My Memories Came Back, But I'm Not Telling My Childhood Friends

Chapter 1

It happened so suddenly it was almost shocking.

I was sitting at my desk in the classroom like always, just spacing out and thinking about nothing in particular.

“…Huh!?”

Out of nowhere, my vision started to shake, and a strong wave of dizziness shot right through the back of my head.

I instinctively grabbed the edge of my desk, frowning hard as I pressed a hand to my forehead. But the dizziness didn’t let up—instead, it slowly got stronger and stronger…

Then, the next moment.

Memories came flooding into my mind like a spinning lantern of my life flashing before my eyes.

—The sound of laughter from my childhood friends echoing through the park.

—The promises we made while staring at the sunset sky.

—And the pure, innocent version of myself back then.

Things that had been sleeping deep inside my head started to take clear shape.

The whole thing was so abrupt that my brain and my heart couldn’t keep up.

But the goosebumps racing across my whole body and the trembling feeling deep in my skull told me for sure that something had changed.

While I struggled under the weight of those memories, I slowly started to remember who I really was.

—I’m Reita Kawakami.

The guy who lost his memories in an accident four years ago.

After a year of total confusion, I finally accepted that the memories weren’t coming back, and I decided to start a second life. That was three years ago.

I’d accepted this new version of myself and my new surroundings, completely cut off any lingering attachment to the past, and gradually gotten my feet back on the ground in everyday life.

By now, it all felt like something that had happened a long, long time ago.

That’s how I’d come to terms with it inside my own head…

…But I never imagined it would all come rushing back now, of all times.

And right when I’d ended up in the same class as all my childhood friends I used to be so close with.

Was this some kind of god’s prank? Or maybe it was fate?

Maybe sharing a class with them had triggered something… but still.

No matter how you looked at it, it was way too unexpected.

“…For now, I should go tell them about this.”

I wanted to sort out the mess in my head, but more than that, I wanted to let my childhood friends know as soon as possible.

Most of the memories that had come back were about the days I spent with them.

Those precious memories that would never fade.

I wondered what kind of faces they’d make when they heard the news.

Would they be happy? Would they cry?

Could we go back to being close like we used to…?

Lost in those thoughts, I stood up from my seat with a burst of energy.

That’s when—

“Hey, Reita.”

Suddenly, a tough-looking guy with messy light-brown hair stepped in front of me and called out.

Sharp eyes, uniform all sloppy—classic delinquent. Ryosuke Yamanobe.

“Ryosuke… you need something?”

Looking at his face snapped me back to reality.

We’d been tight since middle school—rotten friends, really. Before I knew it, three years had passed, and now we saw each other every single day. We’d goof off together, do stupid stuff, and get yelled at—that was our thing. Even in high school, nothing had changed. We spent our days stirring up trouble around us. “Friends” wasn’t quite right; “bad buddies” fit better.

“Let’s go grab some food.”

Ryosuke tried to drag me off to the school store like always. Eating lunch with him had become a daily habit, but…

Not today. I had to see my childhood friends as fast as humanly possible.

“Sorry, I’ve got something to do.”

“Huh? Can’t that wait?”

“No, it’s important.”

I brushed him off, saying I didn’t have time to hang around. But Ryosuke looked at me suspiciously.

“…What? You’re acting kinda weird today.”

“What do you mean?”

“Dunno, you’re giving off this creepy vibe.”

“What the hell? That doesn’t even make sense.”

…It was probably because my words and actions were all mixed up between the old me and the current me after the memories came back.

The me right now was the kind of guy who’d blow off plans without a second thought.

So when that same guy suddenly said he had something important with a dead-serious face, it must’ve looked pretty strange to Ryosuke.

…Yeah, maybe I should take a moment to get my head straight first.

Honestly, the whole thing had me acting on impulse. Seeing his face helped me calm down a little. In my current scrambled state, I might end up creeping out my childhood friends too.

And more than that…

There was the question of whether they’d even accept the “me” I am now.

I’d changed a lot since back then. And not in a good way…

I couldn’t imagine they’d just happily welcome someone like me with open arms.

Besides, when I really thought about it, what was the point of getting my memories back after all this time?

The truth was, the connection between us had already been completely severed. If I ran over all excited like “Hey, my memories are back!” and they just went “Oh, cool” or “So what?” with zero interest, I’d probably straight-up cry.

I knew they weren’t cold people like that, but four whole years had passed. It wouldn’t be weird if they’d shoved me into some corner of their memories by now.

And the biggest reason…

I was the one who cut ties with them in the first place.

How the hell was I supposed to face them now, after all that?

“…Let’s head to the school store.”

The heat that had been bubbling up inside me cooled off in an instant, and I ended up walking off toward the school store with Ryosuke.