My Youth Romantic Comedy Is Wrong As Expected

Page 359

"Ah... I can't take it anymore..."

Timberstool was panting heavily, running at a pace that was almost as slow as walking, and those behind him slowed down as well. When a behemoth stood in their way, moving at a snail's pace, it was sure to become a huge obstacle for them.

Thanks to the wooden support blocking the way, we were able to distance ourselves from the group behind us.

However, the problem has not yet been resolved.

No matter how massive the lumber mount was, it couldn't completely block the road. A group of people who were about to catch up began to emerge from the side, leaving him behind.

I kept looking back to check what was happening behind me. Finally, Totsuka and his tennis club members appeared.

I made eye contact with Totsuka and we nodded to each other.

This marathon uses regular roads as its course. If three people lined up side by side, they would completely block the entire road.

So, my request to Totsuka last night was—when I was running ahead, please gather all the members together as much as possible.

Of course, this will obviously hinder other runners. So, if someone wants to overtake, let them pass through the middle or go around them.

My goal is not to completely block the road.

As long as it puts psychological pressure on those who come after, making them unwilling to surpass those who came before, that's enough.

Imagine this scenario: What would someone who doesn't intend to run a marathon seriously do if they saw a group ahead of them with a similar pace and in second place?

In most cases, he won't surpass his past achievements. Those who aren't aiming for the championship and are satisfied with their current ranking will choose to join a group ahead of them and wait for their opportunity.

Once we entered the trail, no one was really following me and Hayama. Even though someone might catch up towards the end of the match, it wouldn't matter to me then.

As long as we can maintain the current situation where it's just me and Hayama, that's enough.

I kept my eyes fixed on Ye Shan, who was running ahead of me.

The stage is ready.

From this moment forward, this is a challenge that belongs only to me.

× × ×

The strong, cold wind blowing in from the sea almost froze my cheeks. The heat emanating from my body coming into contact with the cold air caused a stinging sensation on my skin.

With each step forward, the internal organs are impacted.

I could no longer distinguish whether what I was hearing was the sound of the wind or the squeezing of my internal organs. These sounds gradually mingled, turning into hot air that I exhaled.

At that moment, I smelled the scent of the tide.

Sand-fixing forests grow along the coastal road. Thinking back to the starting point earlier, it seemed to be mostly pine trees. The scenery changed constantly along the way. Here, almost everything in sight consisted of bare tree trunks, stripped of their leaves, resembling nothing but skeletons.

Even with my mind blank, my legs still propel me forward automatically, like a heart pumping blood without waiting for a command from the brain. I can feel my heartbeat racing against my pace.

During the run, many thoughts flashed through my mind like a revolving lantern, only to disappear one by one.

Fortunately, I regularly cycle to and from school. I wasn't part of any sports clubs to begin with, and without this much exercise, I wouldn't have made it this far. Endurance running isn't something I'm bad at. In fact, compared to other ball sports, endurance running is probably one of my strengths. For a long time, I've always done everything on my own. Running is exactly the same; it has a clear start and finish line, and you don't need to coordinate with others or cause them any trouble. You just need to clear your mind, or let your imagination run wild, and then mechanically move your legs.

However, that's not the case today.

The discomfort was far greater than before.

I could list many factors, such as running faster today than in PE class, the weather being colder, the wind being stronger, and thinking a lot last night, which resulted in not getting enough sleep...

However, the biggest reason lies with Hayato Hayama, who came before them.

Hayama was used to long-distance running through club practice, so he ran steadily without showing any signs of fatigue. His upper body didn't sway much, and his lower body remained stable; his posture was quite refined. No wonder he was last year's champion.

As for myself, I was panting heavily. Even ignoring the overall energy distribution, I could barely keep up with Yeshan.

Fortunately, all of this is about to come to an end.

Arriving here, the situation hadn't changed. Hayama and I were still in the lead, followed by the tennis club led by Totsuka, who occupied the second-leading group. It seemed they were indeed running together, helping me control those further back. Another possibility was that everyone was conserving their energy, waiting to catch up in the second half.

Some people were further back, too far from where we were. I looked back briefly, but I still couldn't find them.

