{The girl next to me and the cutsey band aid}

The edge of the loose leaf paper sliced through my fingertips like a knife.

Just as I thought about preparing for class after hearing the bell, this happened.

A bead of red blood welled up at the tip of my index finger.

I hurriedly reached into the pocket of my uniform.

My left hand was clumsier than frustrating, and extracting a tissue from the right pocket was awkward. In the end, I could only grab a handkerchief, so I reluctantly took it out.

As I pressed my fingertips with the handkerchief, a red stain quickly formed. Since there were also bloodstains on the loose leaf paper, it had to be thrown away.

Things haven’t been going well lately. Looking down at the stinging wound, I sighed.

“Yamaguchi-kun, are you okay?”

Suddenly, a voice came from my left side.

Turning reluctantly, I saw Satou-san from the next seat looking at me.

“Did you cut yourself?”

Even though we weren’t especially close, yet she asked with concern.

I nodded vaguely.

“It’s nothing much.”

More blood than I thought started to flow, and the handkerchief turned so red it was almost like a crime scene.

Then, Satou-san took something out of her skirt pocket.

“Use this.”

Accompanied by a modest smile, she offered me a bandage.

On the pale pink surface, an expressionless cat face was drawn.

It was one of those character-themed bandages that elementary and middle school girls used to collect while chanting how cute they were.

Of course, I hesitated.

“That’s a bit… too cute.’

“Yeah, it’s cute, isn’t it? But don’t worry about it and just use it. I have plenty.”

Satou-san said with an apparent misunderstanding.

That’s not what I meant, I muttered to myself.

What would people say if they saw me with this? I am already a high school student. At our age I never thought there would be someone who would carry these around willingly.

Lunch break was now over, and I didn’t have time to go to the infirmary to get a replacement bandage. I couldn’t afford to be picky.

I’m not good with Sato-san.

I ended up sitting next to her in a stroke of bad luck, and I really regretted it.

She’s not cute at all. Even among the girls in our class, she’s exceptionally plain, her skirt length always complies with school rules, and her hairstyle is always a simple ponytail.

Even if she were somewhat enjoyable to talk to, Satou-san is just plain boring. She’s not sharp, jokes don’t register with her, and our conversational rhythm never matches. We’ve had more chances to talk since we became neighbors, but most of the time, it just ends without connecting.

This didn’t bother me, I was fine bymyself, but Satou-san, who isn’t sharp, wants to be kind to everyone.

Even to me, who she’s not particularly close to, she does this kind of bothersome thing.

“I appreciate the sentiment, but…”

I stumbled over my words, looking at the bandage she offered.

In my mind, I was thinking of a polite way to decline. At times like this, I regretted being so agreeable. It would be nice if I could just honestly say that I don’t need it and push Satou-san away.

Satou-san looked at me with a puzzled expression.

“What’s wrong, Yamaguchi-kun?”

“Well, this bandage…”

As I began to say it gently, she opened her eyes wide.

“Oh, I see. Sorry, I’m not very perceptive.”

She seemed to realize.

In any case, I’m glad she noticed.

As I breathed a sigh of relief, Satou-san stood up and opened the cat-patterned bandage she had in her hand.

“Sorry about that.”

She apologized and approached me, suddenly grabbing my right hand.

“Huh?”

Surprised, the dirty handkerchief fell on the desk.

I can’t refuse now. I mean what’s the point of grabbing the hand of someone you’re not close to all of a sudden? Let alone if that someone was Sato-san. I wasn’t happy at all about being touched by her.

But because I was taken aback, I couldn’t voice those thoughts.

Satou-san’s fingers holding my hand were cold and soft. Perplexed by the sensation, as I looked away, she quickly wrapped the bandage around my fingertips.

Then she peered into my face.

“How’s that since you can’t use your dominant hand?”

She smiled and asked as if it were obvious.

Satou-san’s smile, seen up close, was still plain and not cute.

But because I saw it from so close, I suddenly wanted to avert my gaze.

Even though I hurriedly looked away, the image I had just seen continued to haunt me.

I wasn’t interested in Satou-san, but her smile, along with the cold touch of her fingers, inexplicably stuck in my memory.

Within a few seconds, the teacher arrived at the classroom.

Thanks to that, I couldn’t even thank Satou-san sincerely.

And throughout the fifth period, the expressionless cat stared at me from my fingertips.

It seemed to want to say something, continuing to cause a stinging pain. I felt like there was pain somewhere other than my fingertips, but I didn’t intend to find out. I’d rather think it was just my imagination.

I couldn’t bring myself to look at the seat next to me and quietly sighed.

I’m not good with Satou-san.