"Hey, Yamauchi, are you and Nishimiya going with Hojou to the award ceremony tomorrow?"
"If you are, could you get me an autograph? I absolutely love The Little Devils of Futako-Tamagawa!" Ebina Hina eagerly asked Yamauchi Sakura.
To add weight to her request, she even pulled out her phone to show forum threads where she'd passionately discussed the book.
"Me too! Me too! I really liked Memories of the Night," Yuigahama Yui chimed in, her signature pink twin buns bouncing wildly as she raised her hand.
"Huh? Yui… since when did you actually start reading books on your own?" Miura Yumiko asked with a puzzled expression.
"Yeah, right? You wouldn't even read the manga I recommended to you before," Ebina added, eyeing Yuigahama suspiciously.
Sakura and Shouko also turned their curious gazes toward her.
Even though they hadn't known her long, they'd already carved into their minds the fact that Yuigahama wasn't the type to read.
Her grades when she entered were high, sure—but in class she usually just napped or stared blankly out the window.
Her textbooks still looked brand-new, as if they'd just come off the store shelf.
If anyone bought her secondhand books, they'd be getting a total bargain.
But if they expected her notes… well, disappointment was guaranteed.
Under everyone's stares, Yuigahama panicked. Her gaze darted everywhere, and her hands waved frantically—her usual reaction when flustered.
"W-Well... it's because..."
'Oh no, what do I say?! I can't possibly admit I only bought it because the cover said 'Strongly Recommended by Hojou Kyousuke'...!'
Her light peach-colored eyes shone with guilt as she snuck a glance at Sakura and Shouko.
"Ah—uh, that's right! Yumiko, didn't you recommend that book to me? You said it was really good, so I got it to talk about it with you!"
As expected of someone who ranked 32nd in the entrance exams! Yuigahama's confidence grew with each word.
"Don't make it sound like you're trying to please me. We've never talked about books like that!" Yumiko shot back, unimpressed.
"Ohh, that does sound like something Yui would do though," Ebina nodded, buying the excuse.
"But hey, finding an enjoyable book is always a good thing." Shouko spoke up softly.
Their house actually had an entire box filled with copies of that book—sent by Osaka Gou as thanks to Kyousuke for writing the recommendation.
Out of politeness, everyone in the house had at least skimmed it.
Well… except Sakura, who'd written a giant "Read" mark on the first page and left it at that.
"If it's not too much trouble, can you get me an autograph too?" Yuigahama asked quickly, trying to drag the conversation back on track.
At first she just went along with Ebina, but now she was being honest about wanting one herself.
'Ugh... but what I really want is Hojou's autograph... Why does no one else in class ask him directly for one? It makes me too embarrassed to try...' She sighed inwardly.
Even though Hojou seemed approachable enough, everyone still viewed him as someone far removed from a "normal" high school student—too different, too exceptional.
Of course, maybe a little pride was holding them back, too.
"Awards ceremony, huh~" Sakura gently tapped her finger on her lips, her smile deepening. "Shouko, you're going too, right?" she asked, turning to Nishimiya Shouko.
"Huh? O-Of course I am! I wouldn't miss it for the world!" Shouko replied quickly, her cheeks turning pink as she shyly turned away.
"This is Kyousuke's first big award ceremony!" Sakura grinned, finishing the sentence for her.
"Wow, seeing so many famous authors all at once... I can't even imagine what that's like. It sounds like a dream," Ebina sighed, clasping her hands together.
She was a true omnivore when it came to literature—even if she preferred BL, she happily consumed everything else too.
Hearing Sakura's words, Yuigahama couldn't help but feel a little envious herself.
After chatting a while longer, everyone returned to their seats to prepare for the next class.
"Sakura... the award ceremony..." Shouko hesitated nervously.
It was obvious—not everyone could go. So... who would?
"Don't worry, don't worry. Leave it to me. The good old 'Four from Suimon Elementary' will go together this time!" Sakura smiled confidently, as if it were the simplest thing in the world.
If this were like the Water Margin tales Kyousuke used to tell her as a kid, she'd be the chivalrous hero arriving just in time.
Honestly, she thought, if they weren't going to offer Kyousuke up to her in her room and let her take his first time, then this was the least they could do!
She'd already made up her mind—she'd suggest they attend the award ceremonies based on the order of how they met Kyousuke.
The Bookstore Awards, the Mystery Writers' Prize, the Naoki Prize, the Manga Grand Prize, the Tokyo Youth Award... There were so many.
