After getting my ankle wrapped at the campus clinic and being scolded by the nurse for trying to walk too much, I finally made my way to class.
"I'm really sorry I'm late."
The professor glanced at my bandaged ankle before nodding. "Take your seat."
"Thank you." I quietly sat down, relieved I hadn't received another lecture about punctuality.
Once everyone settled down, the professor clapped his hands. "Today's assignment is a group presentation. You'll be working in pairs."
Students immediately turned toward their friends. Within seconds, nearly everyone already had a partner.
I looked around.
Only two people remained alone.
Me.
And Kazuha.
This felt less like fate and more like the universe refusing to let me escape.
I stayed frozen in my seat, pretending not to notice.
Unfortunately, the professor noticed for us. "Okay, you two will be partners."
Before I could say anything, Kazuha quietly walked over and sat beside me.
Well... "beside" might have been the wrong word. There was nearly a meter of space between us. I was pretty sure another student could comfortably fit between our chairs.
I glanced at her. "H-Hi."
She simply nodded before focusing on the assignment.
Should I apologize now?
"Uh... About yesterday..."
She looked at me.
"Never mind." I lightly slapped my own cheeks.
Focus, Kaoru.
Kazuha blinked once before silently returning to her notes.
Thirty minutes passed surprisingly quickly.
"Time's up," the professor announced. "I'll choose a few groups at random to present."
My heartbeat immediately doubled.
Please don't pick us. Anyone but us.
The professor glanced around the classroom before pointing in our direction. "You two."
Of course. I let out a long, defeated sigh.
Kazuha calmly stood up and walked to the front while I limped after her.
The professor noticed my ankle and gestured toward a chair. "You may present while sitting."
"Thank you."
Kazuha began first.
Her explanation was smooth, organized, and confident. She spoke so naturally that even the professor nodded several times in approval. She really was amazing.
Then she turned toward me. "Your turn."
"Huh?"
"Kaoru."
"Me?... Oh!" Right. Presentation.
I shot to my feet with far more confidence than coordination. "Ouch!"
After sitting back down with what little dignity I had left, I began my explanation. "So... our topic is..."
I took a deep breath and looked at everyone staring at me.
Don't panic, Kaoru. Just say economics things.
"Su... supply and demand." I nodded to myself.
"Imagine..." I paused dramatically. "...a duck."
The classroom went completely silent.
"A duck?" someone repeated.
"Yeah." I nodded confidently. "A duck."
I had absolutely no idea where I was going with this.
"So... if there are... more ducks..." I waved my hands around. "Then there are more supplies."
...
"And if there are fewer ducks..." I pointed at the floor. "there are fewer supplies."
The room remained painfully silent.
I looked at Kazuha for help. She slowly covered her face with one hand. No help was coming.
I swallowed.
"So... the demand..." I pointed at an imaginary duck. "demands the duck."
Someone in the back snorted.
Encouraged, I kept going.
"And the supply..." I pointed somewhere else. "supplies the duck."
The class erupted into laughter.
Then a hand slowly rose.
"Yes?" I said confidently.
The student frowned. "What kind of duck is it?"
"Huh?"
"The duck. Is it wild or farm raised?"
"I..." I blinked. "I don't think that's important."
Another hand shot up. "If it's a rare duck, wouldn't that naturally reduce supply and increase its market price?"
"Oh." That... actually sounded smart.
Before I could answer, another student joined in.
"What if the duck lays golden eggs? Doesn't that change consumer demand?"
"And what if the government subsidizes duck farmers?"
"Does inflation affect the duck?"
Questions flew at me from every direction. My imaginary duck had somehow become the center of an economic crisis.
"W-Wait!" I raised both hands. "Guys, it's just... a normal duck!"
"What defines a normal duck?" someone immediately challenged.
"I..." I looked around helplessly. Why were they taking the duck more seriously than I was? "Kazuha? Help..."
She let out a tiny sigh before standing up. "If I may."
The classroom instantly quieted.
"The duck itself isn't the point," she said calmly. "Kaoru was trying to illustrate that supply and demand determine market prices."
She walked to the whiteboard and picked up a marker. "If there are very few ducks available while many people want to buy one, demand exceeds supply. Sellers can charge a higher price."
