“Is that really a classmate? I’d buy it more if someone said she’s a college girl.”
Yamabuki said that, her gaze slightly sharp as it fixed on Chino Misora, Souma’s childhood friend.
“I never said she was a classmate. Just a childhood friend who goes to a different high school.”
“Himura, you sure pick up on those kinds of details smoothly, huh?”
The reason Yamabuki’s gaze seemed so piercing was probably because she was starting to feel a bit of distrust toward this “childhood friend” thing, wasn’t it?
For no reason in particular, I shifted my eyes toward the field.
Among the first-year students playing the ball-toss game, one girl stood out noticeably.
A beautiful girl with long flaxen hair flowing in the breeze, radiating a bright and gentle smile.
She crouched to pick up a red beanbag, then stood and jumped lightly, tossing it into the high basket. It felt more like an elementary school sports day than a high school festival, but… what really caught my eye was, well—
“Where are you looking, Himura?”
“I was just thinking, that must be Hachijou, right?”
“So, what part of Hachijou Yonagi were you staring at?”
“Huh? Her hair…”
Compared to Kaori’s pure white or Miyajima’s platinum blonde with its strong white undertones, her hair was a clear, bright blonde, maybe closer to beige.
“…Not her chest?”
All I could see from here was pretty much her back, so why would I be looking at her chest?
Jealousy that intense is, frankly, kind of ugly. No, Yamabuki’s not exactly small herself. If you think that’s small, you owe Kiritsuki an apology first.
Besides, one busty Miyajima is more than enough—honestly, she’s already overkill.
Even if she’s a junior, I’m not so obsessed with sex that I’d ogle my friend’s girlfriend’s chest.
“…Can’t you at least show a little generosity and celebrate your childhood friend’s love coming to fruition?”
“I’m trying my best on the surface…!”
While we were having this conversation, not exactly looking like the best of friends, we slowly approached them. To anyone watching, we probably just looked like ordinary students chatting on our way to the bleachers… or so I’d hope.
We stopped where we could hear Chino-san and Souma’s voices, blending into the crowd to eavesdrop on their conversation.
…But, unfortunately, it seemed like their talk had already ended.
I turned my eyes back to the field. It looked like the next event was about to start.
“Yamabuki… and Aoi? What are you guys doing?”
“Sorry, I got curious and came to eavesdrop.”
When Yamabuki admitted that so bluntly, Souma’s eyes darted away, looking a bit awkward.
“Tch, you were listening?”
“No, we didn’t hear anything yet.”
“Yet? Weren’t you just eavesdropping…?”
“We couldn’t, okay? What were you talking about?”
“Don’t ask, idiot. You can probably guess just by looking at my face.”
“?”
When both of us furrowed our brows in unison, Souma let out a huge sigh.
“Sorry, Chino. Later, okay?”
“Yeah.”
With a light wave to the girl behind him, Souma and Yamabuki headed back to our class’s tent to prepare for the next event.
Meanwhile, for some reason, I kept feeling Chino-san’s gaze lingering on me…
That aside, unless it was my imagination, she was shooting a less-than-friendly expression toward Yamabuki, who was walking back to the tent alongside Souma.
Curious, I lingered for a moment, and Chino-san approached me.
“Um, you’re Himura Aoi-kun, right?”
“…Hold on a sec. How do you know who I am?”
“My mom… well, hehe.”
I already had a rough idea, so that was fine. But hehe? Come on.
“Don’t say it so loudly…”
There were tons of people around, so if she knew who I was, I wished she’d be more mindful of my situation.
“Oh, sorry! I’ve been watching you since we were kids, so I kinda feel close to you already.”
…What’s with this girl? She’s way too friendly.
I’m not exactly thrilled about her acting so familiar out of nowhere.
“Aoi-kun, are you close with Souma and that girl from earlier?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
Could she not call me by my first name so casually, like it’s the most natural thing?
Also, why is she talking to me like we’re already buddies?
We’re literally just acquaintances who’ve seen each other before. This is the first time we’ve ever spoken.
But Chino-san, completely ignoring my confusion, bombarded me with questions about Souma and Yamabuki’s relationship.
How long have they been close? What sparked their friendship? What does Souma like these days? What are his hobbies now? And a bunch of other stuff—almost all of it about Souma.
If she’s so curious, why not just ask him herself? I couldn’t help but think.
“Chino-san, why are you so interested in Souma?”
“Huh? Well… I just thought, even if it’s just a little, it’d be nice to go back to how things used to be. I know we can’t, but…”
“It’s not because you like him or anything, right?”
“What? No way, it’s not like that. I have a boyfriend.”
If that’s the case, maybe she should rethink how close she’s getting to a guy who’s practically a stranger.
She’s obviously an attractive girl, so it’s not surprising she has a boyfriend.
But if that’s true, there’s even less reason for her to be so fixated on Souma.
“Wouldn’t it be better to stop worrying about Souma so much?”
“Huh? Why?”
