Sousei started typing a message to send Yukisada, but he had trouble explaining himself properly and deleted it partway through. He tapped the icon to call him instead, and the dial tone rang.
But…if I think about it, do we really need Yukisada’s help? I feel like Asumin, Moena, and I could probably handle it with just the three of us—
Yukisada answered almost immediately. “Hello? Is that you, Sousei?”
“Yeah…,” he replied, laughing inexplicably.
“Huh? What is it?”
“Oh… It’s just… Yeah. I guess…I’m just happy you picked up.”
“Ah. Yeah, me too.”
“You are?”
“Yeah. We only ever talk at school, so it was like, ‘Oh, he’s actually calling me!’” Yukisada gave a hearty chuckle.
“Yeah… I guess you’re right.” Sousei felt like laughing again. He thought it would be weird to just keep laughing, but he couldn’t hold it back.
It’s not a matter of needing his help or not.
It was much simpler than that.
It’s just that I wanted my friend—I wanted Yukisada—to help me.
There were concerning factors. Several of them.
They were dealing with someone who was difficult to get along with in the first place, and there weren’t any foolproof methods. They’d do everything they could to prepare, and if they weren’t successful, they’d deal with that when the time came.
Class had long since ended. The only people left at school were there for clubs, student committee activities, or regularly stayed back to chat with friends after school.
There was currently only one student in Class 2-2’s classroom.
Kuchina Hitsujimoto.
They had confirmed that.
Everyone was already in position.
Sousei and Asumi were near the front door of the classroom, and Yukisada and Moena were waiting just to the side of the back door. They were just waiting to put the plan into motion.
…Or rather, I just have to start it.
Sousei was incredibly nervous, as expected. He was biting and lightly licking his lower lip. Yukisada looked at Sousei and snickered. He was on standby by the back door so he could burst into the classroom at any time. Moena stuck her face out from behind him and puffed out her cheeks as if asking him what he was waiting for.
“Sousei,” Asumi whispered to him from behind.
She pressed his back gently, and Sousei nodded.
He opened the classroom door and went inside. Kuchina’s desk was right at the back by the window. She wasn’t resting her chin on her hand, but had laid her gloved hands on top of her desk and was looking out the window.
She didn’t react until Yukisada opened the door at the back of the classroom. Kuchina looked at the back door, then glared at Sousei.
It was a piercing gaze. Yet she had one eyebrow raised higher than the other, and although her jaw was relaxed, her mouth was slightly pursed.
Kuchina was probably surprised and confused. She almost certainly wanted to blame Sousei for whatever was going on and ask what it was all about. And why were there four people?
Kuchina started to stand up but stopped in a half-standing position.
Sousei and Asumi were blocking the front door, as were Yukisada and Moena with the back door. That didn’t mean they were completely closed off, though; there were only two people standing at each door. As a barricade, it was far from perfect. It could be penetrated. Kuchina could break through it if she pushed past both people, or even just one of the two.
“…Coward,” she said quietly.
Sousei felt sorry for her. He was exploiting her weakness. It was no wonder she was blaming him.
It wouldn’t be so bad if it was just Sousei, but Asumi, Moena, and Yukisada were there as well. Always fearing the worst, Kuchina wouldn’t be able to shove past them, push them out of her way with her hands, or kick them. Sousei felt certain about that. She wouldn’t choose to use force.
“M-Miss Hitsujimoto!” Sousei called out, his voice cracking.
“Pfft!” Yukisada nearly burst out laughing.
Asumi and Moena held up the reusable shopping bags they had in their hands and spoke at the same time. “Let’s have a potato chip party!”
Kuchina had probably never heard the phrase “potato chip party” before and had no idea what they were talking about. The anger and surprise quickly disappeared from her face, leaving only confusion.
Asumi and Moena rushed toward Kuchina’s desk. Sousei and Yukisada exchanged looks and stayed by the doors, just in case.
Asumi and Moena set up for the potato chip party with incredible speed. They pushed together some of the desks near Kuchina’s and arranged four chairs by them. They took all sorts of different kinds of potato chips out of their bags and placed them on the desks.
“What is this…?” Kuchina mumbled as she sat back down in her chair. She might not have been able to maintain her half-standing pose any longer, but she shouldn’t be so weak as to reply like that. Perhaps she’d given in or simply had no energy left.
“Potato chip party,” Moena said, holding out a pair of wooden chopsticks in a paper wrapper.
Kuchina stared at the chopsticks as if they were something unknown to her.
Yukisada closed the door. He looked at Sousei as he walked toward Kuchina’s desk and smiled when their eyes met. His expression seemed to be saying, It’s probably all right now.
Sousei closed the other door.
It didn’t seem like Kuchina was ever going to take the chopsticks, so Moena placed them on her desk. Moena also passed chopsticks to Asumi and Yukisada, and then gave some to Sousei before he sat down.
Kuchina and Asumi were sitting across from each other with two desks between them. Next to Asumi was Moena, and across from Moena to the left was Yukisada. Sousei sat next to Yukisada, across from Kuchina and to the right.
Yukisada’s eyes widened. “There’s quite a lot here, huh?”
“I selected eight different flavors,” Moena said, confidently puffing out her chest with pride. “The standard lightly salted; salt and nori seaweed; consommé, of course; pizza, Asumin’s top pick; black pepper, representing a harder style of chip; the not-to-be-forgotten wasabi and beef; premium authentic sea salt; and Karamucho, which I prefer to call ‘deliciously spicy’ rather than ‘super spicy.’ We had even more candidates, but this is it for today!”
“…Will we be able to eat all this?” Sousei asked, gently couching his reservations, but Moena snorted.
“You’re underestimating potato chips, Takarai. We’ll get through this in no time! I could probably finish all this by myself.”
“That’s so many calories, Moe!” Asumi cried.
Yukisada laughed. “I’d also probably be able to get through them all if I tried.”
“You eat that much, Hayashi?!” Moena asked, staring intently at Yukisada who nodded calmly.
“Yeah, more or less.”
“I never knew you had such a big appetite, Hayashi,” Asumi said, impressed, as she went to open the bag of pizza chips. Moena hurriedly stopped her.