Without responding to my question, Barato-san began to cry, seemingly overwhelmed by joy and relief. While I felt bad that I’d made her worry, I was also kind of flattered that she would worry about a guy like me.
But come on, what did I matter? I was just glad Barato-san was okay. At any rate, she didn’t seem to have changed out of her usual school uniform.
“Um, your clothes didn’t get dirty, and you weren’t injured, were you?” I asked her.
“Oh, no. Thanks to you, I’m fine. Wait, this isn’t about me! Are you okay?! You were bleeding so much! Did you catch anything from that dirty water? You’re not feeling sick, are you?”
Has there really been that much blood? I’d been treated, so I didn’t feel that much pain. I’ve heard you bleed a lot from your head, so maybe that was why.
Well, maybe the bump on my head does hurt a little. But it’s not a huge pain, and I don’t feel nauseous. It looks like I can even get up.
“I’m fine, but I’m glad you’re not hurt,” I told her. I sat up in bed and flashed her a smile, but she averted her gaze.
Huh? Had I made her mad? I didn’t remember saying anything to upset her, though.
Barato-san seemed a little flustered and began to speak while still turned away. “Um, Misumai, can you stay in bed? That way it’s...a little easier for me,” she said.
She was blushing and throwing sideways glances at me. Thinking her reaction was a little weird, I looked down at myself, only to find...I wasn’t wearing a shirt. Naked. I was buck naked. No wait, I was still covered down there, but still.
Even though it was just my upper body exposed, my face grew hot at the thought of a girl seeing me naked.
“I...I’m sorry! Talk about an eyesore!” I rushed to cover my body with the blanket and lay back down.
“N-No... But, um...you’re more muscular than you seem, huh? Like skinny but still kind of ripped. Oh, I mean, it’s not like I was staring or anything!”
Since I didn’t hang out with friends much, I spent most of my free time at home. This gave me plenty of opportunities to work out. I hadn’t thought my physique was all that useful, but for the first time, I could say that it had come in handy.
Barato-san and I fell silent—me from the embarrassment of having been seen naked by a girl and she from the embarrassment of having confessed that she’d seen a boy half-naked. This silence continued for a while, filling the air between us until it was eventually broken by the arrival of the school nurse.
“Well, well, what do we have here? Two lovebirds, red in the face! Don’t tell me you were using my office for a rendezvous?” she asked.
Barato-san and I glowed even redder, but the nurse continued before we could deny her suggestion.
“Here you go, young man,” she said, handing me a change of clothes. “I packed up your dirty uniform for you to take to the dry cleaner’s, or you could go ahead and wash them yourself.”
I had things I wanted to say, but being relieved that the silence had been broken, I accepted the pile of clothes. As I did, I caught sight of Barato-san as she momentarily stepped out of the room.
The nurse had handed me a spare school uniform. When I asked, she said that they always had extra sets on hand for times like these. I was relieved that I wouldn’t have to go back to class or walk home in my gym clothes.
While I pulled my arm through the sleeve, the nurse summed up what had happened.
It seemed that after I’d collapsed, I’d been carried to the nurse’s office by a male teacher that Barato-san had called to the scene.
Since she hadn’t wanted to move me after my head injury and knowing she couldn’t carry me all by herself, she’d run to the teachers’ lounge to get help and rushed inside to tell them a boy had been injured.
You’re pretty level headed, Barato-san. If that had been me, I probably would’ve panicked and tried to carry the person myself.
Turns out, no one seemed to know who had dumped the dirty water out the window. It wasn’t like they had cameras set up around the campus, so it would be impossible to determine the culprit. At most, each class would probably receive a stern warning, and that’d be the end of that.
Well, it wasn’t like it mattered that much.
“Make sure you thank the little lady. She’s been keeping you company since you were brought here. Oh, to be young again,” said the nurse.
Hearing this, I felt my cheeks grow hot. For the time being, though, I chose not to humor them and continued changing in silence.
“Oh, your head injury wasn’t a big deal, but I did take care of that cut. Are you feeling okay? If the pain persists or if you start feeling dizzy, I recommend you go to the hospital immediately.”
