Childhood Friend Heroine V2 Chapter 1
Chapter 1
The Student Council President and Vice President
The lingering warmth of the season carried into early May, blessing the day with clear skies and sunshine so pleasant it could lull anyone to sleep. It was, in short, a perfect day for lunch.
Of course, high school students were never ones to stay quiet during their lunch break. The moment class ended, they bolted, scattering to their favorite spots to eat and chat.
Minazuki Saito, a freshly minted first-year, was no exception. He was spending his lunch on the rooftop with his beautiful childhood friend, Machigane Lily.
“Fho ghood! Fhis ish sho ghood!”
“Hey, don’t talk with your mouth full,” Lily chided. “It’s unbecoming.”
“Fhehs, fhehs… Munch, munch. Sho ghood!”
Ever since he had acted as her taste-tester a little while back, this second bento had somehow become a regular occurrence. Every dish Lily prepared was seasoned exactly to his liking, so delicious that his praise spilled out between bites. Each time, she would scold him, but the words escaped on their own. He couldn’t help it.
But as far as Saito was concerned, there was no need to change. It was only natural to say that delicious food was delicious.
More importantly—
“…Jeez. What are you going to do when you embarrass yourself as an adult?”
—his childhood friend was happy when he praised her cooking.
As if to prove it, though her words were sharp, the cowlick on her head was swaying gently in delight.
So easy to read.
As he thought this, a shutter sound clicked from the side. Turning, he saw his friend with the naturally curled hair, just returned from the battlefield that was the school store. Their eyes met through the camera lens.
(…Easy to read, huh?)
(Fhat’s fhat I shaid, fhight?)
A silent exchange passed between them. Understanding they were on the same wavelength, the two boys shared a laugh.
“What are you two bonding over without me?” Lily puffed out her cheeks, left out of their excitement. “Also, Akashi-kun. I gave you permission to take photos, but only after I’ve noticed you.”
The pout lasted only a moment. With a sigh, she turned her gaze to Kai and began lecturing him about taking photos without permission.
“…I’ll try my best.”
“Not ‘try’—you will. If you can’t, I’ll crush it, you know?”
“Eep! …Understood.”
“Good.”
At first, a rebellious glint flickered in Kai’s eyes, as if he felt her demand was tyrannical, but when Lily made a crushing gesture with her hand, he quickly became obedient. Watching the exchange from the side—like an owner disciplining a poorly trained dog—Saito offered a wry smile.
My childhood friend’s scary as hell~
She would definitely do it. She showed no mercy to anyone who tried to harm her. The best proof was a week ago when she had not only counterattacked the man who assaulted her but had restrained him with a full-on joint lock until he cried.
From Kai’s perspective, though he had been forgiven, he had made a grave mistake with Lily in the past and probably couldn’t afford to relax. Saito felt a sliver of sympathy for his friend, who was now at the mercy of his selfish childhood friend.
“So, can you show me the photos you took?”
“…Yes, please take a look.”
“Now then, let’s see what Akashi-kun shot—”
“Yoink!”
“Ah! Hey, Saito, why’d you take it!?”
Just as Kai, now thoroughly under Lily’s thumb, held out the camera, Saito snatched it from the side.
“Why, I wonder?”
“Why are you phrasing it as a question when you’re the one who did it?”
If Lily saw the photo Kai had just taken, she would undoubtedly be embarrassed by her little habit and make sure it never happened again. That would be a personal problem for Saito. Watching Lily look happy while she ate had become his new favorite pastime. Having her become self-conscious and stop would be a waste.
For the sake of her dignity, and for his own selfish desires, Saito played dumb, which only exasperated his childhood friend. He tried to use the opening to delete the photo, but Lily was no fool. Sensing his intentions, she moved to peek at the camera, annoyingly getting in his way.
“What are you trying to delete without permission? It’s a photo of us, so I have the right to see it too.”
“It’s mine too, so I have the right to delete it!”
“Hey, wait!”
“Since when does anyone actually wait when told to?!”
“…Just don’t break the camera, okay?”
Saito, who absolutely refused to show her the photo, and Lily, who absolutely had to see it. What began as a simple game of moving his hands up, down, left, and right quickly escalated into a full-blown chase between the two of them. They burst from the rooftop at full speed and began running around the school.
But of course, their antics were bound to be spotted by a teacher.
“Hey! Minazuki-kun and Machigane-san. No running in the hallways.”
“Sorry about that.”
“Excuse me.”
