The Classmate Who Is Adored by Everyone Smiles Teasingly Only at Me-Chapter 4Volume 3 .9 - The Cultural Festival
The Cultural Festival 9
“I’m home…”
She muttered a barely there greeting as she opened the front door.
She never imagined she’d return home feeling so downcast when she left the house this morning, excited to enjoy the cultural festival.
With a damp sigh, she took off her loafers.
As she sighed heavily and took off her loafers, she noticed a pair of well-worn sneakers next to her parents’ shoes.
This is――
Forgetting to line up her shoes, she dashed into the house.
“Chika, welcome back. You see, earlier――”
Her mother appeared from the kitchen, but Chika didn’t spare her a glance and forcefully flung open the door to the guest room.
“Hey, good work today.”
Sōma was sitting neatly on a cushion in the tatami room, still in his school uniform.
“Why are you here, Sōma-san…?”
“Ah… well, I had something I wanted to give to you, Chika.”
As Chika, panting slightly from the sudden exertion, asked the question, Sōma rummaged through his school bag next to him.
He then pulled out a small plastic bag containing baby castellas.
“I hadn’t had you sample these yet.”
“Did you come all the way here just for that?”
“You’re my exclusive taste tester, aren’t you? I’d be in trouble if you didn’t eat them.”
As she looked at him in astonishment, Sōma frowned as if to say, “Why are you even asking?”
『Exclusive.』
That word slowly sank into Chika’s heart, giving her a warm feeling.
“Here, try some.”
He half-forced the bag of baby castella into her hands.
There were only four inside. But they seemed to carry a significant weight.
Encouraged, she took one out.
As she gently bit into it, the soft sponge texture and sweet-tart scent filled her mouth.
“This is…”
It wasn’t any of the four types of baby castella made at today’s cultural festival.
As Chika was surprised with the baby castella still in her mouth, Sōma gave a slightly proud smile.
“I tried making my own original. I put dried strawberry fruit inside, how is it? The baby castella ideas everyone came up with weren’t bad, and I was really impressed, but as an aspiring pâtissier, I couldn’t stand losing to amateurs in ideas. I made it during my free time.”
“You brought it here for me?”
“Yeah, well, that’s one thing. And there’s something else I want to say.”
Saying that, he looked straight at her.
What could it be?
Feeling a bit nervous, she looked back at him, and his cheeks tinted a light cherry color.
“Um… you looked really good in your yukata at school. I-I thought you looked cute.”
Cute.
A word Chika had heard countless times from many people, a common word of compliment for her.
But when Sōma said it, the word began to sparkle like the brightest star.
Something fizzy popped inside Chika.
“Please wait a moment!”
She left him with those words and ran upstairs.
Bursting into her room, she threw off her uniform with all her might.
Sōma had complimented her.
And that made her unbearably happy.
She quickly got ready and hurried back to Sōma in a flurry.
“I’m back!”
“H-hey…!?”
Seeing Chika return in her yukata, Sōma’s eyes went round with surprise.
But without any concern for such matters, she approached him, flaunting her figure clad in a yukata.
“You couldn’t see me this up close at school, right? Please take a good look!”
She wanted to be seen.
And she wanted to be told over and over how cute she was.
Yet, the closer she got, the more Sōma averted his face.
“Is something wrong? I got dressed up, so please look properly.”
“No, it’s just…”
Even as she shook his shoulders pleadingly, he only mumbled and wouldn’t look at her.
Instead, he hesitantly pointed towards her.
“Your, um, collar is…”
“Ah?”
Following his comment, she looked down at her chest.
In her haste to change into the yukata, the dressing was loose. Her chest was nearly spilling out from the opening of the yukata.
“Oh, you’re right.”
Normally, she would be embarrassed and hastily fix her collar.
That’s what the usual Chika would do.
But right now, in front of her was Sōma, his face turning red.
…Sōma-san, you’re embarrassed because you can almost see my breasts.
