Iโve Been Reincarnated as the Childhood Friend of a Doomed Heroine. Since I Donโt Want to Get Caught up in Her Bad Ending, Iโll Make Sure She Ends up Happy
After that, we decided to stop by the local bowling alley.
We happened to spot it while walking, and since Shinori said she wanted to go, I tagged along.
I didn’t have anything else to do, so I agreed without question.
I figured it was better than some weird date-like atmosphere, so I went along with her suggestion.
But that was a mistake.
ใ
Unlike me, who was a homebody, Shinori seemed to have been here many times before and was enjoying the game with practiced ease.
Naturally, since we were playing together, a score was displayed, and this was the problem.
I had absolutely no confidence I could beat Shinori.
Watching Shinori knock down the pins with such effortless ease, I started getting a little competitive.
Since my rebirth, I’d boasted above-average skills in nearly every ball sportโbut that was only because I’d had experience in my previous life.
Bowling was something I’d barely touched in my past life, so I just couldn’t grasp the knack for it.
โAh! Another one left standing!โ
โAhaha. Looks like I win this game too. Should I give you a handicap next time?โ
โTalk back like that too much, and you’ll regret it.โ
โNot bad for you.โ
We finished the third game, but the gap was clear.
Honestly, a handicap would be a blessing, but provocation gets a guy fired upโit’s just our nature.
As I prepared to throw the first ball of the fourth game, Shinori asked.
โWhat kind of person is Shichikajo Senpai?โ
โHuh?โ
Watching the slightly off-track ball’s trajectory, I pondered.
Yukimi, huh.
I recalled my interactions with her over the past week or so.
Then, without pause, I turned back.
โShe’s just like the rumors say. Bad personality, harsh on people, always looking down on others and won’t rest until she’s snapped at someone.โ
“Huh. That’s quite the assessment. What did she do to you?”
โShe ignored my greeting when we first met, then complained that my face was unpleasant. I argued back. Then yesterday, she finally singled me out and started picking on me.โ
The second throw also failed to hit the pins properly, ending the first frame.
Feeling fed up with both the game’s outcome and my memories of Yukimi, Shinori also gave a wry smile.
โI’d heard bits from Hiiragi-san and the others, but you really did get into a fight with Senpai. You’re fearless, aren’t you?โ
Apparently, the information had reached Shinori too, without me knowing.
Kisa seemed to be getting along well with Shinori lately, so she probably mentioned it during casual conversation.
Right after my embarrassing display, Shinori, who had just landed a perfect strike, gave me a glare.
โActually, Toyono-kun, you’ve been hanging out with girls a lot lately, haven’t you?โ
โHuh? Really?โ
โYeah, you have. You always go home with Hiiragi-san, and you seem close with Senpai, who’s famous for not getting close to anyone.โ
โDid anything I just say suggest I’m close with that girl?โ
โYou called her โthat girlโ.โ
โโฆโฆโ
I hadn’t meant anything by it, but Shinori’s glare only intensified.
What the hell is this?
What kind of situation is this, exactly?
โI wouldn’t call her โthat girlโ if we weren’t close.โ
โWe’re not close? More like hostile.โ
โโฆWell, that aside, you’re with me right now.โ
โThat’sโฆ true.โ
She was right.
It was true that getting caught up in Akito and Shinori’s pairing scheme had brought me closer to Shinori.
But the increased time with Kisa and the forced contact with Yukimi? That wasn’t my doing.
I paused to reflect on that once more.
I’d grown close to the main heroine, Shinori, and by solving her problems, it seemed like a flag was about to be set.
With the next heroine, Yukimi, we’d somehow agreed to at least recognize each other’s names and exchange greetings.
Hell, I was even walking home together with the sub-heroine, Hiiragi Kisa.
โฆHuh?
Wait, am I pulling off more eroge protagonist moves than the original protagonist?
Smoothly deepening relationships with heroines, meeting up like this on my day off to hang out.
And even going after a sub-heroine who’s supposedly un-romanceable? What utter lack of restraint.
โWait, no, no. This is no joke!
