Childhood Friend Heroine V2 Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Mine
A month had passed since the school year began, and high school life was starting to feel familiar as friendships solidified. During homeroom, the class was tasked with selecting participants for the sports festival scheduled for the end of the month.
“Alright, let’s start by choosing one boy and one girl for the representative relay,” the class representative announced. “Any volunteers?”
“Me, me! Class rep, I wanna run!” Saito, who had been looking forward to this day more than anyone, shot his hand up the moment the discussion began.
“Minazuki, huh? Don’t worry, you don’t have to be so eager—you were already a shoo-in. You’re the fastest guy in our class.”
“No objections here.”
“Hell yeah!”
With Saito having ranked first in the physical fitness tests, no one opposed his selection, and the boys’ spot was settled without a hitch. The conversation then shifted to the remaining spot for the girls.
“So, who’s the fastest girl?”
“I’m pretty sure it was Ayase-san.”
“Yeah, she ran it in six-point-nine seconds.”
“But that’s… not really possible right now, is it?”
“Sorry, everyone,” Ayase apologized.
“It can’t be helped. Injuries happen.”
“Yeah, don’t worry about it.”
“Who’s the next fastest, then?”
“Not sure.”
“What about Yabe?”
“I might not look it, but I’m actually pretty slow.”
The obvious choice would have been Ayase Nozomi, a member of the track team. However, she had injured her foot just the day before, making her participation in the sports festival unlikely. Her classmates tried to recall who the next fastest girl was, but no one’s name came to mind. While first place tends to stick in people’s memories, second place is often forgotten.
As most of the students tilted their heads in confusion, one girl quietly raised her hand.
“Um, I think that’s probably me.”
The hand belonged to the girl sitting right in front of Saito—his childhood friend, Lily.
“Whoa, I knew Machigane-san was athletic, but you’re that fast!?”
“N-No way, that’s impossible.”
“Where the hell are you lookin’, you perverts?!”
“Gyaaaah!!”
The classroom erupted. While Lily was known for being well-rounded in both academics and athletics, everyone had unconsciously assumed her physical abilities were merely decent, given the heavy burden she carried up top.
“Mufufu, that’s right. Lily-cchi may have a nice body, but she’s also fast. Surprised?”
“Jeez, Shuri-chan, don’t tease me! It’s embarrassing.”
Lily, clearly aware of the attention, shrank in her seat, trying to avoid the gazes from all around.
“Ahem. Machigane-san, thank you for volunteering,” the class rep said, regaining control of the room. “Just to confirm, what’s your fifty-meter time?”
“Seven-point-three seconds.”
“That’s crazy fast.”
“That’s a whole two seconds faster than me.”
“…A three-second… difference?”
“Mizuki-chan! I know it feels unfair, but get a grip!”
Her time was impressive even by the boys’ standards, and some of the girls were visibly shocked.
“Given the reaction, it doesn’t seem like anyone’s faster than Machigane-san. So, the representative relay will be Minazuki and Machigane-san.”
Clap, clap, clap,clap.
“Alright, let’s move on to the three-legged race. Any volunteers?”
Perhaps because the main event had been settled so smoothly, the atmosphere in the classroom relaxed, and a wave of male students eagerly raised their hands for the next event. Of course, it might have had something to do with the three-legged race being the only event where you could pair up with a girl. In any case, their enthusiasm was a good thing.
“Never thought I’d be running the relay with Lily,” Saito mused, feeling a wave of sentimentality as he watched the noisy classroom.
His childhood friend seemed to feel the same way, turning to him with a nod of agreement.
“You used to be so slow back then.”
When she was little, she had been genuinely terrible at sports. Her movements were awkward in everything she did, and she simply wasn’t used to physical activity. When they played tag, the skill gap was so vast he would actually lose sight of her. If he told his past self he’d be running a relay with Lily in high school, he would never have believed it.
“And now I’m the second fastest in class. Pretty amazing, right?”
“Yeah, super amazing. How’d you get so fast?”
His childhood friend was now standing on the same stage as him. Curious about the transformation, Saito asked what had brought about such a change.
“Nothing special. Like I mentioned before, when I started judo, I heard you were running in the mornings, so I started running with my dad every now and then.”
“Huh, and that made such a difference?”
