The Beautiful Girl With a Kind Personality and Good Looks, Who Happens to Be My Childhood Friend, Seems to Have Eyes Only for Me
side Kamiya Yamato
(Finally, the day is over.)
My steps toward the station felt as heavy as lead while I thought that. It felt like I’d been at school for about 48 hours. Compared to the hellish morning, things were still bearable now. At least, my mind wasn’t blank with panic.
…There are three Y.K.s.
That alone was reassuring. I didn’t understand why the person who posted on the bulletin board hadn’t specifically named me, but it suited me just fine. I hadn’t been identified yet. So I could just carry on as usual.
Passing through the ticket gate, I desperately tried to figure out how to deny the bulletin board post. “There’s no proof,” “It’s a rumor” – would words like that really stop it?
The moment I stepped onto the platform, a familiar figure caught my eye.
Koharu and—Kusunoki Yuya.
I felt a little relieved. Kusunoki was also caught up in this because of his initials. So I could relax. Forget about me—he’s different. You can tell just by watching him normally. He’s a good guy.
“…Ah.”
Koharu noticed first.
“Yamato Senpai, Good work.”
“Ah, good work.”
I tried to sound as normal as possible.
“Are you two going home together?”
“…Y-yes.”
Kusunoki beside me gave a small nod.
His complexion was poor. Dark circles under his eyes. His back was slightly hunched.
Today must have really gotten to him.
That was when it happened.
Whoooooo… Clunk, clunk… Squeeeeeek
The train glides into the platform.
We boarded in silence. It was evening and the train was crowded, and it was all I could do to hold on to the straps. As the train swayed, I leaned my face slightly closer to Kusunoki.
“…Kusunoki.”
“Y-yees.”
His shoulders jerked.
“As someone who’s been through the same thing…”
I spoke as quietly as I could.
“…If you keep this up, they’ll keep doing it tomorrow too.”
Kusunoki’s throat made a small sound.
“But… about the bulletin board…”
“I don’t think you’re the kind of person who’d do something like that.”
I stated it plainly.
“You don’t even know if what’s written on the board is true, right?”
Kusunoki’s eyes widened, and she said in a hoarse voice.
“…Y-Yeah, you’re right…”
“So listen.”
I continued.
“We don’t know about the first-years yet, but what if just us take action?
Like, erase the post from the bulletin board.”
Kusunoki hesitated, but slowly nodded.
Just then, the train announcement sounded.
“Next stop, Yawata, Yawata—”
“Ah, Yamato-senpai.”
Koharu lifted her face.
“We’re getting off here.”
“Ah… same station, huh.”
“Yes.”
The doors opened, and pushed along by the flow of people, the two of them stepped off.
“Kusunoki, I’ll contact you later.”
When I said that, Kusunoki gave a small nod.
The doors closed.
I stared blankly as their figures flowed along the platform and grew distant.
Then.
—Tch
Amidst the commotion of the evening rush, I thought I heard a sound like someone clicking their tongue from somewhere.
side???
“Whoa…”
A gasp escaped me. Looking up, the high school gymnasium was much larger and taller than the middle school one. The ceiling lights were dazzling, and the court floor gleamed.
Today, I’d come to watch a practice game for the high school basketball club I’d be joining next month.
And—I’d heard Yuya-kun would be there too.
Suppressing the fluttering in my chest, I climbed up to the second-floor spectator seats. Looking down at the court below, several high school students were already dribbling balls. The sound of dribbles, the squeak of shoes, the shouts. Everything looked sparkling.
And then, the front row. There, I spotted Yuya Kusunoki.
“…There he is.”
I murmured softly and sat down in a seat slightly behind him, where I could see his back. From this distance, I could see his face too. Even just his profile made me think he was handsome.
Then.
“Excuse me, may I sit next to you?”
A soft, sweet voice spoke, and a cute girl sat down beside me. Silky hair, well-defined features. She looked like the very embodiment of the word “refined.” I could tell instantly she must be popular with boys.
…Maybe Yuya-kun likes girls like this too.
Thinking that made my chest sting.
Then, suddenly, she said.
“Do you like the boy in the seat in front?”
“Huh!?”
My heart leapt. How did she know!?
“Uh, well… um… y-yes…”
I nodded awkwardly, and she chuckled softly.
“Hehe, so youthful. Aren’t you going to confess?”
“N-no… I’ve never even talked to him. It’s just… when I see him, I often think he seems kind… and before I knew it, I’d fallen for him…”
I said it in a voice so small I felt pathetic. And for some reason, I’d even told a complete stranger the reason I’d fallen for him.
“So, I’ve been pining for a whole year now.”
She narrowed her eyes slightly.
“Shall I help you two get together?”
“…Huh?”
For a moment, I didn’t understand what she’d said.
“You two are starting at that high school next month, right?”
Saying that, she pointed at a player on the court.
“I’ll make sure you two are dating by the time you graduate.”
My heart thumped.
There’s no way she could do that. Even though I thought that, my ears couldn’t reject her words.
For a whole year, I couldn’t do anything. But I didn’t want it to end just by watching.
“…W-what should I do?”
Before I knew it, I’d asked.
She smiled brightly—this time pointing at a boy sitting on the bench beside the court.
“Make sure that guy, Kamiya Yamato, likes you.”
“Eh, no—”
The words came out reflexively. I frantically covered my mouth.
“I, I don’t want to…”
Her smile didn’t falter.
“I won’t forgive that man.”
Her voice was quiet, yet chillingly cold.
“I’m planning to take him down. I need you for that plan. And Kusunoki Yuya is in danger too.”
“Wh-what do you mean Yuya-kun is in danger!?”
I leaned forward involuntarily.
“It’s a calculated move. Not something like physically hurting him… probably.”
She tilted her head slightly. My heart clenched at her vague words. Yuya-kun was in danger.
“Anyway, I think he’ll be pushed to his mental limits. At that moment…”
She looked straight at me.
“You—stay by the side of a weakened Kusunoki Yuya. You’ll blend in naturally. Just support him.”
This must be what they mean by the devil’s whisper.
I think it’s despicable.
I think it’s underhanded.
Getting close that way is wrong.
And yet.
—Even so, even so, I want to be Yuya-kun’s girlfriend.
That feeling overwhelmed everything else. Slowly, I nodded.
“…I understand.”
She smiled, looking satisfied.
“Then, after this match ends—”
She said, turning her gaze back toward the court.
“…I’ll introduce you to Kamiya Yamato.”
Maiasa