I Don’t Want to be a Villainess

Lunchtime.

As usual, the three of us gathered in the same spot, but the atmosphere in the cafeteria was a bit different from usual.

If we only consider the fact that we are being ignored, we might say that the reactions of the other kids are not that different.

Yeah. Just the fact that we’re being ‘ignored’.

However, everything else has changed.

When we had come to the cafeteria before, the other kids acted like we weren’t there, but they didn’t completely avoid us either.

Of course. Why would they need to avoid a place that had ‘no one’?

So, it was never the case that the seat next to us was empty. The other kids simply chose to sit in the nearby empty seats without looking our way. They figured as long as they ignored us, everything was fine—just like in the classroom.

But not now.

The kids were making an effort to avert their gazes, but their attempts to ‘ignore’ us were painfully obvious.

Right next to our table, there were absolutely no kids. One seat was empty, and the other seats were packed with students.

It seemed they thought sitting next to us would get them caught up in the chaos caused by my insane antics during the morning classes.

“Hey, Sara.”

Even Lee Soo-ah was staring at the two of us with a look of utter bewilderment.

“……”

And it wasn’t just Soo-ah who was flustered.

I was too.

“Uh, ah~”

Ha Neul, who was glued to my side, was thrusting food at my mouth with her chopsticks.

She wasn’t just sitting next to me; she was literally stuck to my left arm. She was even using her left hand to handle her chopsticks. Did the original Yoo Ha Neul have ambidexterity?

By the way, her right arm was casually wrapped around my left one, so even if I wanted to escape, I couldn’t. In terms of strength, she was far superior.

……Wait, wasn’t she flustered earlier when I showed her the article? Didn’t she get super embarrassed when I misjudged the distance and tried to correct her, only to realize what was up and turn beet red?

“Earlier, you said you didn’t think it would be too bad to go on like this.”

As I hesitated with my food in front of me, Ha Neul suddenly leaned her face into my ear and whispered. The breath from her mouth tickled my earlobe.

“……”

Ah, this.

Is she trying to provoke a fight?

When I told her to sit on my lap during the first period, she blushed brightly but quickly overcame her embarrassment to tease me, and even after class, she confidently explained the concept of personal space to me.

Could it be that she has a personality that goes wild if you touch her pride?

……Considering the original, maybe. She was the type who persistently pursued characters that got on her nerves, like a stubborn and straightforward gamer.

Yoon Da-ho’s route was similar.

What happened again? In the end, Yoon Da-ho let go of his position and was able to live the life he wanted…? That was the ending, I think.

……Wait a minute.

……Am I being courted right now?

Is Yoo Ha Neul currently walking the Ye Sara route?

I seriously thought of that for a brief moment.

It seemed that Ha Neul had no intention of pulling her hands away until I accepted food from her.

In the end, I gave up and just ate with my mouth, when suddenly, I caught the sight of Lee Soo-ah across from us.

She was staring at us with her eyes wide open.

It was understandable. Last week, we hadn’t sat this close during meals. In fact, even excluding meal times, we had never actually sat so closely together.

“……Could you move over for a bit?”

If this continued, I was worried that Soo-ah would misunderstand like the other kids, so I pointed with my free right hand to the empty seat on my right.

Soo-ah looked between me, Ha Neul glued to my side, and the empty seat I pointed to before nodding and pulling her chair over. She also brought her plate next to mine.

……I mean, I asked her to move, but I didn’t mean to sit this close.

Soo-ah, while not as close as Ha Neul, sat down in a spot where our arms would touch if we moved even a little. Well, since I was planning to speak in a small voice, it wasn’t a bad thing to be near.

I slightly turned my head towards Soo-ah and whispered.

“Did you see the article that was posted online today?”

“Yeah. I saw it.”

Good, then it would be easy to talk. Great.

“……That photo was taken last Saturday. It seems like the person who took the photo or the newspaper wanted to write an article about it…”

As I emphasized ‘that,’ Soo-ah nodded with a serious expression. Luckily, it seemed she understood right away that it involved dating rumors and all that.

“But that’s not true, okay? We just hung out as friends.”

“……Just friends?”

Soo-ah asked back, as if confirming.

When I nodded, she glanced towards the Ha Neul who was sitting right next to me once again, as if seeking confirmation.

“……”

For a moment, Ha Neul, who had been dodging Soo-ah’s gaze, eventually nodded as if acknowledging it.

“I see.”

Soo-ah seemed to accept that.

“However, I think I’d like to use that article as it is. I’ve been considering how to change the situation around me, so I thought I’d try to utilize the current situation a bit. We were pretty close during the first period… well, a lot.”

I couldn’t bring myself to say that Ha Neul had been practically sitting on top of me while adjusting her position in various ways. Even if I started it, it was still far too embarrassing.

“Ah, so…”

Soo-ah seemed to recall my unexpected appearance in her class and nodded.

“I heard. It wasn’t directly to me, but someone from Class 1 told their friend in our class during the last break. They said you two were… doing things during class.”

Uh, if you say it like that, it sounds like we did something for real.

I mean, we did do something!

If you want to interpret it, it could be seen as sexual gestures!

Honestly, I did act in a way that would lead to that interpretation!

“That’s why the kids were glancing at me like that.”

Soo-ah mumbled to herself, seeming to come to terms with it.

“But if people really misunderstand….”

“That’s exactly what we’re aiming for, isn’t it? If someone talks to us later… well, we’re hoping someone will talk to us, so when that time comes, we should sneakily tease them for falling for it. Who knows who that might be.”

“I see….”

Soo-ah nodded as if thinking about it.

