The Defectives (CotE x Male Reader)

'X'

Horikita's POV

Horikita: We're going to have a meeting, (Y/N)-kun. Can you please get Hirata-kun for me?

(Y/N): Sure.

Immediately after I said that, he went over to Hirata-kun's place. As for me, I went to Sudou-kun's place. I thought that ever since the school festival ended, he started to change into a more reliable person. I can see that, because he started to take the class more seriously. Not only his academics had improved gradually, but his manners and etiquette as well.  I'm glad that (Y/N)-kun convinced me not to give up on him. He really could become one of the important assets of Class D.

Horikita: 'As expected of (Y/N)-kun, he knew it all along right from the beginning.'

When I approached Sudou-kun, he was just finished packing his stuffs.

Horikita: Sudou-kun, are you free right now?

Sudou: Oh, Suzune. Are we going to have tutor lesson again this afternoon?

Horikita: No, I think we should put a hold on it. We're having a meeting afterwards, regarding the new special exam. I would like you to join us in the discussion as well.

He looked a bit puzzled when I asked him. Well, that was expected as well. I mean, this is the first time that I ever include him as one of my 'friends'.

Sudou: Uh... Sure. But I should answer the call of nature first.

Horikita: Okay.

With that, he gave me a nod and walked out from the classroom. Answer the call of nature? Since when he learn this kind of fancy words...

I then returned to my seat and (Y/N)-kun did the same too.

(Y/N): Hirata's on his way.

Horikita: Same with Sudou-kun.

(Y/N): Huh, I'm surprised you actually invited him.

Horikita: Well, I think it's time for him to step up and contribute to the class, particularly in academic aspects.

(Y/N): It certainly true that his grades had improved.

Horikita: So, what do you think?

(Y/N): I think maybe two or more months, he could even surpass—

Horikita: No, not that. I'm talking about the exam.

He then let out a long sigh.

(Y/N): It's just like Chabashira-sensei said. This exam will be difficult. The bar is high, and the partner system makes it worse.Add to that the fact that another class is going to write the test for us, and we can predict that the degree of difficulty will effectively double. It will be particularly challenging if we're up against a class that makes their questions more challenging than they need to be. Depending on how the question's worded, even something straightforward could appear unsolvable.

Horikita: That's true. This time, it's not just about studying. We have to be creative.

Simply tutoring the weaker students among us wouldn't be enough. Ideally, we would look to grasp the weaknesses of other classes, but it's doubtful that they would readily reveal those to us. Still, we'd overcome trials based on intelligence and teamwork before. We have to stay optimistic.

(Y/N): I feel as if Chabashira-sensei was hinting at something.

Horikita: Well, I'm aware of that. This school loves to hide hints in everything they tell us. The three key points Chabashira-sensei made were that the short test won't affect our grades, that the criteria for the combined scores hadn't been decided yet, and that they'd determine our partners after the short test.