Chapter 6: Ensnared

Chapter 6: Ensnared

“Yaegashi-san!”

At school, Taichi was walking down the hallway when someone called his name. He stopped and turned.

“Oh, hey, Kimura.” Kimura was a first-year who had asked him for help with girl problems a while back.

“Hey! Thanks again for all your advice. Things are going great!”

“Glad to hear it.”

“Yep! All thanks to you, senpai! I’ll be sure to refer all my friends, too. Bye!”

“Wh—wait, you don’t have to tell any—aaaand he’s gone.”

Taichi didn’t enjoy speculating what «Heartseed»’s aims might be, but at the very least, the phenomenon itself hadn’t directly damaged anything, nor could he foresee any signs of trouble. But in the event that that changed, as per the agreement between himself and Kiriyama, they would back out immediately. This was the condition under which they continued to use their power.

Two weeks had passed since they started actively helping people, and now a phenomenon of a different sort had taken over Yamaboshi High School: something that could only be described as a love craze . (Not the most creative name, but it was at least accurate.) Taichi and Kiriyama didn’t bring it to life themselves, exactly; following the Culture Festival, the student body had already had an opportunity to deepen their bonds with one another, so everyone was in a rather cozy mood. As such, new couples had started to spring up like daisies.

And this, as it so happened, was right around the time the two of them started playing Cupid. They’d merely added a bit of fuel to the fire.

Pretty much everyone had a crush on at least one person, but confessing to said crush was by no means easy. With the entire school in a lovey-dovey mood, however, the risk was much less intimidating. And among the second-years, Taichi and Kiriyama (mostly Taichi) now had something of a superstition associated with them: if they say it’ll work out, you’re guaranteed to succeed . As the rumor spread, more and more people sought that coveted green light.

“Hey, Yaegashi-kun? Could you talk to my friend here and give her some advice about the guy she likes?” asked a girl from a different class—someone he probably hadn’t spoken to more than twice before now. And at this point, he’d already helped dozens of people, so he couldn’t exactly turn her down.

She gave him a quick rundown of the situation, and when she was finished, he nodded. “Sure thing. But just so you know, my ‘advice’ is pretty ordinary. I’m not a miracle worker or anything like that. And it’ll take some time for me to gauge the situation. Is that cool?”

With the love craze going around, romance was on everyone’s minds, which meant love-related Visions were more commonplace than ever before.

“Oh, no problem. I’d rather you took your time to figure out the best answer, you know? Oh, but don’t worry—I’m not super emotionally invested in this. It’s just a superstition or whatever.”

“No superstition works this well! Plus, your advice makes total sense. You know, ‘give it some time’ and stuff like that.”

The most awkward part of giving love advice was whenever he encountered an unrequited crush. Obviously he couldn’t just tell them their beloved was interested in someone else. Hence, he was instead forced to give vague responses like “give it some time” or “try to work on your friendship with them first.”

“Alright! Now I don’t have to worry about how you’ll occupy your free time during the school trip!”

“What? You mean you’re gonna ditch me for your boyfriend?! What’ll I do without you?!”

“Guess you’ll have to get your own boyfriend, then!”

“Ugh! This is such short notice! Whatever. I’ll come by to talk to you a little later, Yaegashi-kun. Thanks in advance!” And with that, the two girls walked away.

Not only were the go-getters proactive in asking about their own love lives, some of them even approached him on behalf of their more bashful friends. As a result, he was now juggling quite a few inquiries.

“Taichi!” Ahead of him, he could see Kiriyama rushing over in his direction, her expression less than enthused. “Did you get another request? Who was it?”

“Okay, so...” He told her all the details he had been given.

“Alrighty then, I’ll try to have a Vision of who this guy likes.”

“Cool, thanks.”

They must’ve had this same conversation at least a dozen times by now. Except this time, Kiriyama just stood there, looking grim.

“What’s wrong?”

“...I’m not sure we should’ve let this turn into a huge deal.” This wasn’t the first time they’d discussed this, either. “We’re basically spying on who everybody has a crush on, and like, it’s an invasion of their privacy, you know? I mean, yeah, we were gonna have to see this stuff either way, but now we’re doing it on purpose , and...”

As it happened, Taichi had felt this same worry himself. “It’s okay, because we’re not doing it to hurt anyone. And we’re not spreading it around or anything, so they’ll never know that we know,” he told her, though it felt more like he was just reassuring himself.

“I mean, yeah, but...”

“Just relax. We’re making people happy.”

They were bringing people together—bringing joy into their lives. What could possibly be more important than that?

“Yeah... I guess you’re right. Relationships do, like, make people happy, right?” she muttered to herself. Then she looked up suddenly. “Are you happy in your relationship, Taichi?”

Taichi contemplated his relationship with Inaba Himeko. Being close to her. Holding her.

“Yeah, I’m happy,” he answered honestly. After all, he could tell Kiriyama was being genuine, so he didn’t need to worry about her teasing him for it.

