It has been one week since that blissful day when Takumi called me cute. However, ever since that day ended, I haven’t been able to talk to him at all, it has been one week since I was able to hear his voice.

After we confessed to each other about our feelings for him, I was able to talk to Minami about him with a smile on my face.

We decided that fighting amongst ourselves over a boy was stupid, so we concluded, and that was to appeal to him in our way while harboring no malicious intent whatsoever towards each other.

Currently, it was the morning of September 7, before the classes started. I was hanging out in the hallway outside the class 1-E. Accompanying me were Minami and Chiaki.

“He looks so cute when he’s sleeping~”

The one who said this in a charming voice was none other than Minami.

“I can’t agree more~”

The tone of my voice was similar, that was because we were looking at the same person. He was sleeping soundly on his desk, while Aoki-kun and his other friends were merrily chatting on the desk in front of his.

“You know... Takumi-kun has been overly friendly with this one particular classmate of ours as of late.”

Minami said so and then proceeded to subtly point at a certain girl who was sitting on her seat, chatting with her friends while smiling.

“Is she that girl?”

“Yeah, it appears that she piqued Takumi’s interest after she confessed to Aoki-kun in front of the whole class and got rejected.”

If she got rejected by Aoki-kun… Why did she pique his interest?

“Maybe Kawashima-kun is just trying to console her?”

“Yeah, that may very well be the case Chi-chan.”

I said so in a rather relieved voice. I was in love with the concerned person after all. After we chatted for some time, we returned to our classes as the homeroom bell drew our attention away from the biggest distraction in both our lives, Takumi.

I coursed through my classes while directing half my conscience to my classes, and half of it to something which was beyond my visibility. I would get poked at once in a while during the breaks between classes, girls from my class invited me to go to the washroom and such, but I politely refused as I had to ‘meet Minami’ in class 1-E.

It was an excuse, as the only reason I would visit 1-E during breaks was to recharge myself. Kawashima-kun… or Takumi rather had become an existence precious to me than any other.

Even if it was a fact that we didn’t have much solid conversation, my feelings just kept growing that much more intense. I would get jealous just by listening to Minami talk about her day and her conversations with Takumi, I would exchange texts with Aoki-kun to get his opinion on Takumi’s favorite food, places, and much more.

The bell before lunch rang and Chiaki pulled me along towards the washroom.

We had fun while chatting with other girls as we ate in the cafeteria, there was no sign of Takumi or Aoki-kun, but I managed to hide my distress with the food that I was engulfing.

After we returned our used plates and washed our hands, everybody moved towards the classroom, while I decided to head to the roof. There was no special reason, or rather, it was so special that my repeated visitations to this place had now something not uncommon.

This was the place where I found my salvation, or rather, he provided me salvation.

As I closed the distance between the roof and myself by swiftly climbing the stairs, I started hearing voices that were not feminine.

I climbed the stairs which led to the huge door, through which nobody could be seen, only voices were audible. The roof of our building was expectedly spacious, so I placed my feet on the rough terrain of the roof with minimal sounds. I moved forward while sticking close to the wall.

Our roof was rectangular, the roof didn’t cover the entire first year building, compared to the surface area of the building, the roof’s area was quite humble, the remaining space was used for things like water tankers and electrical wiring.

I moved forward while sticking to the wall like a gecko, my breasts would sometimes get in the way, so I had to push them aside. As I reached the end of the wall, the voices became louder and clearer.

I softly peeked around the corner of the wall which was covered in a gentle yellow color, there I saw the gathering of what I believed to be the boys from class 1-E.

There were five boys, one of them was sitting on the ground while leaning on the wall with his back, and his legs were stretched forward. I was surprised by the fact that he was sitting on the rough floor with an indifferent look on his face.

This guy was none other than Takumi.

I instinctively retreated and hid behind the wall, but after a few seconds, I peeked again to get a glance at the other people accompanying him.

