Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/822139844261747978/episodes/822139844401760551
“You… could you possibly be—Hiyui san?”
Tomoka’s single sentence pierced Yui straight through with her beautiful eyes.
A flurry of thoughts flashed through Yui’s mind in an instant. Then came the realization: getting caught would be bad.
So he averted his gaze, as if escaping Tomoka’s stare—
“…No, I’m not?”
“I know it’s weird coming from me, but couldn’t you have covered it up a little better?”
It was impossible, after all.
Besides, Tomokaalready seemed certain.
Realizing it was pointless to lie, Yui scratched his head and asked.
“…How did you figure it out?”
“Hmm, before I tell you that—”
To that, Tomoka first declared with a face full of excitement.
“Hiyui san, you’re my favorite! I’m so happy to meet you!”
“Thank you for that!”
After conveying a fact, she continued.
“So, about how I figured it out… Honestly, I had a hunch the moment we started talking. Your voice and way of speaking sounded familiar, like I’d heard them somewhere before.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously. While we were talking, it clicked that it might be Hiyui-san. Then I remembered, ‘Oh yeah, that person could draw too. There were rough sketches in Kozora-kun’s notebook.’”
“……”
Hearing her explanation, I belatedly realized I’d given away far too many clues.
“And I was certain when you sang.”
“…Yeah…”
“Singing’s hard to fake, you know! The moment I heard one phrase, I thought ‘This is definitely it!’ So I had you sing to confirm!”
I was too careless. If I absolutely didn’t want to be found out, I should have avoided singing.
…But wanting to sing with Tomoka despite that was probably my downfall.
Tomoka then continued in a slightly apologetic tone.
“…Um, sorry? For exposing you like that.”
“It’s fine. I wasn’t trying to hide it that much anyway.”
“Really?”
She looked puzzled at my reply and asked.
“Then… why are you hiding it? I know it’s weird for me to say this, but I think you’d be popular if you went public?”
“I’m just hesitant to show a side of myself that’s different from my streams.”
To that, Yui replied bluntly.
“Minasumi-san is bright and popular in class too, but I’m… usually just a corner tribe in the classroom.”
“The corner tribe. Interesting way to put it.”
“So, I worry that if people saw my everyday self, different from my streams, they might be disappointed. …Or rather, I’m sorry, Minasumi san? This is what I’m like outside of streaming.”
“Hmm? I wasn’t disappointed at all?”
“Huh?”
Surprised by the unexpected reply, Yui looked up.
“I was surprised, but at the same time, I kind of understood. One of the things I like about Hiyui-san is how he gives his all to everything. That matched up with how Kozora-kun seemed, so I was like, ‘Ah, I see.’”
“!”
“Honestly, it feels like a bonus getting to see a new side of my favorite person! I’m really happy I got to know Kozora-kun is Hiyui-san, and I’m super happy I got to talk with Kozora-kun!”
Her dazzling smile was so bright it almost hurt, and it was the kind of affirmation that even the usual Yui would appreciate.
“…Th-thanks.”
“You’re so easy to read when you’re embarrassed, huh? Cute!”
“I wish you wouldn’t!”
Somehow, he felt like his rhythm was being thrown off.
So, Yui decided to change the subject, a bit forcefully.
“…Changing the subject. Can I ask you one last thing?”
“Hmm?”
“About your childhood friend… Himekami-kun.”
I felt bad bringing this up… but there was something I needed to ask.
“Why are you helping him?”
I voiced it plainly.
“…Honestly, I don’t see any benefit for you, Minasumi-san. He should be free to search for what he wants to do on his own. Even if he doesn’t find it, it doesn’t concern you. You’d be better off focusing your energy on your own activities… That’s what I think, anyway…”
I wondered if I’d said too much.
Fortunately, Tomoka didn’t seem angry.
“Yeah. I appreciate your concern, and I understand that point of view.”
“…”
“But I’ve decided to help. Why? Because… I owe Ryota a debt of gratitude.”
“A debt?”
Touka quietly explained the reason.
“Actually… me, and… well, Michan and Onee-chan too. There was a time when our fathers opposed our dreams, or rather, the things we wanted to do.”
“…I see.”
“Well, I get Dad’s feelings too! My streaming career is definitely far from stable, and the other two want to be manga artists and singers! If all three daughters were suddenly trying to go down such high-risk paths…”
It was true—it didn’t seem like parents would wholeheartedly support that.
“And that opposition was pretty strong. I never planned to quit, but having family members against it really hit me hard.”
“…Yeah, I get it.”
“And—it was Ryota who changed that.”
With that, she stepped into the heart of her debt of gratitude.
“One day, Dad suddenly said he’d support our dreams. When I asked what happened… he said, ‘Because a certain boy convinced me.’”
“Oh?”
“I wondered if he meant Ryota, so I asked Ryota himself, and he admitted he was the one who convinced him. …That made me so incredibly happy.”
So, Tomoka lifted her face, preparing to conclude.
“That’s why… I’ve decided to support Ryota until I repay that debt. At least until Ryota finds his own path and can walk it.”
“…Isn’t it hard? After what he said?”
“It’d be a lie to say it isn’t… but I’ll do it anyway.”
Then, Tomoka stood up.
“Because that’s what I want to do!”
She declared her conviction brightly.
