Ore wo Suki nano wa Omae dake ka yo - Chapter 5 Part 4

Chapter 5 Part 4

 

{Now, the main event of the first day of the 124th Hyakka Festival, the Kabuten, begins!}

 

Darkness enveloped the gym.

 

In that pitch black room, Himawari and I walked up to stand at the center of the stage.

 

“It’s going to start soon.”

“I can’t wait to see Himawari and the President in their dresses!”

“I wonder who’s the lucky guy who gets to dance with those two this year? I’m jealous…”

 

It was too dark to see, but from the buzzing sound that I could hear, it seemed like there were quite a lot of people coming to see this event. That meant we couldn’t afford to mess this up…

 

After giving myself that small prep, bright lights illuminated the stage and we began our dance.

 

“Alright, let’s do it, Joro!”

 

The first song being played was Chopin’s Waltz of the Puppy.

 

Himawari began to dance cheerfully, following its tune.

 

“O-Oi, you’re going too wildly! I—”

“Ahahaha! Can’t hear you~”

 

I knew that it would be a huge ordeal to dance with her and I was completely right about it.

 

With all of her energy released, I didn’t even know if I was dancing or being pushed around by her.

 

“Joro.”

“What is it?”

 

Up here on the stage, surrounded by the music and the cheers of the other students, Himawari asked me a question in a voice that only I could hear.

 

“Is there anyone that you like now, Joro?”

“No.”

 

I answered that question without any hesitation. If I may be honest, I liked a certain girl who was still in the backstage, but I was only attracted to her appearance and nothing more. I wasn’t attracted to her romantically at all.

 

Like, that girl deceived me this time. If anything, my feelings toward her were one of annoyance.

 

“I see!”

 

Himawari smiled brightly before tightening her grip on my hand.

 

Huh? Could it be?

 

“Me too! I don’t have anyone that I like!”

 

Wait, no, you weren’t supposed to say that!

 

You shoulda told me something along the lines of ‘that means I have a chance!’

 

Seriously, I was a fool for expecting something good coming out of your mouth…

 

“Ei! Yah! Tah!”

 

Was that supposed to be a dance cry, if that even existed?

 

You know what? Whatever. She seemed to be enjoying the dance and everyone else was having a good time. That was all that mattered here.

 

“Alright!”

 

As we entered the final step of the dance, the song ended.

 

At the same time, the gym was enveloped in a thunderous applause as darkness enveloped the stage once again.

 

When the light came back on, Himawari was no longer standing by my side. Instead, it was Cosmos who was standing next to me.

 

“Let’s do our best.”

“Got it.”

 

The next piece played was Chopin’s Fantasie Impromptu.

 

Unlike Himawari, Cosmos wasn’t dancing erratically, so it was easier for me to keep up with her.

 

“What do you think, Joro-kun? This dress should be the one that suits your taste.”

 

With its bosom slightly opened and the overall mature-looking vibe it gave out, the dress suited Cosmos’ style perfectly.

 

Except for the color, pale pink, a maidenly color that Cosmos didn’t want to separate from herself.

 

“Well, it isn’t bad.”

“That’s good then. It was worth the effort asking Himawari-san to pick the dress for me. By the way, I was the one who picked her dress.”

 

I see. Himawari had the tendency to pick a mature-looking dress while Cosmos had the tendency to pick a childish-looking one.

 

That meant if they were asked to pick each others’ dresses, they’d pick dresses that would suit each other. A brilliant idea, I gotta say.

 

“By the way, what did I sound like when I was on the phone with you? I was worried that my nervous act was a little wonky since apparently I talked in an accent whenever I started to feel nervous.”

“You did well, I was completely fooled by it.”

 

Come to think of it, she’d start talking in a samurai accent whenever she got nervous.

 

So, the reason why her samurai accent came out was because she was nervous about her acting?

 

Ah, the more I think about it, the more confused I get…

 

“…”

 

…Anyway, I wonder if Asunaro would be okay? Well, the relationship between me and her would turn awkward, that much was a given, but I was worried if this matter would also affect her relationship with others as well…

 

“If you’re worried about Asunaro-san, don’t be. She’ll be fine.”

“What do you mean?”

“The only ones who know about her secret are me, you and Sun-chan. It would be better for others to not know about it, especially Himawari-san, who is in the same class as you guys…”

 

It seemed like she figured out that I was thinking about Asunaro from my sour expression.

