"Yuugao" - Hikaru ga Chikyuu ni Itakoro......(Volume 2)

Chapter 4: What, Worried? I'm Not Worried About You at All!

(What's with Akagi...)

On the first day of midterms.

Honoka could not keep her mind off Koremitsu Akagi seated next to her.

He would sigh and moan without warning during the tests, or even scratch his red hair from time to time.

Honoka initially thought he was vexed because he could not think of the answers, but after glancing at him a few more times, she found that throughout the tests, his back was arched, his stare was as vicious as a wild beast, there were veins popping on his forehead, and he was scribbling answers on the papers.

However, he was sighing and scratching his head even then.

Once break time came, he whipped out his cellphone and fumbled at it, typing, deleting, retyping and deleting again. After sending the message, he would check if there was a reply. At various moments, he would groan, show gloomy looks, raise his eyebrows, or pant furiously.

It seemed he was not troubled over the exams.

(Did he have an argument with the person he's sending emails to...?)

Since the end of last month, Koremitsu had been using his cellphone during class breaks.

Everyone was terrified of Koremitsu, thinking that he was a savage delinquent. As far as Honoka knew, he had nary a close friend in school; during class breaks, he would often arch his back and revise the materials for the next class.

But on a certain day, he was typing letters on his cellphone with rigid fingers, his face stiff and body sweating all over.

After sending a few emails, he kept frowning and groaning, probably because the other party did not respond. Once he got a response, he just stared at the cellphone blankly.

On the next day, he was typing messages intently like a child who just bought a cellphone.

This time, he seemed to have gotten an immediate reply, and started staring at the cellphone blankly.

His actions were eccentric; he would fidget distraughtly, would look away towards a direction no one was at without warning, pout while blushing, and slap his face with one hand, or stare into space while ostensibly in deep thought.

(Is he sending emails to a girl?)

Is he dating someone outside the school?

She immediately panicked the moment she thought about this.

(No, why am I so shocked here?)

This inexplicable response caused her to be further flustered, and her heart pounded readily. After reaching home, she continued to hug her plush toy as she sat on the swivel chair and spun around.

Honoka was also frustrated by how she had been giving Koremitsu Akagi the cold shoulder recently.

Actually, she knew that though Koremitsu had the appearance of a delinquent, he was an upright young boy on the inside.

—I'll protect you.

This line Koremitsu said with a serious expression caused Honoka's heart to flutter.

The one he liked was Aoi.

He kept chasing after Aoi persistently.

Honoka knew this, but she could not avert her eyes off Koremitsu.

She realized this about herself since he learnt that he was rejected by Aoi.

In the end, she simply did not want to admit it. That vicious looking bastard, whose verbal etiquette was lacking, who did not know what trendy restaurants he could choose for a date, was far different from her preferences.