Nishikawa Ryouko had been picturing that awful guy Shikime Natsu getting startled by her, and figuring it would be quite fun, so the corners of her lips lifted just slightly, all on their own.
But one small move from Shikime Natsu shattered the girl's lovely little daydream in an instant. Nishikawa Ryouko went rigid all over, her body jolting with a sharp shudder as a startled cry escaped her, and then, on pure reflex, she spun around. What filled her vision was Shikime Natsu's smiling face, those pale golden eyes watching her with an expression that wasn't quite a smile.
Nishikawa Ryouko clearly hadn't heard a single footstep, and besides that... how could this Shikime Natsu guy possibly have known she was hiding behind the front door? Had someone secretly tipped him off?
At this moment Nishikawa Ryouko still hadn't recovered from the shock, unsure what sort of face she should even make. It took her a while before she came back to herself, and then, as she looked at Shikime Natsu, the shock in those eyes melted into a sullen, reproachful gloom.
"Shiki-san really is quite childish, isn't he, pulling a stunt like scaring people."
When Nishikawa Ryouko said this, her tone was thick with disdain, and that same disdain filled her eyes too. By now Nishikawa Ryouko had already reverted into the image of a dependable adult.
Hearing this "pot calling the kettle black" accusation of hers, Shikime Natsu let out a soft laugh.
"Oh?"
He arched an eyebrow, a trace of amusement in those pale golden eyes.
"Then, what exactly is Nishikawa-san doing here?"
He paused, then went on.
"Weren't you the one who told me to stay behind in the classroom, that you had something to say to me?"
"And yet?"
"You went and left along with everyone else, then sneakily doubled back to hide behind this wall."
"Nishikawa-san, what exactly is this... you're doing?"
Shikime Natsu bit down a little harder on those words, "doing," his tone carrying an unmistakable note of teasing.
Hearing this, the expression on Nishikawa Ryouko's face stiffened just a touch.
She quickly realized that her little "prank" had been seen through by Shikime Natsu, plain as day.
And what's more... she'd been turned around and outmaneuvered by him.
Still, Nishikawa Ryouko was Nishikawa Ryouko after all.
No matter how flustered she was inside, she wasn't about to easily admit she'd meant to scare him. She drew in a deep breath, then composed her expression, and on that faintly reddened little face, she worked hard to put on a look of "I'm being perfectly serious."
She gave a light cough, then spoke.
"I don't have those childish ideas of yours, Shiki-san. I was just... just standing here thinking about a few things, which is why I didn't go in, and then, right while I was still thinking, I got interrupted by Shiki-san."
The way Nishikawa Ryouko said this, her tone could only be called utterly self-righteous, and then she shot Shikime Natsu a vicious glare.
"For Shiki-san to do something like this to an innocent girl is really going too far. If word got out, Shiki-san would definitely be condemned for it."
Nishikawa Ryouko was the same as ever, speaking with total conviction. As far as she was concerned, none of it had anything to do with her. As long as she hadn't actually gone through with it, then even if she got caught, her intentions simply weren't what they looked like.
To this little speech of hers, Shikime Natsu didn't react much at all, only looking at Nishikawa Ryouko with those pale golden eyes.
Their gazes met, and Nishikawa Ryouko felt a twinge of guilt under Shikime Natsu's stare. On the surface, of course, she kept her composure. No matter what, she absolutely was not going to admit anything.
Watching Nishikawa Ryouko dig in and deny everything to the bitter end, Shikime Natsu had no intention of pressing on and exposing her.
After all, from what he knew of this little devil Nishikawa Ryouko, getting her to admit on her own that she'd wanted to pull a prank would be about as hard as climbing to the heavens.
This girl never let anyone get the last word.
Even caught red-handed, she could spin out some airtight excuse that hung together just fine.
So Shikime Natsu couldn't be bothered to keep tangling with her on the subject. He smiled, then changed tack.
"All right. Since Nishikawa-san was thinking about something, then... are you done thinking now?"
Hearing the question, Nishikawa Ryouko blinked, faintly caught off guard, and then she nodded.
"Mm... more or less."
"Good, then."
He looked at her, that teasing glint surfacing again in those pale golden eyes.
"So, what was it Nishikawa-san wanted from me?"
He paused, then added a line.
"It couldn't really be that... you just wanted to crouch behind a wall and wait for me to come out, could it?"
Hearing Shikime Natsu bring this up yet again, the corner of Nishikawa Ryouko's mouth twitched.
This guy, he really was...
Of course, that round was already behind them now, so Nishikawa Ryouko chose to ignore it and pressed on.
And just then, Nishikawa Ryouko seemed to think of something interesting again, her eyes suddenly brightening.
"The thing I wanted from Shiki-san... how about Shiki-san takes a guess?"
She looked at Shikime Natsu, a sly smile curving at her lips.
"You want me to guess?"
Shikime Natsu raised an eyebrow, taking in that little-devil look of hers.
"Mm-hmm."
Nishikawa Ryouko nodded again and again, her two braids swaying gently with the motion.
"Guess right and there's a reward~"
She deliberately drew out the words, a note of temptation in her tone.
