05 - Childhood friend

Everyone knows or has at least seen her once. Yamashita Akane, the daughter of Yamashita Shigeki, a prominent entrepreneur in the clothing and tourism industries.

Although she doesn't have anything particularly special, Akane is still worthy of being compared to her two outstanding siblings.

What makes Akane seem special? Academics? Bad. Athletic ability? Worse. Gaming? Extremely terrible.

But, all those flaws seem to vanish like dust when people see her incredibly beautiful face, plus her small stature, which adds to her charm.

For some reason, Akane looks like a cute little hamster...

She also has a rebellious streak... One day, Akane was caught on camera trying to climb a tall concrete wall, just to escape from an extra lesson her father had arranged for her.

Although, in the end, she failed...

Her father, who was showing signs of aging, decided to hold a competition between his three children.

He did this to determine which of them deserved to inherit his company.

Akane’s father even went out of his way to arrange extra lessons for her so she could compete with her older siblings, although she ept running away, until her father finally decided to give up on her.

Well... But that still doesn’t explain why Akane suddenly came to me without any clear reason?!

“A-Akane-san?! You actually came..?” I said in shock, seeing Akane keeping her promise to meet me on the rooftop.

Akane nodded eagerly. “Yes, yes! I came here to meet Yui-chan.”

“Yui-chan..?”

I glanced at Nagi, who was struggling to hold back laughter with his mouth full of food. He seemed to be enjoying the situation.

Watch it, Nagi..!!

“Um.. Akane-san, could you call me ‘Yuichi-san’ instead..?”

“Huh? Why? 'Yui-chan' is a cute name, you know?”

It's useless! This girl is so stubborn...

“So, uh! What brings you all the way here, Akane-san?” I asked quickly, trying to change the topic.

“Reason..? I came to have lunch with Yui-chan!” she answered innocently.

She’s still calling me that..?!

“Pfft..!!” Nagi finally couldn't hold it in anymore, spitting out a few grains of rice from his mouth after trying so hard to stifle his laughter.

HEY..!!!

“Yui-chan. Do you want some of my food?” Akane offered, pulling out a lunchbox from the small bag she had been carrying.

“Ah.. No thanks, I'm good..”

Akane then sat cross-legged on the floor, opening her lunchbox.

She began to eat so quickly that I couldn’t even see what she was actually eating.

Meanwhile, Nagi and I exchanged confused glances. Her presence here made the atmosphere awkward. Plus, we didn’t know how to treat her.

“Uh, enjoy your meal..” I said awkwardly.

I then resumed eating my lunch, which had been interrupted by Akane’s arrival.

Just as I was about to lift a spoonful of food into my mouth, Akane suddenly called my name, “Yui-chan.”

“Yes..?”

“Maybe I’m being a bit presumptuous, but... If you’re not sure how to treat me, just think of me as one of your friends.”

“Huh?” I was taken aback by her sudden statement. Could she read our expressions?

Akane let out a long sigh. “I’m always in a tough spot being the daughter of a famous businessman. I know it’s natural for people to be nervous around me, given my family background...”

Wait.. Why is Akane suddenly confiding in me?

“But, honestly, I get a little annoyed by how overly respectful people act. I’ve always wanted to be treated just like anyone else. Having to be polite and graceful like an ojou-sama all the time is really exhausting, you know,” Akane complained.

I didn’t know what to say...

But- I have felt the same way, a long time ago.

***

When I looked out the window of my room, busy studying to meet everyone’s expectations. My peers were outside, playing to their hearts' content.

Every day, I sat in the same spot. Staring at endless pages of books, just stepping outside felt like a dream.

At school, the swings in the playground were my favorite place to sit quietly. Flipping through books, page by page. Did I feel lonely? Of course, but I couldn’t complain, because that was the path I chose.

However, when I slightly failed to meet others' expectations, everything fell apart. Since then, I decided never to try again.

I thought my life would always be like that, and I didn’t expect anyone to understand me. But, that loneliness made me fixated on this foolish ideology of "human worth." Until one day, a boy came to me.

“Nagi-kun..?”

I thought he was just like everyone else I’d met, someone who judged others based on how useful they were to them. I assumed he would take advantage of me like others had.

But- I was wrong.

My encounter with him ended up changing almost my entire life. Thanks to him, I could see the world from a different, more optimistic perspective.

Since then, we became friends, then best friends. Even though I’ve never told him and never will, I’ve always thought he was cool.

***

The boy I once thought was cool was now casually stealing my sausage from my lunchbox.

His shameless behavior really annoyed me. I wanted to hit him right now.

“Yui-chan?”

“Ah- sorry! I got lost in thought just now... My bad,” I stammered. I almost forgot Akane was here.

Akane suddenly went silent at my response. Why did she go quiet? Is she mad?

“Yuichi-san.”

The way she addressed me suddenly changed...

“Yuichi-san, I’m sorry if I talked too much,” Akane said, scratching her head with an awkward laugh. “Seeing my childhood friends again, I got a little too excited.”

Childhood friends..?

“What do you mean?” I asked, confused.

“Ah. It’s understandable if you don’t remember.” Akane opened the small bag she’d used to carry her lunchbox, pulling out a necklace with a half-heart pendant from inside.

That...!

“Shita-chan?!” I blurted out.

“Yes! That’s right!”

Shita-chan—that name was short for Yamashita, since my childhood friend never told me her real name back then. So we shortened it like that.

If Akane has that necklace... That means... She’s Shita-chan, isn’t she? The childhood friend who disappeared out of nowhere...

But... How did the Shita-chan I knew change so drastically!? Although, I guess the same could be said about me. Besides, wasn’t her hair brown? Did she dye it?

Akane then turned toward Nagi, grabbing both of his hands firmly. “You! Nagi-kun! You still remember me, right?”

Nagi seemed unfocused on Akane’s question, nodding absentmindedly. Meanwhile, his face turned beet red.

Typical Nagi..!! I never knew he was the type to blush so easily...

“Phew! I was worried you had forgotten about me,” Akane said with a sigh of relief.

I nodded.

“Well then, with that, we can reunite our long-lost GROUP!” she shouted with enthusiasm, her eyes sparkling.

I had a bad feeling...

“THE SPIRITUAL GROUP! Back in action! We’ll search for ghosts, aliens, and yokai!”

Shita-chan... She was always the most excited about this kind of thing.

TO BE CONTINUED.