April 23rd, Wednesday.Our group walked from Shin-Rifu Station and gazed upon AEON Mall."This is just an excuse to play around, isn't it?" Orihara-senpai commented."Of course not, Jin. We're here to explore! And by doing that, I'm sure all of us will discover something to write about," Komori-senpai explained, her fists pumped. "You don't have to go inside the mall, but I don't know where else you can look around.""How irresponsible...""Ehehe, my bad.""I think I'd prefer to write with nature as the setting though," said Inoue."I'm glad you said that, Shizuku-chan~! I've filed for two places for our activities. One is here in Rifu, and the other is in Nijinooka Park. We'll go there on Saturday for those who are free."On Saturday, huh? It'll be the first time I'm meeting everyone outside of school hours."Why Nijinooka? Isn't that a bit far?" Akizuki-senpai asked."My aunt has a cafe around that area, so I thought we could hang out there once we're done. Don't worry! My big sis will take us by car. It's only a twenty-minute drive." Komori-senpai gave us a thumbs up. "We can split up into groups. I'll be walking around in AEON Mall. Who's coming with me?""If we're going to a park on the weekend, then I don't mind exploring the mall today." Inoue raised her hand."I'm going with Shinako-chan~!" Akizuki-senpai followed."Then Jin, you're coming with us."Orihara-senpai looked like he wanted to complain, but he didn't say anything and walked up to them."Do you have another place in mind?" Komori-senpai turned to me, Shirase, and Yamaguchi-senpai.The three of us were looking through maps to see where we could go."I want to go here..." Yamaguchi-senpai said."Ohh, a shrine? I'll come with you, Senpai! It's a half-an-hour walk from here too— good exercise!" nodded the excited Shirase."It's decided then. Look after them, Katsuhira-kun.""You got it, Pres!" I replied with a comical salute.————————————————————"Why do you want to go there?" asked Shirase.Yamaguchi-senpai led us while we, the first-years walked behind her."I haven't been to a shrine in the middle of a rice field. It seemed interesting," she replied."D-""Do you like shrines, Senpai?""Ah-!" Shirase pouted at me for stealing her question.It wasn't on purpose, okay?"O-Oh, not really. I just feel like it's a good place to draw inspiration from. Do you guys not think so?""No, I agree with you. The sense of mystique does it for me." I crossed my arms and thought. "But I think that feeling would slowly fade if you visit shrines frequently.""The shrines around my house aren't that interesting, so my family just goes to Sendai Toshogu Shrine every New Year," said Shirase."Either that or Osaki Hachiman Shrine," I shrugged."M-My family lives in Aoba, so we often go to Osaki Hachiman." Yamaguchi-senpai shared.I'm not really that invested in shrines, to be honest. Maki knows a thing or two more than me for sure.The journey didn't feel long and dreadful given the nice weather. We got to the shrine after traversing the roads surrounded by rice fields."Wow, it's like a floating island!" "Yeah!" The water from the rice paddy looked like the ocean and the small shrine seemed to float on top of it. It was a majestic sight. Even Yamaguchi-senpai sounded excited."This is making me want to write a short fantasy story," she said.We walked past the torii gate and observed the surrounding area. It looks like there haven't been any visitors in a while. Shirase walked along the edges of the dry land as Yamaguchi-senpai and I trod the pathway to the oratory. We tossed our 5 yen coins into the offering box and prayed. Shirase followed suit after us and prayed too. Yamaguchi-senpai and I walked away and stood by the pair of komainu statues, taking in the refreshing spring breeze."Um, what are you going write about, Katsuhira-kun?" Yamaguchi-senpai meekly asked."Hmm, I don't know yet. I want the story to be set in real life though.""Oh, I see. Do you like those kinds of stories more than fantasy ones?""I'm not sure... though I wanna say I like them both equally. I'm addicted to high school rabukome, but a lot of the most well-written stories I've read are fantasy. What about you, Senpai?""I love fantasy. It's my favorite piece of fiction," she said. "I always dreamed about coming to worlds with swords and magic and different creatures.""It's fun to think about, isn't it? I guess that's why you're binge-reading a lot of fantasy light novels lately, huh? I'm surprised you only discovered them now.""A-Ah, right. I've only ever read Western fantasy books that were translated into Japanese until last year. Back in middle school, I thought light novels were... t-trash..." Yamaguchi-senpai nervously turned to me.She didn't have to be so tense. Even if it's an unpleasant past, I wouldn't think less of her. After all, I know what she'd become now."Haha, so you had that kind of phase. It's surprising, but not unexpected. If I were in your shoes, I'd probably be the same."Yamaguchi-senpai heaved a sigh of relief before telling her story."I was pretty