Watching that expectant look of hers, the smile on Shikime Natsu's lips deepened a shade. He put on a show of thinking it over seriously.
"Could it be..."
He deliberately dragged out the words, a flicker of playfulness crossing those pale golden eyes.
"Could it be that Nishikawa-san wants to confess her feelings to me?"
!!!
Nishikawa Ryouko's face flushed crimson the instant she heard it. Those pale golden eyes shot wide, her pupils trembling faintly, her whole body as though struck by a bolt of lightning.
"Wh-what, what are you blindly guessing at?!"
She fired back almost on reflex, her voice rising against her will.
"Who, who said anything about confessing to you?!"
She hurriedly looked away, not daring to meet Shikime Natsu's eyes.
Those pale golden eyes darted flustered to one side, then the other, anywhere but landing on Shikime Natsu.
Her heart was pounding absurdly fast.
She'd never imagined this Shikime Natsu guy would be so blunt.
So... utterly without warning.
"Confess," indeed. Was that the kind of thing you could just casually blurt out?!
Watching her all flustered like that, Shikime Natsu couldn't hold back a soft laugh.
He spread his hands, putting on an "innocent" expression.
"Wasn't it Nishikawa-san who told me to guess?"
His tone carried a matter-of-fact air.
"You told me to guess, so I guessed."
"And besides..."
He paused, those pale golden eyes fixed straight on Nishikawa Ryouko.
"Going by how these things usually go, isn't this exactly how it's supposed to play out?"
"A girl goes out of her way to keep a boy behind alone, it's after school, and there are only the two of us here... me thinking along those lines isn't really a problem, is it?"
Hearing this well-reasoned analysis from Shikime Natsu, Nishikawa Ryouko's face went even redder, those pale golden eyes brimming with embarrassed indignation.
"Even if I told Shiki-san to guess, Shiki-san can't go guessing something this outrageous!"
"Confessing, of all things... that's just too... too absurd..."
Her voice suddenly dropped to a murmur at that point, a hint of guilt creeping in, giving the impression that she really did mean something like that.
Watching that flustered, indignant look of hers, the smile on Shikime Natsu's lips deepened further.
"Absurd? Is it, though?"
He tilted his head, a touch of "innocence" in those pale golden eyes.
"Somehow I think... it seems pretty reasonable?"
At those words, something in Nishikawa Ryouko's chest gave a lurching thud. Her mind now began racing at full speed to process what was happening in front of her, and she brought her gaze back to that infuriating face of Shikime Natsu's.
She'd been the one trying to steer Shikime Natsu's thoughts in that very direction.
She'd deliberately used that ambiguous tone, deliberately made him guess, deliberately manufactured this "alone, a lone man and woman" atmosphere.
All just to see whether this Shikime Natsu guy would let some interesting expression slip.
But Shikime Natsu was hardly some naive high schooler, and tricks like this had absolutely no effect on him whatsoever.
Nishikawa Ryouko herself knew this perfectly well.
And yet, she kept thinking, what if?
What if this Shikime Natsu guy, too, would feel a little flutter, a little fluster, a little bit of...
Never mind. Stop thinking about it.
Nishikawa Ryouko drew in a deep breath, working hard to calm that wildly hammering heart of hers, then leveled those pale golden eyes at Shikime Natsu and shot him a glare.
Seeing her like that, Shikime Natsu didn't press the teasing any further. He looked at her and smiled.
"All right, no more joking around. Nishikawa-san, you can come out with it now, can't you?"
"If you don't say it... then, I'll just go on assuming that's what it is."
There seemed to be a note of threat in Shikime Natsu's tone. No, scratch "seemed" — this guy was flat-out threatening her.
Still, Nishikawa Ryouko didn't keep it hidden any longer, since this Shikime Natsu guy seemed to have gotten a slight read on her thoughts.
"Shiki-san... come take a stroll with me around Keyaki Mall... how about it?"
"Just... a little walk. It won't take up too much of your time."
Hearing this, Shikime Natsu nodded with a smile and agreed.
"Sure. Since Nishikawa-san is inviting me, of course I'll say yes."
Hearing Shikime Natsu agree so readily, Nishikawa Ryouko felt a quiet wave of relief. And of course, the corners of the girl's lips lifted slightly, all on their own. She'd actually pulled off the invitation.
"Let's go, then."
With that she turned and headed toward the stairwell, and Shikime Natsu watched her back with a smile before following after.
One in front, one behind, the two of them walked out of the school building.
Keyaki Mall.
Nishikawa Ryouko walked ahead, Shikime Natsu at her side, the two of them cutting through the bustling crowd until they reached the entrance of a shopping center.
Nishikawa Ryouko came to a stop, then turned her head to look at Shikime Natsu.
"Let's go in and have a look."
Shikime Natsu nodded in agreement, and the two of them walked into the mall, browsing the shops around them as they went.
Nishikawa Ryouko's pace was unhurried, her gaze settling now and then on the shops they passed, only to slide away again just as quickly.
After a while, Nishikawa Ryouko suddenly spoke up, her tone put on to sound casual.
"Shiki-san."
"Hm?"
"Seems like... Christmas is almost here, huh."
