Chapter 52
Last night, Vita spoke with her parents on the phone for the first time in a while.
It was the day before the school trip, and she wanted to check in with them as well.
‘Father must be there too…?’
There was nothing particularly unusual about why Vita was nervous as she made the video call. She was simply worried that her mother might have told her father about Carlisle.
Soon, both of her parents joined the video call.
[Oh my, Vita-!]
[…Have you been well?]
Her mother wore a gentle smile, while her father had a stern expression.
Vita answered with a smile.
“Ah, yes. I'm doing well! Tomorrow is the school trip, so I wanted to call and check in…”
But then a sudden shout rang in Vita's ears.
[Why have you become so pretty-?!]
Vita was incredibly flustered.
“Huh, wha…?”
Had she heard wrong? Her mind went blank from embarrassment.
“Pre, pretty…”
Indeed, Vita's father, Maximilian Shamal, was flustered as well.
Because his daughter had become so pretty.
‘What on earth-?!’
Hadn't she still been somewhat boyish the last time he'd seen her?
But now, something was different.
Her lips looked moist, and her cheeks had a healthy glow.
In appearance, she was unmistakably a girl!
He was dazed as a father by how pretty and cute she was.
‘This is exactly what I…!’
She was the ultimate ideal daughter he'd always dreamed of, after all!
And yet, it was strange. For some reason, he felt uneasy.
After all, wasn't there usually a reason when a girl became prettier?
‘No way, no way…’
No. It couldn't be.
At the one possibility that came to mind, Maximilian Shamal even felt a sense of crisis.
In light of a lifetime of experience, when he looked at her appearance—
Yes, it was almost as though she were a—
Girl in love!
That was the impression she gave. It was far too soon.
A cute, pretty daughter like that needed to remain in her parents' arms. Forever, always!
[Do you know something?!]
And so Vita's father, Maximilian Shamal, became thoroughly flustered, only to receive a smack on the back from his wife beside him.
[You're being ridiculous, dear…!]
Vita flinched as well.
Her father's expression looked quite bewildered, and the sudden words had been completely beyond her expectations.
‘He must be disappointed…’
Come to think of it, well…
For some reason, Vita found herself reflecting on how feminine she'd become. Feeling as though she'd done something wrong, she bit her lip.
There was no doubt that her father had been disappointed in her.
To Vita, her father, Maximilian Shamal, was practically the embodiment of a macho man. He was usually strict and manly in every sense of the word, so she could only imagine how disappointed he must have been in her.
After all, the person she used to be had certainly been a son he could be proud of.
Naturally, Vita hesitated a little, but she had something to hold on to.
She was going back to normal!
“…Please wait for me, Father.”
[Wait for what?!]
[Ignore your father, Vita. It's not as though this is the first time he's acted like this.]
Of course, she couldn't exactly announce here that she would return as her father's proud, wonderful son.
Well, anyway.
After that, Vita explained in detail to her parents that she would have a good time on the three-night, four-day school trip.
-Ahem, right. You're going to the southern region?
Her father had finally calmed down after hearing that.
Vita immediately answered his question after the throat-clearing.
“Yes, Father. I hear it's a very unique region filled with exotic culture. They say there's an ocean too…”
[What, an ocean…?]
[Try saying one more stupid thing!]
[No, dear… I haven't even said anything yet.]
For some reason, her father's expression seemed a little darker.
Vita tilted her head and continued.
“I hear there's a hot spring too… I'm really looking forward to it…”
She wasn't putting on a lively front just because she was in front of her parents; she was genuinely looking forward to it.
“It sounds like it'll be fun!”
Vita beamed.
She had never been to a hot spring before, and she'd always wanted to visit one after seeing them in anime.
[Just in case, I'm telling you this: Watch out for wolves who try to make improper advances.]
“…Um, yes?”
Vita was briefly flustered by her father's remark again.
But after clearing his throat at her blank reaction, her father corrected himself.
[Ahem! What I mean is, as a man yourself, don't do anything improper.]
“Ah, I-I see…!”
So that's what he meant! While Vita was digesting that, her parents once again seemed to be bickering for some reason.
[Don't say pointless things like that to a girl!]
[It's not an unfounded concern.]
[Then say it properly!]
“Ha… haha…”
Vita gave an awkward laugh.
Her father looked completely cowed.
Once again, she confirmed that the greatest authority in the household was her mother.
‘He's weak against Mother.’
A man was only weak before the one woman he loved. Remembering that, Vita's respect for her father grew a little more.
‘Someday, I too…’
Her goal was to become a man like her father, a macho man. And she would be kind to the woman she loved, too!
***
After the video call with her parents somehow ended without incident.
Gulp-
Vita immediately took a pill.
About thirty minutes had passed since she'd eaten dinner before the call with her parents.
