Why wasn't I the one who got the male lead's script?

Although she felt something was not right, Hoshimi just regarded it as Hayasaka's sudden impulse. Under the somewhat unhappy gazes of Eriri and Futaba, they turned around and walked towards the station together.

"What are you dawdling for? I need to go back to bed early!"

"Hey, okay, okay..."

"Qing, why are you being so perfunctory with me lately?"

The four of them walked towards the direction where the street lights were lighting the way ahead. The girl with short black hair who separated from them stopped for a moment before turning around and leaving silently.

I don't know where her eyes were looking when she stopped.

"By the way, Eriri-san, it seems like your body has truly recovered completely—hasn't it shown any signs of shrinking since then? Anyway, what's causing it to shrink? It's incredible."

After walking side by side for about ten minutes, Miss Hasaka, who had been holding Hoshimi's arm as if it was a matter of course and resting her head on the boy's shoulder, suddenly looked at the somewhat anxious Eriri with curiosity.

"—"

"Well, there's really no sign of it changing back... But what's the reason..."

While Eriri looked embarrassed, not knowing where to start explaining, the gaze of the gray-haired girl who had been walking quietly at the edge suddenly became sharp.

Futaba stopped and turned to look at Hasaka with her eyes slightly narrowed, her expression natural and full of curiosity.

"...Why do you know about this?"

After blurting out this question, Futaba's subtle gaze slowly shifted to Hoshimi's face, whose expression was also somewhat intriguing.

"Xingjian, did you tell anyone else about Puberty Syndrome?"

There was a hint of blame and displeasure in Futaba's serious eyes. Perhaps she felt that this approach was not safe at all.

"I've warned you before that while puberty syndrome isn't contagious, it's not uncommon. It's not uncommon for people who know each other to develop symptoms one after another."

"Wait a minute, I can explain this."

Before Futaba could completely misunderstand that she was the one who leaked the information, Hoshimi reached out and calmly explained the true situation.

"The reason Hasaka also knew about this is because she happened to be right next to me when I saw Eriri shrink that day."

Seeing the two people in front of her arguing about her own affairs, Eriri felt inexplicably guilty. She could only nod like a chicken pecking at rice after Hoshimi explained the facts, and looked weakly at Futaba.

"...?"

Although this explanation does show that Hoshimi did not intentionally tell Miss Hasaka about Eriri's shrinking body, Futaba's expression still became even more strange.

"...I remember this happened before summer vacation. Did you two know each other that long ago?"

"Ah, well..."

I can't reveal Hasaka's true identity here. Privately, it's no problem. Eriri, who saw Hayasaka Ai in maid form at the Shinomiya residence, is still there.

"Hey, are we really just ordinary friends?"

Ms. Futaba smiled and folded her hands in front of her. Although she asked the question, there was no trace of doubt in her tone.

Not good, I’m about to be found out.

Unable to lie to Futaba, the young Hoshimi looked for help at Miss Hasaka, who was holding his arm. When the latter met his gaze, a light flashed in her innocent and pure eyes, as if she understood what he meant.

【There's really no other way, I'll just help you. 】

Her eyes seemed to convey this, and in the next moment—

"This question is really hard to bring up. Actually, we're not just ordinary friends..."

The blonde girl hesitated to speak and gently covered the unnatural blush on her face with her hands, trying to use her slender fingers to hide the shy look beneath her.

"Yes, it's me... I fell in love with Xiaoqing at first sight, so I kept pestering him..."

"—?"

The boy who saw Hoshi held his forehead with a headache, while the usually calm and composed Futaba had a rare expression on her face that said "Shocking my mother for a hundred years".

"...Why would any girl be so attracted to stars?"

"Wait a minute, Futaba, that's really hurtful."

"Woo--love is so unreasonable! I-I don't understand what's going on at all... I just know that I feel safe in front of Xiaoqing!"

Miss Hasaka blushed, and finally threw away her reserve and hugged the boy's arm with a complicated expression again, showing a protective posture as if she was protecting her own property.

"Although he's not particularly good-looking or talented, the moment I met him, I felt like I'd met my destined leading man!"

