.

"So, what exactly do you want?"

I restarted the conversation as if it had never happened. Isshiki crossed his arms, pondering how to explain, and rested his hand on his chin in thought.

"We'll discuss the details when Yukino-senpai and Yui-senpai are here. I'm just giving you a heads-up beforehand."

"Yeah?"

The prior notice sounds ominous...

I've heard that in social circles, "pre-instruction" is often an unavoidable death trap.

At first, they would give instructions in a relaxed manner, such as, "Are you free next month? I might need your help with something. But I think it should be fine~". But when they were in a desperate situation, they would suddenly shove a case at them and yell, "Didn't I tell you to make time for next month?"

However, since I had already asked her what was wrong, I couldn't just ignore the pre-existing explanation. I simply gestured for Isshiki to continue.

Isshiki nodded slightly and began to speak.

"Actually, summer vacation—"

"I'm not helping you with this."

"Brother, you're so fast! Too fast! Your rejection was so quick it was frightening; people other than Komachi probably wouldn't have noticed."

My lightning-fast reaction—predicting what she was going to say and preemptively refusing—terrified Komachi.

Because summer vacation is too much to ask... Did you see the word "vacation"? And I'm a student preparing for exams. Who has time to worry about anything else during this crucial summer? I haven't even been studying in the first place!

However, Isshiki probably understood my predicament and simply nodded.

"It's okay, I don't need more manpower. Even I wouldn't be so cruel as to call third-graders out to work during summer vacation."

"Oh, really..."

Isshiki waved her hands in front of her chest in denial...Really? You're pretty cruel, aren't you? I looked at her questioningly, and Isshiki said sullenly:

"Really. I didn't even plan to invite the vice president."

"Oh……"

Even the vice president of the Isshiki Iroha Victims Association, the number one victim, escaped unscathed, so we can be somewhat trusting... This way, we can listen to her explanation with peace of mind.

"So, what are you going to do?"

"There will be a school information session later for those who want to enroll. However, the information session will be organized by the school, and the student council will only help out a little."

"A school information session..."

I outwardly agreed, but inwardly I had no clue what to do. To confirm, I asked Komachi:

Has our school ever organized such an event?

Komachi's reaction was indifferent. She looked up in confusion, then thought for a moment and shook her head.

"Does anyone know? Has anyone ever done this before...?"

"Huh...you were a test taker not long ago..."

"That's right, but Komachi doesn't go to information sessions... I mean, your brother was also a test taker three years ago, right?"

"Who remembers things from so long ago..."

My only memory of the summer after junior high school is the summer courses at the cram school.

I only applied to this school because I felt I could get in; I'm just that indifferent to such things. Why would I possibly participate in a dull event like a seminar?

No, if the information session is like the rumored job fair, mandatory for admission, then of course it's a must-attend event. Or, if it's like an internship with bonuses that give you an advantage in later interviews, then that's a different story.

However, I respectfully decline any formal but shallow briefings.

Besides, it's rare to find someone who listens attentively to a briefing.

The same goes for home appliances; most people don't read the instruction manual carefully. They almost always operate them by feel, saying, "...I see, I roughly understand now," resulting in them not utilizing about 80% of the functions. I'm no exception; I only learned yesterday that my front-loading washing machine has this mysterious air-ironing function (because it happened yesterday). (Note: "yesterday" and "function" are homophones in Japanese.)

Our bewildered reaction seemed to be exactly what we expected; she shrugged, looking resigned.

"Yeah, that's how it is. I didn't go myself. So, basically it seems like it's targeting parents..."