Episode 315: Name

Hayato POV

Damn it… what the hell am I doing?

I can’t afford to lose today… I can’t show everyone such a pathetic side of myself!!

To think I’d put on one of my most pathetic matches ever right now!!

I know I’m more nervous than usual because everyone’s watching.

I get it, but I absolutely cannot drop this match today.

For the sake of Natsumi-senpai’s match following this, for Kazunari’s… my best friend’s big moment, and for me to be reborn!!

That’s why I intended to finish this match with a decisive victory, as a way to set the mood…

But despite my plans, everyone in the audience is still staring at me with worried eyes. And the expressions on the faces of Kazunari and the others, who always cheer for me…

How pathetic am I!

「Phew…」

Calm down, just calm down.

Concentrate… focus on the match like always.

I haven’t lost yet, things have just gone back to square one.

No matter what, this set is mine… I’ll take it for sure…

「Natsumi-senpai, how can we help Yokogawa-kun…」

Todo-san reacted to Natsumi-senpai’s words with even more intensity than me.

I’ve never seen her with such a desperate look on her face before. I guess Hayato’s existence really is changing inside Todo-san…

「Todo-san, how would you feel if Yokogawa-kun called you by your first name?」

「Eh?」

「How would you feel if Yokogawa-kun called you… Marina?」

At first glance, Natsumi-senpai’s question seemed to have nothing to do with the match. So Todo-san looked bewildered as well.

Of course, I can guess what Natsumi-senpai is trying to do… but would that really be okay?

If we make Todo-san stand out unnecessarily here, might something happen to Hayato later?

「Don’t you think being called by your first name is special?」

「That is… of course, I think so…」

Todo-san looked seventy percent confused and thirty percent embarrassed. If it’s a member of the opposite sex, you usually associate calling them by their first name with a certain kind of meaning.

「Well, all the girls around here already call Yokogawa-kun by his first name without any honorifics, though!」

「Ah…」

「Wait!?」

I see… Natsumi-senpai’s right!

She said it casually as a joke, but it’s true that many of the women in the fan club call Hayato by his first name.

Which means there’d be nothing weird about Todo-san, who’s in the best friend group, calling Hayato by his first name!

「So, what’ll it be? I think the girl Yokogawa-kun is closest to is Todo-san… are you okay with losing to these people here?」

Natsumi-senpai asked Todo-san in a slightly provocative tone. Even if her voice sounded joking, her eyes weren’t laughing. She looked serious about firing her up… like she intended to make Todo-san take that「one more step.」

And how will Todo-san herself take that?

「…Seriously… she loves meddling as much as ever.」

「…Isn’t that one of Natsumi’s good points?」

「…Um, this flow, don’t tell me…」

「…Yoko is quite dense…」

「…How rude! I noticed a little bit too!」

「…Be quiet. This isn’t something she should be made to realize with a direct pitch from the sidelines.」

「…Gugh…」

「Final set!! Yokogawa to serve!!」

The umpire called for the start of the third set, and the match continued with Hayato serving.

This is finally it… if he can just manage to switch his mindset, then maybe.

Baaaaaaaang!!

Just like in the first set, the ball was launched from the racket with a powerful explosion. It headed straight for the opponent’s court… but it touched the net halfway!?

「Let!!」

The umpire made a call I’d never heard before.

If it touches the net, isn’t that a fault?

「Nishikawa-san, what was that…」

「To put it simply, a let is when the serve touches the net but still lands in the opponent’s service box. If it landed out, it would be a fault… one mistake. But since it went in, it’s a let… he just has to reserve.」

「I see. Thanks for the explanation, Nishikawa-san…」

That made sense to me too. I’d never heard of it.

But the problem wasn’t that, it was the fact that the Hayato hit a serve that touched the net.

At least, I’ve never seen him do that before… this might be getting seriously bad.

「Hah!!」

Baaaaaaaang!!

Without much of a pause, Hayato fired another serve. But that one was clearly going out…

「Fault!!」

「Darn it…」

I felt like I could hear a mutter that shouldn’t have reached me from this distance.

It’s my first time seeing Hayato look that frustrated too.

