Volume 3 - Me, Her, and a Pair of Wings
Chapter 11
"A childhood friend with close family ties and an ex-boyfriend?!"
Chinatsu accidentally shouted, causing Yuuko to hurriedly cover her mouth with a flushed face, worried about the surrounding attention. Chinatsu, who had spoken impulsively, also came to her senses as she quickly bowed her head, apologizing to the people around them.
"I mean… isn’t that too many attributes?"
"Err, that’s... wait, you actually use terms like 'attributes,' Chinatsu-chan? That's unexpected.”
Yuuko curiously responded to the few words Chinatsu had muttered. The latter had been clearly influenced by Hajime's games.
I mean, Hajime always explained about character attributes like the pure and innocent masculine shrine maiden, the tsundere genius beauty, and the warm and fluffy childhood friend to me, but… anyway!
"Setting that aside, I see… that’s rather…"
"I'm sorry, Chinatsu-chan, I just couldn't bring it up."
Although Chinatsu thought she had far more secrets, seeing Yuuko apologize with a guilty look made her feel like something inside her was being scraped away. At the same time, she understood why it was hard for her to talk about it.
"Looking at Saki’s state, it's understandable..."
“Yeah. To begin with, I wasn’t trying to hide our relationship on purpose, but… you know, it felt weird for me to just suddenly say, ‘Why don’t I introduce you to Ikkun?’ and… supporting her directly was also… I don’t know, impossible or something…”
"It's okay, I understand."
Todo Saki was a very straightforward and nice girl. However, as their friend, they had to add that this applied only when her first love and jealousy weren't involved. What’s more is that the person she was in love with—was none other than Satou-kun.
In the first place, how would Yukko feel if a friend who had a crush on her ex-boyfriend complained about other girls approaching him and constantly talked about how cool he was in every way?
Chinatsu mused as she swore in her heart to be more open-minded with supporting her friends.
"Still, Yukko and that Satou-kun being in a relationship, huh?"
"...Don’t forget the ‘ex’ part! I mean, when we were in middle school and started showing interest in the opposite sex, we were just the ones closest to each other… after all, we spent time together from kindergarten to elementary school, and then, during puberty, we were just conveniently close… though, we broke up right after graduating middle school and went back to being childhood friends!”
"Is going back to being childhood friends even possible…?"
"Surprisingly, yes. Our parents knew about our relationship and breakup, and… it wasn't like we broke up because we hated each other."
Yuuko firmly stated, responding to Chinatsu's question. The latter, still finding that fact hard to believe, went speechless.
"That aside, Chinatsu-chan… I always thought you were the type who avoided getting too deeply involved with people."
"...As I thought, you noticed?"
"Well, yeah, I think a few others might have too. But since you never badmouthed anyone, I don't think you left a bad impression. Plus, those who noticed might… you know, think that something might have happened to you back in middle school or something. You’re also good at maintaining distance... and I—no, we thought that you didn't actually dislike us.”
"...Yeah, sorry, and thank you."
"That's why, though it's surprising you're dating someone, I am also relieved at the same time. And, uh… you guys are dating, right?"
There’s no way you guys aren’t dating with how affectionately you called him, right? You even disguised yourself just to go on a date. Knowing that Yuuko’s words were implying such, Chinatsu couldn’t help but nod shyly. It was the first time she had acknowledged Hajime as her boyfriend to someone her age, and it made her face flush. Seeing this, Yuuko fanned herself with her hand and remarked,
"THE Chinatsu-chan has... the face of a woman in love!"
"H-hey! Stop saying weird things!"
"...Here, use this hand mirror."
"...Ugh, stop it, geez… is it really that obvious?"
"Yep, it's that obvious. If anything, I’m amazed by how you can hide it at school.”
"When I put on my uniform and go to school, I just feel like I'm equipped with stronger defenses."
Chinatsu said as she made a shameful face at Yuuko. And then—
"Hehe."
"Ahahaha."
They laughed together, looking at each other.
"For now, let's keep today's conversation between us, okay?"
"No objections. And someday, I'd like to hear the story of how you and Hajime got together. I mean… a hidden relationship between an inconspicuous guy and a popular girl in the school... Yep! I totally support it!"
