Pranks and Lead - 7

I finished showering and came out, putting on the clothes I had prepared beforehand. 'I packed a shirt, skirt, and underwear, but the rest is a problem.' I looked at the vest and coat I was wearing before I showered. The vest was fine, but the coat was covered in sand and dust. 'Even though I shook it off outside, it's still like this. I can't wear the coat until it's washed......' I held the coat in my hand, left the shower room, and headed to the Foreclosure Task Force room. 'Ah, I didn't tie my hair. ......Nonomi said she'd give me a hair tie, so I guess it's okay. By the way, I wonder if a hair tie is a rubber band?' As I was thinking about the hair tie and returning to the Foreclosure Task Force room, Nonomi immediately approached me as if she had been waiting and showed me what she was holding. "Line-chan, Line-chan. What do you think this is~?" "Uh... What is this...?" I was startled by Nonomi suddenly closing the distance and took a step back, but I looked at Nonomi's hand to answer her question. However, the object Nonomi was holding was something I had never seen before, and I couldn't figure out its purpose, so I ended up asking her what it was instead. What Nonomi was holding was a black, wide, and thin band, but strangely, only one end widened, narrowed, widened again, and then suddenly stopped, forming an oval and a semi-oval. "Right? You don't know, do you? But if you fold the center of this round part like this... Ta-da! It's shaped like a butterfly! How about it? Isn't it amazing?" When Nonomi folded the oval in half to make it a semi-oval, the arcs of the two semi-ovals were attached to each other, forming a butterfly shape. I was surprised and amazed that an unidentifiable, strange shape could be transformed into a completely different shape by simply folding it in half, and that I could now recognize its true identity. "...It's really amazing." "Right? This is called a bow tie. Don't you think it could be used to tie hair if it's properly altered?" "Tie hair with a tie?" "Yes! I know it sounds strange since neckties aren't meant for tying hair, but if you think of it as a ribbon instead of a necktie, it's not strange at all!" "Uhe~, why don't you two come inside instead of standing there in the doorway~" "That's right. Come on in, Line-chan." Before I could even react to Nonomi's idea, I was dragged into the room by her hand. Sewing tools such as scissors, thread, and needles were already prepared on the desk in the room, and I neatly folded the coat I was holding and put it in my bag while looking at Nonomi. "First, I'll cut the string a bit since it's too long to be used for tying hair." "Wait a minute. Won't that make it unusable as a tie anymore? Is it okay to just cut it like that?" Seeing Nonomi picking up the scissors and about to cut the tie, I stopped her, worried that I might be ruining a perfectly good tie for no reason. "It's okay~ We found that in the abandoned stuff in the old school building anyway~" "And none of us would use a bow tie, so you don't have to worry about it." Hoshino and Serika explained why it was okay. However, I still couldn't shake the feeling that it was a waste to use a tie just to tie my hair, so I couldn't easily speak. "You don't have to hold back. Everyone is grateful that you stepped up for us." But in the end, Ayane's words convinced me. The students of Abydos were grateful to me and wanted to do something for me, even if it meant using a tie. I had downplayed my actions, saying it was just out of a sense of justice and that it was easily accomplished. Then, I had carelessly assumed that it would be the same for others. However, I had no right to force the students of Abydos to downplay my actions. And the evaluation of my actions by the students of Abydos should be entirely up to their own will. "If it's an expression of gratitude, then I can't refuse any longer...... Then, please go ahead." Therefore, I no longer stopped the students of Abydos from appreciating my actions and expressing their gratitude. I simply quietly resolved to repay them someday, as much as I felt I had received more than I deserved. "Okay then, since Line-chan has given her permission, let's get started~!" With that, Nonomi started altering it with a powerful voice, and the scissors made a cheerful sound as they cut the tie. It was a bold, confident cut without hesitation. After a few more cuts and stitches, the alteration was quickly finished, and Nonomi called me over to tie my hair. It took about the same amount of time as I had hesitated and been reluctant after hearing about altering the tie. "First, I'll brush your hair before tying it ♧" I approached and sat in the seat in front of Nonomi, who had turned her chair to the side, and Nonomi stroked my hair