#77 Small talk

When I have arrived at the second section of the pool, I instantly spotted Sae-chan and unfortunately even Hoshinomiya-sensei.

I approached them and explained that I still had some questions regarding the tournaments. We talked for a while but it quickly escalated into me being interrogated by Hoshinomiya-sensei. She started asking me some personal questions and also some silly things but I didn't mind it and simply endure it until the moment I have been waiting for the entire time.

"Well, it was pretty nice talking to you, Felix-kun. However, I think that we better get going, I am getting too hot so I want to soak my body in the cold water." Hoshinomiya-sensei said while stretching her arms behind her back with her eyes closed, puffing out her chest and highlighting her front assets.

Is she trying to tease me? Is she saying that I have lost my chance to see them even though I could have? I thought while observing her face and sure enough, after a few seconds, she opened her right eye to take a peek where I was looking.

"Chabashira-sensei, can you please remain here for a while? I still have something to discuss with you regarding Class D." I smiled at Hoshinomiya-sensei who returned the gesture in the form of a silly smile because she has realized that her actions were seen through me and then I redirected my gaze at Sae-chan.

"...Chie-chan, can you go ahead?" Sae-chan has gotten my meaning and politely told her friend to leave.

"Hmpf! It seems that I am not welcomed here any longer. I will wait for you in the pool. Felix-kun, we might see each other today a few more times so see you later." Hoshinomiya-sensei acted to be upset but she still threw Sae-chan particular smile before leaving while Sae-chan could only shake her head, seeing her friend's playful side.

"So? What do you have to discuss with me? It's not really about your class, right?" Sae-chan said while looking at me with her sharp and cold eyes, however, there was no hostility in them, she was just trying to see through me.

"Well...you could say that it's something regarding my class but not entirely. Can you answer me some questions regarding the last exam focused on our thinking ability?" I asked her with a smile and she was slightly surprised for a while before calming down.

"...The exam is no longer ongoing so I guess I can answer a few of your questions regarding that exam. What do you want to know? You must also take into mind that I might be unable to answer all of your questions." She explained to me while calmly sipping her drink.

"The solution on how to solve that exam was inside the zodiac sign and the list of the members we had received at that time, right?" I asked her with furrowed brows and what I have got in return was a simple smile however that was enough of the answer for me.

"Why do you think so?" She asked with a curious expression.

"First, why would you divide us based on the zodiac signs without any hidden deeper meaning inside? Just because it was convenient for you? I doubt that. Second, there were 12 groups based on the zodiac signs and in each group, there were more than 12 members that alone made me slightly suspicious of how "convenient" it was but that wasn't everything at all. Third, the list of the group members...why were our names sorted by the numbers and not by our surnames? If you allocated a number to each of us while also sorting our names based on our surnames, I would have understood it as you trying to make the list look organized. And seeing that number 4 was allocated to my surname made me even more suspicious. Rabbit sign is the 4th sign and...who would have thought, I was the target"

"Do you know why it wasn't sorted based on surnames?" She asked me with a smile, calmly listening to my theory.

"Because of you. I wasn't meant to be in that group in the first place, however, you were curious about what would have happened with me and Ayanokoji-kun in the same group while you also wanted to make me the target" Although I said this with a confident smile, I had no reassurance that I was right, but that would also mean that her words have quite a good weight or she simply made a deal with Hoshinomiya-sensei. Two voices have a bigger impact than only one voice. There is also an option that others simply didn't care about such small changes.

"...Haha, it seems that there is nothing I can hide from you. You had a pretty good theory so why didn't you use it at that time?" She laughed a bit with a genuine smile while looking at me.

"It wasn't a bad theory but a theory is still only a theory. I was suspicious of it however there was no way for me to confirm it and if I wanted to-"

"If you wanted to confirm it, you would have to communicate with your classmates and they would need to have absolute trust in you to tell you that information. And even if all of that was completed, you would need them to trust your judgment which most of them would not believe. And even if they believed you and your class would win the entire exam, it would make you stand out too much. Rumors are something too difficult to hide and eventually, even the other classes would get to know that it was you." She continued for me with closed eyes while relaxing on the lounger.

I could use Hirata for that job but with everything that was happening to him at that time...I don't think it would be a very wise decision, not to mention that I myself can't trust him so much as to reveal everything to him. I have already revealed to Matsushita that I am not just a regular student who is just slightly better at physical activities, thankfully I still haven't heard any rumors about that.

"You know, it's not very polite to interrupt someone who is talking" I complained because she took exactly my words from my mouth.

"It's not very polite to treat your teacher as your friend" She returned my comment at me.

I climbed on the empty lounger right beside hers, lied down on my stomach and supported my chin with my hands while looking at her face.