Hayato… just calm down…

「Well, Todo-san?」

Natsumi-senpai brought up the topic that had been interrupted.

And… Todo-san.

Marina POV

Though her words are short, I can tell from Yuzuki-senpai’s voice… and her eyes, that she’s demanding an immediate decision from me.

Calling Yokogawa-kun by his first name… of course, I’d never hate doing that.

But I know that calling a boy by his first name has a special meaning… even as dense as I am.

Because that’s how it was for Takanashi-kun and Satsukawa-senpai.

And the reason Yuzuki-senpai and Tachibana-kun started using first names was because they started dating.

I think calling someone of the opposite sex by their first name has a special meaning, even if you aren’t exactly going out yet.

For some people it might just be casual, and there might be other things like being childhood friends or having a special connection.

But for me… no, probably for all my precious friends, calling a member of the opposite sex by their first name carries a corresponding meaning or reason.

So… what about me and Yokogawa-kun?

We aren’t lovers… at least.

I think of Yokogawa-kun as someone precious to me. But in terms of being precious, Takanashi-kun is also precious to me.

But if you ask if the「feeling of thinking they’re precious」is the exact same type… honestly, I don’t really know yet.

Yeah… I don’t know… do I.

But isn’t that the same as admitting they’re「different」?

The feeling of thinking Yokogawa-kun is precious, and the feeling of thinking Takanashi-kun and the others are precious.

Since I became aware of that difference a little while ago, I feel like something has changed significantly inside me… wait, I have to think about Yokogawa-kun right now rather than my own「uncertainty.」

Anyway, about what Yuzuki-senpai said… it’s true that the people around him call Yokogawa-kun by his first name without a care.

It makes all my overthinking seem stupid, especially since they just use his name without honorifics so easily.

But you know… are you really that close to Yokogawa-kun?

Are you closer to Yokogawa-kun than I am?

…No, that’s definitely not true.

I’ve never seen Yokogawa-kun show the smile he gives me to any other girl.

I’ve never seen Yokogawa-kun getting along with anyone else alone.

He’s always looking out for me.

He comes to my classroom every day, and even if he gives other girls a polite smile when they talk to him, he ends it right there.

That might be because I’m a member of this group.

But even if that’s the case, I can say with my head held high that our relationship is much, much closer than those around us.

This might be my own conceit, but I can say clearly now that I’m the girl who’s closer to Yokogawa-kun than anyone else.

So, for me to keep calling him by his last name like a stranger while the people around him call him by his first name… that’s frustrating.

…Frustrating?

…Am I… frustrated?

But if that’s what Yuzuki-senpai means by「losing.」

When I thought that, a feeling of frustration overflowed…

I… I… I will!

「Love-Fifteen!!」

「「「 Aaaaah!!! 」」」

「「「 Hayato, go for it!!!! 」」」

Hayato finally made a double fault, letting his opponent take the lead.

The series of sights I’d never seen before made me and everyone around me grow more anxious…

「Hayato-kun!!!!」

「Huh!?」

Even though the noise around us wasn’t small, a cute voice echoed through it all.

She probably isn’t good at shouting, but strangely that voice sounded clearer than any other sound around us, powerful and filled with emotion.

Maybe that’s why… Todo-san’s voice echoed through the court with startling clarity.

Hayato POV

To even make a double fault, how long has it been since I made such a simple mistake.

That’s exactly why I know my state isn’t normal. Yes… I know that, and yet…

「Hayato-kun!!!!」

A single voice like magic that instantly replaced everything inside my brain, which had been filled with that circular anxiety. The voice of someone precious to me, entering deep, deep into my heart.

Even though the match is still going… I find myself staring straight at the lovely person who owns that voice.

The reason is because that voice was a shock to me, an astonishment… a joy.

「Hayato-kun!!!!」

That cute figure, clutching her fists and desperately shouting my「name.」

But you know… Todo-san. No, Marina-san.

That’s a little bit unfair, you know?

I decided that I’d be the first one to call you by your first name.

To have you call it at a time like this was completely unexpected and outside my predictions.

But… it’s so wonderful to be called by my name by the person I love.

