Chapter 30: Embarrassment lasts longer than you think

Ah.

Aaaaaah!!!

My mind went blank as soon as I opened my eyes.

The memory of yesterday… no, of the weekend, made my face feel like it was burning red.

‘Kyaaaaaak!! I, I!!’

I was definitely sitting next to Aya on the park bench…

How did it end up with a lap pillow!!

And… and…!

I fell asleep comfortably thinking, ‘It’s soft and warm…’, and I probably… no, almost certainly drooled (one drop).

‘Aaaaaaaah!!! I wish I didn’t remember!!!’

I was so embarrassed, but I have to meet that Aya again today.

Starting today, it’s back to normal school life.

[Line message]

Aya: I think it’s about time to leave?

Rina: Yeah, I’ll be out!

I hurriedly packed my bag, checked the laces of my sneakers, and left the house.

Sigh… I really hope Aya doesn’t think yesterday was weird.

While I was worrying about this, I was a little late, so I had to run.

It’s better than when I ran in loafers, but sneakers are also uncomfortable for my feet.

I ran panting towards the place where Aya would be waiting.

“Aya!”

“Oh, you’re here?”

Aya was waiting for me at the midpoint of the way to school.

Aya, whose silver hair shone softly in the morning sunlight, could be seen from afar.

I held back my excitement, caught my breath, and hurriedly spoke.

“Yeah… Sorry I’m late.”

“It’s okay, I didn’t wait long.”

Aya smiled softly and tilted her head slightly.

But, for some reason, I felt a twinge and couldn’t meet her eyes directly.

‘…Aya, you remember everything, don’t you?’

I thought that internally, and deliberately acted calm and moved.

A little later, Mizuki joined us at the usual meeting place.

“Oh~ Everyone’s here~!”

“Ugh… I almost was late…”

“What, you weren’t that late~?”

I forced a smile and answered.

Mizuki, as usual, put her arm around my shoulder with a playful face.

Not as much as Aya, but Mizuki is also quite tall, so when I’m between the two of them, I feel like a younger sibling.

***

Today is Monday.

I don’t know if there’s such a saying in Japan, but it’s also the day when Monday blues patients appear in droves.

Maybe that’s why? Students with still sleepy faces were gathering in the classroom one by one.

I sat down, put down my bag, and rested my chin on the desk.

‘…Aya is acting normal, so thankfully the lap pillow incident is probably being overlooked, right?’

I sighed in relief internally.

But when Aya spoke in a calm voice, my heart fluttered.

“By the way, Tachibana senpai said we should discuss the festival during lunchtime.”

I raised my head sharply.

Suddenly, I remembered the weekend and felt strangely embarrassed.

“Ah, I don’t want to~ It’s annoying~ I just want to talk about everything in the group chat~”

Mizuki, who was behind me, grumbled playfully.

‘Actually, since the three of us, the first-year student council members, are together, couldn’t we just discuss it roughly…?’

I had that thought for a moment, but even though the first-year students are the main players in this festival, the second-year students are in a supporting role.

It can’t proceed without official discussion.

And yet… I had to be taught the details of the treasurer’s work by Tachibana senpai.

***

Time flew by, and the bell rang to announce lunchtime.

The three of us often headed to the general dining hall.

Every time I come, I feel it… Is this really a general dining hall?

There’s a wide variety of food, and the interior of the dining hall is clean and stylish.

Above all, that chandelier above, and the marble floor… The more I get used to school life, the more I realize this isn’t ordinary.

And me.

Today, I wasn’t just comfortable because it was lunchtime.

‘…Going to the student council room right after lunch.’

I sighed as I received the omurice I ordered on a tray.

Aya and Mizuki walked side by side and naturally stood next to me.

“Rina, why are you so worried?”

Mizuki asked playfully.

I carried the tray, sat down, and muttered softly.

“We have to go to the student council room today…”

“Ah, that~”

Mizuki spoke casually, but the thought of having to participate in ‘official discussion’ for the first time in the student council wouldn’t leave my head.

I moved my steps towards the always empty window side and sat down in the usual, familiar seat.

“Still, since it’s a student council meeting… we have to go in person.”

“That’s right, it’s not like we can finish it just by talking amongst ourselves.”

Aya smiled calmly and looked at me.

Ah, as expected of Aya… But the events of the weekend kept coming to mind, making it somehow difficult to rely on Aya’s presence.

But, as if she noticed my subtle gaze, Mizuki suddenly put down her utensils and stared at us intently.

“Did something happen between you two over the weekend?”

“Huh? No?!”

“Nothing happened.”

At Aya’s lightly smiling appearance, Mizuki narrowed her eyes and looked back and forth between the two of us.

Aya looked calm, but I somehow felt pierced by Mizuki’s gaze, so I just poked the side of the omurice.

“Really~ Nothing happened between you two, right?”

“Really.”

When Aya played innocent, Mizuki sighed and looked at her.

Phew, thank you, Aya, for drawing her attention away from me.

“Well, whatever. If Ayarin says so, then it must be so~?”

“Speaking of which, Mizuki, did you have a good weekend?”

Aya changed the subject in an instant.

As expected… it’s Aya.

“Shrine?”

“Yeah.”

