The Classmate Who Is Adored by Everyone Smiles Teasingly Only at Me-Chapter 1V .10 - Determination and Sprouting Canelé

Determination and Sprouting Canelé 10

After parting ways with Sōma and getting swallowed up by the bustling main street, Chika walked slowly while looking at her right hand.

The words she said to him about respecting him were not a lie.

She had admired him secretly for a long time.

Not in a romantic way, but simply as someone of the same age she looked up to.

She was easily influenced by other people’s opinions.

When her friends or parents told her to do this or that, she would immediately nod and comply.

It wasn’t because she was doing it reluctantly.

However, she ended up swallowing her own thoughts, thinking, ‘This way would be better’, or “Maybe it would be better to do it like this.’

Chika didn’t like that about herself.

She wanted to be a more independent person who could express her own thoughts openly, and she wanted to change herself.

But she couldn’t muster up the courage.

With that internal struggle, she entered high school and met a boy named Ichinose Sōma.

She vividly remembers the encounter.

It was about a week after the entrance ceremony.

【Try the sweets I made and give me your feedback.】

During the lunch break, he suddenly came over to where Miki and others were having lunch and made such a request.

【Huh? What’s this all of a sudden?】

【Wait, who are you?】

【We’re in the middle of lunch.】

Miki and the others looked at him suspiciously.

Though now, Class 2-4 was a close-knit and delightful class, at that time, the class hadn’t really come together.

Students from the same middle schools were sticking together, hardly remembering the faces and names of their other classmates.

Naturally, Chika had never exchanged a word with Sōma before.

She didn’t even know his name. She was in a ‘who is this person?’ state.

Miki and the others were probably the same.

Yet, he suddenly made such an outrageous request.

Chika was taken aback, and Miki and the others felt uneasy.

They were cautious, suspecting some ulterior motive.

Even if there wasn’t any hidden agenda, it was still hesitant to put homemade sweets from a boy they knew nothing about into their mouths.

【I refuse. Absolutely not.】

【There’s no way I’m eating sweets made by a boy.】

【He might have put something weird in them, and that’s gross.】

It was only natural for Miki and the others to flatly reject the offer.

Chika, who had been quietly watching the situation unfold, also couldn’t bring herself to eat them.

Indeed, it’s natural to feel concerned about homemade treats from someone you don’t know.

【I would never do anything to insult sweets. I can guarantee their safety. So, please, just take one bite.】

【No, no way. Absolutely not.】

Miki waved her hand as if shooing away a stray dog.

Despite the harsh refusal, Sōma didn’t give up at all.

Every day, he would bring homemade sweets and ask them to try them.

【Every single day, it’s so annoying. Why do you keep bothering us with this?】

【If you want people to try them so much, why don’t you ask someone you know? There must be people from the same middle school, right?】

【You’re so persistent! Annoying! Gross!】

Miki and the others were getting fed up.

He came every day during their enjoyable lunch break, making it feel like harassment.

However, Sōma had an unyielding expression, seemingly unaffected by their criticism.

【I observed the class for a week after enrolling, and you guys were the ones eating the most sweets.”

【Huh? So you thought we must know a lot about sweets because of that? We’re just bringing sweets for Chika to try; it doesn’t mean we’re experts.】

【Even so, please try them. I’m particularly confident about today’s batch. Please.】

With a container full of colorful macarons held out, he bowed deeply.

【…What should we do?】

【I don’t want it. Some things are just impossible.】

【I know, but this guy is unbelievably persistent.】

Miki and the others began to exchange glances and discuss how to make him give up, not whether they should eat the sweets.

Chika, who had been watching the situation unfold while being held by Miki, didn’t participate in the discussion.

Instead, she gazed intently at Sōma, who had bowed his head.

Is it really possible for someone to do something like this?

They had only been in the same class for less than a month, and they were practically strangers.

Despite being treated indifferently and rejected repeatedly, he continued to plead without giving up.

It’s easy to talk about but not something that everyone can do.

Most people would have given up long ago.

In fact, most people wouldn’t even attempt it in the first place.

At least Chika wouldn’t. She would probably freeze up and push the container of sweets she brought all the way to the bottom of her bag, pretending it never happened.

