All Beautiful Girls Want to Stick with Me

On her way to the 1-D classroom, Izumi Kotomi nearly ran into Yui Yuigahama, who had just come out of the testing room.

Yuigahama’s face lit up with joy upon seeing her. ”Kotomi, I was just about to look for you!”

Thank goodness, Kotomi thought, noticing her friend seemed to be in a good mood. It looked like even if the test had been hard, Yui’s spirits were intact.

”Yui, what did you think of the Japanese test?” Kotomi asked.

”Hard? Was it?” Yui tilted her head, not seeming to think it was all that challenging.

”What did you think while doing the test?”

”Well…some questions were on pretty obscure topics, but it wasn’t too bad. I’m pretty confident about the poetry section! It’s only the essay that I’m a bit unsure of—I hope I didn’t go off-topic,” Yui replied with an easy smile.

Seeing her so relaxed, Kotomi breathed a sigh of relief. Even if she wasn’t sure how well Yui had answered, it was good that she was staying positive.

”Do your best in the next test—the math one,” Kotomi said encouragingly.

Yui nodded enthusiastically. ”I will! I’ve been reviewing math so hard these past few days! I’m feeling unstoppable!”

”Just don’t get too cocky,” Kotomi laughed.

”Hehe, just joking. Oh, right, Kotomi, I just heard that someone in the 1-A test room turned in their paper early! They said she was practically flying through the test while everyone else was scratching their heads over it. The monitor didn’t even have time to stop her before she was out the door! Did you see her?”

”Ah, well…” Kotomi paused, unsure how to respond.

Seeing her hesitation, Yui assumed Kotomi hadn’t noticed and continued her story with animated excitement.

”They said she left in such a hurry, some thought she’d gone to transform into a magical girl to save the world. Others thought she must be some test genius, who would never deign to linger with mere mortals after finishing her exam. And that’s not all…”

Yui kept piling on the rumors, while Kotomi grew increasingly anxious. She’d only run out to use the restroom after having too much to drink before the exam.

Why did it have to sound like she’d left on some kind of heroic mission? What was next—her daily routine of waking up, heading to school, going to club activities, hanging out with friends...just a typical high school freshman life. But then—

”Kotomi, High School Hero!” Kotomi could almost see it play out as some anime narrative and had to stifle a laugh at her own ridiculous thought.

”Kotomi, what’s so funny?” Yui asked, noticing her friend giggling out of nowhere.

”Oh, nothing. I just remembered something funny,” Kotomi replied with a smile. ”By the way, Yui, what do you think that student—uh, the one who ran out of the classroom—might’ve been up to?”

They still had some time before the next test, so Kotomi figured a little banter might help Yui relax. She had been reviewing math tirelessly for the past few days and could probably use a mental breather.

Yui thought for a moment, then answered, ”I bet she just drank too much before the test and had to make a mad dash to the restroom!”

Argh! You guessed it! Kotomi thought, wincing internally. But too bad, no prize for you!

She could only force a smile and stifle the truth.

”Kotomi, I’m heading to get a drink—want anything? It’s my treat!”

She almost agreed, but the memory of her recent restroom ordeal made her stop. Just thinking about it gave her a lingering sense of urgency…

”Uh, no, I’m good for now. But make sure to use the restroom before the next test!” Kotomi warned her seriously.

”Huh? I know that, Kotomi. It’s common sense—everyone knows to go before a test!” Yui laughed, teasing her friend.

”—It’s common sense,” echoed in Kotomi’s mind, and her cheeks reddened slightly as she thought about her own predicament earlier.

So embarrassing! Never again was she going to drink anything before an exam! Not even a sip!

However, during the math exam...

With a concentrated frown, Kotomi jotted down her answer for a domain problem: m = ±4, n = 3.

After another question, she felt a pang of thirst building up. She stuck out her tongue a little, wondering to herself if she hadn’t overdone it in the restroom earlier.

Ugh, her throat was dry!

With a resigned sigh, she bent over her paper and began scribbling her next answer.