I wouldn’t trade my connection with Inaba for the whole world. As long as I have her, I... Well, what would I be without her? No, let’s not bother thinking about what-if scenarios. But still, the possibility of breaking up is always there—stop! Where did that come from? Don’t jinx it!

—Do you actually love me back?

“Good, good. Glad to hear it...” There was a pause, and then Kiriyama muttered: “That reminds me, I haven’t talked to Aoki much lately.”

□■□■□

Meanwhile, Inaba and Fujishima had been quiet for far too long. And when they finally challenged Taichi directly, it was from an angle he least expected.

“Basically, the gist of it is, the tennis club’s practice session ran for longer than it was supposed to, and now our club supervisor is mad at us ‘cuz we supposedly ‘broke the school rules’ or whatever, and now as punishment he wants to shorten our practice time and assign us extra homework! Like, I get it if you wanna cut practice, but homework?! It makes no sense! You know?” explained Kimura, first-year student and tennis player, gesturing his hands emphatically as he spoke.

“Okay, and?” Taichi prompted.

“Well, you know how we have that policy where each club’s hours are decided by the Student Council based on the type of club it is? Well, right now they’re trying to come up with counter-measures to solve other rulebreaking issues, like students caught partying downtown late at night and stuff like that.”

“And?”

“And so we were thinking, well, why not go to them and have an official discussion about the tennis club thing? Like a debate, you know? Us versus them.”

“Okay, and?”

“And we want you to help us out!”

“Why me? I have nothing to do with any of this.”

He always knew Kimura was an overly imposing sort. Hell, it was obvious from the way he casually approached the older students that he wasn’t cowed by social mores. But even then, Taichi never imagined the kid would saddle him with this .

“I know you’re a total bystander and all, but... you’re just so good at advice, you know? So I figured you could help us! Please, Yaegashi-san! I mean, Taichi-san! That’s what Uwa calls you, right?”

“Sorry about this, Taichi-san. I’ll get him out of your hair for you.”

“What the—Uwa?! Wait! Let go of my arm! I thought you were gonna back me up, dude!”

“No, I came to keep you in line.”

Evidently Kimura and the CRC’s own Uwa Chihiro were in the same class; the latter had approached Taichi alongside the former. On top of that, there was a third visitor—

“Quit bickering, you small fries!” demanded Enjouji Shino, dropping another one of her catty quips.

“Excuse me? What do you mean, small fries?”

“Oh... S-Sorry... Would you prefer medium fries? You can’t be large fries, because that’s what Taichi-senpai is.”

“...Can’t argue with that, I guess.”

“Whew! Thank goodness! You know, just for that, I’ll upgrade you to small chicken nuggets!”

“Don’t wink at me! I don’t even know what that means!”

“Why are you even here, Enjouji?” asked Taichi.

“Oh, right! Well, I overheard you guys talking about going to see Taichi-senpai, so... I just thought maybe I could help somehow!”

“Right. And what’s the real reason?” asked Chihiro dubiously.

“I mean, yes, okay, part of me just wanted the opportunity to listen to his sexy voice—oh god, why did you make me admit to that?!”

These days the two CRC first-years were getting along swimmingly.

“So you guys want me to speak on your behalf, is that it? Fair warning, I’m not that great at debating people,” Taichi cautioned.

“But Taichi-senpai, you’re great at playing devil’s advocate! And as I recall, you’ve made some great arguments in the past!” Enjouji insisted.

“...Have I?” Taichi tilted his head quizzically.

“C’moooon! Listen to Enjouji-san! The tennis club doesn’t have any other senpai we can turn to!” Kimura pressed, further emboldened by Enjouji’s support.

“How come?”

“We don’t have a lot of second-years in our club, and the ones we do have don’t really care about practice... and the third-years are all retired!”

“...So that leaves me, huh? No, wait, that still doesn’t make sense. Seriously, why me?”

“Well... to be honest... one of our opponents suggested we enlist you. She was like, ‘There will be a lot of older students on our side, so why don’t you find one to vouch for you? I strongly recommend Yaegashi-kun. He loves to play the hero, so he can’t possibly say no.’ ”

“Wow, what? ‘Play the hero’? Who the heck said—”

“I did,” whispered a voice directly against his ear.

“AAAAAGH!” Taichi nearly jumped out of his skin.

“Glad to see I got a rise out of you, Yaegashi-kun.”

“I knew it...”

Sure enough, there stood Fujishima Maiko, active member of the Student Council Outreach Committee.

“Why would you refer Kimura to me of all people?”

“Well, you’re the one fanning the flames of this love craze that’s going around, and as a result, more students are starting to break the school rules. Hence, I was curious to hear your opinion on the subject.”

“Wait—really?” His heart dropped into his stomach. Were his actions directly creating unintentional negative conse—

“Sorry, just kidding. I just wanted to see the look on your face. Truth be told, I just wanted the chance to face off against you.” Fujishima grinned and adjusted her glasses.

“Well...”

