Classroom of the Elite: Alter - Solace

SS.22 - A Friendly Battle

A buzz on Sakura Airi's electric doorbell spurred her to open up.

"Haruka-chan, you're here!"

"Yeah... Get ready, Airi. It's today."

Airi nodded with a determined face. They quickly closed the door as soon Haruka got in. It was currently 8:00 AM and the two of them started talking as they sat on Airi's bed.

"You have your clothes ready?" asked Haruka.

"Mn," nodded Airi. "How about you?"

"Yep. It's all prepared inside my room."

"Should we send him a message now?"

Airi fidgeted with a slightly embarrassed expression. The way she rubbed her supple bare thighs together would instantly stimulate any boy. 

"Hmm... Knowing Kiyopon, he should be awake around this time. But then again, it's summer vacation so I'm not too sure."

"I see..."

"Well, we don't have to rush anything. For now, let's try writing our potential invitations."

Haruka smiled before leaning her body backward.

"Alright, let's do that."

Around half an hour passed after Airi and Haruka wrote their drafts while chatting with each other.

"Kiyopon, wanna go to a fortune-teller? Everyone's yapping about them." Haruka read her message out loud. "Do you think that sounds okay?"

"Sounds like you, doesn't it? I think it's fine."

"Alright, that'll be it. How about yours, Airi?"

"Kiyotaka-kun, if you're free, do you want to check out one of the fortune-tellers at Keyaki Mall with me?" she said. "How is it?"

"Ohh, isn't that good? Totally sounds natural."

"Okay, I'll send this one."

They turned to their phones and decided to send their respective messages at the same time, just as they planned. A good minute passed and the two of them just kept staring at their phones with stiff smiles.

"Haruka-chan, I'm embarrassed, after all..."

"Crap, me too... I can't believe I'm getting cold feet now, of all times."

Their date invitations were one tap away before getting sent to the boy they like, but both of them can't seem to do it. 

"Um, Haruka-chan, since you're the one who thought of this whole fortune-teller plan, I think it's better if you just invite Kiyotaka-kun yourself." Airi poked her cheek with a finger, smiling bitterly.

"What are you talking about, Airi?! We've discussed this already. Spending time with Kiyopon is already easy for us since we're friends with him. What we want out of this plan is something decisive. If the two of us invite him at the same time, we can see who he'll choose. I thought we were both ready to take a loss once he gives his answer. I know I am!"

"Ehehe, you don't have to get so worked up, Haruka-chan." Airi giggled as she held Haruka's hands with a gentle beam. "I don't really have a problem with any of this. I just thought that you were being too considerate of me. You could've invited Kiyotaka-kun a long time ago without any contention, but you still chose to let me know."

"Airi..."

"It's not that I'm running away. I'm delighted with the idea of having my fortune read with Kiyotaka-kun... But even if you snag a couple of opportunities here and there, I won't deem it as unfair because it's not. It would just be me being slow." 

Haruka hugged Airi's body and rubbed her cheeks against hers.

"You're so cute, Airi~!" she said before separating herself from her. "But no, we'll have to do this together. My intentions aren't that noble, you know? It's also a calculated plan."

"What do you mean?" asked Airi.

"Say he chooses you. Depending on how things go from there, it might give me a hint that you'd have a better chance of getting together with him. If I face that reality early on, it would make giving up on him way easier. Wouldn't it drastically reduce the pain I would feel?" she smirked.

However, Airi didn't like her response. She looked at her with a frown.

"Aren't you just running away again, Haruka-chan?"

She shook her head to reassure Airi.

"Don't worry-- not this time. I'm just trying to be smart. Remember; I said that "depending on how things go", which means I don't intend to give up just because he didn't choose me. If it turns out that Kiyopon is secretly head over heels for you... then, of course, I'll give up." Haruka pointed her finger at Airi with a smile. "However, if the gap between us isn't that great, then I'll work hard to turn the tables!"

Airi understood that Haruka wanted her mindset to be the same.

"I see... If that's the case, then I'm in," she nodded with an understanding and determined smile.

At 8:57, Haruka and Airi finally managed to press send at the exact same time.

"Oh no, I'm getting really nervous..."

"M-Me too, Haruka-chan..."

They held each other's hands, waiting for his reply. However, they both noticed that none of their messages had been read yet.

"Is Kiyotaka-kun still sleeping, perhaps?"

"Maybe so... Well, let's just wait for now. He can't sleep forever."

"Mn..." Airi's eyes darted all around before asking a question. "W-Who do you think will get chosen, Haruka-chan?"

"I'll be honest, Airi. I don't have a clue. That's why I wanted us to send our messages at the same time."

"That's true," chuckled Airi. "Kiyotaka-kun would just choose whoever sends it first."

About ten minutes passed before their phones simultaneously vibrated.

"It's here! He finally replied!" exclaimed Haruka.

"Sorry, I can't go with you. I already made plans with Horikita. Thanks for the invite, though. That's what Kiyotaka-kun sent. Is yours the same?" 

"Oh... Yeah, word for word..."

Their fiery enthusiasm was doused with some cold water because of his reply.

Haruka could only chuckle bitterly.

"Ahaha... To be honest, I expected Kiyopon to get invited already... Seems like he was the inviter this time, though-- and it's with Horikita-san, no less. That's pretty unexpected."

"Mn, I thought Kushida-san would make more sense."

"Well, Kyo-chan might be busy today. Who knows?"

Both of them had a bummed yet strangely relieved expression. Whether this was an ideal result for their first friendly battle or not hardly matters as long as nothing went wrong.

"This seems like our loss, Haruka-chan," smiled Airi.

"Yep... Wanna hang out at a cafe later?"

"Sure!"

The two of them relaxed for the rest of that day.