An Otome Game Lead
Monday came too fast.
My body still felt heavy when I opened my eyes.
"Ugh…"
I sat up slowly, hair completely disheveled, feeling like I'd barely closed my eyes.
The weekend had been… intense.
Very intense.
…
I checked the time on my phone and all the sleep left my body instantly.
"I'M GOING TO BE LATE!!"
I jumped up and sprinted to the bathroom.
After a quick shower I put on my uniform, fixed my tie in the mirror, and tried to tame a strand of hair that absolutely refused to lie flat.
"Perfect."
…
Five seconds later it sprang back up.
"Traitor."
I splashed some water on it in resignation.
Grabbed my bag, checked I had my phone, wallet, and keys.
All set.
Checked the time.
…
My smile disappeared.
"…"
"I might need to run a little…"
I shot out of the apartment.
Fortunately I made the train.
I'm never staying up that late again.
Well.
Actually, yes I will…
I made it to school on time, but found something strange — an enormous crowd of girls packed into the middle of the hallway.
"Kyaaa!"
"Takagi-sama!"
"Look at me just once!"
"He's so handsome!"
I frowned.
"Huh?"
Another weird trend?
I tried to see over the heads but it was impossible to tell what was happening.
"Excuse me…"
"Coming through…"
"Sorry…"
I pushed through as best I could.
A girl bumped into me by accident.
Another stepped on my foot.
Someone elbowed me.
"What on earth…?"
When I finally made it out the other side…
My shoe slipped.
"Huh?"
I felt my balance go.
"Ah!"
Before I could fall…
An arm wrapped gently around my waist.
My body stopped mid-fall.
I opened my eyes.
Very close to me was a masculine face.
Red hair in a casually disheveled style.
Perfectly defined features.
A refined smile.
And eyes that looked like they'd been lifted straight out of an anime.
…
Huh?
I blinked.
He was…
Ridiculously attractive.
He even reminded me of some of the waiters from the hotel over the weekend.
No.
Maybe even more so.
I felt a small flutter in my chest.
A tiny…
Doki.
The guy smiled elegantly.
"Are you alright… milady?"
…
…
Milady?
What kind of line is that?
I opened my mouth.
"Y-yes… th-thank you…"
But he didn't even let me finish.
He took my hand with exaggerated delicacy.
"Now that I can see you up close…"
His eyes sparkled dramatically.
"You're truly beautiful."
The girls around us held their breath.
He lifted my hand slightly, like something out of a movie.
"Perhaps it was fate that brought me here."
"Because an angel like you should never have to touch the ground."
Another explosion of screams.
"KYAAAAAAA!"
"So romantic!"
"I want him to say that to me!"
I, on the other hand…
…could only stare at him with a completely blank expression.
What…?
What's wrong with this guy?
Am I inside an otome game?
Because he definitely looks like the main character.
I smiled uncomfortably.
"U-um…"
"Thank you so much for helping me…"
I moved my arm slightly.
"B-but…"
"You can let go now… heh…"
He kept holding on.
Same brilliant smile.
Clearly waiting for some kind of romantic reaction.
"Hello?"
I moved my arm again.
Nothing.
I took a deep breath.
"…"
"LET GO OF ME, YOU IDIOT!"
Silence.
The girls stopped screaming.
The guy went completely still.
His smile froze.
Like he'd just taken a critical hit directly to the ego.
I took advantage of those seconds.
Pulled my arm back.
Stepped away.
Adjusted my bag.
"Well… thank you again."
I turned around.
"W-wait!"
No.
Not a chance.
"S-Sorry, I'm in a bit of a hurry."
I gave a small bow and held back the urge to run.
What a strange guy…
When I got to class, Mei looked up from her book and gave me that calm smile that always seemed to turn the volume down on the world.
"Good morning, Aika-san."
"Good morning."
I dropped my bag on my desk and let out a sigh.
"Did something happen?"
"I just ran into the main character of an otome game."
