Chapter 46: Who is the fun of whom in life?
"Gentle, manly, considerate, loyal, kind, smart, and athletic."
Toru Watanabe wrote down these label-like notes in his notebook.
After doing all this, he first went to the gym where he had applied for a swimming card. Because of the rain, there were less people here than usual.
Toru Watanabe swam ten laps in the 50-meter-long swimming pool, took a shower in the gym's bathroom, and then set off for Shinjuku to buy books at Kinokuniya Bookstore.
As for bookstores, there are some nearby, but the books there are more complete and diverse. They might even have the niche books he wants, such as "How to Seduce Rich Girls".
There were no empty seats in the car, so Toru Watanabe leaned against the inner door and looked at the small Spanish vocabulary book he had compiled.
When the train passed the Shinjuku Gyoenmae station, a little girl wearing the Kamikawa High School uniform and holding a heavy musical instrument got on. Watanabe Toru took a look at her subconsciously.
It's Hanada Asako holding a cello.
Watanabe Toru thought, isn't this the time to show "gentleness" and "consideration"? So he reached out to help take it, but he almost lost it.
"Sorry," he said quickly.
Hanada Asako, whose face turned red, quickly waved her hands: "No, this is my side."
"It's quite heavy." Toru Watanabe placed the instrument at his feet to prevent it from being bumped.
"No, no, the instrument is not heavy, it's mainly the case that's heavy. But this will protect the cello very well."
"What did you say?" Hanada Asako's voice was so soft that Watanabe Toru couldn't hear it at all.
Hanada Asako put her hands on her chest and took a deep breath, which startled Watanabe Toru, who thought she was going to shout in the train.
As a result, Hanada Asako repeated her voice without any change in the volume.
Watanabe Toru, who still didn't hear clearly, said, "Yeah, I see."
"I'm really gentle, maybe I don't need to spend money to buy books on how to be gentle." Watanabe Toru thought so while continuing to look at the vocabulary book.
Hanada Asako was originally very small, and because she was shy and kept her head down, she didn't realize that the conversation was over.
She hesitated for a moment and quietly introduced herself: "I am Hanada Asako from Class 2, Grade 1. Thank you for your help."
After a short pause, she felt that as a senior, she had to lead the conversation, so she mustered up the courage to continue:
"I went to the piano store to learn piano, and I'm on my way back now. I have an exam soon. Where are you going so late, Watanabe-san?"
"Ah? Yeah, I see."
Hanada Asako's brain fell into confusion.
"What should I do! Why can Watanabe-san be so perfunctory to his seniors! What should I do?"
The train arrives at the station: "Next stop, Shinjuku-sanchome, Shinjuku-sanchome."
Watanabe Toru put away his vocabulary book and walked out of the car while "gently" greeting, "Hanada-san, see you tomorrow."
"Eh?" Hanada Asako's petite body trembled like a little rabbit.
"See you tomorrow? Why?! And we didn't agree on the time and place... What should I do... I'm being pestered by a frivolous junior..."
The train bound for Nakano Station carried the confused Hanada Asako away, and Toru Watanabe was completely unaware of this.
The next day was the last day before the midterm exam, and the school arranged for students to study on their own. Those who wanted to relax their brains could sleep, and those who wanted to sharpen their skills before the exam could go to the teacher for help.
In short, every student can spend the last period of time in his or her own way.
During the lunch break, Watanabe Toru and his two companions were again overlooking the atrium from the balcony.
"Why not a sailor uniform?" Toru Watanabe said, drinking strawberry milk through a straw.
"Watanabe, if you like sailor uniforms, why don't you go to Guangming High School?" Saito Keisuke tore open the rice ball packaging.
Kunii Osamu, who was chewing on fried noodles bread, said, "That's right. The first thing to consider when going to school is whether the school uniform is handsome! I came here just for Kamikawa's Western-style uniform."
"As for the sailor uniform, from where we are now, we might be able to see the girl's chest."
"..." Saito Keisuke widened his eyes, "Is it okay?!"
"The collar of a sailor uniform is loose, right? What are you bending over for? Think about it."
"Damn it!!!" Kunijui Osamu roared, "Watanabe, why didn't you say it earlier! Why didn't you say it earlier!"
"That's right! I've had enough of the Kamikawa school uniform! The collar has to be tied with a bow all year round! Isn't it hot?!!"
The one with the bow is a girl, right? What do you want to do?
Toru Watanabe looked at a female student in the atrium. No matter how he looked at her, whether she was bending over or sitting, the bow tie perfectly protected her collarbone.
There is absolutely no need for a school uniform that doesn't even show your collarbone!
Saito Keisuke suddenly added: "But being conservative also has its advantages. We can't look at other people's girlfriends, and others can't look at our girlfriends."
"Do we have girlfriends?" asked Toru Watanabe.
The trio fell into a brief silence.
Watanabe Toru changed the subject: "How are you, Kunii? And the one in the wind band."
"Yes, is there any progress?" Saito Keisuke also asked.
"Alas." Kunijii Osamu sighed.
"Failed again?"
"No." Kunii Osamu ate bread, "I haven't talked to her yet. But, Hanada Asako is a senior, it must be very difficult. I think it would be better for me to find a girl in the same grade first."
"Ah, this is indeed easier." Saito Keisuke nodded in agreement.
"Find it first? What on earth do you think love is?" said Toru Watanabe.
Kunii Osamu replied: "Of course I want to like only one person, but I have to consider the actual situation."
"What's the actual situation? I think Hanada Asako is very cute." Toru Watanabe thought about Hanada Asako on the train last night.
"That's right! It's because she's cute!"
"What's wrong with being cute?" asked Keisuke Saito.
"Think about it, I like her because she's cute, right? But there are so many cute girls in the world, it's hard for me to control myself from liking them!"
"...Go to hell." Saito Keisuke said unhappily.
"Watanabe, you can understand me, right? It's just like how you feel when you're hesitating between Kiyono-san and Kujo-san!"
"Don't bring me into this." Watanabe Toru couldn't bear to hear it anymore. "A 'dedicated warrior' like me and a 'philandering partner' like you are not the same kind of people."
"'Dedicated warrior'? When did you change your job?!"
"last night."
Just as the other two were about to complain, Watanabe Toru's cell phone rang.
"Hello."
"Bring me something to eat."
"You can't just ..."
“Beep…beep…”
Watanabe Toru put down his phone, and the other two who leaned over to eavesdrop immediately asked, "Watanabe, what is your relationship with Kiyono Rin and Kujo Miki ?"
"What's the relationship? Kiyono Rin wants me to like her, and I'm pursuing Kujo Miki. Kujo Miki wants to make Kiyono Rin angry through me."
Toru Watanabe did not lie, but he did not tell the truth either.
"Let's charge and explode!"
"Watanabe will die a miserable death!"
"Hey, apologize to all the Watanabes in the world! They may not be real people, they may be the same as you! Well, I have to go get food for the young lady." Watanabe Toru said this with a smug look on the surface, but in fact, he had already cursed Kujo Miki, who ordered him around, a hundred times from head to toe in his heart.
Seeing the other two people not enjoying their lunch and wanting to kill someone, Watanabe Toru laughed.
"Being able to find joy in a difficult life and always maintaining an optimistic and positive attitude is one of the guarantees for my future success."
"Wait, will Kiyono Rin, that boring woman, also treat me as a joke?"
The trio's expressions suddenly became synchronized again.
