243 Happiness has to be fought for

The sudden shout stunned everyone.

Unlike the others, who had subconsciously ignored this young man due to his low presence and how he never talked, so no one paid attention to him. 

Even Mizuto was the same since he didn't care much about this young man. After all, this person had the same gender as him, so why should he pay attention to them? Moreover, when he came to visit the student council in the past, he knew that this person seemed to be trying to tell him. 

Yet, who was Mizuto?

Even if Mizuto left, the others would follow him. 

Moreover, being planned, tricked, or other that made him annoyed, Mizuto wouldn't let him go, but then, even if he didn't do anything, he knew that this young man had messed up. 

The sudden shout from this young man naturally confused everyone and made them a bit annoyed. 

Why the hell should you shout like that?

While we might say that everyone was equal and that we were all the same human, we often thought that we were better than others due to a certain ability they had or due to how low the others' positions were. 

When we saw someone who was lower than us, the natural reaction was to feel sorry. It was like how we would feel sorry and give some money to an old beggar who walked weakly as if unable to live without our help. 

Nevertheless, what if that beggar suddenly shouted and attacked you?

Naturally, you would feel angry, right?

While Mizuto knew that it was rude to compare this young man to a beggar, it was natural for everyone to feel annoyed at someone who suddenly made such a loud noise and interrupted their fun like that. 

Still, there was no doubt that Joji's shout made everyone feel confused. 

"Joe, what's wrong?" Suzurin looked at Joji Haba, the man she had fallen with. 

Yet, Joji, who realized what he was doing, panicked, especially when he saw the confusion on Suzurin's face. He knew that what he did was irrational, and he knew that he had messed up, yet how could she maintain his emotion when he saw the girl who had tried to chase after her for so long to fluster, blush, and appear shy toward a different man?

Yes, Joji knew about Suzurin's feelings toward him, and he also knew that he had hung her feelings, letting them stay ambiguous; he appeared as if he would reject her, yet he clung to her tightly. 

Yup, he knew that he was wrong, but how could he not be?

Joji knew his situation well, and he felt unfit to stand beside Suzurin. In his case, he should be standing in the shadows and just living like any other. Suzurin wasn't someone that should be for him, yet when he saw her so close to others, he just couldn't bear it. 

"I... I am sorry. I need to go to the toilet." 

Joji knew that he had messed up and he decided to leave directly. 

"Joe!" 

Suzurin looked at Joji with confusion and clearly didn't understand why he would react this way. Still, while she wanted to chase after him, she knew how rude his action was and quickly apologized to Mizuto and the others. "I am sorry for his rude actions. I am sure that he has his own reason." 

"It's okay, but then again, if you have a boyfriend, you shouldn't act like that," Mizuto said, thinking that Suzurin's case was similar to the pink-haired girl whom he had saved before. While that pink-haired girl told him that she didn't have a boyfriend, there was a guy who kept following her and even tried to interrupt his conversation with her every time. 

While Mizuto wasn't sure whether Joji was Suzurin's boyfriend or not, his question was used to ask about their relationship. 

"No." Suzurin felt conflicted and said, "We're not in a relationship..." 

"Sorry, Suzurin..." Aisa realized that she had messed up once again. 

Mizuto looked at Aisa and thought that this girl wasn't the type that one should have as a friend as she had caused so much trouble for Suzurin. 

"It's not your fault, Aisa." Suzurin shook her head and hadn't erased the confusion on her head. "But I wonder why Joe reacted that way..." 

It was because Joji was jealous. 

Yet, Mizuto didn't bother to explain this since he didn't know Joji that much. Moreover, this was the problem of others. Still, he looked at the others, and they didn't seem to realize what the problem was except for Akatsuki. 

Still, when Suzurin said those words, she looked at Mizuto. 

"What's wrong?" 

"Do you know the reason Irido-kun?" 

