“Akito-kun, what do you think about the Class President's invitation from earlier?”
At night, while I was relaxing in my room, Riran called me. As I thought, Riran also seemed to be concerned about what happened during the day.
Immediately after that, Suwabe-san had left for her lessons, so we hadn't been able to hear the details.
“What do I think? She just invited us to a meal, right?”
“That's what I thought too. But the company on the business card I got from the Class President is a major corporation that owns real estate not just in Japan, but abroad as well.”
“...Seriously?”
“Yes. Rescuing the daughter of such a place... there's no telling what they might be thinking.”
True... judging by Suwabe-san's tone, it didn't seem like it would end with just a meal... Hmm. Maybe it was premature to give an answer.
“Well, I know the Class President is a good girl, but...”
“Were you close with Suwabe-san, Riran?”
“No, I've hardly ever spoken to her. Just greetings... but how should I put it, she's like a female version of you, Akito-kun.”
...A female version of me? I tilted my head, not understanding what she meant. What does that mean?
“To put it simply, she can't abandon people in trouble. I've only seen the Class President at school, but if there's someone in need, she reaches out. That's the kind of girl Suwabe Hitomi is.”
“Heh... she has a disadvantageous personality.”
“Are you the one to say that?”
No doubt about it. But even I don't help just anyone. I just help when I happen to be there and feel like it. From what I'm hearing, Suwabe-san is like a saint who helps everyone. She called me a saint, but isn't she much more of one?
“She has excellent grades and is highly evaluated by the teachers. She has a kind personality and is popular not just in class, but in the whole grade. She has deep trust, a wide network, and her family is a real estate tycoon with a presence across the globe...”
“She's a complete upward compatibility of me.”
“............”
“Say something.”
I’m starting to feel miserable. Pien. When a person is this perfect, it almost makes me want to look for flaws.
“But if that's the case, isn't there no need to worry? A daughter of such a large company wouldn't do anything unreasonable. She seems to have a good sense of common sense.”
“Th-That's true. It'll surely be fine.”
“Right, right. It’s fine, it’s fine. We’ll just go casually, have a meal, and come home. That's all.”
“Ha ha, ha ha ha ha...!”
............
Uh, it really is okay, right?
◆
A few days later, Saturday.
Riran and I were heading to the address specified by Suwabe-san, keeping a minimum dress code in mind. It was on the opposite side of the station from the residential area where we lived. It was an area lined with luxury residential districts where I almost never visited.
Come to think of it, Rion and Neika's family homes were on this side too. I didn't expect Suwabe-san's house to be here as well.
“I-I'm getting nervous...”
“Y-Yeah. But it's okay. The Class President said she wouldn't do anything strange. So it's okay, it's okay... probably.”
You lost your confidence at the end there.
After walking for about ten minutes using a navigation app, a mechanical voice announced, “You have arrived at your destination.”
“...Wait, is it here?”
“It seems so.”
The nameplate certainly said 'Suwabe.' But...
“...It looks more normal than I thought.”
Compared to the luxury houses standing around it, it was one size smaller... or rather, it had a sense of normality. It was larger than my or Riran's house, but it still looked more commoner-like than expected.
“A-Anyway, let's go.”
“O-Oh.”
Riran took a deep breath and rang the intercom with determination. Ding-dong. Along with the light sound, the sound of hurried footsteps could be heard from inside—and the door was thrown open grandly.
She had a massive smile on her face, as if she couldn't hide her joy.
“I've been waiting for you, Sanada-kun, Kuonji-san! Please, come in, it's a small house!”
I couldn't tell if calling it a small house was modesty or if she was serious.
“Class President, thank you for inviting us today.”
“Thank you, Suwabe-san.”
“N-No...! I should be the one thanking you!”
Suwabe-san bowed her head repeatedly with a bright red face. She had the impression of a perfect superhuman who would help anyone, so seeing this kind of human-like side made my opinion of her go up.
We followed Suwabe-san and entered the house. This was Suwabe-san's family home... the inside of the house was also much more commoner-like than I imagined. It was kept clean, but it wasn't like there were furnishings or artworks lined up.
As we were guided to the living room, a sweet scent tickled my nose. On the table, colorful sweets were lined up, and beautiful flowers also decorated the table. Wow... we're being welcomed like crazy.
“Please, have a seat! First, let's have a chat while eating some sweets!”
“Yes, thank you.”
Riran sat down without any suspicion, but... hmmm.
“Hey, Suwabe-san. Are your parents working today?”
I didn't feel the presence of anyone else in the house besides us. Being the president and the president's wife of a large corporation, I suppose they work even on holidays, but...
“Ah, I haven't told you yet. My parents move around international bases, so this is a house that was bought for me. Since it's close to school.”
Because it's close to school, they bought a whole house for their only daughter? To buy a house so casually... the situation is starting to look suspicious...