"Y-you support it? And you want to… hear our story? Then, I’d like to hear about yours too. Childhood friend romance are kinda my thing."
"...Geez, I suppose a give-and-take is necessary."
"Let's do this another time, then."
"Yeah, it looks like they're here now anyway."
As their conversation concluded, Hajime and Satou-kun, who seemed to be chatting amicably, walked towards them.
"Crap, I was so focused on talking to Yukko that I forgot about the Satou-kun and Hajime combo... But they seem to be getting along?"
"Ahh, Ikkun is like a social monster, so he easily gets along with anyone. Though seeing him hit it off with Satou-kun might be because there’s more to him than just that."
"Huh? What do you mean by that? And who's Ikkun?"
"First of all, Ikkun, or rather, Satou-kun, is my childhood friend… I used to call him Hajime-chan in elementary. Back then, he wasn’t good at studying or sports, heck he was even so small. The boys in his class apparently bullied him for sharing a nickname with an anime protagonist, so I settled with calling him Ikkun, derived from ‘ichi’. Now, he's become so perfect, though... to the point that it makes me feel a bit suffocated." [T/N: The name Hajime is written as “一” or ichi/one.]
"...Yukko?"
"Hehe, it’s nothing. Anyway, I’ll stop here. Let’s continue it next time, Chinatsu-chan! You can go and flirt as much as you want with your hidden date with Satou-kun. Kidding! Alright… Ikkun, we’re done talking! Let’s go join dad and the others. It’s almost time for lunch, anyway.”
For a moment, Yuuko flashed a sad expression. Seeing her, Chinatsu almost wanted to step in, but immediately shook off the thought as she watched Yuuko run off to Satou-kun. The way they acted to one another made them seem very close, but there seemed to be a hidden distance behind their expressions.
"A childhood friend, ex-boyfriend, and now back to being childhood friends, huh."
I wonder how they feel being together even today, Chinatsu murmured, her words fading into the air.
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"Anyway, we wrapped up our talk and decided to keep everything a secret. Make sure you do too, okay?"
"Got it... Thanks."
Hajime nodded in understanding and thanked Chinatsu.
"Don’t thank me, since it’s not just for us; they seem to have a complicated relationship too. Plus, we have an issue with our girl group too."
Remembering Yuuko's earlier expression, Chinatsu sighed, prompting Hajime to speak with a slightly complicated face.
"Satou-kun, huh."
"What's up? You two seemed to be getting along well, which surprised me since I didn't think you interacted much."
From Chinatsu's perspective, Hajime and Satou-kun seemed to be having a friendly conversation. Although she thought they wouldn't interact much due to being compared often, she was glad they were getting along.
Hajime was good with people, partly because of his job and past experiences dealing with adults. Hajime certainly looked friendly and kind, but Chinatsu knew better than anyone that he didn't easily open up to strangers.
"You know, I realized how scary prejudice can be."
"Prejudice?"
"Yeah, I used to avoid people who were popular in our school, but Satou-kun, like you, Chinatsu, turned out to be a nice person. Today made me realize that you never really know someone until you talk to them. Also..."
"Also?"
"I don’t know, but he asked if I was injured, like my leg or shoulder."
Chinatsu tilted her head in confusion and asked.
"Huh? Why?"
"I wonder. I was just about to ask him why when Sakurai-san came over, and they had to leave. Maybe because of the rumor that I quit basketball due to an injury or something? But it didn't seem like he was trying to confirm that rumor either."
"Hmm... Well, I hope you'll get to talk to him more at school or something."
Hajime mentioned it with slight concern, but Chinatsu thought that as long as they were friendly, it was fine. Although the new information that Yuuko and Satou-kun were childhood friends and exes was shocking, she thought that perhaps, it was just another layer to their already complicated relationship.
"Yeah, that'd be nice. Though, with our names, I doubt Satou-kun and I will ever be in the same class."
"Haha, true. That'd be confusing when searching for your student number, not to mention during attendance.”
"They even had to apparently include our class names next to our full names on the bulletin board when the grades were posted to avoid confusion, since it used to be just our names.”
"Heeh? Really?”
Chatting about such trivial things, Chinatsu and Hajime returned to their original plan, enjoying their first date. Despite a few incidents, they had a wonderful day.
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Bonus Chapter (5/10)