A warning came from their homeroom teacher, Hayama Chie, who was walking down the corridor. The two, whose excitement had peaked, cooled down slightly but weren’t about to back down. They stopped running and transitioned to a speed-walk, just shy of earning another scolding.
“Why can’t I catch you!?”
“It’s all about experience! Experience!”
Their speeds were now roughly the same, but Lily, as the chaser, was slightly faster. However, instead of closing it, the gap between them only widened. The reason was Saito’s extensive experience with school tag from his elementary days. As a brat who had played tag around the school countless times, he knew several techniques for escaping a chaser without getting into trouble.
The honor student Lily possessed no such skills. Delays at key points, like turning corners and dodging people, began to accumulate. After about three minutes, Saito successfully made his escape, but an unexpected problem arose.
“Phew. Made it somehow. Wait, where am I?”
While focused on escaping Lily, he had wandered into an unfamiliar place. He now stood in a gloomy, mysterious garden that wasn’t even on the school map. He could vaguely tell it had once been beautiful, but with weeds and tree branches growing wild, its original appearance was lost.
However, as he ventured deeper, he found that the area around a fountain plaza was oddly clean. There were no weeds, and the fountain itself was spotless. Yet, the ground around it was dug up, with sprouts emerging at regular intervals. He didn’t know its purpose, but someone was clearly tending to it. It reminded him of the secret bases he had made as a child, and his curiosity was piqued.
“Oh, there’s a hole here with seeds in it. That means someone was working here just recently.”
And so, he began his search for the mysterious person who frequented this garden. Touching the ground like a proper detective, Saito was fully in the mindset of a famous sleuth.
Muttering obvious observations, he proceeded deeper.
After walking for a while along a beaten path, he emerged behind an unfamiliar school building. Peeking inside, he saw a familiar, giant teacher. If he remembered correctly, it was the student guidance counselor who had mentioned at the school assembly that he was usually in the third-year building. This, then, was probably the new building used by the third-years. He’d had no reason to come here before, so it was his first time seeing it. Compared to the building for first and second-years, it was smaller, but still more than enough to house a single grade.
“Huh~ So this is the new building.”
“What are you doing here?”
As he was once again marveling at the school’s size, a man’s voice called out to him. Saito turned and was surprised.
“The student council president!”
The person who had called out to him was none other than the school’s student council president, Houjou Takumi. Taller than Saito, with long legs and the cool good looks of a handsome man with glasses, he was the young master of the Houjou Group, which owned a fair number of companies. Having inherited his parents’ charisma, he had reportedly won the student council election with three times the votes as the other candidates. At the entrance ceremony, he had delivered an encouraging speech to the new students as the current student representative, firing up the venue. Even Saito remembered him.
His first impression was of a cool, serious person—someone skilled at moving people who probably didn’t get his hands dirty. But right now, Takumi was dressed in a way that completely shattered that image. He was wearing coveralls, like an auto mechanic, holding a watering can in one hand and a bucket containing a shovel and plastic bags in the other.
An unexpected person in an unexpected outfit. It was enough to blow Saito’s mind.
“Hello! I’m Minazuki Saito from Class 1-3. I’m here because I got lost.”
“…I see.”
The shock lasted only a moment. Quickly recovering, Saito explained his situation, and Takumi’s initially suspicious gaze softened into one of pity.
“If you go straight out of here and turn left, you’ll get back to the first-year building.”
“For real? Thanks so much.”
“This isn’t something to be thanked for. Just hurry up and go.”
“Yessir. I’ll repay this favor someday—wait, ah!”
Having been given directions, Saito was about to head back as instructed when the pieces suddenly clicked into place in his mind.
“Um, if it’s okay with you, President, how about I carry that watering can for you?” he offered, spinning around to face Takumi. “You’re probably taking it to that tilled area, right? Isn’t it heavy?”
“You saw that, did you… I can carry this much myself, so it’s fine.”
However, whether from the dignity of his position or perhaps embarrassment that a guy was growing flowers, Takumi declined the offer.
“Really? Your arm’s shaking like crazy, though. Did you maybe put too much water in by mistake?”
“Guh! That’s not it.”
“Come on, don’t be so stubborn. Just let me handle it.”
But sadly, his body betrayed his words. The arm holding the watering can was trembling, making his bluff painfully obvious. Saito tucked the digital camera into his pocket and smoothly swiped the watering can from Takumi.
“You’re pushy, aren’t you?”
“I get that a lot.”
