Translator: RaidenTL
After becoming a manager with Chinami, I headed to the equipment room with her as she clapped her hands enthusiastically.
"Junior Matsuda, I'm looking forward to working with you!"
How am I supposed to deal with Chinami? Her energy is so high, it's hard to keep up.
For now, I'll just watch.
"I'm looking forward to working with you too, Nana-senpai."
"Okay! Now, today I'm going to teach you how to clean the hogu. You've heard of hogu, right?"
"Yes."
"Then, what are the names of the different parts of the hogu used in kendo~?"
A pop quiz, out of nowhere?
How cute.
I've actually done my research on hogu, so I know the answer. But it looks like Chinami is eager to teach me something…
So I'll pretend to forget one.
"Homyun, howan, and gap."
"Oh...? Good, but you missed one. I'll give you a hint. It's the part of the hogu you put on first…?"
"I'm not sure."
"Hmm! If you don't know, then I'll just have to teach you!"
Pleased that I didn't know, Chinami took out the gapsang—which protects the waist and groin—from the far corner.
She then showed it to me and explained.
"This is called a gapsang. It's the equipment that protects your waist and the area below it."
It must be pretty heavy, but she didn't even grimace.
Means she's strong. In that case, her grip must be good too.
"So it's an important piece of equipment?"
"Of course! It's important! It's an especially crucial piece of gear for beginners. If someone accidentally strikes a vital spot during a clumsy match... that would hurt, right?"
That sounds horrible.
Placing the gapsang back in its spot, Chinami folded her fingers one by one as she continued.
"Homyun, howan, gap, and gapsang... these four parts make up the kendo equipment."
"Got it. I'll memorize them."
"That's a good attitude, Junior Matsuda. One of our daily tasks is to clean this hogu meticulously, every single day."
"Every day?"
"That's right. If you put it off even a little, the hogu starts to smell. Imagine putting on a homyun and getting a whiff of something musty... that would be super annoying, right? Hehehe."
Chinami let out a carefree laugh.
She doesn't have a smell fetish, does she?
"...Yes."
"The academy provides them for free, but you have to treat them like your own and take good care of them. That way, the people who inherit the hogu after you will feel the same way."
I get it now. Your level... no, your personality.
I'll give you some perfectly tailored instruction.
"I understand."
"Great. Now I'll show you how to clean the hogu. First, you put a little rubbing alcohol on a cotton ball and..."
"Ah... so that's why you joined the club as a manager, Matsuda-kun?"
That was Miyuki, after hearing my full explanation in the car on the way home.
"I told you, didn't I?"
"What are you going to do? I heard being a manager for a sports club is really tough..."
"I spent the whole day polishing hogu."
"That's why you should have behaved yourself..."
"Get out. You can walk."
"No way. My legs hurt."
Miyuki replied coyly, then asked Tetsuya.
"What about you, Tetsuya-kun? What did you learn today?"
"Etiquette and how to grip a shinai."
"Etiquette? You mean like the kendo bow?"
"Yeah. I learned how to sit and a few other things."
"Don't martial artists look so disciplined when they show respect?"
"It's less about discipline... and more about being full of spirit."
"Show me sometime. I feel like it would look cool."
The corners of Tetsuya's mouth crept upward.
He looked like he was on cloud nine after being called cool.
Is that bastard getting... an erection just thinking about Miyuki's soft voice?
Judging by that dopey look on his face, I think that might be the case...
"I will."
"The problem is you, Matsuda-kun. You need to learn to behave... I'm worried you'll do something rude to that senior manager."
"I was thinking the same thing."
So he's reached the point where he runs his mouth without knowing his place.
Good for you, Tetsuya.
If you want to star in a video titled [Miyuki Impregnation Record], just keep it up.
I stopped by Tetsuya's house and had him get out first.
"Thanks, Matsuda."
"Hurry up and disappear."
"See you tomorrow. Miyuki, call me later."
He doesn't even flinch at provocations like this anymore and just says what he wants.
Ignoring the waving bastard, I stepped on the gas and pulled up in front of Miyuki's house.
As she was about to get out of the car, I stared at her intently.
