Summer vacation was right around the corner.
The deadline for submitting applications to the UN Academy was fast approaching as well.
My daily routine was comprised of training in the morning and evening and revising for the exams. Of course, I trained and studied together with Rio.
We trained in the morning, ate breakfast, and went to school together. We took the same class and ate lunch together as well. After school, we spent some time studying a bit more in the library and went home together. We then trained again after having dinner. After taking a quick bath, I’d study more until late at night.
And yeah, I’m extremely happy that I get to be with Rio for most of the day. Joking aside, the only times I’m separated from her is when I’m taking a bath, doing business in the toilet, and when I slept.
Since we were together so much, there were times when we had nothing to talk about and just spent time in silence, but I was having fun even then.
No, really.
It made me feel alive and that I was making up for the lost time.
I’d like to think that it wasn’t simply for self-indulgence, and I think it’s the same with Rio (At least, I hope it was.), and we even held hands from time to time when leaving together from school.
And Rio was the one who actually initiates it.
She would hesitantly intertwine her hand with mine as if to confirm my feelings. Her hand felt so smooth and soft.
Whenever I gripped Rio’s hand back, she proceeds to intertwine her fingers with mine.
I was curious about what sort of expression she was making whenever we held hands and took a quick glance one time. She was red up to her ears as she looked down on the road in embarrassment……
***
「……So cute……」
I couldn’t help but mutter carelessly. I didn’t intend to do so. I just ended up blurting it out.
And it looked like my best friend, who was sitting in front of me, actually heard my words. She gave me an exasperated look as she shrugged her shoulders.
「What are you grinning about? You look stupid.」
「E-Eh? No way! I was grinning?」
「You so were. Oh, I see how it is. You were thinking about your cute girlfriend, right? Geez, man. Head over heels much?」
We were inside the food court of a large commercial mall in the neighboring town.
I hurriedly touched my cheek after she called me out. It did seem pathetically loose.
The girl sitting in front of me sported bright red hair styled in a short bob. Her bangs were cut straight, making her sharp eyebrows stand out even more. She had phoenix eyes with crimson pupils, and she exuded an air of a rebel.
She was currently 15 years old and was wearing flashy-looking make-up. This girl emanating the aura of a punk rocker was my best friend, Charlotte Lewis.
However, we’ve only known each other for two weeks in this world.
She shrugged her shoulders once more and crossed her long legs while sipping the fast-food drink she bought for herself.
The gazes of the surrounding customers, mainly the men, gathered toward her, but Charl didn’t seem to care.
I wanted to become friends with Charl again without caring about that pilot stuff first.
We went through a lot while studying at the National Defense Institute, transcended the boundaries of gender, and became best friends in the truest sense.
The five years I’ve spent with her were now akin to nothing more than an ephemeral illusion, but they still remained in my heart. And I considered them precious memories I wouldn’t want to forget.
In this life, I wasn’t planning on entering the Defense Institute. But since this was the case, Charl and I would normally never get to cross paths this time around.
Thinking about such a thing made me feel pretty lonely.
That is why I decided to meet with Charl, even if it would be a bit forced, and become friends with her again if possible…… And so, I took action.
I had heard that she used to hang out at this mall’s arcade during her junior high days from her personally during our time at the Defense Institute, so I came here as soon as summer vacation began.
If I pestered her and directly told her I’d like to become friends straight away, she’d probably either ignore me or punch me in the face if I got too annoying, so I ended up challenging her to a game first.
After a couple of rounds of wins and losses for both sides, we gradually started chatting.
She asked me about the combos I performed and so on.
Charl was socially awkward, but since I already treated her sincerely as a friend, it didn’t take much time for us to start getting along.
And so, just like in my first life, we gradually started getting to know one another.
Charl told me that this was the first time she was able to get along with someone else so easily, and it was a line I’d heard from her in my first life as well.
I was really happy that we were able to get along well with each other just like before.
「I mean, she isn’t even my girlfriend yet. I haven’t actually confessed.」
「Was it Rio-chan? Hey, do you have a picture of her? Can I have a look? C’mon.」
「No. Or rather, I don’t have one, okay?」
「So, who do you have in there? An idol?」
「No, no. Rio’s the only one for me.」
「Uwaaah! How cold!」
「Then change how you dress. Your navel’s out, so of course you’d feel cold.」
「It’s not like I have anything to be embarrassed about, so it’s fine.」
After saying so, Charl patted her slim belly that was peeking out from her tank top and laughed unabashedly.
Well, it certainly did look like she didn’t have an ounce of extra fat on her.
She definitely had the chops to show her figure off.
This really felt so familiar. It’s just like nothing’s changed between us at all.
No, that’s not it. We’ve only spent a short time getting to know each other in this life, so it might just be me.
Even so, Charl was Charl after all, and it felt similar to returning to one’s hometown after a long absence. How nostalgic.
***
TL Notes:
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Uchuu Kaizoku Translations 