2.4

On my way back from Keyaki Mall, I found Morishita lying down on a bench.

"What the..."

Kei, who was sitting next to me, looked at Morishita with a puzzled (and slightly taken back) expression.

She was unable to understand how she ended up lying down on a bench with her eyes closed even though it wasn't particularly sunny.

Even though the snow had thawed, it was still mid-January—the middle of winter.

"Is she dead?"

Thinking about it, is it even slightly possible that this could be the end for Morishita…?

"No, she's not."

Kei, who was beside me, interjected and denied it.

"That's correct. I'm not dead."

Morishita, who sat up with a pouty face, looked at us with a somewhat sleepy face.

It seemed like she was about to fall asleep.

It was impressive that someone could get drowsy under this freezing sky.

"What are you doing in such a place?"

"Are you curious?"

"It would be a lie if I said I wasn't interested but―"

"Then, I'll explain. I was, believe it or not, waiting for you, Ayanokōji Kiyotaka."

As Kei tried to inquire further just on a curious level, she cut her off and explained.

Although she spoke politely, the way she referred to me without honorifics slightly bothered me.

"Eh, do you know each other?"

Of course, Kei would be surprised as well.

"I wouldn't say we're acquaintances. We've only talked once."

(Illustration)

"Hmm? You sure know many girls from other classes, don't you, Kiyotaka-kun?"

Kei looked up at me like a teacher, as if cross-examining a student, her arms folded and her gaze prying.

"I didn't talk to her first."

"It doesn't matter who talks first. The fact that the conversation took place is the problem."

She had a rather unreasonable opinion.

Of course, I knew she wasn't serious even when she said it sincerely.

"You said you were waiting for me, but if I hadn't spoken to you, what were you planning to do?"

I'd thought it'd be fine to ignore Morishita's presence here and had only spoken to her by chance.

"No need to worry. I was slightly opening my eyes, so I would have noticed if you passed by."

I couldn't understand why she was lying down if she wasn't sleeping.

I felt like I'd lose if I thought too deeply about Morishita's behavior.

"Why were you waiting for me?"

"What do you think?"

I didn't expect you to ask me back…

"I can't possibly guess."

"As it turns out, I've had a stroke of luck. It's about that girl over there, specifically."

"Eh, me?"

Kei pointed at herself in surprise, not thinking she was involved.

"Yes. I was curious about what kind of person you are."

"Curious? What do you mean?"

"I noticed something strange as I was investigating."

As Morishita slowly stood up, she directed her sleepy eyes towards Kei, gradually moving closer.

"What? What's this?"

Morishita had a unique aura, different from Hiyori.

It wasn't calmness or harmony, but rather simply bizarre.

Kei also seemed to have fully sensed Morishita's eccentricity quickly, so she was somewhat taken aback.

"Karuizawa Kei. You were initially dating Hirata Yōsuke, right?"

Ah, indeed, both Kei and Yōsuke used each other's first names.

"So what?"

"Why did you date Hirata Yōsuke? No, why would Hirata Yōsuke date a woman like you in the first place?"

Like a detective cornering a criminal, Morishita started to walk around Kei.

"Wait, wait, aren't you saying something rude?"

"I researched Hirata Yōsuke in my own way too. He's supposedly the most popular guy in school. He belongs to the soccer club, which factors into his popularity, he has excellent academic performance, he's blessed in looks, he respects gender equality, and he's kind, considerate, and intelligent."

There were a few things that caught my attention in the way it was phrased, but as an evaluation of Yōsuke, it was valid and accurate.

In short, on the surface, it was fair to call him an exceptional student. He had a tendency to get hurt easily and drive himself into a corner, but that wasn't something to be mentioned, so it was omitted.

"Do you think he would pick a casual woman like you?"

"...What do you mean by casual?"

"I don't know. It's the first time I've heard the term."

She lied.

'Casual' means irresponsible and nonchalant. It carried the feeling of being nonspecific.

If I told Kei here, it would lead to the start of a dispute.

Morishita softly stroked Kei's puzzled cheek with her index finger.

"Don't touch me without permission."

"It seems you're holding back now, but initially, despite being a first-year in high school, you were rumored to be wearing heavy makeup."

"That's... That's just my choice."

"You're a casual woman, you have nothing unique, and you wear heavy makeup. I can't figure out why Hirata Yōsuke chose you."

"Well, um, maybe because I was cute?"

Without mentioning anything like asking Yōsuke for help as camouflage to hide her past of being bullied, she provided a convenient self-assessment.

"If you replace heavy makeup with a mask, it would be easier to understand; you're a timid and sensitive soul. But if so, being strong-willed and assertive, a leader among girls, seems contradictory."

