Chapter 431

I bought Popcorn, iced coffee, and a cola at the School Store. Renka walked up just as I finished, and I tipped my chin at the tickets in her hand.

"What movie is it?"

"Action."

"What's the rating?"

Instead of answering, she pointed at a poster on the wall.

An R15+ sticker was plastered across the bottom of the poster, which featured a handsome man and a beautiful woman standing back to back.

That meant it was going to be fairly violent and provocative.

I nodded and glanced at the coffee in my left hand.

"Take this."

"Yeah."

Renka gave a lackluster reply, took the coffee, and showed our tickets to the staff member at the entrance to the Screening Room.

We stepped into the Screening Room and took our seats in the corner.

She knew my preferences and had booked these seats on purpose.

"Give me the Popcorn. I'll hold it."

"No, it's fine."

"Just give it."

Renka snatched the bucket of Popcorn right out of my arms and settled it on her lap.

I was supposed to be enjoying giving her the cold shoulder, so why did I feel guilty?

Was it because it was painfully obvious how she was walking on eggshells around me?

No, it was probably because her usual snappy attitude was completely missing today.

This cold-shoulder routine was just me being selfish.

Sure, the goal was to teach her a lesson since she'd been nothing but prickly lately and barely showed any affection, but that still fell under the category of selfishness.

Because of that, I needed to drop it before she got truly hurt, but figuring out where to draw that line was difficult.

If I acted too cold, she would be beside herself with anxiety.

Given her personality—putting up a tough front while being soft and fiercely proud on the inside—she would probably just suffer in silence.

But if I let her off the hook, she would just go right back to her tsundere ways... My worries deepened.

"Hey."

Renka called out to me while I sat there lost in thought, my elbow resting on the armrest.

"What is it?"

"Don't get any weird ideas. Just watch the movie."

Mhmm. Right when I was starting to feel sorry for her, she threw a jab like that.

I almost went soft... Pathetic.

This was definitely the right way to handle her.

Steeling my resolve, I chuckled without even glancing at her.

"I won't."

"Why?"

"Because you told me not to?"

"You aren't that kind of guy."

"What kind of guy am I?"

"...Forget it. Anyway, it's a relief you won't."

"Right."

The armrest I was leaning on was on the outside edge.

Because of that, my body naturally leaned the other way, putting distance between us.

It made it look like I was intentionally keeping my distance.

I hadn't done it on purpose; it just happened while I was trying to sit comfortably.

"So childish..."

But it seemed Renka didn't think so.

She muttered the words with a sullen pout.

She clearly felt I was sulking and pulling away just because she told me not to try anything funny.

"What is?"

"Nothing. Aren't you going to eat any Popcorn?"

"I don't really feel like it right now."

"Then why did you buy it?"

"To eat when I get a craving. And to feed the President, too."

"Feed... Don't make it sound like you're giving baby formula to a toddler."

"Sorry if it sounded that way."

Normally in a situation like this, I would ask her if she was suffering from a persecution complex.

I tended to fire back without backing down whenever she picked a fight, and she knew that full well.

Yet I had taken a step back and actually apologized?

Nothing could be more suspicious than that.

"...Hey, are you crazy?"

As expected, Renka gave a rather fierce reaction.

Only then did I turn to look at her, putting on a perfectly innocent expression as if I had no idea what was wrong.

"About what?"

"Why are you acting like this? Are you in a bad mood today?"

"My mood is perfectly fine, though."

"Then why are you acting so lifeless?"

"Do I look that way?"

"Yeah. A lot."

"Nothing happened... but thanks for worrying about me."

"Look at this...! You're doing things you normally never do...!"

"I'm trying to fix my personality a bit."

"Don't make me laugh."

"You were always taking issue with it too, President. I should start being well-behaved now."

"Stop lying."

"Have a little faith in my words."

"I'd believe them if you were actually trustworthy."

I gave a light smile to Renka, who was determined to deny everything I said from start to finish. When the Screening Room went dark, I pointed at the screen.

Renka muttered something under her breath in a tone full of complaints, then turned her eyes away.

I rested my cheek against three fingers, crossed one leg, and settled in to watch the movie.

I kept my eyes fixed solely on the screen, taking occasional sips of cola, but I could feel Renka's gaze landing on me every now and then. It took everything I had to hold back my laughter each time.

The constant, crunching sounds of her chewing on Popcorn just made it even harder not to smile.

Right around the time the movie passed its halfway mark, I shifted my posture.

I turned to Renka, held out my hand, and spoke in a polite voice.

"Could I have some Popcorn too?"

"Grab it yourself."

"Okay."

I agreed obediently and reached out for the bucket, but Renka suddenly jerked her body in the opposite direction.

Then, she grabbed a handful of Popcorn herself and held it out to me.

I barely suppressed a burst of laughter at how she had apparently changed her mind and asked.

"What is this?"

"You asked for some, so I'm giving it to you."

"You just told me to grab it myself."

"So what?"

"So what? Shouldn't I be the one saying that?"

"Shut up. Take it and eat."

Her expression, her body language, and the fistful of Popcorn crammed into her hand...

Everything came together to make Renka look incredibly cute.

It made me want to bite right into those slightly chubby cheeks of hers.

"Understood."

I flipped my hand over. When Renka carefully dropped the Popcorn into my palm, I gave her a warm smile.

"Your hand must be all dirty now."

"Does that make you not want to eat it?"

"Who said that? You've got a persecution complex."

