My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 779

Seeing his listless appearance, I had thoughts like, "Ugh, Hayama-kun exudes a melancholy aura, so handsome and charming..." At the same time, I couldn't help but want him to listen to his friend, but Hayama Hayato is no ordinary person.

He responds at the perfect moment, accompanied by a smile, to show that he hasn't ignored anyone. Judging by his perfect timing and reaction speed, that guy must be pretty good at rhythm games.

However, it seems that the female members wouldn't be able to play rhythm games.

They probably weren't interested in what the Ooka trio was talking about, and while scrolling through their phones, they gave perfunctory responses like "Ah-yeah, yeah, really."

Her casual attitude made people want to complain that she wasn't even looking at the game screen.

One person didn't even reply to a single word.

That person was Miura Yumiko. Today, she was lazily twirling her blonde hair with her fingers, leaning back in her chair. Occasionally, she would glance impatiently at Tobe and Ooka.

Perhaps startled by Miura's gaze, Ooka deliberately cleared his throat, trying to change the subject, and then struck up a conversation with Hayama as if he had just thought of something.

"Oh—by the way, Hayato, I heard you're dating Yukinoshita, is that true?"

"What?"

Led by Miura, everyone present gaped in astonishment. Even I was probably dumbfounded.

What nonsense is this guy suddenly spouting?

How could this be? Impossible, impossible. Impossible...? Impossible, right...? Isn't that right?

The ball, thrown from an unexpected place, caused everyone's time to stand still.

However, time began to flow again.

Note: A famous line from "JoJo's Bizarre Adventure".

"What did you say?!"

Miura excitedly stood up, making the chair clatter.

The other people who were chatting all looked over, curious about what had happened. The classroom was silent.

In the center of the silence, Hayato Hayama remained silent, his brows slightly furrowed, his expression unchanged from before, only a few millimeters twitching. Yet, with just this small gesture, Hayama completely revealed his emotions.

Suspicion, anger, anxiety, disappointment, sorrow, or acceptance.

If someone happens to be too handsome, even the slightest change can seem to be magnified into a severe distortion. A dark aura emanates from his narrowed eyes, overshadowing his usual sunny disposition.

The dangerous aura emanating from Hayama made everyone in the classroom hold their breath.

"No, no, no! That's absolutely impossible!"

Yuihama keenly sensed the change in atmosphere and immediately stepped in to smooth things over. Ebina also smiled and agreed.

"Yeah—I also think it's impossible. Because Hayato... he's so rotten..."

Ebina secretly glanced in my direction.

Hey, no! Don't look at me! Don't give me that "Chiba people are so dense~" look. But I was just thinking not long ago how handsome Hayama-sama is, and I really can't deny it. Yeah~ his looks are really outstanding. A national treasure...

Thanks to Yuihama and Ebina's jokes, the tense atmosphere slowly dissipated. Faint smiles returned to everyone's faces. Only Ms. Miura was twirling her hair with her fingers and kicking her legs back and forth.

After the atmosphere returned to peace, another unexpected figure seized the opportunity and spoke in a commanding voice.

"I thought so too. Impossible, right...? I heard something else..."

Yamato, who was so big yet had almost no presence, spoke slowly. Seeing his serious expression, the others waited silently for him to continue.

Yamato remained silent, staring intently at Yui. Miura and the others followed suit, focusing their attention on Yui as well.

"Huh? Me? Me?"

Yuihama pointed at herself in astonishment. I was probably stunned too. What nonsense was that guy named Yamato spouting all of a sudden?

Haha, Hayama and Yui are dating, haha. How could that be, haha... Impossible... right? Impossible, right...?

It's probably not... I observed Yuihama and the others again, and one of them had a similar reaction to mine.

"Yui... Huh? Eh?"

Miura's mouth opened and closed, probably because she had just breathed a sigh of relief and was short of oxygen. Her gaze shifted between Yuihama and Hayama.

"How could this be?! How could this be?! Absolutely impossible! It's really impossible! There's no way I could be with Hayato!"