"Miyuki."
"Yes...?"
"You got into the student council, right?"
"Ah... yeah. I got in. I'm starting as a general affairs clerk for now."
"Congratulations."
My suddenly serious attitude made Miyuki's body stiffen.
"Th-thank you..."
So Miyuki always gets shy when the mood turns soft and tender.
Then, when we're actually on a date, she goes back to her usual self, only to start squirming like this again toward the end.
I grinned at her bashfulness, opened the console box, and took out a box I had prepared earlier.
It was a small cake box with a handle and a domed top.
As I held it out to Miyuki, her eyes blinked a couple of times.
"What's this...?"
"A gift to celebrate your student council debut. Open it."
At my words, Miyuki reflexively reached out and opened the box.
After unwrapping it very, very carefully, she gasped in admiration as soon as she saw what was inside.
"Wow..."
My gift to Miyuki was a cake.
A mini cake with strawberries between each layer, decorated with flowers made of whipped cream and topped with one large strawberry.
Miyuki would have never expected me to buy something like this.
It's a humble gift, but to her, right now, it'll feel like a big deal.
The only downside is that I couldn't make it myself... but I can just make her one later.
I spoke to Miyuki, who couldn't take her eyes off the cake.
"So, a general affairs clerk... that's a position where you're in charge of odd jobs, just like me, huh?"
"...Huh? What? What did you say?"
Miyuki was so lost in admiration that she hadn't even heard me.
My attempt at teasing having failed, I shook my head with a smile.
"Nothing. Enjoy the cake."
"But, I didn't get you anything..."
"Didn't expect you to. Now hurry up and go inside."
"I should go... now?"
The gift was good, but there's no romantic mood afterward, right? That's just how I am. You know that.
"Go inside and eat it all by yourself, okay? Don't let your sister steal it."
"Sh-she won't steal it...?"
"Go on."
"Okay... Well... I'm going, Matsuda-kun."
I nodded in response and watched as Miyuki slowly got out of the car.
She glanced back as she walked toward her house.
In her hands, she held the cake box as if it were something precious.
Vrooom...
As I drove off, I watched the receding figure of Miyuki in the side mirror.
She was fumbling in her pockets in front of her door before crouching down. It looked like she'd dropped her key.
So clumsy.
Preparations for the cultural festival will start in September. I should set up one more event before then.
@@
Resting her arm on the corner of her desk and her chin on her arm, a huge grin spread across Miyuki's face.
She had placed the cake Matsuda gave her on the desk and was now staring at it endlessly.
A beautiful cake that clearly showed the baker's care and dedication.
She liked it even more because it was filled with strawberries, her favorite.
How he handled the accident at the movie theater, or his thoughtfulness before and after she left the club...
She knew he had a delicate side, but she had never dreamed he would prepare a gift like this.
I should get him a gift too...
A lunchbox is too cliché... Should I bake some cookies?
After staring at the cake for a while and thinking about how to repay Matsuda, Miyuki picked up her phone.
He should be home by now.
With that thought, she opened the camera app.
Hmm...
She tried to take a picture of the cake, but something wasn't right.
Jumping up from her chair, Miyuki cleared the notebooks and textbooks around the cake, then hurried down to the kitchen, calling out in a rather loud voice.
"Mom! Do you have any pretty plates?"
In the kitchen, Midori, who was washing dishes, tilted her head.
"A pretty plate? What for? Ah... to put that cake on?"
"Yeah. Do you have one?"
"That's hard to say. To my eyes, all our dishes look pretty."
A wise answer to a foolish question.
Miyuki, looking a bit embarrassed, was about to look for a plate herself while twirling her hair when—
"Was it two or three years ago, on your high school trip? That plate you bought back then was pretty, why don't you use that?"
Wataru's voice came from the living room where he was watching TV, and she let out a small "Ah!"
The small plate with cherry blossoms embroidered on the rim that she had bought with Tetsuya.
Why hadn't she thought of that? She used to use it all the time.
Opening a corner cabinet, she took out the plate she hadn't used in a long time and hesitated in front of Midori.
She wanted to wash the plate, but Midori was already doing the dishes.
