Part 4
"—It's almost like this."
In less than 10 minutes, I received all the information I needed from Kei.
"Hey. Do you even remember everything I said? Even if you ask me to repeat it again, I won't say it."
"No problem. "
"What, did all that information 'come to mind'?"
"Almost like that."
Ah - is that true? So fabulous. From Kei's attitude, she seemed to praise me like that.
"Is it true that the opponent is Class A? After all, that is a bad thing, right?"
"I won't be fighting, instead it will be you and your classmates. Even though the Commander can interfere, it can't always change the situation. Isn't it more appropriate to say that you have a problem?"
"Oh. I-me? I said ~ ..."
Kei seemed to want to say something, but she ended up speechless.
"... Could you please keep me from participating in the events?"
"That's not something I can decide on my own. Depending on the opponent's strategy, there is a possibility of playing twice."
"No, no. I can't. I'm not good at studying or exercising."
Kei shook her head strongly and stated that she didn't want to compete.
"Even though the opponent is Sakayanagi-san, Kiyotaka will definitely win."
Kei gave her thumbs up. Just because you don't want to participate, and don't want to be responsible.
However, in reality, Kei could not fully understand my level.
"That would be easy if no one expected you? "
"I guess that's true."
If there is no hope, it's easy to say something like that.
"So was that all you wanted to say? Did you really have to meet me in person?"
If that's all, it would have been better to call, and that makes Kei grin.
"There are things that are easier to understand when we meet in person, right?"
Since that was not the answer she wanted, Kei's expression still looked stiff.
"Oh ... in short, it's over, right? Then, may I ... leave now?"
Maybe Kei felt that, although this continued, the situation would not change.
When the minimum required topic was complete, Kei said this sentence:
"If there's something important, I'll contact you again."
"... Yes."
Judging from Kei's expression, she seemed to be expecting something, but immediately gave up.
Until the very end she remained stubborn, and ended up not saying anything.
Of course, if she said something, it would be easier for me to act ...
"Wait a minute. There are still a few things I want to talk about."
In order prevent Kei from seeing it in my room, I put the 'item' in the drawer.
To get the item, I stood up.
"What? If there's something you want to talk about, say it earlier."
"Today, it's your birthday."
"Hey - did you already know that ..."
I took the 'item' that had been prepared beforehand from the drawer. I asked the store at the school to order it and wrap it in birthday gift packaging.
"I just wanted to tease you."
"Don't say weird things, if you have a present, give it as soon as possible. But, I have already received many good gifts from my friends. So the difficulty in satisfying me has increased. "
Kei said this, and looked away as she held out her hands to me.
Seeing this appearance, I immediately stopped when I was about to give a gift.
"Do you really want it?"
"No, I don't want it."
"If you don't want it, then I don't need to force it on you."
"Ha ha !! Since you have decided to give someone a gift, you should at least give it to the person! "
She said something unclear.
"However, this gift is also combined with White day."
"Of course ... This is getting 'troublesome, so just give the present?"
Kei who sighed as if helpless, took the gift from me.
Kei was a little surprised because the box was so small and so light.
"Is there even something inside?"
"I don't have the courage to give someone an empty box as a present."
If something like that was done, it would make Kei angry.
"So, I'll confirm the contents, no problem with you?"
Kei tried to confirm the contents of the box as if she was a police officer who was interrogating me. She carefully opened the gift wrapping paper and opened the lid.
What appeared there was a piece of metal that shined in gold.
"What ... What is this !?"
Even though she was shocked, no matter who saw it, they could obviously tell what it was.
"It is a necklace."
"Yes, even I can see it! This is too heavy a gift, you know!"
"Weight?"
"E-after all, that necklace isn't something you normally give to a friend, you know!"
Even though she said that ...
I could not understand what she was trying to say and tilted my head.
But Kei didn't give an answer, as if she still had something to say.
"And ... and you know? It seems like it wouldn't suit me either! It's heart shaped, you know! "
She was referring to the heart-shaped object that hung at the core of the necklace.
Looks like this birthday present was not a 'good' present.
"It's heart-shaped, you know!"
Once again, she stressed that she did not like it very much.
"Fuu, fuu." (breathing heavily)
Even if it's me, I would definitely feel a little hurt if they were to protest against a gift like this.
Regardless of what the object is, giving a gift is in the hope that it would be appreciated by others.
"Is this not too expensive?"
"It's not cheap. It's almost around 20,000 Yen."
"20,000 - why did you choose an expensive necklace ..."
"Even if you ask ..."
While Kei who saw me blushed.
It seems, it is better to answer honestly here.
"To be honest, I have never given a birthday gift to a girl. Therefore, I decided to gather information and search the Internet. Then I found gifts for women recommended by the 'Online shop' site from a large-scale order website. They also said that it's "very popular with high school girls."
I still remember the promotion that stated 'whether it's a lover or not, this is the best choice for White day'.
At the same time, I also considered that it was necessary to pay the appropriate amount for both the birthday and White day at the same time.
"Oh wow ..."
I always felt that Kei was surprised by my thoughts.
Maybe I made a mistake.
"Even though you are very smart, but this is a bit awkward. Or it's too naive. Even though it's very popular among high school girls, women prefer to choose themselves. Choose what you think fits or suits my interests. Fortunately, it's not a ring that requires a specific finger size ... Frankly, in a rating of 100, the evaluation of this prize is only 10 points. "
Even though I prepared an expensive gift, the result was disappointing.
In the end, she explained to me how high school girls were, and there were many factors to think about.
I thought it was a gift of good intentions, but if I were asked, 'Did I really consider the mood of others?', I would doubt it myself.
"Then how many points would I get if I gave a box of snacks?"
"15 points."
I didn't expect a box of snacks to score higher than a necklace that was worth 20,000 Yen.
"Since it's already opened, I might not be able to return it. If you don't want it, just leave it here before leaving. If you don't mind waiting a few more days, I can get you a box of snacks, I'll prepare the gift again."
I made this suggestion while feeling my lack of knowledge.
I expected it to be worth more than 10 points or 15 points.
Even though I thought so ...
"..."
Kei saw the necklace and then looked at me.
Then she placed the necklace that I thought would be returned on her neck.
Kei said, 'Let me borrow a mirror,' then used my mirror to look at it.
"Hmm ... As I thought, the heart shape is rather childish. But I think I look cute, no matter what I wear."
LN_Vol_11-04
Even though I couldn't stop myself from thinking 'are you really a first year high school student?', Kei looked very serious.
This short pause of time confirmed whether or not the necklace matched with her own perspective, and then she nodded after being satisfied with it.
I think she just wants to try it, and will return it later. But after carefully removing the necklace, she put the box in her bag.
"Looks like this is the first gift you have given girl? I'll help you out with that."
"... In that case it will be better."
Besides, even if she gave it back to me, there wasn't anybody else I could give it to.