「Hayato-kun!!! Go for it!!!」

「Huh!?」

Encouragement filled with so much strength, something I couldn’t have imagined from the usual Todo-san. But that figure, that voice, strikes my heart hard.

A power I’ve never felt before wells up inside me, and my thoughts become simple… clear.

I knew it myself. I was trying to do too much, overthinking things, but I couldn’t escape those thoughts, and I was just rushing and spinning my wheels alone.

And because of that, I was giving the person most precious to me… the one I always want to be smiling, a reason to be anxious, making her face cloud over. That was so backwards.

「Hayato-kun!!!!!」

That’s right…

If I can’t help but think about things other than tennis, if I can’t focus on tennis alone.

Then I’ll…

I’ll just think of you…

This match is all for you!

I will!!!!!

The moment he received Todo-san’s cheer, Hayato looked over here with an expression of shock.

He’d been looking strained this whole time, but that completely changed, and he wore a smile so happy it seemed out of place.

He gave us a small nod then faced forward, putting a hand to his chest and taking a slow breath.

He took his serving stance once more.

And he threw the ball straight up…

Baaaaaaaang!!

A powerful, sharp strike that contrasted with his smooth movements.

A powerful serve launched from a soft, large motion, clearly different from before, pierced the opponent’s court.

And without missing a beat, Hayato closed the distance to the net.

The opponent must have been surprised by the sudden sharp movement he hadn’t shown yet, because he returned it with a half-hearted force, which Hayato calmly tapped back to a spot near the net.

The ball rolled leisurely to a spot where nobody was…

「Fifteen-All!!」

「「「 YE-AAAAH!! 」」」

「「「 HA-YA-TO!!! HA-YA-TO!!! 」」」

The Hayato-calls, which had been tinged with a sense of tragedy just a moment ago, came back to life, and the fan club’s cheers erupted across the court.

The opponent wasn’t the only one surprised by the sudden change in playstyle (or rather, the return to form), we were too.

「Hmph, just as I thought♪」

But seeing Hayato like that, Natsumi-senpai wore a smug look all by herself. Todo-san watched her curiously… and a little bit embarrassedly.

「Um, Yuzuki-senpai… why did Yo… Hayato-kun…」

For Todo-san’s part, she must be dying to know why Hayato’s form returned just because she called him by his first name.

But how to explain that… that was actually the biggest obstacle.

I hope she can explain it well while avoiding the core part, even if it’s a bit meaningful…

「Well… Yokogawa-kun seemed to be overthinking a bunch of extra stuff, so I figured I’d just shock him and blow it all away.」

「Shock him and blow it away… you mean?」

「Yeah. After all, being called by your first name feels special, doesn’t it? If someone you don’t care about calls you that, it’s nothing, but if it’s someone close to you, it makes you happy. Right?」

「I-I suppose… that is… true.」

「I told you earlier, I think the girl Yokogawa-kun is closest to is Todo-san, you know? Yokogawa-kun surely thinks so, and Todo-san thinks so too, right? If someone you feel that close to calls your name, it’s very happy… but if they call it suddenly without any warning, I think you’d be just as surprised.」

「Ah!!」

「Simple, isn’t it? But it looks like it had the intended effect.」

It might be simple, but I think these things are often like that. Even for me, just the way Sara-san calls me can make me float on air or fire me up.

Especially when she calls me「Dear」… you know.

「I, I see…」

Todo-san seemed satisfied for now, but the fact that her face turned a bit red again meant she probably had other thoughts in her heart.

「Now, now, Todo-san. Yokogawa-kun is looking this way, you know? …Honestly, he should focus on the match, that guy.」

「E-Eh, um… Ha-Hayato-kun, do your best!!! Hup!!!」

Looking like she didn’t know what to do, Todo-san suddenly started jumping up and down with her hands in the air like a cheerleader. Her face was bright red with embarrassment.

Having been given such a reward, Hayato showed a momentary melted expression… but he immediately faced forward and tightened his expression.

He was definitely covering it up.

「Hup!?」

Just like before, Hayato took a deep breath and threw the ball straight up. Matching the timing, he brought the racket down with force while showing a supple arch…

BAAAAAAAAAAANG!!!

