Chapter 67

Editor: Ryunakama

Day 67

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「Good morning.」

「Oh, morning.」

I greeted Kouhai-chan in the station in the morning.

Today, I felt like she sounds a little more tired than usual. Maybe it’s her tone?

「The drawing’s deadline is tomorrow, right?」

It was about Kouhai-chan’s drawing, or rather, illustration that she would present in the cultural festival. I thought that she already finished it at the weekend, but it seemed like it was not the case, making me a little worried.

「It’s alright, I finished it already.」

「Really?」

「Yes, really.」

When I was surprised, the train arrived.

＊　＊　＊

Warming my body up inside the train, I started by teasing senpai.

「What is it, senpai? Are you worried about me?」

「What for?」

Senpai was facing away, avoiding eye contact with me.

「You thought that I wouldn’t make it in time, right?」

「Well…」

「I finished it in time, so don’t worry anymore.」

Senpai still wouldn’t meet my eyes. Seriously.

「By the way, senpai, here’s my『today’s question』.」

「How fast.」

「It’s because there is a connection. Senpai, how do you do your summer vacation homework?」

「What do you mean…」

Well, the answer is actually predictable.

But just in case, just to be sure, let’s just ask him.

「Aren’t there a lot of types? Is senpai the type that will leave them until the end, or the type that tries to finish it as fast as you can?」

「Ahh. Isn’t that clear?」

「Yes.」

「I’ll start as soon as I can, and proceed to do them steadily. But…」

Well, of course senpai will do that… Eh, what’s with that『but』?

「I’m also the type that will delay free research or reports until the end, and struggle to do it later on.」

Senpai lightly made a fool out of himself.

「Eh, but those are what you can finish the fastest, right?」

Why should you drag it until the end, when you can just finish it quickly?

「Shut it. Those things are the type of assignment that people will do when they feel like it.」

「Is that so?」

「Yeah.」

＃　＃　＃

「Then, here’s my『today’s question』. How does Kouhai-chan do your summer vacation homework?」

Since you asked me, I’ll ask you back.

Other than how she finished her illustration, she didn’t look like the type that would do it while crying at the verge of the deadline.

「I’ll finish all of them immediately.」

「Ah, as I expected, huh?」

「But I won’t tell anyone that I have finished them.」

「Eh? Why?」

Why do you have to make it a secret?

「Hah?」

Kouhai-chan’s expression looked even more surprised than me.

「Eh, senpai, you don’t know?」

「Nope.」

Since you can appeal your excellence, won’t it make your image good for the teachers?

「Look now. If I finish it, they will come.」

「Oh?」

「People who haven’t finished their homework will rush in at the end of the summer vacation. And then, they’ll say it… 『Please let me copy your homework.』」

Even though she said it with a horror-style lines, I didn’t feel scared at all.

「Hee…」

「Please make a little more decent response, senpai!」

「Uh, I can’t make any response other than ‘Hee’, though. It never happened to me.」

「Eh?」

Kouhai-chan raised her voice, as if hearing something unexpected.

「Senpai, you finish your homework early, don’t you?」

「Well, other than the reports, I basically finish them quickly.」

「Don’t your classmates ask you to lend your homework? Senpai is an honor student as well, so you should get more than me, right?」

「…They don’t.」

Kouhai-chans stupefied, answering with only ‘Ehhh…”

「Ah, are you too busy with your reports, and don’t have any time to deal with other people?」

「That’s also true, but…」

Let’s toss an answer that Kouhai-chan hasn’t predicted at all.

「I don’t really have any close friends in the same class with the same homework so there is no one that will ask to copy my homework.」

「Uwahhh…」

「Asking other people to let them copy their homework」is an act that requires a certain amount of trust. After all, if you don’t trust the report or the person who finished their homework, you won’t just borrow it.

I’m not that socially adapt to be able to become such reliable classmate in just a few months, since starting in April.

「I didn’t realize it at all. Senpai doesn’t have a lot of friends, eh♪」

「That’s not what you should say to other people with a smile.」

Kouhai-chan looked very happy as she leaned on the train wall.

「It’s senpai, so it’s fine.」

「So you ignore my feelings?」

I don’t really mind having just a few friends, though.

If I want to have more, and I’m thinking of increasing the number of friends I have, I would be doing something about that myself.

Since I don’t try to do anything, it means I’m satisfied with this current status quo.

「I’m not ignoring your feelings. I just choose not to comment on it.」

「Isn’t that the same?」

And also.

I have this little hateful Kouhai-chan in front of me as my talking partner, so I might feel like I don’t need other people anymore.