第60話 バレンタインデー
一週間が終わり、冬華の家に家政婦――立花香織が戻ってきた。
そういうわけで、朝陽はお役御免...とはならかった。
週末は冬華が訪ねてくる。
食卓を囲む機会は減ったが、また時間を共有できることが何よりも嬉しい。
久々に一人で食べる夜ご飯は寂しかったが、それでも土日を思えば心に穴が開くような虚しさは感じなかった。
そうして迎えた二月十四日。
教室に何やら甘い香りが漂っている。
そういう雰囲気とかではなく、実際に鼻孔をくずぐる甘ったるい匂い。
その正体は、間違いようなくチョコレートだった。
「バレンタインデーだなー」
千昭が周りを見渡しながらのんびりと呟く。
今日は一日、学校全体が異様な空気に包まれていた。
男子は自分の名前が呼ばれる時を今か今かと待ち続け、女子は相手の名前を呼ぶ勇気を一生懸命に振り絞っているのだろう。
放課後、教室に残っている生徒はいつもより多く、そわそわと落ち着かない様子が見て取れた。
「今年はすぐに帰らないのな」
去年とは違い、教室に残っている朝陽に千昭はニヤニヤと笑いかける。
「たくさんチョコを貰ったようで。どれ、お兄さんに見せてみなさい」
「別に見たところで面白くないだろ。普通に全部義理だよ」
「そうか? 中には結構気合入ってるのもあるくね?」
千昭が覗き込んだ紙袋の中には、朝陽が貰ったチョコレートが並べられている。
一目で義理と分かる一個数十円のチョコレートの中に、確かに主張が目立つ包装がちらほらと。
「俺知ってる。朝陽は意外とモテるって」
またしてもニヤリと笑う千昭。
目を背けて無視する朝陽。
「ふむ。まあ気長に行こうぜ。一日は長い」
「もう放課後だけどな」
また一人、ガラガラガラと音を立てながら女子生徒が教室に入ってくる。そして、名前を呼ばれた男子生徒もまた一人。
そうして、二人の間にどこか特別な空気が形成される。
恨めしそうな視線と、羨ましそうな視線ももちろんセットで。
そわそわと教室を出ていった二人の行く末は分からないが、あの様子では恐らく告白するのか、されるのか。
ただ、バレンタインデーだからといって、チョコレートの受け渡しが必ずしも告白とは限らない。
義理チョコや友チョコなんて文化があるし、親しい中でのやり取りも十分に考えられる。
実際に、クラスメイト全員にチョコを配る生徒が数人いて、朝陽もその恩恵にあずかっていた。
結局は、言葉にしないと伝わらないのだ。
朝陽が貰ったチョコレートも、それが何を意味するのかはわからない。
もしかしたら好意を寄せられているのかもしれないし、それはとてつもない自惚れかもしれない。
(それでもチョコは欲しいよな......)
とある女の子の姿を思い浮かべ、朝陽は淡い期待を胸に抱く。
表では平然を装っているが、裏では声がかかるのを待っている。
そんな心持ちの中で、騒がしい音を立てながら教室のドアが勢いよく開いた。
その音にクラスメイトだけではなく、朝陽も小さく反応を示し――
「ちーくんっ!」
一直線でこちらに向かってくる元気溌剌な少女の姿を目に収めた。
「友チョコはもう配り終わったのか?」
「うん、バッチリ! みんなに喜んでもらえたよ」
「そりゃ良かったな。作った甲斐があるってもんだ」
「そうなのーっ! それでね......?」
自然な流れで千昭の片膝に座った日菜美が、スクールバッグから丁寧にラッピングされた袋を取り出す。
「はい、ちーくん! 愛情たっぷりの本命チョコだよ!」
「キターッ! ありがと、めっちゃ嬉しい!」
「えへへ、どういたしまして」
二人はこうなると、暫く自分たちの世界から帰ってこない。
日菜美の手作りトリュフを一粒口にして、ひたすらべた褒めする千昭。
その幸せそうな光景は微笑ましいものである反面、見ている側としては直視するのが憚られる。
一部の男子からは遠慮なく怨嗟の声が飛び、一部の女子からは羨望の眼差しが向けられていた。
「そうだ、朝陽にも......はいっ、親友チョコをどうぞ!」
「ん、ありがとう」
「見て見て、結構上手に出来てると思わない?」
「そうだな、見た目は売り物と遜色ない」
「でしょー? もちろん味も保証するよ! 何たって二人でいっぱい練習したからね!」
「......二人?」
「あっ......そのー、えーっと......そう! お母さんに習ったの!」
今の不自然な間は何だったのか。怪しさは拭えないが、聞いても答えが返って来そうにないので、朝陽は受け取った袋を早速開ける。
千昭と同じく――正確には、見栄えや大きさ、デコレーションなどが異なる――ココア―パウダーが塗されたトリュフを一粒口に入れると、すぐに上品な甘さが口に広がった。
湯煎して使用したチョコレートが相当良い物なのだろう。もちろん、この味は日菜美の努力の賜物であるのだが。材料までこだわった結果、数段上のクオリティを生み出していた。
「やった、朝陽シェフ公認だ!」
公認と言っても、何の権威も持っていない一学生による評価なのだが、日菜美にとってはとても嬉しいことらしい。
満面の笑みを浮かべて千昭とハイタッチする姿を見れば、朝陽も自然と頬が緩んだ。
「そういや、氷室さんは一緒じゃないのか?」
「あー、それはねえ......。ふゆちゃんは、学校終わってすぐ帰ったの」
日菜美のチョコをもう一つ口にした千昭の質問と答えに、朝陽の耳がピクリと反応する。
「すぐに?」
「うん、大事な用事があるんだってさ」
もしかしたらと思っていたが、既に帰宅したのであれば淡い期待も諦めがつくというものだ。
いくら他の人と比べて親しい仲とはいえ、バレンタインデーにチョコレートを渡す義理も義務もない。
ただ、やはりどこかで友チョコなるものを貰えると期待していた自分がいた朝陽は、無意識のうちに大きなため息を吐いていた。
「大丈夫だよ朝陽。だから落ち込まないで?」
「......何で俺は励まされてるんだ」
「何でもだよ! とにかく、大丈夫だから!」
