At this school, the content of PE changed every month.
PE classes were held jointly for three classes, with sixty boys divided into two different activities.
We had just finished volleyball and track and field, and this month marked the start of tennis and soccer.
Compared to team coordination, both Zaimokuza and I were forwards who valued individual technique. If we chose soccer, we would probably only cause trouble for our teammates, so we switched to tennis... Besides, I had already given up soccer because of an old injury in my left foot. Even though I had never played soccer before.
However, there were especially many people who wanted to take tennis this year. After a fierce battle of rock-paper-scissors, I successfully remained in the tennis group, while the defeated Zaimokuza was assigned to the soccer group.
"Whew, Hachiman, it's such a shame I won't be able to show you my Magic Ball... Without you, who am I supposed to practice passing with?"
Zaimokuza had initially tried to put on a brave face, but in the end, his tearful plea for help left quite an impression.
But I was the one who should have been asking him that!
And so, tennis class officially began.
After a quick warm-up, Atsugi-sensei, the PE teacher, explained all the movements.
"Okay, try rallying. Pair up and spread out."
Then everyone quickly formed pairs and scattered to opposite sides of the court.
Why were they moving so fast? They could form pairs without even looking around. Were they all masters of the no-look pass?
My loner radar gave off a sharp warning.
There was no need to worry. I had already prepared a brilliant strategy.
"Sensei, I'm not feeling very well. Could I practice against the wall instead? Otherwise, I might cause trouble for someone else."
Without waiting for Atsugi-sensei's response, I began rallying against the wall like I was playing Breakout. Having missed his chance to speak, he said nothing more.
Perfect!
"I'm not feeling well" and "I might cause trouble for others"—using two excuses at once produced a multiplied effect. The key was to subtly convey that I still wanted to participate in class.
After years of PE classes, this was the countermeasure I had realized for dealing with "find a classmate and pair up." I should teach it to Zaimokuza someday. He would surely weep tears of joy.
I kept chasing after the rebounding tennis ball and accurately hitting it back, and the tedious class continued on like that.
The boys around me were playing rather intensely, their shouts never ceasing.
"Haah! Oooh! Was that shot strong or what? Pretty awesome, right?"
"That was insane! No way anyone could return that! So strong!"
The boys screeched like idiots as they happily practiced rallying.
So noisy. Go die—was what I cursed internally, before turning my head and noticing Hayama there as well.
Hayama's group had already grown to four people. One was the blond guy who was always with him in class, but who were the two behind him? I did not recognize their faces, so they were probably from Class C or Class I. In any case, they radiated blindingly handsome-guy energy, making that area look especially dazzling.
"Whoa!"
The blond guy failed to return Hayama's ball and cried out. Everyone looked over at him.
"Whoa, Hayama! That shot was way too strong! Did it curve? It did, right?"
"I just happened to slice it. Sorry, that was my mistake."
Hayama raised one hand in apology, but the blond guy spoke over him with an exaggerated response.
"Seriously? Isn't a slice basically a Magic Ball? That was insane! You're insane!"
"Really?"
Hayama happily went along with him. Then the two people rallying beside them spoke to Hayama.
"Hayama, you're really good at tennis too. Was that a slice just now? Teach me too."
A brown-haired boy with fairly neat features stepped forward as he spoke. He should have been in my class, but I did not know his name. Then again, if I did not know his name, that meant he was not an important character.
And so Hayama's group immediately expanded to six people, becoming the largest opposition party in this PE class. Come to think of it, "sextet" and "sex robot" sounded awfully similar. Yes, yes, very sexy.
In any case, the Hayama Kingdom dominated PE class, and the court was filled with an atmosphere that said anyone outside the Hayama Group had no business taking PE. Naturally, the students outside Hayama's group stopped making any noise. I objected to their suppression of free speech.
The Hayama Group always gave the impression of being loud and boisterous, but Hayama himself was not actually the one actively speaking. It was the students around him who were noisy. Or rather, the blond guy who voluntarily served as his right-hand man was noisy.
"Slice!"
See? Annoying as hell.
The blond guy's shot was not even a slice, and it flew far away from where Hayama stood, toward the dark corner where the sunlight did not reach—namely, where I was.
"Ah, sorry! Hey, um... Hi, Hikigaya-kun? Hikigaya-kun, could you pick up the ball for me?"
Who the hell was Hikigaya-kun?
I could not be bothered correcting him, so I simply picked up the ball rolling across the ground and threw it back.
"Thanks."
Hayama gave me a refreshing smile and waved in thanks. I responded with a nod.
...Why did I nod?
Apparently, I instinctively believed Hayama stood above me. That was far too humble, humble enough that no one could surpass me in humility.
I struck my darkening mood against the wall.
Youth needed a wall by its side.
...Come to think of it, why were flat chests compared to plaster walls?
One theory said that a plaster wall was a yokai transformed from a tanuki, and was actually made from a tanuki's spread-out scrotum. What kind of wall would that even be? It could not possibly be as soft as one might imagine, right? But conversely, if flat chests were mocked as plaster walls, that meant they were not soft, right? Proof complete... Was I an idiot?
But Hayama could never make a deduction like that. Only a geniusically indignant person like me could come up with such a miraculous hypothesis.
Yeah, we could call it a draw for today. That was enough.
