Chapter 26 – It's Not Like That (Temari's POV)

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After I failed my exams and ended up as a ronin, while Mahiro got into T Women's University, our paths split.

Still, the friendship we built in high school didn't fade.

“Mahiro, congrats again on passing.”

“Thanks.”

Even after graduation, we kept hanging out in my room like always. Since we were still underage, our celebratory drinks were juice instead of beer.

“Seriously, I'm so glad you made it. You really gave it your all.”

I sipped my juice, remembering how she'd studied like crazy through our third year. Mahiro had always been beautiful and popular with guys, but luck?  Not so much.

After breaking up with Hashizume, she ditched the next one just as fast. Her third boyfriend tried to pin her down on their very first date—she dumped him on the spot.

What kind of b*****d does that? Guys who only think with their dicks—how do they expect to make it through life?

“Temari… I'm sorry you couldn't get in with Yuya.”

“Ahaha, well, honestly I kinda knew I was reaching. Didn't expect much.”

I'd aimed for TH University but failed miserably. I didn't want to settle for some backup school, so I decided to take a gap year and try again.

“Was it really because Yuya was going there that you applied to TH?”

“Well… I won't say he had nothing to do with it. Yuya's like my senpai, my guide. But more than that, I just didn't want to waste all the effort I'd put in. That's what really mattered.”

“…”

“If I'd settled for a fallback, it'd feel like I was always gonna keep settling. I didn't want that. Simple as that.”

“You're amazing, Temari.”

“Hardly. Yuya's the amazing one. He was seriously sick during the exam—food poisoning, stomach cramps—and still aced it. Can you believe that?”

He was so worried about s******g himself during the test that I gave him one of my pads just in case. It was hilarious in hindsight, but back then it was dead serious. Remembering that made me grin.

That's when Mahiro suddenly dropped it.

“Temari… do you like Yuya? I mean, like that?”

“…Huh?”

Her eyes were dead serious. No jokes this time. She'd always danced around it, never gone straight to the point until now.

Thinking back… Yuya might actually be what you’d call a prime catch.

Good grades hit different when you're a third year. Back in our first year, being a smart, scrawny guy just made you a nerd. But by our last year, it basically meant you had your future locked in. And Yuya wasn't scrawny anymore—he'd started working out and built some decent muscle. He wasn't bad-looking either, so of course, some girls had probably considered going after him.

But as far as I knew, he never had a girlfriend. I was with him the most, and I never saw any sign of one. Maybe the other girls couldn't bring themselves to admit the same guy they'd laughed at was now a total catch. That “beanpole” label stuck to him like a curse, even after he changed.

It stuck to us too. Yuya would still joke about it sometimes, calling himself a beanpole. I'd always give him that lazy apology: “Yeah, sorry about that.” That became our routine. It was so ingrained, he never looked at me as a woman, and I never let myself see him as a man.

It was a curse, really.

“I don't think we see each other that way. And I don't think it's ever gonna change.”

“Even if you two went to the same university?”

“Yeah.”

“I see…”

Mahiro exhaled, like a quiet breath of relief, then looked right at me.

“I wanted to change too, Temari. Just like you. And I think… maybe I did, even if just a little.”

“…Yeah.”

“So… do you think Yuya will notice me too?”

“…What?”

I froze.

—What the hell was that supposed to mean?