It's a Chastity-Reversed World, But It's Different From What I Imagined? - 37

Chapter 37: The First Request

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

Youhei had moved on to finishing the cheer song. Since there was nothing left for me to interfere with, Seiya called me to the clubroom, saying he wanted to talk about the first request.

“Thanks for gathering, everyone. Today, I’d like to talk about our first activity.”

Kauru-sensei was stationed in the infirmary, so he didn’t participate. The four boys gathered in the clubroom and sat wherever they pleased.

“Youhei, how’s the cheer song coming along?”

“Ninety percent done. The rest depends on the final prep before the real thing.”

Youhei, still typing in the last parts on his computer, answered Seiya with one earphone pulled off.

“So, Hayato. Have you decided to go from temporary member to full member?”

“W-well, I guess I’ll join. You don’t really know what kind of things we’ll do unless you actually become a member. A-and besides, seeing Amamiya-san talking so casually with Yoru lately, I’m curious how that happened.”

Ever since I went to the sewing club, Juri had started greeting me. The topics were always about clothes—saying she had finished making adjustments, or asking me to try on cosplay outfits from a new anime.

Hayato still hadn’t managed to talk with girls. Maybe if I brought him along to the sewing club next time, he could get closer to them too?

“Good. That makes four members now. Then let me explain our first activity… Here’s our first mission. The team we’ll cheer for will be…”

“Will be…?”

Hayato leaned forward and threw out the question.

“The swim team.”

At Seiya’s words, Hayato jumped up. When I looked at him to see what was going on, he was pumping his fist in the air. I had thought this chastity-reversed world was full of herbivore types, but maybe Hayato wasn’t one of them.

Suddenly, the face of Yuuna Aoyanagi came to mind. I couldn’t help wondering why Seiya had chosen the swim team.

“Why the swim team? There are plenty of sports clubs, right?”

“Yeah? Well, first, because we got a request from them. And second, because the big upcoming tournaments were for the swim team and the tennis team. The cheer squad is going to the tennis team, so I thought we’d go to the swim team—the one that wouldn’t have anyone cheering for them.”

“…I see.”

“Is that a problem?”

Even I didn’t know why I was bothered by it.

“No, no problem.”

“Alright then. At this weekend’s tournament, we’ve been given a slot to boost the swim team’s morale. So everyone, be ready for that. After that, we’ll cheer as the athletes are introduced.”

Once Seiya finished giving instructions, everyone moved to action—coordinating the outfits to be used, making the cheer song and choreography for the swim team, and so on. A day, then two passed, and I got so busy that I stopped thinking about it. Maybe Yuuna didn’t know the cheering squad would be coming, because she hadn’t responded to any of my messages at night.

ーーーーーーーーーーー

On Friday after school, with preparations for the first request complete and everyone heading home early to recharge, Seiya called me to the clubroom.

“Tomorrow’s finally the day, huh.”

When I got to the clubroom, he handed me a soda from the fridge. The air conditioning made sure it wasn’t hot, but the fizz going down my throat felt refreshing.

“Ahh~”

“Hehe, Yoru, you really do drink like it’s delicious.”

I had always liked soda.

“Yeah, it’s getting hotter lately. It feels good when the bubbles go down your throat.”

“True. I’m not great with it, but I don’t hate it either.”

“So? Why’d you call only me?”

“Mm. There’s something I wanted to ask you, Yoru.”

Seiya averted his eyes, as if whatever he was about to talk about was a little hard to say.

“What, come on. We’re best friends, right? You can tell me anything.”

“Haah… You always do this, Yoru. You just say embarrassing things so casually.”

“Hm?”

I couldn’t tell what Seiya was trying to say.

“No, it’s fine. I’ll just ask straight out. What is a childhood friend to you, Yoru? Wasn’t her name Yuuna Aoyanagi? She’s on the swim team, right? When I said we’d cheer for the swim team, you looked kind of conflicted, so it stuck with me.”

An unexpected name came out of Seiya’s mouth, and I was shaken. The soda I’d been drinking caught in my throat and I choked.

“Cough cough! W-what’s with that all of a sudden. Yuuna’s just a childhood friend.”

“Yeah. That’s what I’m asking. What kind of presence is she, really? Just a childhood friend? Or maybe a girlfriend? But I’ve never seen you two together like that, so I wondered.”

What Yuuna meant to me… Even I hadn’t thought about it. Yuuna had always been by Yoru’s side. We were always together from kindergarten, all the way until middle school.

In middle school, we were in different classes for the first time. Yuuna had already been swimming since elementary, but in middle school her talent bloomed, and she got busier with competitions. We only spoke at night.

Eventually, it dwindled to just messages, and now it was nothing more than exchanging goodnight greetings. But back in middle school…

When everyone avoided me, when even my little sister called me gross, Yuuna was the only one who still spoke to me. Because of her, I could keep going to school.

In the first year, I realized Yuuna didn’t see Yoru as a boy. And shortly before graduation… I realized that Yuuna also thought Yoru was gross.

“To me, Yuuna was… She was a big sister, a friend…Someone I depended on.”

“Depended on?”

“Yeah. She was the only one who kept talking to me when no one else would. I think I kept troubling her all the time. Yuuna even sent me signals that she wanted to distance herself, but… I had no one else. I was dependent on her.”

It felt arrogant to call that affection. If I hadn’t transmigrated into Yoru’s body, Yoru would have stayed dependent on Yuuna and ended up a shut-in. If not, Yoru’s heart would have died in middle school.

The day he got his high school entrance exam results, he decided to die—and that was when I slipped into the gap in his heart. And the moment that truly finished off Yoru’s heart… It was when Yuuna had called him gross. That was when Yoru and I completely fused, and switched places.

“…I see. Yoru, you were carrying a lot, huh.”

I had thought I’d never tell anyone. I had thought no one would ever listen. I had thought no one would ever understand. But the tears came naturally, and my heart warmed at the realization that I could finally confide my troubles in someone besides Yuuna.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

T/N: So.. So the old Yoru is already dead…?