“All right, everyone. Let’s give Alya her birthday presents while we cut the cake.”
Maria’s sudden suggestion sent a ripple through the room, the air instantly becoming thick enough to slice. It wasn’t just Masachika who felt it either—nervous glances were exchanged as everyone wondered who should go first and what kind of gifts the others had brought. But as the unease lingered, Maria returned from the other room, holding a square package wrapped neatly in paper and a ribbon.
“Here, Alya. Happy birthday.”
“Thanks…”
“Go on. Open it.”
After being urged on by Maria, Alisa opened the package, revealing a pink scarf.
“What do you think? It’s cute, right?”
“Yes. Thank you.”
“Here, let me help you try it on.”
“I’m fine. I’m about to eat cake—”
Maria ignored Alisa’s complaint, draping the scarf around her neck, prompting a squeal of delight from both her and Akemi. Although Alisa frowned uncomfortably for a few moments, she eventually surrendered with a resigned shrug.
“And this is from your father and me.”
While Alisa was opening the present Akemi had given her, the others quickly exchanged glances, creating an unspoken agreement. The gifts would be given in the following order: Masachika, Ayano, the president and vice president, and then the band members.
Seriously? I’m batting first again?
He promptly took the lead, since deep down inside, he’d always had a feeling that it would turn out this way. Under the watchful eyes of the remaining members, Masachika grabbed his tote bag and made his way toward Alisa.
“Happy birthday, Alya.”
“Thanks, Masachika.”
Alisa set aside the wallet from her parents, her gaze locking onto Masachika, who—feeling nervous under her stare—swiftly handed her the tote bag.
“…I baked you this.”
“What? You made this yourself?”
“Whoa.”
“Incredible.”
As Alisa’s eyes widened in surprise, the others echoed her reaction with startled exclamations, while Masachika, feeling a bit awkward, fumbled for an excuse.
“Yeah, sorry. I don’t really bake much, so while I’m sure it tastes fine, it doesn’t really look as good as I was hoping it would.”
“Don’t worry about it…” Alisa assured as she opened the paper bag and pulled out a plastic bag from inside, prompting Masachika to scratch his cheek awkwardly and say:
“It’s homemade…baumkuchen.”
“““How??”””
“By doing my best.”
“““Is that really something you can make just by doing your best??”””
Confusion swept across everyone’s faces as they stared at the completely unexpected homemade treat. Masachika had used a square frying pan meant for Japanese-style omelets to make it, and to his surprise, it was surprisingly not too difficult.
“Th-thank you… I’ll make sure to enjoy it later.”
Alisa blinked repeatedly, her confusion seemingly outweighing her delight, as she quickly stuffed the baumkuchen back into the paper bag. Masachika, however, felt a quiet sense of accomplishment as he turned to walk away. He could feel the others staring at him in disbelief, as if they couldn’t fathom why he would give something so ‘unique’ right off the bat, but it didn’t bother him in the slightest. He had done his part, and that was all that mattered to him.
But, well, I still have one thing left to do…
Masachika briefly glanced down at his bag while Ayano approached Alisa.
“Next, I would like to give you two presents: one from Lady Yuki, and one from me. Happy birthday, Alya.”
“Thanks.”
As Masachika already knew, Yuki’s gift was a screen protector for Alisa’s smartphone. And Ayano’s gift was…
“A book?”
“Yes, it is one of my favorites.”
“Thank you… It’s a collection of short stories? I’m looking forward to reading it.”
Ohhh! A book! Why didn’t I think of that!
Just as Masachika was silently praising Ayano’s gift, Touya exclaimed, “Oh! What a coincidence. I got you a book, too.”
Touya presented Alisa with a book titled…Twenty Ways to Move a Person’s Heart.
Did he use that to win the election or to win over Chisaki? That’s definitely something I can imagine him using.
Chisaki, on the other hand, handed Alisa…
“…A charm?”
A small white cloth bag, neatly tied with a golden cord, sat in her hands. At a glance, it resembled a traditional charm, yet what puzzled Alisa was the fact that nothing was written on the bag—no inscriptions or symbols.
“Yep. It’s a miracle-working charm from our shrine.”
“Thank…you… What does it do?”
“Huh? It does a lot of things.”
“A lot of things?”
“Yeah, it should take a hit for you at least once.”
“A hit from what?”
“Oh, don’t open it. It’ll come out.”
“What will come out?”
Alisa stared at the charm, utterly perplexed, as it emitted an ominous rumbling. Meanwhile, Chisaki—looking thoroughly pleased with herself—took a step back, effectively cutting off any chance for Alisa to question her. Nevertheless, the only ones left in an awkward position because of this were the remaining four gift-givers.
Who’s going next?!
What? Not me. Not after that.
Really? So you don’t mind going last?
In an instant, silent glances communicating strategy flickered between them—only for Nonoa to disregard it all and step forward without hesitation.
“Happy birthday. Gotcha this.”
“Thanks.”
“It’s a compact mirror. Like, I know you usually don’t wear makeup, but I figured it’d still be good to have around.”
“Definitely. I could use it when I want to fix my hair. Thanks.”
“And this is from me.”
Sayaka got up next as Takeshi and Hikaru watched in astonishment.
“I had a lot of trouble deciding, but I ended up going with a hat.”
“It’s so cute.”
Alisa unwrapped the package, revealing black beret which she promptly tried on while using the mirror that Nonoa had given her.
“That looks really cute on you.”
“Thanks, Sayaka.”
Alisa’s smile was contagious, quickly mirrored by Sayaka. Yet, amidst this heartwarming moment…two unfortunate souls were left in a troubling position.
Ah, poor guys.
After Alisa received the tasteful gifts from the two girls, Masachika silently prayed for his two best friends who were up next. Takeshi presented her with a pricey rice tea set while Hikaru gifted her a rather stylish ballpoint pen. But as Masachika watched, completely detached from the situation, he nearly choked on his drink…because the top part of the ballpoint pen was a full-on mini herbarium of all things.
Oh, gosh! That was close! Thanks, Yuki!
Masachika had been dangerously close to giving her the same gift, so he couldn’t help but silently thank his sister for steering him away from disaster.