Reborn as the Man Who Takes Away the Protagonist’s Beloved Childhood Friend

Aisaka, are you perhaps…

“Come to think of it, you haven’t been talking to Sasaki recently, have you?”

“…Ah.”

In a sense, that question was a topic I didn’t want to hear about. Until now, Shuu and I used to talk frequently, but since the incident on the rooftop, there had been no conversation between us. The same went for Ayana; since she and I started dating, she avoided making eye contact with me.

“…Well, I won’t pry.”

Having sensed that, Aisaka stopped asking and I apologized briefly. Shuu also didn’t seem to talk much with others in the classroom, so while I didn’t intend to blame ourselves, it did bother me a little.

Aisaka changed the subject.

“Anyway, finally, the end-of-term tests are over, and now we just have to wait for summer vacation.”

“That’s right. But isn’t the baseball club just practicing all the time?”

“Well, that can’t be helped.”

The end-of-term tests had just ended. It’s not that I couldn’t study, and above all, I had confidence since I studied with Ayana. The results were not out yet, but studying together with just the two of us at either of our homes meant we were also putting effort into other things.

“Douwa-kun, am I a naughty girl?”

Ayana, lying next to me, asked such a question, and while it may sound weird to say this, whenever she found time, she made such appeals, which I find very naughty. And so, I end up embracing her as if carried away, but that also makes me a hopeless guy.

During the conversation with Aisaka, I found myself thinking strange thoughts and shook my head.

Returning to the topic, what awaited us after the tests were summer vacation… however, unlike Aisaka and the others with club activities, Ayana and I, who were in the go-home club, had a reason to come to school.

“We have to prepare for the sports festival.”

“Come to think of it, that’s right.”

Props need to be prepared, and we have to draw a big picture with our team’s colors displayed prominently. While I think the Art Club will mainly handle the drawing, we still need to help out since we’re here at school. Some were lamenting that their precious break was being ruined, but personally, I’m fine with it. Plus, Ayana is here too.

“Well, I’ll leave the behind-the-scenes work to you.”

“Got it. Good luck with the club activities.”

“I know. But hearing it from a cute girl would give me more motivation.”

“Oh, come on.”

What’s up with this guy? He’s not cheering anymore.

As we chatted like that, a familiar girl walked by. She saw me and Aisaka and exclaimed, rushing over.

“Hello! Yuk

Aisaka suddenly laughed and looked straight at me, blurting out the following words:

“We’ve got next year’s Koshien.”

“…Is that so.”

What the heck, it’s practically a done deal already.

Returning to the classroom with the strangely enthusiastic Aisaka, Ayana seemed curious about Aisaka’s spirited state and asked me. As I recounted the whole incident, she clapped her hands and smiled in understanding.

“So Aisaka has eyes for Mari-chan. hehehe, this is getting interesting.”

Aisaka, who we were looking at along with Ayana, seemed… how should I put it, full of vigor. I couldn’t help but feel like the whole class was watching Aisaka together.

“Oh, by the way, Towa-kun. I heard when I went to the staff room earlier…”

“What’s up?”

“Starting next week, a new external coach will be coming to the track team. Seems like they’re short one instructor since Mr. Murakami is going on maternity leave.”

“Oh, I see.”

An external coach, huh… well, as long as it’s a teacher mainly involved with the track team, we don’t need to worry about it.

“Also, they want you to stay a bit after school. They said they want to talk about the sports festival drawing.”

“Got it.”

While I was curious about Aisaka, I decided to focus on the immediate matters.

“Towa-kun.”

“Yeah?”

Surprised by the sudden attention, Ayana hugged me.

Ayana, did you forget this is the classroom?

“I’ll make up for the time we were apart, Towa-kun. Hug♪”

It had only been a few tens of minutes since we were apart.

In the end, I let Ayana do as she pleased until the teacher who would take the next class appeared. Ever since it became known that Ayana and I were dating, she became less reserved. She would cling to me like this at any opportunity, and I would be teased by Aisaka and close friends, while Ayana, on the other hand, had become the go-to person for love advice among the girls.

“Towa-kun, I love you.”

“I love you too.”

When I replied like that, her face lit up and she even tried to ask for a kiss with her toes pointed… but apparently even Ayana had some self-control.

“…Ah! No, no, Ayana. You have to wait until we get home!”

Seeing Ayana clench her fist tightly, I couldn’t help but smile wryly.