No way they'd run out of chances to take turns.
Only Sakura could pull this off.
Kasumigaoka Utaha would probably rather go to the more prestigious literary prizes.
Eriri? She didn't care at all about novels—but if they skipped inviting her to the Manga Awards, she'd curse them out in record time.
With these thoughts, Sakura's mood lifted even more.
Katou Katou Katou... Megumi and Yukino were also coming over to the house tonight.
Maybe she'd get them to stay the night too.
This morning, judging by Yukino's face, the girl clearly didn't want to leave.
As for Megumi's request—Sakura knew exactly what that was about. How to raise her presence? Hah... just look at her and Shouko.
All morning, classmates kept finding excuses to come close, to sniff out any Hojou-related gossip.
If you can't be the sun—stand right in front of it.
During lunch break, Sakura and her tiny secretary—the vice chair, Yukinoshita—went to inspect the Red Team's preparations for the upcoming sports festival.
Too bad they didn't have their little white-and-blue site manager caps.
Otherwise, they'd have looked just like forewomen at a construction site.
In the kendo clubroom, the wooden floor was nearly covered with a huge white sheet.
Girls in white socks knelt here and there, busily painting it—it was the backdrop for the festival stage.
"Very good, very good. Looks great," Sakura praised cheerfully.
She honestly had no idea if it was good, but seeing the girls so full of energy was enough to earn her approval.
The girls giggled and even invited her to join in.
Trailing behind her, Yukinoshita silently scribbled notes in her notebook.
Her slim brows were furrowed tight, adding a sense of dignity to their little inspection tour.
Several times she opened her mouth to say something—but in the end, she stayed quiet.
After they left the Kendo Club room, Yukinoshita finally stepped forward, pointing at her notebook as she spoke.
"As far as the theater troupe is concerned, things will be fine as long as we settle Hojou's part. But the progress on the backdrop is a bit slow. Also, the class leader's work seems rather sloppy, and the costumes still need attention…"
"Wow, not a single thing up to standard, huh?" Yamauchi Sakura exclaimed playfully, snapping the notebook shut and pulling Yukinoshita into a sideways hug.
"Relax, Yukino-chan. It's not like this cultural festival will determine the fate of humanity. As long as everyone's having fun, isn't that enough?"
"There you go again with that attitude" Yukinoshita sighed in frustration.
"Ahh, I get it now—it's because you couldn't catch Kyousuke at lunch to make him practice dancing, isn't it? That's why you're all grumpy."
"As if" Yukinoshita retorted sharply.
"Anyway, I'll get Kisaki and the other assistants to quietly push things along. If you tell people directly, they'll start doubting the president's leadership—and we'll end up being resented, too." Sakura said this casually, as if it were obvious.
"That's ridiculous," Yukinoshita countered. "The schedule was set based on their capabilities. If they can't keep up, it's the leader's failure. Coddling them like this will only hurt them in the long run."
She paused, then added softly, "As for being disliked, I only care about what those close to me think. What everyone else thinks doesn't matter."
In Yukinoshita's world, those who couldn't perform should step aside and let those who could take over.
Whether it was the sports festival, society, the government, or the world itself—this was how things should work.
"Yukino-chan, you're so serious and so beautiful," Sakura smiled warmly, gazing at Yukinoshita's stern expression.
"Are you trying to say my way of thinking is wrong?" Yukinoshita frowned.
"Not at all~" Sakura shook her head gently. "That's what makes you so cute—so different from me, from Hojou, from everyone else."
"…Nonsense," Yukinoshita muttered, but she said no more.
Sakura had already proposed a solution.
Compared to her own blunt and unpopular approach, having Kyousuke's boys quietly enforce things would probably be more effective.
Even if the idea wasn't entirely proper, Sakura and Kyousuke were alike in one particular way—they were both incredibly lazy when it came to direct involvement.
"Hey, Yukino, did you guys have a math quiz yesterday? We've got the same teacher, right?" Sakura suddenly asked.
"…We did."
"How'd you score?"
As soon as Sakura asked this, Yukinoshita shot her a sharp look that said, "What, are you trying to brag about your score in front of me? Dream on."
That haughty little face reminded Sakura of her dog Momotarou charging at her with a stick in its mouth.
"What? Did you get a perfect score or something?" Sakura tilted her chin up playfully, imitating Eriri's usual smug attitude.
"…What? Did you get a perfect score?" Yukinoshita shot the question right back without missing a beat.