“I want to make everyone smile through my livestreams. I want to move many people’s hearts. So for that—I’ve decided to ‘never lie to my own heart’.”
“!”
“If you want to move others’ hearts, you have to properly move your own heart first!”
That… as someone in the same position streaming, I thought it was a wonderful conviction.
“I see. …Good luck.”
“Mm!”
Without saying anything more, I offered words of support to Tomoka.
Around then, the time to go home approached.
Yui and Tomoka both started getting ready to leave together.
“Still, that was a shock. My favorite streamer sitting next to me? It’s like something out of a manga.”
“I’ll just say that right back to you.”
Yui had slipped up again.
The moment he thought “Oh no,” it was already too late. Tomoka beside him flashed a surprised expression, then broke into that devilishly cute smile he had seen several times today.
“…Huh? I knew you watched my streams, but you actually supported me?”
“No, um, well…”
“What exactly did you like about me? Tell me, please?”
Overwhelmed by Tomoka’s pressure as she leaned in with her strangely forceful, refined beauty.
“…At first, like I said, I watched because I found out a classmate was streaming.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Your reactions were great, you were always so bright, and you genuinely enjoyed the games you played. Watching you made me happy too.”
“Oh? And?”
“And…”
He tried to voice what came next… but it was too embarrassing, and he started to clam up.
But he couldn’t resist Tomoka’s expression, which seemed to say, “Is that all?”
“…Because your voice was beautiful.”
In the end, he just said it plainly.
When Tomoka heard it, she looked puzzled for a moment… then softened her expression.
“Huh~~~~? Kozora-kun likes my voice?”
“Um…”
“Oh, I see… I see…!”
Then, for some reason, she hid her face from Yui for a moment before standing up.
“──Yeah! That totally cheered me up!”
She declared this, flashing Yui a smile as bright as the sun.
“It’s all thanks to talking with you! …So, once again──”
Right then.
Tomoka took a step toward Yui.
With that momentum, she drew her face close. Whispering into Yui’s ear.
“Thanks. ──I think I might have fallen for you.”
Her voice was sweeter, sweeter than usual.
A breathy whisper voice that could ensnare you with just the sound, saying that.
“Huh!?”
It seeped into his mind, echoing inside him. A voice he’d never forget, a voice he’d want to hear again and again.
Hearing that voice, Yui jerked back, covering his mouth as she looked at Tomoka.
Tomoka, unchanged, gazed back at Yui with that same teasing, lovely smile.
“Ahaha, your face is bright red! That was your sweet thank-you voice. How was it? Did I make you all flustered?”
“No, wait… That’s taking the joke too far…!”
“Ahaha, sorry, sorry. But I really am super grateful, okay?”
She spun around once, moving away from Yui, then turned back to face her again.
“Well then, I’m heading home first! Thanks so much for today! Let’s talk again sometime!”
With that, she left the classroom lightly.
“…………”
Yui, left behind in the classroom, stood dazed for a moment.
…Even then, Tomoka’s voice—that overly sweet, impactful voice from just now—unconsciously lingered in her ears.
“…No, no, no, no.”
he muttered involuntarily.
“Even as lip service, that’s not good…”
No matter how much he had memories from him past life, his mental age was still pulled by his physical age.
In other words—for his first-year high school self, the current ‘liking’ felt far too stimulating, like a spell of enchantment.
If he left it alone, he’d end up reminiscing about that voice forever, and that felt way too creepy even to himself.
Yui forced himself to think of something else.
Fortunately, he had something else to focus on. …Tomoka’s response when he asked about Himekami Ryota.
(Her father opposed it, and the reason she changed her mind was ‘because a certain boy persuaded her.’ And Himekami-kun confirmed that boy was himself, right?)
Hearing that, he recalled something.
…Come to think of it, something similar had happened to him too.
One day, for some random reason, I had a chance to talk with a man about my father’s age.
I remember him confiding in me about how troubled he was over how to deal with his daughters pursuing their dreams.
(…Well, that’s probably just coincidence.)
Thinking that, he cut off his thoughts on the matter since it was unproductive.
…But then, Tomoka’s words from earlier inevitably popped back into his mind.
(Oh, come on… Even if it’s meant as thanks, you don’t have to say things you don’t mean…!)
he convinced himself that the earlier words, “I think I might have fallen for you,” were just voice service, or perhaps an exaggerated expression of affection.
Yui shook his head to chase the thought away and started getting ready to leave.
◆
Yui hadn’t noticed.
That Tomoka, who had left the classroom first… had turned bright red the instant she stepped out and started running.
“~~!”
That one word she’d said, meant as thanks… she hadn’t intended to go that far, but in the heat of the moment, she’d blurted out words of affection.
And, as a matter of principle—she doesn’t lie to her own heart. That fact.
Recalling what she’d said… yet, strangely, Tomoka realized she felt no regret.
“…♪”
Her mood had lifted completely, and she seemed to be enjoying her own elation.
She relaxed her lips, closed her eyes tightly, and wore an expression that would make anyone who saw it fall in love.
—And at that very moment.
“Damn that Tomoka… She didn’t need to get that angry. …Well, I guess I should apologize anyway. She’s probably feeling down right now, and as her childhood friend, I should look out for her.”
Another boy, completely unaware of what he had done.
Unaware that he was about to type a half-hearted apology in a message, which would only accelerate things further.
Still, no one had noticed.
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