Chapter 61

Hat Trick

「Seriously, this is unbelievable! The both of you had me fooled! 」*irritated!*

Uhuhuhu… To think that was all an act by Momo and Andou-kun even though I was scared out of my wits! (Asakura)

「Asakura-san, calm down for a moment and let’s talk this over… I did lie to you, however, shouldn’t you be taking this up with Momoi-san and Class Rep instead of me?」

「Well, it is bad of us to trick you~ but ya see, I was just trying to cheer you up, Sakura~」

「HMPHH! I’m not listening to anything that comes out of both of your mouths! You both seem to get along very well with each other without me. I’ll just be in the way!」*fumes!*

Screw them! Besides, Andou-kun has a liking for big-breasted girls like Momo after all! Andou-kun, you lecher! Perv! You boobie lover maniac! (Asakura)

「Hang on just a minute! Andou-kun! And here I was wondering what took you guys so long to return…What are you doing? Despite the great lengths that Momoi-san and I took to set this up, aren’t you just implying that Romeo has given up on Juliet by doing that?」

「Huh, what? Though you say that you set up this test of courage out of kindness, isn’t it because of your suspicious schemes that Asakura-san became like this?」

Good grief… In the first place, Class Rep and Momoi-san went too far with their tomfoolery. I mean, sure. Asakura-san has never hung out with any boys oddly enough, hence why they played such a『prank』on her, thinking that I’ll never hold hands with her, given that I, her male『friend』am of the fine『loner』species, but I’m technically still a『high school boy』in his prime. You can’t expect nothing to happen. That is precisely why earlier today, swept up by my emotions, unconsciously I――

『Please be…gentle with me, ‘kay?』

Burn, school life! (Andou)

――!!?? What on earth was going on in my head back then!? Shit, this is bad…Calm down, breathe! Asakura-san is certainly a beauty, if you exclude her carelessness, though even that point about her is adorable so there’s no way anyone would leave her in danger. She’s like a pearl that formed naturally in the deep sea, like an angel that the heart is enraptured by … BUT! In reality, she’s just a light novel otaku! A disappointing quack of a princess! A flat-chested gremlin!

Moreover, as the prettiest girl in school, Asakura-san would not have interacted with a 『loner』like myself under usual circumstances. The only reason I’m『friends』with her now and that she had declared it to the world, is in part due to Class Rep and Momoi-san’s meddlings thus allowing me to be able to converse naturally with her like this …These precious moments will someday come to an end.

That’s right. That’s why I need to calm down, don’t jump the gun…Protect the current tranq―― (Andou)

「HMMPH, HMMMM! Well, I’m getting pissed off!」*fumes!*

「Mannnn, I’m really sorry about this! As an apology, let’s go watch the movie you’ve mentioned you’ve always wanted to see next Sunday?」

「D, Don’t think that you can tempt me with th――」

「Of course, it’s Andou-kun’s treat♪」

「Really? Let’s go!」

「WAIT WHATTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!? Momoi-san, why are you making promises on my behalf?」

「Ahahaha~♪　It’ll be fineee, Andou-kun~ At the moment, there’s a promotion going on at the cinema where if you’re purchasing more than three student tickets, it’ll only cost a 1000 yen per person~」

「Except, it’s not about the money――I mean I’m thankful that’ll be lighter on my wallet but… Nope! I find this really amusing that you’re apologizing but you’re dragging me into all this and doing it so spontaneously like it’s god-given.」

「Ehhhh? But weren’t you in on it too when you helped me deceive her? Right, Sakura~?」

「Hnngh, yeah, Sakura’s right. I–I… won’t forgive you for what you’ve done today if you don’t come along, Andou-kun! 」*fumes!*

「GRHHGHGN… F, Fine!」*seething*

「That’s what he said. Isn’t that great, Sa~ku~ra?」

「Yay~ I mean, uhuk! I-It’s not like I’m super excited that I’ll be watching a movie with you. I’m just really delighted that the film I’ve been yearning to see, everyone’s going to be watching it with me. That’s all it is! Don’t misunderstand me, alright?」

「Got it~~~!」

「…………」

A movie date with Andou-kun! Yay! Ufufu. I wonder what should I wear this time? Oh! That’s right. I can just go shopping for new clothes after school tomorrow! (Asakura)

Sakura is so easy to read~♪ (Momoi)

