[Vol 2] The Cheeky Junior Gal Becomes Too Cute When She Gets Attached to Me Chapter 1
“Senpai, long time no see!”
It was the first day after winter break. As I got off the train, that ever-energetic gal greeted me, just as lively as always in the morning.
Ooba Monaka — a junior I’d gotten close to not too long ago.
It all started when I helped her out during a small incident.
After that, she insisted on repaying me by helping out with my duties as the student council president, and before I knew it, she’d practically made herself at home in the student council room.
Even though I only helped her on a whim, for some reason, she got really attached to me. To the point where she waits for me at the station every morning like this.
She naturally took her place beside me, walking so close that our shoulders would bump whenever she swayed a little.
By January, the cold was really setting in. With her face buried in a red checkered scarf, Monaka gave me a reproachful sideways glance.
“You haven’t met up with me at all since New Year’s shrine visit. That’s so mean~”
“Did you forget how to use polite speech along with the passing year?”
“Pretty sure I didn’t use it last year either?”
“Right… yeah, that’s true. Still, at least look a little guilty about it.”
From the very first time we met, Monaka barely used polite speech. She’s the kind of junior who mixes casual talk with formal language — surprisingly, I didn’t hate it.
“Good morning, Tsujidou-senpai. How are you on this fine day?”
“Please stop, that gave me chills.”
“Ehh, so cruel. I’m just being the graceful and modest junior you wanted.”
“That’s the exact opposite of who you are.”
“Ahaha,” Monaka’s laugh rang through the air.
With her around, even the boring commute and the biting cold didn’t bother me as much.
Or maybe it was just because it was Monaka.
“Anyway, it hasn’t been that long, right? It’s only been about a week.”
“That’s still a long time for me. I wanna see you every day, you know?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“Senpai, you’re so cold… Is that your way of hiding your embarrassment?”
“You sure are positive, huh.”
Well, she wasn’t exactly wrong.
Ooba Monaka was the type of girl who could say things most people would be too embarrassed to say out loud — straight to your face.
For the person being told those things, it was always awkward, and I never knew how to react.
“I was so bored without seeing you, Senpai~”
“I was working. Just a part-time job for winter break. I told you, didn’t I…”
“Yeah, I knew that.”
Normally, student council work kept me too busy for part-time jobs, but long breaks were an exception.
Unlike sports clubs, we didn’t have many activities during long holidays. Especially during winter break, which was completely off.
It was mostly sorting and delivering New Year’s cards — a part-time job just for the break, which worked perfectly for me.
“Ah!”
Suddenly, Monaka clapped her hands as if she’d had a brilliant idea.
She pressed a finger to her lips and tilted her head cutely.
“So tell me, which is more important — your job or me?”
“The job.”
“Hey~ don’t answer so fast!”
“You just wanted to say that line, didn’t you…”
“Come on, everyone wants to say it at least once in their life!”
Monaka spread her arms and spun around in delight. Apparently, her dream had come true.
Such a simple dream, honestly.
It was kind of amusing — being able to enjoy little things like that was something I didn’t really have in me.
Not just this time, but Monaka always reacted dramatically to the smallest things, so it was easy to make her happy.
“What, you were gonna say, ‘I was earning money for you,’ right?”
“No, I wasn’t…”
“I see, I see. So you were working hard to treat me, huh, Senpai?”
“That’s a huge misunderstanding.”
“If you’re so eager to treat me, I won’t stop you, you know.”
“You’re not even listening to my answers anymore, are you?”
Rather than me trying to make her happy, it felt like she was just happily daydreaming on her own.
I wondered who she was even talking to. Monaka was the kind of person who could probably have fun even by herself.
“Hehe, but you know, Senpai — I really like how you still go along with me even when you say stuff like that.”
“...You’re just forcing me to, that’s all.”
I wished she wouldn’t suddenly say things like “I like you.” Even if I knew she didn’t mean it seriously, it still reminded me of that day.
—— “I wish I could go out with Senpai.”
Back on New Year’s Day, when we went to the shrine together… I overheard her prayer.
Her voice was so soft it could’ve been lost on the wind — I doubt she meant for me to hear it.
I pretended I didn’t, acting like nothing happened.
But I remember how loud my heartbeat was that moment.
I’d already noticed that Monaka felt something more than just junior-to-senior affection for me. Maybe I was just overthinking it, but she definitely seemed to have a fondness for me.
I knew it was a kind of affection.
But I never thought she’d actually want to be my girlfriend.
Ooba Monaka was, without a doubt, a beautiful girl — the kind anyone would find cute. I’d heard she stood out in class, but she’d still have plenty of admirers.
I couldn’t think of any reason she’d choose me. That’s not self-deprecation — just the truth.
And yet… she prayed for it.
Even though I pretended not to hear her, deciding anything on my own would be rude. But saying nothing also made me unsure of how to act around her.
That’s what I’d been thinking about for the rest of winter break.
Sure, I really was busy with work, but part of the reason I didn’t meet her once was because I hadn’t sorted out my feelings yet.
Still, once we met again, things somehow went back to normal.
“Ah, we’re already at school. I wish winter break could last forever.”
“If you drop out, you can rest forever.”
