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However, before the two could even begin, many passing students started greeting Ichinose.
Today was Friday, and the entrance to the school building was packed. Standing in such a conspicuous spot, they were naturally easy to notice. Soon, several boys who were clearly from Class B walked over, their gazes subtly sweeping over Akira with a hint of vigilance, naturally gathering around Ichinose as if silently protecting her.
This popular girl, known by many throughout the school, naturally had a large circle of friends.
Seeing this, Akira knew it wasn't convenient to talk further, so he took out his phone and sent her a message.
{You go ahead. This isn't urgent; we can do it later.}
{I owe you one this time. If you need anything in the future, just ask.}
Not far away, Ichinose felt her pocket vibrate, looked down at the message, hesitated a bit before looking up and nodding gently at him, then turned to respond to the students who'd gathered around.
Akira didn't stick around and turned to walk towards his classroom.
By the time he returned to the classroom, it was almost one-thirty.
His deskmate, Horikita, was engrossed in a book, but her expression wasn't very good. Her page-turning movements were faster than usual, and the force with which her fingertips pinched the pages felt somewhat unnatural.
'This person... she couldn't have still not gone to the restroom, could she?'
A sense of disbelief immediately rose in Akira's mind. He'd clearly reminded her so explicitly, yet she refused to listen! Was it really worth enduring this much just to prove there was nothing wrong with her bento?
In a flash, it was time for the first class of the afternoon, mathematics.
Akira had a solid foundation in math, so he didn't need to focus entirely on the blackboard. His peripheral vision involuntarily fell upon his deskmate.
He saw Horikita's back subtly arching, her body unconsciously shrinking into her chair. Her complexion was even worse than before, and her jawline was tightly clenched, clearly showing a struggle between wanting to endure and being unable to bear it.
The hand she kept under the desk had already begun to move unconsciously, her fingertips gently curling above her knee, as if massaging something.
Akira pondered for a moment and realized she was most likely rubbing her stomach.
After all, with that strained look of discomfort just now, she must've eaten a problematic bento at noon, and it was perfectly normal for her to feel unwell enough to want to rub her abdomen.
'He's looking at me again!'
'He couldn't have noticed my stomach ache, could he?'
Horikita had actually noticed Akira's gaze a long time ago. She'd always been exceptionally sensitive to other people's stares, otherwise she wouldn't have directly questioned Akira and Ayanokoji on the first day of school about why they were staring at her.
But at this moment, she really had no mind to care about his gaze.
The cramping in her stomach grew more intense with each wave, making her so uncomfortable that she almost clenched her fists under the desk.
Thinking back, the discomfort hadn't stopped since she finished eating her bento.
That's right, Akira was correct. The bento she made indeed had a problem.
Among the free ingredients she received at the supermarket yesterday were sausages, pickled vegetables, and tomatoes. Today's bento, apart from rice and chicken nuggets she bought separately, used only those free ingredients.
A wave of inexplicable annoyance rose in her heart. She should've listened to his warning.
Horikita secretly bit her lower lip. At the time, she just thought he was deliberately exaggerating to get her bento. After all, he couldn't have faked that look of enjoyment when he ate yakiniku last time.
'If only I'd gone to the restroom at noon.'
Regret washed over her again.
Her stomach hadn't hurt this much earlier, but it was getting progressively worse during class. Her body was clearly protesting, and she was almost unable to suppress the urge to go to the restroom.
But she couldn't move.
The reason was simple. She'd told Akira that she "wouldn't go to the restroom because of bento problems." If she were to get up now, wouldn't that be admitting he was right and going back on her word? It'd also passively admit that the bento she made was problematic.
'He ate my bento too, and he seemed to enjoy it quite a bit. How come he's perfectly fine?'
Horikita couldn't help but secretly glance up, quickly giving Akira a sidelong look.
He was looking down at his textbook, his profile calm. It seemed he really wasn't lying. His physical constitution was as strong as a monster, and he hadn't been affected by the bento at all.
Her hand, gripping her pen, tightened further, and fine cold sweat beaded on her forehead.
Her stomach suddenly churned, making a "gurgle" sound.
The sound wasn't loud, but it was exceptionally clear in the quiet classroom.
Horikita froze instantly, her ears turning crimson, and a faint blush spread to her cheeks.
How embarrassing, utterly embarrassing.
She could tell that even though the sound wasn't loud, her deskmates on both sides must've heard it.
She instinctively glanced at Ayanokoji first. He was staring at the blackboard, sitting perfectly still, appearing not to have noticed.
But when she turned to look the other way, she met Akira's gaze. He'd already turned his head, his eyes showing clear surprise, evidently having heard it.
She quickly turned her head back, even softening her breathing, feeling her entire nape burning.
"...I'm hungry," she mumbled softly to her desk, trying to act nonchalant.
"You truly are a little glutton—do you think I'd say that?" Akira looked at her reddening ears, his tone carrying a touch of helpless teasing. "Stop pretending, hurry up and go to the restroom."
"...You!" Horikita suddenly looked up, wanting to retort but was choked by her abdominal pain, cutting her sentence short.
"Stop with the 'you,' just go!" Akira leaned forward, lowering his voice even further. "If you don't go, when I see your brother after school, I'll tell him about you stubbornly refusing to go to the restroom. Horikita-san, you wouldn't want your brother to know about such an embarrassing thing, would you?"
"...!" Horikita's eyes widened, looking at him with some annoyance, but finally squeezed out through gritted teeth. "I get it! Don't tell my brother! I promise you, okay?"
Saying that, she practically snatched the tissues from her desk at top speed, stood up abruptly, her voice betraying a hint of tightness. "Sensei, may I go to the restroom!"
As her words fell, she didn't even wait for the teacher to fully nod before rushing out of the classroom with her head down.
'Why did you shout so loudly?'
Akira watched her almost "hasty" retreating figure, then glanced at the teacher and surrounding students who were startled by the sudden shout.
She usually spoke with such a cool, aloof demeanor, but now she sounded as if she was afraid others wouldn't hear her clearly.
Ultimately, she'd pushed herself to the limit, no longer able to bother with concealment.
Akira unconsciously scanned his surroundings, just as he met Ayanokoji's gaze. His eyes actually held a hint of subtle "admiration," as if looking at some formidable character.
'This person... he might've misunderstood something.'