Chapter 271: Chapter 270.

Chapter 270. The Planetarium, Operation Hook Up: Prelude to the Show. (4/6)

Between the time I spent writing my story, chatting with Wisteria and Izora, and disguising myself, forty-five minutes had elapsed since I arrived. I had about fifteen minutes to catch her before her class would arrive. 

Hence, I couldn’t wait around twiddling my thumbs at the entrances.

Also, if she locked herself up in the washroom, there was no chance for victory.

As such, the first thing I did was check the washrooms to see if they were all open. But before I did that, I placed my phone down on the ground and leaned it up against a wall to record the two exits. This way I’d at least know if she slipped out.

I checked the men’s toilet and then the handicapped one. After that, I verified the women’s one was open as well. I discreetly peeked inside to ensure nobody was inside.

After I confirmed the three were all open and nobody was inside them, I returned to my phone and checked the recording. She hadn’t exited. Meaning, she was definitely hidden among the coats. I put my phone back down on the ground to keep recording while I searched.

Five minutes had already passed by. There was no way to know whether her class would arrive early or later than I anticipated. There was traffic and the condition of the roads to factor into the equation. Though the roads were clear of thick snow, they were now brown, wet, and slushy as it had finally warmed up a bit outside.

What can I do to find this troublesome girl in the remaining time?

“Izora, I know you’re in here. Come out quick. Your class is here, you’ve won.” A lie. Would she fall for the bait?

“...” My lie was met with utter silence.

Damn. She wouldn’t be deceived as easily after I’d already tricked her so many times.

I walked down the lines of open rectangular box-shaped apparatuses which contained everyone’s coats and searched them one by one while I talked out loud.

“Izora, I love you. I want to kiss you right now.”

If I said embarrassing lines like that, would she slip up and reveal her location?

“Izora, please marry me.”

“Izora, I want you to have my child.”

God, these lines were embarrassing as hell, but they seemed completely ineffective. If I was in her position I would have retorted immediately. It was obvious she knew exactly what I was up to. Say outrageous shit to get her to react.

“Man, it sure smells around here. Did you fart or something, Izora?”

“Did you eat some rotten burritos or eggs for breakfast? Maybe some expired milk?”

Still nothing. I was genuinely surprised that a trump card line like this one had failed. Her resolve to remain hidden either had no cracks to exploit, or I’d made the wrong assumption that she was hidden in here. What if I’d miscalculated and she’d really gotten lucky with the elevator after all? She could be smugly waiting for me outside right now.

Maybe I’d fallen for a trap. She took the gamble to go down to the elevator.

No, wait, what if she’d snuck into the coatroom and immediately went to the other entrance. As soon as she heard me enter the coatroom she might have slipped out at that instant.

But what if her plan was to make me think that was what she’d done and she instead took the gamble on the coats? That would be foolish though. However, she might adopt such a plan knowing I’d see the best solution as being that and she’d choose the one that was less likely to succeed instead.

If she won like that, she’d be able to smugly laugh at me.

Shit, which one was it?

In here, or she’d slipped out the instant I opened the door? If I was her and facing me, I’d realize locking myself in here would be a death trap. I’d also assume I’d have done what I did with my phone to keep an eye on the entrance. Hence, I would have definitely slipped out right away. The longer you waited, the worse your odds became. However, because I knew that and believed in my pursuer’s analytic ability to see through that, I’d use reverse psychology and stay taking advantage of their analytic ability. 

But the problem then became how many steps into it would my pursuer read? Would they read a step further?

What’s with these mind games? This was supposed to be a normal game of hide-and-seek damn it!

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Am I overthinking it?

Would she really play 4D chess with me in a simple game of hide-and-seek?

There’s no way.

I wasted another five minutes searching through the coats while rethinking things. I’d barely gotten anywhere. I had to check inside each one carefully to ensure I didn’t miss her. She could be silently moving around as well, so I had to simultaneously keep a lookout on my surroundings.

This was frustrating. In this little game of ‘catch me if you can,’ of all the people I knew, I’d actually been toyed with by a stupid goth girl.

If I lost, I’d be sure to pay her back. I was a petty man after all.

“Izora, I surrender. You win. Come on out.” I spat out more bullshit lies.

“...”

Damn it! Come on!

Was she really not in here?

Maybe her plan had been for me to waste time searching through all the coats and wait for me near the second entrance. When I got close enough, she might make a run for it.

With such a thought in mind, I picked up my phone from the ground by the first entrance and skimmed through the video to see if she’d escaped while I headed over to the second entrance of the room. There was no sign that she’d escaped.

I searched the coat storage boxes on the left and right side nearest the second entrance but she hadn’t been on either side.

What the hell? If it wasn’t that, had she considered this and hidden near the center of the room so she’d have more than one path to escape once I got close enough?

It was at that moment I ran out of time. The rowdy chatter from the main hall signaled my defeat. 

I peeked around the corner and saw students piling into the coatroom to hang their winter clothes up. I saw Alicia enter the room in the first wave that’s entered.

The student council president was among the last set of students who entered.

He headed toward the center of the room. When I saw the target, my focus turned away from the little game of hide-and-seek and I switched gears. I put my hood up, rounded the corner, and headed back to the first entrance. My goal was to make contact with Alicia who was nearer to the first entrance.

When I passed by the row the student council president had turned into, I glanced to my side. What I saw puzzled me a bit, he had a surprised look on his face as he stared inside the yellow rectangular box.

I moved a bit to the right to take a look inside and grinned when I found Izora with her index finger held up in front of her lips to shush the student council president. It seems fate was on her side. A fateful chance encounter between the goth girl and the student council president. It was the perfect opportunity to turn myself into the small-time villain who’d have the woman snatched away from him in the end.

That was the sort of scenario I’d envisioned and this was a perfect opportunity.

But what the heck? Did Izora forget that the game of hide-and-seek was over once her class arrived? Was she having so much fun messing with me that she forgot the original purpose of today’s event?

Is she just a simple-minded idiot? You’re telling me I lost to this idiot? Did she actually have no plan and just coincidentally choose here to hide?

Didn't that make me the idiot?

Right now Izora was so distracted by the student council president who’d uncovered her hiding spot that she didn’t notice me through the open left side of the box. She was in the far back left corner facing the student council president directly in front of her who had his back to me. When I passed by it the first time, I hadn’t seen her at all, but since I came from this angle I finally noticed her.

While the two were distracted by each other, I took the opportunity to step inside the box and I positioned myself between them.

“I - found - ya~”

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