What she described was surprisingly ordinary. She had started simply because he was doing it. To have improved so much, she must have had the talent all along. Looks, brains, athletic ability—his childhood friend was high-spec in every category. She was truly blessed by the gods, so much so that he wished she’d share a little of her good fortune with him.
“Thanks to that, my dad’s belly, which used to stick out, is looking pretty good now.”
“Oh yeah, Masanori-san used to be chubby. Man, that takes me back.”
Still, if her dormant talent had awakened because of him, he couldn’t feel bad about it. Simple-minded as he was, Saito felt no strange jealousy, only a peaceful sense of nostalgia as he reminisced with his childhood friend.
“Alright, these are the final members. Make sure to note your events or take a picture so you don’t forget.”
“Please wait until I leave before taking pictures,” the teacher added. “Using cell phones during class violates school rules, so I’ll have to scold anyone I catch.”
“Okay~”
After a series of discussions, homeroom was finally coming to a close. The event selections were complete, and the final list was written on the blackboard:
Representative Relay: Saito, Lily.
Borrowing Race: Saito, Kai, Shuri, Minaka, and sixteen others.
Tug of War: Saito, Kai, Haruki, and twenty-one others.
Three-Legged Race: Saito, Haruki, Lily, Minaka, and sixteen others.
Typhoon Eye: Saito, Shuri, and eighteen others.
Even though it was a school event, it was still a competition. To secure victory, the class had arrived at a simple answer: have the physical monster, Saito, participate in every single event. At first, they had tried to balance the teams, but the discussion inevitably led to the conclusion, “Wouldn’t it just work out if Minazuki’s in pretty much everything?”
Was it allowed by the rules? Yes, it was. Each student was required to participate in at least two events, but there was no upper limit. And so, on the day of the sports festival, Saito’s schedule was confirmed to be packed.
“Alright! Time to practice hard.”
Being relied upon by his classmates naturally boosted his motivation. As soon as the bell rang, Saito grabbed his gym clothes and rushed out of the classroom. The next period was the long-awaited PE class, and eager to get started, he headed to the changing room at a brisk pace.
“Yo, Shirayuri-senpai.”
“Hello, Minazuki-kun.”
On the way, he spotted a familiar face and stopped to call out. It was Koyuki. A senior one year above him, she was usually the picture of grace and elegance, but whenever Haruki was involved, she transformed into a clumsy beauty who couldn’t see anything else. She was often alone, carrying things or running errands, and whenever he helped her, she would treat him to a juice. She was a good person.
As usual, Koyuki was carrying a large cardboard box.
“Is that one not heavy today?” he asked, offering to help. It looked quite heavy at a glance. He wasn’t just after a free juice—definitely not. It was an offer of pure goodwill.
“Let’s see. Unfortunately for you, Minazuki-kun, it’s very light despite its appearance.”
“…I see.”
“Fufu. But it is a bit too big for me, and it’s hard to see ahead. I wonder if there’s anyone taller and kind enough to help me?”
“I’ll carry it!”
Koyuki saw right through him. He felt like he’d been played, but if it meant getting juice, he had no complaints. Saito took the cardboard box from her. As she’d said, it was surprisingly light. When he asked what was inside, she deflected with a playful, “It’s a secret.” It was probably something for the sports festival. He’d heard the student council was heavily involved in organizing the event, and if the vice president was carrying something around at this time, there was no doubt. He was curious, but remembering his childhood friend’s recent misfortune born from curiosity, he wisely restrained himself.
“By the way, Shirayuri-senpai, are you close with the president?” he asked, bringing up a convenient topic he’d recently acquired. President and vice president seemed like they’d be close, so he figured it was a safe bet.
“With the president? I’d say our relationship is normal. Why?”
“Nah, I just talked to the student council president for the first time yesterday, so I was a little curious.”
Her response, however, was surprisingly lukewarm, and Saito felt a little let down. He had expected a more enthusiastic reaction. Then again, from Koyuki’s perspective, Takumi was a male senior. With differences in both age and gender, perhaps a distant relationship wasn’t so unusual.
“I see. …So, how did the president seem to you, Minazuki-kun?” Koyuki asked, continuing the conversation even though it had fallen a bit flat.
“He seems like a good person. Serious, and looks out for others. But I also got the impression he’s a bit clumsy.”
“Clumsy?” Koyuki repeated, looking surprised.
“Yeah. Especially in how he can’t quite be honest with himself.”
