3.3
After parting with Kiryūin, I recalled the interaction between Ichinose and me this morning.
I had been wondering if she’d come to Keyaki Mall, but I didn’t know her purpose for coming.
Under normal circumstances, I should’ve informed her by phone that I was inside the mall, but it seemed like she was rejecting that or avoiding it somehow.
Judging from that unique scenario, it could be assumed that by simply going to Keyaki Mall, it wouldn’t be necessary to bother looking for Ichinose.
For the time being, I chose to go home without trying to find her.
If I couldn't meet her before I went outside, I could always turn back.
With that thought, I returned to the mall’s entrance.
The large Christmas tree that was just set up yesterday attracted many friends and couples. They were taking photos and admiring it, but it would be removed the following day.
Kei, who had been bedridden, must have deeply regretted it, but there was nothing that could be done. Influenza was showing signs of spreading, and nearly 20 people in the school had already tested positive.
As I passed by the tree, I saw a lot of students gathered around.
No, at this moment, there might’ve been more students than yesterday.
In the crowd, I spotted Ichinose, who seemed to be enjoying a lively conversation, surrounded by three female first-year students.
I didn't have the courage to call out to her here, so I decided to watch her from a distance for a while.
By chance, Hoshinomiya-sensei and Chabashira-sensei, walking beside each other, noticed me while passing.
During long vacations, it was common to see teachers in casual clothes. Still, it was impossible not to feel a sense of incongruity about Chabashira-sensei, who loved wearing suits.
“Oh? Are you alone?”
The first one to approach me was Hoshinomiya-sensei, followed by Chabashira-sensei.
“Uh, yeah.”
“I thought you'd be lovey-dovey with your girlfriend today and yesterday. Did you get dumped?”
“Don't tease the students, Chie. Besides, Karuizawa has the flu.”
Chabashira-sensei explained that there was a reason.
“I know that.”
“You knew and still teased?”
“Because it's annoying, isn't it? It's unacceptable for students a year younger to spend Christmas with their lover, or something like that!”
“You used to do that every year up until now. This year's just different.”
“That's why I can't stand it. Maybe I can understand Sae-chan's feelings for the first time.”
“Don't lump me in with you. I'm a person who doesn't mind being alone on Christmas. It's a pity, Ayanokōji. You haven't met Karuizawa, right?”
“Can't be helped. Besides, I don't mind being alone on Christmas either.”
As I answered, Chabashira-sensei gave a slight grin and Hoshinomiya-sensei seemed even unhappier.
Looking at the contrasting pair, I thought about Mashima-sensei.
If he sided with either of them, it would undoubtedly be very troublesome.
“Where are you teachers going now?”
“To karaoke! We teachers also have the right to have fun, you know? Right?”
“Chie’s the only one who wants to sing. I'm just being dragged along.”
“Oh, really? Isn't Sae-chan excited too?”
“I'm not excited...”
It must be hard for the teachers too—with the constant tense atmosphere of the class competition.
The two of them, good friends or bad, traded barbs as they headed to karaoke.
While we were all talking, I noticed Ichinose was looking our way.
It seemed that the girls' conversation had finished, and she was waiting for me.
“What a coincidence, Ayanokōji-kun.”
“Yeah, quite a coincidence. You seemed to be having a great time with your kōhais from the first year.”
“They're from Class 1-B. Yagami-kun, a former member of the student council, suddenly dropped out, didn't he? They still seem to be affected by it, and they're somewhat confused. But they were trying to be positive about it.”
Given the nature of why he got expelled from the school, I assumed that the class itself wasn’t penalized, but they inevitably suffered damage from the lack of students. This difficult situation would continue for some time.
“How long have you been here?”
“Since around 10:30, I think.”
Considering that it was almost 12 o'clock, she had been waiting for over an hour.
No, describing it as waiting might be incorrect.
Ultimately, Ichinose was acting based on her own principles today.
“Hey, Ayanokōji-kun, could you take a picture with me?”
With that, Ichinose shyly took out her phone.
“To make some memories, I took pictures with various people here today.”
To prove it was true, Ichinose opened her photo album and showed the section with today's date. As expected, she had taken several photos with various students in front of the Christmas tree.