But the moment the words left her mouth, she realized something awful—this was the same irritating trick that Kasumigaoka Utaha used all the time.
Still… answering a question with a question was oddly satisfying.
"Yep~ I got a perfect score!" Sakura announced cheerfully.
"!?" Yukinoshita's eyes went wide in disbelief.
'Impossible. Even I didn't get a perfect score…'
"Tada~~"
Sakura waved the quiz paper full of red circles right in front of Yukinoshita's face.
Yukinoshita stared, speechless.
"Why are you even carrying that around?!" she finally demanded.
"Well, you always carry a paperback with you, right?" Sakura said matter-of-factly.
"That's because paperbacks are designed to be carried, and I like to read whenever I have a moment."
"Same here! Whenever I have free time, I take out my perfect quiz and admire it! Don't you think it's beautiful, Yukino?"
Beaming proudly, Sakura rummaged through her other pocket and pulled out another folded paper.
"Tada! Two perfect scores—one's mine, and one's Kyousuke's!"
'Smack.' Yukinoshita facepalmed, pushing both papers and Sakura aside as she started walking ahead.
"So you're seriously carrying his quiz too? Just so you can show off to me?"
'What is going on inside this girl's head…?' Yukinoshita groaned inwardly.
She glanced down, remembering the two little marks that marred her own quiz, and realized that she'd just been completely dragged into Sakura's childish antics.
"Don't you think it's romantic to get the same score as the person you like?" Sakura said, catching up beside her.
"If you both got a high score, maybe. If you both failed, that's just shared misery," Yukinoshita replied dryly.
Then she remembered her original question.
"Wait a minute, Sakura… I get that Hojou Kyousuke would get a perfect score, but you…?"
"Are you trying to call me stupid?" Sakura pouted.
"That's not something I should say out loud. Facts can be hurtful, and while you might not care, my upbringing doesn't allow me to say such rude things."
Yukinoshita said this with a perfectly serious face.
"…You just said it anyway!" Sakura protested, grinning as she slapped Yukinoshita on the shoulder. "Maybe I'm an idiot—but I've got Kyousuke, remember? And Shouko only missed one question too~"
"So Hojou's been tutoring you. Figures. In that case, the one really suffering must be him."
Yukinoshita sighed as she pictured poor Hojou desperately trying to explain a problem while Sakura's mind wandered off to skiing in Switzerland or climbing Mt. Fuji.
And this wasn't her being bitter over their score difference—this was based on her own painful experience of talking to Sakura.
The girl's attention span was simply impossible.
She was the worst person imaginable for studying.
Of course, if she ever went into comedy or hosted a talk show, she'd probably be a huge hit.
No one would ever guess what she was going to say next.
That surprise factor could really capture an audience.
'Wait… why am I thinking about comedy because of Sakura's test score…?'
Yukinoshita paused, horrified. 'I've been infected!'
"Ha ha ha! No way! Kyousuke's been tutoring me since we were kids! Elementary, middle school, now high school, and even in the future—college too! Even if we're not in the same major, I'm sure he'll tutor me forever!"
Sakura laughed brightly.
"…College," Yukinoshita murmured, falling silent for a moment.
"Who knew Hojou had such patience."
"He only shows it for me and the others~" Sakura winked playfully.
"Not like I need his tutoring," Yukinoshita huffed, turning her face away.
Lunchtime quickly slipped away.
As students scattered across campus started returning to their classrooms, Kyousuke's car arrived at the gates of Sobu High.
"Hey, wake up. We've got a car coming in," Murata nudged his dozing coworker, Arimura.
"Huh? Oh, right…"
Arimura jerked awake, fumbling to adjust his cap—only to realize it wasn't on his head.
Blinking sleepily, he glanced around, finally spotting the cap on the ground.
As he bent to pick it up, Murata gave him another shove.
"Hey, hurry up—it's someone important," Murata said urgently.
The harsh afternoon sunlight reflected sharply off the polished black car, gleaming like a mirror.
This car, meticulously maintained by Hirata Toshitaka, did its best to bounce every bit of light away.
Under Murata's sharp gaze, the passenger door opened first.
A man in a gray suit, wearing thin gold-rimmed glasses, stepped out, then moved aside respectfully to open the back door of the car.
A black leather shoe—so polished it shone even more than the car—appeared, followed by a man who looked like he had walked straight out of a drama series.
Tall, well-built, and elegant, he made Murata wonder: with legs that long, wouldn't sitting in a car feel cramped?
