Chapter 27: I’m an “insulated person” (no brand)

It’s the time of year when the back of the shirt is wet with sweat.

　Midsummer.

　It is the last morning of the first semester.

The air in the classroom was somewhat lively, as the summer vacation would finally begin tomorrow. Both the cool and the not-so-hot crowd have bright expressions on their faces. They are loudly discussing their summer vacation plans. Frequent words are “sea,” “swimming pool,” and “fireworks.” Words synonymous with summer are flying in from all directions.

　In the midst of all this, I am alone.

　I am sitting by the window with a paperback book as my friend.

Since my separation from the pig, I have become more and more of a loner.

　What is different from before is that the way people look at me has changed. Since the incident at the cafeteria, I have been noticed more and more. When I walk down the hallway, people give way to me, or for some reason ask me to shake hands with them. According to Amane, “I am feared by the special students and adored by the general students”. Oh dear. Both are overrated.

The insulator, no-brand.

　I hear some people call me by such a nickname.

I guess it comes from the badge system.

　I am neither a special student nor an ordinary student. I am a “no-brand” who belongs to no one and is not dyed in any way. –It sounds cool when you say it like that, but isn’t it just another way of saying “a nobody”?　As for me, I’d rather have the title of “normal” than something like that.

　At that moment, I heard a loud voice.

“Uhm, Asano, are you for real?　Not joking?”

　It was Ayaka Ayukawa of the dance club.

Ayaka Ayukawa is one of the main girls in this group, along with piggy.

　She has softly wavy brown hair that she wears in a ponytail. There are other girls who dye their hair, but her hair is the color of lightly brewed tea. She is a beautiful girl with clear-cut eyes and long, slender arms and legs. Rumor has it that she has a college boyfriend, which is understandable. She had the aura of a young gal who was living in a different world than I was.

Since piggy hasn’t come to school yet, she seems to have the queen’s position all to herself. She has the baseball team, Asano and the rest of the hot army around her.

“No, I’m serious. If I can go to the fireworks display with Ayaka, I can die peacefully!”

“No way. It’s because Princess Rua rejected you anyway, right?”

“T-that’s not true!”

　The people around him burst into laughter. [You little bean, you’ve been seen through~] Asano is half-smiling, but his forehead is sweating. He is coming on to her in a joking way, but I think he is surprisingly serious. He wants to get a girlfriend at any cost before the summer vacation, and such desperation is apparent.

　Ayukawa boldly recrosses her legs, which are stretched out from her short skirt. Asano’s nose twitches at her fleshy thighs.

“I’m going with my boyfriend. Fufu, I’m going to ask him to drive the car.”

“P-Please, Ayaka~!　Everyone is with women. I don’t want to see fireworks alone.”

“I don’t know. Come back when you’re old enough to get a driver’s license.”

　Hmmm. I don’t care about it to death.

　Just as I was about to return to my reading, I noticed a bespectacled female student standing a short distance away from me.

　Her expression was troubled.

　Then I noticed it too.

Ayukawa is now putting her well-shaped butt on a desk. It was not Ayukawa’s desk. It was the student’s desk.

So, the “occupy the seat of the student and chat with other students”, the 18th favorite of the ” cheerful” students, was in full effect.

　I was about to turn a blind eye, but changed my mind when I saw a paperback book in the girl’s hand. It was the book I had returned to the library from the basement stacks the other day. Sometimes I find books that I think to myself, “How did such a masterpiece end up in the basement?” I salvage them. I can’t bear to abandon the girl who found it.

“Hey, Ayukawa!”

　When I approached and called out to her, she made a blatantly unhappy face.

“Ah?　What? What do you want?”

“That’s not your seat, is it? Move out of the way.”

“Haa?　…… gross.”

　Ayukawa glared at me.

“Rua’s toy, would you please stop talking to me so casually?”

“The chime is already going to ring. Go back to your seat.”

“It hasn’t rang yet. Until then, it’s up to me to do whatever I want to do.”

She would not listen to me.

　Thinking back, Ayukawa’s attitude toward me had always been harsh. This was the first time I even spoke to her. At the karaoke session that triggered my insulation, she laughed at me in the loudest voice she could muster. I don’t know why, but she hates me.

It can’t be helped. ……

“Kyaa!!!”

