Shimizu Akira found Ayanokōji Kiyotaka... agreeable.
He appreciated the other boy's unassuming calm—though part of him suspected it was a carefully crafted facade.
A lull settled between them.
Typical male conversations revolved around girls, academics, games, or boasting—none of which seemed to fit Ayanokōji.
(No common ground...)
Shimizu sighed internally, scanning the café's QR code to order. He added Ayanokōji's drink to his tab.
Opting for mango juice (caffeine past 8 PM was risky), he waited as drinks arrived.
Kushida tapped her coffee cup with a slender finger, commanding attention.
"Thank you all for gathering today..." Her smile was radiant. "From now on, we're a group bound by fate!"
("Bound by fate"?)
Shimizu barely suppressed an eye-roll.
(*Is this a band anime? Are we forming "Kushida and the D-Tones"?)
Yet her cheesy line electrified the group.
"I'll support Kushida-san with my life!"
"She's born to be class rep!"
Applause erupted—Yamauchi and Ike clapped like seals at feeding time.
(...This 'fated group' will implode by month's end.)
His gaze flicked to Ayanokōji, who robotically clapped, face blank.
(Is he committed to the bit or just trolling?)
Kushida pressed on, hands folded primly.
"Though Hirata-kun and I are rivals, we both want Class D to thrive. Please don't resent him."
"Kushida-san's magnanimity is inspirational!"
"If Hirata wasn't such a show-off, I'd totally vote for him!"
She raised a finger. "Rule 1: The hidden rules stay secret. We're competing with other classes."
A second finger. "Rule 2: Follow school rules. No more point deductions."
"Got it! We're Class D!" Ike thumped his chest.
Yamauchi added: "No way we're sharing this intel! It cost 1M points!"
A girl snapped: "Maybe stop skipping class first!"
"Hey! Kōenji's late all the time!" Yamauchi whined.
Kushida's eye twitched before she reined it in.
"Let's focus on improving!"
Checking her phone, she bowed. "One last favor... Please win over Hirata's voters."
"What's in it for us?" a boy teased.
"Yeah! Motivate us!"
Yamauchi leapt up: "A date with Kushida-san = MAX MOTIVATION!"
Kushida blushed, biting her lip.
"Fine. The top recruiter wins. For boys: a date. For girls: 80,000 points."
(She's all in...)
Shimizu's brow arched as the boys erupted into frenzy. Even the girls buzzed—80k points was serious cash.
As the group dispersed, Kushida stopped Shimizu.
"Shimizu-kun, a quick word?"
Noting the boys' jealous glares, she added hastily:
"It's about Kōenji! I need Shimizu-kun's help convincing him!"
The mention of Kōenjidefused tensions—after all, he owed Shimizu a favor.
Once alone, Kushida fidgeted, voice dropping.
"Shimizu-kun... What if I gave you all my recruits?"
Shimizu froze mid-sip.
(Not about Kōenji?)
(...Is she rigging this for me?)