Chapter 343: Chapter 341: The Feeling of Love
"As the opposite sex?"
"Yes! As the opposite sex!"
Shirakawa Sawahei looked at Ise Yu Yuzhijin with a strange expression and cautiously asked, "Is this another new tactic?"
"No, it’s a life consultation! Very serious!"
"Then I’ll be honest?"
"Sure!"
"Firstly, if it’s someone who doesn’t know you well... they would definitely admire you as the opposite sex... After all, even though you’re quite troublesome, you’re barely considered cute..."
"What’s with ’barely considered cute’!" The slacking girl puffed her cheeks: "Shirakawa, even if I don’t have the stunning looks of Hayakawa, I still have other qualities I can be proud of!"
"Like being able to draw doujinshi?"
"What’s there to be proud of in that! Please at least mention qualities that won’t socially kill me!"
"Then there’s none."
"None???"
Ise Yu Yuzhijin sighed, not continuing to argue with Shirakawa Sawahei, and then asked, "So... if it’s someone who knows me well?"
Shirakawa Sawahei immediately changed his expression: "If it’s someone who knows you, isn’t it obvious? Of course they’d find you troublesome. Just look at Miss Hinata and me. Oh, and maybe add Miss Morihara in the future."
"Shirakawa!"
Seeing the cute little Ise Yu’s voice take on an almost crying tone, Shirakawa Sawahei had to drop the idea of continuing to tease her, and instead comforted, "But you’re not completely useless... at least you are quite easygoing."
"You mean... I’m easy to get along with as a friend?"
No, I mean you’re easy to bully and don’t hold grudges.
Shirakawa Sawahei silently added in his heart, although he naturally didn’t say it out loud. The slacking girl sighed again and muttered softly, "Is that it... Is there really no acquaintance who would see me with romantic feelings... Is love really so far away from me..."
Hearing this, Shirakawa Sawahei was stunned for a moment, choosing to silently distance himself a bit from her...
Ise Yu Yuzhijin... could she be wanting to fall in love?
"I feel like I’ve never had much dating luck since I was young... Back in middle school, all my friends around me were confessed to... and I, the cutest one, ended up single!" The girl seemed to get more excited as she spoke: "Later I asked a friend to find out why, and those boys actually said I might be cute, but I didn’t seem like a good romantic partner!"
"Shirakawa! Tell me, is what they said even human words?"
"..."
Hearing this, even Shirakawa Sawahei couldn’t help but feel a sense of respect for those boys he’s never met...
Such keen instinct!
"Then came high school! And because of my artist status, I transferred once... Originally, I wanted to enjoy my youth in a new environment, only to meet you again, Shirakawa..."
"What about meeting me?"
"Nothing... It’s just that my future romance prospects might be pushed away by me again..."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well, think about it, Shirakawa, my circle of friends is mostly set now, and almost all have some connection to you... For my beloved doujin and otaku culture figures, I even moved in with you..."
"It’s co-renting."
"Oh, right, co-renting with you... Actually, I really like this kind of life, seeing good friends every day, continuing my work as an artist... No, it’s a manga artist career now..."
Shirakawa: "?"
Goodness, the word ’co-residence’ is inescapable, isn’t it!
"In this situation, dating would definitely be tiring, maintaining friendships while also tending to a boyfriend’s emotions, and I’m only 17, I’d be exhausted..."
"You could learn some experience from those friends of yours who are dating." Shirakawa remarked curiously, "It’s odd if the Calligraphy Club circle is all single... You should check out the Light Music Club more."
"No way! Unless I find a boyfriend who can easily solve the above problems, I’m not dating!"
"..."
"The first time I met you, Shirakawa, I must have left a bad impression... All in all, I was probably, in your eyes, a girl with a lot of thoughts, self-talking, and a strong defensive mind..."
After a brief pause, Ise Yu Yuzhijin once again started her introspective confession...
"It could even be described with the word annoying..."
"Yes, indeed."
"???"
The slacking girl puffed her cheeks again in dissatisfaction: "Shirakawa, when a girl admits her fault, you shouldn’t agree!"
"But you indeed were quite troublesome at first, your head was full of odd ideas and you wouldn’t listen to others," Shirakawa said helplessly, "If not for you asking me to tutor you, I probably wouldn’t have known about your artist identity."
"That’s true... Maybe that’s what they call having no connection, and it’s only because I paid you," the slacking girl nodded thoughtfully.
"Although you found me troublesome, you weren’t mean to me, Shirakawa, you’re actually quite gentle..."
Shirakawa: "..."
"So if not for the small fee I paid back then, Shirakawa, we might have stayed just regular friends, never worked part-time together at the cafe, never ate oden together... and never cohabited..."
"It’s co-renting!!!" Shirakawa Sawahei was speechless once again, "But we might have run into each other at part-time jobs, since Miss Hinata and Manager Enhei asked me for help."
"Well... it seems the bonds between Shirakawa and me were forged from a small misunderstanding back then... without that, Akihisa High might not have known about my artist identity..."
The cute little Ise Yu said as she lowered her head, then after a moment’s silence, she gently lifted her head and smiled, "Although that might be nice, I much prefer this world line now."
"With so many good friends, with Shirakawa, with Miss Morihara, the world line with the fireworks festival and seaside training camps is the best!"
"So?" Shirakawa ignored Ise Yu Yuzhijin’s flattery and asked crossly, "What exactly is your life consultation."
"Oh, right, the life consultation." The slacking girl patted her chest, "Almost forgot about that... Shirakawa, please tell me, how can one understand the so-called feeling of love without actually dating?"
Single Shirakawa slowly typed a question mark: ?
Sorry, I’m slightly offended.
"Why are you asking me this? I’m single too."
"But Shirakawa, you’re a study god, right? You must know these things."
"Do you have some misunderstanding about being good at studies?" Shirakawa Sawahei sneered, "You should find Doraemon for such things, asking me is useless."
"Doraemon hasn’t been made yet... Shirakawa, just tell me! I can prepare a straw...berry salad for your afternoon snack tomorrow!"
"I don’t like sweets."
"Then how about lemon salad!"
"What kind of dreadful dish is lemon salad? In any case, I can’t help you. Ask someone else."
"But who else am I supposed to ask... I want to know how to understand the feeling of love without dating. Most friends from the Light Music Club have been in a relationship or are in one, they’re totally no help to me..."