The instant those words left her lips, Matsushita Chiaki's pupils contracted sharply — and an indescribable wave of regret crashed through her.
How had she...
How had she actually gone and said that out loud?!
A question like that — whether from the perspective of an ordinary friend, or from someone who harbored some vague, tentative feeling toward Shikime Natsu — was absolutely not something you just lobbed into a pleasant afternoon tea conversation out of nowhere.
This was conversation-ending-level material.
But...
Her mind had been haunted by that absurd dream the whole time, and then Satou Maya had suddenly called on her — leaving her brain a complete, tangled mess.
So in the resulting chaos, she'd opened her mouth before her brain had any say in the matter.
Beside her, Satou Maya and Karuizawa Kei both froze at Matsushita Chiaki's words.
Surprised expressions spread across both their faces.
Clearly.
Neither of them had known anything about Shikime Natsu and Kamuro Masumi being a couple.
Satou Maya had even stopped her spoon mid-air, staring at Matsushita Chiaki with wide eyes — as if silently asking: Chiaki, where on earth did you hear something like that?
And yet.
Words once spoken are like water already spilled — impossible to take back.
Having already started down this road, there was nothing to do but press forward with her chin up.
An arrow loosed from the bow never returns.
Matsushita Chiaki drew in a slow breath, doing her best to keep her voice steady — even as her fingers had gone white from gripping her skirt so tightly.
"Um... the thing is — I happened to run into you and Kamuro-san while I was out shopping on my own. You two were carrying bags, and you were... holding hands."
At the time, Matsushita Chiaki had only been wandering around without any particular destination. Then she'd noticed Shikime Natsu, and out of idle curiosity had started paying closer attention. Which turned out to be a mistake — because the more she watched, the more it became apparent that Shikime Natsu shared an incredibly intimate closeness with another girl. The kind that only existed between lovers.
Not that Matsushita Chiaki was in love with Shikime Natsu, exactly. It was more a vague, warm fondness — one whose origins were frankly ridiculous, rooted entirely in that bizarre dream. She'd told herself not to dwell on it. But the harder she tried, the more it took hold. And gradually, without her even realizing it, her head had filled up with thoughts of Shikime Natsu.
Shikime Natsu set down his coffee cup. His expression was perfectly calm — no trace of any intent to conceal. After all, he'd held Kamuro Masumi's hand in plain view, knowing full well someone might see. He gave a small nod, and answered without hesitation.
"Yeah."
"Just as you saw — Masumi and I are together."
Those words of confirmation landed.
And in the eyes of all three girls, the light dimmed — visibly, unmistakably, all at once.
They had suspected it, of course. Had even steeled themselves for it, after a fashion.
But... even so.
Hearing it confirmed, in his own voice, so calmly —
The tide of loss that welled up inside them was not something they'd been able to prepare for.
So Shikime Natsu already had a girlfriend. Already.
It was... a little hard to take in.
And yet.
Before they could even begin to recover from that blow —
Shikime Natsu dropped something even heavier on them.
"Also..."
"I have another girlfriend."
"She's from your Class D — Airi."
"...!!!"
After those words, the three of them were even more stunned.
They stared at him with wide eyes and slightly parted lips, expressions of pure disbelief written across their faces.
If Kamuro Masumi was at least somewhat easier to accept — she was in Class A, after all, she was beautiful, she had clearly been close to Shikime Natsu for a while, with all the natural advantages of proximity — well, the two of them did seem to suit each other.
But... Sakura Airi?!
Sakura Airi was also in Class D. She had no proximity advantage to speak of. So how on earth had she ended up with Shikime Natsu?
They'd run into Sakura Airi a handful of times through Shikime Natsu, and it had been perfectly obvious that she had feelings for him. She'd always seemed to be building toward something — restless, waiting, barely containing herself. But it wasn't as if they'd ever actually seen the two of them spending much time together. When had she made her move?
And moreover...
Two girlfriends?!
So Shikime Natsu currently had two girlfriends at the same time?
The weight of that crashed over all three girls like a wave.
The feelings running through them were, to put it mildly, complicated.
After all, each of them had, at some point, quietly imagined — what if she could be the first girl to become Shikime Natsu's girlfriend?
But now.
Reality had just struck them across the face.
Even if they mustered up every last bit of courage right now and confessed — even if it actually worked — they'd still only be starting from third place.
That gap... was not something you just swallowed easily.
And yet.
Under the quiet, pervasive influence of the Harem Permit item card, none of them found themselves thinking what a player or I should keep my distance.
