Chapter 6

When I pointed at her with a *snap*, Yui tilted her head and said, "Huh?"

But then, she swung her arm back with a flourish,

"Gotcha."

She pointed back at me. Then, she slowly brought her finger close to Yuki's finger, and before she could touch it, I quickly lowered my arm to avoid it.

"...What would you do if I said that?"

"You didn't say it, you just said 'gotcha,' right?"

"Wrong! I thought you were going to say something, but what is that? Do I look like someone who would do something like that? And what would I even do with that?"

"That's because you find it fun or something like that..."

I don't know her motives, but otherwise, her actions wouldn't make sense. Conversely, if that were the case, everything would be resolved in one go. To Yuki, it looked like the culprit was struggling after being caught red-handed.

"Why don't you go for a more promising guy if you're going to do it anyway?"

"Because I'm not like that. I don't have a taste for that kind of thing."

"Then why do you keep following me?"

I finally said it. Yuki thought Yui would break into a cold sweat and become flustered, but for some reason, Yui blinked her eyes in surprise and said,

"Following? Not really... Oh, I get it. If you say it that way... Does it mean you're falling for me?"

She suddenly looked up with a mischievous smile. Yuki couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Ah, you laughed! I did it!"

"...No, I just thought it was kind of funny."

"Hmm? I didn't say anything funny, though?"

She leaned in with a victorious look, and Yuki didn't know where to look. If he stayed silent, it would only make things more awkward, so he blurted out,

"So, you're going to make me fall for you and then reject me when I confess? That's pretty cruel."

"Who said that? Did someone say that?"

Yui's response was tinged with anger, a tone he had never heard from her before. Thinking about it, Yuki's information came only from Keitaro, and he hadn't verified it. If it was wrong, it would be very rude. Yuki bowed his head in apology.

"Sorry, forget what I just said."

"Forgetting it makes me more curious. ...But it sounds interesting, so maybe I'll play that game."

"...Huh?"

When he looked at her, Yui smiled again.

"Because, when you laugh, you look so cute. I just had a little heart skip."

Then she pointed at Yuki's surprised face,

"Hehe, that face. Did you notice? Did you fall for it? Actually, I've always been interested in you, but I never had a chance to talk to you. Now that we're sitting next to each other, I'm really happy."

She giggled. It seemed the game had already started. Now that it had, it was a bit like a win-lose situation. But Yuki thought that if he pushed a little, she would reveal her true colors, so he repeated the question.

"...Why were you interested in me?"

"You always seemed to be alone and bored, and you seemed to have a detached attitude. In our class, most guys hang out in groups, but you were always alone... You gave off a vibe that you liked being alone and didn't want to be bothered... I just found people like that interesting and wondered what they were really like."

It seemed like a well-thought-out excuse. But fundamentally, she was misunderstanding. Yui probably thought Yuki was a lonely, gloomy guy who had no friends and was living a frustrated life, having forgotten how to laugh.

But Yuki was simply often sleepy, didn't initiate conversations much, and had a thin reaction, but he wasn't particularly dissatisfied with his current situation. While it was true he didn't have many friends and was somewhat isolated, he was happy with how things were, at least in his own mind.

"When I talked to you, you were interesting, and I want to get to know you better."

"I don't remember having any interesting conversations."

"Not the conversation, but the overall vibe. The timing and everything."

He thought she was saying something complicated. It wasn't clear if this was her true feelings or part of the game, but Yuki wanted to clarify his thoughts.

"I think you have a lot of misconceptions... A dull person can live a life that suits them. After all, if you're not in pain, can eat and sleep well every day, that's enough to be happy, right?"

"Wow... You're quite philosophical."

"Well, it's something my mother used to say. I've started to think that way more and more."

"That's a very dedicated mother... Does she also discipline you in other ways?"

"No, not at all. She died of an illness four years ago."

When Yuki said this casually, Yui's face changed, and she bowed her head.

"...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make light of it."

"It's okay, really."

Despite his reassurances, Yui seemed completely deflated. Seeing a usually energetic person so down brought back unpleasant memories. Yuki didn't want to see that again; it went against his happiness. Unconsciously, his arm reached out, and his open hand gently stroked her hair.

"It's okay, it's okay..."

He soothingly moved his palm back and forth. After a moment of silence, Yui suddenly looked up, saw her head being touched, and froze with wide eyes. As she realized what was happening, her face turned bright red. She shook her head and pushed Yuki's hand away.

"W-What are you doing, touching my head...!"

"Sorry... It's just a habit."

"A habit!? You always pet girls' heads!?"

"No, not girls, my sister... And your face is really red, are you okay?"

"N-No, it's not! I'm just surprised! You surprised me!"

"Okay, I'm glad you're okay."

"I'm not okay! Don't touch girls' heads so casually! Only harem anime heroines fall for that!"

Yui ranted at Yuki, almost as if she were about to bite him. As he watched her face, which was unusually red, he became increasingly worried. Yui turned away to avoid his gaze and left, muttering,

"Damn, you're so calm. Just wait, just wait..."

She hurried away, leaving Yuki standing there in a daze.