Why was Rui Kuroki so fixated on me?
On the way back from my house that day, Rui—who had doubled back to retrieve something she’d forgotten—promised she would tell me the reason once the Cultural Festival was over.
"Ryouta-kun, you're necessary for me to keep being perfect."
I still didn't understand the true meaning behind those words.
"To begin with... Kuroki, wasn't it because I was the only guy in junior high who didn't confess to you? I thought you just couldn't accept that and were trying to force a confession out of me now."
"To be honest... that was a lie."
"A lie!?"
"I didn't actually care that you were the only one who didn't confess. I'm not the kind of woman who would strive for perfection over something so trivial, you know?"
Kuroki spoke with complete indifference.
But if that wasn't the reason, why had she been involving herself with me all this time?
"The reason I said I needed you for my own perfection is because... you were my hero."
"A hero? Are you talking about what we were discussing while waiting at the maid cafe?"
Kuroki nodded slightly and continued.
"You might not realize it, Ryouta-kun, but you've saved me from a crisis twice."
"Is this... by any chance, about our second-year graduation ceremony?"
"So you knew. Did you hear it from Tanaka-san? She was in the broadcasting club, after all."
"Yeah... You forgot the script for the farewell address you were supposed to give as the student representative, right? But then I collapsed because I was feeling sick, and since the ceremony was paused, the script made it to you in time."
"Yes. That's exactly what happened."
It was a rare slip-up for someone like Rui Kuroki, who lived for perfection. But what shocked me even more was the realization that I’d been the one to save her, however unintentionally.
"Back then, I was overwhelmed with the track and field nationals and the Junior Olympics. I didn't even have the mental space to look over the speech I had to give as the Student Council President. When I realized the script wasn't in my blazer pocket, I felt utter despair. I thought the perfect image I had built up was going to crumble in front of everyone... I panicked more than I ever have in my life."
Even someone like Kuroki could panic.
Precisely because she had the aura of someone who could do anything—someone for whom perfection was the baseline—it felt incredibly unexpected.
"It was a stroke of luck, but I was saved because of you. The 'perfect' version of me that exists today is thanks to you, Ryouta-kun. If I had failed then and lost my confidence, I might not be the person I am now."
"Kuroki..."
"So, thank you for that day, Ryouta-kun."
"Tch! It's not like I did it on purpose or anything."
Receiving such sincere gratitude and a pure smile from her made me turn away in embarrassment.
"And there it is. The classic tsundere response."
"I'm not a tsundere!"
When I snapped back, Kuroki just giggled.
(Good grief, what part of me is a tsundere?)
"Anyway, putting that aside, you said I saved you twice. What was the other time? I honestly have no idea what you're talking about."
"Hmm... the other time... I suppose it was back in elementary school?"
"Elementary school? But we went to different schools."
"We did... but try to remember the story I told you about the cat."
"The cat?"
I was even more lost now. A story about a cat...?
Come to think of it, she had mentioned something about owning a cat before... Wait.
"Are you talking about the time you let your cat escape in a parking lot?"
"Yes. You were strangely unresponsive when I brought it up before, so I didn't push it..."
"Unresponsive?"
"Back then, the person who saved my cat was you, Ryouta-kun."
"What... Me!?"
So the boy from that story—the one who caught her cat in the parking garage in the neighboring town—was me!?
I couldn't wrap my head around it. Even hearing her say it, I had no memory of the event. It was true that I’d often gone to that town on errands for my parents back in elementary school, but still...
"I don't remember a thing from back then... Now that you mention it, maybe it happened? Or maybe not..."
"Tell me, Ryouta-kun. When you were in elementary school, didn't you have a habit of leaving your name tag on when you went out to play after school?"
"Wait... How do you know that?"
It was true. Back then, I always forgot to unpin the name tag from my chest and would head out to play with it still attached. My teacher and my parents used to scold me for it every single day.
But if she knew that...
"Then, on the boy's name tag..."
"Yes. It was written right there: 'Ryouta Izumiya'."
You've got to be kidding me...
Given the circumstantial evidence, it really was me.
(Man, to spot someone's name tag in an instant and remember it all these years later... Her powers of observation really are on par with a detective's.)
"I was panicking so much I was on the verge of tears because the cat had escaped because of me. But then you caught it, and you saved me..."
Kuroki looked at me with a gentle, nostalgic gaze, as if savoring the memory.
"I never imagined that several years later, in junior high, I would be saved again by that same Ryouta Izumiya-kun."
To think a loner like me had saved the great Rui Kuroki twice... Even if it was an accident, my younger self had some serious moves.
So, because I saved her then, it led to this... Wait.
"If you knew my name before junior high, why didn't you say anything to me until our second year of high school?"
"That's because..."
"?"
"I couldn't rule out the possibility of it being a different person with the same name. And besides, back then I was still a maiden at heart, so maybe I wasn't 'perfect' in that regard yet?"
"Huh?"
That was the most nonsensical thing she'd said yet. What did "that regard" even mean?
Well... it's not like I particularly wanted her to talk to me back then, so I guess it didn't matter.
"Anyway! That's the end of my trip down memory lane!"
"Just like that?"
"In short, what I'm trying to say is that I've done nothing but receive help from you. So, consider today’s help my way of paying back the debt."
"Oh... Well, I appreciate it."
I really would have been screwed today if she hadn't stepped in.
"Do you understand now? What I meant when I said I needed you to remain perfect? I feel like if I'm with you... I can stay perfect forever. Always, eternally, for the rest of my life..."
Wait, hold on. This is sounding a lot like...
"So, Ryouta-kun... I want you to stay by my side from now on, okay?"
Was this it? Was this actually a confession of love!?
With Kuroki!? Does this mean we're dating!?
Me and Rui Kuroki!?
"W-Wait! Look, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy to date a super-beauty like you, but jumping into that kind of relationship so suddenly is a bit—"
"—Pfft."
"Kuroki?"
"Sorry, Ryouta-kun. I hate to ruin the moment while you're getting all worked up, but that's not what I meant."
"Huh?"
"The Student Council election this year—if I’m elected as the Student Council President, I want you to be my Vice President."
"............What?"
I had a sudden, sinking feeling that something even more outrageous was about to begin.