The classroom which is noisy during break time, changes to a different type of commotion when the door opens.
The one who opens the door is this school’s number one ikemen, the subject of the girls’ adoration and the enemy of the dudes, the second-year Kagurazaka Aoi.
The unpleasant commotion that enters my ears are the shrill voices of the girls.
“… Sigh. It looks like Kii-chan and Kagurazaksenpai reconciled.”
“It sure was a short dream.”
“Shuddap.”
“To think you fell at the last fortress. But other fortresses opened up, didn’t they? Just take it as the goddess Toridsan having abandoned you, man.”
“I said shuddap!”
Who cares about other fortresses? I was fine with Kii-chan!
『I’m serious. I won’t let you have Kii.』
The words he whispered in my ear re-surfaced.
The moment I heard that, I honestly thought that I couldn’t win.
Even though we were rivals, I thought that he was『cool…』.
It was completely my loss.
At the end of my gaze lays a blue-eyed beauty whose golden hair is softly curled.
My heart hurts as I look at the adorable figure toddling off when Kagurazaksenpai beckons her.
Only her ambience is different.
Even when encircled, she gives off a radiance that won’t be buried.
The other girls may beat me up and say『I don’t want to be told that by you』if I tell them this but… her surroundings are filled with background characters.
Without a doubt, she’s the heroine.
Indeed, a heroine is someone attached to a hero.
“You’re a background character after all. A background character won’t ‘goal in’ with a heroine. Occurrences like『I, the background character, together with she, the heroine!?』is just the protagonist donning the mask of a background character. But you are merely a background character. A honest-to-goodness background character. That’s why the outcome is a given.”
“You are also a mere glasses background character right!”
The one who boorishly pulls my leg when I’m feeling sentimental is my long-time good friend.
This guy is the same type of human as me.
We are existences with transparent atmospheres, who aren’t perceived even when we enter people’s fields of vision.
“Oi oi, I ask that you don’t lump me, a glasses background character, together with you, a mere unlabelled background character.”
“Aren’t they the same.”
I don’t know what his speech and actions are acclaiming about, but each and everyone of them are so shameless that it’s provoking.
“What are you saying. You can express my entire identity just by adding the pillow word『glasses』. You don’t know who it’s referring to if you hear『background character』, but if you say『glasses background character』, in this class, you know it’s referring to me. This is the distinct difference.”
“‘Glasses’ isn’t a pillow word and besides, is the glasses your entire existence! Then, will your identity disappear if everyone in class wears glasses?”
“Hahha! There’s no way a class like that exists, right. If there is, it’s something I’d like to pay homage to!”
“… It’s really irritating to talk to you.”
I don’t want anymore unnecessary stress.
Looking away from my pitiful friend whose glasses is his everything, I collapse on the table.
“Itou-kun.”
Someone calls my name so I turn my head towards the side.
I can see a skirt from my collapsed view.
After directing only my gaze up, I find that it’s my classmate Kanagi-san, the girl who serves as our class representative.
Wearing a pair of silver-rimmed glasses, she exudes a seemingly intellectual aura.
That’s the case in actuality; she has the highest grades in class.
Appearance-wise, she wears glasses, and with her long black hair split into two and tied into braids, she gives an impression of being plain.
“Teacher passed this to me.”
Hastily lifting my upper body, I receive a printout as I give my thanks.
Looks like there’s an error in the printout I submitted; a sticky note is stuck at the part that requires correction.
As I fold the printout with the intention of correcting it later, a scene of the protagonist and heroine going somewhere together enters a corner of my vision.
“Sigh, Kii-chan…”
God-sama is cruel.
Just as you think you’re being shown a dream, it changes into despair in the blink of an eye.
To think it’s become the worst scenario where Kagurazaka Aoi, who had been so broadly acquainted with girls, narrows down to only Kii…
There’s no way a background character can beat a serious protagonist.
I stole a march, fully prepared to turn all the guys into my enemies. I got shunned as expected but I’m currently receiving lukewarm gazes as though they’re pitying me.
“As expected, Itou-kun, do you like cute girls like Toridsan?”
“Nn… She takes no notice of me though.”
It appears that the cry in my heart reached Kanagi-san.
Even if my true motive gushes out, I don’t feel embarrassed at all.
I can only laugh dryly.
“But, you two chatted often, right?”
“Only for a period of time.”
The day I saved her when she was running from Aoi.
