Chapter 56 - Part 55

As we agreed yesterday, we met up at 6:30 AM today to get an early head start and think of how we're supposed to help Inoue and Suzuki with their situation. We met up at the gate and proceeded to go to one of the benches near the gymnasium. At this hour, the sun isn't quite out yet, making the environment look indistinguishable from dusk. Although it doesn't take a genius to immediately notice the difference. First off, the birds are actively chirping, in contrast to later in the afternoon when they're already hiding out. The crisp sea breeze is also weaker at this time. Lastly, the smell of dew enveloping the entirety of the courtyard is the clearest indication that it is in fact the early morning.

I know I said later afternoons when there's very little clouds and the orange hue of the sun blends perfectly with the blue sky is my favorite time of the day. But mornings like this aren't too bad as well.

"First of all, I would like to thank the both of you for agreeing to meet so early."

"No problem, Reina-chan! It's all to help Suzuki-senpai and Inoue-senpai, so I'll give it my all."

How does Asamura have such high energy this early in the day? I'm curious to know what kind of breakfast she eats to fuel her peppy behavior. I should give a snide comment to offset the positivity.

"Spoken like a true NPC. I applaud you for sticking to character."

"I don't know what that means, but I get the feeling that I should be pissed off."

Kurebayashi cuts in the middle of us and turns to face me; her usual smile on her face and her index finger sticking out in a pose that's very "matter-of-fact".

"Sugiyama-san, why don't we get started with you? What do you suppose would be the best course of action to help our senpais?"

"... Why am I up first?"

"Because I would love to hear what you have in mind. I'm sure you already have a semblance of an idea."

"Yeah, Sugiyama-kun! You're like the plan guy or the scheme dude!!"

"Hey, don't go giving me weird nicknames all of a sudden. And no, I don't have anything for you."

"Oh… No matter, we could think of something together."

And so, we start thinking. Kurebayashi looks deep in thought; silently contemplating like a chess master about to make her next move. On the other hand, Asamura keeps audibly humming to give the impression that she's thinking. She kind of reminds me of this caterpillar that mimics an ant larva to get ants to take care of it until it reaches adulthood.

Meanwhile, I'm taking this precious moment of silence to take in the beauty of the sky as it slowly takes in the morning sunlight. Some may think it's weird and boring, but I actually think it's kind of similar to ASMR videos. There's nothing greatly appealing about them, but it somehow manages to scratch an itch you didn't know was there.

"I got it! I thought of something!"

Both me and Kurebayashi are taken out of our momentary bubble and direct our attention towards Asamura.

"Yes, Asuka-san? What is it that you have in mind?"

"See, the problem is that Takamoto-senpai loves Suzuki-senpai and is mad that he confessed to someone else, right?"

"That is indeed the problem."

"Well then, the answer is simple! We just need to get her a different guy to fall in love with!"

One of the top students in our class, ladies and gentlemen.

"... I have a question."

"What is it?"

"How much anime do you watch to even think that would work in real life?"

"What's that supposed to mean? I don't even watch anime! Oh, except for that one detective anime that airs at night!"

"Oh, that's too bad. You having an otaku brain would explain why you gave such a terrible suggestion."

"Huh?! What's wrong with what I said? I think it's a good idea. Right, Reina-chan?"

She looks at Kurebayashi with the sad, pleading eyes of a beagle.

"Uhmm… It's a fairly decent idea, Asuka-san. But perhaps we should think of something else so we can compare it later."

Kurebayashi managed to tactfully turn down Asamura's ludicrous idea. Wow, she'd make a great grade school teacher. And yes, I'm putting Asamura in the same mental capacity as a toddler. She may be academically smart, but she's dense as hell.

"Okay then… Well, how bout you Reina-chan? Thought of anything yet?"

"I'm still deliberating. To be honest, I am not adept at formulating a plan of action."

Then you shouldn't have volunteered to help in the first place. Though I guess it can't be helped. She probably didn't think much of it and was just focused solely on making herself available to assist.

"How about you, Sugiyama-san? Have you thought of a way to remedy the situation?"

"I got nothing yet."

"I see… Then, how about we try some probing questions. It might prove to be quite useful."

"Ohhh yeah! That's a great idea, Reina-chan!"

Asamura seems fully on-board with trying it out. But I'm not sure about its effectiveness at all. We already know what we want to achieve. So I doubt probing questions would do any good.

"To begin, what is our purpose for this meeting?"

"To figure out how to help Suzuki-senpai and Inoue-senpai!"

"That is correct, Asuka-san. Now, what would be the most effective way of doing so? Should we focus on Suzuki-senpai or Inoue-senpai? Or perhaps we should consider Takamoto-senpai as a factor as well."

"Eh? Why should we? Isn't all of this Takamoto-senpai's fault?"

"... Well, she is a big problem and the perfect example of what's wrong with the world. But this all started because of Kurebayashi. She's the root cause of all of this."

And I'm not wrong in saying that. If we're talking purely from a chronological viewpoint, this entire sequence of events can be traced back to Kurebayashi causing the accident that led to Suzuki getting injured.

"H-hey, Sugiyama-kun! You don't need to be so harsh about it!"

"Asuka-san… What Sugiyama-san said is correct. If not for me, none of this would have happened."

"Still! This whole thing wouldn't have gone so far if Takamoto-senpai wasn't so animalistic about everything."

Of course, Asamura is also right. Kurebayashi started it, but Takamoto escalated it to kingdom come.

"In any case, we already solved Kurebayashi's bullying problems. So we shouldn't have gotten involved any more than that."

"Geez, we didn't solve anything! We just shifted the bullying target from Reina-chan to Inoue-senpai! So, we're the ones to blame for the current problem!"

Can't really argue with that. It can't be called "solving a problem" if all I did was redirect it towards someone else. But here's the thing; I couldn't care less about Inoue. If Takamoto is bothering someone who isn't directly related to me, then as far as I'm concerned, everything is okay.

"Just a moment, Asuka-san. If all we did was shift the target, then does that not mean that the original problem still applies? And if so, then the fault still lies originally with either me or Takamoto-senpai."

"Uhh… Yeah, I guess that also makes sense. But I absolutely refuse to pin all the blame on you, Reina-chan!"

"Oh, t-thank you, Asuka-san. That is reassuring to hear."

"... Okay, we've spent a good 10 minutes circling around the issue. But I'm no closer to an idea than when we started."

"Then, perhaps we should examine a different perspective. How about Suzuki-senpai? How does he fit into a potential solution?"

"Heh, he's more of a problem than a solution."

"Hey! There you go again, Sugiyama-kun! Can you tone it down with the cynicism?"

"Asuka-san, let's hear what Sugiyama-san has to say first. Now, may I ask what you meant when you said Suzuki-senpai is a problem?"

Kurebayashi leans in closer to me, seemingly very interested in what I have to say. Somehow, this moment reminds me of when we did our first volunteer work together. The chilly morning air, the faint rays of sunlight illuminating the area, and her radiant smile; it's like deja vu. Only this time, there's no candid talk about one's past, no tears, and no physical contact. It's just a couple of high schoolers sitting on a bench, talking about something they should not have to worry about.