I Confessed My Sexual Preferences to My Online Game Best Friend, and the Person Who Showed Up at the Offline Meetup Was the Cute Girl from My Class - 39

Chapter 39: Just One Minute

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In a corner of the gym, the boys’ badminton semifinal. The instant the final shot stabbed into the court, the referee’s whistle rang out.

“That’s it! Twenty-one to nineteen. The winner, Class One—Kono!”

I dropped to one knee, breathing hard from deep in my shoulders. Sweat dripped down, forming small puddles on the floor. The result was a narrow loss. Even with my experience as a prefectural tournament ranker back in middle school, and with my predictive ability that I had honed through online games pushed to the limit, the wall that was the current badminton club captain proved to be too high for me to overcome.

“…Damn it. I was just one step away.”

Frustration surged up inside me. But when I lifted my head, what awaited me wasn’t what I’d expected. It was the heat of my classmates.

“Sato! That was close! You were seriously amazing!”

“Hey, Kazuma, I had no idea you could move like that! You were insanely cool!”

Kaito rushed over first, slapping my back repeatedly. From the girls in our class came warm applause and voices of “Nice job, Sato-kun!”

In all my life of living as a background character, this was the first time so many people had recognized Sato Kazuma as an individual.

…Top four. …I kept the promise, Haru.

I murmured that to myself and wiped my face with a towel. I hadn’t won the championship. But inside me was a clear sense of response of having given it my all. And more than anything, the reassurance that I had properly stayed on the stage of the bet we’d made over that “selfish wish” between us. As I basked in that lingering feeling, my phone vibrated briefly in my pocket.

【Rin: Rooftop. …Come alone. Right now. Please.】

…

My heart leapt harder than it had during the match. Next up was the girls’ basketball final. For her, the ace, to call me out at a moment like this… The urgency seeped through the words.

I brushed off Kaito’s invitation with a vague “I’m going to the restroom,” and dashed out of the fevered gym.

I was in an empty school building. All the students were gathered either at the soccer field or in the gym for basketball. I ran through the silent hallways and pushed open the heavy door at the very top floor.

—Bang.

A piercing June-blue sky stretched before me.  At the center of the rooftop, where the wind rustled the fresh green leaves, stood a back with a swaying ponytail.

“…Shinonome-san.”

When I called out, her shoulders jerked, and she slowly turned around. The moment I saw her expression, I caught my breath. There was no trace of the perfect “angel” smile she wore at school. Her lips trembled slightly, and the hands resting on her knees were shaking so badly she couldn’t hide it.

“…Kazu. …I thought maybe you wouldn’t come.”

“There’s no way I wouldn’t. …What’s going on? The final’s about to start.”

“…I’m scared. …The opponent’s third-years. Apparently there’s a current prefectural select player. …Everyone expects me to win because I’m the ‘ace.’ The whole class… They all think there’s no way we’ll lose. …But my legs are frozen. I can’t move.”

That was who she really was. More hardworking than anyone. More delicate than anyone. Haru, the clumsy girl who had fought beside me for three years. I walked up to her and stood beside her at the fence.

“…Haru. Did you watch my match just now?”

“…Yeah. …I watched the whole thing.”

“I lost. …At the end, it was my own mistake that caused me to lose the match. …But nobody laughed at me. …You wouldn’t either, right? …Who are you fighting for? For the people who only see you as the idol called ‘Rin Shinonome’?”

I looked straight into her eyes.

“That’s not it. …You’re Haru, the one who spent three years beside me getting beaten up while smashing raid bosses. …Just like always, go wild on the front line. …If anyone knows how strong you are, it’s me, your partner.”

When I told her that in the same insolent tone I used in voice chat, Rin stared at me blankly for a moment, then let out a tiny, fading laugh.

“…You really do have a foul mouth, don’t you. …But thanks. …I think I’ve calmed down a little.”

She turned forward, but the trembling in her fingertips still hadn’t stopped.

“…Hey, Kazu.”

“What.”

“…Just one minute. …Can I be selfish?”

As she said that, she turned toward me and her slender hand, hesitantly extended, wrapped around my right hand.

“—!?”

Hot. From her damp palm, the pounding of her heart transmitted directly to me. She squeezed my hand tight, then laced our fingers together—like lovers holding hands—and pulled it toward her chest.

“…What are you doing…?”

“…Just one minute. …Let me stay like this. …My MP is zero right now. …If I don’t get a buff directly from you… I can’t win.”

She gently rested her forehead against my chest. A soft scent—sweet and aching, the same mix of sweat and soap I’d smelled on the court—tickled my nose.

…So close. So close I couldn’t tell which of our hearts was making all that noise anymore.

“…Your hand’s really big, Kazu. …And warm.”

“…You’re just too cold. …Come on, take a deep breath.”

“…Mm. …In… out…”

Against my chest, she breathed steadily. From our intertwined fingers, her weakness flowed into me. And my heat melted into her.

Three years ago, those moments when I typed “You can do it” through a screen… Were they all for this single instant of shared body warmth?

The silence felt so deep, so sweet, that the thought crossed my mind.

“…Hey, Kazu. …I’m okay now.”

She slowly pulled away from me. But she still didn’t let go of my hand. When she lifted her face, the “shaking girl” was gone. Her cheeks were faintly flushed, and her eyes shone with a brilliance I’d never seen before— The strongest partner who belonged only to me. Haru.

“…One minute’s up.”

“Nihihi. …Thanks! I received the best buff ever!”

She gave my hand one last tight squeeze, then, reluctantly, let our fingers part. My freed right hand still clung to the sensation of her sweat and lingering warmth.

“Kazu! …Watch me. …Right now, I can’t lose to anyone. …I’m going to win it all. …Sato-kun, make sure you watch from the very front, okay!”

“…Yeah. …I’ll watch without blinking. …Go, Haru.”

“Mm! …I’m going!”

She left behind her brightest smile and dashed off the rooftop. The sound of the door closing echoed. Alone on the rooftop, I stared at my right hand.

…I thought my heart was going to break.

Only now did the strength drain from my body. But deep in my chest remained the comfortable weight of something she’d given me, something called trust.

Was that an act between best friends? Or were we already standing somewhere that excuse no longer worked? I was sure I’d find the answer the moment she sank the perfect shot on the court.

From below came a roaring cheer announcing the start of the girls’ basketball final. Letting the wind cool my heated cheeks, I slowly started walking toward the court where my beloved partner was waiting. The early-summer sky of June stretched endlessly high—clear and transparent, as if blessing our future.

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