Nittaâs PoV
Up until now, there were no such things as a âbest friendâ in my life.
I had always kept my relationship shallow and broad, so I knew various people whom Iâd see once in a blue moon and friends whom Iâd see once or twice a month. I never had a relationship with anyone I could confide my problems with.
Of course, I didnât hate living this way. People badmouthed me behind my back, saying that I lived a âlonelyâ or âemptyâ life, but I didnât care. Having a casual relationship while talking about random things without any care in the world felt liberating for me.
It wasnât like I held no feelings towards my friends. If they were to come to me and ask for my help, Iâd do my best to help them and give them my advice (Especially when it came to love).
Even so, I never involved myself too deeply. I kept a clear boundary so that other people wouldnât get across easily.
That was how I, Nitta Nina, lived my life until I was in middle school.
And I thought that I would stay this way forever.
* * *
ââIâm home.â
The Sports Festival, that had been going on since the end of Obon, had finally ended. When I got home, I let out a sigh of relief. My body was completely exhausted from all the activities I did under the scorching September sun. The school would be closed tomorrow and the day after, but at this rate, Iâd be spending the next two days sleeping at home.
This would be the only Sports Festival Iâd ever join in my high school life. It was fun, but at the same time, there were a lot of things going on behind the scenes.
âAh, welcome home, Nina. Iâve already taken my bath, so go and take yours, wash off your sweat. If you want to eatâ From the look of it, you havenât eaten yet, have you? Hm? Could it be? Your friends left you out of their after party?â
âAs if⊠Everyoneâs too tired to do something like that, theyâre postponing it to a later date. The fireworks festival next week.â
âNow that you mention it, I saw something like that in the fliers somewhere. Anyway, Nina, whoâll you go with? Maybe with that quiet boy? Who did you call him again? Rep or something?â
âI. Am. Go. Ing. With. Every. One. You dummy. Didnât I tell you that weâll do an after party or whatnot at a later date? Itâll be during that fireworks festival. I know your brain got fried because of your upcoming exam, but try to read between the lines.â
âI know, I know, I was kidding.â
ââŠâ
Maybe she was stressed from all the studying, but my sister had been teasing me a lot lately.
Usually, Iâd just casually brush off this topic, but it hit a little too close at home this time, so I was caught off guard and couldnât come up with anything to retort her with.
âŠBack then, it should have only been me, Asanagi and MaeharaâŠ
âHm? Your face is getting red, Nina, whatâs up~?â
ââŠShut it, just focus on studying, you idiot!â
I went to my room on the second floor to run away from my sister, who was grinning from ear to ear after seeing my face. After changing into my shirt and shorts I went to the bathroom.
Normally, Iâd just grab the clothes and walk around the house in my underwear, but today, I felt too embarrassed to do so.
âŠThe reason for that was my out of character behavior just a few hours ago.
âAh, jeez! What the hell was I thinking?!â
I let out a deep sigh, muttering to myself as I soaked my body in the bathtub filled with hot water.
Somehow, I asked my friend to go on a date with me.
Not only that, I did it right in front of his girlfriend.
I had a good reason to do so, but I still wasnât sure that this was the right thing to do.
What could I do to smoothen out those threeâ No, those twoâs relationship?
They have known each other since they were children, they were literally best friends.
And those two managed to fall in love with the same person, though they did at different times.
What I was gonna do would be a one hell of a stunt.
That girl had come up with her own answer; trying her best to suppress her feelings, yet I planned to prevent that from happening.
âThat wonât work, Yuuchin⊠Youâll only get yourself hurtâŠâ
While reaching out to the orange light that dimly lit the steamy bathroom, I called out to my âfriendâ who wasnât here with me at the moment.
I never thought that Yuuchinâs decision was wrong. Maehara and Asanagi were couples, a lovey dovey one at that, and it was impossible to come between them. That was why I understood her decision; to stand back and watch them from the sides while supporting their relationship, like a good âbest friendâ should do.
That was the kind of development that would make âAsanagi Umiâ happy. But, what about âAmami Yuu?â
Yuuchin probably didnât want to do something outrageous like stealing her best friendâs boyfriend. I knew she had fun teasing those two from the side while supporting their relationship all the way through. I had hoped that things would stay this way.
But, Amami Yuu had fallen for Maehara Maki.
Those twoâs relationship progressed from acquaintances to a friend of a friend and eventually, before she realized it, her eyes would wander to his side all the time.
She was staring at him more often than at her own best friend, Asanagi.
And I noticed, whenever Yuuchin was talking to Maehara, she looked just like a maiden-in-love.
This was why I wanted her to cherish her feelings more.
âFirst loveâ was something that only happened once.
Also⊠I had a feeling that if I didnât do something, sheâd end up all aloneâŠ
âBut still, seriously, Rep? You snatched the prettiest girl at schoolâs first love? And I thought it was surprising that you went out with AsanagiâŠâ
He was a boy whose name and face I couldnât remember until exactly last year. Somehow, he became the center of attention of three beautiful girls, including me.
It wasnât like he was handsome or anything. He had a dull face and personality, but I gotta say that he had this mysterious charm. Personally, I wouldnât see him as a love interest, but I could definitely see why the other two were head over heels for him.
Not only was he genuinely kind, he was also a âbusybody,â someone whoâd go out of his way to help out others. đŁđŠđđđ°đŁđŠđ.đ°đłđ
Honestly, he was the only person I knew whoâd do something like that⊠Repâ No, Maehara MakiâŠ
âWait, does this mean that I somehow got influenced by him before I realized it? âŠJeez, what a cheeky guy.â
I let out a chuckle as I remembered how clumsy, yet strangely spirited he was during the sports festival.
âŠMaybe that was the reason why those two fell for him.
After I washed my fatigue and sweat away, and gave my skin a proper care, I got out of the bath for a late dinner.
I made some onigiris from the leftover rice and opened up a cup of instant ramen. We were supposed to have dinner together at a family restaurant, but because Asanagi was sulking, we ended up postponing that plan for a week.
Well, that was all because of me being a âbusybody.â
ââŠNina.â
âWhat is it, Yuna-nee? I wonât tell you anything about the fireworks festival. Also, his name isnât âRep,â itâs Maehara, Maehara Maki.â
âMaki-kun, right, thatâs what his name is. Anyway, thatâs not what I wanted to talk about. Itâs about your hair.â
âWhat? I havenât changed my hairstyle.â
âYeah, I know. I wanted to ask you, why are you keeping that blue scrunchie? The threads are frayed, itâs already worn out.â
ââŠAh, this thing, huh?â
My sister pointed at the blue scrunchie Iâve always worn.
It was a cheap scrunchie I bought back when I first entered high school because I wanted to change my hairstyle somehow. Prior to that, I had always let my hair down.
âŠThis blue scrunchie somehow became one of my prized possessions though.
âEh, who cares, just leave it alone.â
âHuh, thatâs unusual for you. Did someone praise you when you wore it?â
âSomething like that. It was one of my friends who did, though and she wasnât a boy.â
âI see. That friend of yours has a good taste.â
ââŠWhat are you scheming? I wonât give you anything even if you flatter me, you know?â
âHehe, Iâm just being honest. What? Is it wrong for a big sister to think that her younger sister is cute?â
ââŠWell, not really, but stillâŠâ
Even though I found her annoying most of the time, moments like this were the reason why I couldnât bring myself to hate my big sister.
Thanks to her pestering me at home and Yuuchin, Umi and Rep pestering me at school, I havenât been feeling like âmyselfâ these daysâŠ
Well, I gotta admit that it was more fun this way.