Watching his face grow redder, her desire to see his embarrassed expression grew stronger than her sense of shame.
A tingling thrill ran through her body like an electric current.
She wanted to be seen. She wanted to see.
The two desires mixed in her heart, creating a tumultuous emotion.
She couldn’t stop the mischievous smile that spread across her face.
“…If you want to see, it’s okay to look, you know?”
She whispered in his ear, and Sōma’s body shivered.
She found it endearing.
“Don’t be ridiculous. You know I can’t do that.”
It didn’t matter.
If it was Sōma, she didn’t mind if he saw everything.
“Or, would you rather fix my collar, Sōma-san?”
“Huh?”
She gently took Sōma’s hands, which were taken aback, and guided them to her chest.
“Y-you’re joking, right…?”
As he let out a near-scream, Sōma’s face turned even redder.
It felt good.
In front of Sōma, she could be her unadorned self.
Without reservation or consideration, she could show her true face.
Her selfishness, her childishness, her incomprehensible desires, she could lay it all bare.
She wanted to be by his side forever.
She didn’t want anyone to take away this comfortable place.
“Hey, are you okay?”
Concerned as Chika suddenly stopped moving, Sōma peered into her face.
She smiled back at him and asked.
“Sōma-san, am I a bother to you?”
“Sometimes, yeah.”
“That’s honest of you.”
“Do you even realize what you’re doing right now?”
Frowning, he looked down at Chika’s hands that were holding his.
“But I’m also grateful, and there are a lot of fun things when I’m with you.”
“Me too. I’m grateful, and it’s really fun being with you, Sōma-san.”
Is this feeling, this wish, fall short compared to Wakui’s “like”?
Is it inferior?
No, that’s not it. My feelings are not inferior to Wakui-san’s.
“…Is something wrong?”
He peered into her face with concern as if sensing something off despite her attempt to act normal.
He’s quite perceptive at times like these.
“No, it’s nothing.”
Chika lied.
“Sōma-san, I just realized again how truly cute your embarrassed face is.”
“You perverted sadist.”
“If it’s to see Sōma-san’s blushing face, I’ll gladly take that slander.”
“Don’t be so brazen about it.”
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She let go of Sōma’s hands, which were met with an exasperated laugh.
“By the way, I haven’t given you my feedback on those baby castellas earlier.”
“Oh right, I forgot about that. Let me hear it.”
When she changed the topic to sweets, Sōma’s expression became serious and focused.
…Yeah, I don’t dislike that face either.
Thinking this, she voiced her critique.
“The strawberry dried fruits have absorbed the moisture from the castella batter, making it soggy. Frankly, the texture is terrible. I’d give it a twenty-five out of a hundred.”
“That’s a harsh score. But I see. I hadn’t imagined at all what would happen to the dried fruits after mixing them into the batter.”
Sōma was disheartened by the harsh criticism, but he didn’t stay down for long.
He quickly lifted his face, starting to think of improvements.
“If it doesn’t absorb too much moisture, would that be better? It’s conventional, but maybe raisins or something.”
“That’s true. Or using fresh fruits that don’t release much moisture might be good too. It’s also classic, but something like bananas.”
“Fresh fruits? That’s another way to think about it.”
Watching Sōma think seriously, she reaffirmed her desire to be the one to see his expressions up close.
“How about we try making some now? We don’t have a takoyaki plate, but we do have a regular hot plate, and if we think of it as pancakes instead of baby castella, we have the ingredients.”
“That’s true. Today’s baby castella was pretty much pancakes.”
When she suggested that she wanted to see Sōma making sweets, he was immediately enthusiastic about it.
“Then, shall we get ready?”
“Before that, fix that, will you?”
As she was about to head to the kitchen, Sōma pointed at her chest, which was still half-unbuttoned.
“Now, what shall we do?”
She smirked mischievously, and then he grimaced as if to say, give me a break.