　I held Ayukawa’s body in my arms.

　No room for violence. Smoothly lift her up and smoothly lower her down. The so-called “princess carry” position took only a moment. It was no big deal, as long as I didn’t misjudge the opponent’s center of gravity.

“……, na, na, na, na ……”

“Look, while I’m at it.”

　Ignoring Ayukawa, whose face was turning red, I approached the girl with glasses. She bowed flatly and took her seat, looking embarrassed.

” Don’t screw with me!　W-What the hell are you doing?!”

　Ayukawa crowded in. The ribbon of her uniform, hanging loosely, touched her chest. The blouse, unbuttoned to the second button, has a thin bulge. I see. With breasts like these, it’s no wonder she and piggy are “friends.”

“Hey, Asano!　Beat this guy!”

　But Asano awkwardly looked away.

He had been flirting with her earlier, but now he looked frightened.

“N-no, Ayaka. I’m not going to that. It’s bad.”

“Haa?　This guy is just a shady character. What are you scared of? Hey!”

　The other boys were also looking down their eyes just like Asano.

　Ayukawa looked around as if she was in a daze.

“What’s wrong with you guys?　You just pointed and laughed at him the other day at karaoke. Hey–“

At that moment when she got interrupted

“Yoo-hoo♪ Kazu~!　Oh-ha~~!”

　Booheen!　The pig’s voice echoed.

Waving her right hand like a pig’s tail, Pig ran up to me. Damn, wasn’t she absent?

“What’s the matter, I’m just standing here talking to you. Are you sure you weren’t waiting for me to come?”

Come to think of it, this is near Pig’s seat, huh? No wonder I could smell the straw.

“Nn~?　What’s the trouble?　Hey, Ayaka. Did you do something to my Kazu?”

“U-umm, ……No, it’s nothing?”

Ayukawa smiled a strong smile.

Even though she is a special student in the prestigious Teikai Academy dance club and stands as the fashion leader of the school year, she cannot go against the granddaughter of the director.

“Is that so? So nothing happened. …… Is that true?”

“I-It’s true. Princess Rua, I don’t like it. There’s no way I’d ever touch the princess’s slave.

　　The piggy stared at the awkward-looking Ayukawa.

What’s that?

Somehow, the piggy’s pursuit was sharper or more persistent than usual.

I wonder if she is upset because she just broke up with Ii-chan.

“—Well, that’s okay.”

When Piggy lost interest in Ayukawa, she rubbed her precipitous chest against my arm. It hurt. It’s going to be cut off.

“Hey, hey, Kazu. What are you going to do for the fireworks show this year?　Do you want me to ask grandpa to prepare special seats for you again?　But don’t you think it would be nice for the two of us to go together this year?　Hey?”

“Oh, I heard the chime.”

　I shook off the pig and returned to my seat. [Mou, kazu you meany. Kazuzu♥”And she insists on it. Kazuzu. What’s with that name. [TL: Combination of 2 words meany (ikezu) and his name Kazu]

At the time of leaving–.

　I heard Ayukawa’s voice murmuring in disgust.

“You’re a no-name brand,”

Her voice remained in my ears for a while.

Now —

　It was my first summer vacation since becoming a high school student.

　For me, this summer is not about the beach, swimming pool, or fireworks.

　It is the summer of part-time jobs.

　In fact, I have been longing for it for a long time. Earning money by myself. How precious. I can buy games, books, whatever I want with my earnings. I could even buy a small present for my mother, who has always put up with a lot of hardship.

　I was hired at a privately owned coffee shop in front of the station in the next town over.

　The girls wear maid uniforms with mini-skirts. The boys are dressed in tuxedos like butlers, and the store is famous among a certain clientele.

When I told them about the part-time job, the reaction of Amane-chan, President Suzuka, and Ii-chan was as follows.

“A-Are you going to wear a butler’s uniform!?　Kazu-kun?　I’m definitely going!!”

“A part-time job as a butler?　If you had told me, I would have hired you at my mansion. I’ll definitely go. Please make a reservation.”

“Boo. I wish I had a part-time job with Kazunii. I’ll definitely come visit you, okay?”

No. I’m scared.

If the three of them don’t somehow avoid meeting each other, the place where I work will turn into a carnage.