Episode 3 – Small, quiet girl

The next morning, I was here alone after the basketball team’s morning practice.
It was a field behind the gymnasium in the school.
This place is a field, but in the back there is a big flower bed, where the gardening club works.
And every morning, Otsuki Shizuku, a member of the gardening club in the same class, is hard at work there.

Right now, she is dressed in her gym uniform, diligently tinkering with the soil in the flower bed.
Until now, we had been in the same class, but we had no contact at all, so we never talked to each other.

“Otsuki-san?”

To be honest, I don’t have much of an impression of her.
She is always with Asahina-san, the charismatic girl in the class, and the only image I have of Otsuki-san’s words and actions is that she is smiling or giving aids.
She doesn’t assert herself and is not the type to stand out either.
To be honest, I haven’t seen much of her face. Then I remembered my conversation with Reo last night.

“Should I tell her I like her right away?”

I couldn’t nod my head to that question.
For some reason, Otsuki seems like the quiet type of girl.
If a sunny-looking boy like Reo suddenly confessed his love to her, she might be surprised.
I told Reo to wait and I would try to talk to Otsuki-san, and that was the end of yesterday’s conversation.

I never thought I’d have to talk to a girl I wasn’t close to at all, even if it was for the sake of my best friend.
To be honest, girls are not my specialty, and it’s not easy to talk to them.

Even though I’m in the sunny group, I’m still essentially a shy, unattractive guy.
But as long as Reo is relying on me, I want to help him.
If I can get to know Otsuki-san’s preferences or whatever, I can connect with him next time.
Even if I can’t speak well and she doesn’t like me, it doesn’t matter.
I myself am fine with girls not liking me. I took a deep breath and slowly approached Otsuki-san.

“G-good morning, …..Otsuki san.”
“Hee?”

Otsuki-san, dressed in gym clothes, turns around.

Petite physique with perfect eyes and well-equipped features.
The pink ribbons look good with her candy-colored hair in a ponytail. I didn’t know much about her, but I wondered if she might have a pretty face.
I didn’t notice her because she was hiding behind Asahina-san.

“Eh, …… and Kogure-kun?　”
“Yes.”

Whenever I’m dealing with girls, I always speak in polite language.
The reason is that it’s easier to talk to someone older or a girl. Otsuki san looked around restlessly.

“Did you call out to me by any chance?”
“Yes, that’s right. Umm. I-I see you all the time, so I thought I’d …… call out to you.”
“A …..Aah., I….see”

That’s where the conversation between Otsuki-san and I stopped.
I tried to talk to her, but I couldn’t find what to say next.
I would like to know what she likes in a man, but I can’t ask her that out of the blue.
However, I didn’t know how to talk to her before I got there. I am an idiot. While I was wondering what to do, Otsuki-san turned her attention to the gymnasium.

“Well, let’s see, Kogure-kun, you were in the basketball team, weren’t you? Was it morning practice?”

It was Otsuki-san who brought up the subject. She is a good person!

“Oh, yeah. I didn’t do anything serious. …… haha.”

End of conversation. No, I’m not too good at this!
If the other party has come up with the keyword “club activities,” I have no choice but to bring it up from here.

“Otsuki san, you are in the gardening club, aren’t you? Do you grow vegetables here?”

I know there are not only flower beds but also fields here. Otsuki san nodded yes.

“What do you do with the vegetables you produce?”
“We tend to take them home with us, but we tend to have some left over, so we give them to the cafeteria.”
“There were dishes on the menu that used vegetables grown by the gardening club, weren’t there?”
“It turned out pretty delicious. The cabbage produced this year is especially sweet and tasty when sauteed.”
“Hee. Do you like cooking, Otsuki san?”
“Yes. Yes, I am very good at cooking. I have children who are growing”

I think I heard some disturbing dialogue, but I don’t think she has a child, as expected, so I guess it’s a younger brother or sister.
Otsuki-san enjoys cooking. This is good information, isn’t it?

“Jiiii (Stare), I think this is the first time I’ve seen Kogure-kun speak …….”
“Eh?”
“I didn’t know you talked like that. It’s not surprising, but it might be …… surprising.”
“I always talk to the teacher in this tone of voice. That’s how I like during lesson.”
“Yes, but I’ve never seen Kogure-kun talk like this among the boys during recess.”

In fact, that’s right. When I am with a group of sunshine boys centered around Reo. My only words are a phase and a nod.

“Arisa suspected you of being an ornament,”
“How rude.”
“Fufu, I’m sorry.”
“If you put it that way, I’ve hardly ever seen even Otsuki-san speak.”
“That’s because ……. compared to Arisa, I am ……”

Otsuki’s face fell a little, and at the same time the bell rang for the first day of school.

“No, I have to clean up and go back to the classroom.! I’m sorry Kogure-kun.”
“I’m sorry to you too! Um, Otsuki-san”
“What is it?”

Otsuki-san is in a hurry, but she is always willing to talk to me. I think she must be a very nice person.

“May I call out to …… again?”

Otsuki-san opened her eyes wide and nodded, slightly puzzled.

“Yes, see you later.”

I felt her cuteness as she waved her petite hand at me.
It was a short time, but I feel like we had a better conversation than I thought we would. This is a big step forward, isn’t it?

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