Hayama continued running at the same pace. Thanks to the initial plan to hinder them, we had indeed widened the gap with those behind us, and we shouldn't be caught up in the short term.

Next, I have my own questions.

I haven't even reached the halfway point yet, but my physical strength is already nearing its limit.

My side has been throbbing with pain since just now, the soles of my feet feel like they're being pricked with needles, and my ears are starting to go numb. Honestly, if I could, I'd love to go home and rest right now. If I had eaten something before the match, I would have thrown it all up by now.

Although I've managed to run this far, I'm afraid I won't be able to keep up if I don't use some tricks now.

I kept running, staring at Ye Shan's retreating figure. Suddenly, the sensation under my feet changed, and a cold wind blew in through the legs of my shorts.

It turns out we've reached the bridge where we turn back.

The teachers waited on the bridge, handing out ribbons as proof of passage to those who had crossed.

Having barely run halfway through the race, I almost gave up and let out a sigh of relief, but thankfully I managed to hold it in and keep breathing.

We cannot afford to be careless now.

I picked up my pace slightly, catching up with Hayama who was a few steps ahead. The impact on my steps increased accordingly.

If I don't do this, I'll fall further and further behind Hayama. I have to admit, the difference in our running speed is like night and day. If we run slowly at our usual pace, it'll be impossible to create an opportunity for us to be alone together.

Therefore, with the help of Totsuka and Zaimokuza, and by completely abandoning the concept of energy allocation, I ran with all my might in the first half.

We went to such lengths for this moment.

I gasped for breath several times, barely managing to catch up with Yeshan.

Hayama, who had never turned around before, finally turned his face. He opened his eyes wide and spoke with slight surprise:

"I can't believe you managed to track me all the way here..."

His breathing was perfectly steady, while I was struggling to catch my breath.

"Hmm. Without allocating resources, it's... impossible..."

Hayama looked puzzled, as if he wanted to ask me why I did that. I was amused by his expression, but because my throat was dry, I coughed repeatedly as soon as I made a sound. After the coughing subsided, I slowly said:

"Anyway, nobody expects me to reach the finish line. It doesn't matter if I give up halfway."

That's absolutely true. I didn't care about the rankings at all, I didn't even care if I finished the race. As long as I could catch up with Hayama at the turnaround point without being distracted by others, nothing else mattered. To get here, I focused all my energy on the first half... Even so, after all that effort, I could only barely catch up with Hayama, who was running at a normal pace, and I still felt utterly hopeless. I almost suffered a major setback because of it. Fortunately, the turnaround point has passed.

What thoughts might people have when they've finally made it halfway through a long and arduous pilgrimage?

Most people either feel despair when they think there's still halfway to go, or they breathe a sigh of relief when they realize they've finally passed the halfway mark. Either way, these thoughts create a void within them.

In my experience, this gap will make you realize how tired you are. The thought of finally finishing halfway through the run, and then catching your breath, will bring a strong feeling of fatigue, followed by the pessimistic thought that there is still half to go, making your steps gradually heavy.

Such gaps and fatigue can also be an opportunity. When people don't have the energy to think about other things, they unconsciously reveal their true feelings and express the negative emotions that have been building up inside them, just like in Komachi's case.

That's why I had to work so hard in the first half.

Under normal circumstances, no matter how subtly we probe, Hayama will only brush us off with a gentle smile. The only feasible solution is to create an environment that Hayama finds difficult to avoid, making it impossible for him to remain composed.

Hayama seemed surprised by my appearance, but quickly regained his composure. His expression was slightly serious, as we were still in the middle of a match. Aside from that, I couldn't see any sign of wavering on his mind.

To break his composure, we'll have to put in even more effort.

Moreover, it must hit the nail on the head with a single sentence.

I forced myself to hold my breath, suppressing the pain in my chest, and forced a smile:

"...Is that parapet wall from Miura any good?"

Ye Shan glared at him sharply. He suppressed his hostility and exhaled a hot breath. Yes, that's exactly it. This is exactly the reaction I wanted to see.

However, he seemed determined to ignore it and simply sped up silently. I also mustered my strength to catch up and continue to provoke Ye Shan.