“Is that so? …I don’t really see it, but if that’s what you think, Minazuki-kun, then it must be true. I learned something unexpected about him today.”
“He’s pretty easy to read, that guy.”
Apparently, Koyuki didn’t know much about Takumi. He’d assumed she would, having been on the council with him longer than Saito had known him, but the student council president seemed surprisingly good at keeping up a front. Personally, Saito thought Takumi had shown his true colors rather easily, but maybe that wasn’t the case for everyone.
“Oh, here we are. Please put it on that desk.”
“Got it.”
Just as he was scheming about teaching Koyuki how to break down the president’s facade, they arrived at their destination, and the conversation came to a temporary halt. Saito placed the cardboard box where instructed, and Koyuki bowed her head.
“Thank you very much. That was a big help.”
“Nah, this was nothing. Please raise your head.”
“You’re very kind, Minazuki-kun.”
“…Not really.”
Her praise was painful. He knew she had seen through his ulterior motives from the start. But since, on the surface, he had helped because she was in trouble, a sense of guilt washed over him. Unable to meet her gaze, Saito unconsciously averted his eyes.
“Fufu… He really is easy to read, this Minazuki-kun. Just like a child. That’s probably why, even though I know he has ulterior motives, it doesn’t feel unpleasant. Such a strange boy. Is something wrong?”
“Nah, nothing.”
When he heard her teasing laughter, he glanced over to see her looking at him with an amused smile. That expression was deliberate. No doubt about it. Koyuki was definitely enjoying watching him squirm.
“I’ll take my usual juice,” he said, deciding there was no point in keeping up appearances. As he started to leave the classroom, she made a disappointed face.
“Oh my, are you leaving already? I wanted to enjoy this a little longer.”
“You’ve got a nice personality, Shirayuri-senpai.”
“I hear that a lot,” she replied with a cheerful laugh, completely unfazed by his sarcasm.
On this day, Saito learned firsthand just how scary upperclassmen could be. He also learned that lying wasn’t a good idea.
“Well then, good work. I’ll bring your reward at lunchtime.”
“Yup. Later.”
With nothing left to do, Koyuki and Saito parted ways. Though he felt strangely exhausted from their brief encounter, the thought of the upcoming sports festival practice lifted his spirits. Saito wove through the crowd of students and headed once again toward the changing room.
“Yo.”
“Oh? Minazuki-kun. You just got here? You left the classroom first but took a while.”
Entering the changing room, he found the boys from his class getting changed. Haruki, who had just pulled his gym shirt over his head, greeted him with wide eyes.
“Ran into Shirayuri-senpai on the way. Helped her carry some stuff.”
“I see. That makes sense, then.”
“…Sneaky. I wanted a juice too,” Kai chimed in with envy.
“Then you can help her next time, Kai. I’m good for a while.”
If not for the earlier exchange, he might have bragged, “Lucky me, right?” But right now, Saito didn’t have the energy. When he answered in a half-hearted, exhausted voice, his friends’ eyes widened in shock.
“…What happened?” Kai asked.
Explaining the whole thing felt like too much trouble. “Well, stuff happened,” he said simply, and thankfully, his friends seemed to understand.
“Ahaha, well, good work anyway.”
“…Good work.”
They didn’t press him further, just offering words of sympathy that seeped into his tired mind.
“Thanks,” Saito said with a short nod and busily started changing into his gym clothes.
◇
“Alright, today we’re practicing the three-legged race and the typhoon eye,” the PE teacher announced after warm-ups. “First, members for the three-legged race, stay here. I’ll explain what to do. Everyone else, gather over there. I’ll come explain to you in a bit.”
The students not participating followed his instructions and moved to the shade, leaving only the three-legged race participants behind.
“Okay, your first task is to decide on pairs. Try pairing up with different people and see who you work best with. Got it?”
“Yes!”
“Aww~”
“I seriously don’t want to.”
The remaining members were tasked with selecting their partners. While everyone had somewhat expected it, the idea of a round-robin format drew a few complaints. But this was a veteran teacher, after all.
“If you don’t do it, you fail PE.”
Having learned a valuable lesson about adult corruption, the members began the process of pair selection. Saito and Haruki looked around, searching for girls to pair with. They deliberately avoided Lily, who was already swarmed by a crowd of eager guys. Jumping into that mess would only waste precious practice time.
