The Classmate Who Is Adored by Everyone Smiles Teasingly Only at Me-Chapter 2Volume .2 - Late Night Caramel
Late Night Caramel 2
When test week comes around, the atmosphere in the classroom becomes somewhat restless and unsettled.
Even those who usually don’t study at all start flipping through vocabulary books or watching math lecture videos on their smartphones.
However, the students of Class 1-4, to which Sōma belonged, seemed unchanged on the surface.
“Hey Chika, this hamburger steak is really delicious. Try some.”
“That’s not fair, Miki! Weren’t you feeding her tamagoyaki earlier?”
“You’re not the only one who wants to spoil Chika!”
“Um, that, I really can’t eat all of it…”
Chika and the others were as usual, and Sōma had no intention of studying during the lunch break.
While munching on a yakisoba bread he bought from the convenience store, Shōhei, who was eating his lunch, showed him a sheet of loose-leaf paper.
“What’s this?”
“It’s a new nickname requested by Saito-san. Which do you think is good? Personally, I like 『All-encompassing Jet-Black Goddess Who Subdues All』. Let me know what you think.”
“That’s too long. Why not just stick with ‘Omnipotent’?”
He replied casually, as it was utterly trivial to him, and Shōhei’s face lit up with joy.
“You think so too, Sōma? Actually, I feel the same way. I tried to come up with something fancy because Saito-san asked me to, but nothing really fit. Maybe I should just present the appeal of ‘Omnipotent’ to Saito-san?”
“I doubt you’d win a debate with that guy. Also, Shōhei, you sure like words like ‘angel’ and ‘goddess’. If you use strong words too much, it cheapens them.”
“It’s good because they’re easy to imagine.”
“That’s so lazy. Shōhei, maybe you don’t have a knack for naming?”
“Sōma also said I have no sense for naming!?”
He glances back at Chika, who is amidst a lively lunch with her friends, laughing and chatting away.
She had been diligently writing down a list of potential nicknames during class, which now lay enumerated on a loose leaf that she had pushed aside.
The classroom atmosphere hasn’t changed much. Even during test week, the class is as usual.
Sōma has put his baking on hold, but his daily routine of searching for recipes on his smartphone remains unchanged.
The only real difference might be the lack of opportunities to interact with Chika. Ever since she declared that she would focus on studying for the test week, their conversations had abruptly ceased.
This took him by surprise. Honestly, he never expected her to stop talking altogether.
He can confidently say that over the past month, He has exchanged more words with Chika than with anyone else—more than with his parents, more than with Shōhei, more than with any other friends.
She was the one he talked to and spent time with the most.
And now, it’s as if that has all been reduced to zero.
“Sōma, is something wrong?”
Noticing Sōma’s sudden stillness, Shōhei peers curiously at his face.
“No, it’s nothing.”
He shoves the yakisoba bread into his mouth and roughly tears open the packaging of a tuna mayo bread.
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It’s not strange at all. Not talking to Chika is to be expected.
Originally, the relationship was one of mutual cooperation for each respective goal.
Sōma wanted someone to taste-test his sweets.
Chika wanted someone to watch over her when she took on new challenges.
Without that dynamic, there’s no reason for us to be together.
So, we’ve simply returned to how things were a month ago.
Yes, there’s nothing strange about it.
“…This tuna mayo bread is not good.”
It’s dry and not tasty at all. It’s on par with the deli bread from the school store.
That must be why I’m not enjoying my food.
Later that night, as Sōma is deep into solving math problems, his smartphone, left at the corner of his desk, suddenly rings.
“Interrupting someone’s study time…!”
Irritated at the disruption of my focus, he glances at the screen to see Chika’s name displayed.
“Chika…?”
It’s an unexpected name to see. His annoyance recedes, replaced by a look of surprise.
He doesn’t recall ever having a phone call with her. Communication is always through messages.
What does she want?
He ponders for a moment but can’t come up with anything.
Giving up on guessing, he slides to answer the call and switches to speaker mode. Chika’s slightly tense voice comes through.
『I apologize for calling at this hour. This is Satomi Chika. Am I speaking with Ichinose Sōma-san?』
Somehow, it feels like it’s been a long time since he has heard her voice.
It shouldn’t feel this way because he sees her every day in the classroom, chattering with other girls.
“Why the call?”
『Are you free right now?』
“I’m good.”
He replied casually as he tossed his mechanical pencil onto the desk.
『Actually, there’s something in math I just can’t figure out. It’s the equation on page eighty-four of Math I…』
The question she asked was precisely on the topic he had been studying.
“Oh, that part?”
He tried to explain it as simply as possible, and Chika listened intently, nodding along with a series of “uh-huh”s.
“Sorry if I’m bad at explaining. Did you get it?”
『No, I understood it well. Thank you very much. It’s a big help. I was hesitant to call so late at night, but it seemed like I wouldn’t be able to solve it on my own』
“That kind of thing happens a lot. Don’t worry about it.”
Sōma often has the same issues with English and Classical Japanese.
『I usually ask Miki-chan, but I’ve decided not to rely on her this time』
“Right, you mentioned that at the last study session.”
『Of course I want to get good grades, but that’s also my goal for this test. Although, it’s rather ironic that I’m relying on Sōma-san instead of Miki-chan』
Chika’s voice carried a hint of self-deprecation through the speaker.
