Chapter Text
"I like it when people fall for my jokes completely."
Suo said with a refreshing smile.
Hearing that kind of statement, the rest of the class 1-1 stared at Suo, and then at their dear class leader.
(Ah, this guy's talking about Sakura.)
For as long as they remembered, Suo never hid his romantic attraction to Sakura. Even when teasing Sakura, it was obvious that he did it because he liked the guy so much. He did it so often that Takanashi, who had a longtime girlfriend, secretly looked at him with a grimace.
Suo is normally a cool-headed and amazing guy. But at times like this, he's like an elementary school brat who picks on the girl he likes.
Meanwhile, the aforementioned class leader who was unaware of the pitying stares, just tilted his head at Suo.
"Ha. Of course you'd say something like that."
I still don't get why Umemiya called you kind, Sakura grumbled while stuffing himself with the curry bread he was given by the bakery on the way to school.
No way, I'm really kind, Sakura-kun, Suo beamed with a pleasant aura that nobody bought.
The deserted classroom was empty except for Sakura and Suo.
It was after school. Everyone was busy with patrol and other Furin-special activities such as fighting exercise and gardening. At that moment, Suo called Sakura to go inside the room.
“What’s up?”
Suo was already standing in front of a dirty blackboard filled with scribbles. He didn’t miss the way the monochrome hair bounced slightly as Sakura followed him to the class.
“There is something I have to tell you.”
“You can’t do it outside?”
“No, it’s better to talk about it here.”
Outside was a battleground, after all.
Giving his best smile, Suo started to speak with a clear voice. Everything in his heart, compiled into 10 short, simple words that anyone would understand right away.
"Sakura-kun, I like you. Would you go out with me?"
"HUH?!"
Sakura's face was instantly beet red. A funny noise came from somewhere in his nasal. The twin black-and-hair antennae on top of his head stood stiffly. He looked absolutely flabbergasted. And just slightly, but unmistakably, happy.
Hehe. I know that Sakura-kun by now has some feelings for me too. It was worth pestering and wooing.
Suo might not hide his affection, but he himself had never said it out loud to Sakura. Hearing the confession might overwhelm Sakura too much, and it was a risky move if he did it without being sure that Sakura had liked him back.
Even though he could appear somewhat shady, Suo would never want to force Sakura to go out with him. He respected Sakura as his class rep, friend and equal human being. However, he honestly also didn't want to get rejected. So the only surefire way to have Sakura's hand was to make him fall for Suo too.
Well, lucky that I'm good at getting people to accept my conditions.
Suo hid his smug thoughts behind a smile. Now was not the time to gloat that his strategy and all the tactics in it had worked. This moment right now was for Sakura to respond to his confession.
Come on, let me hear "yes, me too, I like you" !
But what came out from his subject of adoration was,
"... Suo, is that a new kind of joke?"
...Eh?
"...Eh?"
Suo's brain crashed. So crashed that only one word appeared in the blank slate of his mind and it was also what came from his mouth. After a few seconds, it finally rebooted itself, reviewed and reprocessed information, and came up with an analysis in an instant.
..... Ah. Right.
He forgot. Sakura's romance sensor was indeed sensitive and accurate, capable of picking up the slightest signal even from people he had just met.
But it had one major faulty design. It didn't register the affection that other people had for the owner himself.
Perhaps it had something to do with Sakura's dangerously low self-esteem and his lack of experience with human relationships. Because of that, he had zero idea of how attractive, charming and adorable he actually truly was. Unless someone actually spelled it outright to his face, he would not get that anyone would ever be in love with him . And even with that, he would not really believe it anyway. That just showed how he didn't think much of himself.
So Sakura had never noticed that his own classmates, seniors, and even people outside Furin were head over heels for him. Since there were a lot of motivated, troublesome, and motivated-and-troublesome people charmed by Sakura, the battle royale for Sakura's heart ensued not only in Furin High School but also in the town. And all of it happened right behind his oblivious back.
Later, thanks to Anzai, it would pass down as an urban legend among their juniors known as "The Cutthroat War for Spring.” There was no need for the central figure himself to know about such things, though.
Long story short, Suo saw an opening for himself in the battle. Utilizing his entire arsenal—his position as someone amongst the closest to Sakura, his clever tactics, and strong presence as an excellent fighter—he moved fast, executed his long-thought strategy, and seized the chance the moment it presented itself.
Which brought us back to this empty classroom at this very moment.
Already forming his own conclusion, Suo collected his scattered thoughts and took a deep breath. Then, he smiled.
"Sakura-kun, that's awful. I'm being serious now. I won't lie to you."
"You lie to me ALL the damn time!"
"No, no. This time, I'm serious. As proof, why don't we go on a date tomorrow? "
"D-D-D-D-DAA???”
Poor Sakura still couldn't pronounce the word "date" without losing his mind. Taking advantage of his pure reaction, Suo stepped forward and held Sakura's hands.
"Yes. How about we go to the new cafe just outside of town? There is a fruit matcha sandwich that I'm sure you would love! How about it, Sakura-kun?"
The food as bait worked its magic on Sakura. The panic slightly subsided while the image of fluffy fragrant sweet desert began to spread in his head.
"So, Sakura-kun?"
One could almost see stars in Suo’s single eye.
"F-Fine! Do as you like! D-date or whatever it is!"
"Yeay! Thank you, Sakura-kun!"
And that was how the two of them—the calm strategist who always lied and the cool leader who was innocent—started their romantic relationship.