One of the guys who was accompanying him was Aoki-kun. Well, I more or less had already predicted that he would be here, but what I hate about this situation is that his head is placed on Takumi’s lap.

Aoki-kun was comfortably lying down on the ground with no regard for his uniform, his head was placed in Takumi’s lap and his legs were folded.

The three other boys were unfamiliar to me, I had seen them multiple times, hanging around Takumi, but I never considered inquiring about their identities.

One of them was a slim boy with glasses, the other one looked kind of muscular and smart, and the third one was bespectacled as well, but unlike the other guy, he had some redeeming body features and looks, he also had a book in his hand.

After observing their positions, and while harboring clear malicious sentiments towards Aoki-kun, I began to ‘overhear’ their conversation.

“Oi, oi, Kawashima, what’s with you? You haven’t got a single word in for 5 minutes.”

The muscular guy said in an energetic tone.

“Yuzaki, can’t you see I am busy here?”

So that guy is Yuzaki-kun, huh.

“Let’s just say that you are not. You are just stroking Aoki’s hair like he’s your pet dog.”

I let out a wry chuckle as what Yuzaki-kun said was true. However, I wouldn’t mind being in that situation.

“Fumiya, our relationship is exposed, we have to get far away from here.”

Takumi said in a slightly provocative voice.

““““Pfft hahaha””””

The rest of them started laughing, including Aoki-kun.

“So… what were you guys discussing? I apologize for spacing out.”

Takumi said so in a not-so-apologetic voice and resumed caressing Aoki-kun’s hair.

“Oh, we were discussing what kind of girls we like.”

The one who interjected into their conversation was the slim one with the glasses.

“Tanaka, do you realize that we wasted two hours this Sunday discussing the same thing.”

Takumi said in an annoyed tone. Ah~ Takumi is so cool when he’s annoyed.

“You just slept through all of it though.”

“And did I miss anything?”

“...”

This conversation between Takumi and Takana-kun gave me a vague insight into Takumi’s social life.

“B-But, one look at the goddess Miya-chan and all your opinions change, you know? So these things should be discussed in closed intervals.”

I am right here eavesdrop- accidentally overhearing you guys, don’t make me into a freaking goddess.

“Tanaka, there are so many things in that one sentence that I want to complain about, it’s just that I don’t have the energy.”

Takumi said so and stretched his hands in the air.

“Hey, the only one who didn’t state their type of girl the last time was you, wasn’t it?”

I honestly didn’t expect this guy to say this kind of thing. He looked really smart, he had a good face and even a nice body. So, guys like them can also talk about romance, huh.

“Umm, yeah. Do you really wanna know Mitsuya?”

W-W-W-W-Wait a damn minute. Is Takumi going to tell about his type of girl!?

I know Minami is my rival, but I should get her in on this.

I take out my phone and start the recording function, this is going to be incredible. Though, what if I am not the type of girl Takumi likes. I mean, I am more on the frivolous side, but I have to act like a lady because of… reasons.

“Hey, Aoki, tell us what kinda chick is Kawashima into!”

Yuzaki-kun says excitedly and hits Aoki-kun in the flank.

“Hey, shouldn’t you be asking me this kinda thing?”

“Well, we just kinda figured that Aoki would know what kinda girl you like, better than you do.”

“I surrender.”

Takumi said that and dejectedly leaned back on the wall once again.

“Takumi, huh. Yeah, he has a very broad but narrowed-down type, you could say.”

Eh? What the hell? The timer on my recorder has gone beyond thirty seconds, I can’t wait for details.

“What does that even mean?”

Looks like even Mitsuya-kun is interested now as he closed his book and began paying attention to Takumi.

“It just means, the only quality that Takumi desires in a girl is courage. Height, weight, age, color, education, religion, caste, birthplace, family, relatives, history, circumstances, nothing matters to Takumi, in fact, he just doesn’t care. A girl who can break through all these shackles that binds a human’s feelings, and can proudly stand on her own two feet and profess her love while raising her head high. A girl, who doesn’t care about what society might think about her, who doesn’t care how people will react to her childish feelings of love, who doesn’t care about anyone in the whole world except her beloved, who doesn’t hide in the darkness and look from afar, a girl who dares to reach out, instead of holding back. That’s the kind of girl Takumi likes.”