Hesitant, he glanced around at the first-years. Kimura was clasping his hands together in a pleading gesture. Then Taichi made eye contact with Enjouji.

“Um... You have such a wonderful way with words... so... I think it’d be really cool if... if you wouldn’t mind helping Kimura-kun.”

Next, he looked at Chihiro, who met his gaze but otherwise didn’t speak.

What could Taichi possibly have to offer the tennis club? He wasn’t sure... but he could feel how badly they needed him. And what he needed was to be there for them...

“Alright. I’ll help you, Kimura.” I’m not doing anything bad. I’m helping people.

“You’re the best, Yaegashi-san—no, Yaegashi-sama! I gotta go tell everyone the good news!” And with that, Kimura scampered off; Chihiro and Enjouji waved goodbye, then turned and hurried after him.

“And now it appears we’re officially enemies, Yaegashi-kun.”

“I don’t see you as my enemy, for the record. You seem happy about it, though.”

“Hee hee. May the best debater win.”

“Mind if I join you?” drawled a domineering voice.

Taichi whirled around to find Inaba Himeko standing there. Exactly how much of that had she overheard?

“Inaba...?”

Instantly, he knew she had absolutely no intention of coming to his aid.

“Nngh... Inaba-san... Going to cover for your boyfriend, I take it? Well, anyone’s free to join, so I can’t stop you, but... with you on their side, my chances of winning have taken a nosedive...”

“Who said anything about their side? I was talking about joining you , Fujishima.” Sure enough, she was planning to oppose him.

“What? Well then... Interesting. By all means, we’d be happy to have you.” Fujishima curled her lip in a smirk.

Inaba grinned back. “With the two of us together, we’ll be unstoppable. So, Taichi, care to make a bet with me? How about if my side wins, then you have to stop doing this shit?”

“What? No. Why would I?” So that’s what she’s after .

“Tch... How boring. Well, whatever. At least we get to drag you into a real fight.”

And coming from her, he knew this was no bluff. What was she planning?

“Oh yeah, and I wanted to ask you something.”

She looked at him—not warmly, not coldly, just firmly.

“Do you think it’s right to oppose the school for assigning extra homework to students who broke the rules? Or conversely, do you think extra homework is a just punishment for rule-breakers?”

Judging from her tone, she was looking for a serious answer. Taichi gave it some thought.

“To be honest... it’s hard to make a sweeping statement one way or the other. Both sides have valid viewpoints.”

“And yet you’re siding with them regardless.”

“...Huh?”

For some reason, it felt like she’d struck upon a critical misstep... and yet he couldn’t see where he’d gone wrong.

□■□■□

Restless with thoughts of the upcoming debate, that weekend found Taichi visiting a music store over by the station square.

“Oh, hey. If it isn’t Taichi-san.”

There, he bumped into Uwa Chihiro, casually wearing a form-fitting black long-sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans with a wallet chain dangling from his pocket.

“Oh! Hey, Chihiro. What are you—right, of course. Looking at CDs. Duh.”

“Yeah, more or less.”

He was holding a jewel case in his hand; Taichi didn’t recognize the band, but he could tell it had to be a pretty niche genre. Truth be told, he was never sure what to talk about whenever it was just the two of them, but he at least wanted to have some sort of conversation before they went their separate ways, so he defaulted to music.

After a while, he realized he was probably holding Chihiro up, so he decided to cut it short.

“Well, see you at school—”

“Actually, Taichi-san, um... I wanted to ask you something,” Chihiro began, his tone restrained.

“Sure, what’s up?”

“Why did you agree to help Kimura?”

Apparently this was about the debate thing.

“Why? Well... because he asked?”

“So you’ll do anything someone asks you to?”

“...No, of course not... but...”

Somehow the air between them had turned tense and uncomfortable... and the fast-paced jazz song playing over the store speaker system wasn’t helping.

“You’re a nice guy, huh?”

It didn’t sound like a compliment, but rather a cold statement of fact, and so Taichi was left unsure how to respond. “I am...?”

“So nice, in fact, it’s almost like you don’t particularly care one way or the other.”

“I... I’m not sure I follow...?”

“Taichi-san...” Chihiro’s expression hardened. “You never get angry, do you?”

“What? I mean, I’m not the short-tempered type, but I’d say I get angry an ordinary amount.”

“Then... why didn’t you get mad at me for everything I did during the last phenomenon? I gave you amnesia, remember?”

Chihiro was, of course, referring to the events of the Phantom Projection phenomenon.

“Well... no, that’s the thing. I don’t remember what happened, so it’s kind of impossible to be mad at you for it.”

The others told him he’d lived his life with no memory of the CRC for a few days, and while the mere idea of it was enough to turn his stomach, he had no recollection of ever forgetting. From Taichi’s perspective, it felt as though the whole incident had worked itself out overnight.

“Even after everything I did to Inaba-san?”

Specifically, Chihiro had impersonated Taichi and commanded Inaba to take off her clothes. Now that was certainly an infuriating thought. However...

