COTE: The Quiet One Can Be Dangerous

Vol. 5 Chp. 5: Final Stretch

"Could you let me help out, too? I want to participate in the three-legged race. Of course, I'll pay the points for it... Can I?" Kushida asked.

"Okay," Hirata smiled.

"Okay, I'll tell Chabashira-sensei I'll be participating in Horikita-san's place then."

We made preparations right away for the contest.

"Yahoo~ Ayanokouji-kun. And also Kikyo-chan. Looks like we're in the same group..."

Ichinose came up to us while saying that. Both her and Shibata, that is.

"Tough opponents. To think the two of you would team up..."

"That's true for Shibata-kun, but I'm not that special, you know? I haven't gotten 1st place in anything yet."

"Really? That's unexpected."

"I got 2nd place once, and I got either 4th place or 5th place for the rest. Someone else was supposed to participate, but she sprained her foot in the 200-meter dash before lunch. Looks like quite a lot of people are getting injured this year."

Class B has its absentees. So, this pair is an improvised one.

"Shibata-kun, is it okay if I tie it now?"

"Okay."

The Class B pair began happily tying their string.

"Alright then, we should, too... Umm, can I leave tying the string to you? It wouldn't look good for a man to start tying it alone."

"That's fine. But how strange, when you practiced with Horikita-san, you were the one who tied it right, Ayanokouji-kun?"

It's a frequent thought, but she's observing the class quite well.

"She's...an exception. I can't afford to do the same with other girls. "

"Do you mean to say she's someone special to you?"

Rather than a special someone, it'd be more factual to say she's someone with a special status. But it'd be hard conveying that.

"But even so, you didn't look that surprised to me."

Kushida crouched down and started tying the string to my foot.

"Kushida."

"Wait, just a bit longer, okay? I'll be done tying in a bit."

Replying in a cute voice, Kushida tied the string beautifully. I decided to interrupt Kushida abruptly.

"It's you. The traitor who leaked Class D's participation table to Class C."

"Come on, Ayanokouji-kun. What's the matter with you all of a sudden? Even for a joke, that's far too cruel..."

"I'm terrible at making jokes," I said.

I continued, "You snapped a picture of the participation table we drew on the blackboard with your phone."

"That's just a record, so I don't forget. It'd be a big problem if I forgot my turn."

"To only memorize one's turn through writing it down by hand. Wasn't that the consensus?" I questioned her.

"Really? Sorry, I forgot," having finished tying the string, Kushida slowly stood back up with her usual smile directed at me.

"By any chance, did that cause you to suspect me?"

"Sorry, but I'm confident I'm right. If not, Class C couldn't attack us this conveniently."

The time the two of us can be together like this is limited. In a way, this is the perfect opportunity to talk.

"Hmm, but still, even if someone were to leak Class D's participation table by any chance, that doesn't necessarily mean Class C will be able to win conveniently, right?"