Chapter 8

I received the second review.

I'm so happy, thank you!

The next morning, the three of us—Lotus Pond, Yukiko, and I—decided to start our practice right away.

Morning homeroom starts at 8:35, so we agreed to meet on the field at 7:30, an hour earlier.

Come to think of it, this is the first time I've ever made plans to meet someone.

In fact, even though I've been going to school from elementary to high school, I've never really taken any typical student actions with my classmates.

Being constantly restricted by Hanabi, I couldn't even interact with other people, so it's no surprise.

When I arrived, Lotus Pond and Yukiko were already on the field, waving at me.

It feels so... youthful...

The practice started under rather odd circumstances, but it might not be so bad after all.

Plus, this morning, I changed my train schedule, so I didn't have to see Hanabi and Kiriya's excessive PDA at the edge of my vision.

I approached the two of them with a deep sense of emotion.

"Good morning, Ichinose-kun."

"Hey, Ichinose."

"Good morning to both of you."

Today, I came from home in my tracksuit, so I immediately put down my bag and started warming up.

As Yukiko had said, she's not good at sports, and her movements were already awkward at this point.

"Un... uu... un... hyaa...!?"

While bending forward, Yukiko lost her balance and tumbled sideways.

Although she was being very serious, it was so endearing that I couldn't help but laugh.

Her small stature made her movements look like a puppy, which was cute.

"Hey, Ichinose-kun, you just laughed, didn't you?"

"Sorry, sorry. You looked so cute."

"..."

Without any deeper meaning, I just said what I thought, and Yukiko's face turned bright red instantly.

"Could it be that Ichinose-kun is naturally a tease?"

"Tease, eh...?"

Maybe because she loves reading, her vocabulary is a bit unusual.

"Hey, you two... Showing affection in front of me, who's still heartbroken, is quite a nerve...!"

When I heard a deep voice, I turned around to see Lotus Pond standing there, tears streaming down his face.

His tough face made him look quite intimidating.

S-Sorry...

"Sniff, sniff... Alright, let's start the preparations for revenge...!"

"Please, just say we're starting the practice."

---

Regaining our composure, we started the 'practice'.

Lotus Pond, being from the track and field club, gave very precise instructions, and both Yukiko and I improved our times significantly.

Yukiko's clumsy running style was so cute that I couldn't help but comment on it, which led to her blushing and saying, "You really are a tease...!" and Lotus Pond crying out, "Please, no more PDA...!"

Despite these incidents, I think we had a pretty good first day of practice.

There were ten days until the sports festival.

During this time, we repeated our morning and evening practices every day.

Lotus Pond was so passionate that he even took a break from his club activities.

I just ran as I was told, but since I was getting results, Lotus Pond seemed satisfied, and he didn't push me to go all out for victory.

Incidentally, Hanabi started showing up on my train again the next morning.

However, getting up an hour earlier must be quite a struggle for her, as her hair, which usually reaches her shoulders, was just let down, and there were some bedhead spots.

The Hanabi I knew was very particular about her hairstyle and would redo it if it wasn't perfect, so it was surprising to see her in such an incomplete state.

She seemed embarrassed by it and kept fidgeting with her hair.

To go to such lengths to show off... That guy is definitely not normal.

I was glad I cut ties with Hanabi.

◇◇◇

Days passed quickly, and finally, the day before the sports festival arrived.

We had just finished our last practice on the field after school.

"Alright! Let's call it a day! Good job, both of you!"

"Ugh... I'm done..."

The moment Lotus Pond spoke, Yukiko flopped down on the ground.

Yukiko, who doesn't seem to care much about people's gazes, isn't just a quiet literature girl; she sometimes shows a free-spirited side.

I sat down next to her, feeling a sense of empathy for her free-spiritedness.

Lotus Pond also sat down beside us.

The three of us sat side by side, watching the sunset and letting our tired legs rest.

"Tomorrow is the big day, huh."

Yukiko, still looking up at the sky, muttered to no one in particular.

Lotus Pond picked up on her words.

"You both improved your times so much, I'm sure we'll get a good result. I guarantee it! And... Ichinose, Yukiko, thank you so much for putting up with my selfishness. To be honest, after being dumped, I couldn't sleep at all, thinking about my ex and Kiriya every night. But since we started this practice, I've been focused on how to improve your times, and I've been able to sleep properly. I can't thank you enough."

"I didn't do much...! Thanks to Ichinose-kun, I got to learn running from Lotus Pond-kun. My legs are faster now. So I'm the one who should be grateful."

"I also enjoyed spending time with my classmates like this. Thank you."

As we thanked each other, we gradually felt a bit embarrassed and ended up laughing.

"Really, spending time with you guys has been a relief. Of course, my hatred for Kiriya hasn't disappeared."

"Speaking of Kiriya-kun, when I saw him yesterday, his hairstyle had completely changed, which surprised me."

Yukiko seemed to want to steer the conversation away from heavy topics and casually changed the subject.

Now that she mentioned it, the Kiriya I knew, despite being in a sports club, had rather long hair that he styled with wax, looking like a host from somewhere.

By the time I started seeing him at the station, his hair was already in its current, more normal style.

"He looks so fresh... I think he looks a bit like the current Ichinose-kun."

"Me?"

"Ah, just the hairstyle! The atmosphere is completely different...!"

"U-um"

I laughed at her hurried explanation.

I don't think I share any atmosphere with that popular guy.

"He cut his hair after starting to date a first-year girl."

Since he hates the guy, Lotus Pond knows a lot about Kiriya.

I was glad Lotus Pond hadn't taken any criminal actions.

"My ex said she liked Kiriya's hairstyle, so maybe he cut it to spite me. Damn... that guy... If that's the case, I can't forgive him even more."

"Lotus Pond..."

"...Do you think I'm an idiot?"

"Huh?"

"Even after being cheated on and replaced, I still have feelings for her. Laugh if you want."

"Why would I laugh? You're just loyal. No one has the right to laugh at someone who has fallen in love seriously."

"... Ichinose... You're a good guy..."

I heard a sniff and looked up to see Lotus Pond wiping his tears with his arm.

It seems Lotus Pond is more sensitive than he looks.

But this time, the tears were clearly different from the ones he shed when he said, "No PDA."

I gently looked at Yukiko, and she nodded back with a worried expression.

Even without words, I could feel her support, so I nodded back.

After that, Yukiko and I stayed quietly by Lotus Pond's side until he calmed down.

Since that day, the three of us became friends.

For me, they were my first friends.

--- And the next day.

Finally, the day of the sports festival arrived.

I wrote this story about my childhood friend getting her comeuppance.

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