“I mean, you apologized already, so... it’s over now.”

“Right ,” Chihiro growled darkly, his lip curled in a half-sneer.

As for Taichi, he didn’t understand what that expression was trying to convey. Then Chihiro turned back to the store shelves.

“Well, don’t worry. Inaba-san and the others already tore me a new asshole in your place.”

They did? Nobody had told Taichi about it.

“Anyway... After everything I did to you guys, you have every right to disregard my opinion, but... frankly, Taichi-san, your behavior lately makes me sick.”

□■□■□

Just a few days after Inaba and Fujishima teamed up, Taichi discovered exactly what they meant by dragging him into a real fight .

“Hey, Yaegashi! I heard about the debate. Pretty cool of you,” grinned Kurihara Yukina as they sat in class.

“How did you find out about it?” Taichi muttered, listless.

“Dude, c’mon. Everyone’s talking about it. They’re like, ‘Holy crap, the Love Guru is gonna fight the school in the name of our freedom!’ ”

“Ugh... Man, it’s really not that serious...” Seriously, guys, don’t make it sound like something out of a TV show.

“Yeah... Even I’m not sure we should be getting so worked up about some minor debate. I mean, it’s not like it affects the whole school, right? Just the tennis club?”

She was right, of course. It was silly for everyone to be gossiping about a single Student Council debate. Unless, of course, someone was actively spreading rumors... but the only possible culprit he could think of—

“Hey Fujishima, let’s talk strategy.”

Sensing Taichi’s gaze, Inaba Himeko glanced over. Then she turned and walked up to him until her lips were against his ear.

“With all this gossip flying around, I’d hate to see what happens after you lose the debate. Depending on which way the rumors go, everyone might just lose faith in you... Then people will stop coming to you for advice.”

Everything was going according to her plan. And if it all played out in her favor, this unrelated incident could turn into a death sentence for his entire operation.

That was the moment he knew that turning Inaba Himeko against him was a mistake.

On the day of the debate, everyone met up in the Student Council meeting room.

The room itself was about twice the size of Rec Hall Room 401. Long tables and chairs were positioned on the east and west sides of the room, each facing the other, as well as a third table set up on the south side against the windows.

The west side was occupied by the anti-punishment faction: five tennis club members, all boys, plus Taichi for a total of six. On the east were representatives of the pro-punishment (or rather, anti-anti-punishment) faction: five members of the Student Council Outreach Committee, who enforced the main Student Council’s various rulings, plus Inaba Himeko for a total of six as well.

To the south sat the mediators and/or neutral parties: the Student Council, the Student Council supervisor, the Newspaper Club, and the tennis club supervisor.

All in all, the mood in the room felt distinctly more austere than Taichi had been led to believe it would be.

“Now then, let’s begin. Ahem... We’ve arranged this venue so that we might hear a wide variety of viewpoints on the pros and cons of extra homework assigned as punishment. But first, let’s all remember that this isn’t a life or death discussion, and there will be no winners or losers,” the main Student Council representative explained gently.

After the debate was over, the plan was to note down all the points raised therein, report them to the school staff, and await their final decision from there. But with a certain devious duo on the opposing side, Taichi knew it wouldn’t be that easy. Even from across the room, they radiated hostile intent.

First, the two sides would take turns to explain their perspectives, after which the free debate would begin. Right from the start, however, it was clear Inaba and Fujishima were dominating the discussion:

“You have no right to complain about being punished when you were the ones who broke the rules in the first place.”

“You brought this upon yourselves.”

“You have no right to play the victim here.”

“You should be grateful that tennis practice wasn’t canceled altogether.”

“You’re being immature.”

No matter what anyone on Taichi’s side said, Inaba or Fujishima would shoot it down at the speed of light. Then they tried changing the subject to why their designated punishment was extra homework, but even then, the two girls were relentless:

“Why are club activities time-restricted in the first place? To ensure students have time for other things. Namely, studying. Hence, homework.”

“We’re not here to play sports, we’re here to learn.”

“I’m told that your grades have declined as a result.”

Emboldened by their powerful offensive onslaught, the tennis club supervisor chimed in himself: “Your grades have absolutely gotten worse. Don’t even pretend they haven’t.” He was so smug, he seemed to think their side had already won.

“Sensei, this debate is meant to be held between the students themselves,” the other club supervisor warned him.

“Oh, whoops.”

“So your grades have plummeted. That alone should be grounds to have your practice time shortened, don’t you think?”

“Look, schoolwork and clubwork are both important. But when it comes down to it, if you’re asked to pick one, it’s gotta be schoolwork. That’s the whole point of going to high school in the first place. Club activities are a privilege, not a right.”

Inaba’s faction was crushing them. Meanwhile, Taichi was panicking internally. At this rate, they would lose the debate. Which meant the extra homework would be assigned as planned. Which meant Taichi would disappoint everyone on the tennis club—or maybe the entire school. Which meant no one would ask him for advice. Which meant he wouldn’t be able to help anyone ever again...

