Summer Vacation Arc: 72 Replies and Expectation

Summer Vacation Arc
72 Replies and Expectation

At night, Shoutarou was thinking of relaxing in his room after his bath before their next work period. However…

Pirorirorin…

“Rengetsu…”
“Hm? Shoutarou-kun, what is it?”
“Your ringtone is grating!!!”

Shoutarou raised his voice in anger, unsure of how many times he had heard Fuuga’s ringtone today. He and Fuuga ended up sharing a room through the lots they drew for the training camp at Yuuri’s house. And Fuuga’s phone had been ringing non-stop, constantly announcing the arrival of texts.

“I’m tired constantly hearing that piroriropiroriro!! Do you want me to break that thing!!!”
“Eep! Sorry!”

Fuuga was very shocked by Shoutarou’s sudden anger since he had been quiet up until now and he hurriedly put his phone on silent mode.

“Geez…you’ve been getting tens of messages since earlier, but are the conversations that important?”
“They aren’t really that important, but things like ‘Work hard at the training camp’ and ‘Summer vacation is ending soon, huh…’”
“Those are all trivial things. I’m impressed that you can reply to each and every one of those topics.”
“Hahaha. You only reply to business, right?”

While saying that, Fuuga was politely replying to the girls in his fanclub.

“If you reply that courteously when you already have another girl you like, the other side will get hurt as a result if she misunderstands. Wouldn’t not replying be for their sakes?”

Shoutarou admonished Fuuga while leaning against the wall. Fuuga raised his head from his phone and looked at Shoutarou with a smile.

“I thought that way before, too. That replying wouldn’t do any good for me or for them. That if I didn’t reply, they might stop liking me.”

Fuuga’s words fell as he sat toying with his crossed legs.

“But then I thought. If Meru-chan had a phone and I could get in touch with her… For me, even if Meru doesn’t like me, I’d be happy if she just replies to me.”
“…”
“Well, my fans don’t necessarily feel for me the same way I feel about Meru, so I think you’re probably right. But I am an idiot after all, so I end up thinking this way.”

Fuuga lifted his head.

“…I have to say, talking about love with you is really fresh, Shoutarou-kun! By the way, if you got a message from Meru-chan, would you be happy?”
“Shut up. You’re too loud.”
“Guha.”

When Fuuga was about to turn the conversation back on him, Shoutarou threw a pillow at him.

“Shoutarou-kun, you’re so mean! Wait, where are you going!?”

Fuuga’s eyes widened as he looked at Shoutarou about to leave the room.

“I can’t relax if I’m around you. I’m heading to the workroom first.”
“Eh! Wait! Since we ended up in the same room, let’s go to—”

Thud.

Before Fuuga could finish speaking, Shoutarou interrupted him by closing the shoji door.

“Happy, huh… I can’t think as simply as you.”

Shoutarou muttered as he pushed his glasses up. He walked down the silent hall alone.

“So you were here, brother.”
Meru and Yuuri left the dojo for the main house, and as they stepped up past the entryway, Kouri in her kimono appeared from the front at a trot.

“Kouri, I’m sorry. Were you looking for me?”
“You weren’t in your room nor in the dojo, so I was wondering where you went. If you don’t take a bath soon, you won’t make it in time to start your work.”

Yuuri thanked Kouri as she gently told him her message, then turned back to Meru.

“Kusuhara-san, I will see you later.”

Yuuri said and then left at a quick pace.
A turbulent atmosphere flowed between Meru and Kouri who had been left behind.

“Then… I’ll also go…”
“My brother didn’t return to his room on time and I found it strange, but it seems it was just as I thought.”

Kouri glared at Meru.

“I won’t complain about your behavior. I don’t know what feelings you used to charm my brother, Hayate-san, and the others, and I don’t intend to investigate. But don’t get in my brother’s way.”

Yuuri and Meru were together after training. That meant that they were together in the dojo. If Meru appeared in the middle of his training, Yuuri would prioritize her. Even Kouri could easily arrive at that conclusion. Then it would be no exaggeration to say that Yuuri couldn’t concentrate on his training. Although she had arrived just before he finished training, it was all the same to Kouri now.

“My brother is the heir to the Aidou family. He works hard and trains without fail every day, so don’t abuse him with your selfishness.”
“…I’m sorry.”

Meru bowed her head to Kouri, and Kouri stared at her loathsomely. Then, Kouri immediately left as though she were escaping.

Meru arrived at the room where the student council was doing their work, but she stopped and stood outside without entering. She was a lot earlier than the scheduled time, so it seemed like no one else was there yet.

“…A hindrance, huh…”

Meru sighed, recalling her previous conversation with Kouri.
She didn’t want to make any excuses. But before that, she probably wasn’t able to talk back.

