"So, can anyone translate this sentence for me?"
I looked out at my students to see if there were any takers. Surprisingly, none of the usual responders were raising their hands.
"Anyone? A similar question will be on next week's exam, so I hope -"
My eyes were drawn to the back of the room. Someone was waving their hand excitedly. Those girls in the back of the classroom never raised their hands. And that girl in particular…
"Yes, Oomuro-san?"
Upon hearing her name, Oomuro-san stood up in her seat and looked me straight in the eye, brimming with confidence.
"The moon revolves around the Earth!"
The whole class was staring at her now. Her bravado shone like a miniature sun.
"That's… incorrect, Oomuro-san."
Ugh. Math class. I absolutely despise math. And it's not just the subject. It happens to come right before lunchtime, which means I have to get through it in order to be with Yui-senpai!
"And so, dividing both sides of the equation by x…"
UGH. I turned to my fellow math hater Sakurako for some relief.
"Sakurako, do you think you'll be coming by the Amusement Club this week? I -"
"SHHHHH."
I almost fell out of my seat. I watched in shock as she turned back around after hushing me. First she raises her hand in English class, now she doesn't want to slack off in math class? Who was this girl?
"Yoshikawa-san, is there a problem back there?" said Sensei with a disapproving glare.
"Thank you for joining us today, Saku-chan!"
It was rare seeing Sakurako here at the Amusement Club. And it was even rarer to see her without Himawari here. Were they having a spat? I haven't been keeping up with the first year drama scene. Yui and I have been working on this manga deadline for five days straight now!
As the usual suspects settled down, I walked over to the sliding door to let some air in.
"Just another hot summer day in the Amusement Club. Hey, you know what we should do? Go buy ice cream!"
I pointed a commanding finger at Akari.
"AKARI-CHAN! Run to the store and buy us some ice cream! And make sure it's rum rai-"
BONK.
"Yui, you big meanie!" I cried out.
"Kyoko, don't be a brat in front of the first years." she said coolly.
I looked up at Yui with wistful eyes.
"I'll forgive you, Yui, if you give me a kiss -"
BONK.
"OWW!"
Sakurako let out a hearty laugh.
"You guys are too funny!"
She took a grocery bag out from behind here and placed it on the koikatsu.
"Let's see here… vanilla for Akari, strawberry for Chinatsu, red bean for Yui, and… rum raisin!"
Sakurako handed each of us our ice cream with a smile on her face. As she handed me mine I pulled her into a big hug.
"Saku-chan, my favorite first year! What's the occasion?"
As I let her go she stared back at me sheepishly.
"You guys are always feeding me, so I thought I'd return the favor."
"KYOKO-CHAN!" whimpered Akari. "I thought I was your favorite first year!"
"Hey, what about me!" cried Chinatsu angrily.
"Hello everyone, sorry I'm late!"
I hurriedly shut the student council room door behind me and sat down next to Chitose. This was the second time this semester that I was late to a student council meeting. And once again, it's all because of Toshino Kyoko!
Chitose looked at me with a knowing smile.
"Ayano-chan?" she whispered. "Did you run into Toshino-san on the way here?"
"Don't say it out loud!" I stammered. "And why are we whispering?"
I looked around the room to see if the first years were paying attention. Furitani-san was absent, as expected. Oomuro-san was across the table from us… sleeping?!
"Chitose, I know we let Oomuro-san goof off sometimes but she can't be -"
"Shhhh."
Chitose hushed me with a finger at her lip, and pointed at the tall stack of budget forms neatly piled to Oomuro-san's right.
"Oomuro-san asked me this morning if I could help her be a more helpful student council member. We filled out both of our paperwork together during study hall."
"Is that so…"
I stared at our underclassman with a bewildered expression on my face.
"And that's not all. Akaza-san told me that Oomuro-san has been staying up late to study every night of this week. She raises her hand and takes notes in all her classes. She even had an extra pair of chopsticks for Akaza-san to borrow when she didn't have one."
"Oomuro-san… amazing. For her to change so much in such a short time. Does Furitani-san know how hard she's trying?"
Chitose smiled, enveloping the room with a warm, gentle aura.
"I think that we'll be seeing Furitani-san at our student council meetings real soon."