"But currently you aren't working as a teacher, isn't that right Sae-chan?" I said with a smile.

When she heard that my voice is closer than before, she opened her eyes and when she saw me being so close to her, she had a slightly surprised expression for a while.

"...Do you really find my name so pleasant that you are calling me who is much older than you with a first name and inappropriate honorifics?" She raised her brow when she remembered how I have been calling her for a few months now.

Older...hah, you wish.

"Well, I won't lie that you have a pretty nice name, Sae-chan" This time I especially used a more affectionate tone when I called out her name.

"..." When she heard my tone, she was trying her best to maintain her usual serious expression, however, she was unable to hide a slight blush on her cheeks.

"By the way, you have mentioned Ayanokoji...Do you know anything?" She frowned and asked me with an inquiring expression, trying her best to hide her embarrassment.

"Just that he isn't someone who he seems to be." I answered her with a smile, however, she wasn't convinced.

"Is that all?" She asked me with a suspicious expression.

"That's all or is there perhaps something else?" I firmly nodded without any delay.

I have no idea what she knows. I might be able to get more information about Ayanakoji from her but if she knows such information, it will be the same as saying that I am closely related to him.

"You surely know more..." She said with a confident smile.

This woman's mind is sharp or maybe it's just her hunch and she is acting all confident to make me reveal it.

"*sigh* Although it warms my heart that my favorite teacher is placing such high hopes onto me but I also hate to disappoint her" I intentionally muttered aloud with a sad expression.

"...Then forget it, is there something else you want to discuss or can I go after Chie-chan? I think that she is already imagining what we are doing here." She touched her forehead and said with a tired expression when she mentioned her friend.

"Yeah, one more question. Why is she behaving like a naughty teenager? It's pretty unusual seeing 2 people with totally opposite personalities to be good friends." I got up from the lounger and asked her with a confused expression.

"Well, I don't think it's something you need to know but simply put, she wants to enjoy her life while she is still beautiful."

---

'Plus I guess the temptation of teasing a good looking teenage boy is also too much for her to handle.' Sae-chan thought while absentmindedly looking at Felix's fine features, his usually uninterested face with sharp bright red eyes.

---

I wanted to ask for how long they are intending to be here and if they are using usual changing rooms or if there are some rooms specific to the staff because I kept on having an uneasy feeling inside me. But asking her for something like that would be pretty weird so I better ignore that feeling for now.

I said my goodbyes to her and returned back to the first section where most of my classmates were playing around.

I talked with a few more people who still had some questions about me and I even found some time to fulfill Matsushita's previous request about going for a swim with her.

Time flew by a really fast and the sun was slowly descending until the sky was fully covered by the orange color.

"Fuu, that was a long day, however even if it was a long day, I didn't expect it to end so fast. Time flies by quickly when you are having fun with your friends." Hirata who approached me released a tired yet slightly disappointed sigh and said aloud next to me. His tone was the tired one yet his smile said that he was slightly sad that this was going to be the last day we will do something like this before the school resumes. I bet he was being dragged around by the girls, that's why he should be so tired.

"Sure it does" I agreed with his statement although, for me, time flew by quickly due to other various reasons.

"Well, we should get going, they are closing just in 1 hour so we better leave earlier." He didn't say this only to me but to everyone from our class who was around.

"But not everyone is here..." Mei-Yu Wang who was usually more of a quiet type said aloud while looking around to search for the missing people. Of course, it wasn't on the Sakura's level, she was simply a better listener than a talker and preferred to keep her mouth shut if she didn't have to speak, she also isn't bad in her studies.

"Ike-kun, Sudo-kun and Yamauchi-kun said that they will be leaving earlier so they probably left already." Ayanokoji explained and when everyone heard about this, they instantly lost interest.

"And Karuizawa-san said that she has some matters to attend to so she won't be leaving together with us." Shinohara said what she knew.

"I see...well, since it's only them who are missing, I guess we can go to the changing room, dress up and leave." Hirata said and our class split up into 2 groups, girls and boys.

Hirata was the last one walking behind our group so I stopped him for a while without anyone noticing.

"Yosuke-kun, I also need to do something before I go back to the changing room. Can you please explain it to others if anyone asks about me? I might not be able to leave together with all of you so you can go ahead without me." I said with an apologetic smile.

He looked slightly surprised for a while before giving me a teasing smile.

"Sure, I will do it. Take care and also enjoy yourself." He said and tapped a few times on my shoulder before leaving.

Good, he knows that my relationship with Kei is slightly special. He is also smart so when he heard that I want to remain here for some time he immediately connected it with Kei who also has "some matters to attend to".