The Story of Waking up With My Beautiful Childhood Friend and Realizing We Had Spent the Night Together - Chapter 23

Chapter 23: Are Fast Runners Get Popular Even in High School?

“—Next week, the sports festival will be held.”

Morning homeroom.

Our homeroom teacher, Goto-sensei, announced this with an unnecessarily stern expression.

Most of the class reacted with a casual “Oh, okay,” but some of the boys…

“Yeahhh!!”

“I’m gonna do this, you bastards!!”

“Heh… If my calculations are correct, the probability of her falling for me during this sports festival is 99%… Victory is guaranteed.”

…showed an overwhelming amount of enthusiasm.

Well, the reason was obvious…

“……”

Sitting up straight with a composed expression was the school’s Madonna.

…And as for me?

(…Hmm.)

I lifted my shirt slightly.

Underneath, my abs had started to show some definition.

…Honestly, I was looking forward to it, just a little.

Not that I trained that seriously or anything.

But I was curious to see how much my record would improve.

That said, I wasn’t exactly passionate about it…

“—The sports festival, huh?”

“…You’re not interested, Renji?”

“Nope. I mean, most people just half-ass it, right?”

—After school.

I headed to the gym, and surprisingly, Renji tagged along.

Looked like he didn’t have any girls to hang out with today and was bored.

Now, he was lazily hanging from a pull-up bar.

(…Well, yeah, that makes sense.)

A sports festival isn’t something to get excited about at our age.

I agreed with Renji’s take.

…But, of course, there was one person who just couldn’t let it go.

“—Pathetic!! What kind of man acts like that?!”

The one growling at us was my junior, the basketball girl, Inoue Asahi.

She often showed up whenever I was at the gym.

“A real man moves his body and competes with his muscles!!”

“Is this the Showa era?”

“Are we in the countryside?”

Renji and I retorted at the same time.

We sighed, exasperated.

…Also, why the hell are you always here like it’s normal?

“…Don’t you have club activities?”

I asked if she should be heading to the gymnasium instead, and Asahi tilted her head.

“Of course, I’m going after this. The volleyball club is using the gym right now, so I’m just killing time.”

“Oh… I see.”

That made sense.

Our school had two gymnasiums, but the volleyball, badminton, and rhythmic gymnastics clubs were all competing for space.

Apparently, she showed up here whenever her club lost the battle for gym space.

“More importantly!”

She put her hands on her hips and let out a sharp huff.

“Senpai, listen up! You, as a weak-willed herbivore, need to learn an eternal, unchanging truth!”

Oh?

I continued doing squats, only paying her about a third of my attention.

Asahi puffed out her chest and declared:

“—Boys who run fast are popular!”

…Isn’t that just a thing for elementary school kids?

“By the way, Senpai, what’s your 50-meter dash time?”

“…A little over seven seconds.”

“Same here.”

Neither Renji nor I were particularly fast runners.

At best, we were average or slightly above.

Last year… I think my record was 7.1 seconds?

I just barely missed breaking into the six-second range.

“Pathetic! Any guy who can’t run a 50-meter dash in under seven seconds has no human rights!”

“That’s a wild statement.”

“At the next sports festival, both of you are getting into the six-second range!”

“And if we refuse?”

“You can’t!”

After saying that, Asahi suddenly turned around.

“Oh, but of course, take it easy, Onee-sama! I’ll make a perfect, reasonable training menu just for you!”

“Huh? Oh, um… thanks.”

She spoke to Mizuki, who was slowly pedaling on a fitness bike.

For some reason, she had come to the gym today too.

A stunning tall beauty working out—naturally, people around her gulped as they watched.

“…Wait, Onee-sama? What’s up with that?”

“Don’t ask me. I have no idea.”

Renji muttered as he watched them, and I just sighed in response.

At some point, those two had become “sisters” and were now happily discussing training plans.

…And then, on her right ear, I noticed something shining.

“…Huh? Did she always wear an accessory like that?”

Renji, sharp-eyed as ever, tilted his head in confusion.

I turned away and said nothing.

Seeing that, Renji smirked knowingly.

“…For once, you actually have good taste, huh?”

“Shut up.”

I walked away from him and headed for a different machine.

Behind me, I could hear his laughter, fueling my embarrassment.

—And so, after finishing our workout that day…

“Here, Senpai! Wipe off your sweat properly!”

