Troubles of a Male Lead

Kaien froze at the chilling look in Nao's eyes.

‘They saw...that?’

Several days ago, Yume came to him. She asked how he was at first, thinking he was in a relationship with Seira against his will.

He sensed there was more, and wanting Yume to be honest for once, he gave her words of assurance. At the same time, he tried what Seira did —

Let Yume believe that he was together with Seira to get her to confess.

“But you didn’t have to do any of that for me! I…I like you, Kinryuji! I always have!”

And it worked.

Yume expressed her feelings loud and clear. Though he knew all along, hearing it from her own mouth made a big difference. With her admitting it, there was no more reason for him to hold back.

“I appreciate that, Sakura. Truly, I do, but I'm sorry. I don't feel the same.”

Seeing the pain and sadness on Yume's face at that time made Kaien feel bad—awful.

Her eyes welled up with tears, and she tried to run away. But he stopped her. He refused to end it this way, as he only wished the best for her. 

“You are a good person. I think there are more people out there who care about you than you realize—who care more than you realize.”

After that, he still treated her as he always did. Nothing had to change between them. But sometimes, she would look at him with yearning.

Unlike before, she was open about it, as if his rejection served not to deter but to motivate.

“Thank you for the other day, Kinryuji.”

“It really is comfortable being around you.”

“Are you going home? Please take care.”

Yume spoke more now, and Kaien felt just a little bit awkward.

He wished she wasn't holding onto false hopes. But it was arrogant of him to think so when he already turned her down. Of course, there could be other reasons for this small yet visible change. It could just be that she had finally moved past her shyness.

‘That aside, I worry Minato and the others will catch on. I don't want this to get out to them,’ Kaien grimaced, having never been a fan of real-life dramas like Seira. ‘But as it turned out, Shirakawa was there. He knew the entire time.’

“You must be elated to have all the ladies fawning over you,” Nao remarked in a tone of voice that Kaien figured as sarcasm. “Well? How did you respond? You don't seem to have gotten any closer.”

“Wait… You didn't hear that part?”

Nao cocked his head. “I was thinking you'd rather have us not listen at all.”

“No, that's… Ugh, why did this happen?”

“Miss Airin is quite positive that you and Miss Sakura have been…’lovey-dovey’ since then. In most scenarios, you'd throw a fit of jealousy if someone asked out the person you're dating, but…”

“She didn't, and instead, she's happy?”

“That she is.”

“She shouldn't have come up with that conclusion.”

“Why not? Even I have, you know.”

Kaien rubbed a hand down his face in exasperation. “We’re in the same class. She should see that Sakura and I aren't any different from before.” 

“...Shall I take that as confirmation that the feeling is not mutual?”

“Huh? Uh, yeah.”

“And you are not seeing anyone at all right now?”

“I am not, no.”

Nao smiled and nodded, satisfied. “Alright, then. Thanks for that, Kinryuji.”

“You’re welcome, I guess…? Airin is in the clubroom, right?” Kaien turned around to leave.

“She is.”

“Got it.”

“Oh, and by the way, you mentioned that thing in the cafeteria.”

“...Yes?”

“Is it also a lie that you screamed “Mommy!” with snot on your face-”

“I’m going.”

Nao appeared to be in very high spirits.

On the way to the clubroom, Kaien pondered what to say to Seira, feeling the need to brace himself. First and foremost, there was the matter of her and Nao witnessing Yume's confession. He couldn't believe that he only learned about it now, that some sort of misunderstanding had been going on behind his back all this time.

‘But once I told her we didn't become a couple, like what she wanted, she'd finally quit playing villainess and matchmaker… Hopefully.’

Rather than Yume, what people knew was that Seira was together with him.

That was another point of discussion. He would tell her that Nao already found out the truth. The rest also would soon.

‘It's her fault for being stubborn, anyway. I may have gone overboard, but she's the one who started it.’ Kaien placed a hand on his chest, unsure why his heart was beating a tad faster. ‘And I... I really don't mind being in that type of relationship with her.’

Kaien would never think this in the past, not if she remained the same Airin Seira he always had to bear with. While he still saw pieces of the old in the new, he would not deny that she had become a better person as a whole.

‘And that's why…’

“Kai? Why are you here?”

Kaien snapped out of his thoughts. Minato approached him from ahead. It took a moment for him to recall that his friend was also in the literature club. 

“Is Airin still in the meeting? President Shirakawa mentioned she became a member.”

Minato’s gaze became distant. “Ah, her…”

“Did she cause trouble again?”

“For me, yes. Just not the usual stuff.”

Kaien lifted a puzzled brow. “What, then?”

“She draws very well.”

“...Huh?”

“She draws better than I do.”

His friend’s words gave him pause.

As far as Kaien knew, only he was privy to Seira's hobby. With how scandalous her sketches were, she never showed them to anyone else. She was conscious of that fact, thankfully. Since they also included embarrassing pictures of him, he made sure it would stay that way.

Yet just now, Minato had acknowledged Seira’s skill.

“She volunteered to make art for the school festival. At first, we all thought she was lying, but she went ahead and showed us. We were shocked to see how good she was,” Minato narrated in monotone, but Kaien could hear a hint of awe and disbelief. “The others egged us on to have a contest. We drew the same panel from a comic, but hers was definitely superior.”

“So, it was your loss?” he asked reluctantly, seeing how disappointed he was.

“It was,” he bristled, “But what’s worse, she claimed that what we drew was not even her forte.”

‘Yeah, well, that would be kissing scenes of her classmates,’ he thought dryly, not at all surprised.

“After talking big, I feel ashamed.”

“It sure was unexpected. Who would’ve thought, huh?”

“You never told me she could draw.”

“...And you never told me she's in your club now.”

Minato gave Kaien a bewildered look. “Didn't she tell you? You're seeing each other.”

He felt like laughing. But then again, he kept the truth from everyone, and it didn’t help that his friend was dense about this kind of thing. He would not blame him.

“So, is Airin still there?”

“Ah, yes,” Minato answered, having forgotten Kaien’s initial question. “The meeting is over. I lent her the comic she’s been asking to borrow, so she’s reading it now.”

“Okay. Thanks, Minato.”

---

“Hey, Airin.”

Startled, Seira looked up from the comic she was reading. Her eyes widened. Somehow, Kaien appeared and was sitting across from her.

“Oh, hello, Kinryuji Kaien! What’s up?”

He grinned. “You seem to be enjoying yourself a lot.”

She giggled, “Yeah, this thing’s pretty great- Ah!”

“What? Don’t just shout like that-”

“How are you and Sakura Yume?!”

He stared at her for a moment before leaning back. She stood up and leaned forward in turn.

Seira felt her cheek twitch at how disinterested Kaien looked. ‘Oh, no… Don’t tell me…’

“Sakura and I are the same as always.”

“But she confessed! I saw it!” she exclaimed almost desperately.

“And I rejected her. You shouldn't be proud of eavesdropping on us, Airin.”

“Geh!”

At the back of her mind, she knew this was bound to happen. Kaien insisted he didn’t reciprocate Yume’s feelings, proving to her that not everything in this world would be as it was in stories. But even with him acting out of character, she had never given up hope.

This was her ego and devotion as a shoujo romance enthusiast.  

“I thought her love for you would make you see the light, but you…” Seira reached for a chair, but Kaien was already holding it. “...You waste of a male lead!”