OtaPon 16-20 (Patreon)

Chapter 16

RAW

　A while after sending the message, he ended up regretting it.

　And for a while, he didn't receive a reply from Saki.
 The slow response to his messages further spurred his worries. Even if he retracted his word, the fact that he went through the trouble of sending the message is... he thought so, but in the end, there was nothing he could do about it, so he was regretting it.

[You are struggling?]

　He got a message back.
 Osamu’s hand stopped for a moment, deciding whether to apologize or just tell her his struggles, and then he typed a message.

[I don't have that much experience with romance myself, so it's quite difficult. Right now I'm writing the date scene, but I only read books and use them as reference.]

　Him saying ‘that much’ was just a small pretense. In reality, it is zero.
 Although he said it jokingly, because it was an embarrassing revelation, Osamu’s whole body felt hot all over.

　For a while, there was no reply. Osamu let out a sigh once, then went to the refrigerator, took out a bottle of tea, and drank it.
 Osamu suppressed the heat in his body with it, picked up his smartphone again and found that he had received a message.

[Can we meet again on our next day off?]

　Osamu took his mouth off the plastic bottle of the tea he was drinking.
 He read the message several times, feeling that the sentences didn't seem to be connected.
 Still not understanding, Osamu eventually decided to ask.

[What do you mean?]
[Um... I thought if we could go out together─like a date─I might be able to help in some way.]

　Osamu choked up when he saw the word ‘date.’
 Still, he managed to hold it down, and then his mouth loosened.

“She's such a kind girl... she heard what I said earlier, and is being considerate to me.”

　Or maybe that's how much she is looking forward to the third volume.
 Absentmindedly thinking of such things and thinking that it was not a bad deal either way, Osamu decided to accept her help and then he stopped his finger there.
 He glanced around the room, then scratched his head.

[...I'm very happy about that offer, but I don't have any clothes to wear. I only have my uniform, so could we meet after school? Like at the family restaurant the other day.]

　As he said in his message, the only clothes in Osamu's room were jerseys.
 It’s not like he goes out on his day off, and on weekdays there was no problem as long as he wore his uniform.

　However, he had a fair amount of knowledge about clothes. Because it was information he needed to write his novel.
 Even though he never bought a single clothes, he did own a few fashion magazines. Those too, were not only for men, but also for women.

[Then, would you like to go shopping for clothes after school?]

　It was an unexpected proposal.
 Osamu was scratching his head. He didn't particularly dislike it, but his apologetic feeling was just a lot stronger.

[That will take up your precious time, is that okay?]
[I don’t mind. I like choosing clothes after all.]
[...Understood. Well then, any day that works for you is fine.]
[Then how about Wednesday after school?]
[Yeah, I got it.]

　After Osamu replied like that, he put his smartphone on the desk.

“...A-am I going to go out with a woman!?”

　He couldn't help but cry out and looked back at the messages on his smartphone.
After making sure it wasn't a dream, he scratched his head.

“...Am I going to be okay?”

　He can write as much as he wants about the world of his imagination. However, actually experiencing it was a different story.

“...I guess I’ll read a book.”

　Osamu was worrying about it for a while, but decided that there was no point in thinking about it and began his daily routine of reading.

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Chapter 17

RAW

“...Look, that's the student council president over there, right?”
“It's true... Ah, she’s beautiful today too.”
“...She has a dignified figure today as well.”
“Really, I'm glad we went to school together...”
“Aah... I want her to collar me...”

　She walked briskly with a straight back and a smile on her face. This was because she had been taught this way since she was a child.
 The surrounding students were fascinated by such Saki.

　Saki walked through the hallway, maintaining the dignity of the student council president as she passed between their gazes.
 All their gaze was on her, but she didn't pay it any mind and lifted the bag she was holding.

　The time was half past twelve, it was lunch time.
 Arriving at the student council room, Saki unlocked the room which she used like a private room, and went inside.

　Placing her bag on the long desk used for meetings, Saki rummaged through it and pulled out a plastic bag.
 From there, she took out the 10 rice balls she purchased and began to eat them one by one.

　This period was truly blissful, and her expression loosened. As she was moving her mouth eating her food, the door was thrown open.
 It was Mayumi.

“Mayumi, I'm glad you came.”
“You called me after all. So, what's wrong today, Sakicchi?”

