Ding-a-ling.
The school bell rang, and the students immediately became restless.
Students participating in club activities grabbed their bags and rushed to their club rooms, while the MVPs of the Home Return Club bolted out of the school like lightning. In just five minutes, the once lively school became deserted.
Because he had gone to the restroom, by the time Watanabe Yu calmly finished packing his bag, there were hardly any people left in the classroom.
Now that *Norwegian Wood* had been submitted, he didn't need to race against time every moment anymore.
Slowing down for a day or two was completely fine.
"Want to go watch the excitement?"
Seeing Watanabe Yu walk out, Kiriyama Kazuma, who had been waiting outside the classroom for a while, winked at him.
"What excitement?"
Watanabe Yu became interested.
In this regard, Kiriyama Kazuma had always been trustworthy; the 'excitement' he mentioned was usually genuinely interesting.
"A confession!"
Kiriyama Kazuma rarely held back the suspense this time.
The two started walking and entered the stairwell, heading downstairs.
"To you?"
Watanabe Yu looked at Kiriyama Kazuma with anticipation.
If the latter nodded, he would immediately turn around and go back to the classroom to fetch a stool.
He absolutely had to consume this drama from beginning to end.
"..."
Hearing this, Kiriyama Kazuma's expression instantly became subtle.
After a full ten seconds of silence, he lightly coughed, "In any case, the future is promising, you get what I mean?"
He felt he had a good chance!
"I get what you mean, buddy."
A hint of disappointment flashed in Watanabe Yu's eyes, but outwardly, he nodded in cooperation.
He had thought Kiriyama Kazuma was about to start a plot where one thing fails but another succeeds.
"You almost misled me!" Kiriyama Kazuma shot Watanabe Yu a look, pulling the topic back, "Back to the main point, this confession event involves a Senior from the third year confessing to a Senior from the second year."
"That Senior is the President of the Kendo Club, has excellent motor nerves, outstanding grades, and a wealthy family background."
"He's decent looking too, although not as handsome as you, he still counts as a handsome guy, the popular type in his grade."
As he said this, Kiriyama Kazuma's expression couldn't help but become somewhat complicated.
Even though he knew the two would be a good match, he still wanted to see the Kendo Club President get rejected.
"Which Senior from the second year?"
The curiosity in Watanabe Yu's eyes grew stronger.
It wasn't because of the second-year Senior herself, but because of the expression on Kiriyama Kazuma's face.
—It was as if he was about to lose his 'White Moonlight'.
"You don't know?"
Kiriyama Kazuma turned his head in surprise, looking at Watanabe Yu as if he were an alien.
"I don't."
Watanabe Yu nodded calmly.
He had never been interested in such so-called famous figures in the grade; expecting him to know was less likely than expecting Anbara Risa to know.
The two passed the corner of the second-floor stairs and headed toward the first floor.
"To put it in more common terms, that Senior is the existence of a High Mountain Flower."
Kiriyama Kazuma slowed his pace, briefing Watanabe Yu, "She is fair-skinned, has a beautiful and clear temperament, her academic performance is so good that her tuition for all three years is waived, and she receives the full scholarship every academic year."
"The student representative at the school assembly hasn't changed since she enrolled; it's always been her."
"In the sports meet, for any event she participated in, her ranking never dropped below second place."
"Although her family is somewhat ordinary, so what?"
"To use a metaphor I think is very appropriate, she is like a gardenia slightly beaded with water after the rain clears, the faint fragrance remains even after the storm."
"Although she appears aloof and maintains distance from everyone, and the sense of detachment in her eyes has never disappeared, she is likely the cold-on-the-outside, warm-on-the-inside type—that's just my guess."
Kiriyama Kazuma had never actually interacted with that Senior; he just felt that such a personality must hide that classic persona underneath.
"Not everyone is a character with that kind of contrast, Kiriyama," Watanabe Yu shook his head, feeling it was both funny and sad. "A person's personality is largely determined by their past experiences and living environment."
This is why some people spend their whole lives being healed by their childhood, while others spend their whole lives healing their childhood.
"That's true."
Kiriyama Kazuma nodded, accepting Watanabe Yu's statement.
Unknowingly, the two exited the stairs, changed their shoes, and arrived in the corridor on the first floor of the teaching building.
"Look, over there."
Kiriyama Kazuma stopped Watanabe Yu, making him pause.
"There's no one there, just a few boys."
Watanabe Yu glanced over there and asked curiously.
