WARNING: This story contains major plot spoilers up to chapter 113 of the manga. If you are an anime-only or you have not reached that point in the manga, turn back now.
A Certain Girl and I (1)
"You're going to head towards only one classroom."
"We are aware that this suggestion may, instead, put you in a difficult spot."
"But this is the extent of our resolve. I hope you'll understand."
Itsuki's words echoed through Fuutarou's mind as he walked through the empty halls of the school building. In spite of all the doubts he had during the course of the school festival, he knew exactly where he wanted to go. There was a brief moment where he wondered what he could have done differently to prevent himself from ending up in this situation, but he knew this wasn't the time for that.
The time had come for him to make his choice.
Fuutarou slowly trudged down the hallway, carrying a plastic bag in his left hand. He stopped in front of the doors leading to the school infirmary. Fuutarou took a deep breath as the final seconds of the school festival counted down. As nervous as he was, he was aware that he reached the point of no return.
*DING DONG DING DONG*
"The Asahi High School Festival's closing party is now ending. This is the final scheduled program."
With the announcement completed, Fuutarou reached for the door handle and slid it open with considerable force. Since it was so quiet inside, just about anyone inside the building could have heard Fuutarou open the door. Fuutarou took one step inside the infirmary and found…no one.
"Well…this is anticlimactic," Fuutarou uttered to himself as he entered the room. Even though the lights were off, he could still see pretty well thanks to the bonfire that was still going outside the building. After a quick search of the infirmary, Fuutarou confirmed that he was indeed the only soul in the room.
"Strange. There's only one infirmary, and I don't think Itsuki would give me bad info, so there shouldn't be a mix up," Fuutarou thought as he walked towards the window. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a phone sitting on the bed.
"Hmm…I really shouldn't be looking, but maybe there's a chance…"
Fuutarou carefully picked up the phone and pressed the home button. The lock screen displayed on the phone, and Fuutarou immediately took notice of the wallpaper. It was an image of his five closest friends – the Nakano quintuplets. The five of them were huddled close together with bright smiles on their faces. Fuutarou's attention was drawn to one of the quintuplets in the image – a girl wearing a green ribbon.
"Yeah, there's no doubt this belongs to her."
Fuutarou put the phone back where he found it. He then walked to the opposite end of the room and leaned against the back wall. He knew there was no guarantee that anyone else would show up, but he was willing to wait for a while.
"I don't know if this choice, or even the fact that I'm making this choice, is right or not. Having three days to think about it is not nearly enough time."
Fuutarou closed his eyes and looked downward. He began to reminisce of all the small memories he experienced the past year-and-a-half to lead him to this moment.
"But I need to be honest with myself. I've been thinking about this for much longer than three days…"
"UUUUESUUUGI-SAAAN!"
Fuutarou broke out his train of thought and looked up to see who was calling his name. He saw a girl sitting across from him with her face mere inches away from his.
"Too close!"
"Whoa! Who are you?" Fuutarou exclaimed in surprise as he jumped back into his seat.
"Ah ha ha! You're finally looking my way!" the girl giggled in response.
Fuutarou took a second to try to figure out what was going on, but a certain accessory caught his eye.
"That ribbon sticks out like a sore thumb…I saw it at Itsuki's table earlier…which means…"
"How do you know my name?" Fuutarou asked.
"Fufufu. I'm glad you asked. I have come to deliver something to you." The girl held up two sheets of paper in front of Fuutarou. "Was the test you dropped this 100-point one? Or was it the 0-point one?"
"When did I…what's her angle?"
"Right," Fuutarou answered, pointing to the test with the perfect score.
"What an honest person. You may receive both."
"Don't need it," Fuutarou said as the two tests were thrust into his hands. He took a peek at the other test, which was riddled with check marks on every problem. "Whose 0-point test is this?'
"It's mine," the girl answered with a slightly embarrassed expression.
"I'm amazed you would show this to other people!" Fuutarou retorted. He took another look at the test.
"Yotsuba...well, now I know her name. Not like it really matters."
For the second time, Yotsuba leaned close to Fuutarou's face. "Anyway, this is the first time I've seen a perfect score! This is almost amazing enough to make me admire you!"
"Too close! Again!"
"This is the first time I've seen someone get 0 points. It's off-putting," Fuutarou bluntly responded while trying to distance himself from Yotsuba. He decided to get up and leave the cafeteria, but Yotsuba followed close behind.
"My first impressions of Uesugi-san were 'gloomy' and 'probably doesn't have any friends', but I'll add 'genius' to the list," Yotsuba commented.
"She got all of that after talking to me for a minute?"
"That doesn't make me happy," Fuutarou said as he continued his attempts to ditch the girl. He thought he would he safe in the boys' locker room, but Yotsuba continued to peer at him from outside.
"How long are you going to follow me!?" Fuutarou shouted with frustration.
"You still haven't said thanks," Yotsuba pouted. "When someone returns something you dropped, you say 'thank you'. You're a genius but you don't know something that basic?"
Fuutarou had enough. He walked over to the girl and shoved her 0-point test into her arms.
"Huh?" Yotsuba questioned. "This is my…"
"I happened to come across this," Fuutarou explained with a hint of sarcasm. "Now we're even."
After looking at her test for a second, Yotsuba suddenly gave Fuutarou a big smile. "I see! Thank you very much!"
"I swear, there's something wrong with this girl…"
"I will have all your daughters graduate without problems!"
Fuutarou was on the phone with Maruo Nakano, the person who hired him for the tutoring job. Maruo made his demands clear: guide his five daughters to graduation.
"Then I expect good news from you," Maruo said. "By the way, are my daughters there by any chance?"
"Yes, I had them all gather in the room to explain the situation to them," Fuutarou calmly answered. This was a blatant lie, as he was standing alone in the living room of the Nakanos' apartment.
"Is there something wrong?" Maruo asked, causing Fuutarou to sweat a little.
"No, not at all!" Fuutarou laughed, trying to hide his nervousness. "Hey, hey, no need to push! You students sure are troublesome!" He immediately hung up before Maruo had the opportunity to question him further.
"Dammit, I really need the money, but is this worth it?"
Fuutarou sat down on one of the couches and buried his face in his hands. The reality of the situation started to set in. He had to figure out a way to tutor the quintuplets, but none of them even seemed interested in talking to him.
"Haa…where did those guys even go?" Fuutarou wondered out loud.
"Everyone's gone back to their rooms."
Fuutarou turned around to see where that voice came from. One of the quintuplets was standing behind him, but it took a second for Fuutarou to recognize who it was.
"That ribbon…yeah, this must be…"
"Yotsuba, was it? The one with zero points?" Fuutarou recalled.
The fourth-born quint chuckled with embarrassment. "You finished talking with dad?"
"Yeah," Fuutarou answered. "Are you guys really…"
Fuutarou took a quick look at Yotsuba's face before continuing. "Try frowning for me."
"L-like this?" Yotsuba asked as she pouted. Fuutarou almost immediately saw the resemblance between her and Itsuki. Their faces were practically the same.
"No doubt about it…they're definitely quintuplets…"
"So, how come you haven't run away like the others?" Fuutarou asked out of curiosity.
"T-that never crossed my mind!" Yotsuba answered with aplomb. "Obviously it's because I want to be taught by you."
Fuutarou was taken by surprise. "What…she's not messing with me, is she?"
"I hated the idea at first because I thought the teacher would be someone scary," Yotsuba explained. "But if it's someone from our grade like you, then I figured the lessons would be fun!"
Knowing that his situation just became a little easier, Fuutarou responded by giving Yotsuba a goofy-looking smile. "Yotsuba…can I hug you?"
The ribbon-wearing quint ignored his question and turned for the stairs. "Alright! Let's go get the others!"
"Heh, she probably knew I was kidding," Fuutarou thought as he followed Yotsuba to the second floor. "Still, this is already a huge step forward. Maybe this isn't completely hopeless…"
"You've gotta be kidding me. The sun will set by the time we finish looking through there."
