Stealing Spree

Several minutes later, Tadano returned from outside. He cautiously peeked in first, most likely ascertaining that we’d finished whatever we were doing.

When he returned to his seat, the guy found it unnatural because Nina who was supposed to be seated next to him, wasn't there anymore.

He searched for her and sure enough, found her next to me.

Ah. Right. I have to recount what happened after what we did, right?

There’s nothing much, actually.

Nami, Hina, and Saki acted the same as before. And as if nothing had happened, Hina and Saki returned to their previous seats and asked for the tablet device to pick a song they were going to sing next.

Of course, it created an awkward atmosphere where Kikuchi, Nina, and Mami were staring at us dumbfoundedly. Yet even when they appeared to have been waiting for an explanation, none of us had shown any desire to address it.

Kikuchi wasn’t really a problem. She’s already aware of my relationship with the others, after all.

It’s the two juniors, or three if I counted Umi as well, who would be confused and intrigued at what exactly the deal is between us.

I expected Nina to raise questions. But she remained in her seat with a meaningful expression. She’s the only one privy to whatever was in her head.

As for Mami, I could hazard a guess that she’s sitting on the fence. She’s not stupid. On one hand, she could confront us and demand an explanation. However, she has to weigh the pros and cons of doing so. Then on the other hand, what she witnessed – not just us but also Ogawa’s reaction – opened up a massive hole for her to squeeze into in regards to being a replacement for the void that Nami left behind in the bastard’s heart. If she did well, she might just really become his girlfriend.

Back when I first broke the idiot’s mind on the rooftop of the Club Building, Izumi refused to take that opportunity and simply did her duty as his friend. But from the short time that I observed her Mami could possibly have the sufficient determination to commit to it if she truly wanted him.

Lastly, Umi was the only one I believed I should talk to. Like Shizu said, even if she misunderstood it, I felt like I owe the girl peace of mind. However, I have to approach her to do that.

Unfortunately, I set that aside first to accomplish what I decided to do, pampering my girls who were also waiting for their turn.

While it’s a bad idea to escalate the situation more than what we’ve done, it’s just not in my book to disregard my girls’ clear desire.

And so, I stood up from my seat and once again made my way over to the other girls. Unlike earlier, I voluntarily did it rather than being called to sing or dance with them.

Now we go back to the last minute before Tadano’s return. After I finished pampering Hana and Maaya, I finally set my sights on Umi.

Arisa and Izumi gave way for me to sit next to the girl. However, before I could get a word from the girl, Nina stood up and made her way to us.

I didn’t need to ask her why she came over because as soon as she sat on my right, she leaned over with her body pressing onto me to whisper her reason.

“I’m interested, Onoda-senpai. When I first heard it, I found it unbelievable that Nanami-senpai found a boyfriend other than Kazuo-senpai. Seeing you and witnessing everything that transpired here, I must say that I’m utterly mystified by who you really are. Are you secretly a vampire who hypnotized everyone?”

Yep. Rather than straight-up calling me suspicious, she worded it like that. That sounded silly but then again, she’s dealing with the unknown so… it’s kind of justified.

With that, we’ve arrived back to the present.

The girl had just finished whispering those words to me.

As luck would have it, Tadano captured this scene perfectly. Although he was acting awkward around the girl’s advances earlier, as soon as she saw her close to me, the guy’s face immediately crumpled as though he had just taken a bitter pill.

Then he walked back to his seat with heavy steps.

When Nina, who was waiting for my answer, noticed him, the girl’s body seemingly shuddered as she immediately withdrew from leaning against me.

Then, without saying anything else, she returned to Tadano’s side, acting the same as before she witnessed the peculiarity on our side.

Really, I couldn’t help but commend her on that. She could be more cunning than she appeared to be. Tadano would surely find it hard to handle her…

In any case, it’s good that she’s now off my back but I’ll expect her to draw out an answer from me again later or any other days after this. This wouldn’t be our first and last meeting.

After exchanging glances at that girl when Tadano wasn’t looking, I also withdrew my attention to her and returned to the matter at hand or more specifically, to the seemingly tiny figure of the girl next to me.

“Umi…” I called her name amidst the ringing sound of music in our ears.

That made her shoulders jump but she did nothing to get away from me.

Little by little, she raised her head to meet my gaze.

Her tiny face had already taken a crimson color yet her eyes seemed a little sharp as though she was holding a grudge against me. Or if not that, she’s upset with me.

The reason for that was obvious, of course.

And so, now that I got her attention, I decided to push through and convey my thoughts to her, “It must’ve been a shock, right? It’s fine. You don’t have to hold it back. You can be upset with me.”

The girl didn’t answer with words but with a nod of her head while biting her lips.

Whether that nod was directed to my first question or a confirmation that she was upset with me, I had no idea. Maybe both.

In any case, this was far better than I thought. I could still communicate with her, after all.

“I can understand if you’re now afraid or disappointed in me but one thing I know is… I believe I owe you an explanation.”

Yep. Even if it’s a misunderstanding on Shizu’s part earlier, I do feel like I needed to explain myself to this girl. I don’t know. This surely isn’t guilt towards what I did to her cousin but simply because it’s her.

It’s weird. If Sumire was here instead of her, I doubt I would be this concerned. I might even use this situation to tease that gremlin.

Anyway, Umi didn’t answer immediately but when she did, she only said one word, “… Why?”

Ah. Why, huh? Should I tell her what I was just thinking?

“Let’s see. Because I want Umi-chan to understand me. Though I will also understand it if you decide to distance yourself from me now.”

Digesting my answer, Umi kept her eyes on me. Then little by little, the sharpness in her eyes softened. By the end of it, she opened her mouth and uttered more questions, “Onoda-senpai, why do you want me to understand you? What am I to you?”

Alright. I don’t know how to answer that. And honestly, that’s also what I want to understand…

Is Shizu right, after all?

“A precious junior. That’s what you are to me.”

In the end, that’s all I could answer. Furthermore, my natural smile probably showed up when I said that. Because at the next moment, steam seemingly flared up from her head as the redness of her face deepened.