— — — — — —
After the fireworks show ended—after that final emotional high had burned itself out—most of the visitors in Disneyland looked drained.
The noise faded. What was left behind felt strangely empty.
Most of them had booked hotels nearby.
Oikawa and the others, though, still had to head home.
The train back was packed, but compared to the lively ride there, it was much quieter.
Even Yui, who was usually bursting with energy, looked exhausted. She leaned her head against one of the support poles, her eyelids drooping like she could fall asleep at any second.
Ebina seemed to be holding up better, but she clearly wasn't in the mood to talk anymore.
Only Oikawa and Yukino exchanged a few words now and then, discussing the finer details of the Christmas event two nights from now.
"I'm getting off here." Ebina was the first to leave, waving goodbye before stepping off the train.
About ten minutes later, the train slowed to a stop again.
A voice came over the speakers: "Seaside Station. Passengers, please exit here."
First in Japanese. Then in English.
"We're here. Weren't you saying you were staying over at Yukino's place tonight?" Oikawa nudged Yui awake.
She hadn't wanted to ride the train home alone, so she'd decided to stay at Yukino's apartment instead.
"Mmm... we're there?" Yui rubbed her eyes, still half asleep, blinking blankly at her surroundings.
"Yeah. Let's go." Yukino stood up and, without hesitation, took Yui's hand, leading her off the train.
Honestly, Oikawa really wanted to say his place was always open to Yui too.
But saying that right now? Yeah, he'd probably get stabbed.
"Oikawa-kun, you're not getting off with us?"
Technically, Oikawa should've gotten off at this stop too.
But if he did, the only person left on the train would be Isshiki. And right now, she was clinging to the hem of his shirt with the most pitiful look imaginable.
Her expression practically screamed: Don't leave me here alone.
"You two go ahead. I'm riding to the last stop and heading home from there. It's a bit shorter."
He wasn't lying.
Going home from the final station was a shorter walk.
The problem was, staying on the train added another ten minutes, enough time for him to have walked home twice over.
"...Alright then. Be careful on your way home... Isshiki-san."
Oikawa shot Yukino a look. She'd clearly been looking at him when she said "be careful," but the name she used at the end was Isshiki-san.
Seriously. Could this woman make her point any sharper?
"Hehe, I knew Senpai wouldn't abandon me!"
The second Yukino and Yui got off, Isshiki seemed to transform back into her usual lively self, like a horse finally freed from its reins.
"..."
After a minute or two, Isshiki glanced around to make sure no one else was nearby before finally working up the courage to ask what had been on her mind. "Senpai... if I confessed to Hayama-senpai on New Year's, do you think it would work?"
"How would I know?" Oikawa pulled out his phone, ready to boot up Pokémon Spirits to kill time.
"What the heck? Your cute underclassman is asking you for love advice, and you can't even pretend to care? Do you know how much courage it took for me to ask you that?" Isshiki puffed out her cheeks and glared at him, making a sulky little whining noise.
"Alright, alright. Seriously, you're exhausting." He put his phone away and looked at her properly. "Go on."
"Hehe. I knew Senpai was the best." Isshiki grinned again.
After thinking over her words for a moment, she carefully asked, "Senpai... hypothetically. I mean hypothetically. If you were Hayama-senpai... would you like a girl like me? If I confessed to you, would you accept?"
There was a faint glimmer of hope in her eyes.
But Oikawa's merciless answer snuffed it out instantly, "Nope. I'm not into flat chests."
"W-Who are you calling flat?!" Isshiki shot to her feet, puffing out her chest in protest. "I'm not flat! I've got something! And I'm still growing!"
She emphasized every word like it was a declaration of war.
Luckily, the train was practically empty. Otherwise Oikawa would've definitely been mistaken for some kind of pervert. Maybe even dragged into an argument by some self-righteous stranger.
"Okay, okay. My wording was bad. I take it back."
Life was hard.
Not only did he have to escort Isshiki home, he also had to carefully protect her fragile self-esteem.
Still... flat was flat.
Oikawa gave her a quick glance and muttered under his breath, "At this rate, even ten more years of growing won't get you anywhere near Yui. Some things are just talent, you know."
Isshiki got even angrier.
She looked down at herself, then turned her head toward the dark window, furious and unwilling to accept reality.
Oikawa pulled out his phone again.