 

She assured me with a gentle smile.

 

“Sun-chan also said to me that he isn’t angry at her anymore, so you don’t need to worry.”

“…Thank you for everything you’ve done for us, Prez.”

“It’s me who should be thanking you. If it isn’t for you, the Kabuten wouldn’t go so smoothly. It was thanks to you that Pansy-san agreed to participate in the first place.”

“Then, may I ask for a reward?”

“You’re back to your normal self, I see. Well, that’s a hard question to answer, but let me think of a good answer for you.”

 

You could just let me touch you more while we were dancing.

 

Wait, I shouldn’t say that out loud, she’d make me kneel again.

 

…For a while after that, Cosmos kept on dancing while thinking about something.

 

“…I guess that’s what I should do, huh? I don’t think it’s the right answer, but let’s just do it anyway…”

 

Toward the end of the song, she seemed to stumble upon a good answer as she let out a serene smile.

 

“If I were to consider the future, this will make everything more complicated, but I like you more than I like omurice anyway, so this should be fine. I should follow my heart in a situation like this and take action.”

 

Could I complain about how absurd her point of comparison was?

 

“What are you going to do?”

“This.”

 

We finished our dance and like before, the thunderous applause echoed through the gym as the light went out.

 

“Woah!”

 

At that moment, Cosmos pulled my body closer toward her.

 

 

“W-What are you—?!”

 

Then, I felt a soft sensation on my cheek.

 

A soft feeling that I had only ever experienced once prior to this.

 

It was too dark to tell, but Cosmos was really doing this to me?!

 

“T-That was my answer… S-So what score did I get for that…?”

“A-A hundred points…”

“That’s great… T-That’s all from me then!”

 

With her voice disappeared to the darkness, the warmth of her hand also disappeared. However, the soft feeling on my cheek didn’t seem like it would fade anytime soon.

 

What an amazing reward… Let’s hope that Pansy didn’t see that…

 

Anyway, it was time for the last dance. If I nailed this one too, the event would end in a great success.

 

By the way, Cosmos was hiding the last participant’s identity from everyone else.

 

When she submitted the member list to the teachers, she told them that the girl wanted to keep her name a secret and the teachers allowed it. That was the student council president for you, I guess.

 

When my mind was occupied with such thoughts, I suddenly felt my hand being grabbed by someone.

 

…Guess she was finally here. The ideal girl for me, appearance wise only.

 

I wonder what would the other students think when they saw her? Would they go crazy in excitement?

 

Amidst the darkness, I could faintly hear everyone’s voice. ‘So, the last dance would be a two-guys dance?’, ‘Sun-chan won’t be participating, so it seems like someone else will pitch in for him,’ ‘Tough luck on whoever it is, having to dance after those two…’ and so on. It was clear that they didn’t expect anything from us. That just made me excited for their reaction though.

 

As I waited with that kind of excitement, the light was turned back on. In that instant, the gym exploded with cheers.

 

“Woah, that’s hella loud.”

“Everyone’s lively, it seems.”

 

No one in the audience reacted calmly, everyone was surprised to see her.

 

“Oi, who is that pretty girl? What class is she from? I’ve never seen her before!”

“B-Beats me! But, she’s so pretty… I’ve never seen someone that pretty…”

“She might be prettier than Himawari-senpai and the President…”

“Hello, I’m Sunada from class 3-1! I’d love to know your name!”

 

Their voice turned up my excitement by a notch.

 

Yes, praise her more! You guys were right, Pansy was a real beauty!

 

And I was about to dance with her! Hahaha! Bet you guys were jealous, huh?

 

“It’s time to start, Joro-kun.”

 

How could she stay calm at this… No, that wasn’t the case.

 

Despite her calm voice and indifferent expression, her hands were trembling.

 

At times like this, if you were to let your surroundings affect you too much, everything would fall apart, but I guess it was too much to ask for her since she wasn’t used to this in the first place.

 

…Well, let’s do this.

 

“Pansy, don’t mind your surroundings, if you do, it’s easy to lose yourself. Well, I know that you don’t need me to tell you this.”

“What are you talking about?”

 

She asked that question as she blinked.

 

And so, I gave her a grin before answering her question.

 

“I mean, am I not the only one in your eyes? If that’s true, you wouldn’t mind about other people to begin with.”