At those words, Renka's expression softened just a fraction... so slightly it was almost unnoticeable.

She was relieved that I was talking like I usually did.

Throwing her a carrot like this every now and then during my 'training' was the only way she would realize in her heart just how much she liked and valued me.

I set a wet wipe on the armrest between us, turned my eyes back to the screen, and slowly ate the Popcorn.

After the movie ended, we got in the car and headed toward Renka's house.

The sun hadn't set yet, and I didn't like how glaringly bright the sky was.

I was always more active at night... I figured I should probably take a nap once I got back.

"Are you going straight home too?"

"Yeah. What are you going to do, President?"

"Me? Well... I have nothing planned."

"Then get some good rest."

"Right."

We drove in silence after that brief exchange, and before long, the car arrived in front of Renka's house.

Renka opened the passenger door and got out. I followed suit, putting on a warm expression as I stood in front of her.

"...What are you doing? Do you want me to say thank you? I was just about to."

"It's not that. Should we hug?"

"What in the..."

"Here."

When I opened my arms toward a bewildered Renka, she hesitated for a moment. Her eyes darted around before she dragged her shoes across the ground and stepped closer to me.

She was certainly quick on the uptake at times like this.

I wrapped my arms warmly around her back as she leaned into my embrace without a single snappy remark. Patting her back slowly, I spoke.

"I had fun today."

"...I didn't really."

That didn't sound like her usual sarcasm to hide her true feelings; it sounded like she genuinely hadn't enjoyed it.

"You didn't? Should I try harder next time, then?"

"Try harder to do what?"

"I mean I'll try harder to make sure you have fun, President."

"Oh, whatever...! Spouting nonsense that doesn't even suit you..."

"But I'm standing right now, not sitting."

"...Stop playing with words."

"Sorry."

"Move. I'm going in."

I let go of the hug just as she wanted. She started heading toward her house, but hesitated and opened her mouth.

"Thanks for the ride. Get home safe."

I simply offered a bright smile in response to her thanks.

I deliberately didn't mention seeing her next time.

That was because I was waiting for her to contact me and ask to meet up first.

She would probably ask to meet sometime today or tomorrow... Though knowing Renka's personality, she would highly likely make up some other excuse for it.

After returning home and finishing my shower, I heated up some instant rice and had an early dinner with the side dishes Midori had packed for me.

Just as I picked up my game console to kill some free time, my Cell Phone buzzed several times.

It was a call from Renka.

I had expected this, but I figured she would at least wait until tonight to call...

Our dear Renka must have been incredibly anxious.

"Hello."

When I answered, there was a brief pause before Renka's blunt voice came through.

"Hey."

"Yes."

"Do you remember my uncles?"

"Your twin uncles who run a business? Yeah, I remember them. But what about them?"

"I'm going to help them work tomorrow... I was wondering if you wanted to come with me. They said they pay well for the day."

Had Renka really been planning to help her uncles out?

Or was it a spur-of-the-moment idea she suddenly came up with today just to spend more time with me?

I strongly suspected it was the latter.

"I'm not exactly hurting for money... I need some time to think about it."

"You have to tell me right now."

"Why?"

"If you aren't coming, we need to plan our workflow around it. And cut down on the number of menu items."

It wasn't quite a hole in the wall, but it was a tiny shop. What did she mean, 'workflow'?

They didn't even have that many menu items to begin with. She was making up weird excuses.

A student who can't be honest requires proper discipline.

I needed to pass the question back to her so the one who was desperate would be forced to answer.

"Hmm... What do you want me to do?"

"I want you to help. My uncles said your help goes a long way, too..."

She didn't even try to play hard to get this time.

However, I didn't entirely like the excuse she tacked onto the end.

"Tell me clearly. Do you want me to help or not?"

"That's... Ah, just help! It's a request from your President, you should listen to it...!"

Retreating behind her authority the moment she was at a disadvantage—that was incredibly like Renka.

Knowing she had no real intention of pulling rank and that she was currently squirming in anxiety, I only found it hilarious.

"Yeah, well... I'll do that. If the President says so, then so be it."

"What's with that tone...! Got a problem with it...?"

"No. None at all."

"Oh, damn it... I'm sorry. That was a slip of the tongue. I want you to help me."

I clamped a fist over my mouth and let out muffled bursts of laughter.

Anyone would have done the same upon hearing Renka's voice as she admitted her mistake and tried her absolute best to sound sweet.

"Are you going to answer?"

Suppressing the laughter threatening to burst out over and over, I cleared my throat softly and answered her pressing question.

"I already said I got it. So what time are we meeting tomorrow?"

"Can you wake up early in the morning?"

"Yeah."

"Then I'll come to your house by 6:30."

"You don't need to do that. I'll come pick you up, so just be outside by then."

"No. I can't trouble the person coming to help."

"Are you drawing a line between us right now?"

"Oh, come on...! It's not like that...!"

"Why are you getting annoyed? I'll be the one driving over."

"...Got it."

"See you tomorrow."

"Yeah."

Click.

The call ended just like that.

Staring at the red text indicating the call had ended, I sprawled out on my mattress with a wide smile blooming across my face.

What kind of face was Renka making right now?

A smile she couldn't hide? Or a fierce scowl full of irritation?

She might even be wearing some awkward expression somewhere in between.

The kind of face that showed she was both happy to see me again and wounded in her pride at the same time.

It had been a long time since I looked forward to a tomorrow this much.

Should I just go to sleep early and skip time ahead? Yeah, I think I'll do that.