Why Not Make Both Twins 'Girlfriends'?-Chapter 2Volume .3 - Usami Hikari and the Newspaper Club...?

Usami Hikari and the Newspaper Club…? 3

(…She escaped. But I see… she wanted to draw me out…)

‘I think I’ve got a pretty good grasp on Tachibana’s intentions’, Sakuto thought.

He’s using the Usami sisters as bait, hoping he’ll do something to save the nearly defunct Newspaper Club.

However, even if she says she wants his cooperation, Chikage has declared she’ll be auditing alone this time.

On the other hand, Hikari is technically a member of the Newspaper Club, but she has no motivation whatsoever.

(Rather, what’s more important now is how to deal with Hikari and Chikage… The point is, it’s about the soil…)

Essentially, if the current state of the Newspaper Club can be changed, then it’s possible that Hikari, who belongs to it, can also change.

That’s probably what Tachibana meant.

(Change Hikari? I think she’s fine as she is…)

Hikari has been going to school cheerfully, and other than being chased around by the Newspaper Club’s Higashino Wakana, she doesn’t seem to have any particular problems.

As someone who’s unrelated to both the audit and the Newspaper Club, it seems there’s no need for him to interfere——

(——Wait, hold on… this time, it’s less about Hikari and more about…)

At that moment, Sakuto began to rapidly understand.

A troubled Newspaper Club that might be disbanded.

If Chikage, as the Student Guidance Department’s dog, were sent in and performed her duties actively and faithfully——

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(The responsibility for disbanding the Newspaper Club might fall on Chikage’s shoulders…!? That’s not fair to her at all!)

Sakuto hurriedly turned towards the school building, but Tachibana was already nowhere to be seen.

“——What’s the matter, Sakuto-kun?”

Startled, he turned towards the voice to find Chikage looking at him with concern.

***

It was lunch break now.

Hikari was away again today. Sakuto had been sitting on a bench in the courtyard with Chikage and having lunch, but he couldn’t get this morning’s exchange with Tachibana out of his head.

“You haven’t made much progress with your lunch. Are you not very hungry?”

Chikage, who had finished about half of her meal, asked Sakuto, who had only taken a bite of his sandwich from the school store and then stopped.

“Ah, no…”

Indeed, he had little appetite.

Perhaps he was internally debating whether to tell Chikage about this morning’s events.

Sakuto stared at Chikage with a serious expression.

“Wh-what is it? It’s embarrassing when you stare at me like that… o-or rather, it’s kind of hot today, isn’t it…?”

Chikage fanned herself with her hand, looking away from Sakuto.

“H-Hii-chan isn’t here, so it’s just the two of us, right? I wonder if Hii-chan is being chased by Higashino-san again today?”

“Maybe? ——She still hasn’t read my message on LIME yet. Probably so.”

Sakuto checked his smartphone and then put it back in his pocket.

“It’s tough for Hii-chan.”

“Hey, Chikage——”

“Oh, right! Have you talked to your aunt about the trip yet? My Papa and Mama are okay with me going with friends! Have you decided where you want to go? I’m not really confident in my figure, but I want to wear a swimsuit, so——”

Chikage continued to speak rapidly, more than usual.

With Hikari absent, she was probably more nervous. They had always been together as a trio recently, so she might be unsure what to talk about when it’s just the two of them.

Sakuto found Chikage’s behavior adorable.

She might be getting involved in problems without knowing anything about them, yet here she was, blushing, flustered, and showing so much affection for him.

He simply cherished her all the more.

Suddenly, he remembered his junior high school days.

He was well aware of how he was being ridiculed and called names by those around him, such things as—

『Takayashiki is like, kind of like a robot, huh?』

『Like he’s got AI or something.』

Unlike me, who had developed a resistance to slander and contempt, Chikage was not the same—

『I think standing out isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but there are times when it scares me. I do worry about how I’m perceived by others, you know?』

—In that case, the audit of the Newspaper Club would only be a negative for Chikage.

(I don’t want Chikage to go through the same things I did…)

If the Newspaper Club were to be shut down, she would end up drawing unwanted attention.

It might be an unfounded worry, but Sakuto couldn’t shake this ominous feeling.

“…Chikage, could you listen to what I have to say for a moment?”

Chikage looked back at Sakuto with confusion as he gazed at her with unusual seriousness.

“What is it? Do you have some kind of worry…?”

Facing Chikage’s concerned expression, Sakuto gently began to speak—

“I want to protect you.”

Chikage exhaled as if relieved.

“Is that so? So what Sakuto-kun was concerned about was—…huh?”

Chikage froze for a moment, not comprehending what had just happened,

“Whaaaaat——!? What’s going on all of a sudden!?”

Chikage began to panic, clutching her chest.

“My heart’s pounding, it’s like thump, thump—!”

“Hey, Chikage, people can hear you, so calm down and take a deep breath…”

“Yes, yes—…Huff… Haaa…”

“…That’s the Lamaze technique, you know? The one for when labor starts…”

He retorted with a sigh, but Chikage was still flustered.