Yuihama waved her hands wildly and explained loudly. Hayama smiled wryly, as if joking, and said:

"You denied it so firmly, I have such mixed feelings."

"Ah, sorry! Uh, that's not what I meant! But, that's really impossible!"

Upon hearing Hayama's teasing remark, Yui obediently apologized. Her voice grew softer and softer until it became a muffled murmur.

"...because, because, that's why they don't have..."

Yuigahama looked at the ground, stroking her bun. Her cheeks were flushed a light pink, and her voice sounded somewhat childlike. Seeing her so shy, I felt inexplicably embarrassed too. Was it what they called empathic shame?

I quickly left the classroom before they started chatting... I stuffed my textbooks and other things into my bag and started putting on my coat and scarf.

However, Ooka's loud voice made me subconsciously stop what I was doing.

"That's different from what I heard~ I heard Yui is dating a guy from another school, right?"

"What──"

I really want to praise myself for holding back my scream. At the last second, I swallowed back the gasp that almost escaped my lips, replacing it with "Hoo... Uh-huh..." as I pretended to yawn.

I put on a clumsy little skit while twisting my neck and saying, "Oh dear—am I not getting enough sleep—", and looked back at Hayama's group with trepidation.

I happened to see Yui Hama tilting her head and standing there blankly.

"Huh?"

Miura replaced the frozen Yuihama—or rather, she leaned forward, staring at Ooka from below.

"Huh? Ooka, are you serious?"

Ugh, Ms. Miura is so scary... Even I, who was watching from the side, was frightened. Of course, Ooka, who was stared at so fiercely, was terrified.

"N-no, I just heard it from people in the baseball club... There's a rumor about it in our circle... Right, right?"

After fretting over it, Ooka decided to pass the ball to Tobe, who was standing next to him.

However, for some reason, the Ministry of Revenue hesitated. He pondered for a moment, his gaze shifting. He glanced at Yuihama, at Hayama, at Miura, at me, and at Ebina. He clutched the back of his neck, looking as if he couldn't speak.

"Huh... ah... oh, well, I only heard that someone saw her shopping with a boy during winter break..."

"Yes, yes, yes! I didn't know that boy, so they were guessing if he was from another school. I didn't care, but the baseball club members all came to ask me, and I told them I didn't know."

The Ministry of Revenue's support was not very strong, but Ooka desperately clung to those helping hands.

"Oh……"

Miura twirled his hair with his fingers, casting suspicious glances at Ooka and Tobe. Ebina, standing nearby, nodded enthusiastically, then suddenly looked at Yuihama.

"Yui, is that so?"

"Huh? What?! No way! That's not true! Who said that?"

Yuihama squinted, puffed out her cheeks, and huffed. Compared to Miura's imposing manner, her angry look was quite cute, but it was still enough to scare Ooka.

"Oh dear, I just heard it from someone else..."

Ooka looked mournful and flustered as he explained, "It wasn't me who said it..." Miura clicked his tongue, Yuihama was still pouting angrily, and Ebina looked at him coldly.

Ugh, girls are terrifying... Even I, who was watching from the side, was scared. Of course, Ooka, who was treated like trash, was about to die.

With his life hanging by a thread, Ooka couldn't bear the pressure from the female members and looked to Tobe and Yamato for help.

Yamato received his message, nodded smugly, but said nothing... That's a clever way to respond, but you really can't be relied on, even though you're such a big guy...

The Minister of Revenue patted the back of his neck and grinned, as if to say, "Leave it to me." Oh, the Minister of Revenue, what a reliable man…

"Rumors really can't be believed! It's a misunderstanding! I don't think it's like that either. How should I put it? Don't let my appearance fool you, I don't really believe rumors. I only believe what I see with my own eyes. I don't want to follow the crowd."