Taking the pills had become part of her set daily routine these days.
Only around fifteen left now.
Once she took all of them, she would turn back into a man.
So she could prepare for the school trip with renewed hope and a light heart!
Vita checked very carefully to make sure she hadn't forgotten anything she needed for the trip.
“A toothbrush, towels, a few changes of clothes… and three pairs of underwear.”
As she happened to look at the underwear, Vita suddenly remembered.
Come to think of it.
‘If I go on the school trip, won't I be sleeping in the same room as the girls…?’
Besides, there was the hot spring.
Vita suddenly held her breath.
‘No, wait…’
So, that meant, right?
She would get to see all sorts of sides of the girls she normally knew.
Gulp-
A dry swallow slid down her throat.
‘This could be freaking awesome…’
No, I mean.
This didn't make her some kind of pervert, right?
It would be a lie to say she wasn't looking forward to it, and even so, she was still a perfectly respectable man.
Naturally, there was no way she could dislike it.
‘I do feel a little guilty, though…’
It was only natural! Honestly, she was looking forward to it.
After swallowing hard, Vita suddenly stopped.
“Ah…”
A sigh escaped at the sight.
Her eyes had fallen on a girl's racing swimsuit in a deep blue color. Since they were going to the beach, she might have to wear it, of course. She picked it up and examined it from every angle.
“No, this…”
Wasn't this even more intense than bloomers? It was quite daunting, but it was on the list of things to bring.
‘Ugh, whatever.’
Vita's face reddened as she finally shoved the racing swimsuit, roughly crumpled, into the very bottom of her suitcase. After that, she packed snacks to eat with the others on the bus ride.
“All right, done-!”
She gave the bag an unnecessary pat, smiled faintly, and then—
Vita lay down on the bed and checked her phone out of habit.
Ding-
In the meantime, a text had arrived from that Carlisle Schultz guy.
-I'm outside your place right now.
It hadn't been long, judging by the time it was received.
After checking the message, Vita shot up from the bed.
She went straight to the window and slightly drew back the curtain. Sure enough, there he was.
“What the…”
The way he waved seemed rather shameless, and she found the sight irritating for no reason. But she had grown oddly attached to him, so she decided to open the door instead of simply ignoring him.
“Oh, seriously…!”
Pitter-patter-
Without realizing it, Vita quickly tidied her hair and splashed water on her face.
After wiping the water off with a towel, she hurried to the door.
Carlisle had been dropping by like this unexpectedly from time to time lately, which put Vita in quite a bind.
‘I can't exactly turn away a guest who's already arrived…’
After all, she was a broad-minded man!
“Hey, you…!”
Ah, ow.
And the moment she opened the door, a light knuckle tap landed on her head.
***
Bonk-
“Ow…”
Vita rubbed her head.
“I told you not to open the door without checking. Why are you so bad at listening?”
Carlisle Schultz's voice.
It didn't hurt much, but she couldn't help pouting.
“What do you mean, I'm bad at listening? Are you my parent or something?”
She'd known who it was in advance, anyway. So what exactly was the problem?
“Try this.”
But when Carlisle held something out to her, Vita's expression soon brightened at the sight.
“Oh, this is…”
It was that parfait!
“You like parfaits, right?”
“…Yeah, I guess.”
Vita nodded and briefly drifted into memory.
The parfait he'd bought her after appearing just in time when she'd nearly gotten into trouble with a delinquent like Nathan.
She also remembered being amazed at how delicious it was.
Even now, she vividly remembered the strange feeling she'd had while walking with this guy, Carlisle, beneath the scarlet streetlights that day.
It felt strangely nostalgic, and she happened to need something to cleanse her palate, too.
“Th-thanks…”
Vita had changed recently.
When it came to Carlisle Schultz, expressing her gratitude like this wasn't all that difficult.
It was awkward, but every time she said something like this, he reacted well, which made her increasingly feel that it was worth gathering a little courage.
When Vita expressed her gratitude—
“I'm glad you like it.”
Along with those words, a large hand suddenly reached toward her.
The hand gently stroked the crown of Vita's small head.
A low, gentle voice reached her.
“Are you feeling all right today?”
“Uh, a little…”
Whenever this happened, Vita somehow felt herself shrinking.
“Still, be careful from now on.”
“Be careful of what?”
“You should check before opening the door.”
That again!
Vita tried to argue back, but his following words—and actions—left her speechless.
Before she knew it, she was held tightly in his large embrace.
“…You're too pretty. I worry about you all the time.”
“W-what are you talking about…!”
It felt surprisingly difficult to actually say aloud that he was talking nonsense.
“Ah, this is the life.”
As he said that, Carlisle pulled her even closer and buried his face in the nape of her neck.
Vita felt strange and breathless, unable to do anything. It was as though her ability to decide how to react had short-circuited.
