The study session would be held in my house.
Originally, we wanted to do it in the classroom or the school library, but there was a limit on how much time we could study in the classroom after school, and the library was really crowded with people. In the end we were forced to abandon that idea.
Someone suggested doing it in a family restaurant, but doing it in the open like that made me uncomfortable so I rejected it.
"Ehehe~ It's been a while since I last came to your house, Maki-kun!"
"Sorry about the mess, I hope you won't mind it."
"Why are you acting like the owner, Umi? Though it's true that this place is a bit messy…"
I unlocked the front door to my house and quickly organized the mess of shoes at the entrance. I only had a single pair of shoes, but my mom had plenty. The entrance was filled mostly with her shoes.
"Come in."
"Excuse me~ Huh? It smells different from the last time I came here… It smells like… Cigarette?"
"Yeah. Maki is secretly a delinquent, you know?"
"Huh? M-Maki-kun, you should only smoke when you turn into an adult!"
"You know I don't smoke. Also, don't play along with her nonsense, Amami-san, she's a bad influence."
"Hehe~"
Amami-san then stuck out her tongue while making a 'teehee' pose. We gathered because we were going to study, but I was hyped up for something that would maybe happen today.
"Maki-kun, what are we gonna eat today?"
"I made pancakes this morning and there are leftover ingredients, so I'm gonna make some more."
"Oh, that sounds great! Then, I'll– Uwah!"
"Dear Princess bearing the red marks, before that you still have to study. Don't think that because this is Maki's house I'm going to go easy on you."
"H-Hii…"
Umi then grabbed Amami-san by her collar and dragged her to the living room.
We recently set up the kotatsu, so the plan was to study on it. Today we would be covering the subjects for the Friday exams, mostly the parts that would definitely come up on the exam.
"…Maki, you're a bigger man than I thought… I give you my respect…"
"Huh? W-What is it so suddenly? …I'll take that as a compliment, I guess?…"
The last person who came into the living room looked so tense. I hoped that he could keep it together, since we were going to study together today.
Like previously planned, the four of us would participate in this study session.
Umi, Amami-san, Nozomu, and me.
"…But, is this really okay? I'm not a bother, right?"
"Mm… Well, since Amami-san agreed to this, it should be okay."
Since it hadn't been a long time since the whole confession thing with Nozomu and Amami-san, Umi and I tried to be considerate and only focused on teaching Amami-san today.
As for Nozomu, we tried to schedule a separate time for him, but…
'Let's do it together with everyone!'
Amami-san suddenly said that. I didn't mean for this to happen, so this caught Nozomu off-guard.
Umi asked for a confirmation and she replied to her, 'Yes, it would be awkward, but won't he be sad if we were to leave him out?'
Well, that was an Amami-san-like answer.
"Anyway, we aren't going to play around today. I know it's probably hard for you to concentrate in this situation, but do your best, okay?"
"Y-Yeah… I really don't want to take make-up classes, man…"
I told them to get comfortable before going to prepare drinks and the pancakes for them.
"Fuuh… The kotatsu feels comfortable as expected~"
"Yuu, don't you dare fall asleep. I'll give you a head flick if you do."
"Ugh… I-I'll do my best…"
We positioned ourselves in the kotatsu. Since Umi and I would be the ones who would teach the both of them, we decided on this position:
(Amami)
(Nozomu) [Kotatsu] (Umi)
(Me)
"Um, Asanagi, I know you're smart, but I'm curious, how high is your ranking?"
"When I'm in my best condition, I could get into the top ten, but normally I would stay in the top twenty."
"Amazing… We'll get into a different class for sure next year… What about you, Maki?"
"I'm usually in the top fifty."
Our school didn't really differentiate between the students who had a higher or lower test score, but I heard that they would divide the classes based on the scores in the second year.
If possible, I wanted to be in the same class as Umi next year, but since there were so many classes in this school, the chances of us being in the same class would be around 50/50 if I were being optimistic.
We would be sophomores in four months. I had been a loner until recently so I never cared much about class changes, but now I understood why everyone was so hyped up about it.
"Uu… I don't want to study… but I also don't want to be in a different class from Umi…"
"Then stop moping around and do your best to at least get an average score."
"Fine~"
The four of us then decided on a break time first before studying earnestly.
Since I was good at liberal arts subjects, I focused on teaching them English and Old Japanese, while Umi, who was good at science and math, focused on teaching math and chemistry. Both of us worked together to teach the other two who were bad at every subject.
"Maki, the teacher would include this part in the exam, right? Is it okay to skip it?"
"That part is quite difficult and you should only study it if you're trying to get 80 points or higher. We're pressed for time, so you should focus on getting at least 60 points and study the easier parts instead."
Since he wasn't accustomed to answering every question on the exam, if he were to try and study those difficult parts, he would end up wasting his time on that part. That situation was something that he should try to avoid at all costs. Instead of studying the difficult parts, he should try to master as many of the easier parts as he could to maximize his score.
"Maki-kun, how should I translate this sentence?"
"Ah, that part…"
I was about to lean forward to help Amami-san out, then I felt someone grabbing my hand which was hidden inside the kotatsu.
"Maki-kun? Is something the matter?"
"Ah, sorry, it's nothing…"
Since both of Amami-san's hands were on the kotatsu, I immediately knew that it was Umi who suddenly grabbed my hand.
"Seki, your answer for the second question is wrong. You made an error in the second column. Pay more attention to the position of the parentheses."
"Huh? Ah, you're right, my bad."
At that moment, Umi's gaze met mine.
Inside the kotatsu, she had been stroking my fingers for a while now.
…I knew what she wanted… The Lover's Hold…
Moreover, she wanted us to do it in secret…
"…"
"…"
While the two others were glaring at their textbooks, Umi and I did the Lover's Hold inside the kotatsu.
This was the first time I've ever done something like this under the noses of my friends.
I didn't feel much embarrassment anymore when we did it in public, but doing it secretly like this felt indecent somehow. And that made me a little nervous.
But still, since our goal today was to study together, I shouldn't get carried away.
"U-Umi, it's almost time for a break… Let's stop here for now…"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure…"
"Hehe… Got it…"
Umi quickly let my hand go and headed to the kitchen, leaving me behind.
While the other two were studying earnestly, I was here flirting with Umi secretly. I felt a little bad about it.