I (30), Who Works for a Black Company and Died While Regretting My Gloomy Life, Started Over From High School!
Chapter 85: Is My Mind Too Pink?!

“Oops, you complimented her outfit right away and scored some points. I can’t help but want to tease you, Niihama-kun. It feels like you’ve become a completely different person from a few months ago, the shy one. As a friend, what do you think, Yamahira-kun?”

“Huh, me?! Um… well, it’s like she’s gone to a distant place, which makes me feel both lonely and proud… and it looks like it’s really effective on Shijouin-san too.”

Hey, Kazamihara and Ginji! Stop mumbling and giving live commentary together!

Damn it, I just realized that everyone here knows about my love situation… It’s awkward when they all grin and laugh while I’m talking to Shijouin-san.

“Good morning, everyone. I am Natsuzaki, the driver for the Shijouin family.”

A gentle smile adorned the face of a man in his forties who stood beside Shijouin-san and respectfully bowed his head.

Even in this heat, he was wearing a suit, but there was no sign of him sweating.

“I will be in charge of transportation today, so please feel free to let me know if you need anything.”

In the plan I proposed, we were supposed to go by bus, but it seems that Shijouin-san’s mother, Mrs. Akiko, heard about the beach trip and offered her car, which we gladly accepted.

My classmates, Kazamihara and Ginji, seemed to be seeing someone in the job of “wealthy people’s staff” for the first time, and they managed to return the greetings with some nervousness.

“I see, the Shijouin family really has a lot of money… I’m starting to realize that now,” Kazamihara said.

Yeah, I get that feeling.

By the way, I don’t know about butlers, but there was indeed a pretty young housemaid (technically a housekeeper) in the Shijouin household. Rich families are quite like fantasies.

“Good morning, Natsuzaki-san. Thank you for today.”

“Yes, it’s been a while, Niihama-sama. I hear you’re the one who planned today’s event. You have such a wonderful drive. Hehe, you could say you’re quite an offensive player.”

I blushed a bit when the adult seemed to see through my thoughts and praised my “wave-like approach to love.” Ugh, it seems like everyone knows about my feelings…

“Well then, I’ll go get the car now! Let’s go, Natsuzaki-san! The day is short!”

“Haha, Miss Haruka seems to be in a very good mood today. Her eyes are sparkling differently.”

Shijouin-san walked quickly toward the parking lot where the car was parked, even though she wasn’t the one driving. She seemed to be in the state of a child on the day of a field trip.

“But… could it be that something happened recently with Haruka? I can’t think of any other reason for her to be so cheerful,” Kazamihara said.

“Maybe some kind of romantic event with Haruka? I can’t think of any other reason why her worries would disappear,” Ginji added.

Shijouin-san’s worries…? Yes, I remember hearing something like that when she came to my house.

“Oh, when we talked the other day, she was feeling really down because of some complicated problem. But it seems that she solved it at some point. When I asked what it was, she blushed and said, ‘It’s a secret.'”

I can’t exactly tell them that Shijouin-san stayed overnight at my house and had some rom-com-like interactions. So, I just stated the facts.

“Ah, so she figured it out before you could question her about it. Well, it lacks excitement, but as long as Haruka is feeling better, I guess it’s okay,” Kazamihara said.

“Yeah, it’s a bit lacking in entertainment, but if it made Haruka feel better, let’s leave it at that,” Ginji agreed.

“Huh?”

It seems like Kazamihara and Ginji knew about Shijouin-san’s worries, but their conversation is somewhat confusing. However, judging by their reactions, it seems that the matter is settled for now.

“I don’t know anything about Shijouin-san’s worries… but Niihama, you really are quite assertive…”

“Huh? What do you mean, Ginji? What are you trying to say?”

“Well, you know. If you said, ‘Shijouin-san was blushing,’ then it must mean you met her in person during summer vacation, not just through calls or messages, right?”

“Wha…!”

You idiot! How did you pick that up? I shouldn’t give them material to tease me!

“Oh, I see… I get it now. So, you did meet during the summer break. That explains a lot. I definitely want to hear the details…!”

“Meeting during summer vacation means it’s practically a date, right?! Hey, hey, where did you go? Downtown? The zoo? The movies?”

See, look at that! To girls, friends’ love lives are like the ultimate toy! They’ll ask and dig until they get all the juicy details!

“No, we didn’t go anywhere! Today’s beach trip is the first time I’m going out with Shijouin-san!”

“Oh, I see. So, you didn’t go anywhere… Then, could it be that you spent a passionate night together at your place? Haha, well, I guess that’s not possible—huh?”

“Hey, wait a minute…?”

“Huh, Niihama-kun…?”

At that moment, I should have put on a composed face and sighed something like, “Hey, come on, why are you saying such ridiculous things?” But instead, as the truth from that joke slipped out, I blushed and got stuck in my words, making the worst possible reaction.

And that mere few seconds of reaction were enough to sow the seeds of suspicion and conviction.

“……”

…The silence is painful.

Kazamihara and Fudehashi, who were grinning just a moment ago, along with Ginji, were now staring at me with serious expressions. And once it got to this point, no matter how much I tried to play dumb, it was already too late.

And then, after a while…

“R-Right… Niihama, you finally ‘graduated’ and became an adult… Haha, you’re no longer the one saying ‘This heroine is my wife!’…,” said Ginji.

“W-Wow…! S-So you two have that kind of relationship…! Haruka was in Niihama-kun’s room… Ughh…!”

“Congratulations, Mr. Lustful. I won’t say anything if it’s mutual, but if you make Haruka sad, I’ll rip off your manhood without hesitation, so keep that in mind.”

“No, that’s not it! All of you, your minds are way too deep in the gutter!”

Yelling at the three of them, who clearly had a completely erotic misunderstanding, I tried to clear things up.

(TLN) Trying to keep the names consistent. Lemme know if you see anything strange.