Chapter 1: A happy ending no one has ever seen part 6

Translator: Soafp

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Since then, I have spent many days on the rooftop during lunch break, chewing on bread and discussing various topics with Taiyo Hayama.

　The topics ranged from familiar high school life to politically charged topics.

　When he talked about his doubts about his own life, I thought he was just a greenhorn, but after talking to him, I realized that he had his antennae up in various fields, had his own viewpoint, and was living each day while carefully examining the world.

　All in all, I found that Taiyo Hayama was a very good guy, very different from the impression I had from the outside.

“Yusuke, I can’t yield on this one thing. A man’s dreams are packed in the chest!　Definitely chests.”

“No, it’s the legs. The legs are a man’s dream.”

Somehow, the theme of the day, “Freedom in high school life,” came full circle, and before I knew it, Taiyo and I were debating whether the most attractive body part of a girl was the chest or the legs.

“Legs, you know, there is a certain standard of evaluation. Thin is better than thick, long is better than short, right?　But not with chests. Big ones are great, of course. But small chests have their own charm. Even the shape has its own charm if you pay attention to it. ……”

“No, it’s not true, Taiyo. It is too shallow to say that thin and long is good enough. To have really beautiful legs, you need to have a certain amount of flesh, and the length of the legs has to be in line with the upper body. Unlike chests, at school you can see them directly, which is another important point.”

　I have a certain f*tishism about the legs of the opposite sex.

It would be fair to say that I’m a distrustful person, but that’s just the way it is. I can’t take or leave my own tastes at will either.

　When I entered high school, girls’ skirts became taller, and I was forced to spend my days fidgeting in my own way.

“It’s sad. Not being able to see it directly, it makes you imagine this and that, doesn’t it?”

Taiyo pointed to his head with narrow eyes.

“And it is a man’s duty to enjoy it, Kanzawa-kun.”

“What’s to enjoy?”

“If you are a man who likes legs, you must be a bit of a mussel. It’s justifiable for a man to be attracted to chests.”

“What’s with your self-serving logic?” I said.

“Because, in the end, in some part of our instincts, if that girl is good or this child is good, it’s because we’re examining whether they can give birth and raise a child in good health. Listen, Yusuke. We are mammals, after all. chests are important. That’s why it’s natural for men to focus on chests.”

　I never thought he would even bring up biological categories to explain the superiority of chests.

“Then again, legs are also an important barometer to determine whether a woman has a healthy body or not”

“Hmmm…… you really like legs, Yusuke?”

“I-I’m sorry”

“So, who’s Yusuke’s favorite pair of legs in Class H?”

“Eh?”

　The one that immediately came to my mind when I was asked that question was Haruka Kashiwagi, who was sitting in the front seat. She definitely has some of the best legs I have ever seen. Fleshiness, texture, length, blood color, everything is high grade.

However, I was hesitant to say so publicly. I am only concerned about Yuri Takase. I don’t want to sow the seeds of trouble as much as possible.

“What the hell, there is none?”

“How about you, Taiyo?　You’re in the H group?　What can you say about….., Favorite, beautiful chests?”

“I don’t have any in group H. I mean, it’s not every day I find an ideal pair of chests.”

　Taiyo answered immediately with a casual look on his face.

　I was relieved that he had managed to avoid mentioning Kashiwagi’s name.

“Then I asked you to answer not only about the legs, but also about the girls that Yusuke is interested in.”

　Taiyo poked me in the side with a sharper spear.

“Haa!?　Why so suddenly? Where’s the chest-legs debate?”

“Haha, we’ll call it a draw for now. We’ll settle it someday, I promise. But look, there’s someone out there, isn’t there, young man?”

　No way, this guy, I braced myself. Was he aware that I was always looking at Takase?　I wondered.

　I immediately felt a chill run down my back and decided to throw a light checkmate.

“What makes you think I have a crush on someone?”

“Class H is known for having some of the most beautiful girls in the freshman class. Any decent young man would have a crush or two of the girls in our class.”

　Apparently, the story was not cut out with the intention of getting me to come clean about Takase.

