Source
https://ncode.syosetu.com/n5018if/34/
“Can you repeat that?”
“I’m sorry. I lied to Asahina-san. I have no feelings for Otsuki-san beyond friendship …… or even acquaintance.”
With a bang, Asahina-san tapped the table and leaned forward.
For a moment I thought I was going to get punched, but Asahina-san wagged and trembled, then eventually subsided and sat down.
“U-um, …….”
“If it hadn’t been for what happened the other day, I would have yelled at you.”
“That’s right. I think we just talked about it because of what happened the other day.”
Asahina san stared at me.
In the same way that reconciliation becomes difficult as time passes, lying becomes more complicated as time passes.
The reason I told her this was because I no longer needed to lie about liking Otsuki san
“So Kogure-kun really doesn’t like Shizuku, then. It’s kind of …… discouraging.”
Asahina-san put her fingers in her platinum blonde hair and made a curling gesture.
“I’m sorry I lied to you”
“So you really don’t like her ……. So you mean you don’t like anyone right now?”
“Yes. No one”
“I see.”
“You seem very happy about it, but is it really that strange that I don’t have a crush?”
“I-I-it’s not like that. Yeah, I just said that it was good.”
What was good about it, I have no idea. One-sided love. ……In the first place, it is said that more than half of the school has feelings for the girl in front of me, and I may be strange at the point where I don’t have romantic feelings.
“But there are actually a boy who like Otsuki-san. I was working for him.”
“I see. So you went to the amusement park with me and got involved in a fight between me and Shizuku just for that reason? Kogure-kun, you are such a softy.”
I was tempted to say, “If I hadn’t been spotted by you, this wouldn’t have happened. ……,” but I didn’t want to because she might get angry.
“Then bring the boy to me.”
“Is that okay? I thought that a boy you don’t know would not be appropriate for Shizuku.”
“It depends on the guy. But if that boy and Shizuku get together… Kogure-kun won’t have any other girls besides me.”
“Um~, I couldn’t hear what you said after ‘if they get together’ at all, so speak louder.”
“Just bring him over!”
“Yes!”
Weak Asahina-san had the cuteness of a spoiled child, but the energetic Asahina-san still had the strength of an empress.
She is indeed the most charismatic and beautiful girl in school. I remember she was like this when we first met.
But now she’s blushing a bit, she doesn’t make eye contact with me, and I feel like the way she looks at me has changed.
Oh well. I decided to call him up as she told me.
I called him and he said he’d be here soon. I waited for my best friend and childhood friend to arrive.
“Sorry, I’m late.”
Seeing the face of my best friend, Hirasawa Reo, Asahina-san’s face distorted.
“Haa, this guy?! You’re lying about liking Shizuku, aren’t you?”
“Ryoma! why is Asahina here? I didn’t hear a single word about that.”
“Sit down, Reo.”
“But!”
“Reo.”
As usual, I looks Reo in the eye and speaks firmly.
“….I understand.”
Then Reo often understands and calms down. Finally, all the people involved were present.
It feels like it took a really long time to get to this point, and I feel like I went the extra route.
But this is the only way for Reo’s love to be fulfilled.
“As his best friend, I want to set the stage for him to confess his love to Otsuki san, the girl he has a crush on. If he does it now, she will reject him without a doubt.”
“I agree. Shizuku seems to have a weak point towards Hirasawa-kun, and to be honest, I don’t have a good impression of you either. If Shizuku asks me about Hirasawa-kun’s confession, I will tell her she shouldn’t do it.”
“Tsk.”
“Do you really like Shizuku in the first place? I don’t trust you.”
“When I first told Asahina-san that I found Otsuki-san attractive, it was all taken from Reo’s share. Right?”
“Yeah. I like Otsuki. What I like the most is Otsuki’s smile when he’s talking to Asahina.”
“!”
Asahina-san’s eyes widened in surprise. To be honest, I was also surprised to hear him say that.
“I wanted to know the reason for that smile, so I tried to get to know ……. And the more I got to know her, the more I fell in love with her.”
Perhaps embarrassed to speak straight about a girl, Reo began to roll his eyes embarrassedly. Conversely, it can be said that he is that serious. I’m sure Asahina-san will know that too.
“I like everything about her voice, her face, her gestures, how she names plants, and how she always makes two lunches for Asahina.”
“…… hmmm.”
“Once you fall in love with someone, you really fall in love with everything about them. I’ve never been in love before, so I was surprised.”
“I think I know what you mean.”
The calm words of Asahina-san were accompanied by a real sense of reality.
Asahina san said that she never had a boyfriend, but there was someone she liked?
Then it was a bad idea to bring me into your home.
I see, that was a long time ago. You don’t have to have been in a relationship to fall in love, right?
But what is this that bothers me a little? What if she still likes that person? No, It’s not particularly my business.
“I want to know more about Otsuki. So please help me ……!”
Reo strongly bowed to Asahina-san. Asahina-san may have thought it was an unexpected move, but if Reo really wants to accomplish something, he will bow his head and ask for cooperation.
So it’s been successful in many different places.
“Haaa,……, I get it. I’m sure Hirasawa kun’s feelings for Shizuku are genuine. I can be the go-between for you and Shizuku.”
“Is that okay?”
“It’s not up to me, it’s up to Shizuku. I’ll protect my best friend if Shizuku says she doesn’t want your contact. So it’s up to you.”
“Thank you, …….”
“Then I guess I’m done with you.”
“Haa?”
Asahina san’s strong voice freaked him out.
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One thing I appreciate about this novel so far is that Asahina falling in love with Kogure feels believable. In many romcoms like this, particularly where the FL is high-spec and popular and the protagonist isn’t, it feels kind of forced, like the FL approaches the MC first for no reason (or barely any reason) and then they just end up spending a bunch of time together because the plot just makes her do it. In this one, it makes perfect sense why Asahina approaches Kogure in the first place (to protect her friend against a potential troublemaker) and why she continues associating with him (to help get them together so that Otsuki will get over her brother and maintain the peace in her friend group), and in the course of the amusement park date and the subsequent staying over at her house, Kogure ends up making an understandably strong impression on her, demonstrating his various qualities (like being emotionally intelligent, capable, reliable and good with children) and how he shares those qualities with Otsuki, who is already someone Asahina is shown to be very fond of. It’s clear that the author went to great lengths to establish these motivations, and I think it really pays off, and makes you root for them as a couple all the more. I also like how both Reo and Asahina state early on that if Kogure and Otsuki respectively had been the opposite gender, they would’ve wanted to date them, and then it becomes increasingly clear that Kogure and Otsuki are basically gender-switched versions of each other. The symmetry is aesthetically pleasing.