CH 91

Four days later I was suddenly rushed by Gaudy Piercings, right as I returned to cram school for the first time in a while.

“Kisshouin-saan! I’m so sorry!”

Uwah!? What’s with this guy!?

It creeped me out so I had taken a step back in reflex, but the guy didn’t mind and continued to rant.

“Since that happened, you haven’t been coming to cram school at all! I’ve been feeling so bad about it. I’m really sorry!”

Can somebody tell me what this guy is on about?

Then, who knows why, but he suddenly slumped in depression all on his own.

“You rushed out of the classroom right after, and you only came back when lunch ended. I was so worried that you were off crying somewhere.”

…Hmm? Oh! That time with the chakinzuchi!?

That’s right! I forget not the enmity you sowed on that day, scoundrel!

“And then you stopped coming as well. Was it because you didn’t wanna see me? Have you been crying at home every day?”

Oh yeah. Come to think of it, the day after the chakinzushi incident I skipped cram school to do that fasting course, didn’t I. Wow, it feels like so long ago. Aah, that course was hell~

Thanks to that though, apparently Gaudy Piercings came up with the idea that my feelings had been hurt, and had been arbitrarily wallowing in guilt for the last three days. My condolences.

I’m not going to tell him though. He stole my precious chakinzushi, so this is his punishment. Kekeke!

The enmity sowed due to food is a terrifying thing.

“I never thought you’d be hit with so much shock. I should have realised though. You’re a real ojousama. You’re more delicate than guys like us. You even look like you’ve lost weight over it.”

Eh!? What was that!? Did he just say what I thought he did? Did he just say I look like I’d lost weight!?

…Gaudy Piercings, I’ll make an exception just this once!

“Please do not trouble yourself over it. I was simply feeling under the weather, and had been resting at home,” I smiled as I forgave him. Just this once I’d let go of the grudge. It could disappear along with the fat I’d lost.

“Really!? Thank goodness! If you’re still feeling bad, then don’t overdo it, okay? Come on, sit down.”

Originally I had planned on sitting away from them, but before I knew it he had brought me over to his group. Ununu, what a crafty one.

“‘ been a while, Kisshouin-saan. Soorry about this idiot.”

“He’s such a jerk for stealing your food like that.”

“Ojousama suuure are delicate~ After all, Kisshouin-san stayed at home just for something like that.”

Bobcut was really casually being caustic.

“Kisshouin-san said she was ill. Hey, if you don’t feel well then you have to speak up, okay?”

“Thank you for your concern.”

Gaudy Piercings was oddly gentlemanly. I guess it’s because he came up with this image of me being some dainty, sheltered rich girl. Naive. While Gaudy Piercings was feeling guilty, I was living it up in a high class Chinese restaurant, stealing shark fin soup from Otousama.

But he said I’d lost weight… My last checkup said that I’d lost two kilos, certainly, but I knew the weight would return the moment I started eating again.

I decided that I would put in the effort to keep my midriff like this though.

Gaudy Piercings, thank you for the motivation.

Also, Gaudy Piercings, what was your real name again?

*

Break time came, and Gaudy Piercings’ group went out for lunch. As usual I had my bentou. After having a relaxing lunch, I had a skim through my textbook. I had already planned to have Marin-sensei help me catch up, but it wouldn’t hurt to try a bit on my own.

Coming back from his own lunch, Gaudy Piercings passed me a bag from a coffee shop. Confused, I looked inside and found a proscuitto and vegetable panino.

“This is for last time. I’m not sure if food like this would taste good to an ojousama like you, but if you’re okay with it then please take it.”

Ehhh!? Thank you! I love this stuff! What the heck! You’re actually a pretty good guy, Gaudy Piercings.

“Thank you. I will definitely enjoy it later,” I smiled brightly.

Smiles are cheap for people who give me panino. Gaudy Piercings seemed happy as well.

“Umewaka~ Lend me your electronic dictionary~” called Bobcut.

Oh, that’s right. Umewaka. Thanks for reminding me, Bobcut.

Umewaka-kun, who gave me a panino, went to give Bobcut his e-dictionary, and then happily played around with his phone.

*

Since that day, I started talking to Umewaka-kun a little more. He was oddly overprotective. Like, he’d ask if my bag was too heavy, or mention that it was hot today and ask me if I was okay.

And each and every time, Bobcut’s eyes would be lit up in jealousy. She was really easy to read. Sometimes she’d drop in a comment like,

“It must be nice, being a pampered ojousama~”

Really, really easy to read.

Umewaka-kun’s group of friends was made up of three guys and two girls. The other girl was the one who sat next to me on the first day, and it seemed like she was close with the brown-haired guy. Thanks to that, she didn’t seem to mind me as much as Bobcut did.

One day Bobcut caught me in the bathroom.

“You’re really girly, Kisshouin-san. Me, I’m more frank and chill, and kind of like a guy, so all the boys treat me like one.”

“I see.”

It’s also common-sense to girls that on the inside, the self-proclaimed frank, chill, and kind-of-like-a-guy women are actually the most frighteningly jealous women of all.

It was honestly a bother, so I just left.

*

Umewaka-kun continued to worry about me, telling me to be careful about the heat, or asking if it was hard keeping my hair tidy.

Once I was curious enough to ask him why he bothered with me so much. His eyes lit up and he said to me,

“Because my beloved Beatrice is just like you, Kisshouin-san!”

So I asked him who Beatrice was, and he pulled out his phone to show me.

It was a dog.

“See? Isn’t she cute? She’s an American Cocker Spaniel and she’s got the roundest, cutest eyes. And your hair is just like my Beatrice’s, Kisshouin-san. The first time I saw you from behind, I thought, oh my god! It’s my Beatrice! My Bea-tan is such an angel.”

Umewaka-kun’s beloved dog was one of the types with wavy long hair, and she was wearing a ribbon on her head too.

After that, even though I never asked for it, Umewaka-kun started showing me pictures of his adorable Bea-tan, one after another. Bea-tan running happily. Bea-tan rolling on the floor. Bea-tan asleep. One after another, he continued animatedly showing them off to me.

Umewaka-kun was a hardcore dog lover.

“Beatrice’s hair is really long and it’s so hard to get the kinks out. I make sure to brush her hair everyday, too. How do you take care of your hair, Kisshouin-san? It’s really hard maintaining Bea-tan’s sausage curls.”

The former Umewaka-kun, now revised to Dog Lover-kun, apparently wanted my advice on long hair.

Dog Lover-kun, I might look like this but I’m still technically a human.

“…You truly love dogs, Umewaka-kun.”

“Yeah. Oh, look at this!” he said as he pointed proudly to his earring.

Looking carefully, it was a silver earring of a dog paw.

He was an honest-to-god dog lover.

“This is my favourite one, but I’ve also got a bone earring too. Wanna see? I’ll show you next time, okay?”

He was an honest-to-god, maniac dog lover.

“I might not be a dog, but perhaps it would help to know that I use a brush that a salon recommended me. The teeth are very fine to avoid tangles.”

“Oh, my Bea-tan has an exclusive brush too.”

“I might not be a god, but perhaps it would help to know that I visit a salon at least once a month for hair treatment.”

“My Bea-tan also gets a trimming once a month!”

…Really, can you just give up on this comparison already, Dog Lover-kun?

“Also American Cocker Spaniels get fat really easily, so I have to take care about her food and exercise.”

We’re the same species!

*

*

*

I arrived home to find an invitation to tea, from Madam Kaburagi.