Meanwhile, the debate continued.

“O-Okay, well... at least don’t enforce it on the entire club when only a handful of people broke the rules! It’s not fair!” Kimura shouted.

“All of you are expected to set a good example as representatives of your club. If some of your members are shirking this responsibility, then it reflects badly on all of you,” Inaba countered confidently.

“...Taichi-san, you’ve been quiet for a while now. Help us out!”

“I know, I know.” Trust me, I just can’t get a word in edgewise.

He wanted to help somehow; he simply didn’t have the means to do so. If only he had something that could turn the whole discussion on its head... That way he could help people and make the whole world a better place—

[There’s a man. It’s the tennis club supervisor. He’s at a bar, drinking alcohol. Across from him sits the school counselor. He hands her a sheet of paper with “Improving Grades At Yamaboshi” printed at the top. Her: “Now the entire tennis club will have to do make-up assignments.” Him: “Maybe we can turn this into a recurring thing.” Her: “And apply it to the other clubs.” Him: “If they spent all their club time on studying, maybe the graduation rates would improve.” At this, the school counselor laughs. They sip their drinks.]

Taichi returned to reality. The timing was so perfect, it was actually terrifying. Was it mere coincidence, or was it fate?

As the debate began to wrap up, Inaba took center stage to give a final overview of her position. Everyone’s full attention was on her.

“If you want to live solely for yourself, solely in the present, then sure, go ahead and waste your time solely on club activities. But life doesn’t work that way. Once you’re an adult, you’re going to have to support yourself. Eventually you might even have to support your parents, or a family of your own.” Inaba smirked at Taichi, and the look in her eyes said I’ve got this in the bag . “That is why we students are obligated to study, and likewise, the school is obligated to ensure that—”

“Can I say something?”

Everyone looked at him in shock as he rose to his feet.

“There’s something I’ve been... hesitant to bring up.”

His body grew hot, and his mind went fuzzy. Almost as though he were dreaming himself.

“...It’s not polite to interrupt someone when they’re speaking. What do you want, Taichi?” Inaba growled. But Taichi ignored her. He needed to do this. He needed to win. And he would do it for the sake of the entire school.

“Sensei?” He looked over at the tennis club supervisor.

“...Yes?”

“Did you assign this extra homework purely as a punishment? Or... is there something else behind it?” Taichi asked in a shaky voice.

“Excuse me?”

“You’ve been wanting to assign make-up work for a while now, haven’t you? You were just looking for an excuse.”

“I... beg your pardon?” The teacher’s expression shifted to panic.

To Taichi, this all but confirmed the suspicion implanted in him as of just moments ago.

“What is it you’re planning with the school counselor?”

“Wh... I... I’m not... I don’t...!”

But Taichi pressed further. “You want the students to have to reallocate their club time towards studying so that Yamaboshi’s graduation rates will improve. Isn’t that right?”

The tennis club supervisor turned white as a sheet, his mouth opening and closing fruitlessly like an oversized goldfish. And to everyone else in the room, this was akin to a confession.

A moment of silence passed, and then Fujishima spoke.

“Sensei... would you care to explain yourself?”

Everyone’s eyes were on the tennis club supervisor. Trapped on all sides, he finally relented.

Meanwhile, just one person was glaring furiously at Taichi: Inaba Himeko.

Taichi never learned precisely what went down after that, but suffice it to say, the subsequent investigation brought to light a certain conspiracy among a specific subset of the teachers. Apparently they wanted to improve the graduation rates to encourage more prospective students to enroll at Yamaboshi. This wasn’t a crime, of course, so no disciplinary action was taken against them... but naturally, the tennis club supervisor’s reputation tanked. As a result, no additional homework was assigned to the tennis club, nor any other punishment beyond a slap on the wrist.

As one might expect, the details of this incident were not openly made public to the student body at large, and yet rumors had a way of getting around regardless...

“Yaegashi-san—no, Yaegashi-sama—no, Yaegashi Almighty! Thanks a billion!” Kimura exclaimed energetically. “Seriously, how did you find out about that? I gotta know!”

“That’s... a secret. Really, it was just a coincidence.”

“No need to play it off! Man, I guess these things just happen when you’re Yaegashi-san, the star of the school...”

Just then, two first-year girls passed by in the hall.

“Yaegashi?”

“Yeah, he’s that one guy.”

“What one guy?”

“Haven’t you heard? He blew the lid on the teachers’ extra homework conspiracy in order to protect us.”

“Oh yeah, I heard about that! What a cool guy!”

Just like that, the entire school now hailed him as a hero for his courageous actions.

“Yeah... You’re awesome,” Kimura agreed.

As Taichi headed back to his classroom, someone from up ahead caught sight of him.

“Congratulations on your masterful victory. Without your help, I would’ve been a party to a horrible conspiracy,” said Fujishima Maiko.

She was, of course, the mastermind who had dragged Taichi into the debate in the first place. He’d been wondering how she felt about the results, considering she hadn’t mentioned it since.

