Chapter 2: Mine
It’s been about a month since I started high school.
By now, I had gotten used to high school life, and my friendships had begun to solidify.
During today’s homeroom, we were deciding the events for the upcoming sports festival at the end of the month.
“First, we need to decide one boy and one girl for the representative relay. Any volunteers?”
“Me, me! Chairman, I want to do it!”
Saito, who had been looking forward to this day more than anyone else, immediately raised his hand as soon as the discussion began.
“Minazuki, huh? Don’t worry, you’re a sure thing. You’re the fastest in the class.”
“No objections here.”
“Awesome!”
With Saito being the top athlete in the class, there were no objections, and the boys’ representative was quickly decided.
Next, the topic moved to the girls’ representative.
“Who’s the fastest girl in our class?”
“I think it’s Ayase.”
“She runs 6.9 seconds.”
“But it’s a bit difficult for her right now.”
“Sorry, everyone.”
“Injuries happen to everyone, so don’t worry about it.”
“Yeah, don’t feel bad.”
“So, who’s the next fastest?”
“No idea.”
“How about Yabe?”
“Actually, I’m pretty slow.”
The logical choice would have been Nozomi Ayase from the track team.
However, she had just injured her leg yesterday, making it difficult for her to participate in the sports festival.
As the classmates tried to remember who the next fastest girl was,
The first place tends to be memorable, but the next place is not so memorable.
While most of the students were tilting their heads, one girl raised her hand.
“Um, I think it’s me.”
The girl who raised her hand was standing right in front of Saito.
It was his childhood friend, Lily.
“Wow, Machigane-san, I knew you were athletic, but are you really that fast?”
“No way, that’s impossible.”
“Where are you looking, you perverts!”
” “Aahhhh!” “
The class was in an uproar.
While Lily had always had a reputation for being good at both academics and sports, her physical abilities were often underestimated because of her modest demeanor.
“Yes, it’s true. Lily here is not only smart but also very fast. Surprised?”
“Stop teasing, Shuri-chan! It’s embarrassing.”
Lily seemed to be aware of the attention
and tried to shrink away from the curious gazes.
“Ahem. Machigane-san, thank you for volunteering. Just to confirm, what’s your 50-meter time?”
Seeing the situation, the class president asked about Lily’s time.
“7.3 seconds.”
“Wow, that’s really fast.”
“She’s two seconds faster than me.”
“Three seconds faster than me? Really?”
“Mizuki-chan! I know it feels unfair, but calm down.”
Even the boys were impressed by her time,
and some girls looked shocked.
“Looks like no one’s faster than Machigane-san. So, the representatives for the relay are Minazuki and Machigane.”
” ” ” “Applause” ” ” “
With such an impressive time, there were no objections, and Lily was selected.
“Next, let’s decide the members for the three-legged race. Anyone want to participate?”
” ” “Me, me, me!” ” “
Having settled the most important event quickly,
the atmosphere in the class lightened up, and many boys raised their hands for the next event.
Perhaps it was because the three-legged race was the only event where they could pair up with a girl.
Well, it’s good that everyone’s getting enthusiastic.
“I can’t believe I’m running the relay with you, Lily.”
As the classroom grew lively, Saito reminisced.
Lily seemed to feel the same way and turned to him with a nod.
“You used to be so slow when we were kids.”
In their childhood, Lily was really bad at sports.
She was always awkward and unfamiliar with moving her body.
Playing tag often resulted in her being so far behind that Saito would lose sight of her.
If someone had told his younger self that he would be running a relay with Lily in high school, he wouldn’t have believed it.
“And now you’re the second fastest in the class. Impressive, right?”
“Yeah, it’s amazing. How did you get so fast?”
Now she is on the same stage as him
Saito was curious about what had brought her to his level.
“I didn’t do anything special. I just started running with my dad because you told me you were running in the mornings.”
“Really? That’s all it took?”
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Her story was simple.
She started running because Saito was doing it.
This transformation meant she probably had natural talent.
With her looks, brains, and athleticism, this childhood friend of his seemed to have it all.
He couldn’t help but wish she could share a bit of that talent with him.
“Thanks to that, my dad’s belly has gone down nicely.”
“Yeah, I remember Masaki-san used to be pretty chubby. Those were the days.”
Knowing that her hidden talent had blossomed because of him made Saito feel good.
Without any jealousy, he happily reminisced with his childhood friend.
