Can I Still Be Your Heroine Even Though I'm Your Teacher?-Chapter 4Volume 3 .5 - To Continue or Not?
To Continue or Not? 5
“Nishiki, walk me home.”
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As the second-year class C dinner party came to an end, we all started heading back to the station.
In the midst of it all, I couldn’t refuse when Akira asked me like that.
Teased by everyone, I ended up having to take Akira home.
I followed Akira through the quiet residential streets at her pace.
The sensation of walking through an unfamiliar town was both fresh and a little scary.
“Thanks for accompanying me.”
“No problem. It’s dangerous for a girl to walk alone at night.”
“Hmm, quite the gentleman.”
“There was no way I could say no in that situation.”
“Yeah. I knew that, and that’s why I chose that timing.”
“A deliberate offense, huh?”
“Yes, as an apology, here’s the usual.”
Akira pulled out a Chupa Chups from her bag and offered it to me.
“Today’s dessert, then.”
I unwrapped it on the spot and popped it into my mouth.
The artificial sweetness spread through my mouth.
“So, about what was said in the classroom...”
As I started to speak, Akira suddenly picked up her pace.
“Hey, Akira!”
Ignoring my call, she continued to stride ahead.
“Hey, this defeats the purpose of seeing you off!”
She was surprisingly fast, even though she was no longer in the track team. I had to speed up to a light jog to avoid losing sight of her.
“If you go that fast, the food’s going to come back up.”
Running with a Chupa Chups in my mouth was tough. I started to feel a stitch in my side.
“Akira, aren’t you pushing yourself too hard? Won’t your injury hurt?”
“I’m not pushing myself at all.”
“Rather, it’s impossible for me. I’m going to throw up, really going to throw up.”
Because it was all-you-can-eat and I got carried away by the momentum of those around me, I ended up eating way more than usual.
The hearty dishes I had consumed were now violently shaking inside my stomach, threatening to burst out of my mouth.
Just when I thought I was going to be sick, Akira suddenly stopped moving.
Unable to kill my momentum, I bumped into Akira.
“What’s with you, suddenly speeding up and stopping. Are you having fun messing with me?”
Akira turned around briskly.
“It’s fun. Super fun. It’s been a while since I’ve had this much fun.”
I stared intently at Kuhouin Akira, illuminated by the light of the vending machine.
Her words seemed genuine. She truly seemed to be enjoying herself.
There was not a trace of the sullenness she had in the classroom.
Her face was the picture of fulfillment, completely free from boredom.
“How can you move around so much after eating?”
“Sports clubs train so that you can exercise right after eating, even the digestive functions are strengthened.”
“That’s a story from a year ago, right? Besides, aren’t you supposed to be retired from injury? Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Surprisingly, yes.”
She said it nonchalantly.
“But, I can’t run like I used to. Starting at the signal and sprinting to finish first—that’s impossible now.”
“Don’t use me for your experiments.”
“But, Nishiki, you endured and followed me. Why?”
“Well, I am playing the role of your boyfriend after all.”
“You’re so conscientious.”
“It’s rare for Akira to ask me for something. Well, until the cultural festival, that is.”
“Is Nishiki kind to all girls?”
“If I were that philanthropic, I’d probably enjoy such a silly proposal to play the boyfriend role.”
“Right, Ririka thinks of some strange things sometimes.”
“It’s all for your sake.”
My words carried a hint of mockery, and I replied with a bit more force.
“I know. I’ve been helped by Ririka in various ways, even when I didn’t ask for it. I am grateful, you know. But I can’t give anything back.”
” ‘If you look like you’re having fun, that’s enough’, Mayuzumi-san said.”
I recalled the conversation we had in front of the store earlier.
“Then help me have even more fun.”
“What do you want this time?”
I asked back casually
“I want to extend it. Not just playing the boyfriend, this time I want you to become my real boyfriend.”
Akira didn’t look away from me.
Her pride wouldn’t allow it.
With a bright red face and a serious expression, she conveyed that there was no lie in her words or feelings.
In this dazzling spot amidst the dimly lit residential area, she voiced her new wish.
As if deliberately showing me how serious she was.
“Akira, I—”
“Let me hear your answer after the cultural festival is over. You don’t have to decide yet.”
“Why?”
Caught off guard, I couldn’t come up with a clever retort.
I was that shaken.
Because, as a man, it was honestly pleasing to be confessed to by a girl.
Especially by someone as beautiful as Kuhouin Akira.
“If you quit the boyfriend role at this timing, it would be troublesome for me too. Just now, I was teased a lot by the people in class, right? Without a breakwater, the moment I become free, I might get confessions from boys I don’t even like.”
“So, you’re saying now when you’re heartbroken from a breakup is their chance to confess?”
“That’s right.”
“Men are stupid.”
“And insensitive. That’s why I had to say it myself.”
“So, an extension, then.”
“I told you at the pool. The minimum requirement for a lover is that it’s someone I like. So I just chose for myself. If it wasn’t you, Nishiki, I would never have agreed to Ririka’s proposal.”
Her argument was too convincing.
Everything was not a whim or coincidence; it was all going as Akira had wished.
“You’re too flustered. Don’t be so surprised.”
“Honestly, I can’t even taste the candy.”
“Nishiki, it’s because your stepsister is too beautiful, isn’t it? Your standards for girls are too high. You have a discerning eye. You’re spoiled.”
I couldn’t deny it. Or rather, my mind wasn’t working properly.
Wait, what am I supposed to do seriously?
I’ve been confessed to, and now I’m left hanging with the reply being unilaterally postponed.
Isn’t this getting more complicated?