“I have to hand it to you—you beat us fair and square. Of course, ultimately it was for the best that we lost, but...”

“No way. You guys clearly out-debated us on every point.”

“We may have won the battles, but we lost the war. And that’s what counts.”

“Classic Fujishima outlook.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

Her expression was soft, with no hint of sour grapes over their loss—

“Fortunately, that war was but one small part of a larger war. And I’m winning that one.”

Her tone hardened. All at once, she exuded the posture of a warrior.

“What are you... talking about...?” Taichi had a bad feeling about this.

“There’s no way you could’ve known about a conspiracy between two faculty members... and yet somehow you did.”

“No, I—”

“Can you actually read minds?”

“Like I said, I—”

“And yet you seem entirely ignorant of my plans... Is there some sort of limit to your power? Yes, that would explain it. Otherwise you would’ve outpaced my arguments in the debate, or else revealed the tennis club supervisor’s secret much sooner. After all, it’s not in your nature to keep us in suspense.”

Right before his eyes, she was analyzing the information she had at her disposal. Searching for a solution.

“Hmmm... Does your power only trigger at random? Or does it take a specific length of time to activate? Perhaps you can only use it a limited number of times per day?”

She was approaching the truth—hell, practically knocking on truth’s door.

“Wait... Is that the real reason you made me join the debate...?”

Was that room really just her personal observation tank?

“Did you really think I’d set all that up for no reason at all?”

No. Of course not.

“A word of advice, Yaegashi-kun: never underestimate Detective Fujishima Maiko. Because I’m gunning for you.”

And with that decidedly un-detective-like statement, Fujishima smirked.

□■□■□

Back in Classroom 2-B, class president Setouchi Kaoru let out a huge sigh. She picked up a stack of papers on her desk, counted them, and sighed again. Then she pulled out a different worksheet, looked at it, and ran her hands through her short dark hair in frustration.

“You look like you’re having a hard day,” Taichi commented.

“Huh? Oh... Well, you know, we’ve got the school trip coming up, so now there’s a lot more paperwork to be dealing with.”

Indeed, the school trip was just next week; Taichi had recently started packing his suitcase in preparation.

“Sounds rough. Hang in there.”

“What about you, Yaegashi-kun? You’ve really got a handle on this love craze thing.”

The number of romantic advice-seekers had skyrocketed, particularly among the second-year demographic. But the Dream Vision didn’t trigger on command, so Taichi was forced to juggle a handful of outstanding requests at the same time. And while his “clients” themselves seemed perfectly willing to wait, ideally he wanted to get them their answers in a timely fashion.

“Me personally, I’d like it if everyone could get their career planning surveys turned in soon. The deadline’s really strict, or so I’ve heard.”

It was her job to collect them, but evidently it wasn’t going so well. Even Taichi himself had yet to submit his.

“Eh, I’m pretty sure most people will turn theirs in on the day it’s due.”

“Yeah, I know... I’m just concerned that everyone’s too distracted with romance stuff to actually think about it. Not that I don’t understand the appeal of finding a special someone to spend time with over the trip.”

“Yeah, I guess there’s some weird synergy going. Well, at the very least, I’ll try to have mine turned in soon.” He’d been so focused on giving advice, he hadn’t had much time to think about it.

“Please do. I don’t want people to get so laser-focused on romance that they forget about what really matters... Not that I’m one to talk, I guess.”

During their first year, Setouchi had become obsessed with her crush to the point that she did some pretty messed-up things... and as it happened, Taichi was one of her victims. But to him, it was all in the past.

Still, that reminds me. “How are things going with Shiroyama, anyway?”

“Pretty good, actually...” Setouchi giggled bashfully. After she and the CRC had made their peace, she’d gone on to make her romantic dreams a reality. “We’re trying to plan for some alone time together over the trip.”

It warmed his heart to see her so happy. He hoped everyone else would find that same happiness, too. But at the same time, this ongoing trend was starting to worry him... Then again, who was he to decide whether a given trend was good or bad?

“Are you and Inaba-san planning anything? If you’ve got any recs, I’d love to hear them.”

“Huh? Oh... No, I haven’t really given it much thought, now that you mention it...”

He and Inaba hadn’t discussed the trip at all. How could they, with everything that was going on? But unless something changed, he was on the fast track to spending the trip alone—

“Eh... I guess I’m just happy being together with the boy I love... Okay, that was cheesy,” Setouchi laughed.

At this, he found himself thinking: How could anyone actively choose not to spread the love to as many people as possible?

“Hey, Sone-kun! Miyagami-kun! Don’t forget about your career planning surveys, okay?” Setouchi called to two male classmates passing by.

“R-Right...”

“O-Okay...”

Their replies were a bit timid, possibly because she’d caught them off-guard. Then one of Setouchi’s female friends walked up, so Taichi decided to take his cue from Sone and Miyagami and make himself scarce.

