The Story of Waking up With My Beautiful Childhood Friend and Realizing We Had Spent the Night Together - Chapter 36: Nightmare

Chapter 36: Nightmare

——That night, I had a nostalgic dream.

It was a bitter memory from middle school.

‘…What are you saying?’

‘Like I said, don’t talk to me at school anymore.’

‘…’

Back then, Mizuki always wanted to be near me.

At home, at school, always.

But…

‘…I want to hang out with other friends too. And besides…’

The truth is, it was hard for me.

Being “the boy closest to Yukimura Mizuki.”

That title was just too heavy.

Unlike in elementary school, no one said things like “You’re not good enough” or “You’re full of yourself.”

Not directly, at least.

…No, to be accurate, the ones who said things like that just stopped coming near me.

As if they were scared of something.

So the problem wasn’t out there.

The problem… was inside me.

I always tried my best, in my own way.

My looks, my grades, even sports.

All above average—or at least, I thought I had improved that much.

…But even so, I still couldn’t reach her.

Yukimura Mizuki.

I didn’t have the kind of gift or talent to match that childhood friend.

…I had come to realize that.

‘…You should just be with someone who suits you better than me.’

‘…’

Those words slipped out before I knew it.

…And in that moment, the color vanished from Mizuki’s eyes.

The gentle gaze she always gave me turned cold, like ice.

(…What did I just say?)

…Pierced by her stare, I realized what a terrible thing I had said.

But once spoken, words can’t be taken back.

‘…Are you serious?’

‘…’

‘Whether we suit each other or not doesn’t matter… You’re the only one I want, Iori.’

That was unmistakable “anger.”

The first time she had ever been truly furious with me.

Because she usually showed so little emotion, I could tell this was real.

While I was left speechless, Mizuki looked away and said:

‘——So it’s fine with you if I’m with someone else, Iori.’

…From that day on—

My childhood friend stopped smiling.

‘…Mizuki?’

‘What is it, Iori?’

If I talked to her, she’d still answer.

We’d still hang out, study together.

Our daily life didn’t change at all.

…Except for her smile. That alone disappeared.

Just like when we first met.

And then… one more thing changed.

‘Um, can I talk to you for a sec?’

‘Eh? Ah, Amano-kun!? S-sorry, I have something to do…’

The girls I was friendly with started avoiding me.

Suddenly, and as if they were afraid of something.

But I had no idea why. I could only be confused.

…And in the end, even she—

‘Ah, Amano-kun! Please take this…!’

My first confession.

The first time I got chocolates from a girl who wasn’t Mizuki.

I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t happy.

Even if I couldn’t catch up to Mizuki. Even if I wasn’t my ideal self.

Still, someone noticed me.

I was happy about that… but then—

‘…Huh? You’re transferring schools?’

‘Yeah… so, just forget about the confession the other day.’

‘Wait, why so suddenly…?’

That girl transferred schools out of nowhere.

Right up to the end, she seemed horribly frightened.

I never did find out the reason.

It was strange.

Strange, but…

(…Well, these things happen.)

That’s what I told myself.

Everyone must have had their reasons.

The boys who used to bully me out of jealousy all left.

The girls who were once friendly suddenly became distant.

…And that girl, who quit school.

All of it was just coincidence.

The timing just happened to overlap.

There’s no meaning behind it. No need to think about it.

…Because if it wasn’t coincidence—

If it wasn’t random… then what was it?

…And so, I shut my eyes to it all.

—

“…Ngh…”

My consciousness slowly returns.

I open my eyes—it’s still dark.

Looks like I woke up in the middle of the night.

(…Why now…)

That dream.

It’s long in the past.

It has nothing to do with who I am now. Just an old memory.

Or so I thought…

“…Iori?”

A voice from beside me.

I turn my head and see the familiar face of my childhood friend.

But she’s not like in the dream—she’s smiling gently.

“…You weren’t asleep?”

“No… you were kind of tossing and turning.”

“…Just had a weird dream.”

As I say that, her arm gently reaches around my head.

She pulls me close and holds me to her chest.

Bare, white skin.

Soft, firm sensation.

And a sweet scent that feels like it melts my brain.

“There, there… it’s okay. Must’ve been scary.”

“…Are you treating me like a kid?”

“Well, you looked so uneasy.”

She pats me gently, and though it’s frustrating, it puts me at ease.

The steady rhythm of her heartbeat is incredibly comforting.

“Hehe… Iori, you’re cutest when you’re snuggling into my boobs like this.”

“…Shut up.”

I grumble as I burrow into her, and she holds me tighter.

My senses—touch, smell, sight—are filled with Mizuki, and I can’t think of anything else anymore.

“…Think you can fall asleep like this?”

“…Yeah.”

But—

Before I fall asleep, I have to ask this one thing.