By the way, Ha Neul, who had just been feeding me a moment ago, was now seemingly deep in thought, with her head lowered. While she hadn’t moved away, it seemed hearing that the actions we did during the first period had already spread throughout the school made her feel a rush of embarrassment.

I think I’m starting to understand her pattern. When she gets flustered, she tackles the issue head-on, only to feel embarrassed afterward.

What can I say, she really does fit the protagonist role. After delivering a cringeworthy line, she gets bashful whenever someone brings it up.

“Well, then I’ll cooperate with that plan.”

After a brief moment of collecting her thoughts, Soo-ah said that.

“Well, if you’re going to help—”

Before I even finished, something soft touched my right arm.

“…….”

Looking down, it was, uh, Soo-ah’s… chest.

When wearing a school uniform, the pocket on her chest gets taut, making it seem hard to put anything in, and her chest, which slightly lifted her name tag, was now pressed against my right arm.

And naturally, Soo-ah’s left arm was wrapped around my right one.

“Anyway, if it becomes an issue that no one can ignore…”

“Uh, I mean, heh, that’s true…”

Once I realized what was fully happening, my mind briefly went blank and I couldn’t articulate my thoughts.

“Then… if, just maybe.”

Soo-ah leaned her face slightly closer to mine.

“If there are two people involved, wouldn’t more people be unable to help but look…?”

Huh?

*

When I first saw the article, I was a bit shocked.

The article featured a photo of the two people that had been floating around all week on the portal site’s main page.

At school, we always walked around together, and even going home, we made it a point to stick together. Of course, there was one more person added after school, but I thought that was a good change. I didn’t think Sohee was a bad person.

I thought maybe we could keep this up together until graduation. In fact, I had that experience before. When I was a middle schooler, I was able to stick around with friends I had from the first year until graduation.

Right now, I barely spoke to anyone.

To Soo-ah, it seemed like Sara was gathering courage. Rather than simply ignoring those who were dismissing her, she was engaging with them, trying to change their attitudes.

She confidently spoke to strangers and acted proudly without shrinking back. She didn’t push away people who approached her. She simply stated what she felt was right and denied what she believed to be wrong.

Even though people around her were still ignoring Sara.

Soo-ah thought that was dazzling.

So, she tried to act like that too.

She didn’t hide what she was doing. She tried to engage with others about Sara and maintain existing friendships.

But every time she brought up Sara, every time she revealed that she was hanging out with her, her relationship with her friends quickly deteriorated.

So, to cut to the chase, it ended poorly.

Perhaps that’s why she clung to Sara even more. Other kids had pulled away when relationships became strained, but she believed Sara wouldn’t do the same.

However, this morning, the photo she saw had Sara and Yoo Ha Neul glued to each other.

Naturally, the photo didn’t include Soo-ah. After all, she hadn’t met with Sara separately.

Seeing the photo, Soo-ah sat there with a blank expression all morning.

Could it be that the relationship between the two had developed into something more than friends…? That thought crossed her mind. Of course, it wasn’t a romantic thought. The two had barely met.

Going straight from friends to lovers without any middle stage was impossible.

When she saw Sarah, walking confidently into the classroom or when Sara smiled at her, the thought of them having turned into a couple and leaving her behind crossed her mind.

Though immediately after, she almost burst out laughing at Sara’s subsequent actions.

“That’s exactly how we’re acting so people misunderstand. If someone talks to us… well, we hope someone does, so when that time comes we can tease them for falling for it. Who knows who it might be.”

“…….”

During lunchtime, after hearing that from Sara, Soo-ah stared intently at Yoo Ha Neul, who was diligently avoiding her gaze.

……So that’s how it is. That’s what happened.

The one who reached out first over the weekend was probably Yoo Ha Neul. And it was likely Yoo Ha Neul who somehow got Sara out and about.

And maybe Sara had a little bit of those ‘feelings’… which is why they were so close.

And then that photo was taken.

I see.

So that’s how it went.

Part of me felt relieved. At least for the time being, there was no reason for Soo-ah to be left behind. She wouldn’t be ostracized like when she was younger.

But…….

That doesn’t mean jealousy wasn’t creeping in.

Because it was Soo-ah who first took a picture with Sara.

And it was Soo-ah who was the first to speak to Sara among her friends.

And it was also possible that if this ‘plan’ of theirs turned into something ‘not a plan,’ there could be trouble.

“So, then… if, just maybe…”

After layering thoughts upon thoughts, I impulsively said such words.

“If there are two people involved, wouldn’t more people be unable to help but look…?”

As I said that, I snuggled up against Sara’s right arm.

It was embarrassing. Extremely embarrassing. Honestly, you don’t usually get this close, even among friends.

But Ha Neul was sitting this close right next to Sara.

“Uh, ah, t-that’s good, but…”

Sara blushed deeply and said, flustered.

“If you’re holding me like this on both sides, I can’t eat.”

But that wasn’t something to be concerned about.

Soo-ah picked up her chopsticks and grabbed a piece of cut meat.

Sara’s eyes widened as she realized what that gesture implied.

Indeed, this was incredibly embarrassing. To be honest, if I looked at my own face right now, it must have been completely red.

But that doesn’t mean I wanted to fall out of Sara’s interest.

……Up until now, I had acted a bit timid around Sara, but originally, Soo-ah was the kind of person who would jump around lively, chatting with many friends.

Even now, most would pretend not to know her, but she used to be the type to endure embarrassment and speak to strangers first.

If she put her mind to it, she could endure a little embarrassment.

At least, she could do it as much as Yoo Ha Neul did.

---