Fuutarou's attempts to persuade the other sisters were less successful. Itsuki and Miku rejected Fuutarou's offer, Nino was absent from her room, and Ichika was slow to get out of her own bed. Yotsuba did little to move the needle in his favor.
Things wouldn't get any easier as Fuutarou found himself in another situation: finding Miku's missing P.E. uniform. He already checked every room except for Ichika's, which was a complete mess.
"Can't you just wear the jersey from our previous school?" Ichika suggested while she was getting dressed.
"Good thinking!" Fuutarou complimented.
"That P.E. uniform? I threw it away," Miku responded.
"What a waste!" complained Fuutarou. "You got some sort of grudge against your old school or something?"
Miku started to say something, but stopped herself. She looked away from Fuutarou with a gloomy expression on her face. A confused Fuutarou peered into Ichika's room, where he saw Yotsuba turned away from him as well.
"It was that bad, huh…"
"Well, something like that did happen…" Ichika started.
Miku finally responded. "It's better if you didn't know. You especially…"
"Well, it's none of my business," Fuutarou said, trying to change the subject. "Plus, I'm not even interested…"
"Heeeeey! What'chu guys up to up there?"
Fuutarou looked down to see Nino calling out to the group from the first floor. "I made too many cookies? Want some?" she offered.
Miku replied, "Nino, now's not the time for-"
"Ah!" Yotsuba squealed. "On the jersey…"
Yotsuba pointed out Miku's name on the uniform Nino was wearing. Miku sighed and walked down the stairs, with Yotsuba following not too far behind. Ichika eventually got dressed and emerged from her room, smiling at Fuutarou as she passed by him.
"Well, this isn't how I drew it up, but I've now got four of them in the same room." Fuutarou took a quick look at the door to Itsuki's room, then turned his attention to the four sisters downstairs. "This is probably as good as it's going to get for today. Hopefully Itsuki comes around sooner or later."
Determined to salvage something productive out of this day, Fuutarou walked downstairs and pulled a bunch of papers out of his bag. "Alright, that makes four of you. Itsuki's not here but let's get started. To start off, we're doing a quiz to measure your ability."
For the most part, Fuutarou was ignored. Ichika was busy eating snacks, while Miku was still miffed at Nino for taking her jersey. Fuutarou looked dumbfounded as he watched everyone go about their business as if he wasn't even there.
"Don't worry, Uesugi-san! I've already started!"
Fuutarou felt a glimmer of hope when he heard Yotsuba's assurance. "Well, I guess this is better than nothing."
All that hope went flying out the window once he looked at Yotsuba's quiz and saw that she wrote her name. And nothing else.
"…yeah, I clearly jumped the gun here."
As the four sisters continued to show their disinterest toward studying, Fuutarou came to a disturbing conclusion.
"These girls…are beyond help…"
"How many times do I have to tell you before you get it…'Rice' starts with an R, not an L! Are you eating lice!?"
"Awawawa!" Yotsuba shrieked as Fuutarou scolded her for messing up her homework yet again.
"Forget graduation…she's not gonna make it through the semester at this rate."
To Fuutarou's surprise, Yotsuba started chuckling to herself. "Yotsuba…why are you smiling when I'm getting angry at you?"
"I'm just happy you're looking over my homework even though you're not scheduled to teach today," Yotsuba answered.
"I mean…I've got to make up for lost time somehow."
Fuutarou sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "It'd be nice if the other four were as understanding as you are."
"I did try inviting the others too," Yotsuba said. "Ah, but it should be 'the other three', not 'the other four'. Right?"
Yotsuba looked over to her left, and Fuutarou turned around to see what she was talking about. He found Miku standing right behind him.
"Wait…did all my efforts today actually pay off?"
"So you came after all," Fuutarou happily said to the middle quint. Without saying a word, Miku walked past him towards a bookshelf. Fuutarou and Yotsuba couldn't really tell what she was doing from where they were standing.
"Your words got me thinking," Miku started, "that maybe, just maybe, I can do it too." She stood up, turned towards Fuutarou, and smiled at him. "So…take responsibility, okay."
Fuutarou gave her a determined smile back and confidently raised his fist up to his chest. "You got it."
"Finally, I've gotten another one of them to accept me. Just three more now..."
Yotsuba suddenly walked over to her sister. "M-Miku, could it be that…"
Fuutarou looked at the two of them with a confused expression. Yotsuba whispered something into Miku's ear, but he couldn't make out what she was saying. He then noticed that Miku was visibly blushing.
"No way," Miku replied, almost giggling as she said it. Fuutarou's confusion only grew.
"Yotsuba…what kind of weird ideas are you getting?"
"Nakano-san, thanks again for last time."
"You're welcome," Yotsuba politely responded.
Fuutarou hid behind the corner of the hallway as Yotsuba met with the school's basketball club. He continued to eavesdrop as Yotsuba was speaking with the club's captain Hongou.
"As I suspected, Yotsuba still has ties with the basketball club. Wasn't she supposed to only help out for one match?"
"So have you given any more thoughts to joining the club?" Hongou asked.
"WHA?" Fuutarou internally shrieked. He couldn't help but peek around the corner to get a better look.
"Yeah," Yotsuba answered. "I'm really happy you invited me."
"I knew it! She never had any intention of studying from the start!"
"Oh, that's great," Hongou said.
"Dammit. I've worked my tail off just to get the others together for a simple study session, and now Yotsuba wants to run off? I can't believe she's about to mess everything up like-"
"But I'm sorry. Please allow me to decline," Yotsuba apologized as she bowed.
"…huh?"
"I understand the basketball club is in a tough spot right now," Yotsuba continued, "but I have something really important after school. If you just need someone to help out with a match then I'm okay any time…"
"I see. I guess that's that," Hongou conceded. "I feel like that's a waste of your talent though."
Fuutarou retreated around the corner and sat down against the wall. "I hate to admit it, but she kind of has a point. Obviously, Yotsuba's grades should be the top priority, but…I almost feel bad."
"There is someone who supports me, even though I lack the talent," Yotsuba replied.
Fuutarou couldn't believe what she just said. After hearing Yotsuba's vote of confidence in him, all his worries vanished.
"So that was your decision the whole time…I guess I was wrong to doubt her," Fuutarou thought as he stared at the floor.
"But did she really just turn down the basketball club because of m-"
"Nuwaaaaah!"
Fuutarou looked up and saw Yotsuba standing next to him. "Uesugi-san, why are you here?" she asked.
"Uh…I was heading to the library," Fuutarou fibbed.
"But the library and the club building are in complete opposite directions. T-That's really odd!" Yotsuba pointed out.
"Really? Now of all times is when you decide to use your brain?"
"Are you done with your errand?" Fuutarou asked. "Today's going to be a little tough, so brace yourself."
Yotsuba gave him a salute. "Yup. I'm ready for action."
"Now that's more like it."
"In the end, it's just the two of us left."
"Ah ha ha ha…" Yotsuba nervously laughed.
Fuutarou's lesson plans for the day were derailed due to stomach pain. He and Yotsuba tried deceiving Nino and Itsuki into staying around, but their lies were exposed, leading to the two sisters storming out of the apartment. With Ichika busy at work and Miku out getting medicine for him, he was all alone with the quint who got him into this mess to begin with.
"This is no different from before the exam," Fuutarou noted as he lay on the floor.
"You think so?" Yotsuba disagreed. "You didn't notice? Nino didn't try to kick you out, even though you're in our house."
"…that's just a coincidence," Fuutarou denied.
"It's not just Nino and Itsuki, but Ichika and Miku too. I can tell that they're changing," Yotsuba continued.
"I guess when I really think about it...Miku and Ichika are both on good terms with me…Itsuki finally looks like she's warming up to me…heck, even Nino of all people stuck up for me after the exams."
"The only one who hasn't grown is me, and my test scores still suck," Yotsuba said as she chuckled.