“Hey there, Yaegashi. Man, you’re fine with literally anyone, even Setouchi, huh?” asked Sone, a chubby (“It’s not my fault I’m short and plump!”) otaku who was part of the Manga Club. Taichi had only just met him as of this year, but the two of them got along swimmingly.

“What do you mean, I’m ‘fine’ with her?”

“I mean, y’know, you can talk to her! She was a delinquent student last year, remember?”

Admittedly she’d been a little... rough around the edges... back when she bleached her hair.

“I don’t know if she was a delinquent , exactly. But either way, she’s chilled out quite a bit since then. She’s a good egg.”

“Just ignore him, Yaegashi. He’s a coward.”

“Wh... Me?! A coward?! No I’m not!”

“Are too! Wahaha!” laughed Miyagami, a Photography Club member with stylish hair and rectangular glasses. As with Sone, Taichi had met and befriended him at the start of their second year.

As it happened, the three of them were assigned to a five-member group for the school trip along with Ishikawa the baseball player and Watase the soccer player.

“Oh, shut up, Miyagami! You’re not going to get girls by wearing those glasses and styling your hair like you’re a magazine model! You look stupid!”

“Wha...?! I’ll have you know, this is THE hottest look for guys right now! Just you wait!”

“Now, now. Calm down, you two,” Taichi soothed.

“Ugh... Now Casanova here is trying to play mediator...” Sone groaned.

“For some reason, I feel even worse...” Miyagami sighed.

Though they tended to bicker with each other, more often than not, the two of them were generally on the same page.

“A lot of people are gonna be spending the trip with their boyfriends and girlfriends... If only there was someone out there for me...” Miyagami muttered.

“Just have Mr. Love Guru teach you the ropes!” Sone joked.

“Oh, you’re right! I forgot we were in the presence of a celebrity!” Miyagami chimed in.

“Ha ha, very funny. Maybe I’ll end up in one of your precious gossip magazines. Anyway, Setouchi was asking about your career planning surveys. Still working on them?” Taichi asked, hoping to change the subject.

“Oh, that dumb thing? Meh. I already decided my third-year course, so who cares? I still need to decide on my preferred college, though,” said Miyagami.

“All I know is, I’m totally picking humanities. Science can go suck a chode,” said Sone.

“Okay, well... maybe you guys should put a little more thought into it,” Taichi pressed.

“Absolutely not! It can wait until after Hokkaido! After all, this trip is going to be the most ultimate event of our teenage lives. We’re going to have a blast, and then afterwards, while we’re all basking in the afterglow? That is when I will pause to contemplate life after high school. After I get a girlfriend, of course.”

“Then I guess you won’t be turning yours in until you’re like 30.”

“Cram it, Sone!”

As for Taichi, he could scarcely will himself to get excited for the school trip, much less focus on his future career plans. So where was he devoting his energy, then? What was he trying to accomplish? He didn’t know... and this uncertainty made him afraid . Afraid of being an empty book on the inside.

“Maybe we could have Yaegashi hook us up with someone,” Miyagami mused.

“I bet he knows a lot of hot chicks. Just look at Inaba-san,” Sone agreed.

If only they knew about the emptiness he felt in his heart—what would they think of him then? Here he was, getting praised and thanked every day. So why did he feel so miserable about it? What was the solution?

Behind them, Setouchi shouted, “Damn it, Gotou! This is why I told you to get in touch with everyone who still hasn’t submitted!”

“Eeeek! I’m sorry, Setouchi-saaaan! I got busy and forgot!” whimpered Gotou Ryuuzen, advisor for Class 2-B. Evidently he was shirking his duties again.

“See, what’d I tell you? Setouchi’s scary!” Sone insisted.

“Trust me, if you had to deal with Gossan every day, you’d be shouting too,” Taichi replied.

Well... maybe not me, but still.

□■□■□

“Taichi, can I borrow you for a minute?” Aoki asked later that day, after club activities ended.

“Sure,” Taichi replied.

“...You too, Yui.”

“M-Me...?”

It felt like Kiriyama and Aoki had been casually avoiding each other ever since their last argument, hence her surprise at his invitation.

“Well... I figure I should talk to you guys. Get you up to speed.” His tone was level and serious.

For Taichi and Kiriyama, Aoki’s “class clown” persona had long since been shelved. This wasn’t a result of stress or anxiety, either; he managed to be his normal self around other people just fine. Either he was extremely angry that they had involved themselves in his personal life, or he was just distancing himself from those on the “other side.”

“...Why not tell us back in the clubroom?” Taichi asked, though this wasn’t meant as a critique.

“I didn’t really wanna get into it in front of Chihiro and Shino-chan, y’know?”

“...Okay,” Kiriyama nodded.

They told the others they had business to take care of, then headed for the courtyard—not that it mattered where the conversation happened, but it was the closest place they could think of. Fortunately, no one else was around; Aoki gestured for them to take a seat on a bench, but they both declined.

Instead, Taichi saw this as an opportunity to ask the one question that had been on his mind for quite some time: “How’s your dad doing?”