“Let’s do this, Haruki.”
The first to find a partner was Haruki. His childhood friend, Aizono Mizuki—a petite, beautiful girl—pushed through the crowd of perverted lolicons and came to pair with him.
“…Ahaha.”
Naturally, the guys who had been swarming Mizuki now glared at Haruki with murderous intent. He let out a dry laugh. It was a situation he had experienced countless times.
“Sure. But after you’re done with me, you have to pair with everyone else too.”
“…I’ll think about it.”
“Ohhh!! As expected of Nishizono—he gets it!!”
“Hmph. I’ll allow it this time for convincing Mizuki-tan.”
Haruki agreed to pair with Mizuki on the condition that she would then pair with the other guys. In one smooth move, he had satisfied both Mizuki and the lolicons.
Smooth…
“…That was well-handled.”
“Ah.”
As he mentally applauded his friend’s godly response, he heard a similar sentiment from beside him. Glancing over, he saw Minaka—Lily’s friend—standing a short distance away. Their eyes met, and a moment of silence stretched between them.
Finally, unable to bear it, Minaka frowned suspiciously and broke the silence.
“…What?”
“Nah, just thinking you haven’t found a pair yet,” Saito replied, voicing his thoughts.
She glared at him. “You picking a fight?”
Saito had no intention of making her angry. Japanese was a difficult language. He shrugged.
“I don’t mean it like that. I just figured Kanzaki would’ve already found someone by now.”
“I see. Unfortunately, no one looked promising. Most of the guys are obsessed with Lily-chan and Mizuki-chan anyway.”
After he explained he meant no harm, the furrow in Minaka’s brow smoothed out.
(Did her atmosphere soften a bit?)
That reaction surprised Saito. Minaka disliked men and had especially targeted him as her enemy. The Minaka from before would have continued to glare suspiciously, saying, “Really?” even after his explanation. He didn’t know what had caused the change, but things were definitely better now than they had been.
“Well, compared to those two, you’re kind of lurking a step or two behind in the shadows, aren’t you?”
Maybe I can actually have a decent conversation with Minaka now.
Clinging to that faint hope, I tried to crack a joke. Her response was a merciless kick and a sharp “Hmph!”
“Ow! Hey, it was a joke. Don’t take it so seriously.”
“There are some things you just don’t say to a girl, even as a joke!” she retorted.
“My bad,” I said. “I’m not saying you can compete with them on the same level, but I do think you have a pretty face, Kanzaki.”
“That’s the latest, most clumsy follow-up I’ve ever heard!”
“Ow!”
I take it all back. A fun conversation is probably impossible. Minaka’s prickly personality and my own childish nature just don’t mix.
“Sigh. Anyway, shouldn’t you be over with Lily-chan?” Minaka asked, either tired of the conversation or simply done with it.
At her words, I glanced back at Lily, who was, as always, surrounded.
“Go into that crowd? Nah. We have to pair up with everyone eventually, so it doesn’t have to be right now.”
“Are you really Lily-chan’s childhood friend, you idiot? Can’t you even tell when she’s in trouble?”
“Of course I can tell that much. But Lily can handle that on her own. If she gets truly fed up, she’ll find a way to ditch them.”
Sure, Lily was probably having a hard time being swarmed by a bunch of guys. But that was an unavoidable part of this class. If I stepped in to save her every single time, it would never end. Besides, the old Lily might have needed my help, but the Lily of today was different. She could handle this much with ease. Helping her now would be overprotective. To let her grow, it was best to leave her be.
Minaka shot me a look, clearly unconvinced by my decision to leave my troubled childhood friend to fend for herself, but she eventually let out a deep sigh.
“Haaah… You two really are childhood friends, aren’t you? You and Lily-chan.”
“What, after all this time, you still didn’t believe it?”
It seemed Minaka was finally accepting that Lily and I were childhood friends. People often mistook our closeness for a romantic relationship, so I guess it couldn’t be helped. Still, it was a little exasperating that she hadn’t believed me even after I’d told her.
“Just a little. I thought maybe you’d hypnotized Lily-chan or something.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
Her reason for doubting me was so absurd that, even knowing it was a joke, I couldn’t help but feel irritated at being seen as such a scumbag.
“I’m kidding.”
“Can I kick you?”
“I’m sorry! Please don’t!”
