Amaori Renako could clearly feel countless gazes—filled with scrutiny, probing, jealousy, and even resentment—instantly cast upon her.
"Oi, oi, Kazama-chan, are you still half-asleep?"
Riko Nakamura finally recovered from her shock. First, she glared fiercely at Amaori Renako, who dared to bypass her and actively "seduce" Kazama Haru. Then, she looked at Kazama Haru with a fake smile, her words clearly laced with sarcasm.
"Look closely, okay? The person in front of you is Renako. Besides her big chest, she's completely and utterly an ordinary person with no outstanding qualities. Even if you want to spread your affection equally among everyone, this isn't the way to do it, is it?"
Hearing such crude and demeaning words, Kazama Haru couldn't help but frown. His gaze shifted from Renako's face, which had fallen into a complex panic after being verbally attacked, and met Riko Nakamura's malicious stare directly.
"Nakamura-san, demeaning others like that makes you seem very classless. Furthermore, Renako is my precious friend. In my opinion, she is a very charming woman and doesn't need others' evaluations to define her."
"Heh."
Riko Nakamura sneered disdainfully. "Precious friend? Is this some kind of make-believe game you're playing? You call her so intimately, I almost thought you two had already slept together."
Such blunt words immediately caused another gasp to erupt in the classroom.
Kazama Haru shook his head, finding it incomprehensible. He also understood that Riko Nakamura was essentially an unreasonable, dangerous mad gyaru. Trying to reason with such a person would only waste his time and energy.
He stopped looking at her, turned his head, nodded at Renako again, and walked straight to his seat.
"Hey, don't run away, Kazama-chan. Your beloved Renako saw you being such a coward."
Even though Kazama Haru was no longer looking at her, Riko Nakamura continued to provoke his back, interpreting his disregard as an admission of defeat.
Recalling Kazama Haru's playful yet cold gaze when he looked at her just now, Riko Nakamura couldn't help but feel an inexplicable irritation.
…
Seeing that Kazama Haru completely ignored her provocations, she clicked her tongue impatiently.
This bastard pretty boy, how dare he speak to her like that in front of the whole class?
And all for that Renako, that spineless coward she despised the most and treated completely as a plaything?
Thinking of this, she immediately turned her head and glared fiercely at Renako, who had returned to her seat, wishing she could project all the malice in her heart onto her.
"Ara ara, Renako-chan, you're really something, aren't you? With a handsome boyfriend like Kazama-chan, you don't even greet us, your friends?"
"Let me interview you, what's it like to sleep with the most popular guy in school?"
Renako, however, seemed not to hear her vulgar words. She turned her face away, took out the textbook for the first class from her bag, and began to read it.
Such disregard only made Riko Nakamura even more furious, the venom in her eyes practically gushing out.
Alright, F-cup girl, you've gotten bold, haven't you? You think getting together with Kazama Haru means you can look down on people?
So what if he's a popular handsome guy? Faced with a yakuza's gleaming knife, he'd still have to beg for mercy on his knees!
Sneering, she pulled out her phone and opened the chat window labeled [Koji-kun], typing out a "help" message for after school in a tone as if she had suffered a great injustice…
….
Ignoring Riko Nakamura's relentless provocations, Kazama Haru calmly walked to his seat and sat down.
He yawned, taking out his textbook as if it were a daily routine.
Then he looked up, habitually gazing at the short-haired girl sitting at the desk in front of him.
Strange, half a minute had passed, so why hadn't Tomorin turned around to greet him good morning?
Kazama Haru scratched his head in confusion, looking at Takamatsu Tomori's back, recalling the scene from later last night.
Guided by the atmosphere of that singing, he tightly clasped Takamatsu Tomori's outstretched hand.
Delicate, soft, warm. T he moment this sensation was fed back to his brain, a joyful system prompt sounded instantly.
Successfully helped Takamatsu Tomori overcome her singing hang-up and establish a deeper bond, rewarding 10,000 wish points.
And Takamatsu Tomori at that time seemed even more thrilled than he, who had reaped a bountiful harvest. In his large, warm palm, she drew infinite "power" that made her feel incredibly secure.
Under Kazama Haru's gaze, she finally picked up the microphone on the table.
It was Kazama Haru's first time hearing her sing face-to-face, a completely different experience from listening through a screen.
When singing, Tomori would stare intently at the screen with the lyrics, fully immersing herself in it.
Her voice carried a faint hoarseness, yet it could erupt with incredibly firm power, conveying emotions so delicate it was as if she was completely baring her inner world.
It had the magic to move people to tears.
At first, after each song, she would immediately turn to look at Kazama Haru, like a child seeking praise, blinking uneasily, her eyelashes fluttering like butterfly wings, asking Kazama Haru how she sang.
After receiving Kazama Haru's affirmation several times, she relaxed even more, no longer so tense when singing, and even began to mumble an invitation for Kazama Haru to sing "Koi" with her.
Recalling Tomori's unexpectedly lively and joyful demeanor when singing this upbeat song, Kazama Haru couldn't help but show a relieved smile, and his mood, which had been ruined by Riko Nakamura, improved considerably.
But Takamatsu Tomori still hadn't turned around to greet him.
What's wrong? Is she not feeling well, or was she frightened by the commotion just now?
Such thoughts instantly appeared in Kazama Haru's mind, making his heart tighten. He quickly gently poked Tomori's shoulder, wanting to ask her what exactly happened.
To Kazama Haru's surprise, Takamatsu Tomori seemed completely unaware of his touch, still showing no sign of turning around.
"Tomori, what's wrong?"
This unusual situation immediately made Kazama Haru anxious. He directly got up and walked to Tomori's desk, wanting to see for himself what was going on with her.
"Mm..."
To Kazama Haru, who had actively approached and whose face uncharacteristically showed clear anxiety, Takamatsu Tomori merely hummed softly, quickly glanced at him, and then swiftly turned her small body to the other side, not letting him see.
Kazama Haru awkwardly rubbed his nose, noticing that she was tightly clutching several brand-new penguin band-aids in her hand.
They were the latest model he hadn't seen before.
"Tomori, the penguin band-aids in your hand are so cute. Can you give me one?" Kazama Haru remained undeterred, deciding to try a different approach to talk to her.
"Penguin..."
Upon hearing the keyword, a light instantly flashed in Tomori's eyes. She almost couldn't control herself from turning around, but she forced herself to "hold back" halfway through the turn.
Whether it was an illusion or something else, Kazama Haru vaguely saw her cheeks puffing out slightly, almost as if she was... hmm... sulking with him?