NTR Kousuke

Chapter 35

It was the fourth week of September, with the Sports Festival on the weekend. The class was bustling and busy.

Today, too, I helped with cheer practice and prop creation.

Since there are no club activities during Sports Festival week, I silently helped out.

Nagase: "Ah! I want to move my body! Kousuke-kun, let's play 1-on-1?"

No, no.

You're avoiding reality, aren't you?

Hiroshi and Koji are over there, making assigned artificial flowers.

I'm making fans with Nagase-san and the others.

The class is divided by seating area for the work, so the work is different from over there.

When I say fans, it's just painting plain white fans evenly with the team colors.

It's tedious assembly line work, but Hiroshi and Koji are excitedly chatting with girls they usually don't get to talk to.

I don't talk much, so I just occasionally nod along as Nagase-san involves everyone in conversation.

Then Yamamoto from the artificial flower team over there—Masaki Yamamoto, who stole Satsuki from me—comes over.

Yamamoto: "Hey! What are you talking about, Nagase-san?"

Nagase: "...Yamamoto-kun, you're in that group, aren't you? Go make artificial flowers."

Yamamoto: "I got bored, wanna help over here?"

Nagase: "We have enough people here! Go do your best with the artificial flowers!"

Yamamoto shrugs his shoulders, as if saying, "Oh well," and heads back.

We're in the same class, but he's in a flashy group, and during break times he spends time with his own faction, with Satsuki and the others, so it's a real relief that I barely have any contact with him.

...I heard this before, but even though he's dating Satsuki, he really is flirting with Nagase-san...

A slight surge of irritation as I recall it.

Nagase: "...Yamamoto-kun always invites me out, even though he has a girlfriend! ...Sorry about that."

She says in a hurry,

"...No, no, Nagase-san isn't doing anything wrong, is she? It's almost quitting time, isn't it?"

Finally 6 PM, it's time to go home, and I've fulfilled my quota, right?

My body is aching from sitting and working all this time!

Nagase: "I've been working this whole time, so my body's aching!"

Nagase-san stretches with an "Ugh!"

Her belly button peeks out from under her short-sleeved summer blouse, and I hastily avert my eyes!

Sharp-eyed boys naturally don't miss that!

Afterwards, she twists her upper body, twisting and turning her body around.

But when she twists, her chest area twists, and the boys in the class silently stare!

"..."

When I subtly move to block their view, the boys in the class give me resentful looks.

No, I have obligations too, don't I? Nagase-san is about the same in terms of grades, so we often talk about studying, and we're in the same basketball club, so we talk a lot there too.

Looking at her like this, Nagase Aya is indeed a striking beauty.

A girl with clear features and an expressive face, wearing a ponytail.

I often hear rumors that she's been confessed to.

A talented and beautiful, active girl who serves concurrently in the girls' basketball club and as student council secretary.

There's a rumor that she's a second-year student council officer, but she denies it herself.

She grumbled that denying it just leads to a loop of more confessions.

I guess being popular is tough.

Nagase-san, smiling, says,

Nagase: "Kousuke-kun, shall we have some tea with everyone before heading home?"

Oh, I have something to do,

Tomonaga: "...Hello, Kousuke-kun, sorry to keep you waiting."

A girl who, at first glance, looks like a ghost from an urban legend, with messy black hair, a wig, and a mask.

That's Tomonaga-san right now.

Is there really a need to hide this much?

Nagase: "...? Oh! Could it be? Tomonaga-san, who helped out with the basketball club during summer vacation?"

Did she notice?

I gesture "Shhh!" and "Be quiet!" to Nagase-san to stop her from saying anything more.

Getting close to the highly-noticed Nagase-san would make us stand out too much.

I quietly say,

"...I'll tell you in detail next time, so keep it a secret...!"

Nagase: "In detail? If you'll explain... Next time, then?"

Her gaze went back and forth between me and Tomonaga-san with extreme suspicion.

Nodding "Mm-hm," Tomonaga-san and I were released.

I go to a café a little distance away with Tomonaga-san. I order coffee and relatively low-calorie biscuits.

Tomonaga-san nibbles on them like a hamster, eating reluctantly.

I watch her with a fond smile.

Tomonaga: "Next week is the Sports Festival, isn't it? And after the Sports Festival, it's the Culture Festival in the first week of November, about a month later... Only one month left!"

Tomonaga-san, with a tragic expression, was overflowing with anxiety.

It's understandable; she started her diet two months ago, and she's probably reaching her limit.

But her motivation hasn't dropped.

If so, I want to support her.

"...I think Tomonaga-san is doing her best. ...You've really worked hard."

I praise her as much as I can. When you're struggling and having a hard time, just having someone there helps your heart.

Tomonaga-san is showing me and the film club the courage to change through her own actions.

Tanaka-kun was happy and said, "It's a good documentary!" That, in itself, is a bit worrying.

Tomonaga-san, with a troubled expression, hesitated,

Tomonaga: "Um, um, um, you know."

Yes, it's okay, say anything.

I wait for her to speak as gently as possible.

Tomonaga: "The captain, you know, the captain told me, 'The biggest problem is that you lack confidence, right?'"

Indeed. Tomonaga-san said many times that she's easily swayed, but she doesn't have a very strong ego. Is that why she failed previous diets, or why she's a timid girl with low self-esteem? I wondered.

Still, I think she should be proud of how hard she's worked and how successful her diet has been so far, and gain confidence from it.

Tomonaga: "I still, still haven't reached 50kg..."

Current weight as of the fourth week of September

58→56kg

She's almost reached her standard weight for her height.

No one would call her fat now.

Considering she was 71kg in late July, it's an amazing feat, I truly respect her.

...Honestly, I think it will be harder to lose weight from here on.

Tanaka-kun said that the last recording for the documentary production would be around this time next month, right before the deadline. That means the fourth week of October is the time limit.

Still, if she hasn't given up on 50kg, I'll help her as much as I can, even if it's just a small effort.

Tomonaga-san, with eyes full of determination, stated clearly to me.

Tomonaga: "The main event, the main event isn't yet, but, but, but you know? Today, there's something I want you to hear!"

I can't take my eyes off the color of her determined gaze.

This timid, insecure, easily-swayed girl is doing her best to encourage herself and convey something to me.

I'm not an idiot, I straighten my posture and listen with my whole being.

Sincerely, no matter what it is.

Yukari Tomonaga slowly closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and then began to speak...