As expected, it was strange. Strange, but she liked it.
“…I like you, Bianca.”
And then he confessed again.
Vita's body stiffened.
These days, he would drop by unexpectedly almost every day, quietly hold her, gently stroke her hair, and occasionally, if the mood struck him, give her a light kiss—but confessing his feelings was always an unchanged part of the routine.
‘N-no, ngh…’
Vita's face reddened. She fidgeted with her fingers, then made herself push him away and pretended not to know what he meant.
“…W-what do you want me to do?”
Carlisle chuckled softly. He seemed fairly used to this sort of coy resistance by now.
“Eat it. The parfait.”
“I-I will.”
Of course she had to eat it!
But eating alone was a little boring, so Vita ended up saying:
“Th-then you could… eat it with me before you go…”
Her voice seemed to trail off more and more toward the end.
Unlike certain people, Carlisle Schultz was shameless and never refused.
“Sure. I'll stay for a little while.”
“Want to watch anime while we eat?”
“Whatever makes Her Highness comfortable.”
“Oh, come on… Don't say things like that-!”
Vita's face reddened as she thumped his chest with her fists, and Carlisle chuckled.
It wasn't even a strange thing to say, was it?
No, actually, it was.
And so, after bickering affectionately, they ate parfait together while watching anime and laughing.
In the end, well.
‘…’
Before long, their gazes met and their lips pressed together, and the only reason they managed to stop was Vita's strong will.
“…Because the school trip is tomorrow.”
“Mm, right…”
Carlisle Schultz did look quite disappointed. But there was a perfectly suitable excuse for not going any further, and Vita's mental state was somewhat muddled.
***
Beneath a clear, high sky, a landscape like a watercolor painting stretched out.
Before they knew it, red autumn leaves had begun falling onto the schoolyard.
“It's our last school trip.”
“I'm really looking forward to it.”
The students in their final semester chatted and laughed in small groups as they prepared to leave.
Today was the first day of the three-night, four-day school trip!
And it was their last school trip!
It was a day when no one could help but chatter noisily with anticipation and excitement.
A uniquely buoyant atmosphere came with the cool breeze.
‘It's definitely going to be fun.’
Excitement gradually filled Vita's heart as well.
“Should we sit in the very back? Or in the middle?”
The person chattering beside Vita right now was none other than her deskmate, Sasha.
A light-brown ponytail and ruby-like eyes. She was a female student whose distinctive vivacious energy was charming. But Vita was startled by the size of Sasha's bags.
“What, Sasha?! Why do you have so much luggage?”
She even had two bags!
“…Curious, Bianca?”
She wore a meaningful expression. Was she plotting something?
Sasha's giggling grin was a little unsettling, but Vita wasn't curious.
“No, I'm not curious.”
“Huh, what? Say you areee-”
Sasha started whining.
“It wouldn't be fun if I knew in advance.”
“Ooh, is that so?”
This was certainly part of the charm of a school trip. It wasn't hard to tell that Sasha Noah was the type to plot something outrageous.
Meanwhile, Vita briefly met the gaze of Emily Swan from the class right next door.
Emily smiled brightly, and the surroundings seemed to light up.
‘See you in a little while.’
Judging by the shape of her lips, that seemed to be what she was saying.
‘Ah, I'm healed.’
This was exactly what a school trip was about: a chance to get a little closer to the girl she liked!
“Everyone, get in line!”
“Class 1 on the far left! Class 2 right after them.”
At the teachers' calls, the students began moving slowly.
Even the process of moving was lively and noisy.
Class 3's turn was approaching.
“Get on slowly, everyone.”
Vita decided to sit with her deskmate, Sasha. Carlisle had asked to sit with her yesterday, but it felt burdensome, and she'd already promised Sasha in advance.
“I'm claiming the very back seat!”
“Great, perfect!”
The students scrambled onto the bus, jostling one another.
The athletics festival was over, and the midterms were over too.
Somehow, it definitely felt as though they could relax now.
Soon, once all the students had taken their seats, the bus filled with laughter and chatter.
Vita had just hopped into her seat with Sasha and begun chatting when—
“Did you bring lots of snacks?”
“Well, the usual…?”
“Look, it's chocolate.”
Clap-clap-
Suddenly, the sound of applause drew everyone's attention.
When they looked forward, their homeroom teacher stood at the very front with a smile.
“Everyone, check your seat belts, and I'll share the schedule while we're on the way. Don't get too rowdy, okay?”
“Yes, teacher.”
The students answered energetically.
Vroom- vroom-
And at last, the bus began to set off.
They left the beautiful campus painted in the colors of autumn leaves.
“I'm really looking forward to it.”
“Yeah, me too!”
Vita's final school trip of her senior year had begun!