“Hey, quit it. I can do it myself.”

“Ohh, lucky you, Iori-kun. Getting taken care of by the basketball club’s idol.”

“I-Idol?! That’s not true…!”

Asahi blushed and fidgeted in embarrassment.

…Too easy.

So easy that I seriously worried about her future.

She’s definitely the type who should never set foot in a host club.

Renji also shook his head, as if saying, “This girl is hopeless.”

“W-Well? I mean? I do get a fair amount of attention? Maybe calling me an idol isn’t too much of a stretch?”

She was starting to get carried away.

Stop it. The real deal is sitting right next to you.

That “real deal” was looking at Asahi with a puzzled expression.

“Asahi-chan, do you have someone you like?”

Asked by her beloved “Onee-sama,” Asahi crossed her arms and thought for a moment.

“Not really. I mean, I have you, Onee-sama!”

With a cheerful squeal, she hugged Mizuki’s arm.

Mizuki, a little bewildered, patted Asahi’s head as if to calm her.

Hey, get off her, junior. That spot is mine.

“Well, if I had to say…”

After getting a good amount of head pats, Asahi let go of her crossed arms.

She smirked mischievously and walked toward me.

“If Senpai ever gets dumped by his current girlfriend… I wouldn’t mind taking him in, you know?”

She placed a finger on her cheek and even threw in a wink.

It was obviously just her trying to act mature, and I couldn’t help but feel drained by it.

“Ah! What’s with that face?!”

Asahi pouted and lightly smacked me.

Both Renji and Mizuki chuckled at her overly deliberate behavior.

Then, I suddenly turned to Mizuki.

“…Yukimura-san, could you show her how it’s really done?”

“Huh?”

I decided to have the most mature woman here demonstrate the difference in class.

Mizuki hesitated for a moment, then stepped toward Asahi.

“—Like this?”

“Nghhff!!!”

She placed one hand on her knee, bent her waist slightly, pressed a finger to her lips, and winked.

The moment Asahi saw that, she completely lost it.

Her body arched back as far as possible, twitching as if she’d just taken a critical hit.

…What kind of reaction is that?

“…Th-This is the real deal… This is true allure… Ugh, the path to being a mature woman is so far away…!”

Asahi physically expressed her inner turmoil.

Would it sell if we called this “The Melancholy of Adolescence”?

“Asahi-chan, I think you’re going in the wrong direction. You’d be fine just sticking to the cute style.”

“Ugh, shut up, you damn playboy. I don’t need your opinion.”

“So harsh!?”

And just like that, amidst the lively chatter,

I spent a surprisingly enjoyable time with my girlfriend and friends.

—Then, on the way home.

Mizuki and I walked side by side after meeting at the nearest station.

“…Sorry about today. I ended up introducing you to them.”

“No, it’s fine. I didn’t mind.”

Remembering the earlier events, Mizuki smiled slightly as she spoke.

Her words and expression reassured me.

“—Besides, you looked like you were having fun, Iori.”

“…Did I?”

“Yeah.”

Well, maybe she was right.

Spending time with those two was a different kind of fun compared to being with Mizuki, my girlfriend.

That’s what having friends is like, I suppose.

“Hey, Iori.”

“Yeah?”

“…Are those two important to you?”

…?

I turned to look at her, caught off guard by the sudden question.

Mizuki didn’t meet my eyes. She just kept looking straight ahead.

…What does she mean by this?

Are those two important to me?

Sure, they’re friends. But to call them important? That feels a bit exaggerated…

I was about to say that—but then Mizuki looked at me.

Her deep eyes, like the vast night sky, gazed at me steadily.

With that look, I couldn’t bring myself to joke around.

So, I thought about it.

“…Yeah.”

Are those two important to me?

If I had to rank priorities, Mizuki, my childhood friend, would always be number one.

That much was certain.

But setting that aside…

“They’re important… That’s obvious, isn’t it?”

“…Yeah, I thought so.”

—It happened again.

I felt a strange sense of déjà vu.

That same lonely smile.

Why does she look like that?

Before I could ask, Mizuki reached out and held my hand.

“—Let’s go home, Iori.”

“…Yeah.”

Surely, we would do this over and over again.

Holding hands, walking this familiar path home, countless times.

…Believing that, I squeezed my childhood friend’s hand in return.