Childhood Friend Heroine V1 Chapter 5
Chapter 5: The Confession
Two weeks had passed since the start of the school year.
As Lily opened her shoe locker, just as she always did, she found a plain white envelope tucked inside.
Finally, it’s happened.
Her cheerful mood instantly evaporated, and a sense of gloom washed over her. The moment she saw it, her spirits plummeted. Still, she clung to a sliver of hope that it might be something else entirely. With a sigh, she pulled out the letter and read its contents.
“I have something important to discuss. Please come to the rooftop after school. From Makabe Kento.”
Taken at face value, it could have been an old-fashioned letter of challenge. But realistically, it was almost certainly a confession.
Ugh, this is the last thing I wanted.
An image of the inevitable confrontation flashed through her mind, and an involuntary sigh escaped her lips.
“Lily, still haven’t changed your shoes? You’re going to be late if you keep dawdling—wait, what’s that you’re holding!?”
Saito, who had started walking toward the classroom, called back when he realized his childhood friend wasn’t beside him. His eyes, however, were fixed on the letter in Lily’s hand. A spark of curiosity lit up his face as he hurried back to her side.
“Hey, hey, what does it say!?”
“It says he has something important to talk about, so I should meet him on the rooftop after school.”
“Ooh, how old-fashioned, especially with social media everywhere now. Most people just use Leme for this stuff. I’ve never actually seen one of these in person.”
“Well, he probably doesn’t have my contact info,” Lily reasoned. “I only give my Leme details to a handful of people, and I’m not in any group chats.”
Saito, who had been peering at the letter with great interest, nodded in understanding. “Ah, that makes sense.”
“So, what are you going to do?” he asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
“I’m going to turn him down, I don’t even remember ever talking to this person.”
Dating someone she knew nothing about was far too frightening. It didn’t matter how handsome he was; it was out of the question.
“Really? I figured if he’s confessing, you two must have some kind of connection.”
“Nope. I don’t know anyone named Makabe.”
“What was he thinking, then, deciding to confess out of the blue? …Oh, maybe it’s one of those ‘let’s start as friends’ deals?”
“I’ll pass on a friendship with ulterior motives,” she said with a grimace.
Saito seemed to share her sentiment, looking just as puzzled. He tried to guess the boy’s intentions, but his suggestion was something Lily wanted no part of. The thought of constantly being on guard, wondering if every conversation or outing was a veiled romantic advance, was exhausting. When she was with friends, she just wanted to relax.
“Well, that’s the plan, so we’ll be heading home separately today.”
“Got it. I’ll find someone else to hang out with. Kai seems free, so that should work. Good luck.”
“Yeah.”
Despite this unusual disruption to their daily routine, the atmosphere between them remained calm and reassuring. For Lily, that was a tremendous comfort, and she could feel the anxiety in her heart begin to settle. When she offered him a small smile, Saito smiled back as if her expression was contagious.
Time flew by, and before she knew it, the final bell had rung.
“See you later, Lily.”
“See you, Saito.”
“…Hey! Kai! Let’s hit the arcade like we talked about at lunch.”
“Okay.”
Saito, who had packed his bag before Lily, exchanged a quick farewell before dashing off toward his friend. He seemed even more excited than usual, clearly looking forward to an afternoon with his buddies. Feeling a slight pang of disappointment, Lily began packing her own textbooks, making a mental note to ask Saito to go somewhere with her soon.
“Huh? It’s weird seeing you not going home with Saito-cchi, Lily-cchi.”
Ever since school started, Lily and Saito had walked to and from school together every day. Witnessing this rare sight, Shuri’s curiosity was piqued.
“I have something to take care of today, so we decided to go home separately.”
“Heh~. Well, in that case, why don’t we go home together after you’re done, Lily-cchi?”
“Ah, I’m not sure how long it’ll take, so I might keep you waiting forever. Sorry, but maybe not today. How about tomorrow? I’m free then, so we can definitely go home together.”