"I can't exactly dispute the part about your grades, but…"
"That's not true," Fuutarou countered as he turned away from Yotsuba. "You were the one who changed first. It really helps that there's at least one person who's straightforward and honest."
Fuutarou closed his eyes as he recalled the events from earlier that day. "Maybe I'm giving you too much credit. I went through a lot of pain today because you're so honest that you can't tell a proper lie."
"Do you know why I've been helping out?" Yotsuba asked as she positioned herself near Fuutarou's head.
"What do you mean? It's because you want better grades, isn't it?" Fuutarou guessed.
"Nope."
Yotsuba knelt down and gently held Fuutarou's head. She leaned forward so that her face was directly above Fuutarou's and gave him her answer.
"It's because I love you."
Fuutarou's mind went blank for a second. He never envisioned receiving a love confession from anyone, especially not in a situation like this, and he had no idea how to react.
"Did she just…"
"Wha?"
"But we haven't even known each other that long!"
"Huh?"
"Where is this even coming from?"
"Wai-"
Fuutarou suddenly noticed that Yotsuba had a huge grin on her face.
"Just kidding," Yotsuba said. Fuutarou could swear he could feel his brain collapse upon itself as he tried to wrap his mind around what just happened.
"Yaay!" the genki girl celebrated. "You fell for it, didn't you? Even I can do it if I try!"
"What…that was way too convincing. Where was this when she tried to lie about my condition earlier?"
As Yotsuba ran off in glee, Fuutarou was left wondering how he truly felt about the situation.
"I should be relieved. It's not like I wanted to be confessed to. I would have just turned her down anyway."
"…so why do I feel so bad? It's just Yotsuba. I'm not supposed to care if she pulls one over on me."
"But if she can act like that, then what else has she been lying about? Was her desire to be tutored by someone like me a lie? What about her reason for rejecting the basketball club's offer?"
"Maybe I'm just being paranoid…but I do know one thing for sure."
"I'm not trusting anyone ever again…"
"As I was saying…how do I go about getting a girlfriend?"
"You're still going on about that!?" an annoyed Fuutarou yelled.
On the second day of the field trip, Fuutarou was put on rice cooking duty. Normally, this wouldn't be a huge deal to him, but he found himself stuck with Ichika's classmate Maeda, who kept pestering him for advice on how to get a girl to go out with him.
"Gimme a break. I don't have the leisure to be worrying about other people's problems. I've got my hands full trying to pull off the Test of Courage by myself tonight," Fuutarou complained. "I hate this sort of thing."
"Uesugi-san, I'm moving the props for the Test of Courage for you."
"…who's doing what now?"
Fuutarou turned to his left to see a certain ribbon-wearing girl carrying a couple of boxes. "Yotsuba…aren't you in charge of the bonfire?"
"Yep! But I figured this would be too much for you to handle by yourself, so I talked to my classmates about it," Yotsuba explained. "Uesugi-san the study alien has finally made it to the field trip, so I'm going to do my best to support you!"
"Hang on…I don't have to do this crap by myself anymore?"
Fuutarou stood up and started walking over to Yotsuba. "Alright Maeda, take care of the rice for my team too."
"Hah? Where do you get off ordering me around!?" Maeda protested. "And I ain't finished talking by the wa-"
"Participation in the test of courage is voluntary," Fuutarou interrupted, "so try inviting the girls in your class."
He turned towards Maeda and have him a devious grin. "But you better not chicken out because I'm gonna go all out."
As night fell, Fuutarou and Yotsuba set up the Test of Courage together, then briefly separated to get changed into their costumes. Fuutarou returned to the area wearing his full psycho clown outfit, and eventually ran into his partner-in-crime, who was adjusting one of the traps they built.
"Ah, there you are Yotsuba!"
Yotsuba turned around to face Fuutarou. "All right Uesugi-san, are you ready to-WAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
"Huh?" Fuutarou uttered, confused by the girl's screams.
Yotsuba quickly jumped behind a nearby tree in terror. "It's a monster! Someone help!"
Fuutarou immediately took off his mask. "Really, Yotsuba? Didn't we already do this gag?"
"Hehe…sorry. That mask is just terrifying," Yotsuba said as she calmed down.
"Or you're just easily frightened. I mean, you freaked out when I was wearing this getup in a library in broad daylight," Fuutarou recalled. "Maybe the Test of Courage isn't right for you."
Fuutarou expected a response, but noticed that Yotsuba was staring at him. "What's wrong?"
"Oh! Nothing!" Yotsuba answered. "It's just that…you look really different with that wig on."
"Different, huh," Fuutarou muttered as he took off the wig and looked at it. "Yeah, this does bring me back…"
"Hmm? What does that wig remind you of?" Yotsuba asked.
"…it's not important," Fuutarou responded. "I just thought it went well with my costume, that's all."
"You got that right!" Yotsuba cheerfully replied. "Speaking of costumes…what do you think about mine?"
Fuutarou only needed to take a passing glance at Yotsuba to come up with his answer.
"It, uh…looks kinda plain."
"What!? Why would you say that?" Yotsuba questioned.
"You're just wearing a body suit with a few bandages wrapped around you," Fuutarou answered. "That's not exactly an appearance that would strike fear into anyone's heart."
"B-but I only agreed to do the Test of Courage earlier today! It's not like I had anything prepared like you did," Yotsuba argued.
"Hmm…I guess she's got a point there. She had no business being here in the first place."
"…it's fine," Fuutarou said as he reversed course on his earlier sentiment. "You went through the effort to slap this costume together on a moment's notice. I guess I can't be too picky."
Yotsuba smiled in response. "Well, I'm glad you came around."
"Hey, I think this is where that screaming came from."
Fuutarou and Yotsuba heard a girl's voice heading for their direction, and quickly moved into their hiding place.
"Don't worry, if anyone pops out at us, I'll put 'em in their place."
The other voice was more familiar to Fuutarou. He put his mask and wig back on in preparation. "Maeda…I hope you're ready to have nightmares tonight."
"Hey, Uesugi-san," Yotsuba whispered, "do you think we look scary enough to frighten this guy?"
"Appearance isn't everything," Fuutarou answered. "It's more about technique. You just gotta hit them with the element of surprise."
Fuutarou lay in wait as Maeda and Matsuri slowly approached his position, then leapt out without warning.
"LIKE THIS!"
"UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" The two students ran away screaming at the top of their lungs. Fuutarou chuckled as he felt satisfaction towards his first successful jump scare of the night.
"I'm so happy right now. I can sense life from your usually dead eyes!" Yotsuba noted.
"Yeah, scaring the crap out of Maeda definitely gives me life."
"I see. Well, I'm glad they've been resurrected," Fuutarou said.
Yotsuba crouched and started drawing a pattern in the ground with her finger. "Maybe it's because I thought you weren't going to come."
"It's not like my absence would have made any difference…but I guess she really wanted me to have fun for a change."
"Let's make this a field trip without regrets," Yotsuba resolved as she looked towards Fuutarou and laughed. "Shi shi shi!"
Yotsuba couldn't see it due to his mask, but Fuutarou smiled back at her.
"With the way things are going, I don't see how I would regret anything…"
"Why did our fun-filled field trip have to end up like this?"
On the morning of the last day of the field trip, Fuutarou was alone in his cabin. The previous night went poorly for him after Miku and Itsuki caught him in a compromising position with Ichika. On top of that, Nino was expecting to dance with "Kintarou" later that night, who was actually Fuutarou in disguise. Faced with these dilemmas, there was only one thing Fuutarou was determined to do.
"I'm feeling sluggish, so I guess I'll sleep," he decided as he crawled back into bed.
Before he could even get comfortable, he heard the cabin door swing open. "Uesugi-san!"
"Wahh! Yotsuba!" Fuutarou cried out.
"Just because today's activities are voluntary doesn't mean I'm letting you get away!" Yotsuba exclaimed. "Let's go skiing!"