On the spur, I tried to confess to her but having been disregarded, it wasn’t brought to a conclusion.
Although we went to the movies together, it was painfully obvious that she wasn’t really paying attention to me.
The only salvation is that she still calls me『Ei-kun』.
The other guys don’t even get called by their first names by her so they’re considerably jealous of me.
It’s my sole gratification.
Nonetheless… in the end, that’s it.
There ain’t no chance to be something like a『special existence』to her.
“A person like me doesn’t suit her. Besides, I don’t have any redeeming qualities.”
Depressing.
Dear God, please teach me a way to evolve from a background character into a protagonist.
It doesn’t have to be『everyone’s protagonist』, I won’t ask for such extravagance.
As long as I can become the protagonist to a single girl, that’s fine.
“That’s not true!”
Kanagi-san suddenly speaks in a loud voice, causing my good friend and I to be astonished.
I wonder what’s up.
When our eyes meet, she averts her gaze awkwardly.
“I think that Itou-kun also has a lot of good points. Even before, you did the cleaning in place of me who couldn’t turn it down.”
When I stare fixedly at her, she hesitatingly tells me the reason for her words just now.
『Before』?
Nothing comes to mind right away, so I dig through my memories.
Ahh…『cleaning』she says? There was something like that.
I think it was… the day Kanagi-san was on class cleaning duty.
At the moment I tidied up my desk and stood up to go home, I saw that there was some dissonance in front of the storage for cleaning tools.
As I didn’t have the intention to get involved in the dispute, I pricked up my ears in the stance of a curious onlooker as I passed by, and heard their conversation.
『Hey, please! We want to leave early today!』
『But, doing it alone is too…』
It was a conversation in front of the storage for cleaning tools so I was able to deduce immediately.
The other three girls on cleaning duty were pushing their job onto Kanagi-san and planning to go off enjoying themselves.
『Isn’t that going overboard?』
Even though I didn’t intend to get involved, I unconsciously stopped walking and spoke.
It’s something that will be completed quickly if four people do it, but it’s too much to leave it to one person when you go off and have fun.
『Hah?』
However, bathed in the cold gazes of the three girls, I regretted speaking out.
Surrounded by the three in an instant, they grumbled that I shouldn’t act cool… and I was defeated before long.
There was no way I could put up a fight in face of the intimidating mouths of the girls.
“All three left to enjoy themselves in the end though.”
“Your consistency in being disappointing, brilliant.”
“Shuddap.”
Your ability to irritate people is also unbeatable.
When I protest with my eyes, he actually returns a smile that further stirs up irritation.
Imma punch you anytime now y’know, your glasses are gonna break, y’know.
“But you helped out after that, didn’t you?”
“That’s… well.”
I wasn’t much help, so thinking to at least lend a hand, I did the cleaning with her.
That’s to say, it was the only thing I could do.
… I’m, such a disappointment.
“I was extremely happy. Itou-kun’s kind, and guys like that are… wonderful, I think.”
Leaving those words, Kanagi-san returns to her own seat.
I silently watch over that figure.
W-wonderful?
Looking at her side profile as she sits while facing downwards, the ear that can be seen from the gap between her tied hair is red.
The moment I notice that, I also notice that my own ears are hot.
“… Despite being an unlabelled background character, how impudent.”
“Sh-shuddapー”
I steal another glance at Kanagi-san’s side profile.
Her skin is fair and clear.
If those silver-rimmed glasses are taken off, contact lenses are worn and her hair unravelled, she seems like she’ll be extremely cute.
Huh, was Kanagi-san such a cute person…?
By the time I realise, I don’t feel anything now even though I was so depressed before.
I didn’t even notice that Kii-chan had returned to the classroom.
To have not noticed the heroine, have I became weird?
『Heroine』, huh.
I wonder what’s a Heroine.
An attractive and good-looking girl?
A girl who takes actions that can become anecdotes and lives an enlivening daily life?
I look at Kanagi-san again.
I can’t say for sure but… I feel like, I’ve comprehended and gotten hold of something.
“Sure enough, I’m a protagonist too. And you aren’t just a glasses background character.”
“What, to think that you were suddenly enlightened. Did you think you became a sage just because you were praised a little? Don’t get carried away. Sheesh, this is why background characters are…”
“Yes yes.”
Dear God, let me take back my wish『I want to be a protagonist』just now.
It appears that it’s unnecessary.
The daily life of a background-character-cum-protagonist me, is enlivening and amusing in my own way.