It Turns Out the Beautiful Girl Who Was Supposed to Be Aiming for My Handsome Best Friend Was Actually after Me - Chapter 3

Since that Saturday date, my mind has been full of Satou-kun.

The feeling from the movie still lingers.

Sitting next to him in the dark theater, sharing popcorn, and sneaking glances at his side profile… so handsome…

Oh no… just thinking about it makes my heart race.

I should’ve taken more photos!

And… when he saved me from that guy hitting on me… he was seriously… seriously cool… I can’t take it. I like him. I’m dying.

Also… it feels weird that I still call him Satou-kun…

Haa, I want him to call me by my name too.

Maybe I’ll secretly try next time?

Back home, I flop onto my bed while clutching my phone.

I scroll through our LINE chat history, look at the photos he sent me, and can’t help but grin like a fool.

When I sent, “Let’s go again, Satou-kun!” he replied, “Yeah, do you want to invite Yuuto too?” I felt a little annoyed…

Is it because we’re just friends… and he wants to introduce me?

Or is he nervous if it’s just the two of us?

But he didn’t seem nervous at all on Saturday… and that was kind of hot too.

Haa…

What should I do for the next date… I want to at least hold hands.

Maybe even… a kiss… B-but would that be too much?

Alright, maybe I should ask Akari for advice?

But if I tell her, she’ll definitely tease me…

Hmm… What should I do?

…Ah, that’s it!

I’ll make him lunch tomorrow!

Then we can eat together on the rooftop!

He won’t say no, right?

And if we do that, it’ll just be the two of us… Maybe something could happen?

Alright, it’s decided.

I’ll get up early tomorrow morning and make it!

I sent, “I’ll make you lunch on Monday!” and drifted off to sleep.

◇

The next day.

“Eh, really? I’m sorry about that,” he replied, but I quickly replied, “It’s fine! I’ve got this!” as soon as I woke up.

I spent the morning working hard in the kitchen to make lunch, then sneaked it into my bag and headed to school.

When I entered the classroom, Satou-kun was sitting in his usual seat.

His friend Rindou-kun was next to him and was reading a book. I took a deep breath and walked over.

“G-Good morning, Satou-kun!” I called out, and he turned around with a bright smile.

Haa… I like that smile.

“Good morning, Sendou-san. Saturday was fun! Your outfit was super cute, you know?” he bragged to Rindou-kun.

“W-Wait!! //So embarrassing…//”

My face turned bright red without thinking.

He really thought my outfit was cute! I’m so happy…//

“T-that’s! Um, today… Do you want to eat together?”

I asked, Satou-kun looked a little surprised.

“Oh, this is the one you mentioned? But… just the two of us?”

He glanced at Rindou-kun again.

I always thought they were just friends, but they really are close… I felt a little jealous.

“Y-Yeah! I want to eat with you today…” I said, and Satou-kun looked a bit unsure for a moment, then replied, “Alright… I’ll take you up on that.”

Ah… I’m so happy right now.

◇

Lunchtime.

As soon as the fourth period ended, I headed straight for the rooftop.

After a little while, Satou-kun arrived, so I opened up the lunch I had prepared.

Fried chicken, tamagoyaki, salad… and a few sausages.

I thought to myself, I worked so hard on this! and nervously stared at him.

“P-please, Satou-kun. Try it!”

“Y-yeah…”

He took a bite and smiled happily.

“Ah, this is good! The seasoning… Yuuto would definitely like it too! Whoa, Sendou-san, your cooking is perfect.”

He praised me.

I was happy, but again with Yuuto…

I made this lunch so Satou-kun could eat it, not Yuuto.

I was a little disappointed, so I asked.

“Satou-kun, you really are close with Rindou-kun?”

“Huh? Well… yeah. We’re best friends! I know everything about him. You can ask me anything about him.”

Honestly, I don’t really care about Rindou-kun.

“Th-then… Can you tell me more about yourself, Satou-kun? Like… your first love, for example!”

“First love? Ah… that was such a bittersweet memory.”

He then casually shared the story.

It turned out his first love was the same girl Rindou-kun liked. That girl liked Rindou-kun too, so she became friends with Satou-kun to get closer to him… and then Satou-kun confessed to her, misunderstanding everything… and got crushed.

“Well, nothing’s really changed since then. Even in middle school, I kept misunderstanding things and getting rejected after confessing. But through all that, I got stronger! So I wouldn’t make the same mistake again!”

Hearing that, tears suddenly welled up in my eyes.

It’s just so sad. If someone I liked came close to me like that, I’d totally misunderstand, too. That’s too hard…

“…Sniff…!!”

“Wait… are you crying!? Oh no, oh no, oh no! I’m sorry!”

He handed me a handkerchief from his pocket.

“I’m sorry…!!”

“No, no… I didn’t think you’d be this sensitive…”

“I… I really like you, Satou-kun!!”

I blurted out through my tears.

Satou-kun completely froze. Then, he said just one thing.

“…Huh? The one that Sendou-san likes… Isn’t it Yuuto?”