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"I'm home."
I muttered quietly as I stepped into the entrance of my house. It was a small, one-story home where my parents, my older sister, and I lived together—all four of us—but returning always brought a familiar sense of relief.
I carelessly shoved my school-issued loafers into the shoe box and found myself drawn, as if by a magnet, toward the brightly lit living room.
After shrugging off my uniform blazer, peeling off my socks, and dropping my bag onto the table, I called out to my sister, Yuna-nee, who was lounging on the sofa, engrossed in the TV.
"Ah, I'm so tired… Hey, Yuna-nee, is there any ice cream left in the fridge?"
"Mmm, nope. The last one is right here," she said, holding up the prize.
"…Oh, I see."
It was supposed to be the ice cream I'd bought with my own pocket money, but my sister had a habit of snatching it if I didn't get to it first. When I was little, this used to spark endless fights, but now, I'd resigned myself to it, figuring it was partly my fault for not eating it sooner.
If there's none left, I'll just have to buy more.
For now, I decided to quench my thirst with some cold barley tea. I didn't have the energy to make a trip to the convenience store or supermarket right now.
"Nina, you look especially rough today. Was it the sports festival? How was it?"
"How was it? You can tell just by looking at my face, can't you? It was tough, in its own way."
The biennial sports festival had been a lot of fun, but as soon as the events ended and cleanup began, exhaustion hit me all at once. My muscles ached, but what truly felt gross was my body, sticky with a mixture of sweat and sand from the field.
I wanted nothing more than to jump into the bath and wash it all away.
…That's just how much had happened today.
Some things were resolved, while others felt like they would only stir up more trouble down the line.
"Yuna-nee, I'm going to use the bath now. Do you want to go first?"
"Nah, I have to get back to studying, so you can go ahead, Nina. Oh, Mom said there's curry in the pot for dinner, so just cook some rice and eat whenever you're ready."
"Mm. Okay, I'll go ahead then."
After watching my sister head back to her room to cram for her exams, I started getting ready for my bath and threw in a load of laundry. In the Nitta household, since both our parents left for work early in the morning, my sister and I handled whatever chores we could, like cleaning and laundry. Well, it was just the bare minimum, nothing to be proud of.
In fact, I'd never bragged about it to anyone.
I tossed my sand-and-sweat-caked gym clothes and underwear into the washing machine, pressed the start button, and headed for the bathroom. The tub wasn't quite full yet, but I could shower off in the meantime.
You should relax a bit more, Yuna-nee sometimes tells me. I guess I can be a bit impatient in my own way.
"I wonder if I looked that tired."
After rinsing the shampoo from my hair, I placed a hand on my cheek, studying my reflection in the mirror.
Personally, I just saw my usual, reasonably cute face—though it feels weird to say it myself—but I guess some people can just tell.
Not just my sister, but maybe even my close friends.
"…Phew."
Soaking in the tub, now filled with plenty of hot water, I let out a deep sigh, as if exhaling all the fatigue of the day.
I'm not one for long baths since I get dizzy easily, but I do enjoy them.
It's a quiet space where no one interrupts, a place where I can truly be alone.
Even I have times when I need to be alone with my thoughts.
"I knew it was coming, but it was still a no-go, huh…"
Staring at the ceiling, I replayed the heartbreak I had experienced just a little while ago.
Right after we finished cleaning up from the sports festival and the Blue Team's closing ceremony ended, I had secretly confessed to a boy.
Takizawa Souji-kun.
A first-year student serving as the student council vice president, he was incredibly active both behind the scenes and during the sports festival. Plus, he's the most handsome guy I've ever seen—a boy who is, in my eyes, almost perfect.
I'm sorry, Nitta-senpai. I'm in love with Mio-senpai.
The words I'd heard just an hour ago echoed in my head.
I knew I would be rejected even before I confessed. I knew that in his heart, there was an irreplaceable girl named Nakamura-san, and if anything, they were practically a couple.
I knew it was pointless. I thought I had prepared myself for it.
But still, being rejected so clearly… even I get down sometimes.
…Well, I don't regret confessing at all, though.
"Yuu-chin… I wonder what she's planning to do."
After wallowing in my own melancholy for a while, my thoughts drifted to a friend of mine.
She's so cute it's surprising, and dazzling like the sun.
A girl who seems to have stepped right out of a book, someone I could never compete with, no matter how hard I tried.
But there are things even she can't have, no matter how much she wants them.
"My first love is the boyfriend of my most precious best friend—huh. It's impossible to tell her not to worry about that…"
She never said it herself, but from her behavior, it was painfully obvious that Maehara was her first love. The expression on her face, her gestures, her words—everything when she talked to him was a mirror image of me in front of Takizawa-kun.
I don't personally get the appeal, but I'm not surprised that Maehara is unexpectedly popular. Since he used to have few friends—or rather, almost none—his socially awkward side sometimes slips out. But when you talk to him, he has a surprising sense of humor, and you can tell he's genuinely trying his best every day, which is endearing.
So, I wasn't particularly surprised when I found out that Asanagi had started dating Maehara.
Of course, that included the fact that Yuu-chin, Asanagi's best friend, harbored the same feelings.
"Hey, Yuu-chin… No, Amami Yuu. Are you really okay with that?"
I repeated the words I had once muttered to her.
Everyone has their own way of approaching love, so she's free to choose her own path. She could be like me, confessing even when she knows it's hopeless and getting shot down in secret, or she could carry her unrequited love through high school and let it gradually fade away.
I'm in no place to interfere in her love life. I probably don't have the right to, either.
I know that.
…I know, but.