It has already been an hour since we were teleported into the gymnasium and forced to watch my school life in front of the entire student body on the screen. I felt a bit thirsty, so I got up and went to the corner of the theater to get a drink from the vending machine.
I observed Sudou, together with Ike and his gang, heading to the exit door. Curious, I decided to go there and ask Sudou what they were doing.
"Hm? Oh, this? We were trying to break down the door," he said as if that was just obvious. "I mean, man, even though we already know it won't open, there's no harm in trying, you know?" he added. "I still can't believe this is happening, is all. Who would've imagined some sort of monitor with mysterious power teleported us all together in this theater and then forced us to watch your life spectacle. No matter how much I imagine it, this is just not possible."
I nodded. Even with today's generation's advancements in science and the development of new technologies, there's absolutely no way that everything we've experienced is possible. A proper scientific way to approach any situation is with a calm and rational mind. But what would happen if the situation you're experiencing is beyond science's control? Even if I keep my mind in control, I'm lost in knowing what to do.
Sudou looked at me as if he wanted to say something. He opened his mouth to speak but then closed it as if he didn't know whether he should say it or not. I encouraged him to speak his mind, and that's when he finally said it.
"Ayanokouji, this has been on my mind since everything happened, but... you were the one responsible for saving me from expulsion during the midterm exam, right?"
I didn't know how he came to that conclusion, but with every action of mine being revealed on the screen, there was no point in hiding it. So, I nodded.
"I knew it," he laughed awkwardly. "I mean, with you and your actions being shown on the screen, it would be dumb for me not to be suspicious about it, after all." He explained further, "Back then, when I asked Horikita what she did to save me from being expelled, she just kept quiet, implying she's hiding something." He concluded. "I don't know what you did, man, but you've saved me from expulsion twice. Thanks."
I found Sudou's reaction quite interesting. I had expected him to potentially lash out or deny it, insisting that it was Horikita who saved him. However, the Sudou in front of me was different from the Sudou I knew. He reacted unexpectedly and acted differently. While he may be partially right about my involvement, I then explained to him that Horikita had also helped him to prevent his expulsion, offering half of a hundred thousand points just to buy him a point to pass the exam. Hearing this, I noticed his mood changed greatly. He put his arm on my shoulder and said he would work hard to repay me and Horikita once he had enough points.
"Geez. Having friends sure is nice," he said as he returned to his seat with his gang, giving up on trying to open the door.
"Chiyabashira-sensei," I began, my tone firm but not unkind, "eavesdropping on your students' conversation is not a good practice."
Chiyabashira-sensei, realizing she'd been caught, approached me as the others left.
"Ayanokouji, what are you going to do now?" she asked, her tone strict but I could sense the underlying anxiety and concern in her voice.
I understood her intent in following me, and I replied, "Isn't it obvious? I'll stop helping the class."
Chiyabashira-sensei appeared shocked for a moment before regaining her composure.
With no more leverage over me, I felt free to make my own choices. I had no intention of helping the class any longer. Depending on what unfolded next, students might grow wary of me, or worse, target me. My peaceful life had already been disrupted by this strange ordeal, and I had no intention of letting it continue.
I turned to return to my seat, but Chiyabashira-sensei reached out and grabbed my hand, desperate to prevent me from walking away.
"You have incredible talent... With your abilities alone, you could easily lead the class to Class A... Why are you wasting your opportunity and talent by staying in the shadows?" If she was this desperate to seek students' help, it meant she was truly determined to reach Class A.
I remained silent, offering no response to her question. She must have realized that I had no intention of providing an answer, so she let go of my arm. I turned towards my seat, leaving the quiet Chiyabashira-sensei alone, in silence.
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I made myself comfortable as I was about to sit in my seat, and the timing couldn't have been more perfect as I watched the screen turning on.
Horikita looked at me, noticing there were some changes in my demeanor, but realizing it wasn't her business to ask, she turned her attention back to the screen as the monitor began playing the video. 'Good.'
Before 9 pm. I stood up from the computer after checking the weather for tomorrow.
"Hey," Ike excitedly jumped in, piquing the interest of Sudou and Yamauchi.
"Wouldn't you guys like it if we also got shown on the screen too?" he said to his friends in particular.
"I mean, we also hung out with Ayanokouji from time to time, so it wouldn't be a surprise if we might get some screen time too," he said, the two nodding.
He continued, "Don't you think it's the perfect opportunity for us to get the attention of the girls and maybe find girlfriends?"
He said as he nodded, thinking his plan was great. Remembering what would happen next, I started to pity Ike.