arrogant. I took pride in liking the b-better books instead of those everyone my age was gushing about." She covered her face with her hands. "I still get embarrassed remembering it.""Really? I think you're still justified in thinking that way, Senpai. You've only been reading the select few masterpieces that Orihara-senpai had recommended. Once you've gone through all of them, what's left are the mass-produced trash that publishers mindlessly pump out because it's the trend."That's true for the rabukome (romcom) theme too. I especially hate that one particular trope."I-Is that so?!""Yep. You'll figure out the formula in no time because most of them are just shallow carbon copies of a hit title. And even if some authors try to write something deep, they often come off as pretentious because they don't have the skill to back it up. That's how it is for every genre.""Oh... I-I'm scared of finishing Orihara-senpai's recommendations now...""Haha, it's fine! So many great titles are still ongoing, and I'm sure a lot of good ones will come out soon."Fufu, as someone who gets updates on what's hot in the biggest web novel sites, I'm fairly confident in that last take."What are you talking about?" asked Shirase who took her time praying."Light novels!" I smirked."Ooh, I'm in~!""Nah, we have to wait for Yamaguchi-senpai to finish everything she has on her plate. And then we'll have a club-wide discussion with Orihara-senpai and Akizuki-senpai!""That's a great idea! And then we can slowly get her to read other genres and even other mediums like manga!""Oh! You're a genius, Shirase-san..." "You two always get s-scary whenever you start your otaku dialogue... It's like I'm talking to two Katsuhira-kuns.""You mean two Shirase-chans!" Shirase protested loudly. "Who would want to be a copy of this guy?!""Hah? And who would want to be a copy of you?!""A lot of people actually! As you can see, I'm a popular and friendly girl that everyone loves. Weren't you the one who said that yourself?!""S-Stop arguing!""Ah, don't worry, Senpai. We're not actually fighting.""Yeah, yeah, this is just friendly banter~!"Of course, we already knew it was futile to say that given how we looked, trying to forcefully pin each other down with grimaces on our faces.————————————————————When the three of us returned, we met up with Komori-senpai's group inside AEON Mall. In the end, all the girls went to walk around the mall some more.Inside a family restaurant, Orihara-senpai and I were left at the seats as the girls insisted on ordering the food together.He wasn't much of a conversationalist, but he was quite fun to talk to."Senpai, I finished the book you recommended on Monday.""Oh, how was it?""I was caught off-guard at first because the writing style was so poetic and declarative. The main character's statements were very tangential, but it all made sense in the end.""Exactly. I knew you'd be able to appreciate it just fine, Katsuhira."It was a nice change of pace from the high school rabukome light novels I'd been reading for the past month or so."No... I'm more impressed that you've grasped my reading habits so well."He looked away as if to reminisce something."I think we're a bit similar in that aspect," he simply said."I see..." I didn't want the conversation to end there, so I thought of something else to talk about. "By the way, can I ask you something, Senpai?""What is it?""You're going out with Akizuki-senpai, right?""W-What?! No way..."His reactions are amusing as usual."Haha, I just thought you guys were a good match.""Really now? We do get along despite our opposite personalities, but that goes for every guy she's friends with.""You think so? Well, you are classmates, after all. I don't really see how she interacts with other guys, so I guess I was getting ahead of myself with that assumption." I put on a thinking face. "But Akizuki-senpai is a model, right? Is she forbidden from having a boyfriend?""Not really. At least, that's what she told me."So it's 'me', huh? Not 'us'? Orihara-senpai wasn't the type to ask that question either... which meant that Akizuki-senpai told him herself...? Damn, she's really hinting at it, huh?"Let's stop talking about this, Katsuhira. What if they suddenly come and hear us?""Eh? Why would that be a problem? It's not like we're talking about something bad. I don't think anyone would be offended by our curiosity about Akizuki-senpai's love life. Even if that happens, we can just calmly explain everything to them and I'm sure it'll be fine."Orihara-senpai stared at me for a second before heaving a deep sigh."Sometimes, I wonder if you're the older one between the two of us...""No way, haha..."His eyes narrowed, seemingly annoyed."What about you then? You're going out with Shirase, right?""Nope," I shook my head with a smile."You're unfazed, huh? I always thought you were interested in her.""I am though.""Romantically?""Hmm, I don't think so. But I do feel like we're on the same wavelength a lot of the time.""You're classmates, right? I guess it makes sense