Sliiiiide…
Maple-san had actually returned to the classroom!
Even worse, she was walking in my direction. With every step, her footsteps got louder, like a clock ticking closer to my eventual fate.
I tried hiding, but she was clearly able to see me. From the corner of my eye, I saw her legs — which were quite pretty, but very intimidating.
She was standing right next to me!
I had to play it off…
"Hmm?"
I hummed, acting like I wasn't terrified. Slowly, I turned my head to look at her, like the cliche line: "she's behind me, isn't she?"
And indeed, she was right there, standing in all of her beauty.
I took a deep breath, then feigned ignorance.
"Oh — Maple-san? You're here? Weren't you eating with the class?"
Rather than responding, her gaze trailed over my face and eventually my posture. It was scrutinizing, like a predator looking for weak spots.
Was she going to beat me up?
Maple-san parted her lips. "Do you..." She paused, taking some time to reword her question. "Do you dislike people?"
Hmm?
I glanced up at her, feeling goosebumps spread across my body. Was she trying to extract blackmail? If my answer was yes, would she isolate me from the class? No, I was already isolated… Was she trying to rub it in?
"No…" I denied, "I just thought it would be better if I ate alone."
Without thinking, she spoke again.
"Better, how so?"
"Well…" I shrugged, "...wouldn't it be strange for me to intrude?"
"Intrude, how so?"
Was this girl serious? She had just repeated the same sentence twice, only replacing "better" with "intrude."
"Isn't it rude to invite myself?"
"Oh…"
She went silent, pondering for a moment. Then, her face lit up, and from the look of it, she seemed to have realized something.
"Would you like to eat with me?"
"That would be troublesome."
My words seemed to surprise her. "I see." She looked down at the floor with a bitter smile. "Well, if you'd ever like to eat with us, feel free. We'll always welcome you."
With that, Maple-san turned and walked away, exiting the classroom and shutting the door behind her.
She seemed… kinda sad?
I stared at the empty space where she once stood, feeling a little lonely now that she was gone.
Had I messed up? Did I say something wrong? Why was I always the one messing things up…?
—
—
—
After leaving, Momiji Ichikawa stood silently, resting her back against the closed door with a frown.
When lunch started, she had left Murosaki in the classroom, assuming that he'd eventually follow on his own. After all, he was well spoken, well mannered, and seemed fairly confident in himself.
Such an impressive person would surely be sociable, right? Even during his introduction, he was very thorough, yet managed to sound humble.
…but he never followed them, staring through the window with a lonely expression.
When she was outside with class B, they made direct eye contact — but instead of waving, he quickly looked away.
This could have been for many reasons, but judging by his worried face, he must have felt uncomfortable.
But still, being so far from the class… she couldn't accept it! So after a few parting words with her classmates, she headed back to the classroom.
She was a woman on a mission!
It took a while, but once she arrived, she saw the same Murosaki sitting by himself. If this was any other guy, it would have made her heart drop, but since Murosaki was a confident man, he must have deliberately chosen to distance himself.
Even so, she wanted to invite him.
When she approached his desk, he slowly looked away, trying to avoid contact with her. Unfortunately, she wouldn't allow it!
She would include him no matter what!
Ichikawa stood menacingly next to his desk, standing in such a way that he would have no choice but to acknowledge her presence.
And acknowledge, he did.
Murosaki said something like: "You're here? Weren't you eating with the class?" which was weird since he was also part of the class.
By that logic, shouldn't he have been there as well?
She thought back to when they met at the convenience store.
Normally, she wouldn't have approached him, but he was buying all the cheapest items! If he kept that up, he might end up with frizzy hair or dry skin.
Ichikawa walked up to him and tried encouraging him, but he eventually turned her down, saying things that made it sound like he hated social interaction.
Even recently, he was sitting all alone in an empty classroom.
So, she asked.
"Do you dislike people?"
Then he responded with: "I just thought it would be better if I ate alone."
What? Better? Better for who — the class or for you? This statement was either very sad or very strange.
"Better, how so?"
And then he simply responded with: "...wouldn't it be strange for me to intrude?"
Intrude? This wasn't a party, nobody would get mad if he sat with them? In fact, he was a bit of an ikemen, so most girls wouldn't have complained.
"Intrude, how so?"
"Isn't it rude to invite myself?"
This guy… he had a really bad mindset.
Either way, he had cornered himself. If he needed an invitation, then all she needed to do was invite him, right?
Spoiler alert: It didn't work.
"Would you like to eat with me?"
"That would be troublesome."
Hearing this, she realized that Murosaki might have been an introvert — someone who preferred being alone — which meant that it was a little rude for her to have approached him so suddenly.
Anywho, she had to end the conversation on a good note, so she said this: "Well, if you'd ever like to eat with us, feel free. We'll always welcome you."
That way, she'd be giving him an invitation, but also the ability to choose for himself.