and brushed it with a comb. I could feel Nonomi's soft touch through my long hair. "Okay, all done. How is it? Isn't it pretty?" After a while, Nonomi tied my hair and then showed me the tied part using two mirrors. In the mirror, I saw a neat black butterfly ribbon on the back of my head. It didn't look like a tie at all. "......How did you tie it?" "Hehe, you like it, don't you? Okay, I'll teach you carefully~" Even though it was called an alteration, she had only cut the long string and trimmed the ends, and it still looked like a strange band at first glance, so I was very curious how it had turned into such a neat butterfly ribbon. Since I had no idea what the result would be before seeing it tied, I couldn't hide the fact that I liked it after seeing the result. "Heeh~ It turned out cuter than I thought. Is it because the owner is cute?" "W-What? Cute...?" "Huh? What, what, did you not know you were cute? When you sparkle your eyes like that and look so happy, anyone would think that, you know? It's like your tail is wagging." "What...?" I was bewildered by Hoshino's words. I was surprised that Hoshino would say such playful things, but what bewildered me was the meaning of those playful words. If Hoshino's words were true, it meant that my appearance just now was perceived that way by those around me. I looked around at the others with a hopeful heart. I looked around, thinking that maybe only Hoshino thought that way. But all I saw were the students of Abydos and Sensei looking at me with happy expressions. "......" I covered my face with both hands and hung my head low. "What, did you really not know? I thought our Line-chan was trying to be cute, but she's just really cute, you know?" "Ugh, ughhhhh...!!" I couldn't stand the embarrassment and Hoshino's teasing any longer, and wanting to crawl into a hole, I got off the chair with my hands still covering my face and crawled under the desk, crouching down. "Hiding like that will only make your cuteness stand out more, you know~" "Senpai, don't tease her too much! Line's had enough!" "Aha, sorry, sorry. Line-chan's reaction was just too cute." 'She said sorry, but she's still calling me cute!' I was starting to get angry at Hoshino, who kept teasing me and calling me cute even though she said she was sorry. Some teasing could be taken as a sign of affection, so I could accept it happily. But if the teasing continued incessantly, it would be quite distressing for me. "......" I took a deep, quiet breath, came out from under the desk, and sat back in the chair. But unlike before, I turned my gaze to the side, away from Hoshino, and kept a blank expression on my face. "Oh......? Line-chan, are you mad?" "......" I didn't answer Hoshino's question and sat still, keeping my gaze fixed away from her. "Ah...... I made her mad after all." "It seems Line-san is the type to become quiet when she's angry..." "Uhe...... I didn't mean for this to happen......" I wasn't that angry. But I was so annoyed by the teasing that I didn't want to be teased any longer. So, I decided to act like I was angry to stop the teasing. "I'm sorry, Line-chan. I got a little too excited." "Yeah...... Hoshino-senpai went too far this time. Line, Hoshino-senpai is reflecting on her actions. So please accept her apology." "......Okay. I'm sorry for suddenly getting angry." Since I wasn't that angry, I immediately accepted Hoshino's sincere apology. But hearing such a sincere apology so unexpectedly made me feel uncomfortable, as if I had acted like I was angry for no reason. "It's okay. Thank you for apologizing." "Hmm~ A good girl who can forgive others' mistakes and apologize for her own should be praised, right? Here you go ♧" Then, Nonomi suddenly hugged me. I was so surprised by Nonomi's large chest suddenly approaching and covering my face that I froze and remained still. I had no idea how to deal with this sudden situation, and to make matters worse, Nonomi even started gently stroking my head. In the end, I gave up on resisting and just relaxed my body, letting Nonomi do whatever she wanted. As I entrusted my body to Nonomi's warm embrace, my uncomfortable feeling disappeared, and I gradually began to feel more at ease. "If you ask the kids at Abydos nicely and honestly, they will listen to you, okay?" While this was happening, Nonomi whispered to me in a small voice that only I could hear, and it seemed she had seen through the fact that my acting like I was angry was half an act. "Uuu...... Don't tease me too much...... It's annoying......" "I'll keep that in mind~" In the end, I tearfully confessed my honest feelings to Nonomi's words, and Hoshino answered slyly as the sound echoed and spread from Nonomi's embrace. It seemed that the students of Abydos would not be easy to deal with.