Chapter 121: Summer is Coming

Not far behind them, several girls also watched their merriment.

Kita looked ahead with a complex expression, her gaze faintly tinged with regret and a sigh.

Just a moment later, a friend's question reached her ears.

"Kita-chan, are you really dating Ishikawa-kun?"

She quickly came back to her senses and turned to look at her friend beside her.

Tamako looked at her with suspicious and worried eyes, appearing to have doubted the truth of this information for a long time.

Kita's heart had long been tempered by the major events she faced with the band until now.

She answered with a calm smile.

"Ah, of course. Ishikawa-kun is quite fun to be with."

"Even if he's a playboy, it's fine?"

Beside her, Megumi frowned and continued to ask in unison, as if she and Tamako had already discussed it privately.

Kita instinctively asserted,

"How could that be fine!"

Kita's other friend, Tsuguko, smiled reassuringly at her expression and said to the other two,

"Kita-chan must have her own plans. No need to worry unnecessarily. She’s practically been missing at lunchtime this whole semester.”

After she finished speaking, she smiled mischievously at Kita and said, "So, have you decided how you want to spend the summer?"

"Summer..."

Kita repeated it wistfully, quickly realizing her reaction was abnormal, and put on a sunny smile.

"Of course, I'm ready."

...

Back in the classroom, Ishikawa Hayato constantly felt Kita's gaze on him.

Even when the teacher was assigning summer homework, and when the teacher was explaining summer safety tips.

Although the gaze stopped at times, it was intermittent and never ceased.

It made Ishikawa Hayato almost unable to suppress his true nature, wanting to take off his clothes and show himself off on the spot.

Fortunately, the teacher's rambling did come to an end.

Before finishing, he called out the names of the students who failed the final exams, reminding them to study diligently before the next semester.

Otherwise, they would enter the hell of after-school tutoring and retakes.

Kita's name was among them.

When Ishikawa Hayato heard the teacher call Kita's name, he looked back at Kita, only to meet her gaze.

Kita's distracted gaze immediately withdrew, and she turned her head, sitting upright and proper.

It seemed she hadn't heard.

Ishikawa Hayato sighed.

"Well then, I won't take up your precious holiday time anymore." The teacher smiled gracefully, picked up his textbook, and turned to walk out of the classroom.

Immediately, the students, who could no longer hold back, loudly chatted with their friends, discussing their holiday plans.

Some even packed their bags and quickly left.

One could even hear someone already catching up to the teacher, greeting him and leaving.

And amidst the noisy sounds, Ishikawa Hayato received a Line message.

[ Ishikawa-kun, please come to the rooftop later. ]

...

As students gradually left the classroom, Ishikawa Hayato sent a message to Hitori, telling her to wait, and then walked up the stairs.

Against the flow of students leaving school, he headed towards the rooftop.

Upon reaching the platform in front of the rooftop, he could see the gloomy sky outside through the rooftop door.

With such a gloomy sky, it wouldn't be surprising if heavy rain fell at any moment.

"Kita, you really like the rooftop, don't you?"

Ishikawa Hayato walked onto the rooftop and turned to the side, only then seeing Kita standing on the farthest side from him, with her back to him.

Under the gloomy clouds, her back figure reflected a restless emotion.

One hand rested on the protective netting, while the other subtly pressed against her skirt.

But even so, her back collar, cuffs, hem, and skirt hem swayed gently in the wind.

Kita did not reply.

She remained motionless, and Ishikawa Hayato was unsure if she had heard his voice.

He walked over.

He walked next to Kita, tilted his head, and looked at her as she gazed at the various residential buildings in front of her.

Her distant gaze was hesitant.

Ishikawa Hayato speculated whether this girl was starting to aim for a poetic character. 

With the intention of teasing her, he said while mixing in complicated emotions, "Summer has begun."

This statement seems perfectly normal, but coming so soon after the Minor Heat solar term, it sounds a bit odd.

This sentence seemed normal, but given that the heat of midsummer had only just recently passed, it sounded a bit odd.

Kita finally reacted.

She turned her head and looked at Ishikawa Hayato beside her, who had an expression as if waiting for her to say something astonishing.

She put aside her inner turmoil and retorted, "Summer started a long time ago."

Ishikawa Hayato's eyes widened in surprise as he countered, "Shouldn't you be saying that this hot season will bring disaster?"

Kita’s expression grew complicated.

She realized Ishikawa Hayato was making fun of her.

For a moment, the impulsive thought she had in class was overshadowed by the wind on this open rooftop and Ishikawa Hayato's teasing.

She re-examined her turbulent heart.

After much hesitation, she still felt she shouldn't do it and chose to give up once more.

She said nothing, preparing to leave Ishikawa Hayato and quickly depart.

Just as her shoes scraped against the path to return back inside, Ishikawa Hayato's voice, now much more serious, rang out.

"High school summers hide wonders. If you don't let loose a bit now, you'll only become a boring person with no past later."

Ishikawa Hayato's single sentence rekindled the flame in Kita's heart that had been gradually extinguishing.

Kita turned around, looking aggrieved and helpless with him.

She didn't know if Ishikawa Hayato had seen what she was hesitating about to say this.

But looking into the eyes of this uninhibited and handsome young man under the gloomy clouds, her emotions suddenly overwhelmed her rationality.

This was the first time Ishikawa Hayato had seen Kita hesitate to this extent.

Usually, Kita made decisions quickly, acting as swiftly as her name suggested, but this time, she lowered her head with a complex expression, hesitated for a long time, and then looked up to meet his eyes.

