The case where I was gradually getting buried in the heavy love of my childhood friend who had miraculously recovered from their illness was perfect!

“Well then, Rion-chan, I’ll see you later.”

“Yes. In the meantime, I’ll take care of Nagi-kun.”

“Fufu~ Please do.”

“Hey…”

With a chuckle, Mother left the hospital room.

Since it was her precious day off, she would probably go shopping a lot.

Once I confirmed that Mother was gone, I turned my gaze to Rion, who was smiling proudly.

“What do you mean by taking care of me?”

“It means just that, doesn’t it? Come on, Nagi-kun, be a good boy until Misato-san returns.”

“…You annoying brat.”

“You’re the same age as me, aren’t you?”

Well… that was true. Rion didn’t know that I was a reincarnated person, but she sometimes looked at me as if she could see everything about me. Well, even in this world, which was practically the real world, there was no reason for someone to think about something as unscientific as reincarnation.

“I’ll peel the apple.”

“Oh, thank you.”

I moved closer to Rion and sat down in a chair to start peeling the apple.

I didn’t cook much in my past life, but I got the hang of it after reincarnating in the current one. Quite impressive, isn’t it?

“What’s with that stupid grin of yours?”

“Oh, no. I’ve just become pretty good with a knife.”

“That’s true. The first time you touched one, you cut your finger, and the nurse got all flustered.”

“I really should apologize for that. Sorry to the nurses, including you, Rion.”

I tried to mimic what I could do because I thought I could do it, and I ended up cutting my finger. The wound wasn’t very deep, but it did bleed quite a bit. At that time, Mother scolded me thoroughly, and I felt bad for the worried nurses. But I think Rion was pretty flustered at that time, too.

“Rion was really worried back then.”

“I’ve already forgotten about it.”

“…..”

I see….. Rion easily sensed it even though I tried to hide my expression. She seemed engrossed in eating the apple, so she didn’t seem to care much.

‘…She’s cute when she’s so straightforward like this.’

In a way, because it was my second life, even though we were the same age, I couldn’t help but see her as a younger girl. Rion was honestly… different from anyone I had ever met. She always got perfect scores on tests, could cook, and was quite attractive. Her height might be short, but she had a decently large chest. That was the most attractive part about her!

“Ahem!”

“What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing.”

Well… I need to be careful. Rion would immediately catch on if I had strange thoughts. It was likely that she saw it in my expression, but she didn’t seem to mind and that put me at ease.

‘…She’s unbelievably inscrutable. That’s Rion for you.’

There were many smart people, but I couldn’t measure her with such words. I knew that if I ever made an enemy of Rion, something incredibly troublesome would happen, but I also knew that this world was undoubtedly a realistic world where people wouldn’t think about unscientific things like reincarnation.

‘When I was in middle school, a senior bothered Rion, but he transferred a few days later. I don’t know what happened, but it was clear that Rion had a hand in it… It’s a bit scary the more I think about it.’

However, even if I thought she was that scary, I had no intention of leaving her. I considered her as a little sister, but more than that, there was a cute childhood friend I had always wanted. Above all, I couldn’t leave her all alone in this pitiful state.

“So why are you staring at me?”

“Don’t you mind?”

“I don’t… It’s just that I’m curious.”

“I see, you’re right. Well, a beautiful girl is always a sight to behold.”

“Completely shameless, aren’t you?”

Even when I called her a beautiful girl, Rion didn’t blush or anything. She was probably used to words like “cute” and “beautiful” from her friends and countless confessions she had received over the years. Perhaps my words as a childhood friend didn’t make her heart race.

“The apple was delicious, Nagi-kun. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll be right back; I need to use the restroom.

“Take your time.”

☆☆☆☆☆☆

Leaving the hospital room, I headed for the toilet to refresh myself before returning.

However… the moment I was about to enter the room, I heard a mutter from within.

“Why… Why is my body not strong?”

It was a voice so faint, yet my ears picked it up clearly. It wasn’t a voice on the verge of tears, but rather one that had accepted everything and was prepared to face what lay ahead. That’s how it felt to me.

“…Don’t be ridiculous.”

Why are you giving up on your own? Why are you understanding things on your own? Even if I thought this way, there was no point.

“Sigh…”

I couldn’t help but let out a sigh. I am a reincarnated person, a special individual who died once and was reborn to enjoy a second life. So why don’t I possess any special abilities? Couldn’t the gods have granted me some extraordinary powers, like the protagonists in manga and anime who can easily save a single girl?

“Wishing for things that don’t exist is futile.”

I let out a breath and reached for the door to go inside. It was at that moment…

“I want to be with Nagi-kun more.”

With those words, something inside me screamed. It was probably my heart.

In general, childhood friends, or in this case, the childhood friends from games and manga deeply ingrained in one’s memories, are usually close to the main character. I’ve longed for such a relationship, but… as I’ve said before, the childhood friend I have in my reincarnated life is an unabashedly beautiful girl.

“Why are you so lost in thought? Nagi-kun, you don’t have any worries, do you?”

“What do you think of me?”

As always, my beautiful childhood friend on the bed had an inscrutable expression, and I sighed.

“They say happiness escapes when you sigh. So please don’t sigh in front of me.”

“That’s just a superstition.”

“True, it’s a superstition, but when I see someone sigh, it makes me feel down too.”

…She sure says some complicated things.

If she knew that I had heard her muttering outside, she would probably… No, it’s her we’re talking about. She’d probably complain without changing her expression.

‘You know, Rion… if you knew I heard such muttering, wouldn’t it cloud your expression?’

But I absolutely won’t say that, and I’m here to regret even the slightest change in my attitude.

“Nagi-kun.”

“What?”

“You’re strange, Nagi-kun. You’re in your third year of junior high, and you have high school entrance exams ahead of you, but you’d rather play with me, right? Instead of coming to visit me, who can’t move properly due to illness, it would be more meaningful to play with your friends, don’t you think?”

“You’re… being too…”

“I’m not saying something wrong. Nagi-kun, you prioritize your childhood friend too much.”

“…..”

Hey, Rion… You say that, but in reality, if I didn’t come, you’d call and complain.

“Normally, people would find a childhood friend like me annoying, you know?”

“Yeah, you’re really annoying.”

“Ehh…?”

No, no, what are you talking about, Rion-san?

You have a supremely annoying personality, and anyone who witnesses our interactions would say the same, right? I said it without hiding it, and Rion is staring at me with wide eyes.

I chuckled as I looked at her like that and said this.

“You’re annoying, but I still come here to play with you. So, if you understand, give up on the idea of me not coming here anymore.”

“…Huh? Are you calling me a fool?”

“That’s right, you fool.”

“Grr… You’re impudent, Nagi-kun!”

For a while after that, we exchanged such banter.

And then, when the nurse came to check on us and scolded me, Rion laughed quietly. But… I hoped she’d continue to be by my side.

Not only for now, but always…

☆☆☆☆☆☆

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