At this, Aoki’s stony expression broke slightly as his eyebrow twitched. “It looks like he’s not gonna get fired after all, and I’ll probably be able to go to college. So yeah, our family’s just peachy now.” The implication being, of course, that their misfortune had ended up in someone else’s lap. “Well, maybe whoever gets laid off will have better luck finding a new job. My dad hasn’t told me who it was or anything. Oh, and he’s not going to press charges against that girl who accused him, so she won’t get a mark on her permanent record.”

“That’s good,” said Kiriyama, looking relieved.

Aoki glanced at her, then hung his head as if to hide his expression. “Anyway, that’s about as much as I can tell you guys. The rest we’ll handle as a family.”

“But the problem’s basically solved now, right?” asked Taichi.

“No, it’s not. Not for whoever got laid off instead. Worst case scenario, it might last their whole life.”

Had they created a problem that would last someone’s entire lifespan? The thought weighed on Taichi like a ton of bricks.

“Aoki, don’t phrase it like—” Kiriyama began, then stopped short. “Forget it.”

A moment of silence passed as the autumn breeze blew by; Aoki was the first to break it.

“...I know it’s kinda out of character for me to be having all these serious-business conversations, but yeah. Anyways. Seems like Inabacchan isn’t taking the direct approach.”

Evidently Aoki had come up with a battle plan of his own. They’d been so distracted with Inaba and Fujishima, they’d forgotten to worry about him.

“What do you mean, the direct approach?” Kiriyama asked.

“Right now you guys are busy playing Cupid, right? Is it fun?”

“What do you mean, fun? ”

“I’m literally asking you, is it fun to do that stuff?”

“We’re not like doing this to have fun ,” Kiriyama snapped. Perhaps Aoki had touched a nerve.

“Then why are you doin’ it?”

“To help make people happy, ob viously. But we don’t get pushy or try to force anyone.”

To Taichi, their actions were good and just.

“I mean, that’s really great and all—”

See, even he admits it!

“—but are you sure you can manage it?”

“What are you talking about? We’re ‘managing’ just fine!”

“But it’s starting to get a little out of hand, am I right?”

“...W-Well...”

“We don’t try to micromanage every single aspect,” Taichi cut in, since Kiriyama had gone quiet.

“So, what, you just shrug your shoulders and do whatever?” Aoki replied, his tone accusatory.

“We... We’re doing the right thing!”

“We don’t get to decide what’s right or wrong,” he told her calmly.

“Rrrgh! What is your PROBLEM?! If you’re trying to lecture me, then just save your breath!” Kiriyama yelled in frustration.

“I’m not lecturing. Just tryin’ to get you to think about it.”

“Think about what?! You think I’m not thinking about this?!”

“I’m not talking about them. Do you ever think about what you

need?”

“Of course I do! I...” All at once, her furious energy petered out as she slammed on the brakes.

“So you’ve been thinking about your own problems?”

“I... I’m still thinking about the future, obviously, and... and...” Mumbling, Kiriyama stared at her shoes. She glanced up at him, then back to the ground. “And... I’ve been thinking about... you and stuff,” she muttered weakly. “Deep down, I... I’m ready. I’ve been ready. But then your family crisis happened, and the Dream Vision started, and... everything got all complicated...”

“So, do you think you have time to be worrying about other people right now?”

“Well...” Kiriyama fell silent once more. But this time, Taichi stayed out of it.

Aoki glanced over at him, and all at once he felt a rush of embarrassment. Almost like Aoki could see the blank slate inside him. Aoki was by no means eloquent or intellectual, but he had a powerful sense of intuition, and Taichi realized he was terrified Aoki might just figure him out.

“Aaanyway, I get where you guys are comin’ from. Just wanted to go ahead and put that on the radar, so to speak. So yeah, that’s all I had to say!” Aoki finished in his usual goofy tone. Seeing him back to his usual antics made Taichi realize just how different he had been acting as of late... and apparently Kiriyama noticed, too.

“Welp, I got places, to be, so—”

“H-Hey!” Kiriyama called out.

He stopped and turned back, but evidently she hadn’t planned what she was going to say, because she began to panic.

“Um... I... Oh yeah! Do you still love m—gaaahhh! No! That came out wrong! I mean... how do you feel about me?”

Aoki took one look at her and said, “I love you.”

Instantly, her cheeks lit up like the sunset.

“But I don’t love what you’re doing,” he added firmly. “Oh, and one more thing: if you don’t put the kibosh on it now, I get the feeling the school trip’s gonna be an absolute nightmare.”

And with that last piece of advice, Aoki left the courtyard.

Did they have time to be helping others when their own lives were a disaster? Or were their lives a disaster because they were helping others? Was this the price they were forced to pay?

His body wasn’t injured, and yet it ached all the same. He was being consumed. Worn down. Criticized. And yet he pressed on regardless. What would he gain from it? Would it help others? Would he be rewarded? What of his own life?

His career planning survey was still blank, to say nothing of his other problems...

And then the school trip was upon them.