　As soon as she entered, Mayumi sat down near Saki with a smile on her face.
 Saki, who had called Mayumi in advance to see if they could meet up during lunch break, swallowed her third rice ball and grimaced.

“P-please help me, Mayumi.”
“...Eh? W-what's wrong? Why do you look like you’re about to cry!? Did someone do something horrible to you!?”
“That’s not it... we decided to go on a... d-d-d-d-d-date.”
“D-d-d–d-date!? Eh!? It can’t be, you invited him, Saki!?”
“I-I guess you could say I invited him... well, it's something like that, I guess...”

　Saki turned her face down. She didn’t intend to invite him out as a date. But, if Osamu is in trouble, she wants to help him, and her proposal comes from the bottom of her heart.
 However, it ended up being a date, so Saki couldn't sleep well last night.
 Mayumi patted such Saki on the shoulder.

“Can I ask for more details?”

　She nodded and started talking about yesterday's conversation.

“...Yesterday, I managed to send a message, like you told me to.”
“...I see. So you invited him then?”
“To abbreviate it, I suppose I did. So tomorrow after school, we're going to go shopping for clothes for Shimazaki-san.”
“I see, it's an after school shopping date! It's pretty safe! Way to go, Sakicchi!”
“...No, that's where the problem lies.”
“There?”
“Yes, it seems Shimazaki-san is not very concerned about his clothes. Actually, at first I suggested that we go out on our day off, but since he didn't have any clothes to go out with, we decided to go out after school.”
“Heeh, so that’s how it is. I might feel a little relieved after hearing that.”
“Eh? Relieved?”

　Mayumi's words didn't fit the flow of the conversation. When Saki tilted her head slightly, Mayumi grinned.

“I was a little worried that Saki-chi might get played with if he’s a person who is used to playing around. But, if he’s like that, wouldn’t it be okay? I thought.”
“...That’s never a problem. I'm not the kind of woman that can be played with by another person after all.”
“No, Sakicchi is careless after all, a ponkotsu too, and you look like you can easily be fooled...”
“I’m not careless, and I’m not a ponkotsu either.”

　Saki glared at Mayumi who was saying some rude words, but Mayumi’s smile didn't disappear.

────

Chapter 18

RAW

“In short, you guys are going to go pick out some clothes, right? So, why do you need my help?”
“...Yes. What should I do? I told Shimazaki-san that I like choosing clothes.”
“Eh!? Saki likes choosing clothes!? Wow, to think you’d lie like that!”
“S-shut up...! I just thought that if I didn't say that, Shimazaki-san would be bothered!”

　She definitely didn’t do it to show off or to look good. Saki raised her voice, but Mayumi did not take her words as her honest one.

“Heeh... ‘bothered’, eh? No, that’s not it, you lied so you could go out together, didn’t you?”
“I-it’s not like that. Shimazaki-san was troubled because he didn't have any clothes, that's the only reason...! I have no other intention than that!”

　Saki said that, but Mayumi's grin didn't disappear.
 Saki folded her arms and turned away with a huff, and Mayumi put her hand on her chin.

“So, to sum it up, Sakicchi decided to go with Shimazaki-kun to the store to pick out clothes, but despite your bold declaration, you don't actually know much, that’s about it, right?”
“...It's as you said”
“As expected of a ponkotsu. You said some thoughtless thing...?”
“P-please don't call me ponkotsu! ...That's not true, I just trust my good friend. That's why, Mayumi... please help me.”

　Saki tugs on Mayumi's clothes.
 Even now she looked like she was about to cry. Mayumi giggled and took out her smartphone.

“In that case, I think you should go to this store in the shopping mall near the station. They also have a variety of clothes for men.”

　Mayumi took out her smartphone and showed an image of the store's exterior.

“...I see.”
“At this time of year, most already switched to short-sleeved clothes, so I think you should just go with a normal shirt and black skinny pants to match. I think you can buy a matching top and bottom for about 10,000 yen? If you need shoes and such, I think you can invite him out on another day.”

　Saki was frozen for a while.

“Pa-pa-pa-pants!? Are we also going to pick out underwear?”
“...Eh, from there? I'm just talking about a normal trouser. Underwear is called shorts or panties... Huh, Sakicchi... you don't know about those things?”
“I've never bought my own clothes... aren’t they all the ones Mayumi chose?”
“Ah, now that I think about it, that’s true... Sakicchi...are you going to be okay? Should I secretly follow you from behind?”
“N-no need...! If you follow me, I’ll get angry!”
“Wow, I might want to see that... it’s just a joke, a joke.”

