It took the two people who went downstairs to exchange the drinks more than ten minutes to come back.
Teacher Takeuchi glanced at the time, worried that something might go wrong if they were late. Seeing the two returning, he urged them:
"Go downstairs in line first, and get the drinks after the performance."
The other students in the classroom didn't complain, and they left their seats to line up in the corridor outside.
The only unfortunate part was that the two who had gone down didn't even get a chance to sit and rest before having to line up again.
The venue for the competition was primarily the gymnasium. A temporary stage had been hastily built in the past few days.
The back door of the gymnasium was also designated as a temporary entrance, so that students from the performing classes could prepare in advance.
As soon as everyone in Class B entered the venue, Teacher Takeuchi had them stand in place and rest. He also instructed Miki to watch everyone, as he had to step out for a moment.
After watching Takeuchi-sensei leave, Shouko scooted over to Tsuna, feeling a bit restless.
"Tsuna, the performance is about to start! What should I do? I'm so nervous!"
"Let me think..." Tsuna observed Shouko's nervous expression and pondered for a moment before slowly speaking.
"Take a deep breath?"
"Okay, I'll try." Shouko followed his instructions, inhaling deeply and exhaling.
Tsuna continued to encourage her softly.
Their interaction drew some attention. The boys didn't mind it—some even thought Miyamura was a bit cheesy.
But other boys and girls saw it differently. They wished Miyamura were encouraging them like that. There was no cheesiness at all.
Their envy toward Shouko doubled.
"Shimada, my stomach hurts. I need to go to the restroom first."
At the end of the group, Shōya clutched his stomach, turned back, and told Shimada, who was standing behind him—before leaving.
Before Shimada could say anything, Shōya had already vanished. He thought his acting was incredibly convincing—even though the performance hadn't even started yet.
Keisuke, who had been standing in front of Ishida Shoya, finally noticed his absence and turned to ask Shimada,
"Where's Shōya?" He glanced around as he spoke.
"He went to the bathroom. Don't worry about it," Shimada replied casually.
.
Keisuke had no choice but to change the subject. He had a lingering suspicion that the two of them were hiding something, but he also thought he might be overthinking it.
After all, the three of them were close friends, and he hadn't done anything wrong recently. There was no reason to be paranoid.
Five or six minutes passed. With Tsuna's constant encouragement and reassurance, Shouko's nervousness had completely faded.
"Okay, Tsuna, I feel much better now. I didn't realize I was so good…"
Shouko raised her hand to cover Tsuna's mouth just as he was about to offer more praise. Seeing him nod, she sheepishly clasped her hands.
Tsuna, seeing her adorable, self-deprecating expression, wanted to roll his eyes, but held back.
"No, no, no. Shouko's always been this good, okay?"
In those five minutes, he had used up every compliment he had learned in both his past and present lives.
"Miyamura… I'm a little nervous too. Do you have any… ways to help calm down?"
Just then, a girl with gray pigtails—nudged forward by her best friend—shyly approached Tsuna and asked.
This instantly put Shouko, who had been secretly pleased, on high alert. She eyed the girl warily, ready to spank Tsuna if he said anything inappropriate.
Aunt Miyamura had taught her this trick a few days ago. She said it was with this very tactic that she had kept Uncle Miyamura from letting other girls get close.
"Yes."
Tsuna nodded after recognizing who it was. He thought she was cute with her twin pigtails, but not as cute as Shouko, and he couldn't even remember the girl's name…
The girl had just lit up in joy when Tsuna added,
"Take a deep breath. That's it."
Shouko chimed in quickly, "That's right, Yuki, deep breathing really works. I've been doing that to calm myself down."
The girl didn't know how to respond. She mimicked Shouko's deep breathing, then quietly returned to her place. Her nervousness had vanished—now she just wanted to crawl into a hole from embarrassment.
When she returned, her best friends were about to comfort her when the buzz-cut boy—who had previously fought with Shōya, stepped up, rubbing his head sheepishly.
"Miki… I have a method for easing nerves. Want me to teach you?"
Afraid she wouldn't believe him, the buzz-cut boy quickly added,
"Really! It works every time."
But the girl ignored him. Seeing this, he tried to change the subject, but she cut him off:
"I'm not nervous anymore. I don't really feel like talking right now. Sorry."
"Oh, then—"
Before he could finish, the girl had already gone to sit with her best friend.
Seeing this, the buzz-cut boy could only silently return to his seat.
As soon as he sat down, his best friend laughed,
"Ito, why is your face so red?"
Ito turned his head away and ignored him.
---
"Where's Ishida?"
About ten minutes later, Takeuchi returned to the front of the group and immediately noticed that Ishida Shōya was missing. He turned around and asked Miki, who was standing beside him.
"I went to the bathroom and just got back," a voice answered before Miki could respond.
Takeuchi looked and saw Ishida Shoya returning.
Teacher Takeuchi nodded and said,
"Go back to your seats. It's about to begin, and we're the third performance."
Shoya shrugged and returned to the group.
"Shimada, what's wrong with you? Why do you look constipated?"
Shōya noticed Shimada's troubled expression and couldn't help but ask.
Before he could say anything else, Shimada mumbled,
"Maybe I caught a cold last night or something… or maybe it's my stomach. I need to go to the bathroom. Shōya, tell that four-eyed bastard for me."
And then he quickly ran off.
Takeuchi, who was at the front of the group, immediately noticed someone leaving.
Looking closely, he spotted Shimada and shouted,
"Shimada! Where are you going!?"
Everyone in the group turned to look where Takeuchi was shouting. Even students from nearby classes were drawn to the loud voice.
---