As an old gatekeeper, Murata had the eyes of a hawk. Just the faint glow from the man's navy-blue suit told him everything—this was no ordinary visitor.
Someone important, without a doubt.
Murata immediately nudged his drowsy colleague awake.
Arimura straightened, catching sight of the two men, and hurried to stand properly.
Without hesitation, he even took a step out of the gatekeeper's booth, a bright, welcoming smile plastered on his face.
"The sun's pretty harsh today," Kyousuke muttered softly, lifting his hand to shield his eyes as he looked up at the blazing ball of fire in the sky.
In his other hand, he carried a paper bag filled with dorayaki for Sakura and the others.
"Is that the chairman here for an inspection?" Murata whispered, watching the imposing visitor.
"There's no record of any appointment," Arimura replied without moving his lips.
"Maybe he's here to check on the principal's performance?"
"No clue—as long as he's not here to inspect us, I'm fine with it."
Their quiet exchange continued, their smiles growing ever more dazzling.
As Kyousuke approached the gate, he thought about explaining that they had been excused from class today—but before he could say a word, both gatekeepers bowed at a perfect ninety degrees.
The one behind the desk bowed so deeply his forehead nearly touched the surface.
"Please, go right ahead."
"Please, go right ahead."
Kyousuke glanced back at Kisaki, who looked just as confused as he was.
But they said nothing—after all, when he was nearly late the other day, the discipline officer had smiled the exact same way and politely told him to "take his time."
Crossing the school gate, Kyousuke let out a relaxed sigh.
"Ahh, school feels like home," he murmured as he passed the multimedia building, watching the fluttering skirts of girls in black uniforms that danced like butterflies in the summer breeze.
"Want to stop by the clubroom and rest for a bit?" Kisaki offered.
After all the exhausting socializing earlier, his brother probably wanted nothing more than a nap.
"No need. Math class is coming up soon." Kyousuke waved it off.
"Right. Can't miss that," Kisaki nodded knowingly.
As they reached the classroom building, they noticed two boys standing nervously by the vending machines—clearly the unlucky ones who couldn't squeeze into the convenience store at lunch.
The moment they saw Kyousuke and Kisaki in their sharp suits, the two boys panicked and bolted.
Kyousuke raised a brow and glanced at Kisaki.
"Kisaki, I told you already—your stare is too intense. You've got to soften it a little. See? You're scaring not just the girls but the boys, too."
Kisaki turned to face him, about to agree—until he caught sight of their reflection in the glass display case nearby.
"Hojou... I think they thought you were a teacher," Kisaki muttered.
"Hey, don't be ridiculous. Do I look that old?"
"It's not that—it's the suits. We're still wearing these gray business suits," Kisaki pointed out.
Kyousuke looked down at his polished black shoes.
"Why didn't the gatekeepers stop us?" he wondered aloud.
"Maybe they were too sleepy after lunch to think straight?" Kisaki replied unconvincingly.
But as he stared at his boss tall, imposing figure in that sharp suit radiating an air of authority, he suddenly understood why the gatekeepers had bowed so deeply.
'Should we go back and change into our uniforms?' Kyousuke frowned, considering.
"Boss! Don't frown!" Kisaki hurriedly warned. "It makes you even scarier—like a mafia boss in one of those yakuza movies. We're not here to take over the school!"
"What?" Kyousuke frowned even deeper.
"You'll get wrinkles!" Kisaki blurted desperately.
"Huh?" Kyousuke arched a brow, then clapped Kisaki on the shoulder with a laugh.
"Kisaki, listen. A man should care a little about appearances, sure—but if you obsess over it too much, you'll end up acting like a sissy."
"You want to get a girlfriend? You've gotta work on what's inside! Take Onizuka, for example—he doesn't give a damn about his looks!"
Kisaki sighed inwardly.
'That's not true at all, bro. Onizuka and Tamaki always carry combs and hair gel in their pockets—they're just terrible at using them, so you think they don't care.'
Should they go back and change? Kyousuke considered it again—but in less than two seconds, he reached a conclusion.
No way. It was too hot.
Going home and back again would ruin the taste of the dorayaki!
…Okay, the real reason was simple: if he went home now, he knew he wouldn't have the strength to return.
He'd end up sleeping until Sakura and the others got back from school.
"Kisaki, you going back to change?"
"Math class is next. There's no way I'd miss that." Kisaki replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"You little nerd," Kyousuke chuckled heartily.