Part-3 Ch-01 Ep-03

MAKI'S POV

"Huh? Mari, you're using earphones?"

As usual, the question slipped out the moment we were about to begin studying together in the classroom after school. What Mari had casually produced was a pair of earphones.

When I asked without much thought, she answered, "I thought I'd try them to help me concentrate."

"Hmm."

I gave that brief reply and watched as she spread her textbook and notebook across the desk.

Once she had arranged nearly everything she needed, she tapped her smartphone several times and set it down on the desk.

She was most likely starting to play some favorite music or similar.

What I had discussed with Seishuku-san during physical education was my request for advice on how not to become overly conscious of Mari whenever we found ourselves alone together.

The earphones were probably the practical outcome of that conversation.

Although I felt a faint sense of discomfort at this minor alteration to our usual routine, I had not realized Mari was concerned to such a degree. Therefore, I concluded that if this was what she preferred, she should simply proceed as she wished.

Still, being unable to speak with her immediately might feel somewhat lonely after all.

Even so, if it truly assisted Mari in focusing on her studies, that was the most important thing.

With that thought in mind, I too opened my problem book and textbook on the desk.

The instant I turned the cover, the clean scent of fresh paper mingled with printer's ink reached me.

I closed my eyes and drew that fragrance deeply into my chest.

By the time I slowly exhaled, my attention had already narrowed entirely to the problems awaiting solution before me.

While I remained completely absorbed in my work, the chime rang abruptly, causing my body to startle.

When I glanced up at the wall clock at the front of the classroom, a full hour had already elapsed.

All at once, sounds I had not previously registered rushed in: the wind outside, the distant shouts of sports club members, someone's hurried footsteps echoing down the hallway.

It felt as though I had been enclosed within a transparent capsule until that moment and had suddenly been cast out into the open air; time and the surrounding atmosphere seemed to resume their normal flow.

"Nn."

When I twisted my neck, it emitted a distinct crack. My shoulders had likely stiffened as well.

Leaning back in my chair, my spine produced another audible pop.

Still seated, I rotated my arms in a modest stretch while stealing a glance toward Mari.

She appeared to remain fully immersed in concentration, her earnest expression fixed upon her notebook.

She might have taken one or two short breaks while I had been working through problems.

The plastic bottle of water we had purchased together earlier now stood half empty.

I wondered what she was listening to.

Even when I stared fixedly, Mari showed no sign of noticing.

Normally she would become aware after a short while, yet it seemed that when she wore earphones, she surprisingly failed to detect even a persistent gaze.

Look over here, look this way.

Thinking so, I was on the verge of reaching out to poke her cheek and break her focus when another realization struck me.

If she remains oblivious even when I stare this intently, does that not mean I can examine Mari's face at close range to my heart's content without her ever knowing?

After all, every weekend morning before I wake her, I can gaze upon her sleeping face for as long as I desire without ever growing weary of it.

Sleeping is one matter, but to stare freely at an awake Mari, and from such proximity no less, is surely a rare opportunity.

With that in mind, I widened my eyes and regarded her profile even more deliberately.

From the side, my pupils were likely fully dilated.

Or perhaps I was unconsciously grinning.

The classroom, with the sun now beginning to set, was gradually suffused in warm orange tones.

Unlike the sharp brilliance of midday, the gentler light of this hour rendered Mari's presence even more enchanting.

To others, she was doubtless nothing more than an entirely ordinary girl, the sort one might encounter anywhere.

Not in the limited sense of isolated qualities such as "her smile is charming" or "she has a gentle demeanor" or "she is easy to befriend."

Every ordinary element that composed this thoroughly typical childhood friend was, to me, singularly special and unbearably precious.

Even now, the sensation of "I like her" swelled so powerfully within me that I wanted to cling to Mari tightly and overwhelm her completely. It felt as though the emotion might burst forth at any moment.

I want to keep looking at her forever, to touch her, to inhale her scent.

I want to go beyond mere kisses as well.

I want to abandon studying altogether, drag her home, and do whatever I please.

Merely looking at Mari while entertaining such thoughts began to arouse me; my heart pounded noticeably, and a faint heat rose through my body.

This was dangerous; my various fantasies were advancing far too vividly. Come to think of it, we were still at school.

"…Kohon."

I cleared my throat deliberately, as though to mask something, and turned my face forward once more.

For some reason, my body felt lighter than it had earlier. Perhaps the surge of excitement had improved my circulation.

If that were true, did it not imply that simply gazing at Mari enhanced my physical condition?

I had been unaware that Mari possessed such an effect.

I resolved never to mention this discovery to anyone. This could remain my private knowledge alone.

From that day forward, during study breaks, it became my custom to stare unabashedly at Mari's profile.

Whether in the library or in the after-school classroom, whenever Mari inserted her earphones, I seized the opportunity and contemplated her features every time.

One day, Todoroki-kun approached me somewhat hesitantly, murmured "Oi," and then whispered close to my ear.

"There's a rumor circulating that Ichinose stares intently at Nagase's face while cycling through a hundred different expressions during after-school study sessions. You… you okay?"

"Eh, a rumor…? Someone saw?"

"Well, even after school, other students are still in the building, right? You two stay late too. Club members walk around normally and so on."

"Ah, r-right… aha."

"Aha nothing. Show some restraint. Just a little."

"Ugh…"

Todoroki-kun delivered the remark in an unmistakably exasperated tone.

I could not even muster a proper protest.

And the reason I had been making a hundred expressions was that I had been allowing all manner of fantasies to run unchecked while staring at Mari's face. Even if no one could peer inside my mind, the fact remained that someone had witnessed the outward scenes produced by those very thoughts…

Just between us, this time I felt genuinely embarrassed by my own conduct.