I Was Cheated on by My Girlfriend but My Devilish Junior Now Yearns for Me - Chapter 17

Chapter 17   Santa’s Wallet

The club I belong to, “Start,” devotes most of its activity time to matches.

There isn’t much practice because we don’t have any significant goals. The most we aim for is to win the basketball tournaments between university circles and use the prize money for a drinking party. It’s a group of people who just want to move their bodies and enjoy playing basketball, so it’s natural that our activities revolve around matches.

Right now, the men’s and women’s games are being played in rotation. With the club activity time nearing its end, only the women’s game remains. The women’s match had just started, and I was stretching out my legs, feeling the heaviness of fatigue. My legs felt weaker than usual, a clear sign that I hadn’t exercised properly in months. Even though I’m still young, it’s scary how sluggish your body can feel after a period of inactivity. It makes me worry about how things will be once I enter the working world.

As I was thinking about that, a plastic bottle suddenly hit my thigh with a dull thud.

“Here you go.”

Toudou pointed at the bottle that had rolled onto the floor. I saw that it was a brand-new sports drink. He must have bought it from the vending machine in the lobby.

“Oh, thanks.”

I quickly forgave him for throwing the bottle and thanked him. Toudou sat down next to me, wiping away his sweat.

“In the end, Shinohara, right? She never came down from the second floor.”

Toudou glanced in Shinohara’s direction. I followed his gaze and saw her mid-yawn. It was clear that there was no one else on the second floor besides her, and she had no one to talk to.

“…I feel bad.”

“Yeah, you should. Leaving a girl alone for two hours—that’s pretty rough.”

Toudou laughed, amused, and I smiled wryly in return.

“Well, she’ll probably forgive me, but I’ll make it up to her by treating her to a meal today.”

“Yeah, you should.”

Lunch wouldn’t be too much of a hit to my wallet. Originally, I had planned to get her to treat me, but given the circumstances, it couldn’t be helped. As I thought about this, I turned my attention back to the game, where one player was clearly standing out. It was Akemi, Ayaka’s friend and Shinohara’s senior.

She intercepted a pass, spun around in a roll move to create space, then used a sharp dribble to break into the opponent’s territory. After faking a shot to make two defenders jump, she easily launched a three-pointer. Her movements were smooth and efficient, with no wasted effort.

“You can really tell the difference with people who play in clubs,” I murmured as I watched the ball swish through the net. Toudou nodded in agreement.

“Seriously, why would someone that good join our club? There are tons of basketball clubs at this university, and ours is one of the lowest level.”

I tilted my head at Toudou’s comment. He had a point. It was strange when you think about it. Even if her club had the day off, she went out of her way to come to a city gym and join a low-level circle.

“…Maybe she’s just blowing off some steam,” I said without thinking much of it. I didn’t think overthinking it would lead to any other conclusion.

Toudou seemed to agree, and we spent the rest of the time chatting.

The game ended in a crushing victory, 19-6, with Akemi’s team dominating the match.

◇◆

We arrived at a retro café, where Shinohara sat down in one of the chairs in the back. The dark brown chair creaked slightly under her weight, and when I sat down, it made an even louder noise. As soon as I sat, I clasped my hands together and apologized.

“Sorry about making you wait so long. I’ll treat you.”

“It’s fine. I agreed to come along in the first place.”

“Nope, I’m treating you.”

Shinohara waved her hand, trying to decline, but I wasn’t having it. If treating her to a meal was enough to make up for leaving her waiting for two hours, it was a small price to pay. After seeing my persistence, she finally gave in with an “Alright, alright.”

The last thing I was worried about was her holding a grudge even after I treated her, but from what I knew of her personality, I was confident that wouldn’t happen.

“You looked so happy playing basketball, Senpai. It was kind of cute, so I wasn’t really bored at all.”

“I’d rather you called me cool instead,” I replied, and Shinohara pouted slightly.

“Hey! When a girl calls a guy ‘cute,’ it’s actually a huge compliment!”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“What’s with that response!?”

Shinohara protested as she opened the menu. I realized belatedly that I hadn’t thought about the risk of her ordering an expensive lunch after our playful banter.

But luckily, everything that came to the table was reasonably priced. After we’d eaten more than half, I couldn’t help but apologize.