Unfortunately, Hubu betrayed him with lightning speed, deciding to sever ties with his friend and making a shrewd stop-loss. His quick judgment and instinctive reactions are perfect for investing. I advise him to start playing with cryptocurrencies soon. Hubu, in his smugness, desperately tries to convince Ebina that he's a good person. At this rate, sooner or later this guy will be tweeting, "Don't let my delinquent appearance fool you, I even gave my father a Baccarat mug to celebrate his retirement..." He might even add a cigarette symbol at the end.

"Hayato..."

Seeing that his fellow member of the "Three Idiots" was unreliable, Ooka let out a pitiful whimper like a puppy and begged Hayama for help, trying to grasp at the last straw.

Ye Shan covered his mouth, his shoulders trembling.

"...Hey, Hayato, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing, it's nothing... pfft."

He tried to remain calm, but in the end he couldn't help but burst out laughing, letting out a loud "Aha!"

It was truly rare… The students in the classroom all stared in astonishment. Who would have thought that Hayama Hayato, who was always calm, gentle, and sunny, would actually laugh so heartily, completely oblivious to the stares of others, even laughing until tears welled up in his eyes? Even I thought, “…that guy can actually smile like that (my heart flutters…)”.

However, Hayato Hayama is Hayato Hayama after all.

"A boy from another school."

He muttered something meaningful to himself, casting the same meaningful glance at me sitting in the distance, a hint of pleasure in his eyes.

Hey, what are you looking at me for...? Get rid of that disgusting smile. Here we go again! Give me back my heart-fluttering moment!

To avoid Ye Shan's gaze, I continued packing my things, but out of the corner of my eye, I caught Ye Shan shrugging his shoulders.

"I think I know why you're misunderstanding this."

Ye Shan sighed softly, his expression softening, and he raised the corners of his mouth.

"Sorry, it's not a very interesting topic. During winter break, I had to go out because of some family matters, and I happened to run into Yui there. I guess that person saw us together at the time, which is why they misunderstood."

"Yes, yes, yes! Probably! Absolutely!"

Yuihama excitedly echoed Hayama.

"That's just how the rumors are; how can we accept them all without question? Right, Ministry of Revenue?"

Ye Shan patted Hu Bu on the shoulder, and Hu Bu gave him a thumbs up.

"Hey! That's right!"

Ooka and Yamato echoed this sentiment.

"Yes, yes! Oh dear, I also think it's impossible!"

"Then don't say it."

Hayama playfully poked Ooka's head. That was the usual way boys roughhoused. Ooka reacted comically to the poking, and the atmosphere in the classroom completely relaxed, becoming a peaceful after-school time.

Ye Shan seized the opportunity and stood up with his schoolbag.

"Time to go to the club."

"Hey, it's almost time."

"Then let's go too."

They chatted amongst themselves, and Ooka and Yamato stood up with Tobe, waved goodbye to Miura and the others, and left the classroom.

Miura Asahayama and his group nodded in response as they walked away, lost in thought.

Yuihama didn't know how to understand her silence, so she gently placed her hand on Miura's shoulder and looked at her seriously.

"Um, it really is just a misunderstanding, okay? Hayato and I really have nothing to do with each other. Ah, Yukino too."

"Huh? Ah—yeah. Is that so?"

"Yeah, that day, I went shopping with the autistic guy and ran into Yukino's older sister. Hayato's family and Yukino's family are quite close, so they had dinner together for New Year's. After that, Yukino was also invited over... I think?"

Your eloquence is terrible... It's like listening to a child... Ebina nodded and helped organize this messy explanation.

"I see~ So it was when Hayato met you at a family dinner, and someone happened to see you, and then the rumors started."

"Yeah, probably."

"The three of you are all quite eye-catching, easy to leave an impression on people, and good for gossiping about."

She drew her conclusion as she spoke. Yui nodded in agreement. Miura almost nodded as well, but stopped abruptly halfway through.

"...Wait a minute. So the autistic guy is here too? What are you all going to buy together?"

"Huh?"

Yuihama made a confused sound, and at the same time, Ebina clapped his hands.

"Ah, so it was him, the boy from another school!"

"Huh!?"