Chapter 251: The Changes in Class 1-C

Class 1-C.

“Good morning, Kasumigaoka-san.”

“Good morning, Yasuda-san.”

“Kasumigaoka-san, here you go. Thank you for lending me your notes, it was a huge help!”

“You’re welcome, Hanamino-san.”

“…..”

From the moment she walked through the door to reaching her seat, the girls in the class greeted Utaha one after another in a friendly manner.

This harmonious and cheerful scene in Class 1-C was almost unimaginable compared to the previous semester, when the class had a cold, indifferent atmosphere, as if everyone was confined to their own little circles.

However, the changes in Class 1-C weren’t just limited to the class atmosphere… the biggest change was in a certain someone.

“Kasumigaoka-san and Aragaki-kun’s relationship is really enviable.”

Leaning forward slightly, Utaha, who had just set down the schoolbag slung over her shoulder, heard her front-seat classmate speak with a tone full of envy. She raised her head, her eyes curving into gentle crescents, and spoke softly and tenderly.

“Oh my, is Kouno-san envious?”

Wearing glasses with shoulder-length short hair, Kouno Sakura couldn’t help but let a faint, imperceptible blush fly across her pretty face under Utaha’s gentle, smiling gaze.

Shifting her gaze away somewhat unnaturally, Sakura murmured in a low voice.

“Is there any girl who wouldn’t be envious?”

“Rest assured, Kouno-san,” Utaha said, hanging up her bag and sitting properly in her chair while turning slightly to take out her stationery and textbooks. “You’re so cute, gentle, and considerate. You’ll definitely have many boys pursuing you.”

“E-eh, eh, eh….”

As if she had heard something unbelievable, the blushing Sakura suddenly became flustered. Her right hand trembled slightly as she adjusted her glasses, which had inexplicably slipped down as if greased, and she spoke with a stutter.

“I-I-I-I… I’m not… I’m not… I don’t….”

Just then, stuttering and unable to form a complete sentence, Sakura caught a glimpse of Utaha in her peripheral vision. Utaha’s face was full of smiles, her gaze so ‘maternal’ and doting that Kouno froze on the spot.

Noticing this, Utaha showed no intention of holding back. Instead, she raised her right hand, gently cupping her own warm, soft cheek. Her cherry-pink lips parted in a smile as she silently mouthed four syllables.

‘So kawaii.’

Whoosh—!

In the blink of an eye, Sakura’s cute, girlish face was dyed red, just like an apple in autumn. Crystalline yet tinged with a rosy hue. It was as if one bite would cause the sweet and sour taste of youthful maturity to flood every corner of the mouth like a tide, leaving one endlessly enchanted.

“Hehehe.” Watching Sakura’s adorable, shy demeanor, Utaha happily narrowed her charming, wine-red eyes. Muffled, good-natured chuckles continuously slipped through the fingers lightly covering her lips, drifting into Sakura’s ears, which were turning completely red at the roots.

“Good grief! Kasumigaoka-san!” Sakura cried out coquettishly at the teasing Utaha. With a mix of shyness and annoyance, she turned her face away, refusing to look at Utaha, who had somehow learned this mischievous, bad-hearted habit from her boyfriend.

Too much! Kasumigaoka-san has been corrupted by Aragaki-kun!

After sulking for a few minutes, Sakura caught a glimpse of the open textbook on her desk out of the corner of her eye. She suddenly remembered she had a few academic questions she wanted to ask the grade’s top student sitting behind her.

But just a moment ago… she had been teased by that ‘mischievous’ top student. To turn around and ask for help with the material just minutes later… Ugh… just thinking about it makes me mad.

However, she couldn’t just ignore the concepts she didn’t understand, and she was a bit worried about asking the teacher. After all, unlike a certain Utaha, who frequently visited the teachers’ office because of her boyfriend and occasionally had to go see Tachibana-sensei on behalf of her boyfriend, who was afraid of being nagged by his homeroom teacher…

As a girl with average grades (not high, not low, slightly above average), a somewhat dull personality (not good at being assertive), who only knew how to keep her head down and work hard (doing things silently), Sakura subconsciously felt a bit afraid of dealing with teachers.

Plus, the topic she wanted to ask about was physics. Class 1-C didn’t have physics today, so there was naturally no convenient opportunity right after class to catch the teacher. Therefore…..

“Kasumigaoka-san, um… um…”

“Hmm?” Utaha, who had just opened a bunkobon published by Houbunsha and hadn’t had time to read it yet, heard Sakura’s hesitant voice.

Gently closing the open book, Utaha then folded her hands and rested them relaxedly on the desk, asking softly.

“What’s wrong, Kouno-san?”

Utaha’s voice and tone hadn’t intentionally changed at all. It was as cool and concise as always. Yet, the moment her voice reached Sakura’s ears, incredibly, her heart gradually calmed down, and her voice was no longer as hesitant and stuttering as before.

“Yeah, sure.” After listening to Sakura’s whispered plea for help, Utaha nodded with a slightly nonchalant expression, as if it were a trivial matter to her.

However. Just as Sakura breathed a small sigh of relief and prepared to turn around to grab her textbook, which she had already marked with her questions, a sudden, unexpected thought flashed through her mind.

What was Kasumigaoka-san like last semester? Oh right, back then, she gave off an unapproachable, aloof vibe, like the ‘flower on a high peak’ the boys talked about. One only dared to look from afar, never daring to approach.

Compared to the current Kasumigaoka-san, during her first semester, she barely interacted with the boys and girls in class. Let alone greeting them friendly and normally like she did when she walked in just now. Sometimes, when Kasumigaoka-san skipped class and no one knew where she went, no one in Class 1-C cared, nor would any classmate cover for her in front of the teachers.

But now. Looking at Kasumigaoka-san, who was friendly communicating with an obscure girl like herself, her fair, flawless face now bearing a gentle, approachable smile, Sakura unconsciously glanced around Class 1-C.

Oh right, when did the atmosphere in Class 1-C become as harmonious as Class 1-B’s? And furthermore. When did the once aloof, unapproachable Kasumigaoka-san become this gentle, tender, and accepting like an intellectual older sister?

“What is it?” Noticing Sakura staring blankly at her, Utaha chuckled lightly and tapped the desk gently. “Why are you staring at me blankly? Didn’t you say there was something you didn’t understand and wanted me to teach you?”

At this moment. Watching Kasumigaoka-san’s little action of tapping the desk, a certain someone in the Student Council unconsciously surfaced in Sakura’s mind… When that person noticed someone losing focus, they would also tap the desk just like Kasumigaoka-san. Moreover, whether it was the action, expression, or tone, the two were exactly alike.

Thinking carefully about it. It wasn’t just this small action of tapping the desk; Kasumigaoka-san and that prospective Student Council President were becoming more and more alike, more and more synchronized in many little habits.

“I see.” Sakura understood. She understood the reason behind Kasumigaoka-san’s change. “Kasumigaoka-san, you and Aragaki-kun really are a perfect match.”

Hearing Sakura suddenly say this with such emotion, Utaha froze.

Huh? Kouno-san, why are you suddenly saying Miyahito and I are a perfect match?

Besides. We’ve always been a perfect match.

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