There was no doubt she was a weirdo. But Morishita seemed to be a student with enough intelligence to gather information and recognize doubts.

"What's up with you…"

Exposed to such a transparent reasoning, Kei was disturbed.

If we continued to talk together, it probably wouldn't go in a good direction.

"I don't think love makes sense. I began dating Kei because of our feelings. Is there a problem with that?"

As I moved in protectively towards Kei, she seemed pleasantly surprised by my words and narrowed her eyes in joy.

"I see, that's true. I've never been in love, so I can't deny that reason doesn't apply."

If love was something that could be calculated, I wouldn't have spent so much time on it.

"I apologize for my earlier rude remarks, Karuizawa Kei."

Moving right in front of Kei, Morishita bowed deeply… too deeply, and remained that way.

"You don't have to apologize that much, I understand."

"Is that so? Then, since the apology is over, there's no problem, right?"

"Eh? Well… that's fine, but it doesn't sit well with me?"

I could understand that feeling all too well, but there was nothing that could be done.

"I don't want to intrude any further, so I think I should take my leave."

"You finally understand... You're a better girl than I thought?"

At this point, the safest move was to let Morishita go, but the opportunities to make contact with her weren't that numerous.

I decided to raise a question that had been bothering me.

"For a student in Sakayanagi's class, you're quite unique, aren't you? Don't you get told that by others?"

Kei, who was standing next to me, wore an expression as if she was going to hold me back, but I waited for an answer without concern.

"Certainly, I often hear that—that I'm unique."

That made sense. She definitely seemed unique.

"But it's funny. I've always been aware that I'm a unique person, and I've always thought of myself as special. Even so, I don't really like being reminded constantly, 'You're so unique.'"

"My apologies for that. But the fact is, I hadn't recognized that a student like you was in Sakayanagi's class these past two years."

"I see. You were surprised that a person you thought had no distinct personality turned out to be unique."

"That's right."

"I don't make any moves unless I'm interested. In the flow of Sakayanagi Arisu and Katsuragi Kōhei leading the class as leaders, they have always protected the entirety of Class A, so there was no need for me to do anything. There was no need to show off my individuality. If I live quietly, I can graduate as is. I suppose it can't be helped if I appeared to lack a distinct personality."

Without concealing her situation, she spoke clearly about why she was perceived that way.

Morishita's explanation was reasonable.

Now, I was attracting attention to the point of being watched by students like Morishita.

Although I was supposed to be just another inconspicuous student, I stood out as much, if not more than, Horikita. Additionally, I was being warily watched.

Of course, this was solely because I had chosen to take action.

If I had been in Class A like Morishita when I enrolled, and if Sakayanagi and I hadn't known each other, the situation would be completely different.

Even without doing anything, simply following instructions would secure Class A's position.

Nothing could've been easier.

I would've spent my days as an ordinary student with no distinctive character, living quietly.

A path to graduation without suspicion or caution from anyone.

Morishita was merely drifting halfway along this quiet route.

"I'm glad I was able to meet the two of you today. Thank you for dealing with someone like me."

"Uh, you're welcome."

For some reason, Kei also began to speak politely to match Morishita.

"Most of the students who enroll in this school aspire to graduate from Class A. I am one of them, of course. Therefore, I felt a sense of crisis and thought I should speak with various students. After all, you have attracted quite a bit of attention lately."

Kei ruminated once again on her reason for reaching out in this setting.

"I may need to interact with both of you in the future. I would appreciate your kindness in that regard, Ayanokōji Kiyotaka, Karuizawa Kei."

Morishita began to walk away after bowing her head deeply but stopped shortly afterward.

She then turned around.

"The two of you were about to head home, weren't you?"

"Well, yes, but…"

"I intended to return to the dorm as well. Would you like to join me for a chat along the way?"

"Huh, wait… We just finished talking, and you want to talk more? Can't you read the room…?"

"This is a great opportunity. Don't hesitate to ask me anything."

"We're not interested at all…!"

"Don't be like that. Shall we even exchange contact information? Ayanokōji Kiyotaka included, of course."

"No, no, no, we're not exchanging anything! Right?"

"I don't mind exchanging contact information."

"Wait a minute!"

"It's better to have more friends."

"That's a wonderful thought. I completely agree."

"Ugh~ Kiyotaka, that side of you is kind of cute, I can't get mad at you!"

And so, we (reluctantly on Kei's part) decided to exchange contact information.

A chat app could be quite handy, and it didn't hurt to have each other's information.

One thing that caught my eye was that Morishita only had a few people registered on her chat app.

She really seemed to have been living a quiet life until now, not making any friends.

She was a bit strange in that respect.