(T/N: パンツ - ‘pantsu’. Back then it usually meant ‘underwear’ but maybe it means ‘pants’ now? Btw, the ‘panties’ that Mayumi talked about is パンティー - ‘pantii’)

　When Saki glared at her, Mayumi raised both her hands and giggled.
 While raising her hand, ‘but,’ Mayumi said as she opened her mouth.

“I want to at least see the face of the boy Sakicchi is interested in, so can’t you prepare a picture?”
“I-I don't want to! It's a violation of the portrait rights!”
“You can just take a photo together as a souvenir, can’t you? It's normal for people who get along well to take a photo together after all.”
“I-I don't want to... Or rather, it’s too embarrassing, I can’t do that!”
“But if I know that person's face and build, I can choose the right clothes for him, that makes it easier for me to give you advice, you know?”
“...”

　Saki thought about it for a while and then let out a small sigh.

“...I-I understand. If I can prepare it, I would like to prepare it.”
“Ooh! Sakichi, you're so motivated! You're that interested, huh!”
“...I-it's not like that!”

　Saki turned away in a huff and started eating her rice ball.

────

Chapter 19

RAW

　After school Wednesday came and Osamu let out a small breath.
 He was extremely nervous. Currently he was in the classroom after school, seeing his classmates walking out into the hallway while talking.

“Oi, look at that. That’s the otaku.”
“Yeah, he’s alone today too.”

　Two of the boys of the more conspicuous group glanced at Osamu and laughed at him. He’s used to those mocking stares, so he wasn’t really bothered by it.
 More than that, there was something he had to worry about.
 After this, Osamu will go shopping for clothes with Saki. In the face of such a major incident, the likes of unreasonable mockery from his classmates was a trivial problem.

　Osamu opened the map app on his smartphone, looked up the shopping mall that was his destination, and checked how long it would take him to reach his destination. He adjusted his walk so that he will arrive there at 17:00, the meeting time.

　The shopping mall and Osamu had little connection to each other. Recently, he had started to go there to observe couples, but until then he had not gone there at all.
 Therefore, Osamu checked the route while he was walking.

(...There are quite a lot of students.)

　Osamu absentmindedly thought that while looking at the students walking down the street until he arrived at the meeting place that was the widely-used west entrance.
 After waiting there for a while, Osamu looked up. Because the surroundings got noisy.

“...O-oi, isn't that girl insanely cute?”
“...Wow, is she a model? Or rather, isn’t that uniform Kaze High’s?”
“That means she’s insanely smart, right... I wonder if she’s alone right now?”
“M-maybe I should try calling out to her or something...?”

　Walking through the boisterous people around her, was a single girl.
 It was Saki. She walked confidently, as if the hustle and bustle around her didn't reach her ears. He was fascinated by her dignity. The Saki who looked like she was about to burst into tears because she couldn't find her wallet back then was nowhere to be found.

“Excuse me, did I keep you waiting?”

　Saki stopped in front of Osamu and tilted her head slightly with a smile on her face.
 Seeing that expression that was both dignified and cute, Osamu felt a tinge of dizziness, but he nodded, trying not to show it.

“No, it's okay. I just came here too.”

　As Osamu and Saki started talking, the people around them opened their mouths wide. Why is she with that plain boy──Osamu was aware of such stares from them.

“...A-are those two dating?”
“...N-no, I wonder about that? That guy's bangs are long so I can't really see his face, but, how should I put it... he's plain, I guess.”

　When Osamu heard those voices, he glared at them.
 When they saw Osamu, who had a relatively good physique, glaring at them, the onlookers walked away as if to escape.
 They were rudely talking about how they were dating and such, so Osamu sighed at that.

“Sorry, Hino... they said something strange about you.”
“...N-no, I'm fine with it.”

　Saki, who was looking down with a red face, shook her head.

“Really? But...”
“Me too, I'm sorry. They ended up saying something strange about you...”
“No, I’m fine with that too, but... just now, they said we were dating or something...”

　Osamu tried to clearly deny it and apologize, but Saki's reaction was more than he expected.

