Be careful with the laid-back beauty who took a liking to me. Otherwise, it will be too late! - Chapter 26: I Often Get Sick

Chapter 26: I Often Get Sick

On Saturday morning, we played basketball together as a group of five. Usually, I just practice shooting while chatting with Asahi, but since we had more people, we were able to have a proper game.

What surprised me the most was Sayō’s athletic ability. Since the boys and girls are separated in gym class, I’d never seen her play sports before.

Although she had said that she wasn’t particularly good at basketball, she made several shots during the game.

Sayō really is amazing. I need to step up too, so I don’t feel embarrassed standing next to her.

Monday morning, I waited at the station, recalling yesterday’s events as I waited for Sayō to arrive. Usually, we meet up on the same train, but today, she didn’t show up.

I thought maybe she missed the train, so I checked my messages to see if she had sent anything, but there was nothing.

(Should I be worried?)

After a short while, I received a message from Sayō saying, *“I’m staying home today. It’s just a slight fever, so don’t worry about me.”*

(A fever… I hope she’s okay. I’ll go visit her after school.)

I quickly replied with, *“Got it. Take care,”* and headed to school alone.

Since Sayō lives by herself, I couldn’t help but worry about her.

She seemed perfectly fine yesterday when we were playing basketball… but maybe I missed the signs that she wasn’t feeling well?

As I was lost in thought, someone called my name from behind.

“Good morning, Kawai-kun.”

“Oh… Good morning, Shiina-san.”

My response was a bit delayed, and Shiina-san tilted her head in concern as she looked at me.

“Is something wrong? Oh, speaking of which, where’s Sayō-chan? You two usually come to school together, right?”

“Yeah, she’s staying home because she has a fever.”

When I answered her, Shiina-san muttered softly, “I see.”

“You must be worried. It’s always concerning when someone you care about has a fever. You should go visit her later.”

“Yeah, I’m planning to. I wish I could go right now, but we’ve got school to attend first… Shiina-san?”

Shiina-san was watching me with a playful smile, her expression full of mischief.

“I can really feel how much you care about Sayō-chan. It’s sweet.”

“!”

“I hope she gets better soon.”

Shiina-san gave me a warm smile.

Even though we didn’t plan it, we walked together toward the school. As we went, one of our classmates, Kōsaka Ren, came running up from behind us.

“Morning, Akari, and… Kawai?”

He gave me a curious look, as if wondering why I was walking with Shiina-san.

I hadn’t talked much with Kōsaka before, but it felt nice that he remembered my name.

In class, I tend to stay in the background, but Kōsaka is one of the most popular boys, always surrounded by friends and attention.

Oh, I noticed that Kōsaka calls Shiina-san by her first name. I wonder what kind of relationship they have.

“Morning, Kōsaka-kun. Kawai-kun looked a bit down this morning, so I was just listening to him.”

“Huh? Something wrong, Kawai?”

Most of our classmates don’t know yet that Sayō and I are dating, so I wasn’t sure how much to reveal to Kōsaka.

“Um, well… Sayō—uh, Koga-san—has a fever, so she’s resting at home today…”

“What? Koga-san is sick? That’s worrying. You’re pretty close to her, huh?”

Kōsaka asked, looking like he already suspected something.

“Yeah, we haven’t told many people yet, but… Sayō and I are dating.”

I mumbled the last part, but Kōsaka heard it and gave me a friendly pat on the shoulder.

“Oh, that’s big news!”

“Kōsaka-kun, it’s a happy thing, but you can’t go around telling anyone, okay?”

“Don’t worry, I won’t. It’d cause a huge stir. I do have a lot of questions, but I’ve got a meetup now, so I’ll catch you later, Akari, Kawai.”

With that, Kōsaka rushed off, apparently having somewhere to be.

“Doesn’t Kōsaka-kun always seem like he’s in a hurry?”

Shiina-san chuckled as she watched him disappear into the distance.

“Shiina-san, are you and Kōsaka…?”

“We went to the same middle school. He’s kind of like the wind—he comes and goes just as quickly.”

“I see…”

So, according to Shiina-san, Kōsaka is like the wind.

＊＊＊

“Je-lly…”

“Huh? Are you feeling better now?”

“Yeah, I’m fine now…”

After school, I stopped by Sayō’s place with the things she asked me to bring. She slowly sat up in bed and took the jelly I had bought for her. It seemed she still had some appetite.

“Thanks for coming to visit. I get sick quite often… but my fever’s gone down, so I should be able to go to school tomorrow.”

“That’s a relief. Well, I should probably get going— Sayō?”

Just as I was about to stand up, she grabbed the hem of my shirt, her eyes glistening as she looked up at me.

“Don’t go…”

“!”

Why does she seem even cuter than usual?

“All right, I’ll stay.”

I gently took her hand in mine and sat back down.

“Tell me about school today, Hinata.”

“Sure, no problem.”

Since she hadn’t been there, she was curious about what had happened at school today.

“Well, a lot happened… I got to know Kōsaka better… Oh, and I told him about us.”

“Hmmph.”

Before I could finish, Sayō puffed her cheeks like a little squirrel.

“Uh, Sayō?”

“Don’t mind me… I was just doing a squirrel impression.”

“O-okay…”

As I recounted the day’s events, Sayō listened with interest and a bright smile.

“Hey, Hinata… We haven’t done it in a while, but how about we grab something to eat after school again soon?”

“Yeah, that sounds good. We haven’t been out much lately.”

It had been raining often recently, so we hadn’t stopped anywhere on the way home for a while.

“I’m craving a custard éclair. There’s a place in the shopping district that has great ones. What do you think?”

Sayō always seems to know where the best custard desserts are. Over time, I’ve really come to appreciate custard thanks to her.

“Let’s go tomorrow if you’re feeling up for it.”

“Yes!”