She must have been studying for the midterm that was looming in two weeks, or perhaps she was simply killing time; her textbook and notebook were spread open on her desk, but her mechanical pencil was not in her hand, instead lying forlornly atop her notebook.
At the sound of the door, Komachi’s listless expression turned into a bright smile. “Ohhh, Bro.”
“Hey, you’re early,” I said as I headed for the seat that, at some point, had become my spot.
“Well, if Komachi doesn’t come, it won’t get unlocked.” She shrugged casually with a little chuckle before picking up the mechanical pencil, flipping through her notebook, and resuming her studying.
It had been just about a month since the Service Club had been remade.
Along with the seat of club captain, Komachi had also taken on the job of locking and unlocking the clubroom door, and it was fair to say she’d been doing a satisfactory job. Since she was coming first to the clubroom every single time, she really was handling it well.
Thinking about it now, the former captain had also come to the clubroom before anyone else, and it seemed that strict conscientiousness had been passed on to the next generation.
Then thinking about Yukinoshita made me remember. “Yukinoshita and Yuigahama said they’re not coming today,” I said.
“Yeah, I heard,” Komachi answered without looking up from her textbook.
“Oh, okay…”
Well, she was basically the club captain, so she would be keeping in contact with the relevant parties. Komachi didn’t ask the reason for their absence and instead just skritched along with her mechanical pencil.
Well, not that I want her to ask why.
This was part of the surprise.
It had been about one month since Komachi had assumed the office of Service Club captain. These days, we were just getting used to this new organizational structure. Yukinoshita and Yuigahama had come up with the idea of giving her a present to celebrate becoming club captain, and then we decided to make it a surprise.
I did briefly think, If it’s just a present for a party or anniversary, then just give it to her normally… But presenting it on an ordinary day would actually make it more of a surprise.
I tend to find myself wondering what might happen around every single turning point, not only birthdays. An old man going to work on his last day before retirement totally expects to get a bouquet, after all. So from this perspective, even Komachi wasn’t going to assume she would get a present around now. This wasn’t even a one-month anniversary.
To leverage this surprise to the utmost, it was vital to keep Komachi from being suspicious. If all three of us were out at once, she’d obviously wonder if something was up. I was here to create an alibi, to keep her from getting suspicious.
So it was a welcome thing to be spared the extra work. I doubt I could really fool Komachi entirely. Maybe Yukinoshita and Yuigahama had taken that into consideration, and that was why they’d contacted her.
Long story short, Yukinoshita and Yuigahama were both busy, so Komachi and I would be all alone for club time that day.
The sound of her mechanical pencil was particularly loud in the silent clubroom.
Even though we were often alone together at home, and it was common for us to spend time not really talking and just petting the cat, this quiet bothered me a lot. Was it because we hadn’t really ever been alone together in the clubroom specifically before? I just felt weirdly anxious.
But I’m too shy to just say that… So I found myself laying out my books on my desk, even though I normally never do.
Might as well follow Komachi’s lead and study. I clicked at the head of my mechanical pencil and started scribbling out the answers to the set of problems in my notebook.
It tended to slip my mind—or rather I wanted it to—but despite appearances, I was a student in preparation for university entrance exams. I had to take these spare moments here and there to study.
Our mechanical pencils made light sounds for a while, playing a mild ensemble.
We never even studied together at home, so I couldn’t keep my attention from sliding to the presence sitting diagonally across from me. Tap-tapping the end of my mechanical pencil on my notebook, I pretended to think while I glanced over to check on her.
A month had passed since she’d started at this school, so I was used to seeing her in the uniform: blazer with slightly overlong sleeves, blouse with the first collar button open, a loosely tied ribbon. It was normal enough to me that I could really examine her.
Hmm…
Now that I’m seeing her properly, she looks pretty good in that. If I may say so of my own sister, she is hyper-cute at the very least.
While she still had a girlish innocence, the playful hairpin that clipped her bangs and her casually worn uniform had a liveliness in them. She gave off a sense of carefree cheer.
I was sure she was popular in her class. In the “Cutest Girl in Our Class Derby” that the boys would be doubtless be holding regularly, they’d probably be having conversations like The most popular is, of course, this one, Komachi Hikigaya! and She’s the classmate I’m most looking forward to seeing more of! I hope she gives it all she’s got! and then she’d be the favorite to win the race. What? Hey, you’re looking at my little sister in that way? I’ll kill you? (dark smile)
Knowing nothing of what was going through my head, Komachi just read through her textbook, making the cowlick sticking up on top of her head boing back and forth with each thoughtful nod.