Chapter 565 - Reactions: Partner
A short while after the strategy video was uploaded.
My phone rang just as my university lectures were ending. It was an invitation—no, a summons—that read, "If you're free, would you like to have dinner together?" I accepted and made my way to a certain place.
Even if the message had ended there, I would have agreed without a second thought. I certainly didn't cave because of the added pressure in the final sentence: 'Also, there's a lot I want to talk about.' But that's beside the point.
The room was remarkably simple and tidy. The only thing that caught the eye was the [Arcadia] console itself. Other than that, there was just a desk, a bed, and a chair.
This was my second time visiting, so I was neither comfortable nor familiar with this private space. I was offered a seat... not on the cushion I had borrowed last time, but elsewhere.
"—You understand why I called you here, don't you?"
"..................Well, I have a vague idea..."
Forced into a formal kneeling position on the floor, I found myself being lectured by a smiling girl.
Or rather, I was about to be. I had no idea what fate awaited me, but one thing was certain—
"I see. So it's just a vague idea, is it?"
"...Hey, we did this not too long ago—"
"What was that?"
"Nothing."
—that Sora-san is at her most terrifying not when she's angry or expressionless, but when she's wearing an 'inappropriate-for-the-situation smile' and her voice is gentle.
As for my partner, the young lady who I presumed was furious with me, she wasn't sitting on my lap like she owned the place, as one might expect.
Instead, she was standing before me in a classic lecture pose, hands on her hips, towering over me. This might just be the end for me.
"Haru, I have something to say to you. It's not about the video—I already told you how amazing and wonderful it was the other day, so this is separate. Based on the current situation, there is something I must tell you above all else."
"Y-Yes... I'm sure there is..."
The situation felt like a complete rehash of my recent conversation with Nia. However, this pure-hearted girl would never steer things into 'scary girl' territory...
"I told you, didn't I? 'You can't just go smiling at anyone and everyone.'"
"..................Huh? Ah...?"
And yet, it seemed my prediction had missed the mark, just like last time. But it didn't stop there—
"For my reference, could you please tell me why you thought I was angry?"
My unconscious mutter of "So that's what this is about..." was picked up perfectly, and things ended up taking a similar turn after all. Am I an idiot?
In any case, if I'm asked, I must answer. Despite the shame, despite the hesitation, my position has been the weaker one ever since I resolved to be sincere...!
"Well, I thought maybe... after the fact, you were feeling jealous about my interaction with Iris—"
"THAT'S PART OF IT, YES!!"
"I'M SO SORRY!"
Sora-san let out a full-throated roar. Though I was genuinely startled and immediately straightened my back to shout an apology, the fury in the sky-blue eyes fixed on me did not subside.
"Do you have any idea how many times today at school I heard your name, Haru... and..."
Looking closer, perhaps the flames flickering in her beautiful eyes weren't 'anger'. It was an unstable, restless glimmer... It was,
Yes, that's right.
"How many times do you think I heard the name... 'Haru-chan'...!"
"...................................."
It must be bewilderment and confusion.
"And it's not just today! It's been happening since last week! Constantly!! Everywhere I go, it's 'Haru-chan,' 'Acrobat-chan,' 'Haru-sama'!"
Ignoring that last one, the girl took a breath.
"Of course this was going to happen! Of course it was going to turn out like this! Sheltered young ladies who don't know the world are already weak to your type, Haru!!"
"M-My type..."
"The type who pays attention to them, who's not just kind but also has a mischievous side, and on top of that is a perfect gentleman, reliable, and gets results every single time!"
"What is that, a textbook description of a popular guy...?"
"I'M TALKING ABOUT YOU!!?"
Sora-san, in a fit of genuine rage.
"Whoa, wait, let's calm down... For a second, just... regulate your breathing."
Perhaps it was because she'd been rattling on in her real body, not her virtual avatar. I tried to calm Sora down as she coughed lightly, all while struggling to dissipate my own embarrassment.
I mean, come on.
Anyone would get flustered if they were praised so directly like that.
"Ugh... I get it, I really do. You were already so cool, and then you were so considerate of Iris-san—the 'Princess'—helping her, trusting and respecting her... It was like a scene from an ideal romance... Anyone would fall for you after that..."
"No, no, 'fall for you'... You mean as a fan, right?"
"Even if it's just 'love' as a fan...!"
I wasn't sure of the details, but my bewilderment at the fantastical reality that the 'Acrobat' was apparently causing a boom at an all-girls school was considerable.
I tried to console Sora-san, who had collapsed onto the floor, but... the sky-blue eyes she lifted to me glared sharply, and my pathetic self immediately flinched.
At this point, I have not a shred of dignity left as the older one here. I'm sure if those young ladies saw me now, their passion would cool in an instant.
"Even so! All day, every day! All I hear from everyone around me is 'I love him,' 'I really love him,' 'he's my ideal,' 'I made him my wallpaper,' and 'I want to marry someone like him'! What kind of face am I supposed to make while constantly being told about everyone's feelings for a certain someone?!"
"What kind of face am I supposed to make being told all that secondhand...?"
That Acrobat must be way too popular, even if this is just a passing phase typical of young people.
Is the real world bugged or something?
"And to top it off, that smile in your transfigured body... It was more than enough when just the guys were interested, but now you're catering to the girls' demands too... Haru, what are you trying to do to my school?"
At this point, she's not making any sense. It feels like, for once, she's just talking on pure impulse.
"D-Demands... Look, I'm sorry. And I'm sorry for having to say this, in a way. But that smile was meant for Ashe, for all her hard work—"
"But in the video, it was aimed right at us, the viewers. Which means, as a matter of fact, it was directed at everyone in the whole world...!"
"............"
To be honest, I understand how she feels. If I flip the situation around, I'm sure I'd feel something similar if I were in her shoes.
In other words.
Her classmates and others close to her are openly expressing their affection for me, whatever the nuance may be. And Sora, who's hearing all of this either directly or indirectly...
...is forced to keep thinking to herself—He's my partner.
Of course she'd get stressed out. It's like, 'Taking advantage of the fact that I can't say anything, are you? Stop saying whatever you want about liking him or wanting to marry him.'
It's not about logic. That's just how human emotions work.
And that's why...
"—He's my partner, after all..."
Even for the young Miss Yotsuya, who is so mature for a fifteen-year-old, that's what's going on inside her heart. It's selfish and true to her age—and for that very reason, it's unbearably heart-stirring.
In short, just as she said it was "part of it" regarding Iris and all that.
"...As I thought, you're by far the most jealous person I know."
"Don't look so smug about it. This is all your fault...!"
She was jealous not just of Iris, but of everyone around us... which means that no matter how I struggle, there's no path forward for me but to raise the white flag.
"Sora-san."
"............"
"Sora."
"..., ............"
"Stop grinding your fist into my solar plexus—What should I do? What do you want me to do?"
"...Just as your partner is fine."
"Okay."
"..................I want you to hold me tight."
"...Well, if it's as your partner, I guess it can't be helped."
Even if it weren't, when it comes right down to it.
"Only for ten seconds."
"...Thirty seconds."
"Nope, can't do it."
I doubt a day will ever come when I can refuse this girl's whims.