if you're close.""Ohh, that's just recently. Up until last week, Shirase-san actually ignored me every day even though we were seatmates. Cruel, right?" I laughingly shrugged."Wait, huh? Every day until last week? But you guys have always seemed like good friends in the clubroom since you joined.""Ahaha... There's a reason for it, but I'm too lazy to get into detail. Let's just say that it's Shirase-san being extra until she'd realized her mistakes.""I see... Then, do you have a girlfriend right now, Katsuhira?""Um, I'll say this now. I don't swing that way, Senpai.""Who the hell asked?! I'm not trying to get with you, moron!""Hahaha! I know, I know, I'm kidding. Jokes aside, I don't have a girlfriend..." I looked away and chuckled in self-deprecation. "Admittedly, I've never had one... Never...""I-I feel like I should apologize for asking..." he said. "But that's actually surprising. You're a popular guy, aren't you?""With this face? Hell nah. I did receive a couple of confessions back in middle school though.""Well, we're still in high school. Kids our age still value appearance more than anything," he shrugged, not denying that I wouldn't be popular with my face. "You're the type of person who'd get all the girls in college and onwards though.""Eh, really? How come?!" I leaned in excitedly."What are you guys so excited about~?" Akizuki-senpai's voice took me back to reality.The other girls were here with our food as well."Oh, we were just talking about books. I finished the one that Senpai recommended, so I was excited for the next book.""Eh, really? Sounds fun!" she replied.A lie. It was a blatant, hypocritical lie. But I didn't care. Orihara-senpai should see that too.When it comes down to it, Orihara-senpai can tell everyone the truth— that we were talking about how I'm single and why Orihiara-senpai thinks I'm a popular guy. It wasn't a sensitive topic by any means. I just didn't want to talk about it with the others around."Katsuhira, you..."However, Orihara-senpai wouldn't do that. He did look surprised though."Is that mine? Thanks!" I moved on and poured my attention on the food.After that, we all sat down and enjoyed our time. We talked about the things we did, and Yamaguchi-senpai even managed to share our trip to Nangu Shrine.To be honest, it was a helpful activity for me, and I think Komori-senpai did a great job getting approval for this. Well, I'm sure Katamine-sensei had a hand in it. And the fact that the principal has a soft spot for our club might've been a factor too.————————————————————Eventually, it was time for us to head home. Getting off the station, Akizuki-senpai and I decided to walk together.As it turns out, our homes were partly the same way from the station until a certain intersection."Then, Katsuhira-kun and I will be on our way now!""Bye!""See you tomorrow!"After everyone bid their farewells, Akizuki-senpai giggled as she sauntered beside me."Did something good happen?" I asked."Hm? Well, yeah. Today happened. I had so much fun! Didn't you feel the same?""Oh, no. I had fun too. I'm even looking forward to Saturday.""Haha, really? Are you telling the truth?" She nudged me with a teasing grin."W-What makes you think I'm lying...?""Nothing. I just feel like you're the type of guy who always knows what to say even if you're thinking differently." I watched her back as she slightly walked ahead of me."That's a shock," I replied. "I always thought I was an honest person who talks on impulse.""Hoho, really now?" Akizuki-senpai looked up and sighed, her mischievous smile was nowhere to be seen. "Well, you're probably just both— depending on the situation, of course. That's just how everyone is.""That... is true. Just in varying degrees.""Exactly... It's easy to categorize people, but in reality, we're not just one or the other. I realized that when I started looking at everyone more closely.""We're inherently different but also inherently similar, right, Senpai?"She turned around with a smile and shrugged in response.Anyone can label her as a beautiful high school model, but that says nothing about the person called "Akizuki Eri". The same could be said for Orihara-senpai. He'd been labeled as an otaku or a creep by his peers, but those things don't apply to the Orihara Jin we know.I could keep going on about Komori-senpai and Shirase's extroversion or Yamaguchi-senpai and Inoue's introversion, but my point should already be clear to anyone who doesn't have a rigid mind.While it's true that people are simple, we're also frustratingly complex."I'll take a turn here. See you tomorrow, Senpai.""Bye-bye, Katsuhira-kun~!"To be honest, I never thought Akizuki-senpai and I would have that kind of conversation. But the more I think about it, the more it makes sense. She's a model— an active professional. She'd probably had her fair share of encounters with different personalities in the world of adults."Wait!" she suddenly yelled."Yes?""U-Uh... Nevermind! I'll tell you next time!""Huh? O-Okay...?"What was that all about?