Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume32 Chapter4 3

Graduation Group Photograph. Part 3.

The courtyard was the agreed upon location.

Other club members weren't permitted to be present. So she had kept the time and location secret from everyone else, especially Shouko-chan, who the seniors had dubbed 'Takeshima Tsutako's henchman.' If she had been told about it, she definitely would have shown up.

The third years had already arrived.

Seven people in total.

Oooh, there was someone she hadn't seen for about six months.

"Right on time."

One of them remarked, grinning, upon recognizing Tsutako's figure.

"Hah. Arriving late would have been out of the question, but if you wanted me to come earlier you should have said so."

"So it would seem."

"…"

Tsutako wasn't interested in being rebuked about things unrelated to the photograph. So she had been constantly looking at her watch on the way over. She had been adjusting the pace at which she walked so that she would arrive at exactly the arranged upon time of two o'clock. That was how it was. Cleared up with a single phrase, 'So it would seem.'

But at least they weren't accusing her of having forgotten the time. If she had deviated even a tiny bit, they probably would have said things like 'Why didn't you come at the time we arranged?' What a pain.

"Okay, let's stop messing around."

That phrase must have been a signal, because all the third years quickly moved into position for their group photo. The three in the front row were crouching down, while the four in the back row were standing in the gaps between them.

It looked like they had rehearsed this. This is going to be tough, Tsutako thought.

"How do you want me to take the photograph?"

At any rate, Tsutako had no choice but to find out what they wanted done.

"It's simple."

The senior in the back row, on the far right from Tsutako's point of view answered.

"Stand over there and hold up your camera, then when we all say so click the shutter once."

She was the former head of the photography club.

"I stand here, hold up my camera and then when you all say so I click the shutter once."

Tsutako repeated what she had heard in order to confirm it.

"Right."

Right, she said.

Well, part of that was simple.

Of course Tsutako would have no problem with standing there with her camera ready, or clicking the shutter. The problem was with the 'when we all say' and 'once' parts of it.

Because they had intentionally added the 'once' in there, it meant she would be limited to only taking one picture. So in that case, she couldn't make a mistake. She had already taken a pile of photos where she only had one chance to make the shot. But how would she go when she had to take instructions on when to shoot.

Physically, it was so simple even an elementary school student could do it. But would she have the self-confidence to take a decent shot when ordered to.

"Once, right?"

She asked again, just to make sure, to which all seven of them loudly agreed.

"Right. We're busy, you know."

Liar.

The other day in the clubroom, weren't you saying that everyone had time to kill because they had already settled upon what they were going to do after graduation? And today, you probably got here half an hour before I did just to practice precisely what you were going to do.

But Tsutako swallowed all the words she wanted to let out. Nothing good would come of saying them.

"There's no way you'll fail. You're the photography club's ace."

The girl in the middle of the front row giggled. She certainly didn't feel like an ace.

"I'm looking forward to it. We're counting on you."

It would be better with a tripod and a timer or remote shutter control.

(Ahh, is that it?)

Was that it? Were they saying that this prestigious job was just something that could be done by a gadget?

"Why are you dawdling, Tsutako-chan. We're going to start the countdown whether you're ready or not."

Having been told this, Tsutako reluctantly brought the camera to her face. No matter how unappealing the circumstances, the photography club's group graduation photograph absolutely had to be taken. It was tradition.

After the seven of them had finished straightening their collars or skirt hems, they smiled for the camera lens. They didn't seem to be striking any particular pose, but they all had their hands held down. Well, it's better than flashing the peace sign.

"Well then, take it on the count of zero."

The countdown started five seconds out.

"Four… Three..."

Well, here it comes. Tsutako took a deep breath.

– But.

On the count of two, all of the seniors made a slight movement.

"Huh."

Tsutako flinched, but until her mission of pressing the shutter on the count of zero was completed, she wasn't going to let go of her camera.

"One..."

Just then, the seven club members that were lined up to be in her picture each took out a camera and pointed them at her.

"Zero."

Tsutako pressed the shutter.

At that moment, the sound that echoed around her was:

Click, click, click, click, click, click, click, click. – Eight in total.

"… You got me."

Lowering the camera, Tsutako got down on her knees.

"Please just tell me why it happened like this."

If they wanted a group photograph with them holding their cameras, it was an elaborate way to go about it. Keeping it a secret from the photographer by hiding the cameras behind their backs or in their pockets.

"If we told you about it beforehand, the photo wouldn't have the same sense of tension in it."

Breaking ranks, the former head of the club approached her.

"Well, that's true."

Clearly, if it was tension they wanted then Tsutako had plenty of that, so she didn't have a comeback.

"Do you think you took a good photo?"

"… Yeah."

Even without getting it developed, Tsutako had a sense of whether or not a photo was a good one. This year's installment of the photography club's graduation photo was a good one. It could hold its own when compared to last year's.

"Then you'll display the line of eight of them at the school festival, right?"

"Eight?"

Tsutako shook her head. As per their orders, Tsutako had only pressed the shutter button a single time.

"– huh. Oh."

Indeed, the shutter had only been pressed once. But all up, there were eight cameras. And the sound of eight shutters clicking.

"You can't mean..."

Starting with the former head of the photography club, they all broke out into huge grins.

"Ehhh."

This was the worst. They knew Tsutako hated having her picture taken, but they were still planning on exposing her to public ridicule.

"If you could display a photo taken by Shouko-chan, there's no way you wouldn't show one taken by us, right?"

"Right –?"

The seniors laughed as they talked back and forth. In the end, they were all now part of the graduation group photograph commemorative association. As for their solitary second year partner, they had left her with something quite elaborate.

"A collaboration between the graduating students and Takeshima Tsutako. What do you think?"

The former head of the photography club slapped Tsutako on the shoulder as she was hanging her head in shame.

"What do I think, you ask?"

If she said she hated it, it was obvious it would make her seniors even happier. On the other hand, she didn't feel like lying and saying something like 'I'm so happy.'

At any rate, there was only one way she could sum up her current feelings:

"I'm speechless."

– That's all.