And then, the day of the election finally arrived.
I spent the entire commute to school practicing my speech. After a quick stop at the restroom, I made my way toward the gymnasium.
The proceedings were scheduled to begin early during the morning assembly and run until the end of the first period, so it was shaping up to be quite a marathon.
Right... the meeting spot was backstage in the wings.
"Morning, Himesaki. What are Rui and the teacher talking about?"
"Good morning, Ryouta-senpai. Well, it seems Rui-senpai’s recommender hasn’t shown up yet."
"What? They’re not here?"
⭐︎⭐︎
I’d had a bad feeling since the moment I woke up.
No sooner had I opened my eyes than I was hit with a bout of sleep paralysis, costing me thirty precious minutes. Then, a horoscope on TV just happened to rank my sign, Sagittarius, dead last by a significant margin.
It was the exact same unlucky combo I’d been hit with once before.
But I never actually expected my premonitions to come true.
Just as the election was about to begin, an emergency struck. Word arrived that the senior who was meant to be Rui’s recommender had come down with a fever and wouldn’t be making it to school.
"Rui, you okay?"
"Y-Yeah. Thank you for worrying, Ryouta-kun."
She answered with her usual composure, but I could tell she was only forcing herself to put on a brave face.
The rules for election day were simple: candidates would deliver their speeches in a predetermined order, but each one had to be preceded by a supporting speech from their recommender. Rui was first in the order, meaning her recommender was scheduled to give the very first speech of the day.
"I knew she’d been staying up late every night studying for her entrance exams, and I was the one who practically forced her into this, so it can’t be helped. Even knowing there was a risk of this happening, she was still the only one I wanted to ask."
"...I guess you're right."
Rui had mentioned before that the third-year votes would be the deciding factor in this Student Council President race. That was undoubtedly why she’d chosen a senior she trusted to represent her... but with that support gone, the path to victory had suddenly become much more complicated.
"Can you find a replacement?"
"I thought of Airi or Yuria... but it looks like neither of them is here yet."
Airi and Yuria usually arrived at school right before the final bell, so at this hour, they were likely still in transit and hadn't checked their phones.
With every passing minute, Rui’s face grew paler. Going without a recommender would be a massive blow to her campaign.
This felt strangely like the incident during our junior high graduation ceremony. Back then, it had been a mere coincidence that I was the one to help her...
But this time, it wasn't a coincidence. It was inevitable—I had to be the one to save her.
"Rui, listen to me."
"What is it...?"
"I know I might not be the most reliable person for the job, but... I've already decided that I'm going to be the one to support your perfection."
"Ryouta-kun?"
"Please, Rui—"