She drew a simple graph. "On the other hand, if duck farms produce far more ducks than consumers want, suppliers compete to sell them. Prices fall."
Several students nodded.
"And if consumer preferences change, for example, if ducks suddenly become fashionable because of a viral social media trend, demand shifts outward, increasing the equilibrium price unless supply also increases."
"Oh. I get it now." The students who had been interrogating my poor imaginary duck all nodded in understanding.
The professor smiled approvingly. ""Excellent explanation, Ms. Saegusa."
She gave a polite nod before returning to my side.
I stared at her in amazement.
She'd taken my completely broken duck analogy and somehow turned it into a legitimate economics lesson. That was incredible.
"Excellent teamwork. You may both return to your seats."
Teamwork? She carried ninety-nine percent of that presentation. I was just the comic relief.
That evening... I stood outside our dorm room, hesitating to go inside.
Should I go inside? Was she inside? Did she forgive me? Was she waiting with a baseball bat? The possibilities were endless.
Then I noticed someone standing at the end of the hallway.
"Kazuha!" I accidentally shouted.
She turned around, our eyes met and immediately started walking away.
"W-Wait!" I hurried after her. My ankle immediately reminded me why that was a terrible idea.
"Agh!" I stumbled and fell onto the floor. "Kazuha, wait!"
She stopped but didn't turn around.
I forced myself to smile through the pain. "Please use the room. I'll sleep somewhere else if you want."
Several passing students slowed down to watch.
"I'm really sorry." I pointed dramatically at my bandaged ankle. "Look! I can't even do anything weird right now!"
...
The hallway became completely silent.
One student whispered, "Are they dating?"
Another gasped. "They're having a lovers quarrel."
A guy nodded seriously. "I've seen this in dramas."
I froze. "W-Wait!"
NO! THIS WASN'T HELPING!
Kazuha slowly turned around. Her shoulders trembled.
Was she... crying?
No. She was trying very hard not to lose her temper. She marched straight toward me before smacking the top of my head.
"Ow!"
"Could you just stop talking?" Her face was bright red. "You keep making everything sound worse!"
"Sorry."
"I know you're apologizing!" She smacked my head again. "But every apology somehow creates another misunderstanding!"
Students nearby actually nodded in agreement.
Kazuha covered her face with one hand before letting out a long sigh. "Just... Please think before you speak."
Then she quietly walked back toward our room, leaving me sitting on the floor wondering if my brain had permanently stopped developing.
"So... after that, we barely spoke to each other anymore." I finished telling Joseph everything that had happened that day. "It's already been three days. I've never felt this guilty in my entire life."
He listened without interrupting until I finally finished, then he smacked my head.
"Ow!"
"What did you expect, dumbass?" he sighed. "Even I'd be weirded out if I walked in on my roommate doing something embarrassing like that. Then you stacked misunderstanding on top of misunderstanding."
He shook his head. "Kaoru, you seriously need to behave more like a girl."
"The gesture or...?"
"No." He pointed at my forehead. "The mindset."
"Mindset?"
"Yeah."
"How?"
Joseph confidently opened his mouth, then closed it again. "Actually, I have no idea."
I stared at him.
"I've been guys for eighteen years."
"I was too!" I protested.
Joseph burst into laughter. "For now, just give her some space."
"Why?"
"So she can calm down. Then slowly earn her trust back."
I crossed my arms. "Somehow you've started making sense."
"I've always made more sense than you."
"Debatable."
He pointed his chopsticks at me. "Seriously, don't do anything stupid anymore."
I nodded confidently.
Joseph looked up at the ceiling before letting out a weary sigh. "Anyway, you should be grateful. After everything that happened, she's still willing to sleep in the same room as you."
I let out a long sigh.
A moment later, Joseph suddenly leaned across the table, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "Ah! I've got an idea for you."
I blinked.
"Wanna hear it?"
I nodded so hard my head nearly came off. "Of course!"
Joseph flashed a mischievous grin.
"I call it..." He paused dramatically. "Operation: Shadow Mission."
I frowned. "Operation... Shadow?" The name alone sounded suspicious.
I had no idea what kind of nonsense he was about to suggest, but considering my relationship with Kazuha was hanging by a thread...
At this point, I was willing to hear out even the stupidest plan. "Go on."