Hey, Best Friend. How About A Kiss Today Too? - Chapter 75: "We're going to fight!"

“We’re going to fight!”

Again, I had a dream.

It was so vivid, a dream I still remember clearly.

“Sacchan… no, Sagiri-chan, are you there?”

It was during summer, during elementary school lunch break.

I was still young and had come to the school infirmary because of my health issues.

“Ren-kun, this way…”

“Sac… Sagiri-chan!”

Sagiri gradually improved her health and was able to attend school. But she didn’t recover immediately, and she often felt unwell, thus frequently ending up in the infirmary.

“I brought snacks! Are you hungry? Let’s eat together!”

“Yeah, thank… sorry, Ren-kun…”

“Huh, for what?”

From my perspective, seeing Sagiri suffer at home, unable to come out, was something unfortunate, nd I was just happy that we could go to school together. But Sagiri didn’t seem to feel the same way at the time, as she lay on the infirmary bed, looking down.

“Because I’m always causing trouble for you…”

“Really? I don’t mind, though.”

“But because of me, Ren-kun… you can’t play with your other friends…”

She couldn’t go outside due to her weak health. She should have known the pain of that time vividly, yet she worried about me like this. There were times when I cried and suffered from my own situation, but that was only natural. Yet even in this situation, she thought of me rather than herself. That’s why Sagiri is kind.

“It’s okay! When Sacchan gets better, she’ll quickly make friends with everyone!”

And I still put Sagiri first. It’s true that I had fewer opportunities to play with my other friends, but that wasn’t a problem at all. Because being with Sagiri was much more worth it.

“Really?”

“Yeah! Because Sacchan is cute!”

“C-Cute… ah…”

“Huh? What’s wrong, Sacchan… oh, I guess calling you that at school is no good, right? Sorry, Sacchan! But you really are cute! Everyone in class says so!”

“Ren-kun, you’re such a… idiot!!”

“Huh!? Sorry! Why are you angry, Sacchan!?”

“I-I don’t know! I don’t know some idiot like Ren-kun who says weird things!”

“Why!? Let’s eat snacks together, Sacchan!”

For some reason, I angered Sagiri that day, and she wouldn’t speak to me. It’s unimaginable now, but Sagiri had a frail constitution and a shy personality, so she couldn’t make friends easily. That’s why I remember being the mediator and doing various things in the class. But why Sagiri was angry is still a mystery to me.

“I don’t need it! I don’t need any of it! I don’t need snacks, and I won’t go to the festival with you either!”

“But…! Sacchan, you were really looking forward to it!”

“If you don’t know, then you don’t know!!”

It was a childish stubbornness.

Sagiri was kind but stubborn in strange ways. Once she said something, she stuck to it, so even if it wasn’t her true feelings, convincing her was very difficult.

In the end, I remember reconciling with her just before the summer vacation after days of persuasion.

The reason I had this dream now is probably the opposite of that—.

***

“Mmm…?”

I hate mornings. My body feels heavy, my head feels heavy, and this time, my heart feels heavy too.

The unease spreading in my chest is erasing the dream I just had. Reality over dreams—this issue was very significant.

“Depressing…”

Still in the hazy vision of half-awake eyes, the first thing that came to my mind with clear thinking was what happened two days ago.

I made Sagiri cry.

The difference in our thoughts hurt Sagiri.

After that, Sagiri burst into tears and, after crying for a while, she just said “I’m going home” and dashed out of my room.

I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t say anything. I thought if I said something wrong, I would hurt Sagiri again.

That was Thursday’s event.

Following that, Friday was a solitary session of deep reflection.

I thought about apologizing to Sagiri many times. But feeling awkward about making her cry, I couldn’t go to her house or even contact her.

I’m a complete coward.

Of course, there was no contact from Sagiri’s side either.

And as such, it was now Saturday.

The first holiday since the start of summer vacation feels very blue. Not the blue of the sky or the sea, but a cold blue.

And the day after tomorrow, I have to do radio calisthenics duty with Sagiri at that park. Maybe the world is being tough on me.

First, this weekend, I have to contact Sagiri, but no, I have to meet her and apologize to her. And we have to reconcile and welcome the summer vacation with fresh feelings.

Time is finite, the deadline is the day after tomorrow.

Honestly, it’s very painful.

Because the last time I made Sagiri cry so clearly was back in elementary school.

So, is that why?

Does my body ache in proportion to the anguish in my heart? Specifically, my abdomen feels painful.

“…Ah, I’m awake.”

“…Huh?”

My voice slipped out unintentionally.

And I thought it was a dream.

After all, the person I felt like I had to do something about, the person I liked who I had made cry, was straddling my stomach while I was asleep.

“Renji!”

“Yeah!”

I have no idea how this situation came to be.

But there was Sagiri, essentially mounting me.

“We’re going to fight!”

She declared it towards me.

Completely disregarding the fact that we had just woken up, I couldn’t understand what my best friend was thinking.