Takumi waved his tired arm while making a sarcastic remark, and Saito returned a pleasant smile. “Well, shall we go?” he said, stepping into the garden, this time with Takumi by his side.
“So, why are you doing this?” Saito asked, watering where he was instructed.
“It’s a hobby.”
“Couldn’t you do that at home? You don’t have to do it at school, right? Ah, is it like a secret base thing? Like wanting your own private space?”
“That’s not it… But whatever, right? It’s complicated at home.”
“I see. Even the student council president has his troubles, huh~”
The dismissive answer was commonplace, but from Takumi’s attitude, it probably wasn’t the real reason. He was curious, but even Saito, who was denser than most at reading the room, knew not to press further when such a strong aura of rejection was being emitted.
“Speaking of which, the sports festival is coming up soon. What events are you in, President?”
To avoid an awkward silence, Saito shifted the topic to the upcoming all-grade sports festival.
“I’m in the inter-grade relay and the cavalry battle.”
As expected, the events for a third-year like Takumi were a bit different from his own.
Cavalry Battle.
The name alone was enough to captivate any boy. Saito had experienced it twice in elementary and middle school, and the chaotic scramble to steal headbands remained a vivid, fun memory.
“Ooh, cavalry battle sounds great. I really like it, but first-years don’t have it, you know~ So please do your best for my sake too, President.”
“I’m not good at grappling, so don’t get your hopes up.”
Honestly, Saito wanted to participate. But since it was impossible for a first-year to join a third-year event, he sent Takumi a cheer loaded with pressure. In response, Takumi made a sour face and looked away, apparently not very skilled at it.
“It’s fine. I could tell from earlier that you’re not athletic. Just do your best.”
“I can’t tell if you’re being rude or not.”
While he had shown some consideration before, Saito was now throwing out tactless words, leaving Takumi confused.
“I’m the rude one. My childhood friend often tells me I have no tact.”
In response, Saito cheerfully declared himself the former. The only reason he had any sense of propriety at all was because his childhood friend had warned him repeatedly over the years. If she hadn’t, he probably would have trampled on landmines without even noticing Takumi’s aura of rejection. Since he could easily imagine that, he couldn’t claim to have tact, even as a lie.
“You’re a weird guy.”
“I get that a lot too.”
Still, few people could admit it so proudly. To Takumi, who lived in a world of socializing where people constantly tried to make themselves look good, Saito must have seemed like some rare creature. Saito laughed off the sarcastic words, which seemed both exasperated and somehow a bit envious.
“Ah, I’m out of water.”
While they were talking, the watering can ran out.
“I’ll go refill it.”
Since there were still areas left to water, Saito turned to go when Takumi grabbed his shoulder.
“What is it?”
“Looks like we’re done.”
A sudden declaration of completion. Not understanding, Saito tilted his head, and Takumi showed him the smartphone he had taken out at some point.
“Ah!”
It displayed 1:10 PM—five minutes until lunch break ended. Saito panicked for a moment, wondering how it had gotten so late, but after eating lunch, playing tag, and watering plants, it was only natural. Just as he realized that, Takumi snatched the watering can back as payback.
“Thanks for today. You helped me out. I’ll finish the rest after school, so you head back now. If you go straight down that path, you’ll get back to the first and second-year building.”
Then, with words of appreciation, he made sure his underclassman could find his way back—truly the image of a capable student council president. It was hard to believe he was the same person who had misjudged the water amount and had his arm shaking pathetically just moments before. Saito’s evaluation of him skyrocketed.
“Thanks. Good work, President. I’ll come help again when I’m free!”
“You don’t have to come!”
“Ahaha, nope.”
He wanted to help this person again. With that thought, Saito forcibly secured a promise to help and hurried back to the school building.
◇
“This is the worst.”
“Lily-cchi. Chin up.”
“I-I think it’s cute.”
Time moved forward to the ten-minute break after fifth period. Surrounded by her friends, Lily was holding her head in her hands. The cause was the incident at lunch. From Saito and Kai’s reactions, she had known they had taken some kind of photo of her. But by the time Saito returned to the classroom, the photo had already been deleted, and she couldn’t see it.
It would have been better if she had given up then, but her curiosity got the best of her. So, Lily had asked—or rather, threatened—Kai.
‘Tell me what kind of photo it was?’ she had asked, her best—and darkest—smile on her face.
Faced with that, Kai had no choice but to confess. The result was as mentioned. Learning she had an embarrassing habit, Lily spectacularly imploded. Of course she did. Her feelings had been partially exposed to her childhood friend—the person she liked. Moreover, she had thought she was hiding it well, so the damage was considerable. Her reaction was only natural.
