Chapter 107: 1st year, 2nd semester start

It was already the second semester.
Summer vacation was already over!
How could such a cruel and horrible thing happen?!

I woke up to the sound of my phone alarm and whined, burrowing deeper under the covers.

“Ugh… vacation, vacation, why did you have to end so soon…”

I’d had a fulfilling break, even going on the retreat… but I still didn’t want to go back to school. Memories of lazy days filled with ice cream, dried squid, and endless scrolling on my phone flooded my mind.

“Ah… my dreamlike vacation…”
Now it was back to school, back to studying, studying, studying…
I wanted to cry. Since I was a girl now, it was okay to cry, right?

As I wallowed in self-pity, I thought of Aya.
‘I have Aya…’

The thought of Aya finally motivated me to get out of bed and head to the bathroom.

“Why is vacation so short…?”

I looked at myself in the mirror as I brushed my teeth. Rina’s sleepy face stared back at me.

A face I’d grown accustomed to.
A face that was undeniably mine, yet sometimes felt unfamiliar.
Large, round eyes, a cute face that wouldn’t look out of place anywhere. Well, of course, I couldn’t compare to beauties like Aya and Mizuki, but I was still pretty.

It would be nice to date a girl like this…

‘No, what are you thinking, Rina?’

I had Aya!
I shook my head at my ridiculous thoughts and finished getting ready, barely making it in time to meet Aya.

It was now September. The summer heat still lingered, but the morning air felt refreshingly cool. Autumn was still a long way off, but the weather was pleasant enough for an autumn field trip, at least.

“Haa… I still don’t want to go to school.”

I muttered to myself as I walked, and then I saw a familiar beautiful figure waving at me in the distance.

“Rina! Long time no see!”
“Aya~!”

I called out to Aya and ran towards her. She seemed taller than I remembered. Well, she was tall.
Seeing Aya brought back memories of everything that had happened during summer vacation.

Even though I’d rested well, seeing Aya still made my heart flutter. She was my ideal type, after all.
I walked beside Aya, and we continued our journey to school together.

“It’s a shame that summer vacation is over, isn’t it?”
“Ugh, I know, right! I want to go back… to the first day of vacation…!”
“Me too. I wanted to spend more time with you, Rina.”

Aya’s words made me blush.
‘She says things like that so casually…!’

We met Mizuki on our way to school.

“Rina-tan~! Aya-ring~!”

Mizuki’s hair was back to its usual neat brown, the pink dye gone.

“Mizuki, you dyed your hair back?”
“Yeah, since school started again… Back to normal mode.”
“Won’t that damage your hair?”
“It’s fine, it’s fine~ It was just a coating, so as long as I use a good shampoo, it’ll be okay.”
“Oh… I see.”
“Rina, do you want to try dyeing your hair next summer vacation?”
“Hmm, dyeing my hair… I don’t think it would suit me!”

Mizuki pouted slightly at my response.
“Aw~ Rina-tan, you’d look so cute with blonde hair.”
“No, no, blonde hair… Absolutely not!”

Both in my past life and this one, dyeing my hair seemed like something I’d never do. Besides, short, blonde hair… It wouldn’t suit me at all!

We chatted as we walked into the classroom. The classroom was filled with a languid atmosphere, as if mourning the end of summer vacation.

“Ugh… Is summer vacation really over…?”
“Why does time fly by so fast…?”

The classmates at the desks next to mine mumbled, resting their chins on their hands listlessly.

The other students seemed to feel the same way. Everyone was in denial about the end of summer vacation.

The bell rang, signaling the start of homeroom, and our teacher entered the classroom energetically.

“Alright, everyone, did you have a good summer vacation?”

The teacher asked cheerfully, as always, but there was barely a response.
A few students mumbled a weak “Yes…”

“Well, the second semester has started, so we have to get back into the swing of things!”

The teacher, dressed in his usual slightly disheveled clothes, stood at the podium with a bright smile. His energy was a stark contrast to the general apathy in the classroom.

