Gui Gui! (Kanae’s Perspective)
Weddings seem like they cost a lot, but if possible, I’d really love to have one. I wonder how much they actually cost? Huh, three million yen? T-That’s expensive… Should I start saving now with allowance and part-time jobs? Ah, but maybe I could cut costs with something like a photo wedding and use the rest for a new place or furniture. Wait, but then again, since Yuki-kun’s family runs a construction company, maybe we should have a proper ceremony because of that. Hmm, I’ll need to talk this through with Yuki-kun and his family.
From the moment I started researching wedding costs this morning, my whirlwind of fantasies hasn’t stopped spinning.
The source of all this painfully embarrassing behavior is my “take responsibility” declaration that I pushed onto Yuki-kun earlier.
I originally said it to overwrite what that manager girl said while talking to Yuki-kun, but now I’ve totally blown it out of proportion, and I’ve been indulging in all sorts of daydreams since this morning.
“I wonder what Yuki-kun thought about it?”
That’s what matters most, or rather, maybe that’s the only thing that matters.
But there’s no way to know unless I ask him directly, and there’s no way I can just go up to him and say, “So, what did you think?”
“Also, is Yuki-kun’s cheek okay?”
I scrubbed it kind of roughly with the towel, so it turned a little red.
When I touched his cheek in worry back then, the feel of the slightly coarse baby hairs and his hot, sweaty skin felt so raw that, before I realized it, I ended up tracing my own lips with the fingers that had touched him.
I buried my face in my desk to hide it, my cheeks burning from what must be the umpteenth perverted moment I’ve had like this.
Ugh, my face is burning, my eyes are getting misty, and my mouth is fidgeting… I must look so pathetic right now. No one can ever see me like this.
Still, from time to time, like I’m coming up for air, I lift my head and glance toward the classroom entrance.
Yuki-kun still hasn’t come back…
What if he never comes back? It’s definitely my fault, right? I got all flustered and jealous about the manager girl and ended up doing all that stuff to Yuki-kun, even though I’m in no position to do any of it…
I feel like I’m all over the place emotionally again today, having fun with my fantasies one moment, then suddenly embarrassed, then spiraling into gloom…
“Yuki-kun…”
I whisper his name without realizing it, and my face heats up again.
But as if answering my little murmur, Yuki-kun walks back into the classroom just then. Souta-kun is with him too. Maybe they bumped into each other in the hallway?
Either way, just seeing Yuki-kun’s face makes me feel so relieved.
I found myself hoping our eyes would meet like they did yesterday, but the moment I thought they had, he looked away abruptly.
Eh… Wh-Why? Why would he do that? Yuki-kun…!
Was it because I scrubbed his cheek too hard with the towel? Or maybe it was that weird “take responsibility” thing I said?
Just thinking that Yuki-kun might hate me makes my chest ache and I feel like I’m about to burst into tears.
Th-That’s right, maybe Souta-kun, who came in with him, knows something…!
With a prayer in my heart, I turned to Souta-kun, who was sitting diagonally in front of me.
“Hey, um, Souta-kun. You just came in with Yuki-kun, right? How was Yuki-kun?”
Souta-kun let out an exasperated sigh.
“Oh, that. Seriously, don’t just hand Yukiya a towel so casually, alright? I know you’re childhood friends and all, but he’s still a guy, and a virgin at that, so what if he gets the wrong idea and starts clinging to you?”
Souta-kun seemed kind of mad, and it was a little scary.
But more than that… “Virgin” means it’s his first time, right…? So even Yuki-kun is… a virgin…
“Well, I warned him too, but Kanae, just because he’s your childhood friend doesn’t mean you can get too close. People are gonna get the wrong idea, so be careful.”
“That’s fair, wait, huh? W-What do you mean by ‘warned’…?”
I-I have a bad feeling about this.
“I told him something like, ‘Kanae seems to be interested in someone else, so lending the towel was just out of kindness, nothing more.’ That sort of thing.”
Whaaat!? “Interested in someone else”!? Why would you say that!? If Souta-kun says something like that, Yuki-kun’s totally going to get the wrong idea again!
I seriously wanted to cry, and I was furious at Souta-kun for saying something like that without asking.
But then again, Souta-kun doesn’t know the full story, and the one really at fault is me for not realizing my own feelings sooner…
Feeling crushed again, I looked over at Yuki-kun.
I want to explain…
But Yuki-kun is chatting with someone at a nearby desk, and he won’t meet my eyes like earlier. He even turned away when our eyes almost met. And now he’s talking with someone else… it really bothers me…
“Ughhh… Yuki-kun…”
Without realizing it, I clenched my teeth while staring at Yuki-kun and the girl he was talking to.
A dark, sticky mess started spreading in my chest, and the anxiety and desperation that he might drift away from me made it impossible to sit still.
And yet, class had already started, so I couldn’t even go over to him.
Feeling completely helpless, I just kept sneaking glances at Yuki-kun, letting that darkness pile up deeper and deeper inside me.
I think that’s why I ended up completely losing control.
“Yuki-kun!”
The moment class ended and break time began, I called out to him in a voice I normally could never bring myself to use and rushed straight over.
Everyone in class turned to look at us.
But I had been so overwhelmed by everything that I couldn’t think of anything but Yuki-kun. I grabbed his sleeve to keep him from slipping away and pulled him with me to the deserted stairwell landing.
“This way, Yuki-kun.”
I cornered Yuki-kun into the far end of the landing and stood in front of him so he couldn’t escape.
O-Okay… now I’ll put into action the plan I came up with during class…
My heart was pounding like crazy. More than embarrassment, I was terrified he might hate this.
“Um… I’m sorry about this morning. Is your cheek okay?”
Swallowing my fear and nerves, I gently placed my hand on Yuki-kun’s cheek.
That “take responsibility” thing I said this morning was, at least on the surface, about the cheek I scrubbed too hard, and now, using the excuse of wanting to heal it, I’d keep Yuki-kun close, overwrite that manager girl’s place, and maybe, just maybe, get him to notice me.
Of course, Yuki-kun had no idea about any of this and just sat there, blushing bright red and letting me do as I pleased. Was he shy because of me? If so, that makes me really happy.
“Yuki-kun, could you bend down a little?”
And the way he just obediently did what I asked, like he was dazed, was incredibly adorable…
So, I went ahead with it.
“Fuu~ fuu~…”
I puckered my lips slightly, like I was about to kiss him, and blew gently on his red cheek.
People blow on cuts and burns to help them heal, right? So this should be okay as healing too.
But still, it was kind of embarrassing. No, really embarrassing. My face started getting hot too.
Curious, I peeked at Yuki-kun through slitted eyes, and sure enough, his face was completely red, and was he trembling a little?
Ufufu, what do I do? Seeing Yuki-kun get flustered because of me is so much fun.
Caught up in the moment, I kept blowing on Yuki-kun’s cheek for the rest of the break, ignoring my own embarrassment.
Eventually, the warning bell rang. I was a little sad, but I pulled away from Yuki-kun’s face.
“Ehehe, let’s head back to class.”
With Yuki-kun sitting there dazed and bright red, I couldn’t help but grin, caught between a sense of victory and overwhelming shyness.
“Let’s eat lunch together today, just like we promised, okay?”
I made sure to gently remind him about our lunch date from yesterday.
I was already looking forward to lunchtime.