Meru was a hindrance to them. Even if they themselves didn’t think that way, from an outsider’s point of view, it seemed that way with the ever-average Meru sticking to them. That wasn’t anyone’s fault but Meru’s.

As Meru let out a sigh for the umpteenth time in front of the shoji door, she felt someone’s presence behind her.

“…Kusuhara? You’re early.”
“…Ahh, Katsuragi-kun. You as well.”
“I wanted to get out of that room earlier. I can relax better here.”

Shoutarou said that he couldn’t relax because of Fuuga and his phone’s annoying ringtone and sighed helplessly.

“Rengetsu-kun also has it rough, huh…”
“Exactly. It’d be better if he would ignore those girls…”

Although Shoutarou felt Fuuga was foolish for replying to each and every message he received from his fangirls, he didn’t deny Fuuga’s character. Even if he said that, deep down, he was worried about Fuuga.
Meru let a chuckle slip out.

“What?”
“Since you left Rengetsu-kun and came alone, he’s probably mad, right?”
“He made a fuss saying ‘wait,’ but I don’t care.”
“Ahaha. That’s so like you.”
“… Anyway, are you not going to enter?”

Shoutaoru asked quizzically, looking at Meru who was still just standing in front of the shoji door.
Meru gave a little look around the area and then put her palms together in front of Shoutarou with a wry smile.

“Katsuragi-kun, I’m sorry. Could you go in first and turn on the lights?”
“Hah? That kind of… Ahh…that’s why you can’t go in, huh…”

Understanding what Meru was trying to say, Shoutarou went in and turned on the lights. Confirming that it had become light inside, Meru seemed reassured and went in as well.

“Thanks. I’m glad that you were the first one to come.”
“What were you intending to do if I wasn’t the first one?”
“…Umm. Probably come up with a good excuse and have them go in first.”

Shoutarou was the only one who knew that Meru couldn’t deal with enclosed dark spaces. That was the only thing she could do.

Shoutarou directed a worried gaze at Meru who was smiling as though it was a trifling matter.

“It’s hard for you as well. If there’s something I can do, you should tell me.”

Hearing Shoutarou’s words, Meru blinked rapidly, then returned his gaze with a puzzled one in the next instant.

“…Katsuragi-kun, did you eat something weird?”
“Why…”
“I mean, you said something nice. There’s definitely going to be a storm tomorrow.”

Saying that, Meru smiled playfully. It seemed that Shoutarou was minutely displeased with Meru’s remark, and he had a discontent expression.

“I don’t remember being cold to you.”
“Yeah, you’re kind. It’s just that you didn’t hide your kindness this time. Usually, you would shyly say something like ‘It’s not especially for your sake,’ or ‘It can’t be helped,’ and avoid the issue, right?”
“I’m not shy or anything like that.”
“Right, right, I see.”

Meru said to pacify the sulking Shoutarou.

“But it may have been a good thing that you found out.”
“…Why do you think that?”
“Well, since you know my circumstances, I was able to make a silly request like ‘go inside first and turn on the lights.’”

Meru slipped into her desk, sitting diagonally from Shoutarou, and put her chin in her hands.

“I didn’t really want to be found out, though… Just having one person know makes things a lot easier.”
“I see.”
“But I think that I can feel this way since it was you who found out, Katsuragi-kun.”
“Hah?”

Shoutarou let out a sound in disarray as he inclined his head at Meru’s suggestive remark.

“I mean, you didn’t tell anyone, right? That I can’t handle enclosed dark spaces”
“Ahh…”
“Well, if I put it this way, it sounds like I would have been fine with any close-mouthed person. I don’t really know why. I just feel that I’m glad it was you.”

Meru looked at Shoutarou and laughed.

Shoutarou stared at her dumbfounded, then immediately moved his eyes away.

“…I’m thirsty. I’ll go get some water.”
“Ah, I want some, too.”
“I’ll go get it. You stay here.”

Meru was going to stand up with Shoutarou, but he stopped her.
He left the workroom alone with that.

“What exactly am I doing?”

He wasn’t actually particularly thirsty.

I’m glad it was you.

Meru’s words didn’t have any other intentions. It was because he understood that…

If you got a message from Meru-chan, would you be happy?

“…I would just become needlessly bitter.”

Futilely answering Fuuga’s question to himself, Shoutarou headed to the kitchen to get water.

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<TLN>
So it seems like they’re still working…which means that I have no idea why Hayate said that what they’d done was enough for the day in the last chapter, but here we are haha.

13 chapters left in the summer vacation arc!

Ko-fi link here.
February bonus chapters funded: 0/3 ($15/$30 to the first one!)