Date Her Instead Vol. 2

Chapter One: Understanding The Pain Of One's Own Heart

In the back corner of the first floor of Iwanai Municipal High School, there was an old classroom. Its original purpose had been to serve the students who decided to take the culinary elective, but after renovations were made, the room was all but forgotten, seldom used if only for times when more stoves were needed when not enough could be provided by the newer kitchens.

Due to this, the space had accumulated a rather somber tone within its interior. The wooden walls, an immediate sign of old times, had been fading more and more with the passing years. The glass of the windows had become clouded and streaky, and the curtains that covered them held all sorts of bits of dirt and dust. The few desks contained within the room had a thick layer of age caked onto their surfaces as well, and the floor appeared like it was probably only swept monthly at best.

Truly, the only functionality left the area had to offer was in its appliances, and the only reason that was even the case was for more of a "just in case" more than anything. It was in this place that two girls had entered to complete an assignment. It was in this place that two girls had fought, and now, it was in this place that two girls sat at the old desks, an uncomfortable silence filling the air between them.

The first of the two was a girl named Kanako Nakatomi. She was a second year student at Iwanai High, and really, there wasn't much remarkable about her. It wasn't as if she wasn't pretty or anything. It was just more of the fact that if you put her in a line with a bunch of other average girls, nothing particularly made her stand out. Her light brown hair was always kept in what had come to be her trademark ponytail, and her uniform, sailor-style and green bow to boot, was worn in accordance with school rules. She was on the shorter side, and her chest size, while not flat, wasn't quite big enough to catch the immediate eye either. Kanako also had bright blue eyes, and right now, they were staring at the girl across from her, pleading for guidance.

That girl in question was Michi Fukuhara, Kanako's best friend since the beginning of junior high. Her blond hair, kept in a messy sort of bun, made her stand out somewhat, if not for the color, then certainly for the two long strands that always seemed to avoid being tied up. Michi was also short, though who had the height advantage between her or Kanako was always up for debate. Her chest was flat, which wasn't really much of a concern for Michi unless she had to be subjected to being around those more well-endowed. She wore the same uniform as Kanako as well, with the same color bow to indicate they were both second-years. Her eyes shown a purple hue, and they currently stared back at her friend, trying to come up with a way to assuage the girl's worries.

Kanako had just asked what she should do about the situation she found herself in. A couple of months ago, she had worked up her courage to go and confess to the boy she had grown up with, Akio Miyashita. He was a simple enough looking boy, not too handsome, but certainly not ugly either. He had brown hair kept slightly on the messier side, and his personality could general be described as warm. However, it was recently that Kanako had discovered he wasn't just nice, as a bizarre scene had unfolded before her eyes.

On the day she had gone to confess, another girl had shown up at the exact same place. Her name was Haruna Endo, Kanako's former childhood best friend. "Former" because before junior high had started, they had a falling out big enough to turn them into mortal enemies. They fought a lot, earning themselves a reputation with their school and causing teachers to be wary of when the two had to be together. Of course, while their relationship looked rather hateful, it was in fact mostly one-sided. Haruna tended to be the one to do most of the provoking. The only reason people thought the two girls were on equal levels was because Kanako always got caught in the process of defending herself.