“That’s why I told you. It’s better not to know.”
Saito appeared with an exasperated look, adding insult to injury.
“…But if you hide it that much, of course I’ll be curious.”
He was right. It would have been better not to know if this was the result. However, being so excessively secretive naturally stoked her curiosity.
“So I’ll give you these words. ‘Curiosity killed the…’ uh, what was it again? I blanked. Kanzaki, you know?”
“Ugh, it’s ‘Curiosity killed the cat.’ That’s one of the most famous proverbs, and you forgot it? You really are an idiot.”
“Pfft!”
“Ahaha, you’re as clueless as ever, Ito-cchi.”
“Shut up. I can’t help it if I suddenly forgot.”
Still, just as the proverb Saito had tried to quote goes, it was ultimately her own fault. She had no choice but to humbly endure the heat of her shame. However, thanks to her stupid childhood friend embarrassing himself, it became somewhat more bearable.
The conversation shifted entirely to Saito’s blunder, and by the time Lily had mostly recovered, someone knocked on the classroom door. The door opened, and a beautiful girl with long black hair appeared.
“Excuse me. Is Haruki-kun here?”
Her name was Shirayuri Koyuki, the only daughter of the Shirayuri Group, which managed transportation-related companies, and the student council vice president. Grace flowed from her every gesture, and her strong sense of justice and fearlessness made her a true Yamato Nadeshiko. Popular with students of all genders, she had apparently been confessed to over a hundred times. However, she had rejected them all, leading to whispers that she might prefer women.
But those rumors had recently been dispelled.
“Ah, Koyuki-senpai. What’s up?”
“Haruki-kun. I wanted to talk to you about something. Do you have a moment now?”
“As long as it’ll end during break, I don’t mind.”
“Then it’s fine. It’ll only take two or three minutes. Shall we go?”
“Whoa! Don’t suddenly hug me, Senpai.”
“I refuse. If I don’t do this, I can’t absorb my Haruki-kun nutrients.”
Koyuki was currently in love with a boy in Lily’s class named Nishizono Haruki. Not just in love, but head over heels. So much so that Koyuki, who had once been modest and mindful of others’ eyes, would now hug Haruki and invite him on dates wherever she found him.
The trigger was apparently when Haruki helped her while she was working alone in the library, and then saved her when a bookshelf was about to fall and crush her. It was a classic scenario from the world of manga, but rare in reality. It was no wonder she fell for him.
Koyuki-senpai’s the same as always. But I guess I was like that in the past too… Ugh, so embarrassing.
Seeing her inevitably made Lily remember her past self, and the shame that had been settling down reignited.
“Uugh…”
“What’s wrong, Lily-cchi? …Do you have a fever? Should we go to the nurse’s office?”
“I’m fine. An old wound just ached a bit.”
“Aha, what’s that supposed to mean? Well, as long as you’re okay.”
Feeling bad, Lily lifted her face and gave a vague explanation, which made her friend Shuri laugh as if it were the most hilarious thing she had ever heard.
“Nutrient replenishment complete.”
“That took a while, didn’t it? The break’s almost over.”
“Oh my, that’s terrible. I must hurry with our conversation.”
While that was happening, Koyuki and Haruki’s lovey-dovey time apparently ended, and they started to move. As the two passed by to leave the classroom, Koyuki’s eyes met Lily’s.
In that moment, what floated in her eyes was wariness.
What is she being wary about?
If this were her first life, when they liked the same man, perhaps. But in this second life, there was no reason for her to look at Lily that way. Searching for a reason, she could only think of one: the rumor that had spread a few days ago. It was said that Haruki had saved Lily when she was about to be attacked.
Every beautiful girl Haruki had saved so far had, without exception, fallen in love with him. Koyuki was probably wary that a new romantic rival might appear.
As if I’d fall for a guy like that again. Koyuki-senpai’s such a worrywart.
Lily tried to convey that her wariness was unfounded, but Koyuki’s gaze had already shifted back to Haruki. And to make matters worse, Haruki’s gaze was fixed on Lily.
A grinding sound of teeth scraping reached her ears.
“If we dawdle, the break will end, so let’s go.”
“Y-yes! Understood.”
The worst.
Koyuki left the classroom hurriedly with Haruki, her mood visibly soured. Far from clearing up the misunderstanding, Lily had only made it worse. She let out a small sigh.
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