Episode 108: Yuji and Natsumi

Well, since we were finally at a resort pool, there were slides and all sorts of other fun-looking stuff everywhere, so I was planning on hitting them all one by one… or so I thought.

「Kazunari-san, your right hand isn’t healed, so dangerous things are a no-go.」

…True, it is not fully healed, but that is so heartless.

「Ah, Sara, we’re finally here, so maybe something simple would be okay?」

Natsumi-senpai backed me up, probably feeling sorry for me.

「No. It has finally gotten this much better, so what will we do if you let your guard down and it gets worse again?」

The serious Sara-senpai was genuinely worried about my right wrist.

God, I am such an idiot. I just got swept up in the moment and carried away.

Even though I was making her worry this much, I was taking it too lightly myself.

「By the way, if you make it worse, I will no longer compromise on anything.」

I wondered what exactly she meant by the words「no longer compromise」…

「I’m sorry, Sara-senpai. Even though you’ve been looking after me this whole time, I got carried away.」

I felt truly sorry and decided to apologize sincerely.

It wasn’t like Sara-senpai was actually mad.

「Kazunari-san, I understand your feelings well, but if you let your guard down here, all your patience until now will go to waste. I will be with you, so let us do our best together.」

She encouraged me with a smile like a goddess.

That’s right. As long as Sara-senpai is near me, whether it’s a resort pool or a local public pool, it’s heaven.

「Sara-senpai… thank you.」

「Kazunari-san…」

「Yeah, yeah. Well, we’re going to the slides. Tachibana-kun, let’s go!」

「R, roger.」

Natsumi-senpai, with an exasperated look, grabbed Yuji and dragged him away.

「…That’s rare. For Natsumi to take such a casual attitude toward a man.」

Sara-senpai muttered that with a slightly surprised expression.

Now that she mentioned it, Natsumi-senpai had been acting really casual with Yuji since the first introductions.

Thinking back to how they left things the last time they met, no matter how personable Natsumi-senpai is, is it really possible to act like that all of a sudden?

「Well now, where should we attack from first?」

Yuzuki-san said as she pulled my arm and dragged me forward.

I already knew this, but this person is just so free-spirited.

We’re supposed to be basically strangers, but to be treated like this out of nowhere…

「Yuzuki-san! No matter how you look at it, those two will notice…」

「It’s fine. Those two are too busy flirting to care.」

Well, looking at them, it’s probably fine.

Or rather…

「Um… Yuzuki-san. I just thought of this, but did we really need to hide this much in the first place?」

I thought we could just make up some reason as long as we kept the fact that we stalked them that day a secret.

「Of course we do! Those two have jerked us around enough, so we’re going to team up in the shadows and have the last laugh someday.」

She laughed so happily.

But she might be the first woman I’ve ever felt was genuinely fun to be around.

Being alone at a pool with a beauty like this, I’ll just consider it a perk and enjoy myself.

When we met up for lunch, Yuji already looked exhausted.

「Yuji, you okay?」

It seemed like he’d been jerked around by Natsumi-senpai, but she was perfectly fine.

Maybe it’s because she’s in a sports club.

「A, ah… I’m fine.」

「Eh~ even though I’m a girl and I’m fine… you’re still okay, right?」

Natsumi-senpai, who had plenty of energy, was smirking and teasing Yuji.

Those two really do seem to get along.

Since the restaurant was self-service, everyone picked their food and put it on a tray.

By the way, Sara-senpai carried my portion for me.

I told her I’d be fine doing that much.

「Absolutely not.」

She scolded me with a smile.

After paying and sitting down, everyone started eating.

Come to think of it, it’s been a while since I’ve eaten out…

「Kazunari-san, how is your right wrist? Is there any pain or discomfort? If anything is bothering you even a little, I will do it like usual…」

「Hold on. What do you mean you’ll do it “like usual”?」

Natsumi-senpai’s quip cut in.

But no, if you ask that, Sara-senpai will…

「? There is nothing strange about it. Just like this… Kazunari-san, say ‘ahh’.」

Munch.

Munch, munch… Crap!? I just did it out of habit.

「……Heh, “like usual,” huh?」

Natsumi-senpai’s side-eye pierced right through me.

Even Yuji was sending a complicated look my way.

「Kazunari-san, shall I continue to help you?」

「N, no, it’s fine. My wrist isn’t really a problem.」

Obviously, if I did things「like usual」here, it would trouble Natsumi-senpai and Yuji, and the stares from the people around us would probably be intense.