Instead — after the initial shock and disappointment began to settle —
They found themselves unconsciously making peace with it.
Shikime Natsu is that exceptional. Having two girlfriends seems... kind of natural for someone like him, doesn't it?
And besides... if there are already two... would one more really make that much of a difference?
Of course.
It wasn't time to be thinking like that just yet.
After all, at this point they were still only "friends."
They still called him "Shiki-san" — that politely maintained distance in the address — rather than any nickname that would signal something closer.
The mood at the table had gone quiet.
Matsushita Chiaki had been the one to open this can of worms, but now that she had her answer, she had no idea what to say next.
All she could manage was to look down, a little awkwardly, and murmur:
"I... I see..."
Satou Maya noticed that the atmosphere had curdled.
As the designated mood-keeper of their little trio, she knew she couldn't let the conversation die like this.
So.
She drew a breath, forcibly pressed down the bittersweet ache rising in her chest, and pulled a smile onto her face.
"That's... well, that's really..."
"Congratulations, Shiki-san!"
"You went and got yourself two such lovely girlfriends at once!"
Shikime Natsu could see the effort behind that smile. He didn't call it out — just gave a polite, easy smile in return.
"Thanks."
The conversation had run itself into a dead end.
Any path forward from here would inevitably circle back to the topic of "girlfriends."
Satou Maya bit her lip, worked up her nerve, and asked:
"So... Shiki-san."
"Now that you already have girlfriends..."
"How come you're out here with just the three of us, eating sweets? Why aren't you with them?"
"Like... on a date?"
As she said it, she watched his expression carefully, a note of cautious probing in her voice:
"Girls tend to really love going on dates with their partners once things are official, right?"
"Shiki-san... weren't you planning to take them somewhere?"
The moment those words left her mouth, Satou Maya silently berated herself.
What was she even saying?! Her heart was already aching, and she was the one steering the conversation into territory that made it ache even more. Was this some kind of self-inflicted punishment?
Learning that Shikime Natsu had girlfriends had left Satou Maya feeling exactly like she'd just been through a breakup.
A hollow, empty feeling settled right in the middle of her chest.
Even if her rational mind told her that Shikime Natsu having multiple girlfriends was normal — the most fundamental, irreversible fact was:
The "number one" position in his heart — the most important place — had already been claimed by someone else.
For a girl, that particular spot tended to matter more than almost anything.
Shikime Natsu gave a light, easy smile and explained.
"Even though we're official now..."
"Whether it's Masumi or Airi — we each still have our own free time and our own space."
"If they wanted to go on a date, I'd be happy to go with them whenever. But right now — they both have things they need to take care of."
Hearing that, Satou Maya gave a small nod, a thoughtful look passing across her face.
"Ah, I see..."
His girlfriends were occupied. Fair enough — no date in that case.
But...
Something else occurred to her, and she pressed on:
"But..."
"If Shiki-san's girlfriends are busy — why are you spending that time hanging out with the three of us? Three other girls, at that."
"If that's the case..."
"Won't Shiki-san's girlfriends... mind?"
She was a girl herself, after all.
Satou Maya understood perfectly well the jealousy and possessiveness that lived in the hearts of most girls.
No matter how generous someone might be, seeing their boyfriend spending time with other pretty girls would put at least a little discomfort in their chest, wouldn't it?
But Shikime Natsu just shrugged, his manner completely relaxed.
"Of course not."
"They won't mind something like this."
Hearing those words.
A brief flicker of relief passed through Satou Maya.
But hard on its heels —
Came a strange, unfamiliar feeling.
What was this?
Was this what people called... the composure of a principal wife?
That particular brand of confidence — I know how exceptional he is, so I allow him to be around other girls. Because no matter what, he always comes back to me.
Somehow... I feel like I've already lost by a mile.
It wasn't just Satou Maya.
Karuizawa Kei and Matsushita Chiaki, sitting beside her, were quietly thinking much the same thing.
Satou Maya gave a small, quiet laugh and said:
"I see, then..."
"That's a relief, at least."
"As long as chatting with Shiki-san like this doesn't cause him any trouble."
She let out a small, private sigh inside.
If only...
If only she had met him a little sooner. If only she'd had more time to be around him.
Could she have been that first person to make his heart move?
Even after she'd gotten Shikime Natsu's contact information — Satou Maya had found she could never quite bring herself to reach out to him too freely, too often.
Because Shikime Natsu seemed impossibly, incomprehensibly perfect.
That composure of his. That mystery. That aura of someone who held every thread in their hands at all times — it always left her feeling like he wasn't the kind of person someone as ordinary as a gyaru like her could ever really hold onto.