Something rarely seen happened, Ike phoned me. A rarely seen situation from someone wouldn't call me once in a month.
"Hey, Ayanokouji, have you woken up?"
Ike, seeing himself on the screen, wore an enthusiastic look as he pointed repeatedly at the screen, shouting, "See, see, that's what I meant!"
Those who are sleeping at this time can only be students that has spent the whole night preparing for an exam and the busy staff workers.
"What time is it?" A girl named Sando from class B asked.
"We don't know for sure, but judging by how it's dark outside, and there's no sign of the sun showing up, then it's probably midnight " Hamaguchi replied.
Horikita narrowed her eyes, "That's strange. You guys don't usually go to school early, just barely in time. How do you guys spend your time before attending?"
Sudou, Yamauchi, Ijūin, and Miyamoto exchanged gazes as if sending signals. I noticed sweat starting to bead on their foreheads as they glanced at their oblivious friend, Ike.
"K-kanji..."
"Actually, I'm worrying about what should I have for dessert tonight."
"Dessert?" muttered students as they couldn't comprehend what Ike was saying.
Several seconds of silence followed. Those who immediately got it started laughing sheepishly and blushing while those who didn't began asking questions but received no reply.
"You called him in the early morning just for that?" Shinohara asked, confused by Ike's actions. Ike was sweating so much it looked like he could fill a bucket, metaphorically of course.
"W-well," Ike tried to say something but couldn't find the words. He must've wanted to attract attention, but not in this way. Some of the guys were looking at him in pity. Shinohara and the girls started to become suspicious of his behavior but said nothing as they watched the scene unfold.
"Don't call me for these things... haven't you had dinner yet?"
I remembered that the dining hall of the dorm closes at 9pm. The remaining options would be only the convenience store.
"Why would he want to eat dessert so much late at night?? It could lead to stomach pain and discomfort, as far as I know," more and more girls started questioning.
The guys looked at me with eyes filled with purity, as one would look at a child.
Horikita looked at me as if she was assessing me and then said, "Shocking, I didn't know you were this innocent. Even I, for once, understood the meaning he was implying. Or were you just pretending you didn't know?"
I shook my head. "At first, I had no clue what he was talking about. I understand it now."
That was a fact. The outside world was still a mystery to me, and there was a lot for me to learn and discover.
"Idiot, it's not that, it's the dessert all men desire. Do you understand me?"
"The dessert all men desire..."
The girls echoed Ike's words, and as if realizing their implications, they started blushing furiously and glared at Ike while insulting him. "L-lewd!" one of them cried. "Pervert!" another shouted. "Ugh, it's better if he could just die," another one said.
'Isn't that a bit too much?'
Ike looked gloomy, and the boys just watched helplessly.
The dessert all men desire? ...
Is there something that tastes differently because of being of a different gender?
Unfortunately, I've never heard of it.
Hasabe nodded, seeing my reaction, "Hm. Hm. Ayanon so pure," and Miyake along with Hirata laughed along.
"Ayanokouji. You are being a more and more boring man."
I was hurt since it was a friend who said this without consideration. Although I know I'm boring, but being said this directly in the face I will still take it to the heart.
"Don't expect other people to be as perverted as you," Shinohara directed her anger towards Ike, looking in disgust. I couldn't help but notice that since their dispute during the island exam, they began to argue more.
"S-sorry," Ike resigned himself, cowering from fear due to all the attention he was receiving.
"You have just stood up from the computer, right? Then let me provide you with a special dessert."
He sent me something through the chat window of the Internet phone call program based on p2p technology. Inside he pasted a strangely large URL. Is this the dessert?
Horikita observed me on the screen with a strange expression, as if she had never seen this side of me before. The girls stopped glaring at Ike, sighing to themselves, as they realized they couldn't do anything about his perverted nature anymore.
"Why don't you open it and take a look? It's the best dessert after all."
The boys pretended not to be interested, fearing the wrath of the girls, but their curiosity got the better of them as they started to become intrigued by what was coming next. The girls noticed but decided to let them be, muttering comments like, "Boys are really are perverted"
Well, they're not entirely wrong. Men are that simple of creatures after all.
Still harboring suspicions, I tried to click it, and it showed the contents of the link.
What appeared was the picture of my classmate Sakura Airi in swimsuit. It was hard to believe someone at her same age would possess a body with such a developed chest and a slender waist.
"H-HUHHH?!!!" The startled girl in the picture let out a high-pitched shriek, catching the attention of the entire theater. Her unexpected cameo on the screen had left her red-faced with embarrassment.
