Classroom of the Elite: Alter - Self-Test

Vol. 1: Chapter 8.1 - Evaluation

It's the 26th of April, the Monday of our fourth week in this school. The class has been doing alright after three weeks. Before our third period, I found myself reading back on some text conversations between me and Karuizawa Kei.

(21:56) [Hirata-kun did it.]
(21:56) [We're going out now.]

(21:56) [I see.]
(21:56) [That's good then.]

(21:56) [You've done well in establishing a stable foothold in our class, and after this, you'll probably be regarded as the girls' leader.]

(21:57) [Yeah...]

(21:57) [It'll be different with Kushida, who's more on the universal side of things with her kindness and friendliness, but I'm sure you'll be just fine.]

This conversation happened two days ago, on a Saturday evening. In the end, they chose to delay the plan by a week. It's probably for the best since Hirata's popularity was just hitting its peak outside the class. Hirata texted me about this, too.

(21:58) [Ayanokouji-kun...]
(21:58) [Wait, you know what, I'll just call you.]

That was the last message she's sent since then. As for our call...

"Hello?" I asked.

"Sorry for my sudden call," Karuizawa said.

"I don't mind. Sorry if I was being too wordy with my texts. I'm just not used to it yet," I replied with an apology.

"It's fine. That's your well-established quirk, right? A lot of girls think it's cute-- your lack of conversational skills, I mean," Karuizawa elaborated.

"Is that how it works? I thought it's just a negative trait," I mused.

"You really are a beginner when it comes to these things aren't you?" she snickered. "First of all, you're the class's academic genius, answering every question perfectly when asked by the teacher. To be honest, none of us will be surprised if you aced every written test or exam. And secondly... you're super-duper athletic... Like, super-duper..."

I stayed silent in the midst of her lack of vocabulary.

"On paper, you really are the ideal boy in our class alongside Hirata-kun. But unlike him, you're not that outgoing and friendly. You can even be considered gloomy at times," Karuizawa explained.

"That's exactly my point..." I think she just dissed me on the last part there.

"Yes, that's exactly the point. You two are different, but one's not better than the other. After all, girls have their own preferences, just like guys. On one hand, there are a lot who prefer a princely boy like Hirata-kun. On the other hand, a star student who's actually insecure about his social skills is also a hit among girls." Karuizawa seemed to be having fun while telling me this.

"Is that really how it works?" 

Of course, I'm also curious. The intricacies of modern social high school norms aren't something that I'm really familiar with.

"Yeah. What do they call it again? Ah, that's right! "Gap-Moe"! Yeah, that's it," she said. "Have you heard of it? You don't seem like you watch anime or read manga, so it might not be familiar to you."

Woah, that's great. I've actually encountered gap-moe during my research. I never thought I'd hear it again since a lot of the stories that use the concept seem unrealistic.

Well, the ironic thing is that it's being used to describe me...

"I've heard of it. It's the affection to the inconsistencies between two different or opposite characteristics of a person, right?"