Chapter 86: The outcome of the game

AUGUST 1, 2021 7 COMMENTS

After I finished changing into my waiter’s uniform, I went back to the classroom with Niijima-kun.

　Then, the remaining girls in the class let out a “wow” cheer.

　Most of the cheers were directed at Niijima-kun, who was naturally the most popular boy in the class, but I couldn’t pretend to ignore the many passionate looks that were also directed at me.

“Ichijo-kun looks cool too.”

　I couldn’t be unaware of the fact that I could hear them whispering to each other.

　As if to amuse me, Niijima-kun looked at me with a grin and said, “What do you think? Why don’t you go out with one of them?” I politely denied it, saying, “No, I don’t think so.”

　In the first place, even if they are complimenting me, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they like me.

　It’s like when you see an idol on TV and you think she’s cute, but you don’t really fall in love with her because of that.

　Well, love is usually not …… love with a TV idol.
…… I’m in love with her…….

　As I was facing the mystery alone, the boys in my class suddenly burst in excitement.

　What’s going on? I looked into the classroom and saw my classmates dressed in maid outfits that were on par with the maid café I had visited with Takayuki the other day, all looking a little embarrassed.

　What is happening?! The voltage in the classroom reached an all-time high when three students entered a little later than the others.

　It was, of course, Mikitani-san, Shimizu-san, and Shi-chan.

　Mikitani-san was smiling perfectly, as if she was a professional, probably because she was used to working part-time, and next to her, Shimizu-san was looking down, holding the hem of her skirt as she blushed in embarrassment.

　The sight of two such beautiful girls was truly destructive.

　Takayuki, who was standing next to her, was already in a state of maximum tension at the sight of his girlfriend, Shimizu, wearing a maid’s outfit, and he was glued to the shy figure of Shimizu, saying fondly, “Isn’t she too cute, Sakurako?”

　However, there was one more person who surpassed even these two.

　Needless to say, it was Shi-chan’s presence.

　I could see that the boys from the other classes, who must have brought her here, were overflowing outside in the hallway.

　But that was understandable.

　Shion Saegusa, aka Shiorin, who was the center of the national idol group “Angel Girls” that everyone of our generation was crazy about, was appearing in front of us in a maid’s outfit that looked like an idol costume.

　It would be impossible for a healthy male student not to get excited.

　She was smiling proudly in idol mode, and to be honest, even the two most beautiful women in the class, Shimizu-san and the other maid, Mikitani-san, looked overwhelmingly dignified.

　In this situation, Shimizu-san was relieved that the attention was diverted from her, while Mikitani-san smiled with a resigned expression.

“It looks like this isn’t going to be a contest…….”

“Nope….”

　And when Niijima-kun and I saw Shi-chan in front of us, we instantly realized that it was no longer a contest, wondering who we were trying to make her swoon.

　If this was a game, then Shi-chan was definitely the winner.

　As I was smiling along with Niijima-kun, Shi-chan, who was in full idol mode, seemed to notice me and our eyes met.

　Then, for some reason, the idle smile on her face froze, and as I looked at her, I saw that her face was turning red.

　What’s going on? As I stared at her, Shi-chan spun her body around and turned her back to us.

　I was a little worried about Shi-chan’s sudden suspicious behavior, as if she hadn’t been in full idol mode until a moment ago.

“Okay, so it’s not a show anymore… scatter, scatter…”

　Just at that moment, Mikitani-san called out to everyone, “Now, hurry up and get on with your work…,” and shooed the attention away from the girls in charge of customer service.

　As the preparations for the festival resumed, the girls moved on to checking the sizes of the maid uniforms.

　As a result, Niijima-kun and I were the only two left in the room.

　We need to check the size of our uniforms as well, but we’re waiting for the girls to finish before we do that.

“It looks like I’ve lost the battle.”

　Niijima-kun, the guy next to me, suddenly spoke to me.

　I was a little surprised by his words and turned around to look at Niijima.

　Then Niijima-kun looked a little clearer, as if he had already given up.

　I followed the gaze of Niijima-kun and saw Shi-chan being checked by the girls of the class for the size of her costume.

　When I turned my head to look at her, my eyes met hers, and I saw her face turn bright red again.

“Haha It’s really easy to see the winner.
Saegusa-san only sees Ichijo-kun.”

　Niijima-kun muttered with a wry smile as he watched Shi-chan turn red.

“Is that okay?”

　I asked Niijima-kun.

　I wondered if this was really the right way to admit defeat.

“There’s nothing good about it.
But I’m not so blind as to continue to fall in love with someone I know will never come true.”

　Niijima smiled as he answered my question.

　I could tell that it was a smile of strength.

　But Niijima-kun, who had challenged me to a head-to-head match, even if it was fruitless, and then decided to accept the result and move on, was a good guy, and I thought he was kind of cool.

　Shi-chan, who had just finished checking her outfit, walked up to us, looking embarrassed.

“Ta-Takkun …… what do you think…..?”

“Yes, it looks really good on you.”

　She stood in front of me and shyly asked me what I thought.
I smiled gently and praised her with the words I thought I would say.

　She was so happy with my words that she smiled at me like a flower blooming.

“You look great, Takkun!”

　Her beautiful eyes sparkled and she praised me in return.

“Then, the two of you can do the rest.”

　Niijima-kun, who had been watching the exchange next to me, patted me on the shoulder once, smiled, and headed off to check the costumes.

　I apologized in my heart to Niijima-kun’s back.

　But I had already sworn that I would make Shi-chan happy as her boyfriend, so I had no intention of giving in to anyone.

　As I looked at Shi-chan standing next to me, smiling happily, I made up my mind once again.