She'd hesitated. She'd tested the waters. She'd waited for the perfect moment.
And then.
Shikime Natsu had actually gone and gotten with other girls. Girls from this very school.
Satou Maya was filled with regret.
Why hadn't she moved sooner?
She'd seen a boy who made her heart skip. And instead of staking her claim right then and there, she'd waited — waited for him to come to her first.
Hesitate, and you lose. Every single time.
The mood had settled into something a little heavy.
Shikime Natsu had no interest in letting that low pressure linger.
He cast a glance at the three subdued expressions around him, and deliberately shifted gears:
"Alright — we've had about enough dessert."
"It's a rare day out."
"Anywhere else you three want to go?"
At those words.
Satou Maya quickly pulled herself together.
Whatever had happened — whatever ground she'd lost — being here with Shikime Natsu right now was itself an opportunity she couldn't afford to waste.
If she'd already fallen behind at the starting line, then every second she had with him from here on out mattered twice as much.
She lifted her head, and a fresh brightness returned to her eyes.
"Um..."
"If you don't mind — how about karaoke?"
"Come to think of it, it's been so long since I heard Shiki-san sing!"
The songs from their last karaoke session still lived in her memory, vivid and unforgettable.
She turned to look at her two best friends.
"Kei, Chiaki — what do you think?"
Karuizawa Kei and Matsushita Chiaki exchanged a glance, and both nodded without protest.
---
A few minutes later.
The four of them arrived at a karaoke venue and booked a mid-sized room.
Familiar lights. Familiar speakers.
This time around — compared to that first session they'd had together, which had been a little rough around the edges — the trio of Satou Maya, Karuizawa Kei, and Matsushita Chiaki sounded noticeably better when they sang.
Pitch, timing, and coordination had all improved considerably.
If anything, it felt like the three of them had been secretly practicing on their own — there was an easy, settled harmony between them, the kind that only comes from having worked at something together.
And when it was Shikime Natsu's turn to pick up the mic —
His voice was, as ever, something else entirely.
Low, rich, carrying a natural resonance as though the reverb were built into the sound itself — it reached out effortlessly and simply held every girl in the room in place.
When the song ended.
Satou Maya and the others burst into applause, eyes sparkling with open admiration.
Just then, Satou Maya's phone buzzed.
She glanced at the screen. A message, by the look of it.
Then, with an apologetic look toward Shikime Natsu:
"Um... Shiki-san."
"I'm really sorry..."
"Kikyou-chan has something she wants to talk to us about — I need to step out for a bit. I'm sorry, but... why don't you stay here and chat with Chiaki for a while? Kei will come with me."
Satou Maya glanced at Matsushita Chiaki. Something about her friend's mood had been off all afternoon — and while she felt a little guilty about it, she had a feeling that leaving Matsushita Chiaki here might actually help. After all, Shikime Natsu had been the one to change her expression in the first place.
The one who ties the knot should be the one to undo it.
"Go ahead, don't worry about it," Shikime Natsu said with a nod, asking nothing further.
A moment later.
The karaoke room door clicked shut behind them.
The noise of the group dissolved in an instant.
Leaving only Shikime Natsu and Matsushita Chiaki.
In the dim, shifting glow of the room's lights.
Matsushita Chiaki sat a little stiffly in the corner of the sofa, fingers wound tight around the hem of her skirt.
She didn't know why.
But now that they were alone —
The awkwardness and tension felt sharper than it had before. Not softer.
Shikime Natsu turned to look at Matsushita Chiaki, sitting quietly in her corner without a word.
He set down the mic, leaned back against the sofa cushion, and regarded her with an even, unhurried gaze before speaking.
"Matsushita-san."
"Are you... uncomfortable around me?"
"?"
Matsushita Chiaki blinked, startled — then quickly looked up at him, something close to panic flickering across her face.
"Why... would you ask that?"
"Because..."
Shikime Natsu's gaze rested on her flustered face.
"Since we met up today, you've seemed like you've been avoiding me."
"And compared to when we first got to know each other, there's been a slight distance — though maybe it's just me imagining things."
Those words landed squarely in Matsushita Chiaki's chest.
Her heartbeat skipped.
She immediately shook her head, voice coming out a little urgent.
"No! That's not it!"
"I'm not — I wasn't trying to be cold toward you!"
"And I don't dislike being around you!"
She explained in a rush, color rising to her cheeks again.
"It's just... just a little..."
"Today, my head is just... a bit off, that's all."
____
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