フレーフレーと応援されても全く意図が読み取れない。
「そうだぞ、朝陽。絶対に大丈夫だから安心しろ」
「お前もそっち側なのかよ」
肩をポンポンと優しく叩かれても何が何だか。
口の中に甘ったるいチョコレートの味を残しつつ、朝陽は訳もわからず苦笑いを浮かべた。
Ch 60
At the end of the week, the housekeeper - Tachibana Kaori - returned to Fuyuka's house.
And so, Asahi wasn't able to get himself relieved of his duties.
Fuyuka came to visit him on weekends.
Although they had fewer opportunities to have dinner together, he was more than happy to share their time together again.
It had been a long time since he had eaten dinner alone, it felt lonely. However, thinking about the upcoming weekend made him feel whole again.
Fast forward to February 14th.
There was some kind of sweet fragrance in the classroom.
Not a kind of atmosphere, but a sweet fragrance that actually tickled one's nostrils.
What it was, without a doubt, was chocolate.
"It sure is Valentine's Day."
Chiaki muttered lazily as he looked around.
Today, the entire school was filled with a strange atmosphere.
The boys were waiting for the moment when their name would be called, and the girls were probably trying their best to muster up the courage to call somebody's name.
After school, more students than usual remained in the classroom, seemingly all fidgety and restless.
"You're not going home right away this year?"
Chiaki grinned at Asahi, who, unlike last year, remained in the classroom.
"It seems you got a lot of chocolates. Lemme see what you got there, buddy."
"There's really nothing to look at. It's all obligatory chocolate."
"Really? I think some are pretty up there, don't you think?"
Chiaki peeked into the paper bag and saw the chocolates that Asahi had received lined up.
"Among the chocolates there are ones that cost several dollars each, which are instantly recognizable as a gift, but there are a few pieces of packaging here and there that certainly were saying something else."
"I knew it. You're surprisingly popular."
Chiaki smirked yet again.
Asahi turned away and ignored him.
"Hmm. Well, let's just take it easy. The day is long."
"It's already after school, though."
Another female student arrived into the classroom with a rattle. And another male student, whose name was called.
And so, a somewhat special atmosphere was formed between the two.
A resentful gaze and an envious one landed on them, of course, there were also a mix of both.
Asahi didn't know what was going to happen to them as they left the classroom in a huff, but from the looks of it, they were probably going to confess or be confessed.