Some of the shots included boys from her class.
In addition, there were also photographs with the first-year students from earlier.
Ichinose had mentioned that she was waiting here to make memories, but her real goal became apparent shortly after.
“However... I want to take a picture with you, Ayanokōji-kun. That's my main wish.”
Ichinose didn't explain further, but it wasn't difficult to understand.
If there was a photo of just the two of us on her phone, Kei and her close friends might not respond well if they found out.
However, if she had photos with many others, both male and female, there would be no issue if someone happened to question her.
In fact, there weren't many, but I could see two shots with boys from other classes.
Those boys either looked pleased or awkwardly showed a peace sign from Ichinose calling them out.
Regardless of their year, there was no uniformity in the sort of boys.
It seemed like she was responding to the photo requests of all the students who had called out to her without discriminating.
“So... Would you mind taking a picture with me?”
“Of course. I have no reason to refuse.”
“I'm glad.”
She had put in a tremendous amount of effort just to take a picture with me.
“I actually didn't plan on taking photos with so many, but a lot of people started calling out to me after they heard about it. It was a bit difficult.”
It seemed that the rumor that Ichinose wanted to take photos with people had started to spread.
“How many people have you taken photos with so far?”
“Um, let's see... I think the people from earlier were my 43rd.”
That’s quite a lot... It was evident that she was taking these photos at a high rate.
“I plan on continuing for a while. It wouldn't make much sense if I stopped now, right?”
According to Ichinose, this was so no trace was left even after the goal had been reached.
“Well, it's not that it doesn't look suspicious in a different way.”
Ichinose smiled as she looked back on her actions—those that could objectively be viewed as bizarre.
If I had done the same thing, I would’ve undoubtedly been treated as a completely suspicious person.
However, the same actions look entirely different with Ichinose.
Ichinose pulled my arm and guided me to adjust the angle.
Then, she leaned in and held her cell phone with the front camera on.
“Now’s the time—no one else is looking.”
She seemed to be constantly observing the surroundings and decided it was the perfect timing.
Ichinose put her hand around my arm and took a picture.
Then, she took another with a little gap between us, without her hand on my arm.
“The first one won't be saved on my phone, so… It's okay, right?”
“Is this asking for a post-fact approval?”
“...Yeah. If you don't want it, I'll delete it now.”
“No, you can keep it. I don't intend to blame anyone if someone else sees it. It's my responsibility for allowing the photo to be taken, no matter how it's used.”
“Are you sure? If I misuse it, it could cause a rift in your relationship with Karuizawa-san...”
“It's strange to complain after conveniently taking a picture, right?”
If you were going to be photographed, you wouldn’t permit it without being prepared.
Of course, it was different if you were forced.
We closed the distance between us in about 10 seconds, and before we knew it, we were back to our usual distance.
During that time, no one saw us being intimate.
“By the way, Ayanokōji-kun, you met with Chihiro-chan yesterday, right?”
Chihiro Shiranami. I recalled the image of her wearing headphones and listening to music.
“You know a lot.”
“It's common for us to gather both on weekdays and holidays, so I felt like Chihiro-chan's behavior was a bit different yesterday. We didn't talk about anything specific, but she reacted to your name, so I thought maybe you had met and spoken with her.”
Ichinose, who always cared about her classmates' mental state, may easily notice changes.
“By the way, what do you mean by her feeling a bit different? I hope it wasn’t in a bad way.”
“It's okay. I don't know what you talked about, but I felt like Chihiro-chan was laughing more than usual yesterday.”
The risky bet worked, and urging her to be prepared seemed to have had a positive effect.
“I'm glad to hear that.”
“But…”
Although I was delighted by Shiranami's growth, Ichinose wasn’t finished.
“Right now, she cares about me more than anyone else, but you can’t get too involved, okay? She’s easily swayed.”
A warning not to close the distance with Shiranami any further than it was.
“When you want to hang out with Chihiro-chan, I'd like you to call me too.”
“I understand. I’ll make sure to do that.”
Whether it was for her responsibility as a protector for her class or for her own well-being, I would have to be cautious when meeting with Shiranami in the future.
“Ichinose-senpai! Ayanokōji-senpai! Hello!”