“Oi, lady-killer. Then I guess that means you have one too, a crush.”

He has a good face, a good personality, and a good family background. Taiyo Hayama is, of course, popular among female students. According to some, there are many anecdotes about the “Hayama” Legend.

“Fmm, for the record, I don’t have a girlfriend. I’d enjoy my high school life much more if I were free.”

　Somehow, just at this moment, a spring breeze brushes Taiyo’s soft hair. He is a man who has even the natural world on his side, and he is a very witty man.

“Well, Yusuke. Let me hear it. I might be able to help you.”

　Taiyo called out to me, his eyes shining brightly. Why do people like to hear about other people’s love affairs so much?

　What should I do?

　In fact, ever since that day of fortune-telling, my heart has been dyed with the color of Yuri Takase.

　I have been thinking that Yuri Takase is the person of destiny who will determine my future happiness, the future you, but a month has passed without any chance or opportunity for me and her to get in touch with each other.

　In order to break out of this stagnant situation, it might be a good idea to tell Taiyo everything.

　I ponder alone.

　Taiyo and I have come to know each other so well that we are arguing foolishly over the attraction of chests and legs, but will he laugh at me when I talk about “fate”?

　It was, after all, “just a fortune-telling”. In retrospect, it is of course possible that it was a hoax, since not a single girl, not even Takase, had contacted me.

　The old man may not be a god-like being who can see everything in the world.

　–But

　But, I am sure that there is a part of me that develops a fever as soon as I remember Takase’s profile, without taking into account all the troublesome things. Whether the fortune-telling is correct or not, whether the future you, is Takase or not, I can’t help but be concerned about her, and that’s me right now, I’m pathetic.

　If I talk to Taiyo, something might start to happen.

Or perhaps the fact that I have a friend named Taiyo Hayama may be a sign of fate, depending on how I look at it.

　If that is the case.

　I decided to throw a stone into the quiet surface of the lake, knowing that it would cause a ripple in an unintended direction.

“Ooi, Yusuke?”

　Taiyo, who had kept me waiting for a while, seemed to have grown numb indeed.

　I took it upon myself to tell Taiyo about the events of that big, strange night at the moon. I told him as clearly as I could.

“Uooooo!” It was a bite I had never imagined, like catching a bluefin tuna with an earthworm.”　

“That’s amazing! But why did you keep silent about such an interesting episode until now, you b*****d!”

“I’m sorry,” I said, pressured.

“So, who is this “future you” who is supposed to bring color to Yusuke’s future?　You must have some idea who this “future you” is, just like the old fortune teller said, right?”

　I nodded slowly, fearing that Taiyo was about to grab me in the chest at any moment.

　Here it is. The next statement is like saying, “I like Yuri Takase. I can still cover it up now. So, this is the place to go back.

　I took a deep breath.

　Unlike a short while ago, when I was completely alone, a warm and comfortable breeze flowed into my chest, loosening the security of my information management.

　How many things do I have to confide in this man?

The gentleman in front of me, with whom I have not had a proper conversation for less than a week, is now in control of 90% of the important matters that make up who I am. As soon as I mention Yuri Takase’s name, that number increases dramatically to 98, 99, or something close to 100, and he becomes a shareholder who can say more.

“Yusuke, you’re not going to say ‘I quit’ after all this talk, right?　Come on, come on!”

　Even I have to make up my mind in the face of eyes as lively as those of a short-distance relay anchor who is convinced of a world record.

Taiyo Hayama, you and I are destined to be together.

“Yeah, that girl who comes to mind is–“

　That was the very moment I was about to mention the name Yuri Takase.

“Kyaaaaaah!”

　A high-pitched voice that could be called a piercing scream pierced my ears. The girl’s scream roared over the rooftop, where only Taiyo and I were supposed to be. Naturally, our attention turned to the unidentified voice.

“W-What is it!?　Ah!”

　Taiyo’s eyes, which had noticed something, made my heart chill.

　There was the person I had been picturing in my mind, the person whose name I had been trying to mention until just now, Yuri Takase.