Starting from Their Seventeen Years Old

She watched as the two of them carried their bowls and plates over to the sink together.

Hayase Kinue, Komoe-sensei, and Douraku-sensei exchanged glances among themselves.

Once everything was tidied up, Tsushima Kagami and Yukinoshita Shizuku headed back to their room together.

They'd barely settled onto the sofa in the living room before Yukinoshita Shizuku spoke up, watching Tsushima Kagami reach for the remote to turn on the TV.

"Kagami, don't you think Kinue-nee and Komoe-sensei and Douraku-sensei have been giving you some weird looks?"

"Have they?"

"If you ask me, the look you've been giving me lately is way weirder!"

"What are you even talking about?"

"I'm being completely serious!"

Yukinoshita Shizuku reached over and pinched Tsushima Kagami's arm.

Tsushima Kagami flopped back against the sofa cushions, remote in hand, grinning.

"Those three have always been a little eccentric. That's just how they are."

"What other kind of look would they give me?"

"Obviously the kind you'd give a junior, or a student, or a little brother."

"No, that's not it!"

Yukinoshita Shizuku hesitated.

"It's more like…"

"Like the look a predator gives its prey."

She said it with great deliberation.

Tsushima Kagami burst out laughing.

"Go on then, be a little more specific."

Yukinoshita Shizuku shot him a sideways glance, then finally took a deep breath and came out with it.

"I think Kinue-nee and Komoe-sensei and Douraku-sensei all have a thing for you!"

"And how exactly did you arrive at that?"

"It's just the way they look at you, compared to the way I…"

Yukinoshita Shizuku clapped both hands over her mouth.

"Compared to the way you what?"

Tsushima Kagami looked at her curiously. She'd cut herself off right in the middle.

"Anyway — it's woman's intuition!"

"Hahahaha!"

Tsushima Kagami started laughing for no apparent reason, and Yukinoshita Shizuku felt a surge of irritation.

"What's so funny?"

Tsushima Kagami managed to get out between laughs:

"Think about it — we mostly just ride to school with Komoe-sensei and Douraku-sensei in the mornings. We chat about school stuff every now and then. In the evenings we come back and have dinner at Kinue-nee's place. We chat about neighborhood gossip every now and then. We've barely touched on anything personal or emotional."

"How on earth would they suddenly develop feelings for me out of nowhere. All three of them, at that."

"And besides, if we're talking about who's most likely — wouldn't that be Sayuri from the Manga Research Club, or Akane-senpai, or Sonoko-senpai?"

"Those are the ones with actual grounds for suspicion."

"Besides, haven't the school paper's gossip columns been running stories about me supposedly building a harem in the Manga Research Club?"

"So has your woman's intuition picked up anything off about the way Sayuri and the others look at me?"

Yukinoshita Shizuku was reminded of that tabloid piece in the school paper a while back — the one that had made Tsushima Kagami its unlikely protagonist.

Private Ousai High School had a high degree of student autonomy, so the school paper was run by the student journalism club.

But that particular gossip piece had gone too far, and the school administration had personally stepped in to shut it down.

Every member of the journalism club had been made to write a formal apology and letter of reflection.

Yukinoshita Shizuku shook her head.

"I'm not really sure either."

"See? A moment ago you sounded completely convinced," Tsushima Kagami said.

"Now suddenly you're not sure."

"Your woman's intuition is completely unreliable."

"I think you've been reading too many court-intrigue manga lately. Cut back a little."

"Court intrigue is a corrupting influence!"

Lately, with her part-time hours reduced — and even with band practice still going — Yukinoshita Shizuku had found herself with some spare time, and she'd started working through the manga Tsushima Kagami had stashed away.

She'd gotten hooked on a few of the court-intrigue titles and had even gone out and bought a stack of them for herself.

Having it put to her like that, Yukinoshita Shizuku felt her confidence waver.

Was it really just the court-intrigue manga getting to her?

Had she completely lost the ability to tell fiction from reality?

No wonder her mother had always banned her from reading manga.

Manga really wasn't a good influence after all.

She'd cut back on the court-intrigue stuff going forward.

Oh right — Sayuri and Akane-senpai and Sonoko-senpai had said they'd lend her some girls'-oriented manga last time.

Maybe she'd give those a try instead.

Tsushima Kagami watched Yukinoshita Shizuku sitting there with a troubled, uncertain look, clearly lost in thought about something, and laughed again.

"Hey, don't go painting Kinue-nee and the teachers like they're some kind of desperate, ravenous wolves in their thirties or forties."

"Sure, they look a bit young."

"But they can't be that much older than your average college student."

"Women that age are just like that — it's their personality. You're overthinking it."

"Fine, fine — I'm overthinking it, happy?"

"By the way, even if they did have feelings for me —"

"What's the rush, Shizuku?"

"And honestly, it felt like there was a bit of hostility in what you were saying just now."

Tsushima Kagami suddenly recalled the look on Yukinoshita Shizuku's face a moment ago.

Had there been a trace of hostility there?

Yukinoshita Shizuku heard that and rushed to defend herself.

"I — I — I…"

"I'm not rushing at all!"

"And I'm definitely not hostile!"

"You say my intuition is off — I think your perceptions are off!"

"Then why did you suddenly bring it up?"

Tsushima Kagami asked again.

"Ah, well… it's just…"

Yukinoshita Shizuku scrambled for an excuse.

"As your older sister, obviously if my little brother is going to have a girlfriend, I have to vet her properly!"

"Right! I'm just doing due diligence on your behalf!"

"With your current status, you can't just let any girl get close to you."

"And have you seen the journalism club's latest report? The one about the guy next door who started dating a yandere girlfriend, couldn't take it anymore and tried to break up with her, and she nearly dragged him into a suicide pact?"

Tsushima Kagami did remember that story — it had rocked the whole school a few days ago.

"Yeah, that one."

"What if you end up with a girl like that? You'd be in serious danger."

"So I'm helping you get ahead of it. Nipping it in the bud."

"You really don't know a good thing when you see it."

Tsushima Kagami laughed when she finished.

"I keep telling you — you've read too much manga."

"How many yanderes do you think actually exist in real life?"

"There's one right at our school!"

Yukinoshita Shizuku had finally found her evidence, and launched into an argument with Tsushima Kagami with righteous indignation.

Tsushima Kagami turned off the TV, stood up, and stretched.

"Are you sick of me and going to bed?"

Yukinoshita Shizuku watched him get up.

Tsushima Kagami finished his stretch, then turned around with a smile.

"Alright then. I'll entrust my personal safety to you."

"You can be in charge of fending off any girls who fall for me and try to get close."

Yukinoshita Shizuku blinked, then tilted her head and smiled sweetly.

"Really?"

"Doesn't that mean you'll be single forever? No romance at all?"

"What kind of nonsense is that — I only care about 2D girls!"

With that, Tsushima Kagami grinned and extended his hand toward Yukinoshita Shizuku.

"Dost thou, Wen Chang, dare to bear the burden of governor?"

Yukinoshita Shizuku's smile grew wider and wider.

"Then… then I'll really do it, you know."

"Don't come crying to me later!"

Tsushima Kagami nodded.

Yukinoshita Shizuku reached out and took his hand with a satisfied, triumphant grin.

"I won't make the same mistake Wei Yan did!"

____

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