Yuuto Kurokawa preferred to blend into the background.
At Seiryo High—a place filled with cliques, crushes, and constant chatter—he was the type who sat by the window, headphones in, eyes on his notebook, and soul somewhere far from the chaos. He wasn't a loner by force—just by choice.
So when Amamiya-san, the most popular girl in school, stood in front of his desk with a smug grin, the entire class held its breath.
"Kurokawa-kun," she said sweetly, her voice light but impossible to ignore.
Yuuto tugged down one earbud, blinking at her. "Amamiya-san...?"
Her honey-blonde hair shimmered in the morning light. Boys dreamed of her. Girls wanted to be her. And yet, here she was—talking to him.
Then she said it.
"I like you. Please go out with me."
Silence.
A few desks squeaked. Someone dropped a pen. Yuuto blinked again, convinced he'd misheard.
"What?"
She smiled innocently. "You heard me."
He glanced around. The class looked ready to explode. He turned back to her. "This is a joke, right? A dare?"
She let out a theatrical gasp. "Why would you say that? I'm being completely serious, Kurokawa-kun."
He narrowed his eyes. "Right. And I'm the Emperor of Japan."
Amamiya-san giggled. "Okay, fine. You caught me. It's a dare."
Yuuto sighed. "Knew it."
"But now that you've figured it out," she continued, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear, "let's turn it into something fun."
He frowned. "What kind of fun?"
"We'll pretend to date. But it's a game—whoever falls for the other first, loses."
His expression went flat. "No thanks."
"Oh? You afraid you'd lose?"
He bristled. "Not a chance."
"Then prove it." She leaned in slightly, her eyes shining. "I'll even let you keep calling me Amamiya-san if that helps you stay emotionally detached."
He opened his mouth. Closed it. Okay, she was annoying—and dangerously good at pushing buttons.
"And besides," she added in a whisper, "if you back out now, people will assume I rejected you."
His pride flinched. "You're evil."
"Thank you," she said brightly.
The bell rang. Amamiya-san turned and returned to her seat as if nothing had happened, leaving behind a stunned Kurokawa-kun and an electrified classroom.
As whispers rippled through the room, Yuuto slumped into his seat, still dazed.
What just happened?
And more importantly—why did the idea of losing this stupid game already bother him so much?
To be continued....