The boys, upon hearing her outburst, quickly averted their gazes from her rather noticeable features. Meanwhile, the girls in the audience couldn't help but cast envious glances at her appearance. The entire student body shifted their focus to where Sakura Airi was sitting, visibly distressed, as she clutched her body tightly while enduring the stares of her classmates.
Realizing how uncomfortable she felt, the audience promptly redirected their attention to the next scene.
"Dude, you're really in trouble now" Yamauchi remarked for the first time. In just one scene, Ike had become the object of resentment for all the women in the audience, and if more scenes were to be shown, his comrades Sudou, Yamauchi, and the others would likely face a similar fate.
"You don't need to tell me..." replied the disheartened Ike from his seat.
I reckon no matter what type of gentleman they are, their gazes would be glued to the screen.
"I found her homepage. This photo was taken during third year of middle school. Can you believe it?"
"Ahh... I see. Not only is he perverted, but he's also a stalker as well," Karuizawa retorted, glaring at Ike. While she may not be particularly close to Sakura, she's still a girl, and it's only natural to feel angry when you find out someone uses your pictures to fulfill their inappropriate desires.
Unbelievable... even high school student figures pale in comparison to this.
But after seeing this I've finally understood. So by dessert he was referring to this...
I think from this point on, Ike's high school life is effectively over. He's now bound to face considerable difficulties in finding a girlfriend. He suffered a fate no man would ever wanted to. He probably never anticipated this happening at all, and who could blame him? If I weren't witnessing it myself, I might not believe it either.
"Think about it calmly, isn't this super good? After all, we have a magazine idol in the class! If paired with this picture, you'll have all kinds of delusions."
"Idol? Sakura-san was an idol?"
"Wait, we have an idol in our class?"
"She looks so different from those pictures."
"Who knew she could be this pretty?" murmurs circulated among my classmates, stirring their curiosity.
"A-um...," Sakura struggled to speak, visibly uncomfortable with the sudden attention. Socially awkward, she couldn't handle the gazes of her schoolmates. Sudou, Ike, Yamauchi, Horikita, Ichinose, and Kushida, though aware of her past, remained silent, deeming it not their place to speak.
Her eyes met mine, silently asking for my help. I decided to take a bold step.
"Sakura, as you can see, used to be an idol in the past. She went by the name 'Shizuku' in the modeling agencies, but she stopped updating her page as soon as we were admitted into this school," I explained. "She's a bit uncomfortable talking about it, especially in a large crowd, so I advised that we should be considerate, especially when the topic is about her previous job as an idol."
It seemed like everyone understood, and they stopped bombarding Sakura with questions. I noticed Sakura muttering a quiet thanks under her breath, feeling embarrassed. I waved back to indicate that I didn't mind.
Hasabe patted me on the back. "Wow, Ayanon, what you did there was surprisingly daring," she said, winking. "Good job." Hasabe, who also had a well-developed figure and shared Sakura's self-consciousness, seemed to appreciate my support.
Even if you said it as if you were bragging about, I'm still unable to understand this type of emotion.
Feeling happy by having a cute girl in the same class and feeling happier when you can meet her... I still don't quite understand the proper state of mind of boys and girls.
It was evident to the faces of the students that they do not understand what I'm thinking about, but they refrained from commenting on it. I continued watching the screen, observing the next scene.
Leaving my thoughts aside, Ike was staring alone to the picture in high spirits.
What would Sakura think, if she knew she was being treated as dessert?
This question wasn't just for Sakura, but for every girl.
The girls thought about it and unexpectedly became furious, fuming at the mere idea of it.
I bet it wouldn't be "I'm already used to it" and call it a day.
But let's forget about it... for the moment let's save this picture. Saving this picture is not doing bad things.
Each of the girls looked at me, trying to understand my intention for saving it, and they concluded that I had no ill intentions, based on my thoughts during the past minute. They let it slide.
Ike looked at me with teary eyes, wondering why he was the only one facing the wrath of the girls when I, who also saved her pictures, didn't.
It reminded me of a book mentioning how your actions define how others perceive and treat you, and it seemed to be true.
From the corner of my eye, Sakura appeared even more embarrassed, darting her eyes around as she muttered something I couldn't hear.
"Heh~" Hasabe smirked as she watched Sakura's reaction, as if finding it interesting.
While paying attention to not let Ike discover it, I put the picture inside a folder.
After the video, we watched as Kanji Ike begged for forgiveness from the girls, as he was at their mercy for 30 minutes.
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