During lunch break, I ate at my usual spot again today.
My regular seat was on the first floor of the special building, diagonally behind the nurse's office and the school store. From there, I had a perfect view of the tennis courts.
I enjoyed a hot dog roll, a tuna rice ball, and yakisoba bread bought from the school store.
This was nice.
Thump, thump, thump—the steady rhythm, like a drumbeat, made me sleepy.
The members of the Girls' Tennis Club practiced on their own during lunch break. She was always hitting the ball against the wall, skillfully chasing down the rebounds and sending them back.
I watched the Girls' Tennis Club practice while finishing my lunch. Lunch break was almost over, and as I sipped lemon tea from a foil carton, a gust of wind went whoosh.
The wind direction had changed.
Though the weather also played a part, the wind at this seaside school changed direction around noon. In the morning, it blew in from the sea, but after noon, it blew from the land toward the ocean.
I did not dislike spending time alone feeling the wind.
"Huh, it's the shut-in guy?"
A familiar voice came drifting in on the wind. It was Yuihama. She stood there, holding down her skirt as the wind lifted it.
"What are you doing here?"
"I usually eat here."
"Huhhh, really? Why? Wouldn't it be better to eat in the classroom?"
"..."
Yuihama seemed genuinely puzzled, while I responded with silence. If I could eat in the classroom, I would not be here. Could you take a hint?
Let's change the subject.
"More importantly, what are you doing here?"
"Good question! Actually, Yukino and I lost at rock-paper-scissors, so we had to do a punishment game."
"The punishment was coming here to talk to me...?"
That was so cruel. I might as well go die.
"No, no, no! The loser just had to run errands and buy juice!"
Yuihama hurriedly waved her hands in denial. What the hell, that scared me. I had almost gone off to die.
I patted my chest in relief, and Yuihama sat down beside me.
"At first, Yukino said, 'I will fight for my own sustenance. What pleasure is there in being satisfied by such a petty sense of conquest?' She looked really reluctant."
For some reason, Yuihama began imitating Yukino, but she sounded nothing like her.
"That really does sound like her."
"Yeah, but when I asked her, 'Don't you have confidence you can beat me?' she agreed to play rock-paper-scissors with me."
"...That really does sound like her."
That woman was always so aloof, but the moment a competition was involved, she became ridiculously competitive. Not long ago, she had accepted Hiratsuka-sensei's provocation for the same reason.
"When Yukino won, she silently made this tiny victory sign... It was so cute! Haaah."
Yuihama spoke with a satisfied sigh.
"This is the first time I've thought a punishment game was fun."
"Have you played something like that before?"
Yuihama nodded.
"Before... I have."
When she put it that way, I suddenly remembered a group of brain-damaged people gathered in the corner of the classroom near the end of lunch break, loudly playing rock-paper-scissors.
"Hah, just a little clique getting themselves worked up."
"What kind of reaction is that? You're awful. Do you hate that sort of thing?"
"Of course I hate little cliques getting themselves worked up or having fun by themselves. Ah, but I do enjoy watching them fight among themselves, because I'm not part of the clique."
"That's such a sad reason, and your personality sucks too!"
Mind your own business!
Yuihama smiled and held down her hair as the sea breeze blew it up. Her expression was different from when she was in the classroom with Miura and the others.
Ahh, I see. Her makeup seemed more natural now, not as heavy as before. Maybe she had changed earlier than that, but I did not stare intensely at girls' faces, so I had no idea about such things.
Still, that was proof that she had changed, however insignificant it might be.
When Yuihama, wearing almost no makeup, smiled, the corners of her eyes drooped, making her already youthful face look even younger.
"But you get worked up in your own little clique a lot too. Seeing you guys chatting so happily in the clubroom, sometimes I feel like I can't join you. Sighhh."
Yuihama hugged her knees, buried her face in them, and glanced up at me.
"I want to talk to you guys more too... Ah, I don't mean anything weird! I-I mean I want to talk more with Yukino too, you get that, right?"
"Don't worry. I won't get the wrong idea about someone like you."
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
Yuihama flew into a rage and suddenly raised her head. I lifted a hand to calm her down, telling her not to hit me, then spoke.
"But Yukino is another matter. That's an irresistible force."
"What do you mean?"
"Hm? Oh, an irresistible force means 'a force or circumstance that humans cannot resist.' Sorry, I used words that were too difficult."
"No, that's not it! I understood! And aren't you underestimating me way too much? I got in by passing the entrance exam!"
Yuihama's knife-hand shot toward my throat and struck my Adam's apple directly, leaving me unable to breathe for a moment. Meanwhile, she gazed into the distance and asked solemnly:
"...Speaking of getting in, tell me, do you remember the day of the entrance ceremony?"
"Cough, cough, cough... Huh? Oh, sorry, I got into a traffic accident that day."
"A traffic accident..."
"Yeah. On the first day of school, I was riding my bike when I came across an idiot who had not properly secured the leash on her puppy's collar. When the puppy was about to get hit by a car, I rushed in to save it. I was like a hero appearing just in time—totally cool."
That might have been a little embellished, but nobody knew the truth anyway, so it did not matter. Besides, if nobody knew about your accomplishments, nobody would spread the word, so I had to make sure to show off my good points properly.
Before you continue