————————————————————April 26, Saturday."It's time to play tennis!" Komori-senpai announced.We safely arrived at Nijinooka Park thanks to Komori-senpai's older sister.The park had two tennis courts and a baseball court. The baseball court is small and there aren't enough people so we'll ignore it for now."P-Please take care of me, Senpai..." Yamaguchi-senpai bowed her head to Orihara-senpai who was going to be her opponent on the other court."We're both beginners, so let's just have fun," he replied."We'll destroy you, Eri! Let's beat those two beauties, Shizuku-chan!""I won't hold back, Shinako-chan! Let's do this together, Yumina-chan!"Meanwhile, Komori-senpai and Akizuki-senpai were yelling warcries at each other. They were doing doubles with the two freshmen ladies who wore troubled smiles.I, on the other hand, will do nothing but enjoy their struggles beside the scoreboard.After about an hour, Yamaguchi-senpai and Orihara-senpai decided to rest on the side. Meanwhile, we were just getting to the climax of the doubles match."Yah!""Take that!""Hyah!"It was certainly a match between amateurs, but these were very competitive amateurs, especially the two third-years. They look like they're having a lot of fun though, so I guess it's all good. And of course, as a healthy sixteen-year-old boy, I'm having the time of my life watching girls in tennis skirts go at it."Alright, we won! Take that, Eri! You were amazing, Shizuku-chan!""Y-Yes, thank you..."In the end, Komori-senpai and Inoue won after a close match."Hnng! Dang it! Nice fight, Yumina-chan. You did super well!""Haah... S-Sorry, I couldn't do better, Senpai!"Shirase and Inoue gradually got into it as the match went on, giving it all they've got. It was a nice fight indeed.After changing, we got out of the tennis court to enjoy the rest of the park. The weather was amazing, and the park had lots of good shade. Our group relished the fresh breeze as we discussed what we wanted to write about.I sat on a bench looking slightly absent-minded. That's probably why Komori-senpai approached me for a chat."What are you thinking about, Katsuhira-kun?" she asked, installing herself beside me on the bench."Ah, Pres. I just thought about how much my lungs would rejoice if I breathed the air in this place for an entire day.""They'd probably jump with joy," she said."They'd be depressed once I head back to Tagajo (City).""Hey, I'd be depressed too if I was spoiled with Wagyu beef only to see 100-yen steaks on my plate the next morning."The two of us chuckled.Honestly, the air wasn't that bad in Tagajo compared to other cities."So? How are you finding the club so far? It's been almost two weeks since you joined."Because of the tennis match, Komori-senpai didn't bring her glasses. Instead, she wore contacts. If I didn't know any better, I might've mistaken her for a college beauty. She looked very mature in her casual outfit."It's been great. The literature club was a bit infamous for being picky with its members, so I was initially intimidated at first. If Shirase-san wasn't my classmate, I would've hesitated a lot more.""Ahaha, I'm aware of our reputation. It's been that way since I was a first-year.""The seniors are very friendly, and the club seems normal enough. Katamine-sensei asked me a couple of questions, but it wasn't really a problem. So why would you be labeled as picky?" I already had an inkling of the reason, thanks to Katamine-sensei's words when I applied, but it's better to confirm the truth."It's true though. We are picky. I was shocked when Yumina-chan suddenly announced that a new male member was coming. She was so confident that Katamine-sensei would accept you. I didn't think we'd have another boy in the club until Eri graduated."With the mention of Akizuki-senpai's name, my suspicions were all but confirmed."Katamine-sensei was pretty stern with me too. Apparently, two other freshmen guys tried to apply for the club. Of course, they were told that the literature club was no longer accepting members, but that wasn't the truth.""I'm surprised. Katamine-sensei even told you that?""Yes, but she didn't tell me anything about why this all started in the first place. I think I get it now though. A former club member probably had questionable motives for joining... involving Akizuki-senpai."Komori-senpai sighed, leaning on the backrest."That's right. It happened when we were just freshmen. To keep things short, it was a senior who turned into a dangerous stalker. Thankfully, Jin was there to protect Eri before anything bad happened. The guy wasn't expelled, but his parents felt so ashamed that they moved to Fukuoka shortly after the incident."That's on the other side of the country..."It didn't end there, right? Something happening once wouldn't push the principal to be so strict about recruiting new members.""You're a smart one, aren't you?" she grinned. "You're right. It didn't end there. Eri was at the height of her popularity as a rookie model, so some guys wanted to join the club after finding out she was a