Borrowing an Excuse

It had been quite some time since then, but Hoshino and Sakura were still only on greeting terms whenever they happened to run into each other.

When they parted that day, Hoshino had told her that if anything else happened, she could come to him for help. But Sakura had never reached out to him.

Could he assume that guy had given up? Hoshino wondered to himself.

No. Someone like that had gone to great lengths to sneak into this closed-off school just to achieve his goal. Hoshino doubted that a setback like this would make him back down.

He was surely waiting for an opportunity—a chance to get close to, or even win over, his "beloved."

His "beloved" was Sakura Airi—or, more accurately, the idol Shizuku.

Sakura had never said so outright, but a few things she'd let slip during their conversation that day had given Hoshino a clue. After returning to his dorm, he searched online and quickly found the blog of an idol named Shizuku.

If he hadn't known beforehand, he doubted anyone would have recognized Sakura as the idol Shizuku.

Judging by Shizuku's blog, she was almost the complete opposite of Sakura. In the photos on the site, the girl looked alluring, with immaculate makeup and styling. Most of all, Shizuku's expressions—whether dignified or playful—were always confident and lively.

It was hard to imagine one person having such a dramatic contrast between two sides of herself. The difference was so extreme that it wouldn't have been surprising if people thought she was a twin or had a split personality.

Even so, Hoshino had recognized Shizuku as Sakura the moment he saw her.

The softness he'd felt when they'd collided, compared with Shizuku's striking figure, was enough to confirm it.

Maybe Sakura is actually the best swimmer in the class—or no, maybe in the whole grade.

Back at the pool, Hoshino had still wanted to discuss the stalker with Sakura, but someone unexpected came over to talk to him.

"Of all places, you've hidden yourself away somewhere this inconspicuous. Aki, you're a real pro at slacking off."

"I'm sitting out because I don't feel well. And don't call me Aki."

"Oh, sorry, sorry. Then can I call you Kirarin?"

"...Whatever. Call me whatever you want."

Hoshino gave up without hesitation.

The newcomer was Hasebe Haruka, the girl who sat to his right. She was a beautiful girl with an outstanding face and figure, and she'd ranked near the top in the earlier polls for "girl whose swimsuit you most want to see" and "girls' bust rankings." She was a little aloof, though, and seemed to prefer keeping to herself. She didn't have many friends in class.

If she could talk to others normally, she'd be popular too—not that she needed to be as good at it as Kushida. Unfortunately, Hasebe was more like Horikita than Kushida.

The subtle difference was that Horikita had no friends because of her cold attitude and poor communication skills, while Hasebe simply didn't want to get close to other people.

She seemed like the type to make just one or two close friends.

Since they sat near each other, Hoshino and Hasebe could talk now and then. She had a habit of giving people nicknames, most of them bizarre.

"Even though Aki says he doesn't feel well, I can't see anything wrong with him. That was just an excuse, wasn't it?"

"Maybe. But there are so many people in class sitting out that they can't all really be feeling unwell, right? You included, Hasebe."

"Well, girls have all sorts of reasons."

Hasebe gave a vague answer. She was probably one of the people who'd made an excuse to sit out swimming class. If he had to guess why, she probably didn't want anyone seeing her in a swimsuit. She seemed like the sort of person who was self-conscious about showing her body.

Hoshino figured Matsushita was probably in a similar situation to Hasebe, while Sato and Shinohara likely just wanted to keep their friends company while they sat out. As for Sakura, he could think of all kinds of reasons she might sit out: not wanting to wear a swimsuit, being afraid of the boys' attention, not being good at swimming, and so on. Actually, he couldn't imagine her taking part in any kind of physical activity at all.

Among the girls sitting out on the second floor, only one had defied Hoshino's expectations. He hadn't thought she would choose to sit out.

Without drawing attention to himself, Hoshino turned his gaze toward Karuizawa in the distance. She was sitting back in her chair, chatting casually with the friend beside her.

Maybe she'd decided to sit out because her friend was doing the same, or maybe she simply wasn't feeling well. The chances of either explanation being true were certainly not zero.

Still, Hoshino felt a strong sense of incongruity. For the moment, he couldn't put his finger on what was causing it.

Karuizawa Kei... She seemed worth keeping an eye on too.

Seeing Hoshino lost in thought, Hasebe waved a hand in front of his eyes.

"Hasebe?"

"Aki, what were you talking about with Sakura?"

"Ah! Well..."

"We were just talking about swimming."

Caught off guard by the question, Sakura had panicked and seemed unable to answer. Maybe she was afraid Hoshino would reveal the secret she didn't want anyone to know.

"I was just telling her I'm actually a really good swimmer. If I weren't feeling a little unwell and had to sit out, I'm sure I could beat Sudo in the competition and win first prize."

"...Huh?"

"Whaaat?"

Sakura and Hasebe both responded to Hoshino's nonsense, though with very different meanings.

"Aki, are you really that good at swimming?"

"I'm confident in my swimming."

"But you're not in the swim club."

"That's simply because I'm not interested in club activities."

"Hm? But it can't be because you don't like group activities or anything, right? Aki, you're so good at dealing with people."

"That's just what you see on the surface. Actually, I'm a man who enjoys solitude. They call me the 'Lonely Handsome Man.'"

"You really can brag about being a 'handsome man' without batting an eye, huh?"

Hasebe knew perfectly well that Hoshino was joking. She and Sakura both chuckled softly.

"Wait, I'm pretty sure that when we introduced ourselves at the start of the year, you said you 'liked reading and weren't good at sports.'"

"Oh, that was a lie. Self-introductions are basically just for making a good impression. At the time, I thought saying I liked reading would make me seem smart and refined. But now I've realized girls like handsome athletic guys more."

Hasebe stared at Hoshino, looking a little taken aback.

"You make it sound like it's true."

"If you don't believe me, Hasebe, then—"

Hoshino paused deliberately. Hasebe and Sakura both looked at him curiously.

"This weekend, let's go to the pool at the shopping center. I'll show you what I can really do."

"...For a moment, I actually believed you."

Hasebe spoke with a wry smile.

"Sakura, you should come too."

"Huh?"

Sakura cried out in surprise. She probably hadn't expected Hoshino to invite her as well.

"Ah, asking someone out in such a painfully lame way would be bad enough, but you're inviting two girls at once? Aki, you really are a playboy."

"Ah, if I invite just one person, that's fine, right? Then, sorry, Sakura. I'll ask you to go to the pool with me next weekend instead."

"That's not what I meant!"