“Sorry, did you feel like you had to order something cheap because of me?”

“No, I just felt like eating this.”

“Got it.”

“Yup!”

Shinohara nodded and twirled her fork, bringing a bite of pasta to her mouth. Despite her usual cheeky attitude, she had a certain thoughtfulness about her. Maybe that’s why her sharp remarks never really bothered me; in fact, I found them kind of refreshing. I’d only known her for about two months, but it seemed I’d come to enjoy this dynamic between us.

“Senpai, do you like café au lait?” Shinohara asked, eyeing the iced café au lait I’d ordered with mild surprise.

“Yeah, I do. Why?”

“You just seem like the type to drink black coffee.”

“No way. I can’t handle that stuff yet. It’s not even good.”

“I just meant you seem like the kind of person who would drink it to act more mature. You’re an adult, but kind of childish at the same time.”

“Who are you calling a kid? I’m just not willing to spend money to look cool. I’m not made of cash.”

Shinohara nodded as if she finally understood, agreeing, “I suppose if you’re short on money, that makes sense.”

It was a pretty rude thing to say. Shinohara herself looked like she had no shortage of money. The beige trench coat hanging on the chair looked expensive, and underneath it, her black turtleneck and slim necklace also seemed pretty high-end.

“Why do you have so much money anyway?”

I knew it was a tactless question, but Shinohara didn’t seem to mind and answered without hesitation.

“I work a lot. I even did some side gigs around Christmas.”

“Yeah, makes sense. Maybe I should start picking up more shifts too.”

As for me, I was only working once or twice a week these days. For someone who wasn’t in any clubs and studying humanities, that was very few hours. Back when I was dating Reina Aisaka, I worked five days a week and had saved up quite a bit. Now, I was living off my savings, but those funds were running out. Shinohara didn’t seem too happy about my contemplation, though.

“It’d be boring for me if you weren’t home as much.”

“Hey, coming to my place three or four times a week is what’s weird. Let me work.”

“I’m a salon model too, you know. You could depend on me for money. I could at least cover your food.”

Salon modeling and the temptation of being a kept man—both ideas tugged at me, but the question I ended up blurting out was about the former. After all, being a salon model wasn’t something most university students knew much about.

“Do salon models make good money?”

“It depends on the person, but I make about 40,000 yen a month. Pretty decent, right?”

“What—?!”

Adding that to her regular job, she was making several times what I earned. Honestly, it made my head spin. Even so, I wasn’t about to let her pay for me. If word got out that I was mooching off a younger girl, it’d be a nightmare.

“No, I can’t do that. There’s no way I’d let a younger girl pay for my stuff.”

“That’s the Senpai I know.”

Her response left me slack-jawed.

“…You were testing me? That’s just mean!”
“I-I didn’t think you’d actually take it seriously!”

Shinohara put down her fork and wiped her mouth with a napkin.

“Well, it can’t be helped. Tonight, as a special treat, I’ll cook dinner for you. I’ll put my heart into it,” she said, flexing her arm in an exaggerated show of strength.

I grimaced at her display, which must’ve been amusing, as Shinohara burst out laughing.

“So, what do you want for dinner tonight?”

When she asked, I instinctively crossed my arms. Shinohara was an excellent cook, so honestly, I’d be happy with anything. But saying “anything” is the worst answer for someone about to cook, so I told her the first thing that came to mind.

“Meat and potatoes.”
“Something simple again? I said I’d put my heart into it.”
“Is that a no?”
“No, it’s fine. Alright, let’s go shopping then.”

With that, Shinohara stood up. She thanked the staff with a “Thank you for the meal” and exited the café ahead of me. Though I was the one paying for both of us as a way to make up for leaving her waiting for two hours, she still thanked me. She’s a conscientious one, I thought as I went to settle the bill.

Suddenly, my phone rang. It was an incoming call, but the number wasn’t saved in my contacts. Yet, something about it felt familiar.

“Hello?”

“Hello, Yuuta-kun.”

I instantly recognized that clear, familiar voice—so much so that it almost hurt. Memories I had pushed away resurfaced.

“…Reina?”

The caller was Reina Aisaka, my ex-girlfriend, whom I had broken up with a few months ago.