She tilted her head slightly.
"Main character?"
"He was a very strange guy."
Mei let out a small laugh.
"Maybe you attract weird people, Aika-san."
"Hey, I do not!"
She brought a hand to her mouth to hold back another laugh while I looked at her indignantly.
"I'm joking, the school is full of strange boys."
I nodded with great solemnity.
"Exactly, I don't know what's wrong with boys these days," I said, crossing my arms like an old woman reminiscing about her youth.
…Although, honestly…
…I'm not exactly normal either.
And that only made me sigh again.
Lunch came before I could notice, and Mei invited me to eat with her.
We were talking quietly while we ate when, suddenly…
"Hi, Aika. Hi, Hirano-san."
I gave a small jump in my seat.
"Kanz—!"
I nearly choked on a piece of broccoli and had to chug my water bottle to survive. Then I cleared my throat.
"…Yuuna, you almost killed me."
"You startle too easily."
She sat down across from us with complete naturalness.
"It's because you appear out of nowhere!"
"Is that a complaint?"
"N-no… you just surprise me."
Yuuna gave a small satisfied "hm" as she opened her lunch.
That's when I noticed Mei had stopped eating.
She was watching us in silence.
"You two… have gotten very close lately."
I felt a pang of nerves.
"H-have we? I-I hadn't even noticed…"
I let out an awkward little laugh.
Yuuna rested her arm on the edge of the table.
"It's only natural."
She took a bite before continuing.
"There shouldn't be any formality between friends."
She said it with a small air of pride.
That's when I saw Mei slowly lower her utensils.
She tightened her hands into little fists.
"Mei-san?… Are you okay?"
She took a deep breath.
And then suddenly…
BAM!
Both hands hit the table.
"I-I don't want any either!"
The entire cafeteria went quiet for a moment.
Several people turned to look at us.
Mei's eyes went wide.
Her face turned completely red.
"Ah…!"
She sat back down with a start.
"S-Sorry…"
She lowered her head, completely mortified.
In a much smaller voice she murmured:
"I-I don't want any formality… between us either…"
I blinked several times.
Was that what bothered her?
…
I couldn't help smiling.
"W-well… okay then…"
I looked at her directly.
"Mei."
It was almost magical.
Her embarrassed expression vanished instantly.
Her eyes lit up with a smile from ear to ear.
"Thank you, Aika!"
"N-no need to thank me, heh."
Does the name really matter that much to her?
W-well.
It doesn't matter, I'm glad to see her happy.
Yuuna spoke up too.
"Hmm…"
She turned toward Mei with a small mischievous smile.
"Then there shouldn't be any formality between us either."
She made a deliberate pause.
"Don't you think… Mei-chan?"
Mei went rigid again.
"Huh?"
Her cheeks colored again.
"I-I suppose… not…"
She lowered her gaze slightly.
"…Yuuna."
She said it with a certain shyness.
Yuuna smiled, satisfied.
She rested a hand against her cheek.
"How delightful."
She even let out a small laugh.
I couldn't help sighing.
"Yuuna, don't tease Mei."
"What's wrong with it?"
She shrugged.
"It's fun."
And she laughed again.
Mei made a small pout, though she ended up laughing too.
…
When classes ended, the three of us met up to walk to the drama club together.
We were talking about nothing in particular when we opened the club room door.
And then…
"…"
"…"
My feet stopped dead.
Huh…?
What is he doing here?
The red-haired guy from the morning was there, talking casually with Harada.
Right beside me I heard a faint…
Tch.
I turned my head slightly.
Yuuna had just clicked her tongue.
…Huh?
Why did she do that?
Before I could ask her…
The guy opened his arms dramatically.
"Milady!"
Several people in the club turned to look at us.
He walked directly toward me.
"Did you come looking for me?"
He brought a hand to his chest dramatically.
"I knew our destiny couldn't keep us apart so easily."
"…"
…What on earth is going on here?