After being almost literally dragged out of bed by Yotsuba, Fuutarou reluctantly put on his snow clothes and ski equipment and followed Yotsuba up the mountain. As the two of them were making their way uphill, Fuutarou's mind was continuously bombarded with thoughts about the previous night.
"I don't know if I even have time for this. I gotta find some way to clear the air with everyone. Miku and Itsuki definitely misunderstood what went on. Ichika's probably too embarrassed to even talk to me…and I don't know what the hell I'm gonna do about Nino."
Fuutarou looked up at Yotsuba as he continued to trudge up the slope. "This isn't even as big of a deal as the other situations, but…I guess since she's right in front of me…"
"Hey, Yotsuba."
The energetic quint looked back at Fuutarou. "Hmm?"
"Are you, uh…still peeved at me for leaving you alone last night?" Fuutarou asked.
"Oh…not really," Yotsuba answered. "You were just trying make sure Nino and Itsuki were okay, weren't you? You don't need to feel bad about that. Besides…I kinda did the same thing when I ran off while we were supposed to move logs for the bonfire."
"Oh right, you did," Fuutarou recalled. "But then again, you were running around trying to help as many people as possible. Would've been nice if you had stuck around, but…I can't be too mad."
"It's not even that I was mad, either," Yotsuba continued. "It's just that…working the Test of Courage wasn't nearly as fun…without you."
"Yeah, I hear you. I would've been annoyed too if I had to do all of that by myself," Fuutarou said.
"…right. By myself," Yotsuba uttered. "But anyway, today's a new day! Let's just have a great time out there!"
Fuutarou was puzzled for a moment by Yotsuba's sudden mood swing. "Wait, did she actually mean…no, no, I'm just reading too far into this."
The pair eventually reached the top of the hill. A sudden gust of wind blew through the area, causing Fuutarou to shiver from the frigid air. The conditions only made Fuutarou want to go back inside.
"Alright! Let's hit the slopes!" Yotsuba declared.
"It's cold, so let me sleep," Fuutarou complained. "And I don't even know how to ski."
"It'd be such a waste to sleep!" Yotsuba countered. "If it really comes down to it, I'll lead you by the hand as we ski!"
Fuutarou was about to protest again, but remembered how much fun he had running the Test of Courage with Yotsuba the previous night. It was one of the few moments of the field trip that he actually enjoyed, and he knew he was in for more hardship later that day.
"You know, maybe this isn't such a bad idea. If nothing else, I could use some time to clear my head."
"Right. Let's start practicing," Fuutarou affirmed.
"…I'm gonna pass on the hand-holding, though."
"Eh? A present for me? From you? Are you still sic-"
"You can have anything you want. Just say the word. I'll go buy it right now," Fuutarou said to interrupt Yotsuba, speaking in a rushed tone. "However! My budget's only 1000 ye- no, 1500 yen."
"Hmmm…I was wondering why you came to my house all of a sudden," Yotsuba pondered. She walked up to Fuutarou and playfully poked him on the shoulder. "It's just like you to ask something like that. You could've surprised me, you know."
"I've had enough of gifting something unwanted and getting rejected," Fuutarou complained as he recalled his earlier attempt to give Raiha a present.
Yotsuba started walking towards the front door of her apartment complex. "I'll think about it a little longer, so why don't you come inside?"
"Inside is a bit…" Fuutarou hesitated. "I don't know what Ichika and Miku would say to me," he thought as he remembered how he turned down their invitations the previous day.
"Is something wrong, Uesugi-san?" Yotsuba questioned as she noticed Fuutarou's odd behavior.
"No, everything's fine!" Fuutarou denied. "It's just…you know, it's Labor Thanksgiving Day. I wanted to get you something for helping me out during the field trip, and I don't want to keep you waiting all day for your gift."
"I don't have the heart to tell her I was strong-armed by my little sister into doing this. I also can't let her figure out the real reason why I need to get the hell out of here."
"Let's see…Labor Thanksgiving Day…I see now," Yotsuba muttered. She ran up to Fuutarou and declared "I know some good places we could go!"
"Huh?" Fuutarou asked. "Wait, that's not what I-"
"With that decided, let's get going right away!" Yotsuba exclaimed.
"W-What are you planning?"
"Great…there goes my day of studying."
Yotsuba and Fuutarou walked side-by-side towards town, with the former beaming in excitement and the latter acting uninterested.
"Ah ha ha, today's going to be so much fun," Yotsuba said.
"Really? All we've done so far is walk," Fuutarou responded.
"And that's fine," Yotsuba replied and gave him a mischievous smile. "Since it's a date."
"I don't think you even believe this is an actual date."
"When it comes to dates, shopping really is a must."
"Of course, all the tags have one digit too many," Fuutarou observed.
So far, Yotsuba had taken Fuutarou to a restaurant, the spa, and the movie theater. Fuutarou didn't enjoy any of it for the most part, as it all reminded him of how poor he was. The mall looked like it would be more of the same.
One of the store's employees walked up to the pair. "Is that top to your liking?"
Yotsuba was holding a hoodie with the number 428 on the front. "Ahaha…maybe I'll buy it."
"We have the same style in the men's section as well," the employee suggested. "How about it? Matching outfits for you and your boyfriend."
"Really? Do we look like we have that kind of relationship?" Fuutarou thought. He had no intention of even acknowledging that assumption with a response.
Yotsuba looked surprised for a second, then started smiling. "'Boyfriend', she said! Uesugi-san, you're quite the Casanova!" she exclaimed, playfully elbowing Fuutarou. "You sly dog."
"…well that's a weird reaction."
"She's always like this," Fuutarou said, maintaining a jaded expression.
"I-I am terribly sorry!" the employee apologized as she left the two alone.
"Ha ha ha, that was a real surprise," Yotsuba commented. She then held up the hoodie to her chest. "So what you think? Wanna do it?"
"I sure hope you're talking about the outfits…"
"You're kidding, right? You guys having matching faces is more than enough," Fuutarou answered.
"N-Nice comeback! I mean…Uesugi-san, you cheapskate!" Yotsuba taunted as she ran away.
"Haa…buying a present is so difficult...but…"
Fuutarou looked over to Yotsuba, who slowly turned back towards him, looking as happy as ever.
"If she's having fun then it's fine, right?"
Suddenly, an image of another person appeared in Fuutarou's mind. It was of the girl he met in Kyoto five years ago. Yotsuba's carefree attitude reminded Fuutarou of his fateful encounter.
"Haa…I just don't know when to give up. She wasn't one of them. I need to come to terms with that."
"Ah. Finally found it. I've been looking for this," Yotsuba said as she held up an outfit.
"Clothes? Then I'll buy it for you," Fuutarou offered. "Just this once, I won't mind if it's a bit expensive."
"I can't believe I'm about to sacrifice my wallet just for her."
"Yay!" Yotsuba cheered. "I'm glad. Nino wanted this, so I bet she'll be happy."
"…you've gotta be kidding me. I'm gonna be looking for a present the whole day at this rate!"
"W-Wait a minute. What is it that you wanted?" Fuutarou asked.
"Huh?" Yotsuba responded. "The restaurant, the spa, the cinema, and the shopping."
"Wrong," Fuutarou countered. "The restaurant that's one of Itsuki's favorites, the spa that Miku's a member of, the movie that Ichika appeared in, and the shopping for Nino...none of them involved your wants."
"Waah! You're right!" Yotsuba conceded. "Give me a minute. Let me think."
After taking a moment to ponder Fuutarou's question, she finally gave her answer. "Uesugi-san, just what do I want?"
"Dammit, this was a complete waste of time."
"Yotsuba, you-"
"Nino said it was somewhere around here, right?"
"…that wasn't Yotsuba."
Fuutarou tensed up as he recognized that voice. Without warning, he grabbed Yotsuba and tried to move the two of them out of sight.
"Hide!"
As the pair ducked behind one of the dressing rooms, Fuutarou peered out and saw that Ichika and Miku had entered the store.