A serve that produced a more powerful explosion than ever, even though he didn’t look like he was straining. The ball, like a bullet, slammed down right on the edge of the service line. The opponent reacted well and dashed for it, but whether he could reach it was… he could… NOT!!

「Thirty-Fifteen!!」

「「「 KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! 」」」

「「「 NICE SERVE!!!! 」」」

「Hayato-kun!!」

「Yokogawa-kun!!!!」

「「「 HA-YA-TO!! HA-YA-TO!! 」」」

A service ace was perfectly decided, and the fan club members were completely revitalized.

The「Hayato-calls」were blooming across the court, and Hayato’s expression looked filled with a certain confidence.

Even so, the fact that he’s secretly checking our way… in a way, that guy really isn’t concentrating on tennis. It doesn’t look like a problem, though.

「Yokogawa-kun, go for it!!!」

「Yokogawa-san, fight on!!」

「Hayato, you can do it!!!」

Not to be outdone by the hyped-up fan club, Yuji and the others were shouting their encouragement too.

I can’t let myself be beaten either!

「By the way, aren’t you two going to cheer?」

「It’s not that we aren’t cheering, you know. It’s just that I have no intention of shouting any man’s name other than Kazunari-san’s.」

「Me too.」

「Haa… you guys are really thorough.」

「That’s only natural. This is that, and that is this.」

「The Wife is right.」

「Ah, I see.」

Natsumi-senpai looked exhausted by the two of them, whose claims didn’t waver a bit. But it was just that they weren’t making a sound, I could tell they were cheering properly just by looking at them.

Because… whenever Hayato served, both of them would move their bodies as if they were straining as well, and they’d show a smile whenever a point was scored.

「Hah!!!!!」

BAAAAAAAAAAANG!!!!

Hayato’s serve used his whole body like a spring to slam everything into the ball.

This time, the opponent finally handled it well and sent a solid return back. Hayato’s return was a low-altitude bullet that barely cleared the net. The bounce was dull, and the opponent lowered his stance, looking like it was hard to hit. Because of that, he produced a return with no power…

「Hup!!」

Hayato must have expected that, because he accelerated all at once to approach the ball himself.

Unlike before, this time he slammed a powerful volley while maintaining the momentum of his dash.

The ball, once again a bullet, slammed down completely opposite the opponent’s position…

「Forty-Fifteen!!」

「Alright!!」

「「「 KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! 」」」

I couldn’t help but let out a voice at that brilliant strike that was nothing short of masterful.

The voltage in the stands kept rising, and the flow of the match and the atmosphere of the venue were completely in Hayato’s favor.

Even so… Hayato is truly amazing right now.

Even to an amateur like me, it’s like he took the brute-force tennis he was doing earlier and successfully absorbed it into「Hayato’s original style.」

Or perhaps the synergy between them gave him a power-up…

「Yokogawa-kun, one more point!!!!」

「Yokogawa-san, this is the climax!!!」

「Hayato, do your best!!!」

As if pushed by the surrounding atmosphere, Yuji and the others sent cheers in voices they wouldn’t normally use. Sara-san and Hanako-san watched the proceedings with serious expressions, while Hayato himself looked over here with a questioning gaze while in his stance, just like before.

And I…

And, Todo-san…

「Hayato, GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!」

「Hayato-kun, WINNNNNNNNNNNN!!!」

The moment Todo-san and I shouted at the same time, the cheering suddenly stopped… every single「sound」vanished.

The「mysterious phenomenon」that happens in a noisy classroom when everyone’s voices suddenly stop for a second happened right here…

So… only Todo-san’s and my voices echoed loudly and clearly across the court, reaching Hayato.

And Hayato smiled back at us with a dazzling smile…

「Hah!!!!!」

BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!!!

Hayato’s blow of a lifetime, a strike that seemed like his best of the day, against the ball he’d thrown straight up!!

The ball launched from the racket was so fast I couldn’t follow it with my eyes even from the stands.

And before I knew it, the ball was rolling… behind the opponent.

…What just happened?

…How was that?

The opponent just stood there blankly with his racket still ready. He hadn’t reacted to it in the slightest, standing as still as a post.