“And that’s it for the final members. Make sure to note or take a picture of your events so you don’t forget.”
“Take your pictures after I leave. Using your phone during class is against the rules, and I’ll have to scold you if I catch you.”
” ” ” “Yes” ” ” “
After various discussions, homeroom was about to end.
Finally, the events were decided.
The blackboard read:
- [Representative Relay]: Saito, Lily.
- [Scavenger Hunt]: Saito, Kai, Shuri, Minaka, and sixteen others.
- [Tug-of-War]: Saito, Kai, Haruki, and twenty-one others.
- [Three-Legged Race]: Saito, Haruki, Lily, Minaka, and sixteen others.
- [Typhoon’s Eye]: Saito, Shuri, and eighteen others.
Even though it was a school event, it was still a competition.
To win, the class decided to have Saito, the physical powerhouse, participate in all the events.
Initially, they had tried to balance things out, but eventually concluded that “if Minazuki participates, we’ll be fine.”
According to the rules, it was allowed.
Everyone had to participate in at least two events, but there was no rule against participating in more.
So, Saito’s busy sports festival day was confirmed.
“Alright! Let’s train hard!”
Feeling the expectations of his classmates, Saito was motivated.
As soon as the bell rang, he grabbed his gym clothes and dashed out of the classroom.
The next class was PE, and he wanted to be the first to get there.
“Hi, Shirayuri-senpai!”
“Hello, Minazuki-kun.”
On the way, he saw a familiar face and stopped to greet her.
It was Koyuki, a senior one year above him.
Usually calm and composed, but when it came to Haruki, she was a bit of a klutz.
She was often seen doing tasks alone, and when Saito helped, she’d treat him to a drink.
As usual, Koyuki was carrying a large cardboard box.
“Is that heavy?”
Seeing it looked quite heavy, Saito offered to help,
It is not because he wants juice. It is out of pure goodwill.
“Unfortunately for you, Minazuki-kun, it’s very light despite its appearance.”
“Oh, I see.”
“But it’s so big I can’t see in front of me. Isn’t there a tall, kind person around?”
“I’ll carry it!”
Saito’s question had given him away,
He feels like he has been played for a fool, but if it meant getting a juice, he didn’t mind.
He took the box from Koyuki.
As she said, it was very light despite its appearance.
When he asked what was inside, she playfully replied,
“It’s a secret.”
Most likely, it contained something for the sports festival. He had heard that the student council was heavily involved in organizing it.
If she, the vice president of the student council, is carrying something at this time, it must be important.
Saito was curious about what was inside, but he remembered the trouble his childhood friend had recently gotten into due to her curiosity, so he restrained himself.
“By the way, Shirayuri-senpai, are you close with the president?”
Saito asked Koyuki as they walked together.
Since the president and vice president of the student council were usually pretty close, Saito thought it would make for a lively conversation.
“The president? I think we’re just normal. Why do you ask?”
“Well, I talked to the president for the first time yesterday, and it got me curious,”
To Saito’s surprise, Koyuki’s reaction was rather indifferent.
A little disappointed, Saito had been hoping for a more interesting response.
Well, if Saito thought about it, Takumi was an upperclassman of the opposite sex to Koyuki.
It wasn’t unusual for there to be such distance if they were of different ages and genders.
“I see. …So, Minazuki-kun, how did the president seem to you?”
Koyuki asked, keeping the conversation going.
“He seemed like a good person. Serious and caring. But I also thought he was a bit awkward,”
“Awkward?”
Koyuki seemed surprised at Saito’s response.
“Yeah. Personally, I felt he had a hard time being straightforward,” Saito explained.
“I see… I can’t really see it, but if Minazuki-kun says so, it must be true. I learned something new,”
“He’s actually pretty easy to read,”
Saito thought to himself. It seemed Koyuki didn’t know much about Takumi.
Saito had thought she would, given they probably interacted more often than he did with him, but it seemed the student council president was good at maintaining appearances.
Personally, Saito thought it was pretty easy to see through him, though.
“Oh, we’re here. Just put the box on that desk,”
“Got it,”
Just as Saito was starting to scheme about teaching Koyuki some tricks to break down the president’s facade, they arrived at their destination.
And so, the conversation came to an end for now.
Saito replied, placing the cardboard box where he was told. Koyuki bowed her head in thanks.
“Thank you. You’ve been a great help,”
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