Youkoso Jitsuryoku Shijou Shugi no Kyoushitsu e - Volume 6 - Chapter 5.6

5.6

IT WAS STILL PRETTY EARLY in the day. The library bustled after classes ended, absolutely full of students. Normally, barely a tenth of the seats were occupied, but now the place was at half capacity. Although it was crowded, it was quiet. Most students were completely immersed in studying rather than chatting with their friends or reading books. 

“Wow. So, this is the library, huh?” muttered Satou. She sounded interested.

Ah, yes. That brought me to my own little problem. Satou had decided to join the study session. I hadn’t spoken to her since we exchanged contact information. This was extremely awkward.

“This is my first time here. What about you, Ayanokouji-kun?”

“I’ve been a few times,” I replied.

“I see. You’re so studious!”

“Well, it’s more like I come here to kill time.”

“You come to the library to kill time? That’s strange.”

Apparently, my pretty-generic answer was weird. I had no idea what to think, so I was feeling a little distracted. I just didn’t know what Satou was trying to do. She was a girl, though, so I figured she’d pick up on my emotions.

“Hey, um, Ayanokouji-kun… I’m not a bother, am I?” she asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, I did just suddenly tell you I was joining the study session and all.”

“I don’t mind. Horikita and Kushida are the ones tutoring, and they should be happy to have more people.”

No one wanted to see their classmates expelled. I tried to pivot our conversation in that direction. Obviously, that wasn’t what she wanted to hear.

“That’s not what I mean.”

Satou looked a little depressed. Being in the library was kind of annoying; I had to whisper to avoid bothering other students, and as a result, got far closer to Satou than I normally would’ve. I could practically feel her breath on my skin. 

Was this a youthful moment of hedonism? If so, youth was kind of a pain in the butt. I wasn’t enjoying this in the slightest. I was nervous and worried about Satou. I discerned what she was feeling and chose my words carefully based on that.

I basically just wanted to go home.

But…did I really?

I tried to examine my current situation. I could certainly grow perplexed when faced with the unknown. This was too abstract to be called “love,” and I couldn’t really put a finger on it. From my perspective as a nobody, I was always prepared for immediate rejection.

But hadn’t I come to this school because I was looking for something other than routine?

“Wow. Everyone looks so serious,” said Satou. “They’re really studying.”

“The library’s a pretty normal place to study, actually,” Horikita replied, appearing out of nowhere. 

I regained my composure and cleared my mind. I wanted to get through this study session. 

Horikita, who had been to the library before, didn’t seem fazed by the spectacle in the slightest.

“Okay, you guys,” Horikita said to Ike and Yamauchi. “No commotion tonight, okay? Next time you make a scene, there’s a chance they’ll kick you out of the library.”

“Y-yeah, we know already. Sheesh.”

Satisfied that the problem children had heard her warning, Horikita went to secure us seats. Even though more than half the chairs were vacant, that didn’t necessarily mean that they were free. It was an unspoken rule that the seats near the café window and next to the library drinks station were for senior students only. In this territorial division, first-year students were only allowed to use the noisy area near the entrance. This visible hierarchy was pretty much present in every school.

However, we had an additional concern this time. We wanted to avoid being near Class C students as much as possible.

“What are you doing, Horikita?” I asked.

“If it’s the thing you’re concerned about, Ayanokouji-kun, don’t worry. I’m already dealing with it.”

Directly ahead of us, Ichinose Honami—a Class B girl—entered the first-year students’ area. She waved, inviting us to come talk to her. Eight other Class B students, four guys and four girls, hung around Ichinose. Nine people total. I glanced over at Horikita. Judging by her expression, she wasn’t perturbed by this. Ichinose approached us.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” said Horikita.

“Oh no, not at all. We just got here ourselves,” said Ichinose.

“I met with Ichinose-san yesterday and suggested we form a joint study group. Since we aren’t competing against Class B in this exam, I thought we could help each other,” said Horikita.

Evidently, Horikita had made some sort of proposal that involved a good number of people. This must have been what mentioned yesterday. Well. Every silver lining has a cloud, as they say. Ike and Yamauchi, who’d managed to keep calm up until now, suddenly jumped.