“Of course I had a good time. It’s not like I can’t play the role of a young lady in front of others.”

Mizuki is more accustomed to her lively appearance than her young lady appearance.

But the shy Mizuki I saw at the department store was the very image of a perfect young lady.

So she only shows her true self when she’s with us.

But a shrine?

Was there such content in the novel?

Come to think of it, Mizuki seemed to know in advance that only we would meet.

Mizuki would definitely have come to meet us, but the reason she couldn’t was because of this.

I asked unintentionally.

“What kind of shrine?”

“Ah, Mizuki is from the Asakura family, so she always goes to the shrine around this time. It’s an event to pray to the local deity for the prosperity of the region.”

“Eh…? That’s amazing.”

“It’s not amazing. It’s just something we do every year. It’s boring.”

Mizuki waved her hand dismissively, but the fingertips fiddling with the chopsticks were slightly nervous.

Even though she says it’s nothing, moving her hands unconsciously like that…

‘The role of the family might be a burden for Mizuki.’

But I didn’t specifically ask.

When Mizuki pretends not to care, it’s probably better to pretend not to know.

***

After finishing the meal, we headed straight to the student council room.

When we arrived at the door, we could already hear the sound of conversation inside.

I could tell by the voices that it was Tachibana senpai and Hiiragi senpai.

I couldn’t tell what they were talking about, but the atmosphere seemed serious.

I felt anxious in an instant.

‘Could it be… that I’m going to receive a huge amount of work today?’

I carefully knocked on the door, and a soft voice was heard from inside.

“You may come in.”

When I opened the door, the first thing I saw was Hiiragi senpai.

He looked towards the door, and when he saw us entering, he smiled lightly.

“Oh? Everyone’s here.”

“Hello, senpai.”

Aya greeted first, and Mizuki and I naturally followed suit.

Then Hiiragi senpai nodded lightly and organized the prepared documents.

“I’ll go first. Tachibana san seems to have a lot to talk about regarding the festival.”

‘Ah, it’s a big deal. Am I really going to get a lot of work…?’

My vision went dark for a moment.

Tachibana senpai saying she has ‘a lot to talk about’.

This must mean a work overload.

After Hiiragi senpai left, we carefully entered the conference room.

On the table, snacks and drinks were neatly prepared, as expected of senpai, whether Tachibana-senpai prepared them.

“Welcome.”

Tachibana senpai gestured lightly to the snacks and said.

“Sorry, I can’t make tea like Shiraizuka.”

“No, this is enough!”

I quickly waved my hands.

I didn’t expect her to care this much.

“Actually, I was planning to call only Yukikawa san and Kurosawa san today, but well, it doesn’t matter if all three of you are here.”

Tachibana senpai said that and naturally sat down at the conference table.

We also sat next to her and quietly waited for senpai’s next words.

“First of all, the budget issue is always there, but the spring festival is the largest event of the year, so adjustments are needed. This is the budget allocation data from last year.”

Tachibana senpai calmly tapped the documents and said.

“As expected, right?”

Aya nodded calmly and answered, continuing to speak.

“So I was worried. Because the budget increase rate can’t keep up with the recent price increase. Within the limited budget, I was thinking about how to make our Takamari Academy’s festival, which is even called a regional festival, as big as possible.”

“So, do you have any ideas? Yukikawasan?”

At Tachibana senpai’s prompting, Aya swept her hand over the documents and said.

“In addition to the basic budget allocation, I’ve come up with a plan to allow each club to receive additional support. Since there are many clubs that hold big events with support from their families

and then can’t hold them the following year, I was looking for a way to support those clubs with the budget.”

Tachibana senpai folded her arms, listened to the story, and nodded.

“Hmm… Logically, it’s fine, but the problem is where to get the additional budget.”

Senpai lightly organized the documents and said.

“It won’t be enough with just the student council budget, and the school won’t provide more support either.”

“And, from now on, it’s Rina’s opinion.”

Huh, suddenly me?

Th, th, preparing for the festival is Aya’s job… so I thought it was naturally Aya’s part…!

Suddenly receiving the baton, I took a small breath and said.
But for a moment, the air felt frozen.

“Yes… So how about receiving sponsorship?”

Tachibana senpai narrowed her eyes and looked at me.

“Then where will you get that sponsorship?”

I smiled and tried not to tremble.

“Considering the reputation of Takamari Academy, there’s no reason for local businesses to refuse to be sponsors. In particular, if we cooperate with companies that have alumni from the academy or companies that set up booths at the festival every year, we can receive sufficient support.”

Tachibana senpai raised her eyebrows slightly as if interested.

“Certainly, attracting corporate sponsorship would solve a significant portion of the budget problem. But we’ll need someone who can handle that directly.”

I confidently raised my hand.

“I’ll take care of it. I’ve done some research on that.”

Aya looked at me with a momentarily surprised look.

Tachibana senpai also looked at me with interest, as if it were an unexpected answer.

And the one looking with the most surprised eyes was Mizuki.

“Okay, then prepare a specific sponsorship attraction plan. We’ll review whether it can be carried out at the student council level. And, even if this doesn’t work out, prepare a plan B.”

Mizuki looked at me with worried eyes and nudged my side.
But, I was really confident. Of course, Mizuki will have to help me a little.