"Listen, Rui. I get that seeking certainty might be necessary, but 'what-ifs' happen all the time. Think about those two times I helped you in the past. Your cat, or that time you forgot the paper—unexpected things happened then, didn't they?"
"What-if? Are you trying to say I'm going to lose?"
Rui’s gaze sharpened even further. It felt as though a hint of something resembling hostility had crept into her eyes.
"N-no! That’s not it! All I’m trying to say is that there’s no such thing as a sure thing."
"No... sure thing?"
"Yeah. Right now, you’re chasing perfection so hard that you're obsessed with certainty. But people's feelings are fickle; they can change right up until the very last second."
I’d seen it myself last year. In a Student Council election, it wasn't uncommon for the undecided voters—the ones who didn't really care—to change their minds based on the final speech alone.
"So... even if people are leaning toward Himesaki during the campaign, you have the power to win them over with your speech. That's why I don't want you to push yourself too hard trying to lock everything down right now."
I meant every word. I understood her perfectionism and her need for a guarantee, but I wanted her to have a little more faith in her own strength. I wanted her to have the confidence to know she could sway those Himesaki supporters in the end.
"...I'm sorry, Ryouta-kun. I might have been getting a little ahead of myself."
"No, I—I'm sorry for acting like such a know-it-all! It was none of my business!"
"No... you're the only one who can talk to me like this. And because it's you, I can actually listen."
"Rui..."
"You can be pretty tactless sometimes, but you're always honest and you give it to me straight. That’s why I... no. It’s because you offer me a perspective I don't have that I want you as my Vice President. That’s all there is to it."
She turned her back to me as she spoke. Wait, was she actually still mad?
"So, can I leave the after-school campaigning entirely to you?"
"Y-yeah! Leave it to me, Rui! I'll do whatever it takes!"
"Hehe... are you just saying that because you want an excuse to wear my uniform?"
"Ah—well, I mean, that's part of it, but..."
"Honestly, you're such a pervert."
Rui turned back to face me, a grin flashing across her face—a smile even more radiant than her usual ones. Seeing her like that, I couldn't help but laugh along.
Once the campaign period officially began in earnest, my days fell into a busy rhythm. In the mornings, I stood alongside Rui, Airi, and Yuria to help with the outreach. After school, I was forced into drag, serving as Rui’s body double for the afternoon leg of the race.
Meanwhile, in the digital sphere, Tanaka was making waves. She kept rolling out one revolutionary pledge after another, building a strange sort of fame and popularity without ever showing her face.
Would it be Rui’s overwhelming popularity? The high hopes people had for Himesaki? Or would Tanaka, the dark horse who had captured the casual crowd, pull off an upset?
No one would know for sure until the day of the vote.