Keita looked at the childhood sweethearts who were having a silent exchange, then at Komari Chika, who was clutching her clothes in worry, and spoke up.
"Let's go."
His voice wasn't loud, but it successfully pulled Komari Chika's attention back.
"The first-aid kit is in the room at the inn. I'll take you there to get it. Let's leave them to handle things here themselves for now."
"Ah... o-okay."
Komari Chika was stunned for a moment, then nodded heavily.
She followed closely behind Keita, and the two of them walked toward the Youth House one after the other.
The small path leading to the inn was exceptionally quiet in the night, with only the sound of insects from the bushes on both sides and their light footsteps.
Keita walked in front. Without turning back, he could feel waves of conflicted emotional energy projecting toward him from behind.
He could probably guess what Komari Chika was thinking and what she was conflicted about.
It was nothing more than the relationship between Senior Tsukinoki and President Tamaki, as well as her own misplaced, humble crush.
To be honest, he had seen too many of these troubles of adolescent boys and girls.
Whether it was the novels and manga in his previous life, or the real-life loser stories of Anna and Lemon he experienced after transmigrating, the scripts were largely similar.
Awkward childhood sweethearts, if they didn't realize they were 'more than friends, less than lovers,' it would be fine.
But once they did, and there wasn't enough external force to break through that comfort zone called 'habit,' this seemingly intimate relationship could ambiguously continue forever.
And Komari Chika...
Keita sighed helplessly in his heart.
He found it hard to imagine how Komari, with her social anxiety that required immense courage just for normal conversation, could become the 'external force' to break the deadlock.
Let alone taking the initiative, just seeing Senior Tsukinoki's possessive daily interactions would probably be enough to make her retreat into her shell, clinging to that hopeless crush until graduation.
Ultimately, this love triangle in the Literature Club would most likely end with her quiet departure.
No, based on the scenes he'd witnessed in the Literature Club, Komari did gather the courage to express her feelings...
However, President Tamaki mostly treated it like a daughter's playful whining...
So... it still seemed like there was no suspense at all...
As he was thinking this, the emotional energy projected from behind him grew more intense.
Keita even detected a hint of eagerness and timidity
He stopped, turned around to face Komari Chika, and proactively asked:
"Komari, is there something you want to tell me?"
"Eh?!"
Komari Chika was startled by his sudden stop, her body instinctively recoiling half a step.
She hadn't expected Keita to speak suddenly, let alone see through her little thoughts.
Her eyes shyly darted to the side, her hands nervously twisting the hem of her clothes, unsure how to respond for a moment.
After a brief moment of panic, she finally gathered her courage and tried to answer her confusion from another angle.
"Th-that... Im-Imaizumi..."
She took a deep breath, bravely lifted her head, her eyes quickly glancing at him before dropping again.
"I... I wanted to ask... are you... are you and Anna... d-dating?"
"No, we're not."
Keita shook his head, clearly and concisely telling Komari Chika the truth.
This unexpected answer made Komari Chika's brain freeze.
No?
How could it be no?
"B-but..." Komari Chika instinctively retorted, "You two... aren't you always together? A-and... your relationship looks so... so intimate... Wh-why..."
Her voice trailed off halfway through her sentence.
Keita looked at her like this and felt a little amused.
He didn't answer directly but threw the question back at her, unchanged.
"Well, isn't President Tamaki and Senior Tsukinoki's relationship also very good? Don't they also spend almost every day together, much more intimately than Anna and I?"
"Are they dating?"
This sentence immediately hit Komari Chika's deepest, most unwilling-to-face fear.
"Th-that's different!"
Komari Chika immediately and anxiously defended the two of them, and herself.
"President and Vice President... they're childhood sweethearts! They've known each other since they were little, so it's natural for them to have a good relationship!"
She had told herself this excuse countless times; it had almost become an instinctive reaction.
However, Keita's next words mercilessly tore away her last shred of self-deception.
"Precisely because they are childhood sweethearts, it's even easier for them to become lovers, isn't it?"
His voice was calm, but it starkly presented this fact before her.
"Over a decade of emotional foundation, an unspoken understanding that outsiders can't penetrate, and the natural teasing from those around them... Aren't these all the best catalysts for turning friends into lovers?"
He took a step forward, closing the distance between them, and quietly gazed at her.
"Komari, are you really... not worried at all?"
Komari Chika was completely speechless.
She felt even her breathing become difficult.
Worried...
More than just worried.
She was terrified.
Terrified that they would confirm their feelings for each other because of what happened tonight.
Terrified that she would lose even the last tiny chance to get closer to him.
Seeing her usually evasive eyes welling up with tears, ready to cry at any moment.
Keita finally couldn't bear it. Just as he was about to say something to lighten the mood, Komari Chika suddenly seemed to make a decision and looked up with a whoosh
"I... I know!"
She sniffled hard, her voice thick with a nasal tone and full of resentment.
"Of course I know... Senior and President... they might very well end up together."
"But... but what can I do?!"
As if to vent all the emotions she had suppressed, her voice grew louder.
"President and Senior, they're both so good to me! President recommends interesting books for me to read and encourages me to write novels. Senior makes me delicious tea and accompanies me to bookstores. They are both such gentle people!"
"The Literature Club... the Literature Club is a very, very important place to me! I don't want... I don't want to mess up the club's atmosphere because of my selfish crush! I don't want to make Senior and President feel awkward because of me!"
The more she spoke, the more agitated she became, and tears finally uncontrollably streamed down her cheeks.
"I just... I just want to stay there quietly, to occasionally say a few words to President, to see him smile at me... I already feel very happy with that..."
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