"Of course we ended up in this kind of a situation. It almost felt inevitable."
"I'm surprised you know a place like this."
"Ahaha…" Yotsuba nervously laughed. She and Fuutarou somehow managed to escape the mall without being seen by the other Nakano sisters. Their detour brought them to a quaint little playground in a residential area.
"I come to this park often. When I feel a little down, I'd hop onto that swing…" the genki girl explained. "B-But this isn't really a suitable place to wrap up a date…let's go somewhere nicer! Like the planetarium that was on TV!"
"This is fine," Fuutarou insisted. He climbed onto one of the swings as Yotsuba gave him a confused look. "This is your favorite park, right? Then it's more than good enough."
"But…this isn't trendy at all for a date…" Yotsuba said. "Are you sure?"
Fuutarou didn't care. "Haa…this ordinariness…"
He started swinging back and forth, gradually building momentum to get more air. "Oh. Looks like I've still got it." He turned back towards Yotsuba and asked, "What do you think? Am I awesome or what?"
"Geez…you're acting like a kid, and that's not awesome at all," Yotsuba commented. She hopped on the swing right next to Fuutarou, determined to outdo him. "I'll show you how it's done. Follow my example."
"Huh? Like I'd lose," Fuutarou said.
He would soon eat those words, as Yotsuba started to swing even higher with almost minimal effort. "Well, what do you think?"
Fuutarou could feel his competitive spirit emerge. He was someone who rarely felt challenged by another, but he knew he couldn't back down.
"UOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH!" Fuutarou yelled as pushed himself further.
At the apex of his swing, Fuutarou noticed that he had a picturesque view of the many houses in the area. He was mesmerized by the sight of lit-up buildings that stretched as far the horizon.
"All right Yotsuba, I can see why you come here often."
"I like the view you can see when you swing with all you've got," Yotsuba said. "This doesn't quite compare to the night view of Hong Kong, but when I think about how there's a home…a family behind each and every light…I feel warm and fuzzy inside."
Fuutarou relaxed for a second after he heard Yotsuba's words. "You know, I never thought about it like that. And I always believed she was a complete airhead…maybe there's more to her than I thought."
"And then…"
Fuutarou looked back up and saw that Yotsuba jumped off of her swing. The athletic quint leapt with such grace that it almost looked like she was flying. Time seemed to slow down for Fuutarou, as he found himself captivated by the sight of her in midair.
Yotsuba stuck the landing several yards away. "A new record! Think you can beat this?"
After a brief reprieve, Fuutarou could feel his competitive drive return. He started to build his momentum again, motivated more than ever to leap as far as he possibly could.
"Don't underestimate me!" Fuutarou shouted as he prepared to jump. However, he overdid his last swing and opted to cling to the chains instead. His momentum was so great that he actually swung over the top of the metal bar holding the swings up. After completing his 360-degree swing, Fuutarou's momentum violently came to halt, with the chains rattling loudly as they struggled to hold together. Fuutarou slowly let himself come to a stop, sweating and breathing heavily after his unintended stunt.
"U…Uesugi-san…" a worried Yotsuba uttered.
For a few seconds, there was silence. Then the unexpected happened: Fuutarou burst into laughter. It was a rare moment of genuine happiness for the study-freak.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA! Did you see that! What just happened?" Fuutarou excitedly asked.
"Damn…I can't even remember the last time I had this much fun! I've gotta do this again sometime."
Fuutarou noticed that one of his shoes flew off of his foot in Yotsuba's direction and went to retrieve it. "Well, at least one part of me sailed as far as she did."
"Just what are you doing? It's getting late so why don't we head back?" Yotsuba suggested as she started to leave.
"Huh? Yeah…" Fuutarou answered as he put on his shoe. He was then struck by an unfortunate realization.
"Aw crap, I was so distracted that I completely forgot…"
"But…in the end, I still haven't gotten you anything," Fuutarou said. "Isn't there anything at all…"
Fuutarou reached into his pocket and remembered he still had the present he intended to give to Raiha: a set of flashcards bound by a ring.
"Ugh, I can't believe I couldn't do better than this…but it's technically better than nothing."
"I-If you're okay with something like this…" Fuutarou offered as he held out the flashcards.
"Ahaha, this is so you, Uesugi-san," Yotsuba teased as she took the present. "I'll gratefully accept this."
"…what? That actually worked!?"
"But…" Yotsuba held up her hands to partially cover her face, but Fuutarou could surmise that she appeared to be smiling.
"I already got what I wanted."
"Is that so?" a puzzled Fuutarou asked. "But I didn't even get you anything else."
"Yep!" Yotsuba affirmed.
"That's good," Fuutarou said. The two of them continued to head home, but Fuutarou couldn't let the matter go. "Seriously?"
Yotsuba looked up at the stars. "Let's come here again…with everyone next time."
"Damn, it doesn't even feel like I did anything…" Fuutarou thought. However, his mind changed a little when he saw Yotsuba's smiling face.
"And yet…today still seems like a success."
"It must be the end of the world if you're being considered a genius."
"U-Uesugi-san!" Yotsuba exclaimed.
Yotsuba had once again lent her services to a club in need, cutting into her studying time. This time, it was the track club. Since she was unwilling to quit the club herself, Fuutarou decided it was time for him to intervene.
"And you are?"
Fuutarou turned to the girl who asked that question. It was the track club's captain Eba.
"So you're the team captain? How commendable to be practicing for the meet even though the final exams are around the corner," Fuutarou quipped.
"Yep," Eba answered, oblivious to the sarcasm. "It's an important meet. The exams aren't even worth mentioning."
To a diligent student like Fuutarou, those words might as well have been a declaration of war. "Huh? Not worth mentioning?"
Fuutarou took a step towards Eba, but Yotsuba deftly slid in between the two to prevent things from escalating.
"Waaaah! Everything's fine! I'm doing well!" Yotsuba assured.
As Fuutarou stepped back, Itsuki appeared from behind him. "Yotsuba, aren't you exerting yourself a bit too much?"
"Nah! There's no problem!" Yotsuba denied.
"Are we done?" Eba asked. "I'd like to get back to running."
"Well, if you say there aren't any problems, then I won't stop you," Fuutarou said.
"Wa-wait, are you sure?" Itsuki asked, worried that Fuutarou was giving up too easily.
Fuutarou threw off his jacket and started stretching. "I'll run too. That way, I won't be in the way, right?"
No one objected to Fuutarou's idea, so the track club went about their usual business of running laps. Fuutarou followed behind them to the best of his ability, but…
"Why did I think for even a second that I could keep up with actual athletes?" Fuutarou thought, panting heavily from exhaustion. "I'm gonna die."
"Uesugi-san, you should stop…" Yotsuba called out as the rest of the club started to pull away.
"Not yet!" Fuutarou resolved. Determined to ensure that Yotsuba was prepared for the upcoming exams, he started to quiz her as they continued to run.
"What palace did Louis XIV of France build?"
"The Palace of Berlin!"
"Who's the author of 'Run, Melos!'"
"Dazai Ryuunosuke!"
"What's the fourth element on the periodic table?"
"Happy Henry Lives Beside…Beryllum!"
"They're all slightly wrong!" Fuutarou noted. "But you've memorized more than I had expected. You're seriously thinking of juggling both?"
Before he could get an answer, Fuutarou tripped over his own feet. The tutor expected to hit the ground hard, but Yotsuba ran back to catch him.
"It's not good to push yourself too hard," Yotsuba said, holding an exhausted Fuutarou in her arms. "Please take a break already. I'm doing just fine."
"Huh? The entire club should be far ahead of me by now. How could she have possibly gotten to me in time?"
"…was she intentionally running slower just to stay close to me?"
After making sure Fuutarou was okay enough to stand on his own, Yotsuba ran off to rejoin the rest of the club. Due to his fatigue, Fuutarou couldn't muster the energy to stop her.