“Well… Yeah, that’s it.”

“““...”””

I was somehow able to press the ‘stop recording’ button with my trembling hands. I had no confidence in my ability to keep my smartphone in my grasp right now, so I slipped it in my shirt and waited for the next words.

“So… was that why you took an interest in Seki-san? She did confess to Aoki in front of the whole class without wavering.”

“Yeah Mitsuya, that’s it. However, I ain’t shooting for her or anything, she was just unlucky, so I was consoling her.”

“Is that so…? I have to say though, Aoki went a little overboard, it felt like we were listening to the demands of a prince or something.”

“Fufu Yuzaki, what are you saying? Fufu. Right, Fumiya?”

“Yeah, you’re right, Takumi. Fufu.”

While they were laughing, I silently returned to my class by using the same staircase I used to climb up. Yes, it was the same staircase, but it felt different somehow. No, the whole world seemed different, was it because I finally knew what I had to do, or was it because my love for Takumi just deepened further.

I immediately sent the recording to Minami and wandered into my fantasy land where the only other person allowed is Takumi.

“It has been a hectic week, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah, being chased around by guys from the Princess’s fan club, it’s kinda interesting.”

“Speaking of which, it’s about time. They should be here in about 2 minutes to ‘glance’ at you.”

“I think someone should tell Minami and the Princess that their ‘glancing’ ends up being a fifteen-minute all-you-can-stare buffet.”

“I believe they just read too many harem mangas, I’ve heard that girls think that every guy in the world is super dense or something.”

“Fumiya, no matter how dense somebody is, if a person from the opposite sex is staring at you for more than ten minutes with those sparkly and affectionate eyes, there’s no way in hell you wouldn’t notice.”

“They do the same thing every day too. Takumi, here they come, just pretend to sleep.”

"Hey Fumiya, I know that you're helping Princess behind my back. I'll bestow upon you your punishment later."

"Can I at least write my will?"

"I want your leave your old DVDs for me."

""Fufu""

After chuckling a bit, I see the figure of the Princess coming into view from the corner of my eye. I hear rattling noises coming from behind me as Minami goes and joins the Princess as well. I close my eyes and pretend to sleep. If I don’t do this to deceive them, there is a high possibility of them casually approaching me.

I could hear the admiring sighs and running noise from all around me as the guys from all the other classes on our floor came over as well.

I heard that looking at Princess whenever a male can have been acknowledged as a legitimate activity called ‘Goddess Viewing’. In addition to the Princess, there’s the second most popular student right beside her as well. They’re quite the popular duo, those two.

“Hey, Takumi, don’t lift your head, no matter what. They’re both staring hearts at you, you know?”

“...”

“Well, it’s kinda frustrating for me to not even be acknowledged as a human being, their full concentration is focused on you. There are more than a hundred guys here if they were to find out that the two Goddesses are staring at you, and not me, they’re probably going to kill you, even if it’s you, you can’t take on that many guys on yourself.”

“Don’t say such things out loud, or I’ll kill you.”

I said so in a low voice, I could hear Fumiya getting the chills. He just turned around and continued chatting with the others. After the homeroom bell rang, I could make out the dejected whining voices of males. During the classes that day, I just slept and Fumiya took the notes.

As the lunch started, I took out my lunch box and began eating with my friends, and after washing our hands, we headed towards the roof to relax. I sat down on the floor and leaned on the wall, Fumiya just came and placed his head on my lap. He’s taller than me, so it was kinda awkward. He completely ignored my objections and comfortably settled on the ground.

I got over it pretty quickly as it was pretty common for me.

The other three sat beside us and began talking.

Hey, wasn’t it here? This is the place where I became the Princess’s salvation.