member. Fortunately, Katamine-sensei was there to flush out their motives. The incident with the stalker wasn't made public, so the exclusivity of the literature club started to become some sort of underground mystery.""That clears up a lot of things..." "Yeah, that's about it. Sorry, I know it's a lot to take for someone who just wanted to join a club.""Not at all. Thank you for telling me, Senpai."She looked at me with a warm, genuine smile. "No problem. I was looking for an opportunity to tell you anyway. Saya-chan and the rest of the members after us already know the truth. And you, as a guy, deserve to know about it because you had to pass through that silly interview instead of just being allowed to join— like, you know, in any normal club."I leaned back and stretched my arms with a groan."In hindsight, this is much more interesting than a normal club. I didn't mind the silly interview.""You're such an open-minded kid.""It's a useful trait for survival," I smirked."That's true, especially in the wild world called high school." She nudged me with a laugh. "Your parents must've loved your open-mindedness.""Haha, no way. Nowadays, maybe. But as a kid, I was an absolute mess. I'd strangle my sixth-grade self if I ever saw that obnoxious brat.""Wow... That didn't sound like a joke.""Because it wasn't."Once again, the two of us chuckled.————————————————————We had lunch in a cottage near the forest observatory which felt like a picnic.After relaxing in the park, we decided to hang out in a cafe called "Flower" in the afternoon. It was run by Komori-senpai's aunt."Ara, you're here~! Come in, come in."She was a lovely lady in her forties, and she treated us very warmly. We were the only customers so we didn't have to worry about being too loud."Hey, Katsuhira-kun. Can I talk to you for a second?" Akizuki-senpai called for me.She brought me to another table with a smile."Shinako-chan finally told you, huh?""Ah, yes...""So, what did you think?"I laughed softly, confusing her."How would I even answer that, Senpai? I mean, I'm sure it was a terrifying experience for you, but I don't really know what else to say about it.""O-Oh, you're right... That was a weird question to ask, wasn't it?""I see. I thought Komori-senpai was the one who told me because she was the club president, but I still found it strange..." I narrowed my eyes while the corners of my lips rose. "You're the one who asked her to do it for you, huh? I wonder why....?" "Eh...? U-Uh...""Was it because you suck at telling stories and explaining things? Is that it, Akizuki-senpai?""Ah, there it is! You finally decided to mess with me!"Why is she saying that like it's a right of passage or something? Wait, I can't drop the act right now."Ehh, please answer the question, Akizuki-senpai. My guess is correct, isn't it?""No..."Your expressions make it too easy, Senpai. You have a horrible poker face!"Hmm~? You're lying. You had something to say to me last Wednesday, didn't you? I'm sure it's about this.""W-Wha-?! You still remember that?!""Huh? It was just a few days ago...""What do you mean?! I don't even remember what I had for dinner last night!""I think that's a you-problem, Senpai...""Hnng...!""So, am I right?""S... So what?!""Oh, nothing. At least you admitted it," I grinned victoriously before mellowing it down to a normal smile. "I'm thankful though. I didn't think everyone would be so welcoming.""Hihi, you can thank Yumina-chan for that. At first, we were nervous, but seeing her talk about you in such a genuine manner reassured us.""Wow, I didn't think Shirase-san was that influential in the club.""Shinako-chan and the others said that she reminded them of me when I was just a first-year," she giggled as her smile turned strangely melancholic. "But we all noticed a difference. After getting to know Yumina-chan in just the first week, we learned how smart she was. Her womanly intuition was super strong too. We chatted about the boys she was close with, and so far, everyone that she thought had feelings for her confessed not long after. She knows who to put her guard up against, unlike my past self. I had to learn it the hard way.""Shirase-san... is amazing, isn't she?""Yeah, she is. She can be friendly with anyone, but she's not naive. She was the kind of girl I wished I was before. I'd like to say that I've made it, but I know I'm still learning. Yumina-chan is the same, but I can't help but feel like she has it all together.""So that's why her opinion of me mattered a lot, huh?" Katamine-sensei said something similar."Yep~! And so far, you've been a perfectly good Kouhai! You can be super cheeky though." She playfully pointed at me.After a while, Komori-senpai's sister showed up to take us back. We said our thank yous and goodbyes and headed home without much issue.When it was time for me to draft my entry for the competition, ideas just started flowing inside. As an otaku, I wanted to write a light novel-esque story. I'm just hoping that my Senpais in the club don't grill me too much once they read it...