My Childhood Friend, Sometimes a Schoolgirl—She Only Wears That Ribbon Around Me - Episode 16

“You really made a mess. Do you keep a thief or something?”

“Not only do I not keep one, I wouldn’t even let one inside.”

It did look like someone had broken in and ransacked the place.

Yua started cleaning up first, and then I sat down on the floor, gathering up the empty plastic bottles and snack bags left scattered on the low table.

“Should I put these textbooks on your desk?”

“Yeah. Just put the textbooks on the shelf attached to the desk… Ah—”

I looked up to answer but quickly averted my eyes in a hurry.

What caught my attention was the pale pink underwear and fair cleavage—Yua was bending forward, and my calm was completely disturbed.

“Sora-kun?”

“N-No, it’s nothing. Could you just put them on the shelf, please?”

“…? Okay, I’ll put them there then.”

She tilted her head at my nervousness but stood up and walked toward the desk.

Maybe because she’s not used to wearing girls’ clothes, or maybe she’s just not that aware that things might be visible.

Either way, pink… When I saw her casual clothes earlier, and now again, it’s surprising to see this girly side of her, since she usually dresses like a boy. It makes my heart race for some reason.

“Huh…? Is this yours, Sora-kun?”

Yua spoke as she stood in front of the desk. I looked back at her after briefly avoiding her gaze.

“Ah, that’s mine. I got it a while ago.”

She was holding a ring between her fingers.

Holding it up near her face, she pursed her lips.

“Who gave it to you? You said a while ago, so middle school?”

“Well, yeah, it’s from middle school… But you’re really grilling me with questions.”

“Because I’m curious! Like, maybe it’s from an ex-girlfriend… or something.”

“I-I don’t have any ex-girlfriends! I’ve never even dated anyone!”

“Eh? You’ve never had a girlfriend?”

“What’s with that surprised look? Are you teasing me?”

“No, no, I just didn’t expect that… I thought maybe you had.”

I could tell she wasn’t trying to be mean, but coming from someone good-looking like her, it just sounds like teasing.

“So, who gave you the ring?”

“It was a birthday present from my sister.”

“Ah! I see… I see, I see!”

Knowing who gave it to him, Yua looked relieved and her lips softened into a small smile.

“A silver ring… The design’s nice too. Kanami-san has good taste.”

“I wore it the day I got it but haven’t really used it since.”

“That’s a waste. You should wear it more often.”

“It fits so perfectly that once I put it on, it’s hard to take off.”

I stood up, took the ring from Yua, and put it on my right index finger for the first time in a while. Then I tried to pull it off, tugging hard.

“Ouch, ouch…!”

“Whoa! Are you okay!?”

“Yeah… As you can see, it’s a pain to take off.”

“In that case, maybe you shouldn’t force yourself to wear it…”

I pulled the ring off with some effort and looked around for a place to keep it.

“By the way, Sora-kun, have your hobbies changed over the past few years?”

“Huh? Why do you think that?”

“Because I remember your room back in elementary school felt more like ‘sports boy’ than this.”

She glanced around the room and said, as if recalling something.

Sports boy… that image must still be strong in her mind.

Back in elementary school, I used to train every day with a local soccer club.

Although I took everything down now, back then I decorated my walls with posters and jerseys of my favorite players. My room was the typical hardcore soccer fan’s room.

When I was actively playing, adults and teammates thought I was pretty good. Thinking back, I was way more outgoing and confident as a kid, maybe because soccer gave me a strong sense of self-worth.

“You’re not in any club now, right? Doesn’t seem like you belong to any team.”

“I quit soccer in middle school because of an injury.”

“Ah… sorry, I didn’t know…”

“It’s fine. But it does feel kind of nostalgic. When you used to visit, we’d play Winning Eleven together a lot.”

“Yeah, and you never went easy on me, no matter when we played.”

“In competition, it doesn’t matter if it’s a boy or girl. Going easy goes against sportsmanship.”

“Still, you’d go easy on a beginner. Back then, you were always playing soccer when you weren’t with me. You even went to school almost every day in your uniform or practice clothes.”

Looking back, I did wear my favorite team’s uniform and sportswear as everyday clothes a lot.

Even though memories get blurry after a few years, Yua remembers it all vividly. That’s impressive.