Lilac Petals (Classroom of the Elite)

Chapter 3

Sakayanagi Arisu

Something was happening to me.

Not physically, but mentally.

During these past few days, I had found myself constantly distracted. Thoughts of a particular person had recently started to invade my mind.

And that person was none other than a student of Class D—Ayanokouji Kiyotaka.

A few days ago, after he had left my room, I felt an overwhelming sense of defeat. Yet, that feeling of defeat gradually transformed into... something else.

As time elapsed, a distinct feeling had started to emerge within me. Each passing thought seemed to lead to the same image of him—his brown locks, his dull yet alluring golden eyes, his chiseled face—and it had been impeding my ability to think clearly.

I'd made attempts to clear my mind, and tried to fixate on other subjects... Yet, it always found its way back to him, like a lost puppy searching for its home.

"You're cute, Arisu."

"You're cute, Arisu."

"You're cute, Arisu."

Those words had constantly repeated in my mind like a broken record. Occasionally, I'd feel an indescribable warmth spread across my face, while my heart would take on its own rhythm.

I'd been given the same compliment by my classmates several times before, however, no individual before had ever evoked my emotions the same way he had. His voice was a soothing lullaby, transforming my stomach into a carousel of butterflies.

When a girl happened to approach him, an indecipherable feeling would well up within me, as if I wished for her to steer clear of him. In contrast to girls like Horikita and Ichinose-san, I lacked... assets. I knew all too well that I was petite, and furthermore, dealing with a disability. It was no surprise for others to choose someone else's body over mine. And nonetheless, until this point, I had never once felt so insecure.

Each time our paths crossed, images from that time flashed through my head, and I'd struggle to keep my composure. The recollection of his touch was like a lingering warmth on my shoulders, causing me to unwillingly tense up and struggle to articulate my thoughts.

And these feelings...

Yes. Of course, I wasn't dense—I was well aware of what these feelings were.

One year prior, I would have deemed it an impossibility. Yet now, my feelings for him had undergone a transformation, evolving from hate, to sympathy, and now...

.

.

.

...No, it was rather too soon for me to say.

Kiyotaka... What have you done to this poor, fragile maiden?

====

Hashimoto Masayoshi

Yeah, there's definitely something up with the princess. And you can't convince me otherwise.

My suspicions began around a few days after spring break had kicked off. I was doing my usual business and walked beside her. But then, something popped up in my mind, leading me to ask her a question.

"Yo, princess. Once spring break's over, what should we do about Ryuuen?"

...And I didn't get a response back. She just continued walking, rhythmically tapping her cane with every step.

"Uh, princess...?"

Was she purposely ignoring me? I looked at her expression, and... she seemed to be in a daze or something. She was looking at the ground, but her eyes seemed to be focused on something else entirely.

"Hello?" I waved my hand in front of her, causing her to jolt her head up.

"Ah, my apologies, Hashimoto-kun." She snapped back to reality and then faced me. "What were you saying?"

"So, what are we gonna do about Ryuuen? He's makin' some moves aimed at Class A, or at least that's what I think."

"It might be best for us to simply wait and see what he does. He does have a tendency to be somewhat unpredictable, after all."

I don't think I need to say this, but that was some unusual behavior coming from her. Until now, she had always been attentive to her surroundings. Which meant it was pretty weird for her to ignore someone by accident.

At first, I was gonna shrug it off as a one-time thing. You know, maybe it was a case of sleepiness.

However, it kept happening, time and time again—whether she was walking, having lunch, or seated somewhere, she would always zone out randomly. And sometimes, she would mutter about stuff that we couldn't hear or understand. Even Kamuro noticed it at some point.

I didn't think the princess was the type of person to daydream. Something must've happened to her if she was like that. Then again, asking her would've been useless, and if I tried to pry, she definitely would've caught on.

Maybe I'm jumping to conclusions but...

Yeah, nah. There's no way.

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Author's Note

yeah the chapter's pretty short mb

couldn't think of anything else to write