Mourning my unjust SSR loss, I noticed Reona and Riona moving to sit on either side of me.
”…There are plenty of empty seats, you know.”
“Anywhere other than here is impossible.”
“Mm-hmm. The seats next to Ryouya-kun are reserved for me and Riona. And since we’ll be in the same trip group anyway, sitting together is efficient.”
I tried to peel them off — they had pressed up against me on purpose — and failed.
I was blocked on both sides; escape was out. I wanted to punch my past self for picking the middle seat of a three-person row.
My classmates wore expressions of here we go again, but the non-classmate Kyoto students looked shocked.
Fair. Mob Character B sandwiched by two beauties is not normal-looking. Reona and Riona’s outside-class friends, who weren’t aware of context, were giving me especially harsh looks. Uncomfortable.
Homeroom started. Trip itineraries were handed out. As promised, days one and three were group activities; day two was free-time.
“Done with the overview. Form groups of three to five for day two. Tell me your members once decided.”
The teacher delivered the line that struck terror into all loners. Today, with Reona and Riona, tragedy was averted.
“Riona, Ryouya-kun, and I — I’ll tell sensei our group.”
“Confirming — that’s really fine for you two?”
”…Wait, Ryouya — you don’t want to be in our group?”
”…Tell me, specifically, why.”
Reona had stood up to report immediately, and at my question both of them turned cool eyes on me. On the surface their faces looked normal; the aura was wildly different.
I felt the same kind of pressure as standing in front of a predator. I scrambled.
“N-no, I just figured other people would also want to be in your guys’ group.”
“Don’t worry, we’ve already told everyone that we’re grouping with you and Riona, Ryouya-kun.”
“Explained the whole thing while you were enjoying yourself ignoring us.”
So that was why everyone outside our cluster had been radiating so much hate and no one had asked Reona and Riona to group with them.