When I feigned a kick, Minaka hurriedly apologized. Seeing her rare, flustered state was satisfying enough to stop me from actually kicking a girl.
“It’s been a while, so should we pair up and start practicing?”
Having wrapped up our little chat, I glanced at the clock. Five minutes had passed since we were told to find partners. We needed to start practicing soon, or we’d be in trouble. I turned to Minaka, who was closest, and invited her. She blinked, her expression blank and a little dumbfounded, as if she couldn’t process what I’d just said.
“Are you serious? You don’t hate me?”
“Nah, I don’t hate you.”
She probably hadn’t expected an invitation from someone she’d been so harsh with. She looked at me as if I were some unbelievable creature. But I was completely serious. I didn’t hate Minaka. The fact that the ever-cautious Lily had chosen her as a friend was proof enough that she wasn’t a bad person. Sure, she’d thrown some sharp words my way, but I already knew about her dislike of men, so it felt like nothing more than a puppy yapping at me. My opinion of her wasn’t that low—just a little below the starting line. At this level, pairing up was no problem at all.
When I told her as much, without any sugarcoating, Minaka gave a short, “…I see.”
Judging by her reaction, she was still confused. It made sense. Until a moment ago, she’d been convinced I hated her. It wasn’t an easy thing to wrap your head around. But that wasn’t my problem. We had a reason to do this.
“What are you hesitating for? If we don’t pair up with everyone, we’ll fail P.E. this term, you know?” I said, pointing toward the P.E. teacher with a smug grin.
“Hehe. That’s right, they did say something like that,” Minaka replied, a troubled smile on her face as she followed my lead. “Since I don’t want to fail, I’ll give you the special privilege of pairing up with me.”
And so, we paired up for the three-legged race, but something unexpected happened.
“Ready to go?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“Alright. I’ll go right on one, left on two.”
““Ready! One, two. One, two. One, two. One, two.””
“We’re surprisingly in sync, aren’t we?”
“Yeah, as frustrating as it is. We’re incredibly in sync.”
It turned out that Minaka and I had surprisingly good compatibility. Cool-headed and hot-blooded—I thought our opposite personalities would clash, but we clicked perfectly. Or maybe it was because our rhythms were different that we meshed so well. When I stepped with my right foot, she naturally stepped with her left. We didn’t even have to consciously coordinate; it was shockingly easy.
“This is so easy it’s actually fun. Let’s pick up the pace and do a full lap around the field.”
With this, taking first place isn’t just a dream.
Just as I was thinking that, a fatal weakness revealed itself.
“Haa, haa… This pace is already tough. If you’re going to speed up, make it a half lap. A full lap is absolutely impossible.”
“Seriously? You have no stamina.”
“Don’t compare me to a stamina freak like you, Stupid Mizuki. I’m an indoor type. Don’t assume I have any endurance. Ugh, talking while running made it so much worse. Wheeze, wheeze… can we stop around here?”
“Even for an indoor type, you have way too little stamina! Fine, fine. We’ll stop when we get to that shade over there, okay?”
“Wheeze, wheeze… Okay, got it.”
That weakness was Minaka’s catastrophically low stamina. She was gasping for air after jogging just over fifty meters, and I was genuinely shocked. Even if we were in sync, it was pointless if we couldn’t pick up speed. I concluded I’d be better off with a faster girl, and the Saito-Minaka pair was officially shelved.
“Wheeze, wheeze. I… can’t… anymore.”
“Kanzaki, are you going to be okay for the sports festival at this rate?”
“It’s fine. I’ve already scheduled myself to be sick that day.”
“Uh, that’s not fine at all, is it?”
“Hey, Minazuki-kun, would you mind practicing with us too?”
“Hm?”
As I was about to give Minaka—who was already planning to ditch the sports festival—a piece of my mind, a few girls from our class called out to me.
“I don’t mind, but why me? Haruki’s available too, right?”
Practicing was a given, so I had no issue with that. But while most of the guys were swarming Lily and Mizuki, Haruki was free. I couldn’t understand why they were coming only to me.
“Nishizono-kun is, well~ he’s kind of scary. It feels like we’d get absorbed or something, so no thanks~”
“Right, right! It feels like he’d touch our chests or butts.”
“And it’s worse because it wouldn’t even be on purpose.”
“Plus, Mizuki-chan glares at us if we get too close.”
“And being compared to those beauties is just brutal.”