“Wait, you’re still teasing me about that?”
That incident where she almost got expelled for smoking — that was a while back. Though, in the end, the one who actually quit was the person who tried to frame her.
“Unlike you, I don’t smoke, Senpai~”
“Huh? How do you even know whether I smoke or not?”
“……Eh.”
“Kidding.”
Leaving the dumbfounded Monaka behind, I walked through the front gate.
She probably expected me to deny it right away. Not that I smoke, anyway. It’s expensive.
After a few seconds, Monaka finished processing what happened and hurried to catch up beside me.
“W-well, even if you did smoke, Senpai, I wouldn’t mind! I’m the type who accepts everything.”
“You’re totally gonna get tricked by some jerk in the future.”
“That’s fine, ‘cause the only one who can trick me is you, Senpai!"
Guess that makes me the jerk, huh.
…Maybe I really was one. Knowing how she felt, yet pretending nothing happened and going back to our usual routine.
Even so, I decided to put off finding an answer — for now.
“Anyway, I’m heading to the student council room again today!”
“Don’t.”
“Ahaha, Senpai, you’re such a tsundere.”
“I mean it.”
“Too bad~ I’m coming even if you say no!”
Smiling cheerfully, Monaka skipped toward the entrance hall.
I wondered how long she planned to keep hanging around the student council room. Now that winter break was over, student council duties were kicking back into full swing.
Knowing her, she’d probably offer to help again.
Kawana would be happy about that, and we were always short on hands anyway. Honestly, it’d be a big help.
As I was thinking that, I switched from my outdoor shoes to my indoor ones and placed my loafers into the shoe locker—
“Hey, isn’t that Tsujidou-kun? Or should I say, Mr. Student Council President?”
“…President.”
I couldn’t help but call him that when I heard the familiar voice.
He was standing in front of the second-year lockers — clearly waiting for me.
“Oh, come on. I’m a retired student council president now.”
“You’ll always be ‘President’ to me, Kuzuhara-senpai.”
“Still smooth with the flattery, I see.”
Right back at you, I thought, but I didn’t say it. Instead, I narrowed my eyes slightly at him.
Kuzuhara Yamato — the former student council president, now a third-year senior.
He had a refreshingly handsome face and stood tall. Whenever he took the stage, girls in the audience would squeal. The complete opposite of me.
Last year, I served as the vice president, so we worked closely during his term.
We didn’t exactly get along, though.
“So, how’s the new council doing? Managing alright?”
“Thank you for your concern, but there’s no need to worry.”
“Hmm, I don’t know. You tend to clash with people sometimes. As your senior, that worries me.”
He spoke kindly, like a caring senior concerned for his successor.
To anyone watching, he probably looked like the perfect mentor. He was better at putting up a good front than I ever was — he knew exactly how to act to make people like him, how to earn their trust.
But to me, he just seemed fake.
…Maybe that was a kind of self-hatred. Or maybe jealousy.
Even now, when he spoke kindly like this, I couldn’t help but suspect there was something behind it.
“You know, there’s been a bit of commotion lately,” he continued, subtly criticizing the whole Shirahata incident.
Shirahata-sensei, the guidance counselor who tried to frame Monaka with false accusations, then continued to harass both her and me afterward.
In response, I gathered evidence of her physical and ethical misconduct and exposed it all, forcing her to resign. I even used a bit of my authority as student council president to do it.
Everyone knew about the conflict between me and Shirahata, and how I fought back by distributing newspapers. It wasn’t exactly a secret.
So, of course, word reached the former president — Kuzuhara-senpai — and he came to warn me.
“I thought you were smarter than that, Tsujidou.”
“If you really thought that, you’ve got bad judgment, senpai.”
“Oh, but I mean it. Choosing the most attention-grabbing way to handle things — that’s not like you.”
“…Yeah. I know.”
I knew it was a reckless move. I regretted it, reflected on it.
But I also knew there was no other way. Even now, I was sure of that. If I had to do it all over again, I’d make the same choice.
“Not like you to worry about me, senpai.”
“Well, I just don’t want to think that making you president was a mistake.”
In truth, I knew Kuzuhara-senpai had opposed me becoming student council president, even if he never said it outright.
Back when he was in charge, we often butted heads. He was the charismatic type — the kind who’d push things through with charm and momentum rather than reason or logic. The total opposite of my efficiency-first approach.
So it was no surprise he didn’t like me much.
“Senpai, please focus on your entrance exams. I’m the student council president now.”
I said, brushing him off as I walked past him.
No matter what he says, Kuzuhara-senpai has already retired. He’s graduating soon, so whatever he tells me doesn’t matter anymore.
It’s not like I think I’m cut out to be the student council president either. As long as I can fulfill my term properly, that’s good enough for me. It’s not like the president actually has any real power or authority anyway.
“I just want to graduate feeling good about it, that’s all.”
“I’ll make sure to write a heartfelt farewell speech then.”
The graduation ceremony will be in early March.
There, Kuzuhara-senpai and I—the current and former student council presidents—will give the farewell and reply speeches.
After that, our connection will come to an end.
“I’d prefer if someone else read it, though.”
Ignoring that sarcastic remark, I headed toward the classroom.
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