Everything was going exactly according to plan. There was no way he wanted to play relationship counselor.
About thirty seconds later, quiet sniffling echoed through the nearly empty train.
It reached Oikawa's ears.
"…Are you crying? Seriously?"
"N-No... I'm not!" Isshiki's answer came out in broken little hiccups.
"Are you really that upset?" Oikawa asked, a little stunned by how things had escalated. He was starting to regret not getting off the train earlier.
"I said I'm not crying! I'm not... not crying!" Isshiki said that, but her reflection in the train window gave her away.
Her face was already streaked with tears.
Oikawa fell silent for a moment.
Then, with a quiet sigh, he held out a tissue.
"You didn't take it this hard last time," he said, his voice softer now.
Isshiki bit her lip, staring stubbornly at the floor.
"This time's different," she muttered, her voice small and uneven.
Oikawa frowned. "How?"
Isshiki clenched her fists, her shoulders shaking as her frustration spilled over.
"It just is!" she snapped, tears finally spilling faster than she could stop them.
She didn't even know why herself.
She just felt... wronged.
The crying got louder.
"Alright, alright. Stop crying. My bad, okay? I shouldn't have attacked your weak point. You definitely still have room to grow."
Oikawa comforted her against his better judgment.
Isshiki still refused to take the tissue, turning her back on him in a sulky huff.
At least her sobbing had quieted down.
"Tell you what. I know a secret method for increasing your chest size."
That line worked like magic.
Isshiki whipped around instantly, eyes wide. "What method?"
Oikawa lowered his voice mysteriously. "Get yourself a boyfriend. And when you are alone, you let him....."
Isshiki froze as she heard the absolutely dirty words that followed.
Then her face turned bright red, the blush spreading all the way to her ears.
"You... you're such a pervert."
"Thanks." Oikawa took it as a compliment.
"..."
"Senpai... I've decided. I'm going to make the first move." She wiped away her tears and smiled brightly again. "Hayama-senpai has girls swarming around him all the time. If I don't act soon, I might lose my chance."
"I support you. You'll definitely succeed." Oikawa gave her a little cheering gesture.
Honestly, he didn't know what else to say.
Isshiki blinked a few times.
Then she scooted back, putting some distance between them. "Senpai... what are you doing?"
"Huh?" Oikawa frowned.
"Don't tell me you're planning to take advantage of me while I'm all emotional. Sorry, the mood is pretty tempting, but no. I'm not going to your place, no matter what," Isshiki said, her face bright red.
Oikawa smacked her lightly on the head.
"Ow! Senpai, you can't hit a girl on the head! It'll make me dumber!"
And just like that, Isshiki was back in full pout mode.
But on Isshiki, it was honestly kind of cute. Cute enough that he almost wanted to pinch her cheeks.
"Senpai... you'll help me, right?" Isshiki suddenly leaned in close.
Way too close. Close enough that Oikawa could feel the warmth of her breath.
"You will, right? Oikawa-senpai, you have to take responsibility for me."
She smiled like a little devil. And for the first time, Oikawa felt like he was the one being cornered.
'Wait... Did this girl just get the upper hand on me?'
...
..
After seeing Isshiki off in a taxi, Oikawa jogged home. He'd skipped the gym today, so this counted as exercise.
The moment he got home, his stomach growled loudly in protest.
Opening the fridge, Oikawa eventually decided on a late dinner of noodles with egg sauce.
And, of course, the pickled plums Kawasaki had given him.
As the noodles boiled, he opened Line and checked the unread messages.
As always, Utaha had sent him a message right on time.
『Utaha』: Ta-da! Let me show you my dinner. (Photo) (Photo)
『Utaha』: Went out for sukiyaki with a friend today. Looks good, right? Want to come with me next time?
Oikawa opened the photos.
The pictures showed mushrooms, tofu, all kinds of vegetables, and slices of beef laid out beautifully.
And judging by the marbling in the photo, Utaha had definitely gone somewhere expensive.
『Oikawa』: Now I'm jealous. I'm still here miserably boiling noodles.
He snapped a picture of the pot and sent it over.
『Utaha』: Why are you eating this late? Didn't you say the Christmas event was mostly sorted out? Did something else happen?
Her concern came through immediately.
『Oikawa』: Not exactly. Our teacher gave us some Disneyland tickets, so we went to gather inspiration.
