I didn't ask for this.
All I wanted was a quiet high school life. Wake up, survive school, go home, play video games, and sleep. No drama. No noise. No yandere girlfriend breathing down my neck.
Yet here I am trapped in my own personal rom-com hell.
Why?
Because my pencil fell off my desk.
No, really. That's how it started.
"Haruki! I'll get it!" said Aika, her voice bright like sunshine and completely unaware of how dangerous that sentence was.
She dove down to the floor like she was going after a gold medal in competitive flirting, her long chestnut hair brushing against my arm. I froze. Not because of her but because I could feel the death stare boring into the back of my skull.
"Mio…" I mumbled.
Behind me, a quiet giggle floated through the air. Soft. Sweet. Terrifying.
"Oh? Haruki, what's this?" Mio tilted her head, that warm smile stretched a little too wide. "Your pencil falls and she's the one who picks it up?"
"It's just a pencil," I said quickly. "Literally a ¥100 mechanical pencil"
"So cheap," Reika scoffed from across the room, sipping iced tea she somehow smuggled into class. "You should've asked me to get you a limited edition one. But no, you insist on being a background character."
"Gee, thanks for the support, dear sister."
Aika popped back up, holding the pencil like it was an engagement ring. "Got it!" she said proudly. "Oops our hands touched. Does this mean we're… married?"
Pause.
The classroom went silent. I could hear Mio's breathing behind me, slow and steady like a predator just before the pounce.
"I'm kidding!" Aika added quickly, laughing awkwardly. "Unless…?"
"Mio," I whispered, not turning around, "don't kill her."
"I would never," she said, smiling as she leaned close to my ear. "That would be messy. And I hate making messes. Don't you?"
I gulped.
Then, of course, Sana had to show up.
"Idiot," she grumbled, shoving the door open and glaring like she practiced in front of a mirror every morning. "You're already dating someone and still flirting? You absolute moron."
"I wasn't flirting."
"Yeah? Well your stupid face looks like it was." Her cheeks were pink. Tomato-level pink. "Tch… b-baka."
"Sana," I sighed, "can we not do this today?"
"No promises."
Then came the final nail in my peace-coffin: my brother Riku leaned through the window, waving a popsicle.
"Haruki! Still stuck in your love polygon?" he smirked. "Remember: when in doubt, kiss the one who punches you least."
"GO AWAY," I snapped.
Final Period: 3:45 PM.
I made it through the day with:
Two near-confessions
One broken desk
A note from Mio that said "I love you. Don't cheat or I'll cry… then stab."
And a bento box filled with heart-shaped rice balls… and a live GPS tracker inside the lid.
I walked home under the setting sun, wondering when things got this weird.
And just as I unlocked my door
"I'm staying over tonight," Mio said from behind me, slipping her shoes off without being invited.
"Why?"
"Because I love you, Haruki," she said sweetly, pushing past me. "Also, your browser history worries me. I think you need supervision."