I Want To Make The School's "Silent Princess" Talk, So I Invited Her (Who's Super Cute) Out On A Date Today. ~Anyways, She's So Very Intense When It Comes To Skinship, That It's Going To Take My Reason Away~ - Chapter 15

Chapter 15

The Princess’s Distress

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“Is this the right place…?”

Inside the station, the streets are becoming more crowded. I could hear people’s voices talking and the rush hour was as intense as usual.

I leaned against the wall in the middle of the station as businessmen with large bags and parents and children walked by, while waiting for Aikawa-san.

The time was 7:20am, only ten minutes before the appointed time.

We talked here yesterday, so it must be the right place. She only sent, “Gifu Station,” and didn’t specify anything else.

(Hmm… maybe it’s a different location, after all.)

As I waited a little anxiously while checking the time on my phone… I caught a glimpse of her distinctive peach hair in the crowd.

“Aikawa-san, over here, over here.”

When I raised my voice for a bit, Aikawa-san turned around and walked towards me. His face was expressionless as usual, but she looked a little tired today.

“Good morning.”

“…Mhn.”

It was difficult to even walk in this crowded place, I can see why she’s tired. 

Aikawa-san does not have a strong body, in fact, she was rather slender. Aikawa’s body was very thin, except for one part.

“Well then, let’s get going.”

“Un.”

After leaving the station, we walked side by side in the bright sunlight. I’m not as nervous as I used to be, probably because I’m used to being with Aikawa-san.

My hands were sweating a little, but it’s within the acceptable range. Aikawa-san who’s a bit sleepy, and unaware of my concern, held her mouth and stifled a yawn.

(Normally, a voice would come out if you yawn…)

Even with physiological phenomena such as yawing, she doesn’t try to open her mouth… I’m still curious about the reason why she doesn’t talk much.

Last night, I found out the general reason why Aikawa-san’s so friendly with me. That cleared my mind a little, but humans are greedy creatures. Soon, another inquiring mind would sprout up.

(Why doesn’t… Aikawa-san talk?)

It’s something that has been bothering me since the day we shared the umbrella, but it’s obvious that Aikawa-san will feel bad about bringing it up. So I pounded my chest with my fist once and forced the question to stay in my mind.

“Do you like animals, Aikawa-san?”

“Un.”

I tried to distract myself out of boredom by talking about something appropriate. I thought it was just a common topic to keep the conversation going, but it was surprisingly well received. She looked up at me with a slight twinkle in her eye.

“Maybe… you like dogs too, Aikawa-san?

“!”

Aikawa-san looked a little surprised. Her expression relaxed a bit, and the corner of her mouth slightly rose. The change in her expression couldn’t have been more obvious, that I’m a little confused.

(She got that look in her that says, “how did you know!”)

I wonder if I should say that she acts like a dog. He would follow me in an adorable trot and sniffed people’s scent.

She unknowingly reminds me of the dog that I missed so much as a child.

“Then, what’s your favourite type of breed?”

I got carried away and asked her questions that couldn’t be answered with Yes or No. 

Realizing my mistake, I tried to speak up to correct it. But then…

“…Mhn.”

She used the image search on her phone to show me a picture of a Shiba Inu.

“Shiba Inu huh. I mean, this conversation has become pretty nice, hasn’t it.”

I replied, “I like Shiba Inus too”, and Aikawa-san vigorously nodded her head in agreement. Her long hair swayed, and for a moment a sweet smell drifted into the air. [TLN: Thanks flamer for the help.]

…T-This is really hard. Every time I become aware of her, my heart starts to race for the umpteenth time.

Even though I’ve gotten used to being with her, this phenomenon when my heart jumps when I’m conscious of Aikawa-san would probably not go away for a while.

(Chatting on her phone, searching for images. Isn’t it surprisingly difficult to communicate with her?)

I used to cringe at the prospect of getting a response, but now my response rate was almost 100% every time.

I’m glad that we’ve gotten a little closer, but I think it’s time for her to respond to other people.

“Oh, we’re here.”

“Mhn.”

We were able to talk about Shiba Inu today, so that was an accomplishment enough. We had a much better conversation than we did on the day we shared an umbrella.

I think the fact that I was able to get the conversation going was because my communication skills have grown a bit.

(Yep, Yusuke-sama! Thank you very much!)

I gave Yusuke a salute inside my mind while taking out my indoor slippers out of the shoe box.

After I put my shoes inside the shoes I went to Aikawa-san’s place… but she was frozen Infront of her shoe box.

“Aikawa-san?”

“…”

I peeked inside the shoe box and saw that her slippers were gone. I looked around, but there were no signs of it.

“Hey, are you sure you didn’t take them home with you?”

“Un.”

If that’s the case, her slippers must be in the school. If there is an exception… someone must’ve hid them intentionally.

“Well, I’d better go to the staff room and borrow some slippers. Don’t worry, I’ll explain to the teacher about this.”

“…Uun.”

She softly refused my suggestion while keeping her face down. She then walked to a nearby trash can with a familiar gait.

For a moment, a bad feeling flashed through my mind.

I’ve had this happen to me a few times, so the moment she took something out of the trash, I couldn’t help but look away. I didn’t want to know what kind of expression she’s making right now.

“…”

Aikawa-san lightly brushed the dust from the surface and looked down as she grabbed her slippers from the trash can. Even if her expression doesn’t change, I’m sure she’s depressed.

“Aikawa-san, should I explain the situation to the teacher?”

“…Uun.”

“I’ll let you borrow my slippers for now cause it’s too dirty to wear those. I’ve experienced that situation a few times myself too.”

“…Mhn.”

I don’t mind wearing that but it’s not easy for a girl. It’s not good for hygiene either, so there’s no way I’d feel good about her wearing them.

She refused to wear them at first, but she eventually agreed in a slightly lower tone.

We went into the staff room and borrowed a pair of slippers. On the way, many teachers were looking at me, but I didn’t care, and just gave them a quick greeting and walked past.

I guess it’s unusual for Aikawa-san to take someone along with her. Aikawa-san seems to be attracting a lot of attention among the teachers, both in a good and bad way.

After that, I gave Aikawa-san some advice that she should bring her slippers home with her everyday from now on. Shen then nodded and walked off to the classroom, leaving me behind.

(I guess there are people who think badly of her.)

Aikawa-san’s basically a quiet person, so I guess there are people who don’t feel good about her. Some people may dislike her because she is popular, while others may dislike her because she doesn’t talk much.

“Haaa… This is not funny at all…”

Just when I thought we were getting closer, this happened. In addition to hiding her slippers, this kind of bullying can escalate, so it’s better to find out who the culprit was as soon as possible.

I have a rough idea of who the culprit is, but I’m not sure.

The person who hid my slippers in the past is currently in the same class as me. The most likely candidate is…

Mizuno Shiori, the head of the class’s extrovert group.

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