With my fading consciousness, I manage to open my mouth.

“…Mizuki.”

“What?”

Her sweet, gentle voice.

I want to believe in it.

But…

“…Can I… trust you?”

“…?”

“You’re… the Mizuki I know, right?”

It was a vague question.

But Mizuki blinked for a moment at that question.

…Then, she smiled gently.

“—Yeah.”

She gently, lovingly stroked my head.

“I’ve always been me.”

Whispering that, my consciousness faded.

—The next day, after school.

“…Looks like she’s doing okay.”

From the second floor of the gym, I looked down at the court.

Even if we met now, Asahi probably wouldn’t say anything.

But I couldn’t help worrying and ended up coming.

Asahi was sweating with a serious expression, playing a mini-game with her teammates.

No one was ignoring her when it came to passing the ball, and no one was deliberately playing rough with her.

She looked just the same as before.

(…Those upperclassmen…)

As far as I could see, the upperclassmen who had tried to hurt Asahi were nowhere around.

Not even the captain, Morishita-senpai.

Why? I wondered—and then,

“—Hey.”

A voice called from behind. I turned around.

“…Huh?”

“You’re Amano, right?”

The one who spoke was a tall boy with brown hair.

I recognized him. In fact, he was the one who started all of this.

“…Sekiya-senpai?”

“…Come with me for a second.”

Saying that, Sekiya-senpai walked down the stairs.

He didn’t even wait for my response, and I just stood there, stunned.

(…This guy, talking to me?)

I was confused, but I had no choice but to follow him.

Eventually, we ended up behind the gym.

In that quiet spot, Sekiya-senpai stopped.

“…So, what is it?”

I spoke to him, since he just stood there silently.

Then, looking awkward, he scratched his head.

“…It’s about Inoue.”

…Inoue? Asahi?

“You… you’re close to her, right? Heard anything?”

“Eh…?”

Those awkwardly spoken words made my thoughts freeze.

Heard anything…?

No way, I thought.

Is he talking about Asahi…?

“Why are you asking that…?”

“…I knew she was being left out in club activities. And yeah, it was my fault. Not that I really regret it or anything.”

He clicked his tongue as he said it.

…From his expression and tone, I could guess a little.

Was it guilt, or some kind of care for his junior?

I didn’t know, but it seemed like, in his own way, he was worried about Asahi.

“…A lot happened, but… I think she’s okay now. Yukimura-san’s been supporting her.”

“…I see. That girl really is amazing.”

Saying that, Sekiya-senpai’s expression softened in relief.

Seeing that, I figured I might as well ask him something.

“…Sekiya-senpai.”

“Yeah?”

“Why did you… confess to Asahi?”

I had never understood it.

If it was just because she’s cute, he had other options.

Especially for someone like him, it’s not like he’d have trouble with girls.

When I asked, Sekiya-senpai clicked his tongue again.

“…It wasn’t for any deep reason. I heard a rumor that she liked me, so I figured I’d mess with her a bit.”

“…Rumor?”

“There was some talk going around in the basketball club. Turned out it was fake. I ended up looking like a damn fool.”

He spat it out like it seriously pissed him off.

…I see.

So he heard she liked him, thought it was a sure thing, and confessed, only for it to backfire—that’s what happened.

Confessing as a joke is pretty awful.

But Renji did similar stuff too.

As long as Asahi wasn’t actually played with, I didn’t feel like criticizing someone else’s love life.

…Besides, it seemed like this guy really did care about Asahi in some way.

(…But… a rumor, huh.)

Who started something like that?

Asahi and this guy hadn’t really interacted before.

“…But still… Yukimura Mizuki, huh.”

As I was deep in thought, Sekiya-senpai muttered.

“…?”

“You’re in the same class as her, right?”

“Eh? Yeah, I am.”

“Hm. Are you close?”

“…No, not really.”

That’s what I decided to say.

When I answered, Sekiya-senpai didn’t say anything more, just stood there gazing toward the gym like he was thinking.

Looking at him like that, something popped into my mind.

Come to think of it, this guy…

“Sekiya-senpai.”

“…What is it now?”

“Weren’t you interested in Yukimura-san?”

It might have been a sudden question.

But once I thought of it, I got curious.

Mizuki was known as the most beautiful girl in school.

Upperclassmen and underclassmen alike admired her.

But for some reason, this guy had never made a move on her.

Even though he was the type who liked girls—why?

When I asked, Sekiya-senpai snorted.

“Not really… Just a gut feeling.”

“…A gut feeling?”

“I’ve been with all kinds of girls. I know which ones are okay to get involved with and which ones aren’t… And if I had to say—”

Sekiya-senpai frowned.

“…It’s better not to get involved with that one. That’s the feeling I got.”

Saying that,

Sekiya-senpai finally turned and walked away.