"I am not him, and I don't have a mind-reading power; how could I know? If you want to know, you should ask him." 

"You are right. I need to talk with him." Suzurin nodded and thought that she needed to talk with Joji. "Once again, I am sorry for causing trouble. We will leave first." 

"No problem." Mizuto nodded without offering to visit the clubroom once again. 

Still, as Suzurin left, Aisa and Ran also followed her to leave, but suddenly, she stopped and said, "Oh, right, my name is Suzuri Kurenai. You are free to call me Suzurin." 

"Okay, Kurenai-senpai." 

Suzurin chuckled when Mizuto quickly changed how he called her. "You are a shy boy, aren't you~?"

Still, Mizuto only smiled and didn't say anything. 

Yet, this smile made Suzurin look away since it felt like... her entire body was in goosebumps, feeling something that she shouldn't feel toward someone other than Joji, which made her run away as if afraid that she might do something that she shouldn't do. 

"Huh? Suzurin? Why did you run away so suddenly?" Aisa quickly followed Suzuri but took a last-time peek at Mizuto before she left reluctantly. 

"Senpai, wait!" Ran shouted but looked at Mizuto, bowing her head deeply, before blushing as she saw him waving his hand gently at her, causing her to wave her hand, too, in a cute manner. 

Still, when they had left, Mizuto heard a soft and light body that pressed against his back. 

"...." 

Mizuto turned and looked at Akatsuki, speechless since sometimes he wondered whether this girl would stab at him so suddenly. 

"...if you don't plan to do anything with them, don't tease them, okay? They will misunderstand you." 

Unlike Nami and Reina, who weren't good at matters of emotions, Akatsuki was sharp and told Mizuto calmly. 

"I have never teased them. Try to remember whether I do something special to them or not?"

"...." 

Akatsuki knew that Mizuto was right. This guy didn't do anything. It was the girls who made an assumption that he had a feeling toward them, thinking that their existence was special in his eyes. 

At that moment, Mizuto was like a good girl who made those guys think that she had fallen for them. He was like that, but his charm worked for the opposite genders, making those women think that he had feelings for them, yet the truth was that talking to those women wasn't much different from talking to anybody. 

"Still, you must have realized what had happened to that guy, right? Why didn't you say anything?" Mizuto looked at Akatsuki curiously, wondering why this girl didn't stop his chance to get his hand on Suzurin. Frankly, if Akatsuki had said that Joji was jealous and had told Suzurin that Joji had a feeling toward her, then something might have been born between them.

However, Akatsuki didn't say anything and remained silent until they left.

Akatsuki only smiled and said, "Isn't it more interesting this way?" 

"....." 

This girl was a little devil, Mizuto thought. 

"Moreover, the world isn't kind. Do you think that he can get her if he is always like that? He has to change if he wants her." 

Like her, who worked hard to get Mizuto, if Joji didn't work hard and just let everything go in flow, then sooner or later, Suzurin would disappear from Joji's life. Even if they were together in the future, if they still stayed the same as they are now, they would face many problems that led them into a painful relationship.

Love was beautiful, but at the same time, it was also painful. 

"Akatsuki..." 

"But I have, you know~!" 

Looking at this girl, who hugged him tightly like a baby koala, Mizuto only smiled and hugged her on his arm. 

"Hey, just what's happened before? Why did that guy shout so suddenly?" Reina asked in doubt. 

Nami was the same and felt confused. 

Facing this question before Mizuto said something, Akatsuki said, "It's okay. Just don't let your male acquaintance bring his lovers or wives near him, or they will have an NTR experience due to Mizuto." 

"...." Nami and Reina. 

Mizuto's lips twitched as he looked at Akatsuki, who looked at him with a mischievous smile, so he slapped that soft, small butt of hers. 

---

Just to ask, what is currently the most popular harem or romance story?

I mean, in the modern world setting like Yahari Ore no Seishun, Kaguya, or Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou.