I Was Reincarnated As a Man who Steals The Protagonist’s Childhood Friend - 11 - Opportunity

“Wow, these pictures look amazing, Nakano-san!” Hibiki said as she looked at Nakano’s phone

“Thanks to your guidance, Kobayashi-san, I’ve learned to capture various beautiful shots like this.” Nakano replied in a friendly tone.

I watched the two ladies strolling together, deep in conversation. Instead of heading home, we had a club activity assigned to us by our president, as Hibiki informed us.

The theme of the activity was ‘sunsets,’ so we were out and about, searching for any spot with a great sunset view. It could be anywhere, from our school campus to the heart of the city, as long as it provided the perfect opportunity for an amazing looking image.

“I had no idea the new member was someone from my class, and the most popular one at that.” I told Hibiki at my side. Who would’ve thought that our new member was the most popular girl in our school.

“You’re right, Ueno-san. With her on board, our club won’t have to worry about getting disbanded!” Hibiki exclaimed.

“You’re flattering me, Takeshi-kun. I just share the same interest in photography, just like you.”

To be honest, I never even knew that old Takeshi was into photography. Judging from his appearance alone, I thought he’d be part of a more popular club, like a sports club.

As we chatted, we arrived at a small bridge nestled between buildings. I wasn’t sure where it led.

“Look, a perfect spot to capture the sunset!” Hibiki darted off to the bridge, while Hoshino fed bread to some fish nearby. Wait, there were fish swimming freely here?

“Sigh, I guess I should take a picture too.”

With Hibiki’s sudden dash as a cue, I searched for a vantage point to capture the sunset. But the surrounding buildings made it challenging to find a decent shot.

“Hmm, how about this angle?”

I moved to where Nakano was standing. With her in the foreground and the sunset surrounded by buildings, the view looked great. I snapped a picture from this perspective and checked it.

“Oh, this turned out really nice.”

Looking at the image on the camera, I thought it would make a perfect computer wallpaper if I had one.

“She looks beautiful even through the lens.”

“Oh, I didn’t know you were taking pictures of me, Takeshi-kun. You’re a sneaky one, aren’t you?”

Out of nowhere, Hoshino appeared behind me, peering at the picture I had taken earlier.

“N-Nakano-san???”

“Call me Hoshino when it’s just the two of us, okay?” She whispered softly in my ear, catching me by surprise.

“O-Okay,” I replied.

“Heehee, that’s good to hear.”

She stared at the photo I had just snapped, her gaze fixated on it.

“Hey Takeshi-kun, how about you take another shot of me?” Her tone was playful, a hint of mischief in her voice.

“But I think I already got the shots we need for the club, right?” I countered.

“Come on, take just one more.”

“Well, I mean—”

“Pleaaaaasee?”

She begged, employing that puppy-eyed expression that always seemed to melt my resolve. Why does it have to be this way?

“Alright, fine. I’ll capture some more pictures of you.”

As the words left my mouth, she beamed a smile that could light up anyone’s day. And so, we embarked on a quest to find the perfect spot for a photo shoot, focusing our lenses on Nakano. It felt a bit like being handed the opportunity to photograph a famous model.

After a few minutes, I sneaked a glance at what Hibiki was up to on the bridge. She seemed to be engaged in a phone conversation, and it triggered a sense of unease within me.

Suddenly, she turned our way and hastened her steps toward us. It was as if she carried some vital message—one that was about to hit me like a ton of bricks.

“Hey, I’m really sorry, you guys. I’d love to hang out longer, but my mom just handed me this super important task,” Hibiki explained.

I turned to see Nakano’s reaction, only to find her looking at me. Just when I was about to respond to Hibiki, Nakano beat me to it.

“Don’t worry, Kobayashi-san. You should take care of what you need to do. We’ll manage on our own here, won’t we, Ueno-san?”

“Um, yeah. Just like she said, we’ll be good,” I chimed in.

“Alright then, I better head out now. See you tomorrow!” With that, Hibiki waved and quickly made her exit from our location.

I turned my attention to Nakano—well, Hoshino now, I suppose. “So, um, are you heading home now, Hoshino?”

Oddly enough, my attempt to call her name yielded no response.

“Hey, Hoshino?”

“…at your place.” she seems to be saying something but I couldn’t hear it well, so I called out to her once again.

“Hoshino?”

“If you don’t mind, Takeshi-kun, could I maybe come over to your place?” 

It felt like time had stopped at those words.