"How was it? I helped you a lot, didn't I?"

I know very well that Miura is not a bad person. I once inadvertently glimpsed her overly straightforward personality, so to be honest, I feel bad saying this now.

Since I think this way, the listener must think the same way.

"Just shut up."

Ye Shan didn't even glance at me, and said impatiently. Those three words carried a threatening tone, quite different from his usual calm voice, and I almost took a step back.

However, I still tried my best to keep my pace steady.

"You think I'll just shut up because you want me to? I'm not as good as you think."

I flashed a sly smile and borrowed a phrase someone had once used. Ye Shan glanced at me helplessly and chuckled.

"What a joke. I've never thought of you as a good person."

Hearing his heartless words, I almost stopped in my tracks. But if I let my guard down here, he would only leave me behind. So I forced myself to stay focused and looked ahead.

"You jerk..."

Hayama responded to my murmur with a mocking smile.

"It's not your place to say that."

Haha, I totally agree. I almost laughed out loud myself. Thanks to this conversation, I was able to elicit an unusual reaction from Hayama. Now is the perfect time.

I adjusted my breathing again to make sure my speech wasn't broken.

"Will you choose the humanities or sciences group?"

I won't tell you.

"Let me guess. It's the science group."

When Ye Shan heard my quick response, he let out a short sigh of helplessness.

"...There are only two possible answers, would I fall for that?"

"Or, let's put it another way."

With that, I slightly increased my speed, struggled to lift my heavy legs, and rushed to within a few steps of Ye Shan. I turned back and said to him:

"You choose the science group for me. I don't know how you fill out the survey, and I don't care to. Anyway, we still have time, so just change it to the science group."

"What?"

He showed a rare look of surprise, staggered a step or two, then regained his balance and quickly caught up.

"...How could you say something like that?"

This time, even Ye Shan lost his composure and started panting.

"What can I do? I need to know which group you chose, but you refuse to answer and don't leave any clues for me to guess. Of course, I have no choice but to try to control your answer."

Hayato Hayama has too many choices and can't make a decision. In that case, a more forceful approach is fine; we can simply reduce his options. I can decide the group he chooses for, and that will still fulfill Miura's request.

"Isn't this putting the cart before the horse...?"

Ye Shan chuckled a few times, his eyes widening at my idea. However, there was actually a basis for my statement.

"Switching to the theory group also has its advantages. Rather, it's the only way to meet your requirements."

"Require?"

He asked in confusion, slowing his pace slightly. I followed suit, slowing down as well.

"You said you didn't want to be bothered by this issue anymore. In other words, you don't want to be the Hayama Hayato that everyone expects anymore."

Upon hearing this, he stopped without warning. Noticing this, I stopped as well.

I then realized I was covered in sweat. Until now, I had been running against the wind and hadn't noticed at all. I wiped the sweat off with the sleeve of my sweatshirt and looked at Hayama.

He looked over blankly, and even though he wasn't physically tired, he still sighed deeply.

Why would you think that way?

He winked at me and started walking, so I followed suit.

"There's no particular reason. I was just considering what someone like you would choose to give up. Most people filter their senior year groups based on what they're not good at or don't want to do."

If we're just talking about entrance exams, for someone of Hayama's level, whether or not he attends school doesn't really make a big difference. He can easily catch up by attending cram schools. Therefore, getting into his desired university or department isn't his primary focus.

So, what did he weigh in his decision?

The only remaining metric is his senior year of high school and even his interpersonal relationships.

"You know that as long as you do well on the big exams, choosing which group to join in senior year won't be a problem at all. But you insist on not revealing your choice. Doesn't that mean you're planning to give up something in this way?"

Ye Shan remained silent, simply walking on. I could sense that he was keeping quiet so that I would continue.

"There are already fewer people choosing the science group, and even fewer girls. If you're there, at least you can stay away from all the commotion. Besides, if you're assigned to a different group, people will accept the reality and gradually leave you. Letting the relationship fade away naturally won't hurt anyone or go against anyone's expectations."

I forced out the last sentence in a hoarse voice, my throat parched.