The person who had summoned me was the most popular girl in the entire first-year class—Nozomi Himesaki.
She had reddish hair tied in a half-up style, a well-defined bridge to her nose, and those adorably drooping eyes. Her chest was reasonably sized for her slender frame; if my eyes weren't deceiving me, she was larger than Rui but a bit more modest than Yuria.
We hadn't spoken since we bumped into each other at the Inter-High venue, but her figure, face, and overall appearance were undeniably top-tier.
"Himesaki... Why did you call me here?"
"Oh my. Ryouta-senpai, you actually remembered me? I'm honored," Himesaki said, smiling bashfully in a calculatedly cute way.
I had first spoken to Himesaki when we collided at the Inter-High, and then she had suddenly stopped me on the way home from the event as well. Ever since our first meeting, she had insisted on calling me by my first name, and she had made some rather cryptic remarks back then. Could this be related to that?
"How did you manage to remember me? Could it be, Ryouta-senpai, that you're actually interested in me?"
"N-No... It’s just, I thought you were cute when I saw you before, so you stuck in my memory, I guess."
"Hmm... I see. So that's your angle. You use flattery and call girls cute to skillfully seduce them."
"What?! Where did that come from? That’s a total smear campaign!"
She made me sound like some kind of scumbag who went around seducing girls left and right. I admitted I was close with the Beautiful Girl Trio, but it wasn't like I was doing anything inappropriate with them. Well, okay, if I categorized the accidental boob-dives and the bare-skin touching as "lucky pervert" moments, then maybe...
"M-More importantly, just tell me why I'm here. You have something you want to talk to me about, right?"
Since the person who called me out was Nozomi Himesaki, I didn't think for a second that she was going to confess her love to me. So, what was the reason? I had been completely carried away since yesterday, fully expecting a confession from an underclassman, but now that reality had set in, I cleared my head and started thinking.
"Oh my. You’re on high alert, aren't you, Ryouta-senpai?"
"Of course I am! How could I not be wary when an underclassman I barely know starts talking to me so familiarly?"
"I see. In that case, before we get to the point, shall we introduce ourselves once more?"
"Huh? An introduction?"
Why an introduction now? What was she suddenly getting at?
"I am Nozomi Himesaki, a first-year. As you might know, I lived abroad until high school because of my parents' work, so I'm completely fluent in English. My grades are the best in the first-year class, and since my looks and personality are perfect, back when I was overseas, a prince from a certain country who was at my high school for a study abroad program even proposed to me—"
"W-Wait, stop right there!"
"Yes? Is something the matter, Ryouta-senpai?"
"Look... how much longer is this bragging session going to last?"
The self-praise was coming one after another, and I finally lost my patience and cut her off.
"Geez, Ryouta-senpai? You’re supposed to listen to a girl's bragging with a smile and just let it slide with a 'Wow, that’s amazing!'"
"What is that? Some kind of lead-up to the 'I'm putting it in now' line?"
"Putting it in? I’m not sure what you mean, but if you’re going to be like that, I’ll stop my introduction there. Now it’s your turn, Ryouta-senpai!"
"M-Me?"
Even if she told me to introduce myself, I didn't have much to say beyond my name.
"Um, I’m... Ryouta Izumiya. A second-year, not in any clubs... and, well..."
Crap... I was such a loner that I had absolutely nothing to say for a self-introduction. The reality was that my status was almost unchanged from the introduction I gave at the start of my first year. I had been soaking in a sense of superiority from touching bare thighs and breasts lately, but that was just my own internal delusional status. Was the current me so pathetic that even Coach Anzai would be shocked? Was I really "not growing at all"?
"Are you finished already, Ryouta-senpai?"
"...Y-Yeah. Sorry, but I don't really have anything to brag about like you do."
"Oh my. Lying again."
"Eh? N-No, I'm not. I wouldn't lie about that."
"Then, from here on, I'll provide the introduction for you."
"Mine? What on earth are you—"
"You are Ryouta Izumiya. A seemingly ordinary male student in Class 2-B, but after playing the lead role of Snow White in this year's cultural festival, you suddenly became a person of interest at school. Furthermore, behind the scenes, you’ve been spotted after school with Yuria Ichinose-senpai, Airi Miyama-senpai, and even the famous Rui Kuroki. Rumors are especially persistent that you and Rui Kuroki are actually dating... Isn't that right?"
Me and Rui? That was just a baseless rumor, but the fact that she even knew about Yuria and Airi... This girl knew way too much about my life.
"Well, Ryouta-senpai? How do you like my research skills?"
"I honestly think you’ve done your homework. But I’m not dating Rui, and I’m not dating Airi or Yuria either. I only started talking to those three because our seats ended up near each other."
"I see. So you’re going to play dumb to the very end."
"I-It’s not a lie! I’m really not dating them!"
"Then, what do you make of this?"
"This?"
Himesaki slowly pulled a single photograph from her skirt pocket and held it out toward me.