Macho Man Doesn't want a Slice-of-Life

"Well, we'll head home first."

"See you at school tomorrow."

After leaving the family restaurant, Ishigami and Fujiwara were the first to leave.

Shirogane and Rinji lived in the same neighborhood, and Kaguya's house was along the way, so the three of them walked together.

Kaguya looked like she wanted to say something the whole time, but each time the words reached her lips, she held them back.

She wanted to ask Shirogane to run for president again.

But she couldn't. She knew he already had the prestigious recommendation letter. Running again would only burden him more.

Maybe it was better to leave it as a wonderful memory.

Rinji walked behind them. As they neared Kaguya's house, he suddenly stopped.

"President, go ahead and walk Shinomiya back."

"Hmm? Something wrong?"

"Not really." Rinji smiled. "Karura just messaged me, so I'll be heading off for a bit. I'll get home on my own later."

"Oh..."

He waved goodbye and walked in the opposite direction with his phone in hand.

Now only Shirogane and Kaguya remained, walking side by side.

After arriving at her mansion's front gate, Shirogane said goodbye and was about to turn to leave.

Suddenly, a small hand tugged at his sleeve.

"Shinomiya..."

Shirogane turned around. Kaguya, head down, had grabbed the edge of his sleeve timidly.

"Can't I say something selfish, just this once…? Something I'll only ever say once in my life."

"Hm?"

Kaguya raised her head, her bright eyes gazing into his.

"I think the role of student council president really should belong to you."

She didn't want the student council to end. She wanted to keep what they had.

Unlike Rinji, she couldn't act solely based on her desires. If the student council ended, she'd lose her reason to be by Shirogane's side.

Shirogane blinked. "You want… me to run for president again?"

Kaguya lowered her head shyly and, after a few seconds of silence, nodded.

Seeing her like that, Shirogane smiled, then pulled a folded paper from his jacket pocket and held it up to her.

"Shinomiya, look at this."

"Huh…? Eh!?"

At the top of the page were the words "Student Council Election Application Form," and at the bottom, it had Shirogane's name and class.

This man had already decided to run.

"So that's how it is. You really wanted me to run again, huh?"

Shirogane grinned as he nodded, clearly enjoying the surprise on Kaguya's face.

"President… Did you do all that just so you could say this now?" Kaguya's voice trembled slightly.

"Who knows?"

"..."

She had to admit—this time, Shirogane really got her.

But the result wasn't bad.

---

"Let's go out this weekend! Hmm… Kabukicho? That's fine, but there's not much to do there. I heard high schoolers like Harajuku or Shinjuku more."

From a rooftop corner, Rinji was talking on the phone with Karura.

They had been dating for over a month, but hadn't spent much time together.

Even though they were both in Tokyo, they lived in different districts. They could only meet on weekends, and not much had happened during those visits.

Though Garuda was very eager to have a child with him, Rinji had always managed to hold himself back.

After all, they were only sixteen.

But as a couple, going out together was normal. So this time, Rinji took the initiative to invite Garuda out.

"Evening works best. Yeah, okay. I'll wait for you at the entrance."

After confirming the time, Rinji ended the call.

He was genuinely looking forward to their weekend plans. Strictly speaking, it would be their first real date.

Bzzz~

Just as he was about to call a cab, another call came in.

The caller ID read: Shirogane Miyuki.

"Hello? President?"

"Rinji, sorry—I didn't mention something earlier."

"Hmm? What is it?"

Leaning against a building wall, Shirogane took a deep breath.

"I've decided to run for student council president again."

His voice traveled through the phone into Rinji's ear.

Rinji opened his mouth, then closed it, smiling.

"That's great."

"I want you to help me again."

"Of course."

"...Thanks."

Shirogane chuckled, a noticeable sense of relief in his voice.

"I'll probably be really busy the next few days—need to prep all the campaign documents. Looks like another few nights of no sleep."

"You just focus on writing your speech. Ishigami and I will handle the campaign materials and the PPTs. Fujiwara will help too. I think everyone wants the student council to continue."

"Hahaha, even without me, Shuchiin's student council won't disappear."

"No."

Rinji smiled faintly.

"A student council without us isn't a student council. Anything else is meaningless."

"Just like Shinomiya and Fujiwara said… You're as arrogant as ever, Rinji."

Shirogane smiled.

"But that arrogance is strangely reassuring."

He ended the call, straightened from the wall, and walked down the sidewalk.

His thoughts drifted back to a conversation with Sagara-sensei earlier that day.

...

"Sagara-sensei, I've decided to run for student council president again."

"…Are you sure about that?" Sagara looked hesitant. "This is just my personal opinion, but it should be your decision. You need to think about your future too..."

"No. I'm thinking of my future."

Shirogane answered firmly.

"I want the student council to continue. I have my own reasons. Besides... Rinji's helped me so much. If I can't even provide him with the right environment, I wouldn't have the face to stand in front of him."

"...Alright."

Sagara said no more and handed over the application papers.

...

"The 67th Student Council isn't going anywhere."

Leaving that statement behind, Shirogane walked on toward home.

"This is the one time in my life I'll fight with everything I have."