During lunch in the student council room, Tatsuya paused his chopsticks, feeling a sharp gaze boring into him.
"Onii-sama?" Miyuki asked, worried his bento had some flaw.
Tatsuya shook his head, understanding her concern instantly, sparing her any distress. "President," he said, turning to Mayumi.
"Yes?" she replied, feigning innocence.
"Why have you been staring at me so intensely?" Tatsuya asked bluntly.
Mayumi, never one to confess easily, deflected. "Staring? No idea what you mean~"
"You're not going to tell me?" Tatsuya sighed, realizing her stubborn nature made honesty unlikely.
"It's not me!" Mayumi insisted. "Maybe Mari?"
"Not me," Mari said.
"I know it's not the disciplinary committee chair," Tatsuya said. "The gaze's direction is clear."
Mari, briefly panicked at being suspected, felt relief and a touch of fear at Tatsuya's uncanny perception.
"Miyuki, I'll head back first," Tatsuya said.
"Is something wrong, Onii-sama?" Miyuki asked, tilting her head.
"I need to catch a mischievous tanuki," Tatsuya said.
"A tanuki?" Miyuki blinked.
"Or a fox," he added.
Mayumi's heart wasn't calm at being called a tanuki or fox. "Tatsuya-kun!" she called.
"Yes, President?" he replied.
"We need to talk. Come to the back."
"Understood," Tatsuya said, recognizing she meant the stairs to the disciplinary committee headquarters—a place for private matters.
"This could be fun," Mari smirked.
"Careful, Watanabe-senpai," Suzune warned. "Prying might backfire."
"Don't say scary things, Ichihara…" Mari muttered.
Mari and Suzune grasped Mayumi's intent, but Azusa, clueless, tilted her head. Sensing Miyuki's subtle displeasure, Azusa trembled, though Miyuki ate calmly, her demeanor unchanged. Tatsuya, however, picked up on her mood.
At the stairs, Tatsuya cut to the chase. "So, President, about that stare?"
"Yes," Mayumi admitted.
"Explain."
His blunt tone reflected his irritation at her earlier glare, though he felt justified. Mayumi took a breath. "It was your birthday yesterday, right?"
"Yes," Tatsuya said.
"Why didn't you tell me?" she demanded.
"That's why you were glaring?" Tatsuya asked, incredulous.
As student council president, Mayumi could access student profiles easily, but her anger puzzled him. He didn't hide his exasperation.
"It's your birthday, Tatsuya-kun!" she huffed.
"So?" he asked.
"Are you teasing your senpai?" she pouted, cheeks puffing, glaring up at him.
Tatsuya felt uneasy. "If that's all, I'll go—"
"No!" Mayumi interrupted. "We're not done."
"You're upset I didn't share my birthday?" he clarified.
"Not upset, but…" she trailed off.
"I didn't tell anyone," Tatsuya said.
"But you had a party nearby!" Mayumi countered.
"Multi-Scope, huh?" Tatsuya said, unfazed. "I didn't plan it. Erika threw it by chance and was surprised it was my birthday."
Mayumi faltered. "You knew about my ability?"
"You used it during assemblies and the broadcast room attack," Tatsuya said. "You called me there but weren't present—far-seeing, right?"
"Impressive, Tatsuya-kun," Mayumi said. "I didn't expect you to figure it out."
"As for the party, Erika planned it without knowing," Tatsuya said. "You were busy with incident cleanup, and she doesn't know you well. She invited close friends only."
"Honoka and Shizuku aren't that close," Mayumi muttered.
"What was that?" Tatsuya asked, though he'd heard.
"Nothing," Mayumi said, flustered.
He let it slide. Honoka and Shizuku, closer to Erika than Mayumi, made sense to him. "Miyuki won't stay calm much longer," he said, noting Azusa's trembling in the council room, sensing Miyuki's hidden anger.
"Wait!" Mayumi called.
"More?" Tatsuya asked, slightly annoyed.
Mayumi hesitated, then steeled herself. "This weekend, Saturday or Sunday, can you spare time for me?"
"Both days are booked," Tatsuya said.
"An hour! No, thirty minutes!" she pleaded.
"That's doable," he said. "You sure that's enough?"
"Yes," she said. "What time works?"
Tatsuya checked his mental schedule and gave her a time.
"Got it," Mayumi said. "Come to the council room then."
"Here?" Tatsuya asked.
"Yes," she nodded.
Already regretting it, Tatsuya saw no way to refuse her determined look.
At the appointed time, Tatsuya arrived at the student council room, but Mayumi was absent. "President? If you're not here, I'm leaving," he said, sensing her presence and turning to leave.
"No!" Mayumi's voice came from under a desk.
"Hide-and-seek?" Tatsuya asked, crouching to meet her eyes.
"You knew?" she asked.
"Tracking presences is my specialty," he said.
Mayumi caught his use of "presence" over "aura" but brushed it off. "Why'd you call me here?" Tatsuya asked.
She handed him a small box. "A late birthday gift."
"Thanks," he said.
"That's it? Bit cold," she teased.
"I'm happy, really," he said.
"You could've given it anywhere," he pointed out.
Mayumi wasn't ready for her real reason. "Um, Tatsuya-kun…"
"Yes?"
"You're not dating anyone, right?"
"No," he confirmed.
"Then, um…" she stammered, face red.
"President?" he prompted.
"Would you… go out with me?" she asked, her confession a question.
Tatsuya understood instantly. "Oh, that's what this is."
"Wait, forget that!" Mayumi blurted.
"Forget it?" Tatsuya said. "So I don't need to respond?"
Mayumi froze, realizing he'd said "respond" (oe), not "answer" (kotaeru). "I was going to say yes, but if it's off, fine," he said, smirking mischievously.
Tears welling, Mayumi hugged him, overwhelmed.