Chapter 2: The Omen of a Storm

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Did… did she really see me kiss Sagara-kun…?

Pretending to walk calmly, my face felt like it was on fire. Thinking about what just happened made me want to scream and run away. Why did I do that!

Sagara-kun’s presentation wasn’t as bad as he said. In fact, considering it was a last-minute task, I thought he did really well.

Still, seeing Sagara-kun so down, as if it were the end of the world, I just had to cheer him up. Then, Nami-chan’s words suddenly came to mind.

──When your boyfriend is down, just give him a kiss to cheer him up.

…But why did I choose that moment to act on it! I shouldn’t have done that at the university! What a scandalous thing to do in a sacred place of learning! If my serious, top-student high school self saw this, she’d probably faint…

I glanced at the girl walking next to me.

She had big, round eyes, a small nose and mouth, and looked like an adorable little animal. Her black hair was in a semi-long ponytail, with the sides hanging down her face. While thinking she was cute, our eyes met.

“Yes?”

“Oh, s-sorry! I didn’t mean to stare…”

“No worries.”

She said, moving closer. Being stared at up close made me shrink back a bit.

“…Sis, what mascara do you use?”

“Huh? M-Mascara?”

Her sudden question made me tilt my head. She asked with sparkling eyes, genuinely curious.

“Your curls are so perfect! Do you do eyelash perms?”

“N-No! I use fake lashes…”

“Really? They look so natural, I couldn’t tell.”

“Th-Thanks…! I pride myself on the natural look of my fake lashes!”

“They’re really pretty! Can you teach me how to apply them?”

She pointed to her lashes. She looked almost makeup-free, but she might be interested in makeup. Remembering my high school days when I didn’t even know how to use an eyelash curler made me feel a bit nostalgic.

After giving her some tips on applying fake lashes, she switched topics.

“By the way… was the guy from the presentation your boyfriend?”

The guy from before must be Sagara-kun. Remembering that (possibly) she saw our kiss, my cheeks flushed.

“Y-Yeah… we’re dating.”

“Wow, really? You two looked so close.”

She said, taking out her smartphone from her backpack pocket.

“Can I have your LINE?”

“E-Eh?”

Her sudden request took me by surprise. She seemed friendly, but I didn’t expect her to ask for my contact info. Is it okay to give my contact info to someone I just met… even if she’s a girl?

“I thought it’d be helpful to have a senpai to consult about university stuff. You seem dependable… I’d like to ask you about various things, if that’s okay.”

Her words instantly blew away my hesitation.

…Senpai, she said! Dependable, she said! Wow, what a wonderful ring to it…!

One of my dreams was to be called “Senpai!” and be relied on. I hardly interact with the first-years now, but if she joined our university, I’d have a cute kouhai…!

“Of course!”

I took out my phone and exchanged LINE IDs with her. She sent me a bowing cat sticker in the chat, and I replied with a dog sticker saying “Let’s stay in touch!”

“So your name is Haruko-san. I’ll contact you again.”

“Sure! Reach out anytime!”

Soon, we reached the lawn plaza. I handed her over to the student guide and waved goodbye, saying, “See you later.”

“…Say hi to that guy from before for me.”

Her smile seemed somewhat meaningful.

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On the first Sunday of June, I woke up early and started cleaning my room.

There wasn’t much clutter, and I thought I kept it fairly tidy, but once I started cleaning, I realized it was dirtier than I’d thought.

I vacuumed the tatami mats, cleaned the bathroom and kitchen as well. The room was now the cleanest it had been since I moved in. Just as I was praising myself, the intercom rang. When I opened the door, there was Nanase, with her long hair tied back and wearing a refreshing green blouse.

“Good morning. No one else has arrived yet, right?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m so excited for the takoyaki party! I’ve always wanted to try it!”

Nanase said with a big smile. When I woke up, I thought having people over would be a hassle… but oh well. The room was clean, after all.

Today, we were going to have a takoyaki party—known as a “Takopa”—in my room. The members were Nanase, Sudo, Hojo, Kinami Yusuke from our seminar, and me.

The idea for the takoyaki party came from Hojo’s bout with the flu.

A few days after the open campus, I confronted Hojo, who had just recovered, saying, “If you feel bad, treat us to dinner,” when Kinami suddenly butted in.

“Then let’s have a takoyaki party at Sagara’s place! On Hojo’s tab!”

Kinami is sociable and has many friends—a typical extrovert. He talks to even gloomy guys like me without hesitation. It’s not due to some lofty belief like treating everyone equally; he probably just doesn’t think about it.

I had a lot of questions, like why a takoyaki party, why at my place, and isn’t Kinami just freeloading, but when Nanase, who was nearby, said, “Takoyaki party!? I want to do it too!” with sparkling eyes, I lost my will to object. If Nanase wanted it, there was no helping it.

“Should I wipe the table? We don’t need to prepare anything, but do we need sauce or anything?”

“I have tonkatsu sauce.”

“That might upset Kansai people…”

As Nanase and I chatted, I heard a loud voice from outside the apartment, “Seriously!? Sagara, you live here!?”

Sudo’s voice is loud no matter the situation.

After hearing footsteps coming up the stairs, the intercom rang. Nanase greeted them with “Welcome!”

“We’re here. Thanks for having us.”

“Oh, Haruko, you came early.”

“Sagara, I’m borrowing your fridge.”

Before I could say “go ahead,” Hojo and the others entered without hesitation. I worried about fitting five people in this cramped room, but it seemed manageable. I just hoped the floor wouldn’t give out.

“Whoa! Sagara’s fridge only has udon in it!” (tln : this is really disrespectful even for me)

Kinami exclaimed while putting drinks in the fridge. Since I rarely cook, the fridge was almost empty. Even when I buy groceries, they tend to rot, and lately, I’ve been relying on Nanase more and more.