"Miyamoto, Hondou, can I talk to you guys for a bit?" I asked.
"Hm? Ayanokouji?"
"Sure, what's it about?"
I've been closely involved whenever Ike and Yamauchi brag about their progress with the Class D girls. Though they rarely hung out during breaks, Kinoshita and Manabe were steadily getting closer to them. Or at least that's what they told us.
I led Miyamoto and Hondou to a pretty unimposing part of the building. Students who'd pass by could easily spot us, but our position made it so that eavesdropping would be impossible.
"Alright, I'll need your help." I got straight to the point.
"Huh?" Hondou tilted his head.
"This is about Ike and Yamauchi, right?" asked Miyamoto.
"Yeah, both of you are still skeptical about Kinoshita-san and Manabe-san. right? To be honest, I'm the same. Of course, I hope I'm wrong, but we can never be too careful."
"Heh, I knew you were in doubt too, Ayanokouji. There's no way that you, of all people, will let this obvious bait slide," Miyamoto shrugged haughtily.
"Hmm... I think I understand, but what can we do, at this point? We should've stopped them as early as Monday?" asked Hondou. "It's Friday now. Those two would cease at nothing just to get a girlfriend."
"No... If my instinct serves me well, Kinoshita-san and Manabe-san will confess either on the weekend, or next week."
"Huh?! Confess?" Hondou flinched after realizing the amount of noise he made. "E-Eherm. Sorry... Anyway, I'd believe it if you said that those two will be the ones who'll confess... But Kinoshita-san and Manabe-san...?"
"Yeah... We've hung out with them and their friends a few times, and to be honest, I can notice their disinterest and disgust sometimes," added Miyamoto.
"Then, isn't that more proof? Remember, we're under the impression that they're just baiting Ike and Yamauchi. To be honest, one week should've been more than enough to make a fake confession believable. If they're really disgusted on the inside, wouldn't they want everything to end quickly?" I explained.
"-And execute their plan as soon as they can, huh? You say that, but do you even know what their plan is, exactly?" asked Hondou.
"Of course not," I shrugged. "But I have a few ideas. Firstly, they might just be trying to make fun of Ike and Yamauchi. It's messed up, but harmless in the grand scheme of things. I wouldn't be too worried if that's the case... But what if they frame them about doing something that they didn't do?"
"Hey, hey... That's some hardcore shit, Ayanokouji. You really think they'd do that?" Miyamoto was surprised by my words.
"Remember what they tried to do with Ken."
"Wait... Look at from this angle, Soshi. It would be sad if Kanji and Haruki were just getting pranked... But Imagine if they get framed for committing sexual assault or something? It won't just cause damage to them, personally. The class might also get affected," Hondou mused nervously.
"Oi, they might even get expelled if that happens, right?" Miyamoto finally panicked a little.
"You can see the gravity of the situation now, don't you? Remember how crafty their plan was with Ken, right? Not to mention the amount of class points they made Class C drop."
"Damn... Class D is pretty wicked."
"So, what do we need to do, Ayanokouji?"
"Keep yourselves updated on Ike and Yamauchi's actions. If a confession is set in stone, find out the details, specifically, the time and place," I instructed. "If the location is good enough where you can eavesdrop without getting caught, you'll use your phones to record whatever you'll hear. Of course, if it a normal confession, you can just leave them alone continue with your day."
"I see... That could work. But what are you going to do if the setting makes it impossible for us to eavesdrop... like our location right now?" Hondou asked looking around our current place.
"Hmm... Since it's going to be a confession, the chance of that happening should be pretty low. But if it were to be the case, then I'll come up with something else. For now, that should be our initial plan," I replied.
"Alright, we're in. I'll take care of Kanji and Kinoshita-san. Ryoutaro will be in charge of Haruki and Manabe-san," chuckled Miyamoto. "But of course, there will be payment, Ayanokouji."
"Ohoho... Hell yeah, there is." Hondou smiled sinisterly.
"Oh, sure... What do you guys want?"
Alright, I'm ready for anything. If it's these guys, I'm sure they'll ask for something manageable.
