{A typical day with the girl next to me in class}

“――Then, translate from the next paragraph, Sato-san.”

The English teacher pointed to my desk mate Sato-san.

“Yes.”

Sato-san’s replied politely.

But when she stood up from her seat, she accidentally knocked over the chair, making a loud noise throughout the classroom.

Sato-san quickly picked up the chair, her face turning red as she lifted her textbook.

She had opened it to page thirty-two of the English textbook, but her voice reading the translation didn’t come through at all.

I watched her out of the corner of my eye as I twirled my pen.

Sato-san opened her mouth, but no sound came out, and she furrowed her brow in frustration.

“Sato-san? From the fifth line.”

The teacher was unforgiving in such situations, her voice sharpened as she urged her on.

“Yes…”

Sato-san replied weakly, seeming defeated.

The classroom gradually started buzzing. Classmates’ eyes focused on Sato-san, some looking puzzled, some laughing, and some slightly annoyed.

And Sato-san’s face was even redder than when she knocked over the chair.

It seemed Sato-san wasn’t good at studying.

Not just English, but she had previously confessed to being bad at all subjects, looking embarrassed.

It wasn’t like there was anything I could do about being told such a secret. But now I realized it was necessary information since I sat next to her.

During class quizzes, Sato-san would get stuck like this. She couldn’t answer smoothly in any subject. It was troublesome because it slowed down the class.

I didn’t mean to act all serious, but I had university entrance exams next year. It would be a problem if my classes were delayed by classmates who were falling behind.

So, I handed her a loose-leaf paper.

On one corner, I wrote down the translation from page thirty-two, starting from the fifth line. I placed it on Sato-san’s desk when the teacher turned back to the board.

She looked up, startled.

I gestured for her to answer quickly.

“‘Courtney felt a slight closeness to this young man. Lord Kestner’s mansion could be described as magnificent. Although the lord had a taste for gaudy things that sparkled indiscriminately, Courtney, who cleaned the rooms, had enough charm to elicit sighs of admiration.'”

Sato-san read out hesitantly but managed not to stumble.

The English teacher, who had already given up, seemed surprised when she suddenly started answering. She widened her eyes in surprise, then smiled satisfactorily.

“Well done, you may sit down. Now, the next paragraph…”

When the next classmate was called on, Sato-san sat down more quietly than when she stood up.

I felt relieved and returned my gaze to the textbook.

But then,

“Yamaguchi-kun, Yamaguchi-kun.”

I heard my name being called in a low voice from the next seat.

I turned to see Sato-san smiling shyly at me.

“Thanks for earlier.”

She said, clasping her hands together.

It’s not like I did it to be thanked. There was no reason for gratitude. It was just an action out of simple sympathy.

“It’s no big deal.”

I replied casually, avoiding her eyes.

But Sato-san was persistent in these situations.

“No, it really helped a lot.”

“No, it’s not…”

“I’ll thank you properly next time.”

“It’s fine.”

She really was persistent.

I didn’t want her to make a big deal out of it. It wasn’t like I was being kind, I just helped because it was annoying to have class interrupted. It’s a struggle to sit next to a classmate who performs poorly.

Instead of thanking me, I’d prefer if she just studied properly on a regular basis.

It would be much more helpful for me if she could answer in class when called upon, instead of causing delays in the class—

“――Alright, Yamaguchi-kun, you’re next.”

“Huh?”

Suddenly, the English teacher called my name.

I hastily stood up, but where’s the “next”?

I peered into the textbook. But I didn’t know how far the previous person had read.

I hadn’t been paying attention, busy dealing with persistent Sato-san.

The classroom buzzed again, everyone looking at me curiously.

It was my first time experiencing being flustered during a class quiz, and I realized that Sato-san must feel like this all the time. It was definitely unpleasant, and I felt like my face was turning red.

But it was all Sato-san’s fault.

“What’s wrong, Yamaguchi-kun? Weren’t you paying attention?”

The teacher’s stern gaze was directed at me.

Struggling for an answer, I inadvertently glanced at the seat to my left.

Sato-san was there, once again clasping her hands together.

“…Sorry. I wasn’t paying attention either.”

As she said that, Sato-san looked at me with a shy smile.

Sato-san sat next to me, and there was never anything good about it.