However...
Itsuki: "Mmmmmm~…!!" shakes
(I haven't known Itsuki-san for long, but I've noticed a habit of hers.)
(When she doesn't know the answer, she puffs up her cheeks and glares.)
(In other words, that face is declaring, "I don't know!"…)
(And so, since morning homeroom was about to start, everyone just went their separate ways.)
Fuutarou: "…Maybe I really should quit being a tutor…"
Gohan: "I'll help too, let's work hard together?"
Fuutarou: "…Yeah, that's true."
(He really looks pitiful…)
Gohan: "By the way, about that question earlier…"
Fuutarou: "Huh? Of course you know it, right?"
Gohan: "N-no, that's not it. I think someone actually got it right. I just forgot who it was."
Fuutarou: "Really? …Ah, it was Miku."
(So it was Miku-san… I remember she's the one with the highest score among the three.)
Gohan: "Then I'll—"
Fuutarou: "No, let me. I have to face them directly, otherwise I'll never really start proper teaching."
Gohan: "T-true…"
Fuutarou: "So leave Miku to me!"
Gohan: "Mm! Got it!"
(Uesugi-kun wanted to ask Miku-san about that question, but…)
Cafeteria
Fuutarou: "H-hey, Miku! What a coincidence! A 350 yen… sandwich? A-and a matcha soda…? What even is that…? Makes me kinda curious!"
Gohan: "T-true…" (also curious about the matcha soda)
Miku: "Not for bullies like Fuutarou and Gohan."
Gohan: "Eh? Bullies…?"
Miku: "Trying to teach us to study."
Fuutarou: "By that logic, doesn't that mean every teacher is bullying you…?"
Fuutarou: "No, that's not it! Can I ask you something? It's about the question from this morning…"
Yotsuba: "Uesugi-kun—!! Wanna eat lunch together!?"
Fuutarou: "Uwah!? Yotsuba!? You scared me!?"
Yotsuba: "Hi! I'm the one with the ribbon, Yotsuba!! Sorry for running off this morning!!"
(After observing for a few days, I found something else. When Yotsuba-san talks to Uesugi-kun, her energy seems oddly high…)
(Could it be… she likes Uesugi-kun…?)
Fuutarou: "So, Miku… 'Look at this! It's an English problem!!'"
Fuutarou: "And then… 'I got it all wrong!! Ahaha!!'"
Slap
Yotsuba: "Ow!?"
Ichika: "Sorry? Did I interrupt?"
Yotsuba: "Ichika, come ask for help too!"
Ichika: "Mmm… I'll pass…? You see, all of us are idiots, right?"
Gohan: "No, even so you can't neglect studying…"
Ichika: "Ehh~? How can high school life be just about studying? You've gotta enjoy youth more!"
Gohan: "Youth?"
Ichika: "Yeah yeah! Like love and stuff!"
Fuutarou: "…Love?"
(Ah, looks like some strange switch got flipped…)
Fuutarou: "That's the dumbest thing imaginable for someone who lives for academics… If you want to, go ahead. For those kinds of people, their life's peak is their school days anyway…"
(This is the first time I've seen Uesugi-kun this angry…)
Ichika: "That kind of twisted attitude is beyond saving…"
Yotsuba: "Ahaha… Well, even if I wanted to fall in love, I don't have anyone…"
Ichika: "Oh yeah! What about you, Gohan-kun? Do you like anyone?"
Fuutarou: "You wouldn't do something that stupid, right!?"
(Wh-what is this… this feeling of being caught in the middle…?)
Gohan: "I-I don't think I like anyone…? And honestly, I don't really understand what love even is…"
Ichika: "Hmm… So you're not the twisted type then…"
Yotsuba: "Then what about you, Miku? Do you like anyone?"
Miku: "…Eh? N-no, I don't…!"
(Huh? Miku-san looks a little flustered…)
Yotsuba: "That expression…! As her sister, I can tell!! Just admit it, Miku's in love!!"
Ichika: "That's right!"
Lunch break ends…
Fuutarou: "Things are looking real bad, Gohan."
Gohan: "What's bad?"
Fuutarou: "They already hate studying and suck at it. If they start falling in love too, they'll never graduate!!"
Gohan: "A-ahh…"
(That's… not wrong…)
Fuutarou: "We need a way to stop them from falling in love…"
Gohan: "I don't think that's possible."
Fuutarou: "Why so sure?"
Gohan: "Because…"
(Ever since Dad died, Mom often talked about how she met him and their newlywed days.)
(Sometimes I heard the same story over and over again.)
(After hearing it so many times, I understood something.)
(What Mom meant was, 'A woman in love can't be stopped.')
(So if Miku-san really is in love, trying to forcefully stop her would just make her hate us…)
Fuutarou: "…From your expression, I get it. This comes from your own experience, huh?"
Gohan: "S-something like that… Anyway, if Miku-san truly is in love, then if we try to interfere, she'll definitely hate us."
Fuutarou: "…That's a dead end!! This is an unwinnable stage!!"
Gohan: "W-well… We don't even know for sure if Miku-san's really in love yet…"
Fuutarou: "Hm? Looks like something's stuffed inside the desk?"
Gohan: "Eh?"
Fuutarou: "What's this? A letter? Written by Miku? …Wait, don't tell me—"
(The contents of the letter Uesugi-kun received were…)
(End of Chapter)
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