Noticing her daughter's sentiment, Midori let out a soft laugh and extended a hand clad in a rubber glove.
"Give it here. I'll wash it for you."
Miyuki gave her an awkward smile and handed over the plate.
She then grabbed a dry cloth and bounced on the balls of her feet, revealing her impatience.
After washing the plate and handing it back to Miyuki, Midori asked.
"Did Tetsuya give you the cake? Or was it Haruka?"
"Nope. I'm busy, so I'm going back up. Thanks, Mom."
"Alright. But when is Matsuda-kun coming over? You said you were going to set a date."
Miyuki, who was about to leave the kitchen, froze.
"I haven't set a date yet..."
"Set one soon. If you keep putting it off, it'll just fizzle out."
"Okay... I'm going up now, okay?"
"Go ahead."
Ending the conversation, Miyuki grabbed a fork with a bunny character on the end and returned to her room.
Then, very carefully so as not to ruin the cake, she took it out and placed it on the plate.
With the fork resting on the edge, it looked quite presentable.
She took a picture of it, went to her chat with Matsuda, attached the photo, and started typing a message.
[It's too pretty to eat.]
Something's missing...
Should I add an emoji at the end?
[It's too pretty to eat♥]
Is the heart a bit much...? It might seem frivolous.
A tilde or an exclamation mark seems too plain...
Struggling with a dilemma she didn't usually face, Miyuki couldn't decide what to do. In the end, she just sent the original sentence and followed it up with a character sticker.
"....."
A considerable amount of time passed, but there was no reply.
Is he taking a shower? He didn't get into an accident on the way home, did he?
Miyuki, who had been worrying about Matsuda to the point of imagining the worst, immediately unlocked her phone the moment it vibrated.
[Miyuki, did you get home okay?]
It was a message from Tetsuya, not Matsuda.
The moment she saw the message checking in on her, a sense of disappointment she couldn't quite place flickered through Miyuki's heart for just a moment... a very brief moment.
So fast that she herself didn't even notice it.
[Yep. Of course I got home safe.]
[That's a relief. I was worried when I didn't hear from you.]
Come to think of it, Tetsuya had told her in the car to contact him later.
She had completely forgotten.
Feeling sorry, Miyuki took a picture of the plate she had brought up.
She removed the cake and fork, so only the rim was visible.
[Do you know what this is?]
[It's the one we bought on our school trip to Okinawa two years ago, right?]
[That's right. How did you remember?]
[Of course I know it. It's full of our memories. You were still using it?]
[I use it all the time. What about you, Tetsuya-kun?]
[I use mine sometimes for side dishes too. Seeing that reminds me of something. The necklace I bought you in elementary school... do you still have it?]
Reading the reply, Miyuki glanced at her bedroom door.
Hanging from the top was a cute cat with its right paw raised.
It was a maneki-neko, said to bring good fortune, made into a necklace.
[Of course. It's working hard bringing me good fortune from my ceiling.]
[I remember how you cherished it, saying how cute it was when you got it. And congratulations on getting into the student council today.]
[Only now?]
[Sorry. Please forgive me.]
She tried teasing him a little, but his reaction was bland.
If she'd sent a message like that to Matsuda, he probably would have sent a curt reply like, 'You should be grateful I congratulated you at all.'
[I'll make a special exception and forgive you. Thanks, Tetsuya-kun.]
As Miyuki placated Tetsuya while imagining a conversation with Matsuda—
Bzzzt-!
A vibration went off, and Matsuda's message appeared at the top of her screen. She immediately tapped it.
[You'll gain weight if you eat it late, so eat it now. And make sure to brush your teeth. They'll rot. Or don't, I don't care.]
A reply with a completely different temperature from Tetsuya's.
Even in simple text, Matsuda's personality shone through.
In the past, she would have thought it was rude, but not anymore.
Should I say it was very... Matsuda-like? It felt like it suited him perfectly.
[Are you a tsundere, Matsuda-kun?]
[Feeling cheeky?]
Even though it was a silly reply, it was already fun.
With a smile blooming on her face, Miyuki became absorbed in her conversation with Matsuda.