157 - Ayaka Tōjō’s Resolution④

RAW

Shizuku-chan attacked me first thing in the morning.

After Haruto helped me, I caught my breath and glared at Shizuku-chan in protest.

"Haa… Haa… Jeez, Shizuku-chan, you're such an idiot."

"Heh. Now you understand the power of the God Hand."

Ignoring my complaint, Shizuku-chan turned her face away with a smug look.

Why was I even attacked in the first place?

I puffed my cheeks in frustration at the unreasonable treatment and glared at her. But then, Shizuku-chan raised both hands again and slowly approached me.

Seeing that, I quickly hid behind Haruto’s back.

"Hmph. Using Haru-senpai as a shield is cowardly."

"It’s not cowardly!"

I peeked out from behind Haruto’s back to argue.

"I just asked if you wanted to walk to school together, and you started tickling me! That’s way more unfair!"

"Hmph. Only the weak complain about injustice. The strong wield injustice to justify themselves."

Standing firmly in front of me, Shizuku-chan puffed out her chest confidently.

For some reason, Akagi-kun looked impressed.

"Whoa, what an outrageous argument. As expected of Shizuku-chan."

Shizuku-chan nodded at Akagi-kun’s praise.

That’s not the point! Because of her tickling, I almost suffocated!

I shot Shizuku-chan a glare filled with resentment, but she didn't seem bothered at all. Her mental fortitude is way too strong…

As we were caught up in this, Saki, who had joined us earlier, sighed and started walking ahead.

"If we stay here any longer, we’re going to be late."

"Yeah, more people are showing up. Let’s get moving before we draw too much attention."

Agreeing with Saki, Akagi-kun started walking leisurely, and Haruto and I followed.

"Aya-senpai really loves attention, huh?"

"I do not!"

Shizuku-chan shrugged, and I immediately protested.

She always tries to assign me weird traits—like being naturally clumsy or secretly pervy!

"I only asked if you wanted to walk to school together..."

"Oh? So you're a tsundere?"

"I'm not tsun or dere! Haruto, say something!"

"Eh? Oh, well… I guess it's nice to be so energetic in the morning, but maybe don’t tease Ayaka too much?"

"Hmm, I’ll consider it."

Haruto seemed to choose his words carefully, while Shizuku-chan just gave a short reply and kept walking with us.

As we continued down the path, Saki brought up Saturday’s events.

"Man, those brownies were so good."

"Yeah, they were amazing. I wanna go back to Saturday."

"You just want to enjoy the weekend again, don’t you?"

"Well, yeah. If every day were just Saturdays and Sundays, life would be perfect."

Haruto called him out, and Akagi-kun lazily folded his arms behind his head. Saki chuckled at his usual laid-back attitude.

"By the way, the brownies were a surprise, but what really shocked me was Kazuki-senpai’s personality."

"Oh, same here!"

I nodded enthusiastically at Saki’s words.

When I first met Kazuki-senpai, his rugged appearance was intimidating, but when we made sweets together, he was incredibly kind and meticulous. The contrast was unbelievable.

"Kazu-senpai is a walking contradiction."

Haruto laughed.

"Yeah, with how scary he looks, his kindness feels even more pronounced. Plus, that tough look combined with his amazing baking skills is just… perfect."

Saki seemed to have really taken a liking to Kazuki-senpai and spoke about him excitedly.

Seeing this, Shizuku-chan narrowed her eyes slightly and asked, expressionless:

"Oh? So you’ve fallen for Kazu-senpai’s contrast? Totally smitten, huh?"

"Haha. Smitten, huh? Maybe a little."

Saki laughed it off, but Shizuku-chan narrowed her eyes even more—or at least, it felt that way.

"Did you fall for him? You totally fell for him. Saki-senpai, you’re such an easy woman."

"Hey, hey! Don’t just make me out to be some easy girl!"

Saki denied it while still smiling.

"My feelings aren't so cheap that I’d fall just because of one brownie. At the very least, he’d have to make four more top-tier desserts for me to even consider it."

"That’s still pretty cheap. I think you qualify as an easy girl."

Akagi-kun immediately called her out.

Saki grinned at him. "Oh? Then how about seven desserts?"

"Still cheap. Maybe double digits?"

"Hmm, ten desserts, huh… That’d be total surrender."

After saying that with a serious face, Saki burst into laughter. "No way! You really think food alone could make me fall for someone?"

Still, she admitted Kazuki-senpai was charming.

"Honestly, he seems like he’d be pretty popular. Does he have a girlfriend?"

Saki turned to Shizuku-chan, who had known him since childhood.

At that moment, Shizuku-chan flinched.

"W-why would I be his girlfriend?! I haven’t even given him an answer to his confession yet!"

"…Huh? Confession?"

"Ah…"

Saki froze, mouth open in shock.

Shizuku-chan also froze, realizing she had slipped up.

Wait. Confession? Kazuki-senpai confessed to Shizuku-chan?

"Hey, Shizuku-chan. What do you mean by confession—"

"I just remembered—I have morning duty today! Gotta go!"

Before I could ask, Shizuku-chan interrupted, then bolted away at incredible speed.

Akagi-kun watched her shrink into the distance, stroking his chin.

"So that’s how it is…"

"Kazuki-senpai, huh… Well, if it means Shizuku-chan finds happiness, then…"

Akagi-kun trailed off, and Saki raised an eyebrow.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Eh? Uh… nothing…"

Akagi-kun turned away, avoiding eye contact. His gaze landed on Haruto, then drifted even higher, as if trying to escape.

Saki smirked, having caught on.

"Ah-ha, I see now."

"Geez, Aizawa-san, you’re too sharp…"

Akagi-kun chuckled awkwardly as Saki grinned and turned to Haruto.

"And you, Ōtsuki-kun? Did you know about Shizuku-chan and Kazuki-senpai?"

"…Yeah. Kazu-senpai called me last night and told me about it."

"I see… Hmm. Kazuki-senpai has his hands full, huh?"

Saki folded her arms and thought for a moment.

I glanced in the direction Shizuku-chan had run off.

She was confessed to… but she still likes Haruto, right?

I haven’t known Shizuku-chan for long, but she’s already an important friend to me. But the person she likes is my beloved boyfriend…

She said she still has feelings for Haruto, so does that mean she’ll reject Kazuki-senpai?

But if that happens, isn’t it my fault for dating Haruto?

If I weren’t with him, maybe Shizuku-chan would have been his girlfriend instead… Ugh…

What should I do?

Would helping Shizuku-chan be meddling? Would it just be annoying? But she’s my friend, and I want to support her…

Does she even like Kazuki-senpai? But she loves Haruto…

Ugh…

My thoughts were a mess, completely tangled.

But despite everything, Shizuku-chan had called me her "best friend forever."

And for my dear friend, I wanted to help.

Ayaka’s resolution? To support Shizuku-chan! …But is that really okay? Am I overstepping? Ugh…