“D-d-d-dating, or such, I don’t really mind anything like that!”
“...Really? Wouldn't it be a problem if there were some strange rumors going around at your school and they misunderstand?”

　Osamu doesn't stand out enough to cause rumors at school, but it’s probably different for Saki.

“I-it's okay. I'm not particularly worried about anything like that.”
“...Is that so, I guess that’s fine then.”
“Yes, then... shall we go? This is something like a... d-date after all.”
“...Ah, yeah.”
“If you can use it as a reference, even if it’s a little... that would be good.”

　As Saki said that while looking down in embarrassment, Osamu gulped, trying to suppress his pounding heart.

────

Chapter 20

RAW

　After they walked a little, Osamu noticed a lot of people paying attention to Saki. Although their voices weren't as blatant as before, there were still many people who were secretly looking at Saki.
 Naturally, their gaze glides from Saki to Osamu.

“Is Hino always this conspicuous?”

　Osamu ended up opening his mouth in a grumble as the gazes were more than he expected.

“...T-that's right. How should I put it, it's like this no matter where I go.”
“...That must be difficult.”
“...Eh? Do you really... think that?”
“At the very least... I'm not used to this kind of thing. Is it different with Hino?”

　Now that Osamu has experienced a little bit of Saki's popularity, all he can think is that it's exhausting.

“...I also, think the same. But if I say that, people around me would say they envy the attention I get, you know?”
“...I guess there are people who have that kind of sensibility. I think that's amazing in its own way.”
“Amazing, is it? As for me... I'd like to change my position once. People pay attention to me no matter where I go, so it’s hard for me to rest.”

　Saki let out an angry huff, and Osamu returned a wry smile.

“But I want to try having a serious conversation with a person who says, [I'm jealous of popular people].”
“Why is that?”
“As a person who writes novels, I'm interested in how people far removed from myself are thinking and how their lives are. I think novels are also a way of looking at how different people live.”
“...That's certainly true. I've never thought about it that way.”
“If I have to say, Hino seems to have a similar thinking to mine, so I feel safe.”
“Safe, is it?”
“Yeah... I don't like things that are too flashy after all.”

　When Osamu said that and laughed, Saki giggled.

“I'm glad we seem to have similar sensibilities. Well then, let's go look at clothes right away.”
“...Now that I think about it, you said it in your message as well, but is it okay to leave it to Hino?”
“Yes, please leave it to me. I like clothes.”

　Saki puffed out her chest. And then Osamu remembered her room.

“...You, like clothes?”
“...Eh? W-why are you having doubts about that?”
“No, even if you said that, your clothes were strewn about randomly... also, I think men and women have different clothes”

　When he said that while thinking about Saki's room, Saki’s face turned red and she raised her voice.

“P-please don’t say that while thinking about my room! I-it's usually clean, okay?”
“...Is that really true?”
“W-why do you think that...!”
“No... my room is not so clean that I can say much about other people’s rooms either. ...I think everyone is the same when it comes to troublesome things.”
“...What, so Shimazaki-san's room is also dirty.”
“You said ‘also’, that means it’s normal after all, huh?”

　When Osamu said that, Saki's eyes widened.
　Then she puffed out her cheeks.

“S-so it was a trap!”

　Saki folded her arms and turned away. Osamu laughed while raising one hand as if to show his apology.

“Sorry, sorry. I don't think it's much of a trap, but... well, let's both be careful. So that no G will come out.”
“Fufun, I don’t have any worries about that point, you know?”

　Saki has a smug look on her face.

“What?”
“I've never seen it even once in that apartment after all. I guess it doesn't come out on the 10th floor... Well, I agree with you about keeping it clean. I'll be more careful from now on.”
“Fortunately, I've never seen G either.”
“So that’s how it is. If possible... I don't want to see it ever again.”
“So you have seen it?”
“...Yes, once, before I started living alone. My mother used to crush it and kill it, but... it’s impossible for me to do that. What about Shimazaki-san?”

(T/N: G = Gokiburi = Cockroach.)

　Saki said that with a pale face.

“I can dispose of it, but I don't want to face it if possible.”
“I know right... Ah, this is the shop.”

　Saki took out her smartphone and looked at it to check.

“...You bothered to look it up?”
“Umm, well, I suppose I did. ...If you leave it to me, I'll prepare you the perfect clothes.”

　Saki said, puffing out her chest.

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