Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818023212603480991/episodes/16818023212609765075
In June, the Sports Festival was held and I was to run in the 1500 meter run, just as I had done in my freshman year.
Since I was next in line, I was heading to the entrance gate,
I saw Yuri looking for someone, and when she noticed me, she smiled and waved at me.
“Good luck, Kingo.”
“Thanks, I’ll do my best.”
I snapped my hand at Yuri, and a voice called out from behind me.
“Yuri, you should be cheering for me who’s in the same class as you instead of the guys in the other classes.”
Umetani Koichi, who had been rumored to have been rejected by Yuri before the Golden Week holidays, was standing there.
“Yeah Do your best, Umetani kun.”
Yuri’s words of support for Umetani still made me sick.
“Yeah. I’ll do my best for Class 7.”
After responding to Yuri, Umetani took the trouble to stand in front of me.
“I thought I heard that Umetani is an ace in the high jump.”
“That’s right.”
“High jump is more like short jump…”
Umetani interrupted me and smiled confidently.
“I’m good at 1500 meters too.
And I’m gonna win in academics, sports, and everything else.”
….Come to think of it, he talked to me the other day.
It was right after the midterm exams in May.
“How did you do on your midterms, Samejima? What was your average score?”
Even though we’re not even friends, I wonder what he’s talking about,
I was proud of my score (though it was lower than Yuri’s), so I decided to tell him.
“80…”
“I got a 96 !”
When he realized he had won, he interrupted my answer, snickered, and walked away.
What the hell is wrong with that guy !
According to Yutaro, he was the top student in his grade, and he was the leader in his class, and he, Yutaro, Yuka, and Yuri were all good friends.
And yet, he’s only after me…
I mean, it’s because he’s after Yuri, damn it.
I was so angry that I decided to harass Umetani.
“Hey, Yuri, I’m gonna win first place in this 1,500 meters,
Let’s go on a date after the sports festival.”
The invitation came from right in front of Yuri’s face, and she let out a surprised yelp.
“Eh !”
“What are you talking about? We’re gonna have a party with seven groups after the festival,
Yuri is supposed to come to the party !”
“It wouldn’t be a big deal if one of them canceled it, would it?
If one of your good friends wins first place, you’ll congratulate him, right !”
“Then, if I win first place, you’ll have to go on a date with me !”
“Eh !”
Umetani also asked her out, and Yuri looked at us as if we were joking, but both Umetani and I kept staring at Yuri and waited for her answer.
“….I’m going to the party today. I can’t break a promise.
And no date !”
Saying this, Yuri fled away, flustered.
To be honest, I thought there was only a chance to win ! I was so disappointed.
But Umetani was also explicitly disappointed.
This guy has never gone out with even a small group of people,
How could he be so confident?
There was another guy I knew at the meeting place for the 1,500-meter run.
He was Enomoto Takato, the “bad boy” from the basketball team who had been involved with Yuuri and me in the first year.
Right before the midterm exam of the second semester, Enomoto revealed that I had been dumped by Yagi Saki and Yuri had been dumped by Matsukubo Takuma on the day of the entrance ceremony.
So, Enomoto revealed that Yuri had been dumped and that I had given him a knock shot.
For the next six months, Enomoto was the bum of the class…
Besides, Enomoto must have been in the relay last year.
Is he here to take revenge on me?
Or is he genuinely challenging me to a race?
The 16 runners lined up at the starting line.
I was unlucky enough to start on the outside.
I jumped out with the sound of the pistol,
It was Enomoto who entered the curve at the head of the pack.
Umetani was second, and I was third.
Damn.
The 15 guys behind me were either unwilling or incapable of running.
The 1500 meters is a tough race.
The victory was already narrowed down to three.
If there are lapped riders in the way when I pass them, they will get in my way,
Try to speed up early,
Umetani swung his arms a little to the side, and then swelled outward a little more to get in my way,
I couldn’t pull him out.
Damn, he’s sly.
I’m still running as fast as I can every two days, five to ten kilometers.
Some days I run at a steady pace, and other days I ramp up and down in speed.
Well, I never run on the track.
I speed up and do it every straightaway, and first I compare stamina with Umetani.
Each lap is 200 meters, and by the third lap, Umetani was breathing hard.
As I was about to pass him on the straight on the fourth lap, the bastard Umetani pretended to stagger and pulled himself in close to me !
Hmmm !
I went around him even more, and passed him.
For a brief moment, my eyes met Umetani, and I felt my stomach drop at his admission of defeat.
Then I went after Enomoto, who was leading.
When the bell rang for one more lap, I was right on Enomoto’s tail.
Enomoto is breathing hard, though,
I was also on my knees from the speed ups and downs of the first part of the race.
I was still determined to win ! I sped up my speed,
Not to be outdone, Enomoto also increased his speed !
Damn !
That was tough !
Pull out !
Enomoto !
I’ll win !
As we come to the last straight, I finally run as fast as I can alongside Enomoto to the finish line tape.
“Kingo~!”
“Go for it～!”
“Win~!”
I heard Yutaro, Yuri, and Yuka’s voices, and my legs gave me one more push.
Enomoto, who had dropped to second place, muttered quietly and moved away from me.
……What the hell, Enomoto. I came here to win fair and square.