『Oikawa』: (Photo) (Photo).... Shots from the fireworks show. Pretty good, right?
Utaha replied almost instantly.
So fast, Oikawa was pretty sure she hadn't even opened the pictures.
『Utaha』: You went with girls? Senpai, if I remember right, everyone helping with your "Christmas event" is a girl!!!
A smile tugged at Oikawa's lips.
He'd told her outright that he went to Disneyland. There was no way he hadn't prepared an answer for this.
『Oikawa』: Our teacher took us there. Besides, Miss Utaha is the most beautiful woman in the world. Compared to you, the girls around me don't even come close.
On the other end—
Utaha read the message, and the corners of her mouth curved up in satisfaction.
"Not bad," she murmured.
Lying on her bed, she lifted her phone high and snapped a "cooler" photo of herself.
Still very much clothed, of course.
『Utaha』: (Photo).. A reward for being honest, Senpai.
『Utaha』: Looking forward to your internship in Tokyo. I'll take you to the sukiyaki place I went to today. It was seriously amazing.
Oikawa's reply popped up almost immediately.
『Oikawa』: That many clothes? Who are you looking down on? Do as I say. Take some off and send another picture so I can inspect it.
Utaha laughed under her breath.
"In your dreams."
She stared at his message, smiling as she thought about how to reply.
Just then, a blonde girl in pajamas walked into the room, drying her hair with a towel. "Utaha, who were you talking to?"
"No one. You heard wrong." Utaha reacted at lightning speed and locked her phone screen.
"That's weird. I definitely heard someone." The blonde girl, Eriri, walked over, leaned in, and sniffed suspiciously before narrowing her eyes at Utaha.
"Something's off. Utaha, tell me honestly... are you dating someone?"
Her gaze turned sharp.
"No," Utaha answered smoothly. "If I were dating someone, why would I hide it from you?"
She stood up, looking as calm as ever, "I'm going to take a bath."
"…Weird. Something's definitely off."
"And why are you bringing your phone to the bath?"
Eriri frowned deeply as she watched Utaha leave.
…
..
10 PM—
After finishing dinner, Oikawa was just about to play a game of Mobile Legends before going to sleep when his phone suddenly rang.
Chris Yamada—
Oikawa stared at it for over ten seconds before finally answering.
Honestly, he was afraid it'd be another weird promotional stunt.
And the worst part was, it was hard to say no.
"Oikawa-sensei, good news! Great news! The first print run of Clannad, two hundred thousand copies, is almost completely booked by bookstores already! And we've even got a bunch of overseas orders!"
Oikawa blinked. He was stunned.
The internet had been roasting the novel nonstop. And yet these bookstore owners were ordering like lunatics?
"…They're not worried it won't sell?" Oikawa asked in confusion.
"Well, most of the big numbers came from Tsutaya. Their chain bookstore placed the largest order." Chris explained. "The head manager wanted to secure the signing event, so they ordered fifty thousand copies in one shot."
Lately, Full-Drive Bunko had been going back and forth with major bookstores across Tokyo, trying to lock down a location for Oikawa's signing event.
A lot of stores had made offers.
As long as "Copycat-sensei" agreed to hold the signing at their location, they were even willing to order ten thousand copies.
The exact numbers had still been under negotiation.
But then Tsutaya had barged in out of nowhere and dropped a number that left every competitor speechless.
Fifty thousand. A full fifty thousand.
Even if Full-Drive Bunko dropped the wholesale price to 800 yen a copy, that was still forty million yen.
If the books didn't sell and sat gathering dust... Tsutaya's cash flow could actually collapse.
It was a massive gamble.
"Fifty thousand? That's insane." Even Oikawa was shocked.
At this point, it almost felt like someone trusted Clannad's success more than he did.
"Oikawa-sensei, Full-Drive Bunko has decided to do another print run. Another two hundred thousand copies of Clannad. The royalties should hit your account in the next day or two."
After telling him about the reprint, Chris continued, "So, can you come to Tokyo sometime before New Year's? We want to familiarize you with the venue first."
"This time, Full-Drive Bunko has hired over a dozen professional bodyguards for you. They've all protected government ministers before, so you can rest easy."
Oikawa froze again.
Seriously? They're going this far?
At this point, it felt like Full-Drive Bunko was even more afraid of him getting stabbed than he was.
.
.
.