Treating them for the movie, huh? Saying that like it was a natural thing for me to do… Well, alright. I did had a lot of fun with Asakura-san and Momoi-san today so I do owe them. Since I’m treating, I suppose I ought to sell my light novels so there’ll be funds for it… (Andou)

「Oh my, it’s already past ten p.m. Everyone, it’s about time we head home now.」

「「Yes, Class Rep!」」

「…………」

Class Rep’s just like a school teacher… (Andou)

「Then, before we head off, can everyone say where your home is in sequence?」

「… HAH? Andou-kun, why do you want to know where everyone stays?」

「Yeah. Isn’t it fine if we all just head off and go our own ways?」

「Right~ I mean, Class Rep and I can head home on our own. You can just accompany Sakura home~♪」

Class rep, Asakura-san and Momoi-san… Do these three even know what they’re saying? (Andou)

「Huh? What are you guys saying… All three of you are girls. How can I let any of you go home alone this late at night?… Have some self awareness! You’re all prettier than the average girls, alright?」

「「「HAAAAA!?」」」*BADUMP!*

Honestly… Asakura-san and Momoi-san are the prettiest beauties in our school ranking, and Class Rep, though she wears glasses and has her hair in braids, her face is well-proportionate. Class Rep’s also really popular in class, and it’s not just because of her meddling. She has no clue of how the guys look at her. Say… the more I think about it, why am I looking after all these pretty girls in a place like this? (Andou)

AAA,Andou-kun said I’m pretty… That I’m the prettiest in the world! No, in the universe! 『You’re a beauty…honey~♪』! KYAAAAAA! Ufufu~O, Oh no! How should I react in front of him? (Asakura)

U, Uwahhh… Andou-kun, that was a bad move~ Surprise attacks are not cool~! It’s a bad blunder that you even made my, Momoi-chan’s chest beat fast! Seriously, one can never be too careful…Ufufu♪ (Momoi)

2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 37, 51, 53, 59, 61… Aaaa! I miscounted… S–S–Shoot! AAAAH! Why!? Why did Andou-kun have to blurt something like that so suddenly? A-A-A, A class representative like myself? P-P-Pretty!? Don’t screw with me!!! It’s all your fault that I messed up whilst counting my precious prime numbers! (Class Rep)

「Anyway, I’ll be accompanying all of you home. I’m really sorry but I’ll need each of you to tell me where you live and we’ll all go together till everyone gets home, alright?」

「Huhu, hu… Andou-kun! It looks like the test of courage did it’s job! You’ve got the role of Romeo down to a T!」

「Eh, why are you mentioning that all of a sudden?」

「Oh yeah~♪ Weren’t you also in perfect sync as Romeo when you hugged Sakura?」

「HAAA! Mo, Momo! That was because…」

「No! T-That was because…」

「Eh!? Andou-kun, how audacious of you!?」

「Don’t say that~ Weren’t you there witnessing it too, Class Rep~? Remember, it happened when you were masquerading as a ghost near the playground area~? 」

「Huh, what are you talking about? I’ve been at the starting point the whole time, you know?」

「「「EH!?」」」

What did they mean parading as a ghost? As a matter of fact, I should be complaining that I’m scared shitless since I had to wait for everyone to return to the starting point the entire time alone. (Class Rep)

「A, Ahahah… O, oh there you go again, Class Rep! Enough with the silly jo- … Hey, you mean you didn’t rush back to the starting point to greet us after disguising yourself as a ghost?」

「Just what are you on about… Didn’t we only have one set of the costume in the first place?」

「No no, not that one. Didn’t you bring one along secretly for yourself–…」

「Momoi-san? If that’s the case, where would I have placed this covertly carried costume? I don’t have a bag with me.」

「A, Ahahaha—… Eh, for reals?」

「Oi oi… If what you’re saying is true, then who’s the other ghost…」

Now that she mentioned it… Come to think of it, that glasses wearing ghost had slightly larger boobs than Class Rep. At that time, I thought it was because I was imagining things because of the distance between us but… don’t tell me—…!? (Andou)

「Eh, no way… That was a real…………GHOSTTTTTTTTTT!?」*eyes spinning*

「Asakura-san!? Crap! Asakura-san’s fainted from fright!」

「Sakura!? Hang in there!」

「Eh, wait! What’s going on? Hey, listen to me, everyone? What’s this ghost that you all keep talking about? Ehhh?」

(And thus, the identify of that ghost… remained a mystery to this very day.）

「　　　　　　　　」*deadpan stare…*