“Ah, it's Nanase-san.”
Upon finding me and Ichinose, Nanase approached us with a slight jog.
“I heard you two were over here taking photos with people, so I came too.”
Apparently, the rumor had spread far enough to reach Nanase.
“Wouldn't it get out of hand at this rate? You might be taking pictures until midnight.”
“Well, that's how it goes. Maybe I'll become a legendary girl who took a picture with every student in front of the Christmas tree.”
Ichinose smiled as she responded to the jest with another jest.
“Are you joining as well, Ayanokōji-senpai?”
“No, I just heard the rumor and came to take photos with Ichinose. I won't get in your way.”
Feeling it would be improper to join in, I decided to step back.
“I don't mind if you join us.”
“No, I'll pass. Being tied up to this place like Ichinose is tough, and there aren't many people who'd want to take a photo with me anyway.”
Nanase, sensing the situation, didn't force the issue and stood shoulder to shoulder with Ichinose. The two began adjusting their positions for the photo when Nanase seemed to notice something and stopped.
“Sorry, can you wait a moment?”
“Hm? Sure, but what's up?”
Apologizing to Ichinose, Nanase hurried over in a certain direction. It seemed that a student from her class, Hōsen, was there. He was walking alone with a scary expression, not even looking in our direction.
Nanase approached him like a puppy, called out to him, and pointed in our direction while talking to him.
“Could she be inviting Hōsen-kun?”
“It seems like it.”
While it wasn't strange for her to invite a classmate, the particular classmate at hand was Hōsen. He didn't seem like the type to take photos with others.
However, after a brief conversation with Nanase, Hōsen changed direction and started walking towards us while keeping his scary expression.
“Looks like he's coming.”
“It seems like it.”
Hōsen's gaze captured not only Ichinose but also me standing beside her.
I had been enjoying a leisurely winter break, so I'd prefer to avoid any potential trouble.
“Um, would it be okay for Hōsen-kun to join the photo too?”
“I don't mind at all, but are you sure about that?”
Ichinose's words suggested her hesitance of Hōsen’s desires. Hōsen remained silent, staring at me and Ichinose with a scary face.
“It's totally fine. Now, please, Hōsen-kun.”
Saying that, Nanase pushed Hōsen's back, somewhat forcibly.
I thought he’d definitely resist, but surprisingly, Hōsen closed the distance with light steps.
“You've been staring at me. Is there something on my face?”
As soon as he said that, he glared at me and started to get in my face.
“Well, umm, it's just...”
It wasn’t an expected behavior. I couldn't help but suspect that there was an ulterior motive behind it.
“Huh? If you have something to say, say it.”
“Nothing really.”
“Hmph.”
As I backed off, Hōsen snorted and looked away.
He had an impressive presence for a first-year student. If I’m not careful, would I get stabbed with a knife again?
Although Hōsen and Nanase were finished taking photos with Ichinose, Hōsen still looked like he had something to say.
As he started to walk away with his hands in his pockets, I couldn't help but ask, “What was that about?”
As Nanase approached me, she whispered in a low voice, “Actually, Hōsen-kun really likes Ichinose-senpai.”
“...Seriously?”
I couldn't see it. Well, I did find it strange that he’d pose for a photo with Ichinose, but still, that was a surprising revelation.
“He came to check things out because he heard she was taking photos here.”
So it wasn't a coincidence that he happened to pass by.
“But, maybe it really was just a coincidence?”
“I don't think so. I was called out to Keyaki Mall by him. He probably couldn't approach Ichinose-san by himself, so he used me instead.”
I wondered if he just wanted to take a photo with Ichinose based on some calculation.
At least based on what I saw, that didn't seem to be the case.
Hōsen had already disappeared, so there was no way to confirm it any further.
“Hey, Ichinose, let's take a picture together!”
Two third-year girls approached Ichinose, waving their hands.
If this continued, there might be more and more of them.
I decided to give a quick wave to my senpais as well and backed off.
“See you, Ayanokōji-kun!”
Ichinose waved her small hand and smoothly switched her attention to the senpais.
It seemed to have turned into a large-scale event, and I was one person out of the 46, including Nanase and Hōsen.
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