However, just because it was Valentine's Day didn't mean that handing over chocolates was necessarily a confession.
There were customs such as "obligatory chocolates" and "friendship chocolates", and it was quite possible to exchange chocolates among close friends.
In fact, there were a few students who distributed chocolates to all their classmates, and Asahi was one among those who were given.
In the end, you had to put it into words to get your feelings across.
As for the chocolate that Asahi received, he also didn't know what it meant.
Maybe they liked him, or maybe it was just him being so overly self-conscious.
'However, I still would like to be a given, regardless.'
The image of a certain girl came to mind, and Asahi held a faint hope in his heart.
Outwardly, he seemed unconcerned, but behind the scenes, he was waiting to be approached.
In this state of mind, the classroom door opened vigorously, making a noisy noise.
Not only his classmates, but also Asahi had a small reaction to the sound.
"Chi-kun!"
He caught sight of an energetic girl coming towards him in a straight line.
"Have you finished handing out your friendship chocolates yet?"
"Yes, it was perfect! Everyone loved it."
"That's great. It's worth the effort."
"Yep! And then, you see?"
Hinami, who naturally sat on one of Chiaki's knees, took out a carefully wrapped bag from her school bag.
"Here you go, Chi-kun! Here's your chocolate filled with lots of love!"
"HERE IT COMES! Thanks, I'm so happy!"
"Ehehe, you're welcome."
When they were being like this, they didn't come back from their world for a while.
Chiaki took a bite of one of Hinami's homemade truffles and praised it to the hilt.
Looking at them left him half with a smile, while the other half he was afraid to look directly at it.
Some of the boys were unreservedly vindictive, while some of the girls looked at them with envy.
"Almost forgot, here you go, Asahi! A best friend chocolate!"
"Mhm, thanks."
"Look, look, don't you think It's well made?"
"It sure is, it looks as good as the one for sale."
"Right? Of course I guarantee the taste! After all, we've practiced a lot together!"
"...Together?"
"Ah... that, uh... Yep! I learned it from my mom!"
What was that unnatural pause? He couldn't shake off the suspicion, but he didn't think he'd get an answer if he ask, so Asahi quickly opened the bag he received.
Asahi put a piece of cocoa powder-coated truffle in his mouth, which looked just like Chiaki's - except in appearance, size, and decoration - and immediately felt the elegant sweetness in his mouth.
The melted chocolate used must have been quite good. Of course, this taste was the result of Hinami's efforts. As a result of her attention towards the ingredients, she was able to create a quality that was several levels above the rest.
"Yay! It's approved by Chef Asahi!"
Even though it was approved, it was an evaluation by a student with no authority, but it seemed to make Hinami very happy.
Seeing her high-five Chiaki with a big smile on her face, Asahi's cheeks relaxed.
"Oh yeah, isn't Himuro-san with you?"
"Ah, you see... Fuyu-chan went home right after school."
Asahi's ears twitched at Chiaki's question and answer as he took another bite of Hinami's chocolate.
"Right away?"
"Yep, she said she got something important to do."
Asahi thought it might be, but if she was already home, he would have to give up his faint hopes.
No matter how close they were compared to others, she had no obligation or duty to give chocolates on Valentine's Day.
However, Asahi unconsciously let out a big sigh, as he was expecting to receive at least a friendship chocolate.
"It's alright, Asahi. So don't be depressed."
"...Why am I being encouraged?"
"Whatever! Anyway, don't worry!"
He couldn't read their intentions at all when they cheered him on.
"That's right, Asahi. It's absolutely fine, don't worry."
"You're on that side, too?"
Asahi didn't know what was going on, even if he tapped him gently on the shoulder.
Leaving a sweet chocolate taste in his mouth, Asahi smiled bitterly for no apparent reason.
How To Melt the Ice Lady
【コミカライズ連載中】氷の令嬢の溶かし方　～クールで素っ気ないお隣さんがデレるとめちゃくちゃ可愛い件～
https://www.novelupdates.com/series/how-to-melt-the-ice-lady/
Comedy Romance School Life Slice of Life
Adapted to Manga Beautiful Female Lead Caring Protagonist Cooking Cute Story Famous Parents Kind Love Interests Kuudere Male Protagonist Modern Day Popular Love Interests
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n2567fv/
高峰 翔