The nightmare of a first day had passed, and Yuki trudged through the main gate of Kouyou Academy with heavy steps. The white-walled school building was bathed in morning sunlight. Between the ginkgo trees, female students in uniform passed by cheerfully. As expected, there were almost no male students in sight. (*Just stay calm. Above all else, stay calm.*) Yuki repeated this to himself. The shock of Mio's public declaration yesterday—that she would submit a *kokuri* letter—was still spinning in the corner of his mind. The assertiveness of women in this world far exceeded anything a 37-year-old *ossan* could have imagined. But today, at the very least, he wanted to get through it quietly. The moment he entered the classroom, the gazes of his female classmates stabbed into him all at once. "Ah, it's Yuki-kun." "That thing yesterday was seriously insane." "Mio-san is totally serious..." Whispered voices came from all around. Yuki pretended not to hear any of it and sat down at his desk by the window. In the seat next to him, with her glittering blonde hair—Mio was already seated. "[gentle]Good morning, Yuki-kun." Mio turned around and smiled sweetly. Her large blue eyes gazed at Yuki with a radiance of pure innocence. Despite what had happened with her confession yesterday, she showed no sign of guilt whatsoever. If anything, she seemed happy. "[serious]M-Morning." Yuki tried to sound composed, but his voice cracked slightly. His young body refused to obey him. Mio, seemingly oblivious to Yuki's state, cheerfully took out her notebook. (*That innocence of hers is what makes it worse.*) Yuki sighed and opened his textbook. Morning classes ended, and next up was P.E. After changing and heading to the gymnasium, he found his classmates already gathered there. Today's activity was basketball. They would split into teams for practice matches. Yuki felt a little excited about exercising for the first time in a while. Back when he was 37, he had been too caught up in work to exercise at all, but with this young body, he should be able to move reasonably well. —That notion was shattered into splinters just a few minutes later. The ball came his way. Yuki dribbled forward. The goal was right in front of him. A shooting chance. (*I've got this!*) He jumped lightly and released a layup shot. The spring of his young body propelled the ball high— *Swish.* The ball didn't even touch the rim and fell straight to the floor. "...Huh?" Yuki froze. He had visualized it perfectly in his head, but his body couldn't follow at all. The instincts of an *ossan* and the physical abilities of a high schooler were completely out of sync. And then— *Thwack.* A teammate's ball, meant to grab the rebound, somehow hit Yuki square in the face. "Gwah!" Yuki crouched down, clutching his nose. A stir of murmurs spread through the gymnasium among the girls. "Wait, Yuki-kun is actually kinda..." "A bit of a klutz?" "But somehow, isn't that cute?" Yuki couldn't lift his face. The humiliation of a 37-year-old *ossan* being called a "klutz" by high school girls. And since this was his actual ability, he couldn't even make excuses. (*This is rough.*) Just then, a bright laugh cut through the murmuring. "[laughing]Pfft! Dude, you're seriously hilarious!" The owner of the voice was a female student with fluffy brown hair tied in a ponytail. Her bright brown eyes sparkled with amusement. If Yuki's memory served him right, she was Minami Hina, a *gyaru*-type girl from the same class. Hina pushed through the crowd and ran up to Yuki. Then, without any hesitation, she slapped him on the shoulder repeatedly. "[excited]What's this, what's this? Yuki's actually terrible at sports despite how he looks!? That's seriously hilarious!" Hina's hand touched Yuki's shoulder through his gym clothes. The young, soft sensation made Yuki's body react strangely. (*T-Too close!*) "[scared]No, well, it was just a fluke." Yuki tried to force a wry smile with the composure of an adult, but his face was twitching. Hina watched Yuki's state with sparkling eyes. "[sarcastic]Ohhh, so catching the ball with your face and missing a shot were both just a fluke, huh?" Hina said with a grin. Yuki couldn't argue back and just scratched his head. Even after class ended and they had finished changing, Hina didn't leave Yuki's side. As they walked down the hallway, she circled around him like a child who had found a new toy. "[excited]Y'know, Yuki, isn't it kinda crazy how mature you seem?" Suddenly, Hina threw out a direct comment. "[surprised]Huh?" "[gentle]I mean, you don't seem like you're the same age. Like, you're super calm or whatever. You're funny, but there's something different about you." Hina said this with a serious face, peering intently at Yuki. Internally, Yuki broke into a cold sweat. (*Is my cover blown...? No, calm down. It's still fine.*) "[serious]Really? I think I'm pretty normal." He answered, feigning composure. Hina pondered for a moment, then grinned. Lunch break. As Yuki walked down the hallway heading to the cafeteria, his arm was suddenly grabbed from behind. "[excited]Come with me for a sec!" Before he could even turn around, Hina pulled his arm and started running. "[surprised]Hey, where are we going!?" "[excited]Let's go to the rooftop, the rooftop!" Hina declared nonchalantly, waving at the female students they passed in the hallway. "Hey, I'm gonna go chat with Yuki for a bit!" The girls they passed turned around with surprised faces. "Hina, isn't that a bit fast?" "She's making a move on the transfer student way too quickly." "And the rooftop, of all places..." Yuki was dragged along helplessly as Hina pulled him up the stairs. And when he saw Hina take a spare key out of her pocket in front of the rooftop door—which was supposed to be off-limits—he couldn't help but shout. "[surprised]Why do you have a key!?" "[gentle]I got it from Saejima-senpai." Hina answered without a trace of guilt and unlocked the door with a click. The door opened, and the sea breeze enveloped them both. From the rooftop, they had a panoramic view of Minakaze City's townscape and the Pacific Ocean stretching out beyond it. The sea glittered brilliantly. "[serious]So, come over here for now." Hina grabbed Yuki's wrist and led him to the edge of the rooftop wall. And then— *Thud.