My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 19

However, Yuihama's expression twitched slightly after hearing this.

"You...you actually called someone an idiot...Do you...do you even remember who that person is?"

"I was in so much pain back then, I didn't have time to remember anything. But since I have no recollection of them at all, they must have been someone who wasn't very noticeable."

"No, not very noticeable... I wasn't wearing makeup back then... and I hadn't dyed my hair yet, and I was just wearing a casual pajama... Ah, that bear pajama probably really made me look like an idiot."

Yuihama's voice was too soft for me to hear; I only saw her muttering to herself with her head down. Was she having an upset stomach?

"how?"

"It's nothing... Anyway, you don't remember that girl, do you?"

"I told you I didn't remember...wait, did I say she was a woman?"

"Hey! Ah, you said it! You definitely said it! And you kept saying she was a 'girl'!"

"How disgusting am I?"

Yui laughed it off, then turned to look at the tennis court, so I looked over as well. The female tennis club members who had been practicing were walking back here, wiping their sweat.

"Hey~~ Xiao Cai~~"

Yui waved and greeted them; they seemed to know each other.

After spotting Yuihama, the girl quickly ran towards them.

"Hi, Xiao Cai, are you practicing?"

"Yeah, our club is pretty weak, so we have to practice at lunchtime too... I've been begging the school to let us use the tennis courts during lunchtime, and we finally got permission recently. What are Yuigahama-san and Hikigaya-san doing here?"

"Nothing was done."

After Yui finished speaking, she turned to me and asked with her eyes, "Isn't that right?" No, I came here for lunch, while you went to buy juice. Are you a chicken? How can your memory be so bad? (In Japan, chickens are often used as a metaphor for poor memory.)

"That's it."

The girl named "Xiao Cai" smiled.

"Xiao Cai plays tennis during class and continues to practice at noon. She works really hard."

"It's alright, because I like playing tennis. By the way, Hachiman, you're really good at tennis."

The conversation suddenly shifted to myself, and I fell silent. This was the first time I'd ever heard of this, and you asked, "Who are you? How do you know my name?"

I had a lot of questions for her, but Yui Hama beat me to it with a sigh.

"Huh? Really?"

"Hmm, Hachiman's playing form is very standard."

"Oh dear, I'm so sorry, hahaha... So, who is she?"

I deliberately lowered my voice for the last few words, so that only Yuihama could hear them, but her specialty was ruining my plans.

"What? Xiao Cai is in your class! We also have PE together, right? How come you don't remember her name? I can't believe it!"

"Are you an idiot? Don't talk nonsense. I remember it perfectly well, I just suddenly forgot! Besides, PE class is separate for boys and girls."

She ruined my plan to defuse the awkward situation! Now she knows, and what if she gets upset? I looked at Xiaocai and saw her eyes were already brimming with tears. Oh no, that look was so powerful, so adorable it made me want to pity her. If you were a dog, it would be like a Chihuahua; if you were a cat, it would be like a short-legged cat.

"Ah, haha, you really don't remember my name... I'm Totsuka Saika, who's in the same class as you."

"Sorry, I recently switched classes, that's why..."

"I was in the same class as you in first grade... haha, because I wasn't very noticeable..."

"No, no, that's not true! Oh, right, it's because I don't interact much with the girls in my class. To be honest, I don't even know their full names."

"Remember this!"

Yuihama struck me on the head. Seeing this, Totsuka still spoke mournfully:

"You and Yui-hama are really close..."

"W-What? Our relationship is terrible! I only have murderous intent towards him! It's the feeling that if I kill him, we'll both perish!"

"Yes, yes—that's terrifying! It's too heavy a tragedy for love to end in a double suicide!"

"What? You...are you an idiot? That's not what I meant!"

"You two have a really good relationship..."

Totsuka spoke softly, turning his gaze back to me.

"Also, I'm actually a boy... Do I look that delicate?"

"what?"

I immediately stopped what I was doing and thinking, and hurriedly looked at Yui, asking her with my eyes, "This is a lie, right?" But Yui nodded in response. Her cheeks were flushed, probably because she was still angry.

What?! Really?! Don't lie to me! You must be joking, right?

Totsuka noticed the suspicion in my eyes, so she blushed, lowered her head, and looked up at me with her eyes slightly raised.

His hand gradually reached for his athletic shorts, his movements unusually flamboyant.

"...I can prove it to you."

I felt a wavering within myself.

The demon Hachiman whispered in my right ear, "It's okay, let him take his clothes off~~ Maybe something good will happen!" That makes sense; such opportunities are indeed rare. "Wait a minute!" Oh, an angel appeared. "Since he's going to take his clothes off, how about making him take off his upper body too?" What a load of rubbish! Aren't you an angel?

In the end, I decided to trust my own rationality.

That's right, these gender-ambiguous characters are attractive precisely because of their gender ambiguity. My rational conclusion requires me to make a calm judgment.