“Nishizono-kun makes this weirdly relieved face when he’s with anyone other than Mizuki-chan, Shirayuri-senpai, or Machigane-san. I hate that.”
“Besides, Nishizono-kun already went over to Machigane-san’s side, so we can’t ask him anyway.”
“Haha… Poor Haruki. They’re really laying into him.”
According to the girls, Haruki’s history of girl-trouble and his daily behavior made every single one of them hesitant to approach him. As his friend, I wanted to defend him, but it was true that Haruki had a knack for getting into—or causing—problems, most of which involved women. That being the case, I could understand why the girls found him difficult to approach. In the end, not knowing how to defend him, all I could do was let out a dry laugh.
“On that note, Minazuki-kun, you’re Machigane-san’s childhood friend, so you’re safe.”
Once they finished their evaluation of Haruki, they moved on to me.
“Exactly. You don’t look at us with weird eyes.”
“And you don’t try to touch us.”
“No girl-related drama, either.”
“Well, you are a bit childish.”
“More like a perverted brat than a creepy kid—it’s kind of endearing, you know~”
“Like your little brother’s friend, that kind of vibe.”
“““Totally get it~”“”
“Are you guys trying to compliment me or make fun of me?!”
“Obviously complimenting you. In a good way.”
“Well, if that’s the case, then fine.”
“You… you’re really something else, huh.”
The girls’ evaluation of me was better than I’d expected. Relieved, I let out a breath, but for some reason, Minaka, standing next to me, looked completely exasperated. When I tilted my head in confusion, soft giggles erupted from the girls around me.
◇
Meanwhile, in stark contrast to Saito’s pleasant time with the girls, Lily’s situation was the absolute worst.
“…Nice to meet you.”
“…………”
The reason: it was finally her turn to pair up with Haruki, the ex-boyfriend she had been so desperately avoiding. She had tried to stall for time, but the intense revulsion she felt from being shoulder-grabbed by guys who weren’t her childhood friend was too much to bear. She had made them trip—subtly enough to avoid getting caught—and then delivered the finishing blow with a swift, “Looks like we’re not compatible.” As a result, the five guys who had been hovering around her quickly dispersed, leaving only Haruki.
Honestly, she didn’t want to pair up with him. If Haruki didn’t have his memories of the first timeline, it might have been different, but just like her, he had also time-leaped. She had absolutely no interest in dealing with the cheating scumbag.
“Um, nice to meet you.”
“Sigh. You’re unpleasant. Could you please not talk?”
“I’m sorry.”
“I said don’t talk, didn’t I?”
“Fowwy.”
“You don’t need to apologize with your mouth covered. That’s gross. Seriously, just be quiet. We’ll do this half-heartedly and get it over with.”
“…………”
That said, the class requirement forced her to go through with it. Reluctantly, Lily began tying the rope. Haruki’s cheeks relaxed slightly, but only for a moment. When he tried to put his arm over her shoulder, she shot him down with a cold, “Don’t touch me, you’ll get me dirty,” and he instantly deflated.
“We’ll jog lightly to that fence.”
“…”
Once they were ready, Lily called out to Haruki, who nodded to signal he was set. Confirming his readiness, Lily gave the signal, “Ready,” and they started running.
As they ran, their strides matched—frustratingly well. It made sense, really. Haruki was, after all, her ex-boyfriend, and they had been paired together during the sports festival in the first timeline. Back then, they had practiced over and over, falling countless times, so Haruki knew her rhythm perfectly. She didn’t know when he had returned to this timeline, but it had been at least close to five years. The fact that he still remembered after all that time—and that she did too—filled her with disgust.
Maybe I should trip him on purpose?
The thought crossed her mind, but unfortunately, Haruki possessed that lucky-pervert constitution. If she tried anything unnecessary, there was a chance he’d end up touching her somewhere inappropriate. She calmed herself and held back.
“Okay. Done. See you.”
After that, nothing particular happened, and they finished the run without incident. Lily quickly untied the rope and, without a glance at Haruki’s face, said her goodbye, only to be stopped.
“Wait.”
“What?”
With a face that screamed utter annoyance, Lily turned toward him. He flinched with a small “Ugh,” but immediately met her gaze.
“Thank you,” he said, and that was all.
“…Tch.”