Faced with a gaze that made me feel like I was being seen as a womanizer, I frantically shook my head.
โIt’s a coincidence! Besides, you were the one who asked me out today, Hanesaki!โ
โThat’s true, butโโ
โAnd anyway, I talk with Akito and the others too, right? I’m not just hanging out with girls all the time!โ
“You’re really going all out with the denial. โฆfufu, well, I’ll let you have that one.”
My desperate persuasion seemed to work, as Shinori laughed and dropped the subject.
Breathing a sigh of relief, I threw the final shot of the fourth game.
Before I knew it, it was the last frame. I’d been using too much brainpower on the conversation and my thoughts, completely losing focus on the game.
Finishing the last frame with a glorious gutter ball, I glanced at my score displayed on the monitor.
And my eyes widened.
โHuh!? I scored 48 points in one game!?โ
โAhahaha, you really didn’t notice. Mission accomplished~โ
โYouโฆ you didn’t ask those weird questions just to distract me, did you!?โ
โEh~? Isn’t it because you have something to hide that you got distracted? Don’t blame me for that.โ
โYouโฆ!โ
She was a schemer.
I ended up losing by more than triple the score with ease, suffering a crushing defeat in the final game too.
As I leaned on my knees, head hanging low, she peered down at my face, looking thoroughly amused.
It was unbearably annoying.
Plus, it’s true I have something to hide, so getting flustered is understandable.
For me, both Shinori and Yukimi are Akito’s girls, so I can’t help but feel inferior.
Even though I was acting because he was useless, I honestly feel guilty that it deepened our relationship.
After settling the bill and leaving the bowling alley, Azunori asked.
โAbout what I said earlierโฆโ
โWhich part?โ
โThe part about Toyono-kun being a womanizer.โ
โHey. I denied that.โ
We walked at a distance neither too close nor too far, trying not to be drowned out by the car noise.
โIs there anyone in there you like?โ
โโฆNo.โ
I’d never even thought about my own romantic feelings.
Shinori needs to get together with Akito, and Yukimi and I just don’t click.
As for Kisa, she’s just being teased one-sidedly.
When I answered seriously, Shinori puffed out her cheeks.
โHow mean! You say that when we’re on a date right now?โ
โN-no, no. What are you talking about? A date? Absolutely not!โ
โPfft, ahaha. What’s with that reaction? Are you embarrassed? It’s obviously a joke.โ
โI’m not embarrassed.โ
I was just going to break the flag.
Though it turned out to be a needless worry.
โHaaah, today was fun.โ
โI’m glad you enjoyed it.โ
The sky had turned a deep, rich color.
Perhaps because we’d spent so much time just walking without doing anything else, it was already this late.
Even though I felt like I was being treated like a toy, I was satisfied if Azunori had enjoyed herself.
If she started getting tormented by suicidal thoughts, I’d be the one in trouble too.
On the way back, we didn’t head to the station; we parted ways near Shinori’s house instead.
Watching her receding figure as she waved goodbye, I murmured to myself.
โStill, she doesn’t seem depressed at all right now, does she?โ
I couldn’t say for sure if Shinori’s emotions were stable, but at least she didn’t strike me as the type to give up on life and commit suicide. That was my impression for now.
Above all, the image I had while playing the gameโof a mentally unstable heroine who commits suicide in almost every routeโhad already been dispelled.
If anything, she even gave off a mischievous, scheming little devil vibe.
โWait, is it really okay for this to just be friendship?
I ask myself, but no answer comes.
I recall Shinori’s dazzling smile I saw multiple times today, but who exactly was that smile for?
A friend? A childhood friend? Orโ.
โDammit, am I an idiot? โOrโ is a no-go. That’d kill me.โ
As long as I, Toyono Kyota, don’t know Shinori’s internal feelings toward me, I can’t make a call.
But still, I’ll be careful.
If I keep this up, I might end up stealing the spotlight from the main character in this eroge, even though I’m just a background character.
After all, it’s the protagonist’s job to be in a romance comedy.
Holding my aching stomach, I headed home.
Maiban
Well, he already broken the death flag as Despair usually comes off you have nothing to fall back on