"Haha~"
Watching Tanaka Masao's performance, Hiratsuka Shizuka was so angry she actually laughed.
She felt profoundly insulted.
Sensing the rage radiating off Hiratsuka Shizuka—so dense it was practically taking physical form—Yukinoshita Yukino silently took a few steps back.
Tanaka Masao, who had been wailing on the floor, also noticed that something about the atmosphere was very, very wrong.
He stopped groaning and looked up.
What he saw was Hiratsuka Shizuka smiling brightly—and Yukinoshita Yukino half a step back, her face full of sympathy.
After thinking for about two and a half seconds, Tanaka Masao put on a smile that perfectly embodied "terrified yet trying to be polite."
"Hello."
...
On the way home, Tanaka Masao walked behind Yukinoshita Yukino and complained,
"Yukinoshita-san, how could you just stand by and watch while Hiratsuka-sensei abused me like that?"
Yukinoshita Yukino glanced back at him calmly.
"That was entirely your own fault. Your acting was so bad that anyone would've taken it as mockery."
"I— I wasn't acting! My reflexes are just a little slower than other people's!"
Tanaka Masao shot back, his eyes darting away.
…Alright, thinking back on it now, his behavior really did look like sarcasm.
And to be fair, Hiratsuka Shizuka hadn't actually done much to him. On the contrary, she'd even taught him a few things.
"Whatever. Since I'm a generous person, I'll forgive both you and Hiratsuka-sensei."
"Generous? From where I'm standing, Tanaka-kun, it's your belly that's generous."
Yukinoshita Yukino replied sharply, deadpan as ever. By then, they had reached the fork where their paths split.
"Tanaka-kun, don't forget to come to school early tomorrow for the morning run."
"I know. Then… see you tomorrow, Yukinoshita-san."
Tanaka Masao waved, yawned, and headed toward home.
After being thoroughly worked over by both Yukinoshita Yukino and Hiratsuka Shizuka today, he really needed to get some rest.
Behind him, Yukinoshita Yukino murmured softly,
"See you… tomorrow?"
She couldn't remember the last time she'd said something like that to someone.
"Even though Tanaka-kun seems pretty hopeless in most respects, but…"
Watching his retreating figure, Yukinoshita Yukino recalled their brief interactions over the past couple of days.
He was a bit overweight, and his looks weren't great—but when interacting with others, he was polite, knew how to keep his distance, and never pushed himself into her space.
At that thought, a faint smile appeared on her lips.
"He's… someone I can at least tolerate."
She turned and headed home as well, her steps noticeably lighter, feeling just a little more interested in going to school than usual.
...
The next day, under Yukinoshita Yukino's supervision, Tanaka Masao finished his morning run.
Today's results were even worse than yesterday's.
After several days of training, every muscle in his body was screaming in protest.
Yukinoshita Yukino explained it succinctly: the intensity could be reduced, but he couldn't stop. Once he got through this phase, it would get better.
Lowering the intensity was already a blessing—and in his current state, raising it was impossible anyway.
After a quick wipe-down to clean off the sweat, Tanaka Masao returned to his classroom.
He collapsed face-first onto his desk like a pile of mud, waiting for class to start.
[With how tired I am… am I going to fall asleep in class?]
As these thoughts drifted through his mind, his consciousness began to blur, his eyelids growing heavier and heavier.
Just as he was slipping into that hazy state, he sensed some movement in front of him.
Tanaka Masao lifted his eyes—and his brain snapped awake instantly.
Kawasaki Saki was already at her seat, somehow without him noticing.
Instead of sitting down immediately like usual, she stood there, looking down at Tanaka Masao from above.
Her gaze was icy, as if she were staring at a corpse. After two and a half seconds, she snorted coldly and took her seat.
Watching her back, Tanaka Masao swallowed hard.
[She definitely figured out that yesterday's P.E. class incident was my doing.
That look just now—felt like she wanted to stab me.
Man… why does everyone keep figuring out that I'm behind these things?
How am I supposed to clean this up?]
...
Just as Tanaka Masao suspected, after Kawasaki Saki got home yesterday, she realized something was off.
Thinking it through carefully, the only possible culprit was Tanaka Masao.
Of course she was angry—playing tennis against Yukinoshita Yukino had exhausted her too.
But honestly speaking, for Kawasaki Saki, facing Yukinoshita Yukino in P.E. was far more interesting than hitting balls against a wall by herself.
What she couldn't figure out was why Tanaka Masao had done it.
Was he trying to use her as a tool against Yukinoshita Yukino?
…It didn't feel like that.
With complicated thoughts swirling in her mind, when she saw Tanaka Masao slumped over his desk that morning, she glanced at him a couple of extra times.
Those casual glances, however, hit Tanaka Masao way harder than she intended.
...
All morning long, both Kawasaki Saki and Tanaka Masao were visibly unsettled.
Kawasaki Saki felt Tanaka Masao watching her from behind, unsure of what he was planning.
Tanaka Masao, staring at Kawasaki Saki's back, had no idea what she might do.
...
But Kawasaki Saki wasn't the type to bottle things up.
So during lunch break, she tossed Tanaka Masao a note.
He opened it. It read:
[After lunch, come to the rooftop.]
Heh—if he didn't know the context, Tanaka Masao might've thought she was about to confess.
Letting out a helpless sigh, he decided to go take a look after lunch.
He pulled out his phone and sent Yukinoshita Yukino a message, saying he had something to do today and wouldn't be eating lunch at the Service Club.
Yes—after just two days of interaction, he had successfully gotten Yukinoshita Yukino's contact info.
It was a long-term request, after all. Having a way to stay in touch was more convenient.
...
Tanaka Masao ate lunch at his desk.
About ten minutes later, Kawasaki Saki finished eating, tidied up, and left the classroom.
As she passed Tanaka Masao's desk, she shot him a look, signaling him to follow.
Only after she left did Tanaka Masao stand up and trail after her.
...
The school rooftop—a mysterious place.
If it's a school, it almost always has one.
Skipping class, confessions, heart-to-heart talks, fights… even—ahem—certain other things all seem to happen there.
Kawasaki Saki, who had arrived earlier, looked at Tanaka Masao as he came up and said,
"Explain it. Why did you provoke me into a tennis match with Yukinoshita yesterday?"
"Um…"
Tanaka Masao hesitated, then tried an answer.
"If I said I thought you looked lonely playing alone, so I found you a partner… would you believe me?"
Kawasaki Saki froze for a moment. Then she reacted—eyes narrowing, voice turning cold.
"You think I'd believe that crap?"
Seeing this, Tanaka Masao had no choice but to tell the truth.
"Alright. Honestly, you refusing to play tennis with me annoyed me a bit, so I deliberately found you an opponent."
Kawasaki Saki frowned. She hadn't expected such a reason.
After a few seconds of silence, she spat out a single word.
"Childish."
With that, she turned and walked away without looking back.
Although she'd played a full match against Yukinoshita Yukino, Kawasaki Saki didn't mind—in fact, she was even a little happy.
Yukinoshita Yukino's excellence was well-known, and being able to go toe-to-toe with her made Kawasaki Saki feel pretty good. She could even say—
[Yukinoshita Yukino isn't all that.]
...
Watching Kawasaki Saki's retreating figure, Tanaka Masao stood there, stunned.
[That's it? She's just leaving?
No revenge? No punishment?]
Having neither been punished nor paid any price, Tanaka Masao suddenly felt… strangely uncomfortable.