"This isn't good enough. Even if she's improved a little, all her answers would still be marked wrong on the actual exam."
"…and what's worse, I can't even keep up with her. Heck, I might even be holding her back."
"No, it's not just Yotsuba. I've failed to get Nino to return home. Itsuki isn't ready to go back either. And due to this whole mess, I haven't spent much time with Ichika or Miku. Even if I can get the five of them back together, will it be enough to get through exams?"
"I need to face facts. I might not be the right person for this job."
"This is a matter within our family. Let's not forget that Uesugi-kun is nothing more than an outsider. And to be clear…I hate him."
"Ouch," Fuutarou thought.
His former employer, Maruo Nakano, was in the middle of a conversation with Itsuki, attempting to persuade his daughters to return to their original apartment. Fuutarou and Nino were eavesdropping on the two, sitting along the opposite wall of the coffee shop.
"So…just what did you do to Papa?" a curious Nino asked.
Fuutarou nervously turned his head away from her. "I…haven't the slightest idea…"
"It was definitely when I called him a dumbass…and I implied he was a terrible father. Why the hell did I even do that?"
A waitress walked over to the pair. "Sir, we ask that you place your order before you take a seat."
"Ah…then I'll have a coffee…" Fuutarou started, then froze when he saw the price for his beverage on the menu. "M-Make it short."
"And I don't even drink coffee. Almost 300 yen down the drain."
Nino looked over to her sister. "This isn't good, Itsuki looks in over her head," she observed, taking notice of the youngest quint's nervous expression.
"What are they even talking about, anyway? For all I know, he's just coming up with new and creative ways to insult me," Fuutarou believed. "I don't see anything productive coming out of-"
"Then how about this? I will allow Uesugi-kun back into the house…and reinstate him as tutor."
Maruo's idea caught Fuutarou's attention. "I'm…I'm back in?"
"However, he will work in tandem with a friend of mine who is a seasoned tutor," Maruo continued, "and Uesugi-kun will act as her support."
"…I should've known there was a catch."
"You know, that's not the worst idea," Nino pondered.
"I don't know how I feel about being a sidekick," Fuutarou replied.
"But at least you get to stay with us," Nino countered. "That counts for something, right?"
"I mean…"
"Do you think Yotsuba-kun can avoid failing?" Maruo asked Itsuki. Once again, Fuutarou's attention was grabbed, but this time in a more negative way. He slowly turned his head to get a look at Maruo, nearly forgetting that he was trying to hide.
"What? Why is he singling out Yotsuba? I mean, yeah, she had the worst test results, but none of them could pass all five subjects. So why just her?"
"I've already looked at the results from the second semester's exam," Maruo explained. "But what's your opinion? Personally I don't think it's possible for her."
Fuutarou could feel his blood boil. He was ready to lash out at Maruo, but Nino gently placed her hand on top of his to calm him down.
"You can't," Nino urged. "You'd just make the situation worse if you go."
"But…" Fuutarou protested.
"And also, what Papa said so far isn't wrong," Nino added.
"Dammit, maybe they both have a point…maybe-"
"We can do it."
Fuutarou recognized that voice. He turned around just enough to see a familiar-looking green ribbon moving towards Maruo and Itsuki.
"If we're together with Uesugi-san, we can do it," Yotsuba declared. "We want to achieve this with the six of us. So please, believe in us. We won't make the same mistakes over and over again."
"Even after so many missteps…she still believes in me?"
"And if you were to fail?" Maruo asked. "An acquaintance of mine is on the board of trustees at a high school in Tokyo. It's not something I should be going around saying, but…there have been mentions of being able to unconditionally transfer in during third year in our discussions."
"Huh…" was all Yotsuba could mutter in response.
"If you fail the next exam, you will transfer into that school," Maruo explained. "I can guarantee that the risk of failing would be significantly reduced with the tandem arrangement. But if you still wish to do things your own way then you will do so at your own risk. Do you understand?"
"I know he's trying to help us in his own way, but…I dunno. Even if everyone passes with the tandem arrangement…it'll still feel like I failed them. I shouldn't have allowed things to get to this point in the first place."
Yotsuba was too unnerved to respond, so Itsuki broke the silence. "…I understand."
"Then I will make the arrangements," Maruo said. "I figured that you of all people would be understanding, Itsuki-kun."
"No…if things do not work out, then I don't mind transferring schools," Itsuki corrected. "I have to apologize for the fact that I'm not the clever girl that you thought me to be."
"Itsuki's really willing to take that risk!? Come to think of it…Yotsuba has told me before that she'd be willing to repeat a grade if one of her sisters had to. They probably all feel the same way."
"That's right, the five of them always stress how it's important for them to stay together. This is the extent of their bond as sisters."
"Is that so?" Maruo asked with a slightly disapproving tone. "It seems that my responsibilities as a parent include listening to my children's selfish wants. But it is also my responsibility as a parent to scold my children for those same wants."
The elder Nakano stood up and walked past Itsuki. "There won't be any more chances," he warned.
"Things are not the same as when we were at our last school," Yotsuba claimed.
"I'm looking forward to the results."
With those words, Maruo left the coffee shop. As Fuutarou watched the father of the quintuplets walk away, one question entered his mind.
"I've been ignoring this issue since the beginning, and I never thought this would actually become relevant, but…what did happen at their old school?"
"You don't mind me joining you, right?"
"G-Go ahead," Yotsuba reluctantly obliged.
In the leadup to the final exams, Fuutarou allowed the quintuplets to have a day off to avoid burnout from studying too hard. The six of them went to the amusement park to take a much-needed break. However, believing something was off with Yotsuba, Fuutarou split off from the others and found her hiding in the Ferris wheel.
"Hmm…I thought I hid myself well. I wonder how you found me…"
Fuutarou pointed towards Yotsuba's trademark accessory. "I could see those."
"Aah! My head was hidden but not my ribbons!" Yotsuba exclaimed.
Fuutarou looked down and noticed a couple of books next to Yotsuba on her seat. "So you were here studying, huh?"
"Yes. I have more stamina than the others so I thought I'd keep going," Yotsuba explained as she picked up her books. "Plus, I'm actually the dumbest out of us sisters."
"Sadly, your test scores are still evidence of this."
"That's public knowledge. But take it easy on your day off, at least," Fuutarou suggested. "You used your savings to come to the amusement park after all."
"No, Uesugi-san doesn't understand just how dumb I really am," Yotsuba countered.
"…okay, there's gotta be something more to this than just bad grades."
"Are you aware of the reason why we transferred schools?"
"I'd heard about it from Ichika before…" Fuutarou answered. "You guys were close to flunking out, right?"
"Ahaha…the school we went to is what you'd call a prestigious school," Yotsuba explained. "It wouldn't be considered rare for students to flunk out after failing exams. Naturally, we failed."
"Don't fail like it's natural," Fuutarou interjected.
"We were given a chance to take supplemental exams. We all studied and planned to make a comeback, but…"
As Yotsuba paused, Fuutarou suddenly made an important realization. "It can't be…"
"The reason why Yotsuba is putting so much pressure on herself…why her father is worried about her the most…why none of her sisters wanted to mention what happened at their previous school…"
"You were the only one who failed?"
"As expected of Uesugi-san, you're always right," Yotsuba confirmed.
"Yotsuba alone flunked out. But if everyone transferred, that means…"
"Everyone followed after me. Without so much as batting an eye," Yotsuba continued.
"Due to that business about the importance of the five of you being together, right?" Fuutarou reasoned.
"It's true that by doing so, the four of them saved Yotsuba. But at the same time, there's no doubt that it also shackled her with guilt."
Yotsuba bowed her head towards Fuutarou. "That's why, please. Let me study for just a little longer. I don't want to hold everyone back anymore."
"So she really wants to study, and I'm the one telling her not to do so…what a backwards situation this is."
"I told you today's a day off, right? The ride's only halfway through. It'd be boring to do nothing. Since there's time to kill, let's do it. A man-to-man lesson," Fuutarou suggested. "Keep this a secret from the other four."
