“Sooo~ Taku-chan, how are you planning to explain this little cheating incident, hmm~?”

“No, I didn’t cheat or anything!”

Currently, we are in a room of the Majima residence, which is to say, my room.

I am made to sit seiza on the floor, and Fuyunagi Shizuku sits on my bed with her legs crossed.

She looks like a queen.

“I understand that Sakurada-san likes Sado-kun, but the fact that you were seen watching a movie with her hasn’t changed, has it?”

“W-Well… that…”

As expected, I can’t get away with it… of course not…

“Sakurada-san is cute, kind to everyone, and doesn’t judge people based on appearances. Taku-chan likes girls like that, right?”

“Sakurada-san and I were tailing you and Sado… following you two around, but we lost sight of you. So I figured I’d just watch the movie I originally came for, and then Sakurada-san said she wanted to see it too… so we ended up watching it together. That’s all! It wasn’t cheating or anything!”

“So how did you end up watching a movie together? Sakurada-san isn’t interested in anime, right? Didn’t Taku-chan force her?”

“I’d never do something like that! What do I have to do to make you believe me!? If you insist that much, then why don’t you just use the GPS on my phone and monitor me or something!?”

“I wouldn’t do something crazy and stalker-like like that… I just want to trust you. That’s all… hmm…”

Fuyunagi-san puts an index finger to her lips, striking a thoughtful pose. After a moment of “Hmm?” she exclaimed, “Okay!”

“Tomorrow, Taku-chan will come with me shopping and I’ll introduce you to everyone as my boyfriend!”

“Eh…? Seriously…?”

“Yeah.”

Fuyunagi-san has confessed to Sado that she likes me… yes, me, Majima Takuma.

Sakurada-san also heard this story.

At the very least, these two at the top of the class hierarchy know that Fuyunagi-san’s beloved is me.

At the very least, the two top members of the class caste now know that I’m the one Fuyunagi-san has feelings for.

Those two seem trustworthy, and I don’t think they’d go around spreading it carelessly… but there’s no guarantee of that.

At the very least, the news that Fuyunagi-san and Sado broke up will spread at lightning speed, and once it does, it’s obvious that a bunch of guys will start confessing to her or trying to hit on her again.

And if that happens… what will Fuyunagi-san do?

No matter how it turned out… sooner or later, Fuyunagi-san would probably mention my name and introduce me as her new boyfriend.

Letting people know she has a boyfriend helps keep confessions and guys hitting on her at bay… though I’m obviously nowhere near good enough for that role.

Either way, the fact that I’m Fuyunagi-san’s boyfriend will end up getting exposed eventually.

It seems she has no intention of keeping it a secret anymore.

“Fuyunagi-san… you’re ignoring the three conditions you set yourself, aren’t you?”

“What?”

“You said we wouldn’t tell anyone we were dating, but you’re about to break that. And we were supposed to have four at-home dates a week, yet this week we only had two… So that’s what promises mean to you, right?”

“Hah? That’s not true. I want to keep my promises too. But I didn’t have a choice, okay? I can’t just neglect my friends, and to keep up my relationship with Sado-kun, I can’t ignore the promises I made with him either… Everything I did was for your sake, so things between us could stay peaceful. So why am I being blamed for it? Isn’t that strange!?”

“For my sake? No, it’s not. You did all of that because it was convenient for you. You don’t actually care about me at all, do you?”

“Haa…?”

Fuyunagi-san glares at me with a coldness I’ve never seen before.

It’s a gaze as frigid as ice.

“Fine… I’ll tell you honestly… I haven’t lied about anything… everything! It’s all for your sake… to monopolize you! I want to have you all to myself…”

“………Huh?”

“I don’t want anyone to take you from me. Setting four home dates a week was the minimum I needed… And I know it sounds conceited, but I’m a popular girl, so I have to spend time with the people around me. The more popular I become, the more I can make everyone accept you as my official boyfriend when I eventually tell them. I wanted to take the time to solidify my influence… But I also absolutely need time with you, so I set four as the minimum. It’s true I couldn’t keep that promise this week… that part is my fault. I’m sorry.”

“…Okay…”

It’s a logic based on her awareness of her own beauty and belief in its absolute power… it’s a way of thinking only she could come up with…

“Keeping our relationship secret… making Sado-kun my boyfriend… I did all of that for you, you know? Because you’re such a hopeless guy that I had to go that far. And now you’re blaming me? You’ve got some nerve. Honestly, you should be the one apologizing to me!!”

“…I see… I’m sorry… for being the kind of boyfriend I am…”

“Eh—w-wait… that’s not… that’s not true…! It’s not like that! Okay?!”

“Hey… maybe… we should just break up.”

　　　　　　　　・

　　　　　　　　・　

　　　　　　　　・

“Hah………?”

I felt a chill.

What should I say?

Her expression was indescribable.

It was blank.

Nothing was reflected there.

Void.

There wasn’t even the slightest hint of basic emotions like anger or sadness.

I didn’t know what she was really thinking.

That’s why I became scared and retracted my statement.

“J-Just… kidding…”

“　　・　・　　…………I see… a joke.
That surprised me.”

I still don’t understand why she confessed to me.

“What was it about me that she fell in love with?”

Is she even really in love with me?

I don’t know anything.

All I could see was her clouded eyes, which were terrifying.