As their gazes met, Ishikawa Hayato saw that she had finally made up her mind.

Kita asked solemnly, "Ishikawa-kun, are you currently dating anyone?"

Is this... a confession?

Ishikawa Hayato was a little surprised.

Although he had anticipated this possibility, he still underestimated Kita's straightforwardness.

He tentatively answered, assuming it was a confession, "If you're asking about a truly confirmed girlfriend, then no, not yet."

Kita had no doubts about his answer.

She nodded slightly, withdrew her gaze, and murmured softly, "Hmm, that's fine."

Then, as she had prepared in her heart, she used all her strength and shouted, "Ishikawa-kun! Please go out with me!"

She shouted, bowing down, releasing all her emotions while hiding her insecurity.

It really was a confession.

Ishikawa Hayato was a little surprised by Kita's straightforward attack.

As for his answer, although he preferred to be the one to initiate rather than be confessed to by a girl, he couldn't refuse the confession of Harem Member Number Two for that reason.

But just as he was about to accept, Kita, still with her head down, hurriedly threw out her subsequent thoughts.

"But this relationship has a time limit. When Ishikawa-kun starts dating Ryo-senpai or Gotou-san, our relationship will automatically end."

Her anxious explanation, however, gave the impression of a well-thought-out decision.

Ishikawa Hayato was dumbfounded and amused.

Was she treating him like a host, dating in sequence?

It seemed Kita was the one who had the hardest time accepting the harem situation.

He sighed and said, "I mean, Kita, starting a relationship with the intention of it being short-term won't lead to anything good."

Kita looked up at Ishikawa Hayato in surprise, her eyes wide with astonishment, and slowly stood straight, staring blankly at him.

Clearly surprised by Ishikawa Hayato's answer, after all, this was a solution she had seriously considered, believing it would satisfy her desires without hurting others.

She had originally thought that a harem scumbag like Ishikawa Hayato would agree without a second thought, but she didn't expect him to be so serious at this moment.

Kita blinked, her expression gradually becoming disappointed.

"Ah... yes, I suppose so. Such a strange relationship."

She pursed her lips, took a breath, and turned to prepare to flee.

"However, if Kita thinks it's fine, then dating you is acceptable."

Kita didn't know if her emotion was annoyance or pleasant surprise, but she definitely harbored indignation at Ishikawa Hayato still teasing her at this moment.

But when she turned back, she didn't see Ishikawa Hayato's playful expression.

His face held both happiness and hesitation.

It was as if he was troubled by her choice, yet happy about her confession.

Realizing that he wasn't teasing her, Kita's anger immediately subsided, but she still put on a strong front and said, "If you don't want it, just refuse!"

"How could I not want it? You've been called Concubine Number Two for so long now."

Ishikawa Hayato cheerfully showed a teasing smile.

However, he uncomfortably brushed his fringe back, leaned against the guardrail, and sighed, "But my first relationship, it's actually one with a visible end point, sigh..."

He sounded very helpless as he spoke.

Kita looked at him strangely.

If she hadn't heard from his younger sister and his past friends that he had truly never had a girlfriend, she wouldn't have believed that Ishikawa Hayato's romantic history was a blank slate.

Someone as easygoing and free-spirited as him, shouldn't he have lost count of how many girlfriends he'd had?

The thought of becoming his first girlfriend made her heart skip a beat.

She retorted with a mix of shame and indignation, "It's my first time too, stop complaining!"

Ishikawa Hayato was startled, his expression suddenly serious.

"Could you say that again with a touch of shyness, my girlfriend?"

"Huh?"

Kita's heart skipped a beat.

Hearing the words 'my girlfriend' directed at her from his mouth, she felt an irrepressible shyness and excitement.

Nothing had changed from a few minutes ago, yet she suddenly felt much lighter.

It felt like a light rain was falling outside, and she ran into a shelter, only to find the person she liked walking in from the opposite direction.

Her heart was swirling endlessly with all kinds of words, but she didn't know how to express them.

She chose to respond to Ishikawa Hayato's earlier request first.

"It's my first..."

As Kita spoke, she suddenly realized, and her gaze turned to Ishikawa Hayato with immense disdain.

"I won't satisfy your lewd thoughts!"

Ishikawa Hayato chuckled regretfully.

While he was quiet, an irrepressible smile appeared on Kita's face.

With her hands behind her back, she walked to his side with a thief-like lightness, standing with him in front of the guardrail.

Standing beside Ishikawa Hayato, she cleverly tilted her head to steal a glance at Ishikawa Hayato, then lowered her head.

Her tiptoes nervously tapped the ground, making a muffled sound.

She turned her head and asked, "So, are we dating now?"

Ishikawa Hayato stood quietly in place, almost excessively so.

He replied, "Mm, of course."

Kita's eyes curved into crescent moons, but she still reminded him, "This news can't be told to anyone else."

Ishikawa Hayato didn't understand the meaning of her actions and grumbled, "A secret lover?"

Kita felt teased and said angrily, "Don't nag. If it's exposed, you'll be the only one in trouble, right?"

"I'm not afraid at all."

"That's true, you are a pervert after all."

"Hello, this pervert's girlfriend~"

Ishikawa Hayato's jab silenced Kita.

She looked conflicted, wanting to retort but unable to find the words, and bit her lip, accepting defeat.

Ishikawa Hayato looked at her indignant expression, chuckled, then detached from the casual conversation, reining in some of his smile.