Yotsuba's entire face lit up. "O-Okay!"
"How convenient!" Fuutarou exclaimed. "I'll teach you about the Japanese article problem we couldn't get to yesterday. I'll make sure you understand it this time!"
"Oh, that's not necessary," Yotsuba replied as she raised her hand. "I made sure I learned it yesterday."
Fuutarou didn't believe Yotsuba at first, so he moved to the other side of the gondola and sat next to her. "Let's see…" The tutor noticed that Yotsuba had indeed completed the problem correctly. "You're right…even though I had so much trouble teaching the other sisters…"
Fuutarou was suddenly struck with inspiration. "Of course…the answer was right in front of my face the whole time. I might have been the only tutor for these five, but that never meant I had to do everything myself."
"Yotsuba!" Fuutarou shouted as he grabbed the girl's shoulders.
"Uwha!" Yotsuba cried out in shock. She tried to shake Fuutarou off, causing the gondola to rock back-and-forth. "What are you planning on doing!? It's true that being up here is good timing, but you're not thinking of doing mouth-to-mouth instead of man-to-man, are you!? That thing during New Year's was an accident!"
"I wouldn't call that an accident. It was more like you acted without thinking," Fuutarou thought as he recalled the time when Yotsuba kissed him on the cheek to get cream off his face.
"What are you talking about?" Fuutarou asked, feigning ignorance. "I can see the light!"
It took a second, but Fuutarou eventually noticed how close he had gotten to Yotsuba. "…aaaaand I'm pretty much doing the same thing that she did."
"What do you mean?" Yotsuba asked.
"What your pops said was correct," Fuutarou answered. "We might be able to pull it off in pairs."
"Please explain it so an idiot like me can understand…" Yotsuba requested.
"You'll be teaching Japanese too," Fuutarou responded.
"Huh? I what…" a perplexed Yotsuba uttered. She started furiously shaking her head. "No way, no way, no way!"
Fuutarou went on with his explanation. "From the exam results until now, I've noticed there's a different subject that each of you is good at. For Miku, it's social studies; for Itsuki, it's science; and for you, it's Japanese that you're good at."
"I'm…" was all Yotsuba could say in response.
"You don't need to do anything special. Just explain things in your own words, it should get through. If you can do it, the other four should be able to as well. Because you're quintuplets!"
Yotsuba looked into Fuutarou's eyes, then shifted her gaze towards the floor. "An idiot like me can be helpful to everyone?"
"Sorry for being an incompetent teacher," Fuutarou responded. "From now on, everyone will be the student, and everyone will be the tutor."
"There's something that an idiot like me can do?"
"That's right. Something that only you can accomplish."
"I won't be the one who just holds everyone back anymore?"
"Yeah. This time…you'll be pulling everyone along!"
At that moment, Fuutarou realized that he was still sitting unnecessarily close to Yotsuba throughout the entire exchange. He was about to say something, but stopped once he saw Yotsuba smiling at him.
"…okay. Leave it to me! I'll make sure the other four pass!" she declared.
"Eh…she's finally found her determination. Why ruin it?"
"Hey, hey…let's not forget you're the priority here."
"Good God…this is a travesty…how could this have possibly happened?"
Japanese: 89 | Mathematics: 97 | Science: 94 | Social Studies: 91 | English: 88 | Total: 459
Fuutarou Uesugi - PASS
Fuutarou stared at his exam grades in disbelief. His scores were still greater than most students would even dream of achieving, yet for his incredibly high standards, it felt like a crushing defeat.
"Great, now I actually will be embarrassed if any of them see this."
"…wait. Crap! The others!" Fuutarou realized as he broke out of his wallowing. He looked around the classroom for Itsuki, but she was nowhere to be found.
"She probably had the same idea I did…now where the heck are they?"
Fuutarou had agreed to meet with the quintuplets at Revival, the pastry shop where he worked part-time. But he couldn't wait that long. He wanted to know as soon as possible if the others passed, knowing what consequences awaited them if they didn't.
"The thought never crossed my mind until today, but…if even one of them failed, then this might be the one of the last times I ever see them…"
"No! That won't happen! I just need to believe in them. They're not going anywhere."
He rushed through the hallways looking for someone – anyone – to ease his worries. After a few minutes of searching, he stumbled upon the person who worried him most.
"Yotsuba!" Fuutarou called out, breathing heavily from running around. "How are the exam results?!"
The troubled student bowed towards her tutor and said, "I'm sorry, Uesugi-san."
"No…it can't be…"
"To tell you the truth," Yotsuba continued, "when my sisters taught me, there were times when their explanations were easier to understand. I'm sorry for being incompetent."
"So it really is all over."
"And…thank you very much." Yotsuba held out her test scores for Fuutarou to see.
"…wait, what?"
Japanese: 51 | Mathematics: 33 | Science: 32 | Social Studies: 36 | English: 32 | Total: 184
Yotsuba Nakano – PASS
"She…actually did it! She cut it real close on most of these subjects, and even her best subject has a pretty low score, but it's just good enough!"
"She really should've just told me right off the bat, though."
Fuutarou was ready to yell at Yotsuba for scaring him, but he noticed the girl was in tears.
"It feels like…my efforts have been rewarded for the first time ever," Yotsuba cried.
Any irritation Fuutarou felt towards Yotsuba dissipated in that moment. He smiled at the weeping quint. "And so have mine. Great job, Yotsuba."
"It's weird. If I had gotten the scores she did, I'd be crying tears of despair, not joy. But maybe she's this emotional because of all the failures she's experienced, especially at her last school."
"Yeah, this meant a lot to her, because she put a huge burden on herself to improve for her sisters' sake. And if she was able to pass, then the chances of the others passing are…"
Realizing how vulnerable she looked, Yotsuba started wiping away her tears. "S-Sorry Uesugi-san. We can't quite celebrate just yet. We gotta find out how the others did!"
"Yeah, let's get going," Fuutarou agreed, "I think everything's gonna work out, though. Call it a hunch."
Yotsuba nodded. "I'm certain they all passed. After all the hard work we put in, there's no question."
"This is a little embarrassing, so there's no way I'm gonna say this to her out loud, but…"
"I'm proud of you, Yotsuba."
"Damn it! I can't tell the difference at all!"
Fuutarou was pulled into a Quintuplet Game against his will. All he wanted to do was find out the identity of the fake Itsuki that told him they should end their teacher-student relationship. Instead, he now found himself dealing with four different Itsukis.
Since the real Itsuki was outside the room distracting her father, Fuutarou knew that each Itsuki was actually one of the four older quints. In spite of this, he was still no closer to figuring out how to tell all of them apart. He was now talking to the fourth Itsuki in the room, trying to find any clue that would set her apart from the others.
"Once again, are quintuplets supposed to be this similar? It's at a level where I wonder if they're clones…"
Itsuki #4 smiled at Fuutarou. "If that's all the questions you have, then…"
"Hm…ah, that's right," Fuutarou realized. "I need to make sure I ask this at minimum. Why is everyone dressing as Itsuki?"
Fuutarou didn't receive a response at first. He quickly noticed that the fourth Itsuki was starting to sweat profusely.
"Umm…you see…it'd take…a while to explain…umm…" she nervously uttered.
"Wait a minute, haven't I seen this before?" Fuutarou thought. After taking a few seconds to think, a certain memory popped into his head. "Only one of them acts this nervous in this kind of situation. Could this Itsuki be…"
"A…a long time ago, we quintuplets were completely identical. We and everyone else all agreed that we got along great. Seeing us like that made Grandpa happy. But one day, I tried dressing differently from everyone.
"She took on a distinct appearance, huh…if my suspicions are correct, I've got her cornered."
"Hmmm? How were you dressed?" Fuutarou asked.
"Same as now, bunny ribbo-" the fourth Itsuki started, but then realized she just gave away her true identity. "Ah! Whoa, that was close! Asking leading questions is cheap, Uesugi-san!"
