Chapter 88 – I Hate It

After a thirty minute break, we continued studying.

The comfort of the kotatsu and the sugar we consumed made everyone feel drowsy, but there were some parts that we still needed to cover, so we had no choice but to shake off the drowsiness and do our best.

Amami-san in particular was the sleepiest out of all of us since she ate most of the pancakes I made..

"Ngh… Umi… I feel so sleepy…"

"Is that so? Time for a head flick then."

"I-I'll do my best, Umi-sensei!"

"Good."

I would let her take a nap for ten minutes or so, but Umi said if we let her sleep, she wouldn't wake up even if we forced her to. I didn't want to push her too hard, but I'll just follow Umi's advice for now.

As for Nozomu, well, he didn't eat the pancakes because of his diet. He said that he had been trying to lose weight since the beginning of winter because he gained too much weight back in fall. 

Nozomu told me to not worry about him feeling left out, but seeing Amami-san devouring the pancake made me feel bad for him. You see, his favorite food was ice cream and the pancake that Amami-san ate had ice cream as its topping.

By the way, the topping of my pancake was whipped cream.

"Ah, Maki, there's some cream on your face."

"Eh? Where? Right? Left?"

"It's on my right, so it's on your left."

"Here?"

"A bit higher than that."

"Here?…"

"No… Well, it can't be helped, come here."

"Mm."

Umi wiped the cream off my lips with her finger. Then she brought it straight into her mouth.

"…There we go."

"T-Thank you."

"Don't mention it. Jeez, Maki, you're such a spoiled kid~"

"Give me a break, you know it wasn't intentional."

"Sure~"

My mouth is small, but because of my eating habit, this tends to happen a lot. Whenever she noticed it, Umi would wipe it for me. This happened quite often to the point that we stopped minding it.

But unfortunately, we weren't the only ones here today.

"Umi? Maki-kun?"

"I know you guys are together and all, but…"

""Get a room, please.""

Of course both Nozomu and Amami-san would show their complaints.

""…We're sorry…""

This kind of scene might be categorized as wholesome, but it was natural that some people would feel sick when seeing it.

When it comes to something like PDA, you need to have some restraint. At least try not to be a bother to people around you.

"But, you know?~ Seeing you guys like this made me want a boyfriend too~"

"Then why don't you look for one? A lot of people tried to confess to you, no? Just randomly pick one or whatever."

"Mm… But, none of these guys caught my eye… It isn't like I'm not into boys or anything too… They're just… Lacking?"

"…Oof…"

Nozomu took a huge amount of damage from Amami-san's remark. Could that count as being rejected twice by the same person? The girl herself did that unconsciously though. She probably didn't even realize that Nozomu was in pain over here.

As the two members of the higher caste talked about their love lives, I patted Nozomu's slumped shoulders.

"Mm~ I really want a kind boyfriend like Maki-kun~"

"Nah, a boyfriend that fits you should be someone that is physically fit. They need a lot of stamina to keep up with you."

"Really? But, someone physically fit… Basically someone like you, Umi! Then, if you were to become a boy, you can be my boyfriend!"

"Too bad the world doesn't work that way."

Watching their interaction from the sideline, I thought that it might be fun if I went out with Amami-san. But on the other hand, it seemed like a pain in the arse.

Nozomu should be a good candidate to be her boyfriend, but she didn't even look his way. Oh well…

"Enough of this, you two. Go back to your studies, we still have a lot to cover."

"'Kay… Yuu, the next subject is Old Japanese."

"Yes~ Old Japanese is a pain though…"

"You still have to study it whether you like it or not."

After that, I taught Amami-san while trying to keep her motivated. There were times when I had to motivate her by showing her my love (head flick), but we managed to finish our studies for the day.

Including break time, it took us about three hours to finish. I didn't make much progress on my own studies, but teaching others was a good way to help me review the things I've already mastered, and the fact that Umi was here helped me fix the mistakes that I made.

I still had to study more, but I'm confident that I won't get any red marks on the upcoming exam.

"Thank you for everything today, Maki-kun! The food is as tasty as always!"

"Thank you, Maki, Asanagi. Thanks to you I'm confident that I can pass now."

"Same, Seki-kun! Let's do our best~"

"Y-Yeah…"

I saw both Amami-san and Nozomu off from the house's entrance. Both of them looked happy. At the start of the study session, the two of them had this awkward atmosphere around them, but as time passed, they eventually opened up to each other.

Amami-san still referred to him by his family name, so he was still below me in terms of her favorability. I hoped that they would start calling each other by their names soon though.

…I hope that he won't mess up and get rejected again.

"Umi? Did you forget something?"

"Maybe… Well, I'll fetch it later anyway, who cares…"

It was Umi who worked the hardest today. After all, she was one of the smartest students in our class. Her teaching style was really good too, even I learned a lot from her.

On top of that, she still had the time to flirt with me under the kotatsu.

"I see. Then, see you later."

"Mm… Maki, wait, do you have a minute?"

"Hm?"

"…Sorry, can I borrow your back for a second?"

"Umi suddenly hugged me tightly from behind.

"…What's wrong, Umi?"

"…Sorry… I'm just… Afraid… Yuu said something like wanting a boyfriend like you… I'm… I'm sorry for being so troublesome…"

"Ah…"

Amami-san said that remark casually, but I guess Umi took it to heart, even though she was able to act normally afterwards.

"I hate it… It would be fine if we were just friends, but right now… I don't want you to be taken away… I don't think I'll be able to live if you were to leave me…"

"Umi…"

This girl who always acted tough in public was now trembling like an abandoned puppy in front of me.

As expected, even though she acted normally around Amami-san, deep down, she was still struggling with her anxiety.

I have to lend her a hand.

"Umi, can you let me go for now?"

"No."

"Please…"

"…But, I don't want you to see my face right now…"

"Don't worry, I'm used to seeing your crying face."

"…Idiot."

She loosened her hold on me, so I turned to face her and embraced her.

"Umi."

"…Mm…"

"You don't need to worry, you're the only person I have in my mind."

"Mm… Sorry, I'm such a troublesome woman…"

"It's fine. Your clinginess is cute."

"…Jeez, Maki… You really have a strange taste in women…"

"Says you."

"Hehe…"

The two people waiting outside might be suspicious because Umi was taking so long, but I don't care.

The girl in front of me is my top priority after all.

"Hehe… Thank you, Maki… I've calmed down a little."

"I'm glad. Do you want me to take you home?"

"No, it's fine, you don't need to go that far for me… Just…"

"Just?"

"Can we stay like this for a bit longer?"

"…Alright."

We hugged each other for a while until Umi completely calmed down.

Of course Amami-san and Nozomu gave us a scornful look and called us an 'idiot couple'.