“Why? Because you have a boyfriend, so Souma’s probably keeping his distance.”
“…Is that really how it is? We’re childhood friends, so… he shouldn’t have to worry about that. Is it because of his amnesia, maybe…?”
No.
Whether he remembers or not is a trivial issue.
“What is Souma to you, exactly?”
“Huh? Like I said, he’s my childhood friend.”
“…Got it. Sorry for asking something weird. I should get going.”
“Oh, sorry for keeping you, Aoi-kun. Let’s talk again sometime!”
I’d rather not meet her again if I could help it, but saying that out loud felt too harsh, so I swallowed my words and just raised a hand in response.
One thing was crystal clear: I absolutely did not get along with that Chino Misora girl.
To her, a childhood friend is probably like family, or at least something close to it. Maybe they were that tight with each other’s families back in the day.
In that sense, it’s probably similar to my relationship with Kaori.
Thinking you don’t have to be considerate because you’re childhood friends? That’s nonsense.
It’s the exact opposite. Because you’re childhood friends, you have to be even more careful.
I have no idea who Chino-san’s boyfriend is or what he’s like.
Either way, to Chino-san, Souma is like family.
She probably feels no discomfort being closer to him than to her friends or even her boyfriend at times.
But to Souma, a childhood friend isn’t family—he’s practically a stranger.
Sure, they might’ve been close as kids, but he doesn’t remember that. Now, she’s just a beautiful girl with a boyfriend who keeps trying to close the distance.
No wonder he had that awkward expression.
Vaguely picking up on Souma’s feelings, I started walking back to the class tent, feeling oddly gloomy, when suddenly someone tapped my back—tap tap.
I stopped and turned around.
“Aoi, give me a moment of your time.”
Couldn’t she have phrased it any other way?
A familiar, charming face with red hair.
But the two-side-up hairstyle was very distinctive, and she was taller than the Hino Hana I usually hung out with.
“What’s with that face? Your eyes are as dead as ever. I came all the way here, so you should be sobbing with joy.”
She was Hino Hana Toki’s twin sister, Hino Hana Suzume, an aspiring pâtissière.
“So, why’d you go out of your way to talk to a guy with dead eyes…?”
“As if I’d come to you because I wanted to. Toki told me to keep you on hold if I saw you.”
Keep me on hold? What’s that supposed to mean?
“Just ignore her, then…”
“No way I’d refuse my adorable little sister’s request!”
Why is she blushing and so confidently calling her a cute little sister? That’s creepy.
She’s blatantly a siscon. Like, seriously, I don’t want to deal with this level of sister complex.
“I seriously don’t get it. Why does Toki bother spending time on a completely unremarkable guy like you?”
Apparently, she can’t stand that Toki’s spending her time on me.
Well, Toki seems to enjoy it, so it’s kind of a win-win situation…
But calling me “completely unremarkable” to my face? That’s a bit much. Even I’m hurt by that, you know.
I’m just glad I’m not ugly, so that’s enough for me.
If I stick around Hino Hana’s sister, who knows what kind of insults she’ll sling at me next. If only Hino Hana would hurry up and show up to “keep me on hold” like she said—
“Himura, good work earlier.”
Just as I was thinking that, a familiar voice came, and I felt a wave of relief.
“Hino Hana, you’re finally here. Did you need something?”
“Just a little something. Pass these out to your class during lunch.”
I took the paper bag Hino Hana handed me without hesitation.
Peeking inside, I saw a surprising number of baked goods.
“Wait… are these homemade?”
“?”
Hino Hana tilted her head as if it were obvious, then gave a small nod.
…This girl made cupcakes for the entire class last year, too, didn’t she…?
My eyes drifted to the older sister standing behind her, acting like some possessive boyfriend.
As an aspiring pâtissière, did she help out with these, too?
Also, her breathing’s a little heavy.
Her face is pretty, but that smug expression is kind of gross.
The way she looks at her sister is seriously creepy.
I did my best to block Hino Hana’s sister out of my vision.
“When’s your next event?”
“All my events are in the afternoon.”
“Then I’m heading out. I’ve got stuff to do this afternoon.”
“Got it. Thanks for coming by even though you’re busy.”
“It’s fine. Just don’t get hurt out there, and take it easy.”
“Yeah, I’ll keep it chill.”
With a quick wave, the Hino Hana sisters left.
I turned on my heel and headed back to the class tent.
When she’s normal, she’s normal, and there’s no doubt she’s high-spec.
Still… I have no idea what Hino Hana’s thinking half the time.
She could take a page from her sister and be a bit more expressive, I think.
☆Afterword──────────────────
The [Kadokawa BOOKS 10th Anniversary Long-Form Contest] has just started, but we’re currently at weekly rank 2, it seems. Nothing but gratitude.
This time, it’s Yamabuki-san and Chino-san glaring at each other with Souma-kun in the middle, a trio where childhood friends are a landmine, and Toki-san, with her oddly high heroine energy, balancing things out…