* Hina's right hand slammed against the wall right next to Yuki's ear. The so-called *kabe-don*. However, in this world, it seemed to be something women did to men. "[whispers]So, Yuki..." Hina's face drew closer. A sweet shampoo scent drifted from her fluffy brown hair. Her bright brown eyes gazed up at Yuki intently. "[gentle]You don't seem like you're the same age. Like, you're super calm or whatever, and isn't it kinda crazy how mature you are?" She repeated the same words from earlier, this time with a serious face, slowly. Yuki tried to maintain his composure with his 37 years of experience, but— (*What is this pounding in my chest?*) His young body refused to listen. He could feel his heart rate rising. Hina's face was so close he could almost feel her breath. "[serious]R-Really? I think I'm pretty normal." His voice cracked. He thought it sounded pathetic, even to himself. Then, Hina's eyes suddenly lit up. "[laughing]Whoa, your ears are totally red! Yuki's actually surprisingly pure, huh!?" Hina reached out her finger and poked Yuki's earlobe. "[scared]Cut it out!" When Yuki tried to step back, Hina closed the distance even more, looking thoroughly entertained. Then, tugging on the sleeve of Yuki's gym clothes, she grinned. "[sarcastic]I might be willing to pair up with you for the sports festival, y'know." A shudder ran through Yuki's entire body. He didn't know what the sports festival was like in this world, but if he was forced to pair up with an aggressive *gyaru* like this, what would happen next was obvious. "[scared]W-Wait, hold on." "[laughing]Ahaha, you're panicking too much! Seriously hilarious!" Hina was laughing heartily, but after a while, she suddenly stopped. Then, looking a little embarrassed, she shoved her hands in her pockets and took a step back from Yuki. "[gentle]...I've taken a liking to you, Yuki." Hina's voice suddenly grew quiet. "[gentle]You're funny, and I can just relax around you. When I'm with you, I don't have to try so hard, y'know?" It was an honest statement. Unadorned, without any hidden side. Yuki felt a slight warmth in his chest at those words. But immediately after— "[angry]But it's not like there's any deep meaning to it, got it!? Don't get the wrong idea! Idiot!" Hina suddenly turned *tsundere*, her face bright red as she looked away. Yuki couldn't help but let out a wry smile at the drastic change. "[laughing]...You're not very honest, are you?" "[angry]Shut up! This is just how I am, okay!?" Hina shouted, her face red all the way to her ears. That figure was so innocent and awkward, it was hard to imagine it was the same aggressive *gyaru* from just moments ago. (*This girl... could she actually be a beginner at love?*) Yuki sensed this with his *ossan* intuition. Behind her assertive physical contact, a shy and pure side was hidden. That gap struck a strange chord in his chest. When the two of them returned to the classroom from the rooftop, Mio, who passed them in the hallway, stopped in her tracks. "[gentle]Yuki-kun, your gym clothes are a little wrinkled." Mio called out to him with a gentle smile. However, deep within her blue eyes, something sharp lurked. It was as if she were scanning Yuki's disheveled clothes and Hina's state beside him like a radar. "[surprised]Ah, yeah. I was exercising a bit." Yuki hurriedly smoothed out the wrinkles in his gym clothes. Mio smiled again, "[gentle]I see. But please don't push yourself too hard." was all she said before walking away. However, an indescribable pressure drifted from her retreating back. (*This is bad. I felt an incredible gaze just now.*) Feeling a chill run down his spine, Yuki returned to the classroom. After school. As Yuki walked down the hallway toward the shoe lockers, he heard the voices of several female classmates from up ahead. "Hina's surprisingly aggressive, considering how she looks." "But Mio-san was talking about the *kokuri* letter first, wasn't she?" "I wonder what'll happen with the transfer student-kun." "If those two clash, it could be pretty intense." Yuki pretended not to hear and tried to walk past quickly. But at that moment— "[excited]Yuki! We're going to the rooftop again tomorrow! Seriously think about pairing up for the sports festival!" Hina's loud voice echoed from behind him. The girls around them all turned to look at Yuki at once. Curious gazes, intrigued gazes, and a few envious gazes. "[scared]Seriously, give me a break..." Yuki clutched his head and muttered under his breath. A peaceful school life. In just two days, that dream had been completely shattered. Mio's *kokuri* letter declaration, Hina's *kabe-don*. And his own position, swaying between the two of them. (*Starting tomorrow, how am I supposed to fend off this aggressive* gyaru *...?*) Yuki let out a deep sigh and, gazing at the townscape of Minakaze City dyed in the sunset, headed home with heavy steps. In his mind, the terror of being called out to the rooftop again tomorrow and Mio's far-from-calm gaze continued to spin around and around.