“Come on, everyone, cheer up. We have the sports festival and the cultural festival this semester. And… at the end of the second semester, Christmas is waiting for us!”

Even the teacher’s encouraging words didn’t seem to improve the mood much. Even at a prestigious academy, the fear of returning to school was universal…!

“Christmas is nice, but…”
“It’s still so far away…”

The teacher chuckled at the students’ murmurs and added,

“It’ll be here before you know it! So, let’s do our best this semester too!”
“Yeees…”

The students responded halfheartedly.
I looked at Aya, who was sitting next to me, and Mizuki, who was sitting diagonally behind me. They both smiled at me.

****

The first student council meeting of the new semester was held. Both first and second-year high school students were present.

There was… an unfamiliar face.
Short, black hair, fair skin, and a neatly pressed uniform.
She was a beautiful girl who looked like she’d stepped straight out of a book.

Hiiragi-senpai introduced her with a calm smile.

“Everyone have a good summer vacation? This is our first meeting after the break, and before we begin, I’d like to introduce a new member. This is Kirihara Arisu, a first-year. She was on the middle school student council until last year, then she went abroad to study, and now she’s back.”

Kirihara bowed slightly in greeting. She looked around quietly, and our eyes met.
And… I immediately knew who she was.

The honor student from the novel, the perfect student who always held the third-place rank.
She was described as having green hair in the novel, but perhaps it was black in reality?

At least, based on the novel’s setting, Kirihara was definitely a better student than Fujimoto Kenichi. She had a rather cold personality and approached student council work with a strong sense of responsibility. Well… in the novel, she ended up leaving the student council because of the protagonist, so her involvement was limited to the debate tournament.

But the girl in front of me looked much more languid and apathetic than I’d imagined.

Hiiragi-senpai spoke again.

“Now we have too many first-year representatives. Since there’s a limit of four per grade, we’ll have to hold a small debate tournament to decide who gets to stay. Is that alright with you, Kirihara-san?”

Kirihara shrugged indifferently.

“It’s a bother. I don’t really want to compete…”

Her tone suggested genuine apathy, not sarcasm.

“I’ll drop out, so can’t we just continue as we did last semester?”

Then, unexpectedly, Fujimoto raised his hand.

“It’s fine, Kirihara. I’ll drop out.”
“…Huh? Why, Fujimoto?”

Kirihara’s apathetic eyes suddenly lit up with curiosity.

“Fujimoto-kun, I thought you were eager to be on the student council?”
“I was. But there’s someone better suited for the position.”

Kirihara looked puzzled for a moment, then slowly shifted her gaze to me.
Our eyes met briefly, and Kirihara’s expression softened.

“Ah…”

A strange tension filled the air. Without a word, Kirihara seemed to understand the reason behind Fujimoto’s change of heart.
And… I was so surprised by Fujimoto’s sudden decision to leave the student council that I couldn’t process anything else.

Kirihara smiled faintly, her expression still languid.

“But I’m fine with it. I don’t really care about the student council.”

Tachibana-senpai sighed at her words.

“Why are you all doing this? Stop playing games and just hold the debate tournament like we always do.”

Hiiragi-senpai interrupted Tachibana-senpai and addressed the issue.

“So, Fujimoto, Kirihara, it’s safe to say that neither of you are interested in staying?”
“I want to focus on my studies.”
“I don’t really want to… If I join, the first-year student council will be all girls.”

That was true. Student council work wasn’t always easy. There were tasks that required physical strength, and having an all-female team might hinder some of their activities.

“But one of you has to join. Are you sure neither of you want to change your mind?”
“I’m sorry. I was planning to leave once the second semester started anyway.”

Fujimoto lowered his head. It seemed that being so thoroughly defeated by me in the first semester had deeply wounded his pride.
Hiiragi-senpai looked at Kirihara.

“Then Kirihara-san, it looks like you’ll be joining us.”
“…If there’s no other option, I’ll join. It’s what I’m used to, anyway.”
“Thank you, Kirihara.”

Hiiragi Haruto-senpai looked utterly exhausted.