“Ike-kun, I warned you, didn’t I?” Horikita grabbed Ike’s arm. He locked up in terror, like a frog being glared at by a snake. Why had he and Yamauchi suddenly become so excited? I supposed getting together with Class B girls was appropriately stimulating. 

“Ayanokouji-kun, you came, too!” said Ichinose.

“I was pretty close to failing. I might need your help,” I replied.

“Oh no, I’m sure I’m the one who needs help,” she said.

Even though the library was a quiet space, you could still hold a conversation. Because Ichinose managed to secure us some corner seats, the music playing throughout the library completely drowned out our low voices. The music was Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6, “Pastoral.” I didn’t know who’d picked the song, but it was something I could relax to; a pretty good choice.

To think Horikita had actually formed a joint study group. Assuming that we were able to work together with Class B, this would likely be more efficient. Mutual exchange of information meant more varied perspectives, which in turn meant more creative test questions.

However, we were also taking certain risks. If any Class B students had ties to Class C, our information might leak. Of course, Horikita already understood that. She probably chose to bring us together because the benefits outweighed the risks.

The students from both our classes had freely filled the seats in our area.

“Sit here, Ayanokouji-kun.” Satou urged me to sit beside her, so I did.

“Yeah, sure.”

“What’s going on, Satou? You’re sitting awfully close to Ayanokouji-kun.”

“It’s only natural, isn’t it? Since we’re partners.”

I took out my textbook and notes right away, so Ichinose wouldn’t think me tactless. Even if it was just for show, I probably still needed to study.

“Hey, Ayanokouji-kun, what would be the best way for me to prepare?” asked Satou.

“You should ask Horikita,” I replied.

“But this is a good opportunity, isn’t it? You’re partners, after all. Why don’t you take care of Satou-san, Ayanokouji-kun?” drawled Horikita, without consideration for anyone’s feelings.

“My test scores are only slightly different from Satou’s, so there’s probably not that much I can teach her. Besides, I wanted to get some tutoring myself,” I said hastily, hoping to save face in front of Ichinose.

“I see. In that case, I’ll tutor you both,” said Ichinose. I got the feeling she was drawing a commitment out of me.

“Let’s do our best together, Ayanokouji-kun,” said Satou.

“Y-yeah.” I was starting to feel pretty anxious about this study group. As it turned out, my hunch was right on the money.

“You’re always so calm, Ayanokouji-kun. You just have this really mature vibe. What were you like back in junior high?” Satou drew closer to me, looking into my eyes. Her uniform was slightly unbuttoned, and I caught a glimpse of her cleavage. I wasn’t sure whether she noticed, but her breathing was a little heavy.

“I guess pretty normal. I didn’t particularly stand out. Not very different from now. Maybe that’s why people say I’m gloomy.” I tried to inch away and emphasize how boring I was. 

It was fine if Satou had a crush on me, but people were staring at us right now, and I hated it. Ike and Yamauchi, in particular, glared incredulously at me.

“You’re not gloomy at all, Ayanokouji-kun. I think you’re cool,” said Satou. “Or maybe really composed?”

“I don’t think ‘cool’ applies to me,” I said.

“Really? Well, I don’t know about other people, but that’s what I think.”

No matter what I said, Satou interpreted it as interesting. I needed an escape plan. “Okay, how about we find out what our weaknesses are? Did you bring your midterm with you?”

“I did.”

She took some crumpled-up test papers out of her bag. She’d scored around fifty points across the board in every test. Although she’d answered simple questions correctly and wasn’t quite in danger of failing, anything of medium difficulty or higher was disastrous. It was actually a mystery to me how Satou managed to stay in this school for this long.

“It’s kind of bad, isn’t it?” she asked.

“Yeah…a little. Since we seem to be about the same level, we should study together.” 

“Yes!” Satou looked incredibly excited, but I wished she wasn’t so loud. 

“Aren’t you two getting along a little too well?” asked Ike, his eyes full of suspicion. 

“We’re partners. It’s only natural, right?” replied Satou, radiating confidence as she used the test as a pretense.

“Ike, why don’t you study, rather than concentrate on things you don’t understand?” said Horikita, evidently not caring who got along with whom.

“Tch. Yeah, yeah. I know,” he grumbled, getting his materials ready.

Ike’s discipline. The gift that kept on giving.