Miss Eriri standing by showed a puzzled expression as if to say "Huh, why does this sentence sound a little familiar?", and the boy Hoshimi, who had already had a certain degree of PTSD about the last sentence, had a rare gloomy face, and felt like his stomach was churning and he was about to vomit.

At the same time, Futaba gradually cast her complicated gaze on the boy who was about to cry but had no tears.

"...Xingjian, it's not easy to meet someone who likes you."

Her face was full of "Don't worry, I support you in pursuing your own happiness", but the more this happened, the more Xingjian wanted to vindicate herself.

"Right now, I'm just one-sidedly attracted to Xiaoqing... After all, who doesn't like a cute boy?"

Having said that, Miss Hasaka blushed and hid herself behind the black-haired boy whose eyes said "You haven't had enough fun yet", grabbing the boy's sleeve like a timid child.

"He, he hasn't said he likes me yet...but I will try my best to make Xiaoqing like me!"

Upon hearing this, Miss Futaba showed an expression of sudden realization, as if saying, "Oh, it turns out it's all unrequited love." Miss Eriri, who was standing next to her, blushed and snorted in dissatisfaction because she had just witnessed a love confession scene. Her irritated eyes were full of the malice of "Go to hell, you instant star."

When Xingjian glanced behind him with a little helplessness, the blonde girl who hid her whole body behind him embarrassedly lowered her head and seemed to stick out her tongue.

He must be a devil. This person must be a devil.

----

The leader of the whole movement is Miss Hasaka. What does it have to do with my maid Hayasaka Ai? (Funny)

Kasumigaoka Utaha is unlikely to be out of ideas: Chapter 2: A not-so-peaceful journey home (Part 5)

The distance from Hoshimi's house to the station was not very far, and thanks to this, the torturous and strange atmosphere on the road did not last long.

They stood outside the platform, each with their own thoughts, Futaba and Hasaka facing different directions.

"Then let's break up here, Xiaoqing! Next time, next time I'll bother you again!"

Miss Hasaka was like a pure and cute little girl who had just finished her first date with her boyfriend. She stood there, smiling shyly and waved at Xingjian. She didn't pay attention to the complicated gazes of the other three people and walked towards the boarding direction.

Futaba, who was standing in the opposite direction from her, watched Hasaka leave with a subtle expression, then put her hands in her pockets and looked at Hoshimi.

"Although... from my perspective, I shouldn't say anything, but no matter what, that guy is interested in you, Xingjian."

Futaba sighed, then gave earnest instructions to the boy with a complicated expression.

"If you don't like someone, just say so clearly. Don't keep them busy for you—not to mention that Hasaka was helping you cook and wash dishes at your house today."

"okay."

"If I find out you're the kind of disgusting person who knows someone's feelings but pretends to be deaf and dumb and squeezes every last bit of value out of them, I'll immediately and decisively cut off our friendship, and then I'll be depressed for a long time because of my poor choice of friends."

"Yes……"

Although the facts were obviously not what Futaba understood, Hoshimi still nodded obediently, like a student being called by the teacher in class, with a well-behaved and submissive attitude.

If he tried to argue at this time, it would leave Futaba with the impression that he was a scumbag who "called a girl home to do work for him and still tried to argue."

"By the way, Futaba, is it okay for you to go back alone so late?"

Xingjian raised his head and straightened his back slightly after confirming that Hasaka's figure had disappeared. He looked much more relaxed.

"You just said the same thing to Kato-san, so my response will be the same - don't worry."

Futaba casually looked around the platform where there were fewer and fewer people, and didn't seem to feel any anxiety about going home alone.

Seeing that she had such an indifferent expression, Xingjian frowned instead.

"Kato is different from you... You're alone at home, your parents aren't home, right?"

“…That’s true, but I’m used to it.”

Although Futaba was slightly stunned by Hoshimi's words, she quickly adjusted herself and shrugged nonchalantly.

"I've always been alone, so there's no need to worry too much about me."

"Come on, Futaba. You know that's why I'm worried."