She had a pretty good idea what he was thanking her for. But it wasn’t as if she’d softened toward him. It was only because of the class requirement. More than anything, she didn’t want to make Saito worry. It was her own selfish reasoning, not something worth being thanked for.
Actually, just don’t. Responding to him every time is such a pain.
Still, saying that out loud felt awkward, so Lily kept her reply short. She turned her gaze forward, searching for her childhood friend. Now that the long-awaited moment had finally arrived, her heart began to race. Pushing the unpleasant events of the last few minutes to the back of her mind, she began to scheme, wondering how she could make her childhood friend see her as more than a friend. Just then, an unbelievable scene unfolded before her eyes.
“Kyah!?”
“Ah, my bad. You okay?”
“Y-yeah. Thanks to you. Minazuki-kun, you’re thin but surprisingly muscular, huh?”
“Well, I do work out.”
“…Wow. You’re rock solid.”
“Th-that tickles, so quit touching me.”
“Oh, so this is your weak spot~ Poke, poke.”
“Gh, guh! Seriously, stop. Guh.”
Saito had caught a girl who’d nearly fallen, and now they were flirting.
“Huh?”
A fierce flame of jealousy ignited inside Lily.
──That’s not fair.
──I’ve been stuck wasting time with guys I didn’t even want to pair with.
──And everyone else got to pair with Saito? I won’t forgive this.
──I want Saito to catch me like that too.
──I want to touch Saito’s body too.
──I want to see him struggling to hold back his laughter up close.
──That’s my spot.
──Because Saito is my childhood friend.
Ugly emotions overflowed. She wanted to run to him on impulse, but she knew that was wrong. Their relationship was that of childhood friends, not lovers. She had no right to tie him down. More importantly, if she did something like that to someone who loved his freedom, he might end up hating her.
──I don’t want that.
──Anything but that.
──But I don’t want to give him up either.
──I want to prove he’s mine.
As she wrestled with these childish conflicts, so at odds with her mental age, the lip balm she’d been carrying in her jersey pocket fell out.
Sigh, today really isn’t my day.
Fed up with all the annoying things happening one after another, Lily picked up the lip balm with an exhausted expression. Her lips weren’t dry, but feeling restless with nothing to do, she absentmindedly applied it. However, because she’d done it on autopilot, her hand slipped, smearing the balm past the corner of her mouth. Lily wiped it off with a tissue. Looking at the tissue, she saw it was stained a faint sakura pink. Unable to see her own reflection, she worried there might still be some left and wiped again, carefully, so no trace of the mistake remained.
“Ah.”
In the next instant, something clicked in her head.
“Hehe.”
And just like that, her expression shifted from displeased to suddenly bright, like a child who had just thought of a prank.
If I do this, Saito won’t even notice.
Imagining the near future, Lily secretly grinned to herself.
Time passed, and it was now lunch break. Lily was eating her bento on the rooftop as usual when the boy sitting across from her started nodding off.
“You must be tired.”
When Lily teasingly pointed it out, Saito replied with a sleepy, “…Yeah,” while rubbing his eyes.
A grin spread across Lily’s face, but the drowsy Saito was in no state to notice.
“I paired up with a bunch of different girls for the three-legged race today. Matching everyone’s tempo so we wouldn’t trip took a lot of focus… Yawn. I’m beat. …Gonna take a quick nap, so wake me up in twenty minutes.”
“Got it.”
“Zzzzzzz.”
After asking her to wake him just before lunch ended, he carefreely drifted off to dreamland.
“Hehe.”
Just as planned.
This childhood friend of hers had a habit of napping during lunch whenever he did intense physical activity or used his brain too much in the morning. And during that time, unless someone made a lot of noise or shook him hard, he wouldn’t wake up. In other words, anything less than that wouldn’t rouse him.
“…Saito, you’re my childhood friend, so you can’t just wander off on your own, okay?”
Lily removed the cap from her lip balm and whispered softly, then pressed it to the nape of the sleeping Saito’s neck, leaving a small mark.
“Sold.”
And that was it. She inscribed it in a spot that was just barely visible—or not—depending on whether his blazer covered it. This was the best she could do to assert her claim for now. There was a chance no one would even see it, but that was fine. This was just to satisfy her own ugly jealousy, after all.
Still, if she could be a little greedy, she wished the words would come true—that he’d remain sold to her for the rest of his life.
That was Lily’s quiet wish.
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