That day, she was on the verge of breaking down. If I had uttered that one sentence a little differently, I wonder if she would’ve broken. However, no matter how you look at it, that girl has some guts. She openly shows affection for me, but just because of her position, people assume that it is just a coincidence.

“Oi, oi, Kawashima, what’s with you? You haven’t got a single word in for 5 minutes.”

The one who said that in an energetically annoying tone was Yuzaki.

Yuzaki Yasuhiro is our class’s resident muscle-head, but he has a pretty strong sense of justice and can differentiate between right and wrong.

“Yuzaki, can’t you see I am busy here?”

I said so and continued to stroke Fumiya’s hair.

“Let’s just say that you are not. You are just stroking Aoki’s hair like he’s your pet dog.”

He’s right!

“Fumiya, our relationship is exposed, we have to get far away from here.”

I said so a bit sarcastically.

““““Pfft hahaha””””

The rest of them started laughing.

“So… what were you guys discussing? I apologize for spacing out.”

I asked I was completely lost in thought so I had no idea what they were talking about.

“Oh, we were discussing what kind of girls we like.”

Tanaka said so with a pretty confident expression.

“Tanaka, do you realize that we wasted two hours this Sunday discussing the same thing.”

It’s factually correct. We went to a cafe to hang out because it was so hot and we ended up discussing this exact topic for two whole hours. Even though I was extremely busy and had virtually no time to hang out with them, I still attended because they practically begged me over the phone.

“You just slept through all of it though.”

The AC was good, leave me alone.

“And did I miss anything?”

“...”

“B-But, one look at the goddess Miya-chan and all your opinions change, you know? So these things should be discussed in closed intervals.”

“Tanaka, there are so many things in that one sentence that I want to complain about, it’s just that I don’t have the energy.”

They’re so~ tiring. I stretch out my hands in the air.

“Hey, the only one who didn’t state their type of girl the last time was you, wasn’t it?”

Mitsuya pointed at me with his book. Hey, do you want me to the whole school that you’re a huge closet pervert?

“Umm, yeah. Do you really wanna know Mitsuya?”

I mean… sure.

“Hey, Aoki, tell us what kinda chick is Kawashima into!”

“Hey, shouldn’t you be asking me this kinda thing?”

“Well, we just kinda figured that Aoki would know what kinda girl you like, better than you do.”

Fair enough.

“I surrender.”

I just lean back on the wall and let Fumiya speak his mind.

“Takumi, huh. Yeah, he has a very broad but narrowed down type, you could say.”

Do I?

“What does that even mean?”

Mitsuya, wait, patience.

“It just means, the only quality that Takumi desires in a girl is courage. Height, weight, age, color, education, religion, caste, birthplace, family, relatives, history, circumstances, nothing matters to Takumi, in fact, he just doesn’t care. A girl who can break through all these shackles that binds a human’s feelings, and can proudly stand on her own two feet and profess her love while raising her head high. A girl, who doesn’t care about what society might think about her, who doesn’t care how people will react to her childish feelings of love, who doesn’t care about anyone in the whole world except her beloved, who doesn’t hide in the darkness and look from afar, a girl who dares to reach out, instead of holding back. That’s the kind of girl Takumi likes.”

Exaggerated, but yeah.

“Well… Yeah, that’s it.”

“““...”””

Hey, speak, come on.

“So… was that why you took an interest in Seki-san? She did confess to Aoki in front of the whole class without wavering.”

That’s the truth. She was courageous enough to stand in front of Fumiya, and without any hesitation, declare her love.

“Yeah Mitsuya, that’s it. However, I ain’t shooting for her or anything, she was just unlucky, so I was consoling her.”

“Is that so…? I have to say though, Aoki went a little overboard, it felt like we were listening to the demands of a prince or something.”

“Fufu Yuzaki, what are you saying? Fufu. Right, Fumiya?”

“Yeah, you’re right, Takumi. Fufu.”

Close call.