“Hey, Samejima ! Don’t think you can beat me like this!!”
Umetani Koichi, who had spoken the last words, was in third place, far behind.
“….Everyone has their strengths and weaknesses.:
“It’s just that my legs aren’t feeling well !”
“I see. I hope it’s not too bad.”
You just lost your motivation after I passed you.
Well, I don’t really care.
There was a party planned for our class, and Naoyuki invited me,
I knew it was karaoke, so I ran away.
I went home and was cooking dinner for two when I got a line.
It was Yuri !
[Congratulations on your first place in the 1500 meter race ! ＼〈＾＿＾〉／
It was a close match, so I ended up shouting.
But you mustn’t say things like that in public again !
Absolutely not !
If you promise, I’ll go on a date with you on Monday, my day off.]
Hahaha !
I’ll take your words !
Hey, Umetani, I’ll screenshot this line and send it to you !
Hm? Huh? I don’t know his contact info. What a shame.
★★★★★★★★★★★★★
On Monday, we decided to go to the zoo in Port Island.
The first thing we did was to interact with the dogs.
Yuri was petting a big dog lying down.
“So cute～, Good girl～.
…..Hey, Kingo. Will you adopt a puppy?”
“I can’t. You should get a dog yourself.”
“You’re so mean.
….It can’t be helped. Can you take a picture?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
I took a picture of Yuri smiling softly, nudging the dog, and hugging it.
Yuri looked younger and cuter than usual as she interacted with the dogs.
When the keeper walked by, the dogs following him,
It was also cute that she looked envious when the keeper walked by.
Next, it was time to meet the cats.
Yuri gently stroked the kitty as it curled up in a ball and lay down to sleep.
“So cute～, Good girl～
……Hey, Kingo. Will you keep the kitty?”
“I can’t. You should keep it yourself.”
“You’re so mean.
……..Can I hug you, kitty?”
“Erm. I guess not.”
“…It can’t be helped. Then lead her to my lap.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t.”
“Kingo is so useless. Then, will you take my picture?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
I took pictures of Yuri smiling and nudging various cats.
Next came the rabbits.
Yuri carefully stroked the still bunny.
“Sp cute～, The fur is really fine and silky and feels so nice.
…..Hey, Kingo, let’s get a bunny.”
“I told you, I can’t. You should keep it yourself.”
“You’re so mean.
……It can’t be helped. Can you take a picture?”
“Yeah, yeah.”
I took another picture of Yuri giggling and nudging the bunny again.
★★★★★★★★★★★★★
After looking around at all the animals, it was time for lunch.
“Kingo, thank you for buying the ticket.”
“No, no, no. I’m the one who invited you.”
“Instead, I made you lunch.”
We had this exchange at the meeting place,
I know I’m repeating myself, but it’s still bittersweet.
“I did it ! I’d be more happy than to split the bill !”
“I hope it tastes good…”
“Why? Until now, all of Yuri’s lunches have been delicious.”
“You’re exaggerating. But thank you. Then, let’s eat !”
Three wooden oval lunch boxes were laid out on the table.
“Two of them are for Kingo.”
When I opened the lid, I found a colorful array of side dishes.
Fried egg, hamburg steak, hijiki stew, vermicelli salad, and asparagus bacon.
It was the most wonderful meal.
After lunch, we enjoyed touching the owls, putting them on our arms while freaking out, riding camels while being surprised at their size, and giving seals treats while telling them how cute they were.
Yuri was very excited, but it was cute how she tried her best to hold back because the animals would be startled if she showed her attitude.
I think I’ve become as good a photographer as Yutaro.
Because I captured a lot of cute Yuri on my phone.
Speaking of which, when I stepped into the facility to see the flying squirrel, it was pitch black.
Flying squirrels are only active at night.
They rely on just a little bit of light, but it was so dark that I quietly approached Yuri.
“It flew ! It flew, Kingo !”
“It’s true ! It flew with a swoosh !”
As we were shoulder to shoulder watching the flying squirrel, the backs of our hands bumped into each other and I ended up squeezing Yuri’s hand.
Yuri seemed a little surprised,
Our hands became entangled and turned into a lover’s connection.
I was so happy, I felt so happy that even though it was pitch dark, I felt like my light was shining.
Well, we let go of each other’s hands as soon as we got out.
Finally, we carefully selected to go to the store and buy at least one souvenir.
Yuri ended up staring at the key chain.
I was waiting behind her with cookies, a tribute to my sister.
“Hey, Kingo. Let’s buy this cat’s initials key ring.
…..I-it’s matching.”
I heard Yuri’s voice as she stared at the key chain.
She must have been embarrassed, she was turning bright red up to her ears.
“Okay. Then, can you take the K for me?”
“Nn.”
A key chain with a cute cat was placed in my palm that was extended from behind. While facing the other side.
For a while, Yuri didn’t make eye contact with me.
After that, we took the train home, and when we were sitting side by side,
I used to be very careful not to touch each other,
But now we were holding each other, even if it was just touching, and I felt happy again.
I’m trying very hard not to hold hands with her, though.
And then, when we parted.
“Here’s a present for you.”
“It’s so cute ! I’ll treasure it !”
When I handed her a ballpoint pen with a cat on it, she was delighted with childish joy.
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