A Strange Request

“You want a confession?”

Yuta crossed his arms, feeling rather impatient. “Yes, I want you to confess.”

Nakano’s eyes fixated on the floor. “Well, it was only a matter of time before you figured it out… B-But I didn’t expect you to make me say it…” She cleared her throat and returned her gaze to Yuta. “T-The truth is…” A soft pink rose to her cheeks, and she took a shaky deep breath. “I-I like you!”

He stared at her, dumbfounded by what she had said. ‘What is she thinking? I told her to confess to her crimes, not her feelings! I highly doubt she even feels–’  A thought hit him like a brick. ‘If her confession is true… is that why she sent Shiori the message to stay away from me? But then what of Ichinose and the president? Why does she want them to break up?’

“Ichikawa… are you alright?” She tilted her head.

‘Perhaps she has a friend that’s interested in one of them? …No, that can’t be it. Ms. Sasaki said she doesn’t have any friends. Does she like both me and the president?’ As the thoughts swirled in his head, Nakano checked her phone.

“Sorry, I have to go… You don’t have to tell me your answer now.” She whirled around and ran off.

“Wait!” Yuta reached out to stop her, but she had already turned the corner and disappeared. He clenched his fists. ‘This isn’t the way I wanted things to go today… She did more than just play innocent.’  At least he could share his theory with the president. ‘She did ask who I was, but later called me by name… Was that because she was too shy? Or because she was trying to act innocent?’

Even if her confession was true, there was no way Yuta would be friendly with someone that tried to hurt Shiori.

Since preparations for the culture festival were not complete, he knew the president was still at school.

…

“That’s what happened?” The president didn’t even try to contain his laughter.

“Yes. If what she said is true, that would explain why she sent the note to Shiori. That still leaves the reason behind your note a mystery, though.”

Shiori sat in the corner of the room, leaning over a poster she was working on.

“I talked to her earlier as well. She denied even knowing about the notes. Are you certain you saw her on the roof?”

“Positive. Her voice was the same, too. The only thing different about her are her mannerisms.”

The president tapped his finger against the desk, deep in thought. “Perhaps I should show this note to Minori and have her ask her friends what they know about it.”

“Good idea. I’ll continue pressuring Nakano into admitting what she’s done.”

The following morning, Yuta had his back against the wall while he waited for Nakano in front of her classroom.

When he saw her, he pushed himself off the wall and faced her.

She stopped in front of him, holding her bag the same way as Shiori.

‘That must be the way shy girls carry their bags.’

Nakano bowed. “Ichikawa, good morning… Are you here because you have an answer for me?”

“Was your confession true? Or did you only say it to stop me from questioning you about the notes you sent Shiori and the student council president?”

“There you go again… I didn’t send any notes, okay? I didn’t even know someone pushed you down the stairs until you told me… “ She set her bag on the floor and clasped her hands in front of her. Her head tilted toward the ground. “How terrible…”

“I know for a fact that you’re lying. I saw you on the roof when I was shoved.”

“But I wasn’t there! Maybe you saw someone that looked like me… I promise you I–” Her hands lowered to her side, and she chuckled. A confidence that wasn’t there before filled her frame and entered her voice. “Hello, Yuta Ichikawa. I take it you want answers?”

Yuta furrowed his brow, confused by the sudden shift. “That’s right. I want to know why you wrote the letters to Shiori and the president.”

Her lips curled up in a grin. “I can tell you everything I know… If you go on a date with me.”

“Are you serious?”

“Mhmm! Very. Of course, you could always refuse. But then you wouldn’t get the information you want.”

Yuta clicked his tongue in irritation. “Fine.”

“Good. I’ll be looking forward to it.” She picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder. “Let’s meet at Kozuchi Park at one on Saturday, alright? I’ll be looking forward to it.” Nakano moved around Yuta to get into her classroom. She stopped in the doorway. “Oh, and you’ll probably want to get to class. The bell’s about to ring.

He rushed to his own classroom to avoid being late. ‘What did I just get myself into…?’

During class, all Yuta could think about was his encounter with Nakano. ‘She started acting so differently there… Did she realize it was impossible to fool me with her quiet girl act? And why did she promise to give me answers on the condition of a date? She knows that I’m aware of what she did. She should know there’s no chance that I’d like her.’

“Ichikawa? Ichikawa!” The teacher was calling his name to read a passage.

“S-Sorry!” He jumped up and read an excerpt from the book he was holding.

“Thank you. Ozaki.”

Shiori slowly rose from her seat. Her voice shook as she read, and she said the wrong word a few times.

The teacher shook his head but called on another student. Yuta couldn’t help but feel bad for Shiori.

‘This date is going to be a waste of my time, but… I’m determined to stop her from doing anything else to Shiori. If it means going on a single date, then fine. I just hope she doesn’t ask me to do any weird stuff after this.’