The Beautiful Girl With a Kind Personality and Good Looks, Who Happens to Be My Childhood Friend, Seems to Have Eyes Only for Me
When I arrived at the basketball court near the hospital, Haru still wasn’t there.
This is the place I gazed at countless times from my hospital window seven years ago—after the accident. Today is the first time I’ve actually set foot here.
The court I watched through the window.
The sound of balls bouncing on the floor, the moment the net shook.
A place I’d arbitrarily drawn a line around, convinced it was a world no longer connected to me.
Yet now, strangely, it felt nostalgic.
I had never been here.
But memories kept surfacing from deep within my chest.
Meeting Haru in that hospital room overlooking this court,
spending ordinary moments together—our time together truly began here.
It wasn’t all fun.
After the accident, I couldn’t play basketball anymore, and my heart was breaking.
The classroom in our first year of high school, where I whispered that I liked Yamato and Haru.
Back then, I definitely gave up. Even so, Haru’s actions made me think she didn’t like Yamato.
But at the same time, the desperate state I was in back then had decisively shaped something within Haru.
“…That’s exactly why I have to settle this.”
An ambiguous relationship. Where did Haru’s feelings lie?
And the burden she still carried to this day.
To deny it, to end it—that’s why I called her here today.
After a while, a figure came running toward me from beyond the fence.
“Sorry to keep you waiting!”
Saying that, Haru smiled brightly as always.
Seeing that smile, my cheeks relaxed naturally.
“Thank you, Haru. For coming.”
“If Yuma-kun calls me, I’ll go anywhere.”
Deep within my chest, a warmth slowly spread.
—Ah, yes. I still want to protect this smile.
When I met Haru’s eyes, she looked back at me without hesitation.
No doubt, no caution—just complete trust.
That’s precisely why I have to tell her.
“Today, I have something important to tell you, Haru.”
“…About the future?”
Her cheeks flushed instantly.
Given the flow of things, that’s what she’d think.
But—before that, there’s something I need to settle.
“I’ve been thinking. Maybe you’ve been carrying something you never should have had to bear… all this time, alone.”
“…Something I shouldn’t have to bear?”
“When I had my memory loss… the emotions you were carrying in that hospital room.”
Haru’s expression froze.
“…I knew it.”
“…”
Haru remained silent, head bowed.
But the next moment—
“No… it’s not something I shouldn’t have to bear!”
Her voice couldn’t contain the emotion.
“Those people… did that to Yuma-kun? It’s a crime! ! How could I possibly forgive them?! To let someone I love get hurt and do nothing… I couldn’t do that!”
Breathing heavily through her shoulders, Haru pleaded desperately.
Her eyes looked like they could burst into tears any second.
I fought desperately to suppress the urge to hold her.
If I gave in now, nothing would change again.
“…I’m sorry, Haru.”
“Huh…?”
“I never realized. How much you were carrying. I took it for granted that you were by my side, and I never truly faced you.”
“That’s not—”
“It’s true.”
He stated it plainly.
“I was just like Yamato. I acted like nothing was wrong while staying by Haru’s side.”
“No… Yuma-kun, you’re not like him!”
Seeing Haru shake her head hurt.
“Hey… It’s okay. Leave those people to me. I’ll make sure they regret it… So—”
Burying her face in my chest, Haru repeated the same words.
That’s exactly why—I say it.
“Haru, you don’t need to do that.”
Her eyes, looking up at me, asked a question.
“Today, I decided to move past it. That sadness, that hatred.”
Saying that, I picked up the basketball I’d left at the edge of the court.
“…Yuma kun?”
Haru looked surprised.
Of course. She’d never seen me touch a ball before.
I slowly stepped to the three-point line.
She’d only ever seen it in videos.
—The sight of Yuma playing basketball.
I took a deep breath and set the ball.
“…!”
Shoot.
The released ball drew a beautiful arc—
Swoosh!!
It made a clear sound as it shook the net.
“…!”
Out of the corner of my eye, Haru was crying.
But—
“…Fufu.”
She was definitely smiling.
“How was it? Seeing me play basketball?”
“…Of course I’m happy. All the time we spent rehabilitating together paid off.”
I looked up at the hoop once more.
“I’m fine now. So Haru… you don’t have to carry it for me anymore.”
I took another shot, giving it everything I had.
The net shook.
“…Nice shot.”
In that instant, warmth enveloped my back.
Haru had thrown her arms around me tightly.
“…The sight of you, Yuma-kun, that I’d only ever seen in videos… To actually see it like this, right now…”
I turn around and hold her tight.
“Haru. I want us to walk together into the future.”
“…Yes.”
I won’t hide my true feelings anymore.
“I like you. Haru.”
“…Me too. I like you so much, Yuma-kun.”
Our lips gently touched.
—No more hesitation.
I will protect this smile, this future, absolutely.
“Yuma-kun says it’s unnecessary, but it’s better to eliminate dangerous elements, right? For the sake of our happy future together. Let’s proceed with the plan more cautiously, without being discovered…”
Maiasa