Chapter 38 

Morning classes ended, and it was lunchtime.

In a secluded part of the school where no one ever came, Satoru and Reika met up.

“Here. Hold on to this for a while.” 

“Gladly. I’ll make sure to wear it with care.”

“You don’t have to say it so bluntly.”

With that exchange, Satoru handed his folded gym uniform to her.

Then, with a calm and composed expression, she slowly and elegantly pressed the gym uniform to her face.

“Could you not go sniffing it with that cool and serene vibe like it’s the most natural thing ever?”

“That’s something I simply can’t fulfill.”

There was a vague sense of discomfort watching the scene, but since she looked so genuinely happy, he had no choice but to let it slide.

“Hehe. It smells just like when we were together. Not as strong as it was back then, but still…”

“Stop, stop! Don’t be so specific!”

Having her spell it out in such vivid detail was too much.

Overwhelmed with embarrassment, Satoru quickly made an excuse to flee back to the classroom right after handing her the gym clothes.

※※※

“Yoohoo~ Oh? Where’s Takashima-kun?”

“He stepped out for a bit. Shame, huh? He’s always gone when you show up.”

“Why is that, I wonder…”

“Well, he’ll probably be back soon. You came here to make a move or something?”

“Well, that’s part of it… I was thinking of trying something a bit bold today.”

“Bold, huh? What are you planning?”

“You know how we’ve got physical measurements this afternoon? I was thinking of asking if I could borrow a long-sleeved gym uniform.”

“Whoa, seriously? No hesitation at all, huh. Normally only couples do that kind of thing.”

“Really? I’ve got friends who’ve borrowed from guys they’re not dating.”

“Even so, you’d have to be pretty close to ask something like that…”

“Well, I guess it depends on the person. But I figured depending on his reaction, I might be able to get a read on how he sees me.”

“Yeah, fair enough. If he’s not into you, he probably wouldn’t lend it. Though if he says no, it’s game over.”

“Don’t even think about that possibility! Anyway, I need to know if Takashima-kun even has a long-sleeved one!”

“Hmm, I think he does? But it’s been hot lately, so I haven’t seen him use it.”

“So there’s a good chance he has it!?”

“Probably.”

“…Alright!”

Just as Ruri struck a triumphant pose, Satoru returned to the classroom, letting out a small sigh—perhaps from his recent ordeal.

“Speak of the devil. He’s back.”

“Welcome back!”

“Ah, and Amamiya-san is here too. Hello.”

“Yoohoo~!”

She was the kind of person that would definitely not make things go smoothly—especially after what just happened with the gym uniform.

Keeping a straight face, Satoru quietly braced himself internally, ready to deal with whatever might come.

“She has a favor to ask you, by the way.”

“Huh? A favor for me?”

“Y-yeah…! Um, it’s not a big deal, and you can totally say no if you want…”

She was already putting on the whole cutesy act.

From this kind of setup, whatever the request was, it definitely smelled like trouble.

“What is it? If it’s something I can do, I’ll gladly help.”

He couldn’t blatantly refuse, so he gave the standard polite reply.

“…D-Do you happen to have a long-sleeved gym uniform? If so, could I borrow it…?”

At that moment, only one thought passed through his mind:

‘My girlfriend has such an amazing sense for danger.’

Reika had once praised Satoru for having good intuition, but it seemed her own foresight was pretty sharp too.

Satoru had honestly thought there was no way something like this would happen—but of all the people, for her to ask this…

“Ah… Sorry, it’s been so hot lately that I haven’t brought the long-sleeved one.”

“Wait, didn’t you keep it in your locker?”

“Yeah, but I figured it was only gonna get hotter, so I took it home…”

“I-I see~…”

“As a girl, I get it. Even in the heat, sometimes you want long sleeves. I should’ve kept it here. Sorry…”

“N-No, it’s okay! If you don’t have it, then there’s nothing you can do! Don’t feel bad, Takashima-kun!”

The fact that it genuinely wasn’t with him gave Satoru the confidence to play it cool.

Thanks to that, he managed to deliver a perfectly plausible excuse with no hesitation.

He felt a bit guilty, like he was embracing his worst self—but as Reika had said earlier, it ended up naturally following the “I’m sorry, I don’t have it” route.

“Well, in that case… want to borrow mine?” someone else offered.

“Ehh, no thanks.”

“What the hell is this discrimination…”

In the end, Satoru managed to get through the situation without causing any drama.

Afternoon class time.

Everyone had changed into their gym uniforms and gathered at their designated locations.

“Ugh, isn’t it colder than I thought?”

“…Agreed. These open-air hallways have a constant breeze even in this season, and it’s pretty chilly.”

They’d assumed short sleeves would be fine, but being stuck in a breezy area made it feel much colder.

Despite the unexpected chill, they went around the school undergoing each measurement item on the checklist.

Once everything was completed, Satoru returned to his classroom.

Inside, it was noisy and crowded, especially around a certain spot.

“Hey, Reika! Your boyfriend’s here in this school, right!?”

“Hehe. Well, I’m wearing his gym uniform, so yeah, I guess you could say that.”

“Wait, didn’t you say he wasn’t from this school before!?”

“I only asked, ‘Do you think he’s from this school?’ Remember? That’s not the same as saying he wasn’t.”

“Ugh, you said it in a way that made it sound like he wasn’t!”

The crowd was gathered around Reika’s seat, practically surrounding her.

There she sat, wearing Satoru’s large, long-sleeved gym uniform, sleeves adorably too long for her, casually responding to everyone’s questions.

(…I’m such an idiot. Of course this would happen.)

Only now did Satoru realize that lending her his uniform would lead to exactly this situation.

He was so stupid that he didn’t even feel flustered anymore—just resigned.

More than that, the oversized fit looked unexpectedly cute on her.

(Damn it… she’s too cute.)

He’d never had anyone wear his clothes before, but now he finally understood why terms like “boyfriend jersey” and “boyfriend shirt” existed.

“So Reika’s boyfriend is in our school! He’s probably super high-spec, and if we eliminate couples that are already known, we can totally narrow it down, right!?”

“Try not to go hunting him down too hard, okay? He might get scared. And then I’d have to comfort him,” she said with a playful smile, holding the sleeve up to her lips.

“C-Comfort him? What do you mean by that?”

“Hehe, I wonder?”

“Wh-Why do you make that sound so sexy!?”

“That’s all I’ll say. From here on, feel free to keep guessing. And if someone does actually find him… then I’ll say yes without dodging it.”

Her words weren’t just directed at her excited audience—they were clearly meant for Satoru as well.

Even someone as clueless as him could feel the message loud and clear.