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Chapter 47: Wild Thoughts and the Test Results
🕑 Added 2025-07-30 20:47:01 +0000 UTC“That song… I originally sang it for Ijichi-san.”
Those words were impossible to ignore.
After hearing them, Nijika found herself at a loss for words—unsure of what to say, or even what to think.
Even as Aoki Kei turned and walked out of STARRY, she still hadn’t come back to her senses.
It wasn’t until her older sister nudged her and said, “Hey, snap out of it,” that Nijika finally returned to reality.
Her face still flushed red, she forced herself to ignore the teasing glint in her sister’s eyes, grabbed the now-cold school bag from the nearby table, and then her own.
With a slightly trembling voice, she mumbled, “Let’s go home for dinner,” and quickly turned on her heel, walking straight out of the livehouse.
But inside, her thoughts were spiraling.
She could tell something wasn’t quite right with herself lately—
Wanting to help shoulder Aoki-senpai’s burdens and move forward with everyone.
Wanting to talk to him more during the day.
Changing her phone’s ringtone to “So I Gave Up on Music”.
Getting emotionally shaken just from a single comment he made...
She didn’t know how to deal with all these feelings.
The more she thought about it, the more complicated everything felt.
She was starting to realize that what she felt for Aoki-senpai was definitely not just “ordinary friendship.”
And when she remembered what Kita had said—those things about Aoki-senpai and Ryo her heart couldn’t help but feel a little heavy.
Shaking her head, Nijika forced herself to stop overthinking.
Whatever her feelings toward Aoki-senpai, or how she viewed his relationship with Ryo… maybe keeping things the way they were wasn’t so bad.
Meanwhile Aoki Kei had no idea about Nijika’s emotional turmoil.
He had been preoccupied lately with preparing for the fast-approaching end-of-month exams.
In his efforts to finally surpass Yukinoshita Yukino in the rankings.
He’d made some serious changes—cutting back on band rehearsals at STARRY, sacrificing his sleep, and dedicating nearly every waking moment to reviewing and studying.
This routine continued until Monday of the second week.
The new week began with Tokyo's weather growing more unpredictable again.
But compared to the earlier streak of sudden downpours, it was at least somewhat more tolerable.
Under a damp, overcast sky, the two-day monthly exams officially began.
Although he constantly told himself he had to beat Yukinoshita Yukino and claim the top spot, once the exams actually started, Aoki found himself strangely calm.
Whether he could surpass her or not, what mattered now was giving it his all.
The first day tested math and two science subjects.
The second day covered the rest, ending with the Japanese language test.
And once that final exam paper was collected, Aoki Kei walked out of the classroom with one lingering thought in his mind:
Was the next line after Matsuo Bashō’s “shaving the head and wearing black robes” really “rushing through travel on Mount Kurokami”?
He was sure he had memorized that haiku, but during the test, his mind blanked.
He regretted not reviewing it one more time.
Thankfully, after double-checking his textbook later, he found that he had remembered it correctly.
Anyway, the two-day monthly exams were over.
Grading wouldn’t be instant.
With teachers correcting papers through Wednesday and Thursday, the full rankings based on deviation scores wouldn’t be released until Friday.
During that time, Aoki Kei resumed his usual school routine, and the Kessoku Band went back to its regular training schedule.
Then came Friday.
Morning classes proceeded as usual.
During lunch, he grabbed some bread from the convenience store, ate quickly, then spent the rest of the break giving Kita Ikuyo another guitar lesson.
That afternoon, the rankings were finally posted.
Even though he’d tried to keep his cool during the exams, now that the results were out, he couldn’t help feeling a little nervous.
The moment he heard the rankings were up, he rushed straight to the bulletin board in the hallway.
It was already crowded with students.
Aoki Kei had to squeeze and push his way through to get close enough.
He raised his eyes and scanned the list—from bottom to top.
Tenth place: unfamiliar name.
Ninth: unfamiliar.
Even when he got to third, it was still someone he didn’t recognize.
Then came second—
His heart skipped a beat.
He tilted his head slightly upward.
————————————————————————
[Second place]: Yukinoshita Yukino.
[First place]: Aoki Kei.
————————————————————————
Relief washed over him.
He let out a quiet breath, then backed out of the crowd without much expression.
Calmly walking out of the hallway, he bought two bottles of chilled fruit juice from the vending machine outside the school building.
With the same neutral look, he returned to class—until he overheard the buzz of his classmates.
Some of the louder whispers were easy to catch.
They were shocked that the new transfer student had actually managed to surpass Yukinoshita Yukino, who had held onto the top spot for so long.
Aoki Kei didn’t let it get to him.
He took a deep breath and set one of the juice bottles down hard on Hikigaya Hachiman’s desk.
First place.
He’d ranked above Yukinoshita Yukino.
No, there was no scholarship reward for topping the monthly exams.
And sure, this might only make Yukinoshita more cautious for the finals—but still, Aoki could barely contain his excitement.
Not because it meant he was improving.
Not because it brought him closer to that scholarship.
Just because he really wanted to see the look on Yukinoshita’s face when she found out she lost.
That petty satisfaction alone was enough to lift his spirits.
Even Hikigaya Hachiman’s dead-fish eyes were starting to look oddly charming today.
“…Oi, Aoki. What’s with that creepy look on your face? Gross…”
After Hachiman’s snarky comment and the sound of the class bell ringing, Aoki gave up trying to say anything more.
————————————————————————
The period ended.
And since it was the last class of the day, the school bell for dismissal and club activities rang out simultaneously.
It was Friday.
Which meant Aoki Kei had to attend the Service Club—spending thirty minutes in that perpetually cold and awkward clubroom.
Normally, he didn’t enjoy the activity at all.
Thirty wasted minutes that could’ve gone to more practice with the Kessoku Band girls.
But today was different.
Walking with Hikigaya to the third floor, they stopped in front of the Service Club room.
Just as Hachiman reached to open the door, Aoki stopped him with a hand.
Standing at the entrance, Aoki cleared his throat and carefully adjusted his tone.
He knocked—not too hard, but deliberately then spoke up:
“Yukinoshita-san, may I come in?”