"Anyway, I'm sorry. Although it's because I'm not familiar with you, it still made you uncomfortable."

After I apologized, Totsuka shook his head, wiped away the tears in his eyes, and smiled.

"No, it's okay."

"By the way, how did you know my name?"

"Huh? Ah, because Hachiman is very conspicuous."

When Yuihama heard Totsuka say that, she turned and stared at me intently.

"What? He should be very inconspicuous, right? Unless something special happens, no one would notice him at all."

"Idiot, I'm very conspicuous, okay? Just as conspicuous as Kira Star."

"Where is it conspicuous?"

Yuihama asked in a very serious tone.

"...Alone in the corner of the classroom, I actually stand out quite a bit."

"Ah, that does make you stand out... No, no, sorry."

She immediately looked away, but that attitude was even more hurtful.

Seeing the atmosphere turn somber, Totsuka quickly jumped in to smooth things over.

"By the way, Hachiman-kun plays tennis very well. Have you studied it before?"

"I only played Mario Tennis when I was in elementary school, I've never actually played it."

"Ah, is that the two-player game? I've played it too, it's super fun in doubles!"

"...I can only play by myself."

"Eh... Oh... I'm sorry."

"What's wrong with you? Why do you always seem to step on my landmines? Is your job to dig up my traumas?"

"You planted too many landmines yourself!"

Totsuka watched me and Yuihama bicker with amusement.

At that moment, the bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch break.

"Let's go back."

Totsuka said, and Yuihama followed.

I suddenly had a strange feeling.

Yes, we're in the same class, so it's only natural that we go back to the classroom together, but at this moment I can't help but feel a little sentimental.

"You autistic guy, what are you still doing?"

Yuihama turned to look at me with a puzzled expression, and Totsuka also stopped and looked at me.

Can I come with you? — That's what I wanted to ask, but I decided against it.

So, let me put it another way.

"Weren't you going to run an errand to buy drinks?"

"Oh no! This is terrible!"

× × ×

A few days later, it was time for PE class again.

Through repeated practice, I gradually became an expert at fighting against walls, and now I have reached the point where my feet don't need to move at all.

Starting tomorrow, physical education classes will consist of practice matches. In other words, today is the last day for us to practice sparring.

I wanted to seize this last chance to swing my racket with all my might when someone nudged my right shoulder.

Who is it? Is it a ghost? No one wants to talk to me, could it be a ghost?

I turned around and my right cheek was poked by a finger.

"Haha, we've fallen for their trap."

The result was Totsuka Saika, who had a very cute smile.

Hmm... weird, what's with this feeling? Why is my heart pounding? If he weren't a boy, I would have confessed to him already and been rejected. Huh? I really would have been rejected.

If you've seen Totsuka in a school uniform, you'll know he's a boy. But when he changes into a matching men's/women's tracksuit, it's really hard to tell the difference. If he were wearing long black socks instead of athletic short socks, I definitely wouldn't be able to tell.

Totsuka's arms, waist, and legs were very slender, and her skin was very fair.

It's a pity he's not well-endowed, but Yukinoshita's breasts are about the same size.

In an instant, I felt a strong chill.

I regained my composure and spoke to the smiling Totsuka.

"What's up?"

"Well, my usual teammate is absent today, so... if you don't mind, would you like to practice sparring with me?"

Don't look at me with those slightly upturned eyes, it's too cute! And don't let my cheeks turn red!

"Oh, okay, I'm alone anyway."

Sorry, wall, I can't keep fighting you...

After I apologized to the wall and agreed to Totsuka's request, he seemed relieved and breathed a sigh of relief, saying softly, "I was so nervous." Hearing him say that made me even more nervous than him. He's just so adorable.

Yuihama mentioned that some girls call the lovable Totsuka "Prince." I see. Totsuka is just as cute as a girl; he's a beautiful boy, and this nickname certainly suits his image. The word "Prince" probably also implies "wanting to protect him."

So, Totsuka and I started fighting.

As expected of a member of the tennis club, his tennis skills are quite good.

I learned to serve accurately by playing against the wall, and he returned every ball beautifully, hitting it back directly in front of me. After a few rounds, Totsuka seemed to find playing silently boring, so he struck up a conversation with me.

"Hachiman, you're really amazing."

Because we were some distance apart, Totsuka's voice sounded a little slow.

"Because I've been hitting against the wall all the time, I'm already very familiar with tennis balls."

"That's squash, it can't be considered tennis."

We talked like this while continuing our game. While others made mistakes from time to time, we never stopped. At that moment, Totsuka caught the tennis ball that bounced towards him and paused the game.

"Let's take a short break."

"it is good."

We sat down. But why sit side by side? Isn't that strange? Usually, same-sex friends sit facing each other or diagonally across from each other, right? Isn't this too close? Isn't it? Isn't it?