The offer was tempting, and Lily almost agreed, but she held back. The letter had only specified “after school,” not an exact time. She had no idea if the sender would be there right away or an hour later, and she couldn’t ask her friend to wait around indefinitely. Since she had no plans for the next day, she pressed her hands together in a small apology and asked to postpone.
“Really! Okay, okay. In that case, I’ll graciously let you off the hook for today. But you better be ready for tomorrow, okay~? There’s something I’ve been wanting to do with you, Lily-cchi~”
“Something you want to do? Well, whatever it is, I should get going. Bye-bye, Shuri-chan.”
“Bye-bye~”
A hint of unease pricked at her
What could Shuri possibly have in store for her?
But Lily waved goodbye and left the classroom. She made her way up the stairs, moving against the tide of students heading home, until she reached the rooftop. A quick look around revealed it was empty, likely because classes had just ended. Setting her bag down, she decided to pass the time by admiring the flowers blooming in the rooftop garden.
This brings back memories.
Gazing at the colorful blossoms swaying in the wind, she was reminded of all the moments she had spent killing time just like this in her first life. The other person was usually late, probably due to nerves, leaving Lily to wait alone. At first, she’d been annoyed, wondering why they would call her out only to keep her waiting. But as she grew older and came to understand love, she began to empathize with their feelings, and the irritation faded.
For that reason, Lily had no complaints about waiting now.
She closed her eyes, letting the soft spring breeze wash over her, just like the flowers in the garden. Several minutes passed in quiet stillness.
Click.
The sound of a doorknob turning broke the silence.
Opening her eyes, she saw a male student peering around nervously. This must be Makabe, the one who had called her here. Lily picked up her bag and walked toward him.
“Are you Makabe-kun?”
“Y-Yes! Lily-san, I’m sorry for making you wait.”
Her guess was correct. He immediately apologized for his tardiness. The fact that he could offer a sincere apology was a point in his favor; some of the boys who had confessed to her in the past hadn’t thought twice about keeping her waiting. Compared to them, he was already a step above.
However, he had just stepped on a major landmine.
“Could you not call me by my first name?” she said, her voice sharp. “I hate it when people I’ve just met do that.”
“Ah, s-sorry. I’ll be careful.”
Calling her Lily. For her, being called by her first name was special—a sign of trust she reserved for those closest to her. When a stranger did it, it made her skin crawl. Whatever small points he had just earned vanished in an instant, and her opinion of him plummeted into negative territory.
Her eyes narrowed with displeasure. As she spoke in an icy tone, telling him to use her proper name, Makabe’s face went pale. He bowed his head repeatedly, realizing his mistake.
“As long as you understand. Now, what did you want to talk to me about?”
But his apology didn’t erase the negative impression. Lily continued to stare at him with cold, emotionless eyes, prompting him to get to the point. Trapped in a situation that was the complete opposite of what he must have imagined, Makabe was at a loss for words. There was no way he could confess now; failure was all but guaranteed.
From Lily’s perspective, however, it was his own fault for so brazenly crossing a line. She did nothing to ease the tense atmosphere and simply waited for him to speak.
After what felt like an eternity—but was probably only two minutes—Makabe finally opened his mouth, as if he had steeled his resolve.
“U-Um! I’ve liked you ever since I first saw you, Machigane-san! Please go out with me!”
“I’m sorry. I can’t.”
She shot down his desperate confession without a moment’s hesitation. Rejected so swiftly, Makabe’s face contorted, and tears welled in his eyes.
“Why not?”
But he had made up his mind, and he wasn’t about to back down so easily. He demanded a reason for her rejection.
“Because I don’t know you. And because I don’t like you. That’s why I can’t go out with you,” Lily explained, her words concise and clear.
“Then please, get to know me. If you’ll just be my friend…”
“I’ll decline that as well. I’m not comfortable around men.”
“You can’t say that! You seem to get along just fine with Minazuki-kun!”
“He’s a childhood friend I’ve known forever. He’s like family, so he’s an exception. You and him are completely different.”
