The Story of Waking up With My Beautiful Childhood Friend and Realizing We Had Spent the Night Together - Chapter 29.1: Moonlight

Chapter 29.1: Moonlight

“—To be honest, the situation is pretty bad.”

“……”

—The next morning.

Renji and I were exchanging information on a bench in the schoolyard.

According to him, Asahi was now in a seriously bad position within the club.

I had expected it.

But hearing it again only made my anxiety grow stronger.

“I knew that Morishita-senpai was a fan of Sekiya-senpai, but… I never thought she was this serious about it.”

“……”

“She’s putting pressure on classmates and underclassmen, really cornering Asahi in a nasty way. She… seems to be struggling a lot.”

Those words made me recall Asahi from yesterday.

That usually lively and cheerful Asahi had an expression tinged with anxiety and fear.

“…Sorry. I should have told you sooner.”

“No…”

Renji hung his head, but I shook mine.

Even if I had known earlier, I probably wouldn’t have been able to do anything.

From what I’d heard, Asahi was already as good as “checkmated” the moment Sekiya-senpai confessed to her.

No matter what, I couldn’t see a way she could have avoided this situation.

“I tried to do something about it too… but it’s no use. As long as Morishita-senpai has her eyes on her, there’s nothing that can be done.”

If I were to compare it to shogi, Asahi right now was like a king piece left completely exposed, stripped of all its gold and silver generals.

With Morishita-senpai, a powerful piece, staring her down, it was only a matter of time before she was cornered.

But if there was still a move left to play…

“…The only option left is for her to quit the basketball club.”

Renji said it as if he didn’t want to say it at all.

“…So it’s come to that.”

“…Her position in the club probably won’t recover. And on top of that, it’s starting to spread outside the club.”

Saying that, Renji handed me his phone.

Looking at the screen, I was at a loss for words.

“That first-year, Inoue-san. Seems like she’s being ostracized in the basketball club.”

“Seriously?”

“Ahh… yeah, she really messed up. No way she should’ve gotten involved with the captain’s favorite.”

“If this keeps up, it’s not just the club—she might lose her place in the entire school.”

“……”

“If she’s going to run, now’s the time.”

“…But that means…”

“—Senpai! Please come cheer for us at the next tournament!”

The image of Asahi excitedly talking about basketball flashed through my mind.

She was a complete basketball fanatic.

She even said she came to this school just to play basketball.

And now I was supposed to tell her to quit?

“It’s not like she’s aiming to go pro, right? There’s no need to throw away her entire school life just for a hobby.”

Hearing that, I closed my eyes instinctively.

Renji was probably right.

No matter what choice was made, there was no way to resolve everything perfectly.

There was no convenient solution that would make everything okay.

I knew that… but was this really the only way?

“There’s no time, Iori. If it’s you, she’ll listen.”

“……”

As Renji murmured that… I could only bite my lip.

SIDE: Asahi

—Even after that, my situation only kept getting worse.

“…Hey, Nao-chan.”

“……”

Friends I used to be close with until just yesterday would turn away the moment they saw me.

We used to practice together, go home together, laugh together… but now, they felt like complete strangers.

Had they stopped being my friends?

Or had I never really had friends to begin with?

I didn’t know. But I didn’t even have the energy to think about it anymore.

At first, it was just within the basketball club.

But now, even in the classroom…

“Hey, don’t you think Inoue-san is kinda…?”

“Yeah, I mean, she always acted kinda cutesy, didn’t she?”

Whispers. Giggles.

Murmurs and sneers reached my ears.

Each time, it felt like another piece of my heart was being chipped away.

There were still a few people who spoke to me.

But that was probably only a matter of time.

I could feel my footing slipping away little by little.

And in that loneliness, the only thing keeping me together… was the words of one upperclassman.

“—If anything happens, come talk to me.”

That one sentence was what supported me now.

It wasn’t like me at all, and it felt embarrassing.

…But I knew it was a genuinely warm and sincere sentiment.

(…Iori-senpai.)

Was he worried about me?

If I reached out, would he listen?

I’d lost count of how many times I’d thought about it.

But each time, I forced myself to stop.

Right now, I was a walking disaster.

If I relied on him, I’d only drag Iori down with me.

And that was the one thing I had to avoid at all costs.

—And then, after practice that day…

“—Inoue.”

As I was the last to leave the locker room, three upperclassmen stood before me.

Their voices were sticky, clinging.

…They were the ones who were always with Morishita-senpai.

“Eh…”

I instinctively tensed up.

Seeing that, they sneered.

“—Come with us for a bit.”

Saying that, they walked out of the locker room.

I stood frozen in place.

Gradually, my legs began to tremble, and tears threatened to spill.

But I had no choice.

With a feeling of utter despair, I followed after them.

“…Get in.”

“Ow…!”

I was kicked in the back and stumbled forward.

They had brought me to the gym storage room.

…The same place where Morishita-senpai had cornered me before.

“…W-What is this…? I haven’t done anything…”

Hearing that, the seniors closed in with eerie smiles.

“You haven’t done anything? Yeah, right. Cozying up to Sekiya-kun like that.”

“…!”

“Ahh, poor Morishita. Betrayed by a junior she cared about so much.”

They laughed shrilly, the other two joining in.

“Seriously! And you, Inoue, don’t you think you’re all that just because you’re cute?”

“T-That’s not…”

“Honestly, you were so annoying, flirting with the boys. Everyone thought so, didn’t they?”

The three of them kept closing in, step by step.

Scared, I backed away until I hit the wall.

“Ugh…”

“Hey, Inoue? If you feel bad for Morishita, shouldn’t you apologize?”

“A-Apologize…?”

“Of course. She’s so hurt, it’s painful to watch.”