Eriri, who had been quietly observing the conversation between the two, glanced at the expression of the boy next to her - he had a rare unhappy look on his face.

"If I don't ask, who else will care?"

"…Because we are best friends."

Hearing this, the gray-haired girl tilted her head slightly and looked away with a smile that seemed to contain some relief.

"But I should return the favor exactly as I said it—if I don't ask about the affairs of someone like you, a person with no sense of presence and no one to care about, then who else would care?"

She raised her eyebrows, then glanced at Eriri who was avoiding her gaze and Hoshimi who had an unhappy expression.

"Just like now."

"Eh?"

Feeling that she was being scrutinized closely, Miss Eriri straightened up subconsciously.

"Where are you planning to go on an adventure next? I wouldn't recommend traveling at night. After all, both the bosozoku and the delinquents are more active at night. Besides, traveling alone at night is bound to lead to misunderstandings no matter how you think about it. I'd be happy to hear your explanation first."

After Futaba finished her opinion slowly, she clasped her hands in front of her and looked at Hoshimi with a firm gaze - as if she was sure that he would tell her the truth.

"Well, of course I'm not planning anything shady. I have absolutely no feelings for Eriri-san in that regard, as heaven and earth can attest."

Hoshimi stretched out her hand without any hesitation to deny Futaba's guess. Although Eriri's face was full of resentment that said "I'm offended", she still didn't refute it immediately.

"It's not so much an adventure... it's more like someone asked me to do something, and I have to take care of it quickly."

"Please, Xing, see what you're dealing with. It must be related to puberty syndrome."

Futaba stated her guess calmly, but Eriri only realized it belatedly, her face full of surprise and astonishment, "Huh? So it's because of this?"

"I suspect that's correct, but I can only make further judgments after the person involved explains the specific circumstances to me."

Hoshimi nodded, agreeing with Futaba's guess - after all, that's what he thought too.

"So, who is the target?"

"...the third-year student who's a big shot in school, Kasumigaoka Utaha-senpai."

Only when facing Futaba would Hoshimi tell her all the information he knew without reservation.

"Hmm? And why is that Kasumigaoka Utaha connected to you... Hmm."

Futaba, who originally had a hint of confusion on her face, seemed to have thought of something, and then her expression gradually became serious.

She was silent for a long time before she expressed her thoughts in a complicated tone.

"...But don't get carried away and risk your life to help your favorite novelist just because she's your favorite novelist, Hoshimi."

Rather than persuasion, Futaba's tone sounded more like a warning.

After hearing Futaba's words, Eriri was obviously stunned for a moment, and then looked at Hoshimi who was standing next to her with suspicion.

Why does Futaba, who has nothing to do with the two-dimensional subculture circle, know the true identity of Kasumigaoka Utaha?

"...I have my own criteria for measuring gains and losses, Futaba, don't worry."

Hoshimi also remained silent for a moment, and then avoided Futaba's question in an ambiguous way without giving any affirmation or rebuttal.

Futaba sighed, knowing that there was no way she would get a positive response from this guy.

"No matter what, stay away from people who always ask you to tolerate and sacrifice. Don't be foolish and try to help others to the end. There is no such thing as a third time. I believe you won't make the same mistake again."

After she said this, she turned around and slowly walked away, waving goodbye to the two of them with her back to them.

"........."

The black-haired boy did not respond to her words, but just frowned and silently watched Futaba's figure gradually disappear at the end of his sight.

After repeatedly pondering Futaba's advice to him in his mind, he realized that there was something strange that was not right.

----

I received a treasure chest reward from a big guy yesterday! I guess there will be more updates tonight or tomorrow~

The update plan has ended. The current data is 10980 monthly tickets, 134281 recommendation tickets, 35.6w rewards, and 3727 blades.

It's time to add more orz

Kasumigaoka Utaha is unlikely to be out of ideas: Chapter 3 Kasumigaoka Utaha's Dilemma (Part 1)

After sending Hasaka and Futaba away one after another, Eriri, who was obviously relieved, and Hoshimi, who was inexplicably lost in thought, walked out of the platform side by side.