“…Yeah… I guess you’re right…”

 

Pansy let out a graceful smile. It seemed like she understood what I was trying to say.

 

Her nervousness must’ve started to go away as her grip on my hand became firmer.

 

“I’ll be focusing my attention on you while we dance, Joro-kun.”

“Suit yourself.”

 

The last piece of song played was Chopin’s Grande Valse Brillante.

 

A masterpiece to close the Kabuten

 

“Joro-kun, I have a question for you.”

 

As the famous song entered its final part, amidst the cheering crowd, Pansy spoke to me.

 

“What is it?”

 

Maybe she somehow found out about the kiss Cosmos gave me just a while ago?

 

If that was the case, guess I had to brace myself.

 

“Why have you been doing so many things for me ever since the day I went to your house?”

 

Oh cr*p. I’d rather her ask me about Cosmos’ kiss instead of this…

 

“I-I don’t remember doing anything for you.”

“You know that I can see through your lies, right?”

“Ugh…”

 

Then, just accept the fact that I didn’t want to talk about this! Why must you be so insistent!

“I’m guessing the trigger was back when you escorted me home that night, right?”

 

Ah, she kept on going. Why must she do this to me?

 

“‘The more friends you have, the more good memories you can make.’”

 

Adding to my despair, Pansy repeated the line that she said back then.

 

“Jeez, I said those words to help you out… Why are you using it to help me out instead?”

“I thought you said you were just speaking from your experience…”

“Yes, that’s true. I never expected that you’d take those words to heart and try to help me make more friends.”

 

F**k, I thought she didn’t notice because she hadn’t said anything about it prior to this!

 

“Starting from the midterm study sessions, you invited me to teach Hinata-san and Oga-san. You said that the more people join, the merrier, but you were hiding another purpose; so that I could get along with those two. I always told you, ‘you’re easy to read,’ but you’re still underestimating me like this. Seriously, you don’t understand me at all, do you?”

 

Stop laughing! If you were to do that while looking like this, I’d fall for you!

 

“Then, all the strategy meetings in the library. At first, you invited Himawari-san and Akino-senpai, then you invited Oga-kun as well. Just like that, it became normal for everyone to gather in the library for lunch. You might have thought that you were being subtle about it, but I could see your intentions clearly, you know?”

 

Ah, this girl was so thorough… I really thought I was being slick for making that move…

 

“Lastly, the practice for Kabuten. This one you were just trying too hard. The other three already noticed by then that you were trying to make us get along. It was too obvious.”

 

Busted! Everyone already knew huh? Wait, even Himawari knew?

 

Seriously? Was it really that obvious? There was no way, right…?

 

“That’s why, let me ask you one more time, Joro-kun.”

 

Pansy stared at me with her crystal-like eyes as her mouth moved indifferently.

 

“Why have you been doing so many things for me ever since the day I went to your house?”

“…Because you always insist on being together with me.”

“That much is a given. I love you, after all.”

“Even so, you’re going overboard lately. You forced me to be with you on lunch breaks, that much is fine, but after school too? I figured that if I get you some friends, you’ll talk to me less.”
“You know that’s not the answer to my question. What I want to know is the reason behind all your actions, not only the part where you tried to get me friends.”

“Ugh, seriously, you…”

“Please, Joro-kun. Tell me…”

 

She squeezed my hand tightly as she begged me with a sweet voice.

 

Ah, I can’t handle her like this! If only she was in her usual appearance!

 

“A-As a thank you for everything that you’ve done for me…”

“Like what?”

“Think about it yourself.”
“No. I want you to tell me.”

 

Grrr, this big chested, pretty girl! Just because you were pretty didn’t mean you could get anything you wanted!

Whatever, everything could go to hell for all I care!

 

“No matter how harsh I was on you, no matter how much I told you that I hate you, you always stayed by my side. Thanks to you, I was never alone. You were always there for me. For that, I’m thankful, that’s why, I want to pay you back. I figured that I’d help you get more friends so your high school life will be even more fun than before… Anyway! Despite all that, I still hate you, so don’t forget about that!”

 

That’s it! I have nothing more to say to her!

 

“…You’re amazing, you know that?”

“What?”

“You know, I thought that I couldn’t love you anymore than this. But, after hearing your words, I ended up loving you even more.”