"Too easy."
"You must be Yotsuba!" Fuutarou declared as he pointed towards the disguised quint.
"I-I have no idea what you're talking about," Yotsuba denied.
"There's no mistaking it…I always thought she was the worst at lying and would give herself away easily…"
"I, Itsuki, will now continue," Yotsuba said, attempting to keep up her act.
"Come on Yotsuba, the jig is up. You don't need to keep doing this."
"Okay, please tell me everything," Fuutarou requested.
"When Grandpa saw that the five of us weren't the same, he became very worried," Yotsuba explained. "He wondered if we were on bad terms…eventually, he collapsed. From then on, we decided to look the same whenever we're around Grandpa. After talking it over, we decided on the Itsuki look."
Yotsuba looked down at the floor with a worried expression. "That's why, ever since spring break started, I've been worried about whether I'll be able to pull this disguise off properly or not…"
"Well if I could tell who you were, then you're off to a poor start on that front."
"And that's what's been on your mind the whole time?" Fuutarou asked.
"Ah ha ha…everyone else was looking forward to it so much that it was difficult to speak up about it…" Yotsuba responded.
"This makes Yotsuba being the fake Itsuki pretty unlikely. So that's why Yotsuba was acting so distant. As expected, she was worried about something pointless."
"You guys sure are admirable for doing so much for that scary old man," Fuutarou commented.
"Not at all," Yotsuba said with a smile. "He's a very kind person. I love him."
Fuutarou gave Yotsuba a dumbfounded look. "What? Are we talking about the same guy here?"
"…well, I guess it goes without saying he'd be more personable with his own granddaughters than with an outsider like me."
"This is probably their way of being considerate for that old man. This issue may seem pointless, but they're serious about it. It'd be nice if I could listen to the others' stories too while Itsuki has her father occupied…"
The four fake Itsukis gathered together. "Well then, now that you have talked with everyone, are you able to tell us apart?" one of them asked.
"I guess one out of four isn't too bad…"
Fuutarou tried pointing out the lone quint that he was able to identify, but suddenly froze. He had lost track of her whereabouts and couldn't pick her out amongst the four Itsukis.
"W…Which one was the fourth Itsuki?" Fuutarou questioned. "I had it figured out just now…"
"Seriously? Even if I can pick out one of them, she just blends right in with the others! What's even the point anymore?"
"In that case…when I was able to tell it was Miku that time…"
"Big Bro, quit mumbling to yourself and let's go!" Raiha called out as she descended the hill.
"Okay," Fuutarou responded, showing little interest in actually following through.
"You can tell them apart if you have love…I don't think I actually believe in that, but it's pretty clear to me that the rest of them do. Keeping that in mind…"
Fuutarou recalled when Miku leapt into his arms after he was correctly able to identify her. "That was a strange reaction. I don't want to jump to conclusions or anything, but maybe that moment meant more to her than I originally thought."
"To be honest, I'm pretty surprised she wasn't mad at me. I kinda got lucky back there. If I didn't notice her making that fist, I might have never guessed it was her. I guess she really does like me if she's willing to forgive me that easily."
"It's weird to think that she might like me in that way…but if Nino can fall in love with me in spite of all we've been through, I guess I shouldn't discount the possibility that Miku would do the same."
"Nino and Miku…what am I supposed to do about the two of them? I don't want anyone to get hurt, but it feels unavoidable at this rate. What a mess…"
"In any case, it doesn't change the fact that I was able to tell them apart," Fuutarou told himself in order to get his mind off of the lovestruck sisters. "Now I won't be fooled by them anymore."
Fuutarou suddenly heard footsteps approaching. He looked up and saw one of the Itsukis running directly towards him. She came to a sudden stop, standing within inches of him. She leaned into Fuutarou's chest and looked up towards him, then closed her eyes. Fuutarou took notice of her behavior and came to an almost immediate conclusion.
"Really? This might be your worst attempt yet at fooling me. I mean, you're clearly shaking and you won't even say a word to me. Without the others around for you to hide behind, your mannerisms are even more apparent. It's pretty clear you still need to improve your disguising skills."
"…but why are you so close to me?"
"Like, seriously, what do you want?" Fuutarou asked.
Before he could even get an answer, Fuutarou's foot slipped and he fell backwards. He reflexively reached out to grab something and gripped the rope of the Bell of Vows. As he continued to fall, Fuutarou inadvertently rang the bell. The echoes of the bell continued to sound as Fuutarou hit the dirt. Since "Itsuki" was leaning into Fuutarou, she fell forward along with him.
"Ugh…that's gonna hurt…" Fuutarou thought. He was going to ask if "Itsuki" was okay, but for some reason couldn't. "Wait, why can't I move my mouth? Why can't I move anything?"
It took Fuutarou a few seconds to fully realize what was going on. It was a situation he was completely unfamiliar with, and he didn't want to believe it was happening. However, once he got his bearings, he couldn't deny it any longer.
"Itsuki" had fallen directly on top of Fuutarou, and her lips were pressed against his.
Once the unknown quint started to get up, Fuutarou could feel his range of movement return.
"A ki- why?" was all he could ask in the moment. He looked at the girl's face and saw an expression of pure sadness.
"Heeey!"
Fuutarou recognized that voice as his sister's. Without even saying a word, "Itsuki" ran off down the hill, leaving Fuutarou utterly confused. With his heart racing and sweat pouring down his face, the tutor attempted to make sense of what he just experienced.
"What…the hell…just happened? I can't even begin to comprehend what that girl was thinking! She better have a good explanation for this!"
"Wait, why am I just sitting around? I can still catch her if I'm fast enough!"
Fuutarou quickly leapt to his feet and tried running down the hill after her. However, looking down the hill, he saw that the mysterious quint was already gone.
"Crap, I was too late. I shouldn't be surprised, though. She's a fast runner."
Thinking about the gloomy expression of the girl who kissed him, Fuutarou covered his mouth with his hand. "Man, I didn't think I'd be the kind of person to make a big deal about this sort of thing, but that was really lame. I can't believe my first kiss was a complete accident, and of all people, it was with Yot-"
"…hold on. Why do I keep assuming it was her? That girl was dressed as Itsuki. It could have been any of them! And I was on the ground for a while. It doesn't take a speed demon to run down the hill in that amount of time."
"So…why is she the only person who pops into my head?" Fuutarou thought. Just then, he remembered what the quints' grandfather told him earlier.
"Devoting time, getting to know their behaviors, voices, unconscious habits... Would you not say that is love?"
"…no."
"No!"
"Nononononononono…that's ridiculous! He didn't even mean it in that way!
"No, it's because she's a terrible liar and doesn't know how to properly impersonate someone else. That's why I thought it was her. It's just logic. Anyone would arrive at the same conclusion. There's nothing more to it."
"Hey, are you okay?"
Fuutarou broke out of his trance and looked down to find his sister giving him a worried look. "Oh…hey Raiha."
Raiha pouted at Fuutarou in response. "You'd better hurry up, or we'll leave without you."
"Is everything all right?" Fuutarou questioned, confused at his sister's sudden annoyance at him.
Raiha sighed. "It's fine. It's just that…" the younger Uesugi walked up to her brother and patted him on the back. "You really disappoint me sometimes."
Fuutarou started to tense up. "Uh…how much did you see?"
"Hmm? What are you talking about? Wait, did something weird happen?" Raiha asked.
"No!" Fuutarou denied. "Then…why do you look so irritated?"
Raiha started to run off. "You know what you did!"
"…I don't know what anyone's doing anymore."
Fuutarou slowly followed his sister down the hill and finally found the five quints gathered together. With all of them still dressed as Itsuki, he still had no way of figuring out who initially ran up to him. He took a long look at all five Itsukis, but figured that the best course of action for his own sanity was to give up.
"Yeah. I can't tell who that was after all…"
"And I'm positive…no, I'm 100% certain…there's no chance it was her."