「…Game set!!! Match won by Yokogawa…」

「ALRIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!」

「Hayato-kun, you did it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!」

「「「 KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!! 」」」

The second the umpire said Hayato’s name, we and everyone around us burst into the biggest cheer of the day, certain of the victory.

「「「 HA-YA-TO!!! HA-YA-TO!!! 」」」

The entire tennis court was enveloped in a joy so great it felt like the match was over and the school’s victory had been decided.

Screams and cheers that could split the air, unending「Hayato-calls,」and applause.

But that was true for us too.

「OOOOOOOOOOH, that was amazing!!! What, what, what was that!?」

「…Incredible… I’m honestly surprised…」

「N-Natsumi-san, is Hayato always this good!?」

「Hmm… Yokogawa-kun is good, but that last set was several levels above his usual. It looks like he cleared a lot of things from his mind… doesn’t it.」

Everyone was still caught up in the excitement, high-fiving each other and praising Hayato’s efforts.

Todo-san was hugging Hanako-san (who looked like she was saying「good grief,」her usual dishonest self) and expressing her joy with her whole body.

By the way, as for me…

「Well… um…」

「Fufu… Kazunari-san, it is a wonderful thing to be truly happy for a friend’s hard work, you know? It’s not something to be embarrassed about at all.」

Stroke, stroke…

The second Hayato’s victory was decided, I’d unfortunately let out a roar of excitement…

It’s not that I’m embarrassed about it, you know?

It’s just a bit awkward, especially with Sara-san staring at me with such a gentle gaze…

「Well, I know that, but…」

「Honestly… when you make such a cute face… I…」

The smile Sara-san wore as she said that felt like it shifted into something mysterious for a second, reminiscent of Mayumi-san. I immediately tightened my expression.

That was close… if I’d stayed embarrassed like that, I’m sure Sara-san would have doted on me to no end right here. (In every sense of the word).

「Kazunari!!」

Hayato came running toward me as I was having that heart-warm(?) moment with Sara-san, after finishing his greetings with his opponent and ending the match.

Usually he should go to his club members first… but I guess this is just our routine by now.

Pang!!

The sound of Hayato and me high-fiving was crisp, and was followed by a round of applause from the fan club.

This was a series of rituals(?) that happened whenever Hayato won, so the people around us were used to it.

But this time, added to that…

「Yokogawa-kun, nice fight!!」

「Hayato, you were amazing!!」

「Yokogawa-san, that was masterful!」

「Yokogawa-kun, good job!!」

Pang!!

Pang!!

Pang!!

Pang!!

He rhythmically exchanged high-fives with everyone else who had their hands up, and finally, Hayato headed toward…

「Hayato-kun…」

Todo-san didn’t have her hand up, but Hayato stopped in front of her.

He looked happy, as if savoring the fact that she’d called his name.

「…Thank you, Marina-san. Thanks to you, I was able to win.」

「Eh… eh… EEEEH!? A-Auuu…」

Maybe it was because he called her by her first name, or maybe she was embarrassed about being thanked… probably both… Todo-san’s face was so obviously bright red I could almost see the steam-blowing effect.

She was flapping her hands about, which was a bit cute.

Still, that Hayato, he called her by her first name so easily… had he been practicing?

「…Marina-san… I… this match was, for your… for your sa…」

「Hey Hayato!!! How long are you going to stay there!!! Everyone’s in a bind because of you!!!!」

「Uh!?」

I couldn’t help but feel dejected at a punchline that felt like it came from a manga.

But I was honestly surprised just now. If nobody had interrupted, wouldn’t Hayato have confessed?

That made me a bit nervous…

「Sorry, I’ll be right back!!」

「Hayato-kun?」

「Sorry, Marina-san!! Anyway, thanks for cheering… I was happy!!」

「U-Um, congrats again, Hayato-kun!! Um… you know… you looked… c-cool!!」

While turning bright red, Todo-san blessed Hayato with all her voice and a smile, and Hayato raised his right hand.

Pang!!

The two exchanged a slightly modest high-five, and Hayato headed back to the court with a beaming smile.

Todo-san stared at his retreating back…

Without saying a word, she watched him go with a gentle smile.