When I finished changing, I found a thin square of gauze taped to my head. Other than that, I felt the same as usual, with no pain or nausea of any kind. I felt pretty alert too, so I probably didn’t need to go to the hospital. I’d just have to let my parents know about the accident.
“Young lady, you can come back in now. Your boyfriend’s finished changing. It’s sweet, really. Fancy getting all red at the sight of one bare chest.”
The nurse laughed warmly as she left the room. When Barato-san came back inside, her face was still a bit flushed.
No, I’m not her boyfriend. Hey, wait, she did confess to me before all this, so is that what I am now?
“Misumai, are you okay?”
“Oh, yeah. I’m fine. You fetched the teacher for me, huh? Thanks. That was a huge help.”
“Actually, I should be thanking you for protecting me.”
Protecting you? I just tried to shield you from a bucket and some dirty water, so it’s not that big of a deal. Okay, now I’m embarrassed.
A strange silence passed between us. Um...what am I supposed to say at times like this? Come on, think. What did Baron-san say...?
Wait a minute. Baron-san hadn’t given me advice on what to say if I got injured during the confession. Wasn’t there some way to spark up a conversation?!
As I was trying to remember the pointers from yesterday, Barato-san mumbled something.
“Your answer...”
“Huh?”
My answer?
“I confessed to you, you know? And, um, I was thinking that...I’d like to hear your response, but...do you remember anything?”
Barato-san looked away from me slightly and tilted her head, twirling her brown hair around her finger. Her cheeks were ever so lightly flushed. It seemed that both she and I would be turning red this entire day.
Oh, that’s right. I’d run toward her before I could respond, so I hadn’t really given her an answer. To me, there had only been one sure response, so I’d completely forgotten to tell her. I guess I must have been momentarily confused because I’d been knocked in the head.
Barato-san was fidgeting nervously.
Before then, she’d always seemed flashy and confident, but the girl before me was innocent and concerned. Could this be her true self?
Hm... Baron-san said to look straight into her eyes when responding. Her eyes, Yoshin. Look into her eyes. Okay, this is a little embarrassing. Be brave, me.
“Ah, right. Look, I don’t know why you like me, but if you’re okay with it, then I look forward to going out with you, Barato-san.”
With that, her anxious expression blossomed into a smile.
This must be what it means to smile like a flower. No, this flower is in full bloom. Maybe it’s just an act, but I am one lucky bastard for being able to see this smile.
If she keeps smiling at me like this, I’m going to get the wrong idea. This is a dare—don’t let your guard down.
She smiled brightly for quite some time before that smile turned cloudy. Then, with a small pout, she mumbled, “Nanami...”
“Excuse me?”
That was her name. I knew it already, but why would she mumble her own name? Without giving me a chance to wonder, the answer arrived to enlighten me.
“We’re dating now, so call me Nanami. I’ll call you by your name too, Yoshin.”
Saying stuff like that with those puppy dog eyes would make any guy kneel to obey her. It was a sly move, to be sure, or rather, an act so cute it was almost illegal.
Truth be told, I was a little hesitant about calling a girl by her first name. I’d always thought the extroverts who could do things like that so easily were very different creatures from me. Nevertheless, I was about to say her name. My only worry was whether I could say it well.
“Okay. Yeah, right. It’s a pleasure, N-Nanami-san.”
I said it.
It took everything I had, but I said it somehow. And now that I had said it, I felt extremely embarrassed. I was itching from head to toe. Wow, was I really going to be able to get used to this?
Barato-san flashed me another beautiful smile. “Yes. It’s a pleasure, Yoshin.”
Jeez, when she looks at me that way, it makes me want to try harder. I’ll work on calling her by her name.
I held out my right hand. This wasn’t part of any of the advice Baron-san had given me, but something I’d decided to do myself. I was offering her a handshake.
Barato-san hesitated for a moment, but she then took my hand and shook it. This was the first time in my life that I’d touched a girl’s hand. It was soft, warm, and...very small.