She lifted her head, those pale golden eyes saying it as though it were nothing. She said "almost," but there were still about ten days left.
Shikime Natsu nodded along at her words.
"Yeah, Christmas is nearly here. Things will probably get pretty busy around then."
And hearing Shikime Natsu say this, Nishikawa Ryouko quickly thought of all the girls who would be clustered around this Shikime Natsu guy.
This Shikime Natsu guy had so many girlfriends that on Christmas Day, there was no way she could possibly invite him out. Even those girlfriends of his would have to pick their moments just to get a date with him.
Just thinking about it, Nishikawa Ryouko's mood grew a touch heavy. She hadn't come here to listen to a recap of Shikime Natsu's romantic escapades, so Nishikawa Ryouko decided to steer the topic elsewhere herself.
"The reason I had Shiki-san come along this time is that I wanted Shiki-san to help me pick out a Christmas present."
She paused, those pale golden eyes fixed on Shikime Natsu.
"Oh? A Christmas present?"
"Mm."
Nishikawa Ryouko nodded, and then a sly smile curved at her lips.
"I want to pick out a present for a certain boy."
She deliberately gave those words, "a certain boy," a slightly suggestive lilt.
In those pale golden eyes, a faint, barely perceptible light flickered.
"But you see..."
She tilted her head, putting on a "troubled" look.
"I'm the type who doesn't really know what sort of gift suits a boy."
"So I thought I'd ask Shiki-san to come along and give me some pointers."
She looked at Shikime Natsu, those eyes full of "expectation."
"Is that all right? Shiki-san?"
As for this boy Nishikawa Ryouko spoke of, Shikime Natsu naturally understood — wasn't it himself?
After all, the only boy in Class A whom Nishikawa Ryouko could get along with on friendly terms was him. It was just that this girl was hoping to catch a glimpse of him looking jealous, wasn't she?
In which case... there was of course no way Shikime Natsu would let it show.
"Of course it's all right. Since Nishikawa-san puts it that way, I'm naturally happy to help. He must be a boy who's very important to Nishikawa-san, then?"
"Mm, he really is important."
Nishikawa Ryouko agreed, her face faintly red — and this blush was no act, since he really was important. It was just that... Nishikawa Ryouko hadn't managed to catch a single jealous flicker on this Shikime Natsu guy's face.
Did she really hold no appeal at all in this Shikime Natsu guy's eyes?
"All right, let's start picking."
Shikime Natsu said with a smile, and Nishikawa Ryouko, at his side, could only follow along.
Nishikawa Ryouko looked over the dazzling array of goods, a little overwhelmed.
A necklace? A bracelet? A scarf? Gloves?
Or some more exquisite little trinket?
Nishikawa Ryouko studied Shikime Natsu's expression, trying to gauge what this guy might take more of an interest in.
And just at that moment, Shikime Natsu suddenly stopped. His gaze landed on something on the shelf, and then he reached out and picked it up.
"This one."
He held the thing out in front of Nishikawa Ryouko.
Nishikawa Ryouko lowered her head to look. It was a cat plushie — more precisely, an ugly-cute, ugly-cute cat plushie.
A round little body, stubby legs, a crooked mouth, and a pair of eyes that looked somewhat vacant.
Call it cute... it didn't quite seem that cute.
Call it ugly... it was ugly in a way that came out a little cute.
In any case, it was the sort of... plushie that made you burst out laughing the moment you looked at it.
"This?"
Nishikawa Ryouko took the cat plushie, turning it over and over in her hands, doubt written on her face.
"Shiki-san, are you sure this one will do?"
Looking into those doubtful eyes of hers, Shikime Natsu nodded with a smile.
"Of course. My eye for picking gifts is really quite good."
"Just this?"
Nishikawa Ryouko still wasn't quite convinced. She looked at the ugly-cute, ugly-cute cat plushie in her hands, then looked back at Shikime Natsu.
"Do ordinary boys... actually like this kind of thing?"
"Of course they do."
Shikime Natsu answered with total conviction.
"Trust me, I'm not wrong."
Nishikawa Ryouko regarded Shikime Natsu half in doubt, searching that face of his for some trace of a joke.
But Shikime Natsu's expression was utterly serious.
As if this ugly-cute cat plushie really were the perfect gift.
Now Nishikawa Ryouko was wavering over whether to tell him this was meant to be the Christmas present for Shikime Natsu himself. If he knew it was a gift for him, she figured he'd probably take it more seriously?
"Then, as thanks for helping me pick out a Christmas present, what would Shiki-san like?"
Nishikawa Ryouko chose to launch her offensive in a roundabout way.
"Thanks? Then get me one of these too."
Shikime Natsu said with a smile.
Seeing Shikime Natsu's choice, Nishikawa Ryouko felt her grip on life shaken a little, but... at this point, there was nothing to do but buy it.
Nishikawa Ryouko handed one of them to Shikime Natsu, and the two of them soon walked out of the mall.
"Nishikawa-san's other cat plushie — are you planning to give it to me on Christmas?"
When the two of them had walked to a spot with few people around, Shikime Natsu asked with a smile.
____
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