“That’s ridiculous!?”
He had probably seen her and Saito talking amicably and assumed he could at least become friends with her if he pleaded. Hearing her explanation, Makabe was left speechless. If he had paid any real attention, he would have noticed that Lily generally avoided men. But it seemed love had blinded him, allowing him to see only what was convenient.
“Damn it!”
With a curse directed at no one in particular, Makabe turned and fled the rooftop, slamming the door behind him.
Once she was alone, Lily let out a heavy sigh.
Don’t give me that look after you’re the one who selfishly called me out here to confess.
Makabe’s hurt expression lingered in her mind. He had confessed without knowing a single thing about her, yet he had looked like the victim. She was the victim here; he had no right to look so wounded. She was the one who wanted to cry. When someone made a face like that, it made her feel like she was the villain.
He only fell for my looks. He doesn’t know the real me at all…
She knew it wasn’t her fault. And yet, the fact remained that she had hurt him by turning him down. Kind-hearted by nature, Lily couldn’t simply brush it aside. She could tell he had been serious, that he had worked up the courage to confess. Even though she was blameless, a part of her couldn’t help but wonder if she shared some of the responsibility.
—If only I hadn’t bumped into him that one time.
—If only I had been colder to the other boys.
Maybe then, today’s incident wouldn’t have happened. It was a meaningless thought, she knew, but she couldn’t stop the what-ifs from circling in her head.
“…Haaah. Let’s just go home.”
Staying here any longer would only drag her deeper into a spiral of self-blame. Lily left the rooftop through the door opposite the one Makabe had used. She navigated through the noisy, crowded halls and eventually reached the train station. Fortunately, a train must have just departed, as the platform was nearly empty. Lily found a bench at the far end and sat down.
She opened the novel she’d been reading to kill time, but the events of the afternoon kept replaying in her mind, and she couldn’t focus on a single page.
Reading isn’t going to work.
Realizing that being alone in a quiet place wasn’t helping, Lily snapped the book shut. When she looked up, she found a boy who shouldn’t have been there standing right in front of her.
“Huh?”
“Yo. What’s a beautiful girl like you doing with such a gloomy look on your face? Wanna hang out with me? I promise I won’t bore you.”
Lily’s eyes widened in shock. While she was still stunned, Saito struck a playful pose, mimicking a cheesy pickup artist as he invited her out.
“Saito? What are you doing here? I thought you were going to the arcade…”
“That was the plan, but~ Kai and I were grabbing drinks from a vending machine, and he accidentally chugged some old, expired red bean soup, thinking it was his. He totally collapsed. So, the arcade trip was canceled. I just spent all this time hauling him to the nurse’s office. What a pain.”
He recounted the story with a hearty laugh, explaining why he was there. It seemed his friend’s collapse had not only ruined their plans but had also given Saito quite an ordeal.
“That’s too bad.”
“Well, stuff happens. I’m not worried about it. Plus, lucky for me, I found a new playmate,” he said, his grin widening. “You’re free now, right, Lily? Let’s go to the arcade. It’ll help you forget all the bad stuff.”
Remembering how excited he had been at lunch, Lily felt a pang of sympathy for him. But Saito didn’t seem bothered at all. In fact, he was beaming as he invited her to hang out. While she knew part of it was his way of cheering her up, their long friendship told her the rest of the story.
He was simply inviting her because he wanted to have fun.
Being used so conveniently was a little annoying, but right now, Lily was incredibly grateful for it.
“Fine, fine. If you absolutely insist, I guess I can keep you company.”
“I absolutely insist, so please keep me company.”
“Okay, okay, I get it.”
She was too embarrassed to admit it, so she resorted to sarcasm instead. But with his desire to play running high, Saito paid her snark no mind and simply repeated his plea. Lily shrugged in mock exasperation.
After that, the two of them went to the arcade and lost themselves in coin pushers, rhythm games, and photo booths until the sun began to set. By the time they headed home, the unpleasant memories of the afternoon had completely faded from Lily’s mind.
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