I answered the unknown number who was calling me.
[Y]"Hello? Who is this?"
[EK]"Oh, it's me, Kotone."
[Y]"It's just you. I was scared for a moment there."
[EK]"Well, we're actually at school now. We're wondering where you guys are right now. You're gonna be late."
[Y]"We just stopped by at some shop to buy something. We're on our way now. Where'd you get my number anyway?"
[EK]"I got it from Yamada-san. I called the number to test it out."
[Y]"So, you just called me to test it out?"
[EK]"Yeah. Well, I'm gonna hang up now."
(Call ends.)
[A]"Who was it?"
[Y]"It was just Kotone-san. She was asking where we were."
[A]"Then, they must all be at school."
[Y]"Most likely, speaking of calls. Let's exchange numbers, Ueno-san."
[UH]"Why do I have to?"
[Y]"Look, this morning incident happened because I don't have a way to contact you. It would be easier to call you instead of going into your house."
[UH]"Forget about what happened this morning!"
[Y]"No, the sight was already burned into my memory."
(Ueno-san kicks me in the guts.)
[Y]"That hurt, you know!?"
[UH]"It was supposed to."
[Y]"Look, just give me your number, and I'll stop."
[UH]"I'm giving you my number, but if you do anything weird, I'll block you."
[Y]"I won't."
(We exchange phone numbers.)
[A]"Look, we're close to the school."
[Y]"The others probably all went inside."
[A]"There's still a bit of time left. You go to Shibata-san."
(We enter the classroom.)
[K]"You finally turned up."
[EK]"What's that thing you're holding? Oh, I get it. If you're looking for Ena, she went to the toilet."
[S]"Let me see what's inside."
[Y]"You'll see it later."
[MR]"Ena is coming!"
(Ena-san enters the classroom.)
[SE]"Oh, Hikari and Yami-san, you arrived."
[A]"I'm here too, you know."
[UH]"Good morning, Ena."
[Y]"Ena-san."
[SE]"Yeah? What is it?"
[Y]"About yesterday."
[SE]"It's okay. You don't need to worry about it."
[Y]"I want to properly apologize and thank you."
[SE]"I'm serious. It's fine. you don't need to do anything."
[Y]"Ena-san, I insist please accept this gift as a sign of my apology and gratitude."
[K]"Wow, you've got some balls doing it in front of the class."
I was so focused on giving the gift to Ena-san that I forgot there are people around me. This is embarrassing.
[SE]"Yami-san, thank you."
(She said with a smile, but this time it doesn't look forced.)
[K]"What's this? You're not cheating on Ueno-san, are you?"
[Y]"What do you mean cheating? Ueno-san and I---"
(Kotone-san taps me on the shoulder.)
[Y]"O-of course not. Why would I cheat on U-Ueno-san?"
After that forced statement, the entire class was surprised. Rumors began spreading amongst the first-year students.
Why'd Katsu had to say that in front of everyone? Now, I can't even step out of the room without hearing my name and being glared at. How did it even end up like this? Is our relationship really that big of a deal? I mean, Ueno-san has her title of being unapproachable, but this is just ridiculous. They didn't react like this when Shin and Maeda-san were dating. I don't recall raising my life difficulty here.
It was lunch break, all of us sat at the same dining table.
[Y]"Ah! This is absurd!"
[UH]"Everyone is flocking to me, and they kept asking about my relationship with Matsuda. It's annoying."
[Y]"At least you don't get death stares from the other guys in school."
[UH]"Huh? You only get stares. I have to manage all these herds of people."
[EK]"Relax, you two."
[Y]"How are we supposed to relax in this situation?!"
[K]"Don't worry, everything will calm down in a few days."
[UH]"How are you sure it will? This is your fault in the first place."
[K]"I only did that because it seemed like the best choice at the moment."
[EK]"I'm with Yamada-san on this one."
[Y]"How was that the best option?"
[K]"Trust me."
[UH]"It kinda bugs me that Yamada-san and Kotone have almost the same way of thinking."
[Y]"You two sound like scammers right now."
[K]"We can stop interfering if you want."
[Y]"It's not that we don't want you two to interfere, but at least don't keep us in the dark."
[K]"You'll know the reason soon enough."
[S]"Uhm, can we hurry up? The people are staring at us, and it's getting uncomfortable."
[Y]"No, it's fine you guys eat your lunch. Ueno-san, why don't we sit over there?"
[UH]"Fine..."
[A]"It's rare to see you two agree on something."
[Y]"Oh, save your theory later, Einstein."
[S]"Hey there, Einstein."
[A]"Put a sock on it."
Ueno-san and I went over to another table, slightly far from where the others are.
[UH]"Ugh, why'd you have to pick this place?"
[Y]"Are you blind? It's the only spot available. Now, stop complaining and just eat your lunch."
[UH]"Don't boss me around."
[Y]"We're in a predicament right now. Would you at least a bit more considerate?"
[UH]"To whom, you? Heck no."
[Y]"Oh, just shut up."
(Ueno-san stood up and slapped me.)
[UH]"It's not only you who has problems here. Don't go acting like you're holding worldly problems on your back."
(Ueno-san left the table. Then suddenly the others came.)
[EK]"What happened?"
[Y]"Leave me alone."
[A]"I see you had a lovers quarrel again."
(In my anger, I impulsively jumped on Arata.)
[K]"Yami!"
(Katsu held me back.)
[K]"Calm down."
[S]"You went too far, Arata."
[A]"I'm sorry."
[Y]"Let go of me. Just leave me alone."
[EK]"Let's go."
(They left.)
That callous wench! What is it with her anyway? But what she said a while ago, she has a point. That still doesn't make up for her unbearable attitude, though.
It was the end of school. We were on our way back home. Ueno-san and I still haven't talked to each other. How am I supposed to deal with this? I still have to get my stuff back at home. I could just ask Shin to get it for me, but how long is this stalemate going to last? It could be a problem if this goes on for longer. But I am not the one who's going to apologize.