An Ex-popular Guy Can’t Get Love Down His Throat - CH 9

Fell ill for a few days and calculus happened at the same time. Studying while sick ain’t good, I’ll tell you that much :‘)

In middle school, after the incident happened, I managed to get along with most people on the surface. Inwardly, I couldn’t care less. Most didn’t mean everyone, though. I couldn’t do it with Toudou, those two guys I called friends, and my ex, Yuuhi Momiji.

The way I feel about each of them varies wildly, but I loathed Momiji as much as Toudou. She was the closest to me when I hit rock bottom.

“Yuu, which club do you wanna join?” Momiji asked me.

“Well,” I answered. “Don’t think I’m gonna join any at the moment.”

“Huh? What are you on about? Club activities are compulsory.”

Was I wrong? Well, I thought they were optional. I’d assumed all high schools, or at least the higher caliber ones, left it up to the students whether they’d focus 100% on studying.

“Seriously?”

“Seriously. Heard it from a senior who came to our old middle school last year, but looks like you haven’t heard anything. If I recall, we have to make a decision by the end of May. Hmm, but this school seems to have more clubs though…”

“Oh, I see~ Well, which one do you wanna join?” I prodded Momiji since I don’t want to join the same club as her. Information is key.

“I’m thinking tennis club, just like middle school. I heard the peeps here aren’t so strict, and I just want to be physically active myself. Oh! I heard the chime, time to go back to my seat. See ya!”

“Mhm.”

Okay, the first hurdle has been breached. We have five more minutes until the teacher’s supposed to arrive, so I can think about the clubs.

First, athletic ones. Basically, all of them were tough. Even that “not-so-strict” one she mentioned had morning training sessions. It’s even safe to assume they practice every waking day. If I just want exercise, running by myself is enough. There’s no need to pick something hardcore as this.

If so, it has to be a cultural kind of club. Among these, I can picture a brass band being as rough as a sports club. An art one seems easy enough, but I don’t have a passion for painting… Huh, I guess there’s no point in thinking about it now since I have no way of knowing what kind of activities the art club may have.

That leaves only one option out of the cultural ones, the literature club. I really, really love reading… manga.

Still, Momiji mentioned this school being diverse in clubs if I do remember right. Then maybe there are some particular options that are pretty much bargains.

“…You there. Can you hear me?”

Hmm? I looked forward and saw one boy looking at me.

“Sorry. I was just deep into my own world.”

“For sure, I felt your heart wasn’t here. I was even a bit scared you were ignoring me or something. I’m Shigeo Soga, nice to meet you.”

Soga?

“Nice to meet you. Name’s Yuu Takasaki, but you can call me whatever.”

“Yuu, then. Heya, I was gonna ask you something back there when you were stargazing, but was that girl your girlfriend or something?”

“Nah, nah. We just went to the same middle school.”

“Thank God!”

A wave of relief crashed over me. Maybe he fell in love with her at first sight? I mean, her face is pretty nice, I guess?

“‘Thank God?’” I mirrored as a question.

“I’m glad I don’t have to suddenly cut a new friendship. See, isn’t it kind of annoying when you start school and someone already has a GF?”

“Oh, sure, well, just don’t worry about it. I don’t have a girl or anything like that—The teacher’s coming.”

“Oh, is that so?”

“Shush, take a seat,” the teacher said so while the bell rang in tandem. The students soon moved and each took their seats.

“Good morning and congratulations on your enrollment. My name is Tainaka and I’ll be your homeroom teacher from today. I have a lot to talk about, but let’s go to the gymnasium to participate in the entrance ceremony first,” she paused for a moment. “I’ll lead the way since you probably don’t know where it is. Well, you are sitting in order of your attendance numbers, so please rearrange yourselves in the same order as before in the hallway.”

Our new homeroom teacher is a very young woman either in her late twenties or in her early thirties. She had a pretty nice build overall, with a vaguely worn-out atmosphere. Guess that atmosphere has more of a “lazy” pinch to it than age.