Oh, you're Amana's boyfriend...

　After the delivery of today's batch is finished, I'm sitting in a tavern having a drink with Miya when I tell him about Daichi's participation in yesterday's practice, and he gives me a look of admiration as he listens to me.

Daichi is a good kid. Daichi-kun is a good kid, with outstanding athletic ability, and since we're in the same class, we have high expectations for him.
Oh, she's that amazing... the power of love.

　See, they already knew.
　He was supposed to have avoided direct reference, but they knew when he was participating in the girls' practice even though he could exercise.
　At this rate, it's possible that they've even gotten the message of who the target is.

　At any rate, he's still grinning and smiling a small, hateful smile.

I'm going to give that primitive boy the secret to attracting girls.
"If it makes you feel any better, you don't need a guy who isn't popular to give you tips.
'Don't do it with you. Anyway, just tell him this.

　With a denial that somehow doesn't sound like the meaning of the words, Sanya takes a breath and speaks of the secret to it.








"...I heard that boys who can run fast are more popular.
When did this happen?

　Don't say that information is so old that it's not just analog, it's retro, with a determined look on your face.
　If that's how you're going to be popular, your average physical fitness test is still in question.

Don't make fun of me too much. Daichi's in a quandary because he's never done it before.
That's pretty aggressive for a guy like you. Do you feel like it's actually happening?
''Well as long as Amana doesn't know the distinction between likes and dislikes, what a tough one.
Oh, Daichi-kun is an early learner, but that part varies from person to person.

　I've heard stories of people experiencing their first love when they were in nursery school or kindergarten, and if you're aware of it early on, like Daichi-kun, there are examples of people like me and Tenashi who have never experienced it.
　.........To be honest, I was surprised to hear her think that.

"My first love was a girl in my oldest kindergarten class," she said. When I didn't have anyone to play with, she used to play with me a lot.
'Wow. What did you think of the results?
"I tried to tell her before she graduated, but she was engaged to be married to a boy who looked like a childhood friend of mine.
'Wow....'

　He treated me like a brother completely........
　I feel like I'm going to cry when I think about how my childhood heartbreak made me have a temperamental personality for such a woman.
　I can't, though.

　At any rate, the whereabouts of his love life are still in Amana's hands.
　We'll just watch and see what happens without doing anything unnecessary.

　After concluding that, Sanya asked me something.

''So?　It's been a week now, but have you made up with Mao?
Not at all. I haven't spoken to him outside of work since that fight.
Seriously....

　It's better if I don't get personal in my work, but the current situation doesn't seem so good for that.
　I know I'm the cause, but I understand that apologizing without having any idea what I've done will only get on their nerves.

''In case you're wondering, does Miya have any idea what happened?''
There are some, but...
Is this hard to say?
Well, you know...

　It helped that he was as perceptive as ever, but he's clearly not very crisp.
　It looks like he did something really bad....

　But..........

'But still, tell me. I don't want to be in this kind of awkward situation with my coworkers.
I understand.

　At such a firm intention, Sanya exhaled heavily before nodding to me.
　

''Okay?　What I'm going to say from now on is just what I guessed based on what Mao-chan said and did. There's no guarantee of certainty, you know?
Yeah, I know.
Let me tell you something...

　I waited with bated breath for the next words from Sanya, who had prefaced it with such a preamble and collected it.
　What kind of speculation is he going to make.....
　In the midst of missing the illusion that even one second is too much, Sanya's mouth begins to move.

''──I think Mao-chan likes Wa.''
What...?

　But the words that came out were the same as what Kuroone-said before.
　He was about to kick it off as just that again, but when he saw Miya's unprecedentedly serious expression, he kept his mouth shut.

　Mao had said that there was someone he was interested in.
　I haven't heard any particular progress since then, but what if the person in question is me, as Miya says?

'I know it's too abrupt to believe, but otherwise it wouldn't add up to Maou's grumpy attitude.
''........even if that was the case, then why are you acting like that all the more so?
'Naturally.






　It's because while Kazu is getting closer and closer to Tenri-san, Marao's love life isn't progressing at all.
....

　What's that?

　The first thing I thought was that feeling.
　Even though it's a matter of speculation, to be honest, it's up to me to decide who I interact with.

　But that's just my opinion.
　It's natural that Maou doesn't like the fact that the person she likes is friendly with a woman other than herself.

If that's the case, she should do something in her own way...
What if your love life is so hopeless that you can't take that action?
'Desperate...?　I'm not going out with Tenri, okay?
The success or failure of a confession is not the only thing you lose in a relationship. It's also when the person who likes you is someone you don't like.
No, no, no, so I don't miss Amari romantically.

　I wave my hand to deny what Miya has to say.
　It's true that I've been close to Amari out of all the heteros*xuals I've been involved with, but that's just because my daughter, Amana, and I are friends and I happened to help her.
　There should be nothing special about it.

''At this point, I don't care about the relationship between Wa and Amari-san. What is important is that there was an event in your life that determined your heartbreak. You probably unconsciously confronted her with it, and she's wondering how to deal with the feelings she's been holding onto... this is the reason for her unhappiness, isn't it?

　With that, Sanya finished his speculation.
　If you can't prove that Mao likes me, it's a wild speculation that can easily be torn down.

　So why is it that........I'm now convinced that there is no other reason.
　It's a strange feeling of calmness deep inside my heart, even though my head is bewildered.

You can choose who you care about, but still, a woman wants you to care about her, while a man is a bother. There is no end to worrying about it, so just make up with them as soon as possible.

　Finally concluding that, Miya munches on the leftover yakitori on her plate.
　Although I'm also trying to pick up a handful of it, because I was devoting my thoughts to how I should make up with Mao, I can't help but feel that the taste is not very good.......