 

You were even more amazing than me for being able to say something like that out loud.

 

“Alright, as a thank you for answering my question, I’m going to tell you something.”

“I don’t want to hear it.”

“The flower language of various pansies according to the people overseas. Since you’re an idiot, I doubt that you know about it.”

 

Oh here we go again, her usual conceited self was back. Her appearance might have changed, but some things didn’t change.

 

Not to mention that she casually spit out her venom at me again. Seriously, what an annoying girl.

 

“Listen carefully, okay? This is a little embarrassing, even for me…”

 

As the song came to an end, not only did she gripped my hand tightly, she also clasped our bodies together.

 

Amazing… The feeling of her chest… I felt dizzy…

 

“Yellow pansies mean ‘memories.’ I want to make a bunch of wonderful memories from now on.”

“You’re speaking as if you’ve never made some already.”

 

I spoke curtly, but she ignored me completely and continued with her words.

 

“White pansies symbolized ‘loving thoughts,’ well, I always showed you how affectionate I could be.”

“That caused nothing but trouble for me.”

“And there are purple pansies…”

 

She probably hadn’t realized that her face was getting redder by the seconds.

 

Well I wouldn’t say anything to ruin the mood. Let’s just stay quiet and listen to what she has to say. The dance would be over soon anyway.

 

“‘You’re the only one in my heart.’”

 

The music stopped and we stopped moving. Thunderous applause filled the room. With this, I could say with confidence that the Kabuten this year was a huge success.

 

Various things happened, but we were able to conclude everything safely.

 

This outcome was as close as it could get to the best outcome possible, at least for me…

 

With that, the curtain gradually fell down until we couldn’t see the audience anymore.

 

“The legend surrounding the Kabuten… ‘One of the three girls will end up marrying the chosen boy…’ Guess he’ll end up marrying one of them in the future, huh?”

“Nah, I don’t think the legend will apply for this year.”

“Hearing that answer made me feel relieved, but at the same time, I feel bad for him.”

 

Looking down on me much, don’t you? I swear, those people…

 

“You did it, Joro!”
“Woah! S-Sun-chan?!”

 

As I was staring absent-mindedly, Sun-chan came running from behind the stage and wrapped his arm on my shoulder.

 

“You were so beautiful, Pansy-chan! My heart was throbbing when I saw you dancing!”

“Thank you, Pansy-san! Thanks to you, the Kabuten this year is a huge success!”

 

Cosmos and Himawari rushed over to Pansy’s side. 

 

When Himawari was about to hug her…

 

“Can I say something to everyone? I have something that I want to share with you all.”

 

Saying this, Pansy stared at a certain person.

 

Not Himawari or Cosmos, but the guy who was wrapping his hand on my shoulders, Sun-chan.

 

“Um… What is it, Sanshokuin-san?”

“What’s wrong, Pansy-chan?”

“Is there something on your mind, Pansy-san?”

 

The three of them tilted their heads, showing their friendliness toward her strange behavior.

 

Oh, by the way, I didn’t know why she was acting this way either. What was she up to?

 

“Himawari, Cosmos-senpai, Sun-chan… Thanks to all of you, I was able to make good memories with Joro-kun… Thank you…”

 

Woah, she just called them by their nicknames.

 

Those three were surprised. Look at their eyes, they were wide open.

 

Well, that was an understandable reaction, she never did something like this before.

 

I was the only one she referred to by nickname.

 

The fact that she was willing to call them by nicknames meant that she considered them as her friends.

 

“Hehehe! Don’t mention it! I also got to make good memories with you, Pansy-chan!”

 

Himawari was bouncing around with a smile that was 50% wider than usual.

 

“Let’s get along well as friends from now on, Pansy-san!”

 

Cosmos squeezed Pansy’s hand and smiled like a maiden-in-love.

 

“H-Hahaha! I-It was nothing! Also, your performance during the Kabuten was perfect, Pansy!”

 

Finally, Sun-chan, with tears in his eyes, popped a thumbs up at her.

 

Good for you, Sun-chan. All this time, you were the only one who was still calling Pansy by her surname.

 

You were able to call her by her nickname now. I could understand your happiness.

 

After that, the lights on stage were turned off and we retreated backstage.

 

And thus, the event that would remain as a precious memory to me, the Kabuten, ended.

 

TL: Iyo

ED: Iyo

 

 

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