Their current position was at a very subtle angle; they could see what was happening over there, but the people there couldn't see them.
"The leading one in the middle is the male protagonist of this confession event," Kiriyama Kazuma lowered his voice. "Let's wait a moment."
"Waiting for the female lead to arrive?"
Watanabe Yu asked.
"Yes, the Senior was called in by the teacher for a talk today because she's been absentminded in class recently. The source of the information is a Senior from the second year, one of the informants I just connected with."
Kiriyama Kazuma had originally intended to say 'friend,' but he mused that 'informant' from a crime movie sounded cooler.
So, he changed his wording at the last moment.
"Such timely information!"
Watanabe Yu looked at Kiriyama Kazuma with some surprise.
If this trend continued, this kid would eventually become the most well-informed person at Jonan Private High School.
Perhaps by the next semester, Kiriyama Kazuma could naturally switch careers and become a classic information broker.
"Of course!"
Kiriyama Kazuma raised his eyebrows proudly, leaning back slightly against a pillar in the corridor.
While they were talking, a beautiful figure walked out of the office building.
Her spring school uniform covered most of her body.
Under the bright sunlight, her skin was so fair it seemed to reflect light.
Beneath her skirt were a pair of long, well-proportioned legs with a distinct athletic beauty, in no way inferior to the Saintess Young Miss, each having their own merits.
But...
Isn't Bunkyo Ward a bit too small? How can you run into an acquaintance just by taking a few steps?
Watanabe Yu sighed inwardly, looking over there.
"Hamabe-san! I like you, please go out with me!"
The leading boy saw Ryoko Hamabe's figure, immediately stepped forward, blocked her path, and stated his feelings directly.
It wasn't that he wanted to be so direct; it was mainly because the experiences of those who failed before him taught him that if your Opening Move is too long, people won't even listen to the end and will just leave.
Being direct gave him a sliver of a chance.
"Move aside, I'm in a hurry."
Ryoko Hamabe frowned, a hint of impatience appearing on her fair little face.
She had already been kept behind by the teacher for a brief talk; if she was delayed again, she would definitely be late for her part-time job at the convenience store.
"Hamabe-san..."
The Kendo Club President clearly wasn't planning to give up yet.
"I have no favorable feelings for you, nor do I plan to play boring house games with you, so can you move?"
The detachment in Ryoko Hamabe's eyes grew stronger.
Her slightly cold voice at that moment was like the biting, sharp cold wind in an icy canyon, instantly dropping the temperature to below zero.
"..."
After a moment of silence, the boy moved aside.
He wasn't an idiot; he naturally understood the finality in that rejection.
Bypassing him, Ryoko Hamabe hurried down the steps.
However, the moment she stepped down, her pace paused slightly, as if sensing something. She turned her head back and looked toward Watanabe Yu's side.
As their eyes met, a flicker of surprise crossed her gaze.
But quickly, she withdrew her line of sight.
She really was about to be late for her job!
"She rejected him, as expected. But did she just glance over here? Did she notice us?"
Kiriyama Kazuma patted Watanabe Yu's shoulder, clearly relieved.
The White Moonlight of Jonan Private High School was safe!
The two started walking again, heading outside the school.
"Maybe, but what do you mean, 'as expected' she rejected him?"
Watanabe Yu picked up the topic.
"Ever since Senior Hamabe enrolled, confessions like this haven't stopped, so do you understand what I mean?"
Kiriyama Kazuma shrugged.
"She rejected them all before."
Watanabe Yu voiced the subtext Kiriyama Kazuma hadn't spoken aloud.
"Yes," Kiriyama Kazuma paused, then lightly bumped Watanabe Yu, urging him, "So, aren't you going to try?"
"Try your head!"
Watanabe Yu rolled his eyes; did he have nothing better to do?
"Why not? Unleash your personal charm and win over Senior Hamabe!"
Kiriyama Kazuma blinked, winking suggestively.
"From Hayakawa Yuki to Ryoko Hamabe, you're practically wishing for your buddy to start dating quickly, aren't you?"
Watanabe Yu complained irritably.
He figured he wasn't even at the age where people started pressuring him to marry, so why was this starting again?
"Yes, that way I can legitimately ask your girlfriend to introduce me to her best friend," Kiriyama Kazuma raised an eyebrow. "How about it, sacrifice a little for your buddy's happiness?"
"...Impressive!"
I have to say, Kiriyama, you really are a scoundrel!
1/2
Writing the next update, over.