"P-Put in a good word for us with Kushida-chan and the other girls, please!"
"Yeah... We don't really care about points since we have more than enough, but all of the girls' attentions are on you, so you're our only chance!"
"Oh..." This was surprising, for sure... But luckily, it's within the realm of my expectations.
"I mean, the girls were split between you and Hirata, but ever since he and Karuizawa got together, the girls that liked him basically abandoned ship and turned to you." Hondou shook his head with a bitter smile.
"We felt really hopeless the first time, you know? After all, it's the Ayanokouji Kiyotaka. There's no way we'd win against you." Miyamoto nodded in agreement, but he faced me with a hopeful expression. "But you're not into anyone, right? If things continued that way, then we might get a chance with the others."
"I mean, I guess? Wait, alright... First, consider your request done. It should be easy enough. But I have to ask. Aren't you guys interested in anyone from the other classes?" I asked.
"Well, there are surely some beauties from other classes. Ichinose Honami from Class C is a prime example, or the rumored Sakayanagi Arisu of Class A... But c'mon, do you think we even have the chance to become friends with them?"
"Yeah... Trying to befriend guys from other classes is hard enough. With girls? Heh, average Joes like us could only dream from the sidelines. It's been that way ever since May came."
"I see, I get where you guys are coming from. I'll be sure to mention your names in a good way whenever I can."
"Hehe, thanks, Ayanokouji!"
Of course, I wouldn't have accepted if they wanted to do anything sketchy, but was a surprisingly wholesome request.
That night, we made a group chat.
(18:23) [Oya?]
(18:23) [It sure is amusing for us to be summoned here.] (Professor)
(18:23) [I made this group chat to commemorate the budding youth of our dear friends.] (Hondou)
(18:24) [Haha.]
(18:24) [So, when are you guys confessing?] (Miyamoto)
(18:24) [The hell is this?] (Ike)
(18:25) [I'm planning on confessing next next week!]
(18:25) [Maybe on the 19th.] (Yamauchi)
(18:25) [Ugh.]
(18:25) [I don't want to confess on the same day as Haruki.]
(18:26) [That wouldn't make ours special. Maybe on the 23rd?] (Ike)
(18:26) [Good luck.] (Ayanokouji)
So they're planning to confess, after all. It's good that they wanted to take things slowly. If my guess is correct, then Manabe and Kinoshita will confess first. There's a 99% chance that they'll do it on the same day. After all, they can't sabotage the two of them on separate days. The first victim might warn the other. Or, they could just opt to frame one of them and let the other be. Of course, the more suspended students on our side, the better it is for Class D.
(18:26) [Isn't our relationship making a positive change for everyone?]
(18:26) [If it weren't for us, Kinoshita-chan wouldn't even become friends with Manabe-chan.] (18:27) [They said they didn't know each other before we decided to hang out together.] (Ike)
(18:27) [Yeah! We're spreading friendship everywhere.] (Yamauchi)
Of course, they'd play dumb. But I guess Ike and Yamauchi are too lovestruck to notice anything.
Everyone spent their days in peace while preparing for the final exam, and before we knew it, it was Monday.
"You're doing something, aren't you, Ayanokouji-kun?"
My friend and neighbor, Horikita Suzune, suddenly spoke to me.
"Hm? Doing something?"
"Hirata-kun, Kushida-san and, I talked about this. Kushida-san told us that someone is being targeted in our class and that you're trying to protect them. She also said that you have your own plans so we didn't need to pry," she explained.
"Ah, yeah. I wasn't really keeping it a secret. Everything's going according to plan, anyway?"
"I see. Well, if you say so," Horikita sighed. "But tell us if you need assistance. Hirata-kun said he's worried."
That's so like him...
"Are you worried about me too, Horikita?" I teased.
"No, not at all... If you, yourself, are saying that everything's going as you foresaw, then I have nothing to worry about," she replied, turning away from me with a nippy expression.
I don't really know what to expect, but hopefully, everything works out on the first try. It'd be annoying to do extra work.