A Pretty Girl Has Her First Kiss Stolen By an Equally Handsome Classmate - Episode 3.9

――Why am I me?

Even though I was raised by a single mother, we lived a modest but comfortable life.

A mother who worked part-time, an older sister who excelled in school, and then there was me—just average.

Compared to my sister, I was lacking, but I was still a good student. I never caused trouble at school. I attended cram school and got into the top public high school in the prefecture. Since it was a public school, at least we saved money on tuition.

“A smart and easy child.”

That phrase described me perfectly. Though, deep inside, I had complicated feelings.

On weekdays, my sister and I did the housework in place of our mother, who worked full-time. Every weekend, we would visit our maternal grandparents’ house to help with farming, cleaning, and cooking. Among all the grandchildren, I visited the most. I thought of myself as quite a dutiful daughter.

When I was in elementary school, things were tough.

I wasn’t good at playing with large groups, so the class-wide dodgeball and tag games twice a week were painful for me. On parent observation days, I forced myself to act cheerful so my mother wouldn’t worry. Looking back now, I wonder how miserable I must have been.

“We were able to see Mizuhara smile.”

That was once written on my report card. My homeroom teacher thought it was worth mentioning when I smiled—that’s how gloomy I must have seemed all the time.

When I entered middle school, things seemed to get a little better.

The leader of the girls’ social group in my class happened to be a childhood friend from preschool. We weren’t close, but because she called me “Shizuku-chan,” I was able to secure a decent place in the social hierarchy.

However, one day, something changed. Suddenly, the boys started teasing me.

An older student I didn’t even know gave me a strange nickname, and soon, all the boys in my grade were calling me by it. I understood that it wasn’t meant as a compliment. The way they grinned at me with unpleasant looks made my skin crawl.

I had never been comfortable around boys, but after that, I disliked them even more.

Boys are surprisingly honest about how they judge girls’ appearances.

Around that time, I started to become aware of how people saw me.

When I entered Sakugaoka High School, I was shocked by how comfortable it felt.

When people are smart, they tend to act accordingly. There was no teasing or bullying here—just an atmosphere of respect and freedom. No one tried to put others down.

To avoid being looked down on, I put effort into making friends. As a result, I ended up with many.

Not long after starting school, I heard that the boys had made a “cute ranking” for the girls in our year. I wasn’t surprised—boys were like that, after all. Masuda was ranked first, and Wakamatsu Kaede was second.

In the summer of my first year of high school, love came into my life. I started dating a boy from my club.

Did I like him or not? Even I wasn’t sure. It just sort of happened.

I decided to take my time figuring out our relationship, but just as I did, my sister, Suguru Mizuhara, went missing.

Of course, I had no time to think about my boyfriend anymore. Before I knew it, we had naturally drifted apart. I wasn’t sad at all. But I did feel a little guilty about how things ended.

—But that’s beside the point.

Wakamatsu Kaede always stood out.

She was unbelievably beautiful, yet she didn’t seem aware of it. She was also friendly and outgoing.

It seemed unfair—she had good looks, intelligence, athletic ability, and attention from everyone. Even with all that, she still wasn’t satisfied. She actively participated in committees and organized school events.

“Wow, Wakamatsu is seriously cute.”

“Can you introduce me to Wakamatsu?”

If you were in the same class as her, you’d hear things like this all the time.

Even though she got so much attention, she didn’t seem to notice. Her obliviousness was honestly surprising.

She was raised in a loving environment, so she grew up kind and straightforward.

She was incredibly considerate—she never refused a request, even if it was unreasonable.

She was honest, flexible, and quick to admit when she was wrong. She lived without putting up a front, without forcing herself, and yet, everyone loved her.

For someone like me, who had to “switch on” my social persona just to act cheerful, she was enviable.

“Mizuhara, I’m collecting the English notebooks.”

“I did the wrong page by mistake. I’ll bring it later myself.”

“Haha, even you make mistakes, Mizuhara.”

Wakamatsu Kaede smiled at me as she said that. She sparkled.

She waited for me to finish my assignment and even submitted my notebook to the teacher’s office for me. Thanks to her, I wasn’t marked as late in turning it in. Her kindness truly surprised me.

If I could be reborn, I would want to be someone like Wakamatsu Kaede—someone who has everything and is loved by everyone.