The Girl Everyone Admires Loves Me… and I Don’t Remember Why. - Chapter 9: The One Who Overtakes, and the One Who Is Overtaken.

The One Who Overtakes, and the One Who Is Overtaken.

“Yosh. Then, as I mentioned last time, today’s PE for the boys will be a long-distance run.”

When the PE teacher announced that, everyone let out groans of reluctance.

To be honest, I wasn’t particularly enthusiastic either.

“The start and finish lines are both right here.”

The route would take us out of the school grounds for a bit, circle around the school building, and bring us back to this field.

“Once you cross the finish line, class is over for the day. You’re free to head back to the classroom.”

After the teacher’s explanation, we lined up at the starting point.

As we did some light warm-up stretches, I could hear Chitose and the others getting fired up nearby.

“Hey, Yuuki. Since we’re doing this anyway, how about a race to see who finishes first?”

“Sounds good, Kouta. Tatsuya, you in?”

“Of course. How about this—the loser buys lunch for everyone?”

At Sakurai’s suggestion, Chitose’s expression turned a little uneasy.

“Uh… I’m kinda broke right now.”

“What’s wrong, Yuuki? No confidence?”

Sakurai’s obvious, cheap provocation worked perfectly. Chitose’s competitive spirit flared up instantly.

“Hah? As if! Fine, I’m in. All I have to do is win, right?”

“That’s right. Just win.”

Looks like the bet was on.

…Still, Chitose was brimming with confidence, but had he thought about what would happen if he lost?

His opponents were active members of sports clubs, after all.

Soon after, the starting signal sounded.

The moment it went off, several students surged forward.

Chitose was among them.

“I’m off!”

He quickly picked up speed, widening the gap with the rest of us, and in no time he disappeared beyond the school building.

That was an incredible pace—but would his stamina hold out until the end?

Well, he probably had a proper pacing strategy in mind.

…Anyway.

I raised my pace a little and moved up from the back of the pack.

Finishing too late would leave me rushed for the next class, so I wanted to give myself a comfortable margin.

I continued running steadily along the course.

Along the way, I passed a few people, but I still hadn’t caught sight of Chitose or Sakurai and the others.

They were quite far ahead.

It felt like we were nearing the end.

As I kept running…

“…Hm?”

Far ahead, I spotted a student walking.

“That’s… Chitose, isn’t it?”

Looks like he’d run out of steam.

I still couldn’t see Sakurai and the others, so the outcome of their little race was pretty much decided.

The huge lead Chitose had built—so large that he’d vanished from sight—was steadily shrinking, until finally…

“Haa… haa… hah!?”

I effortlessly overtook him.

“M-Miyase…”

“Hm?”

I heard Chitose call my name from behind, so I glanced back.

“What’s up, Chitose?”

“…Tch. N-nothing.”

“Got it.”

Come to think of it, this was my first real conversation with Chitose.

With that idle thought in mind, I continued toward the finish line.

“…Damn it.”

His muttered curse never reached my ears.

By then, the distance between us had already grown too wide.

A little while later, I crossed the finish line.

Sakurai and the others had already finished.

As I rehydrated from the water jug the teacher had prepared before heading back to class,

“Good work out there, Miyase-kun.”

Takanashi approached me.

“You finished really fast, Miyase-kun. That was amazing.”

The girls were currently having PE on the field too.

That’s how she’d seen me cross the line.

“Well, plenty of people finished even faster than me.”

“But every single one of them is in a sports club right now. Among those who aren’t, you were the fastest, Miyase-kun.”

“Was I?”

“Mhm.”

Takanashi nodded happily.

“But you could’ve finished even earlier if you’d wanted to, right?”

“Uh… why do you think that?”

“Because you looked like you still had plenty of energy left.”

She was exactly right.

Despite appearances, I actually had a fair bit of confidence in my stamina and athletic ability.

“That’s amazing, Miyase-kun.”

I was happy to be praised by her, but something bothered me a little.

“You don’t seem very surprised… Did you already know I was decent at sports, Takanashi?”

I’d never told anyone.

“…No.”

After a brief pause, she gave a small shake of her head.

“I just… had a feeling you’d be good at it.”

“I doubt anyone else has that kind of faith in me.”

“Only me… I see.”

Takanashi smiled, clearly delighted.

“Well, I should head back to class.”

“I need to get back to the others too. I’m really looking forward to lunch today, Miyase-kun.”

“Me too.”

Lunch breaks alone with Takanashi—something I’d never even imagined until recently—were quietly becoming a natural, everyday part of my life.

***

Takanashi Mitsuki’s POV.

Suddenly, I remembered his earlier question.

Did you already know I was decent at sports, Takanashi?

Yes—I did know.

Because I clearly remember how amazing you were at athletics in the loops before this one.

Back then, you looked even cooler than usual.

…I want to see that again.

As those thoughts drifted through my mind and I started walking back to the classroom,

“Mitsuki.”

Yuuki came over to me.

“Hey, Mitsuki. Starting tomorrow, could you make an extra bento for me every day for a while? Oh, and like I said before—no salad, okay? Please.”

“…”

“…Mitsuki?”

Seeing me fall silent, Yuuki looked puzzled.

I told him plainly.

“Yuuki… I can’t make your lunch anymore.”