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Nevertheless, he remained calm without a care in the world.

There’s no other way to put it——he’s simply an amazing person.

This person possesses a strength that Chika doesn’t have——He has courage.

As Sōma lowered his head, he seemed a little gallant.

【Wait, Chika!?】

Hearing Miki’s voice that sounded like a desperate cry, Chika realized that her hand was unconsciously reaching for the container.

She was surprised by her own actions.

It was truly an unconscious reaction.

【Chika, you shouldn’t eat that!】

【Yeah, if you get a stomachache, what are you going to do?】

【Throw it away, throw it away!】

All of her friends tried to stop her simultaneously.

Miki even attempted to snatch the macaron from Chika’s hand.

However, before it could be taken away from her, Chika placed the pink macaron into her mouth.

It wasn’t because she thought it looked delicious.

It wasn’t because she wanted to grant Sōma’s request.

She did it because she thought that by eating something that ‘he’, the courageous one, had made, she might also gain some of his courage.

It was such a trivial thought.

The macaron that entered her mouth crumbled gently, and the sweet scent of almonds spread softly.

【…Yes, it’s delicious. The texture is really good too.】

【Really?】

Sōma lifted his head and gazed directly at Chika.

【The ganache is moist, and it’s great. The sweetness is moderate.】

【The ganache is the main point of this.】

This was the first conversation exchanged between Chika and Sōma.

【How about you try it too, Miki-chan? It’s actually delicious.】

When Chika encouraged them, Miki and the others seemed hesitant, but reluctantly, they put the macaron in their mouths.

【…It’s delicious.】

【Uh, it’s well-made.】

【It might be even better than the ones from the convenience store.】

Miki and the others had high praise.

And thus, the reputation of Sōma’s confectioneries being quite delicious spread like wildfire among the girls, and the number of girls participating in the taste tests kept increasing.

In retrospect, it felt like it was thanks to his confectioneries that the girls of 1st year Class 4 became close friends.

At first, Miki and the others had made harsh remarks like ‘creepy or gross’ and such, but they quickly changed their attitudes and began eagerly looking forward to the sweets Sōma made.

【You did well, Ichinose-san. Everyone is happy to eat your treats.】

I remember saying that to him when the Gâteau au Chocolat he brought was a big hit.

【Well, yeah. But I’ve still got a long way to go. My confections should improve and last longer.】

Even though the girls enjoyed his treats, he was far from satisfied.

His goal was to improve his confectionery-making skills, or so he said.

His earnestness was like that of a seeker on a quest, and he received some negative comments about being weird, trying to show off, or being obsessed with sweets.

However, he paid no attention to such comments and continued to run with all his might toward the path he wanted to take.

Chika was envious and in awe of such a Sōma.

That determination and strength of heart to keep working hard towards his dreams, regardless of what others said, were things that Chika, who lacked confidence due to her inferiority complex, wished she had.

Talking with him unexpectedly and at length today was a lot of fun.

When he asked her to do something only she could do, she felt so happy that she was trembling.

Not only that, they ended up cooperating for each other’s goals.

Thinking that she would have more opportunities to talk with Sōma in the future made her feel so happy that she wanted to jump for joy.

With him, she felt like she could do things she couldn’t do alone.

When he held her hand, she felt excited and thrilled, and receiving courage from him, her world seemed to expand, and her heart felt warm.

“…But, I feel a little different now compared to earlier.”

Her gaze fixed on her right hand, she blushed faintly.

She tried doing something that Miki and the others often did to her——doting.

Because she couldn’t do it with her parents or her closest friends, she tried doing it with Sōma.

——Or so she thought.

When Miki and the others doted on her, she was filled with the desire to dote on them in return, to pamper them, and to express her own liking with all her heart.

However, the emotions that arose in Chika’s heart just now felt different from that.

She felt a shiver down her spine when she saw Sōma’s embarrassed and troubled expression.

Her heart soared to a level she had never experienced before.

She found his expression cute——And she wanted to see more of it.

She felt like she might be doing something bad, but she couldn’t stop herself.

She herself was surprised at what she had done.

“What am I doing, really?”

She asked herself while looking at her right hand.

However, her hand couldn’t provide her with an answer.