"Oh, it's so crowded."
"Y-yeah."
"I wonder if we can find a spot?"
Ryo, Shingo-kun, and I arrived at the beach ahead of the others, carrying parasols in our hands and looking for a vacant spot. But since the temperature was high and it was a perfect day for swimming, there were a lot of people.
"Hmm… Oh, it's a bit far, but wouldn't that be a good place?"
The place Ryo pointed to was indeed a little far from the crowd, and there was a space available.
"Well then, Yuuya. It's a little far, but it's a good place."
"Eh? Sure, but… do you need help?"
"Shingo and I can set this up ourselves."
"Y-yeah. So, Yuuya-kun, why don't you go and call Kaede-san and the others?"
"Okay."
Ryo and Shingo-kun asked me to go and bring Kaede and the others.
"Even so… Do I look weird?"
When I said that, I looked down at my appearance. The only swimwear I've ever owned was the one I use for school classes.
When I talked to Ryo and the others about it, they said that I should have a swimsuit for having fun, so I decided to go a little overboard and buy one… Thanks to the materials I got in the other world, I earned some money when I exchanged them for cash. It's a bit of a luxury.
As I was checking my appearance, I suddenly noticed that people around me were looking at me.
"…Isn't that guy really cool? Shall we go talk to him?"
"Yeah. But I think I've seen him somewhere before… Ah! Isn't that the guy who was in a magazine before?"
"That's right! Whoa… I thought the photos were edited, but he looks really cool…"
"I mean, look at those abs! Isn't it amazing? They're so tight!"
"Hmm, those are really nice muscles. They're really well-trained."
"Those abs are like chocolate bars! You could grate daikon with those oblique muscles!"
…I hear some unusual voices, but it's probably just my imagination.
While feeling strangely uncomfortable and waiting for Kaede to arrive, I suddenly heard a voice calling out to me.
"U-um…"
"Yes?"
When I turned my gaze toward the voice, I saw several unfamiliar women standing there.
"C-can I help you?"
When I asked them, I was so nervous that I was at a loss for words, and they looked at each other.
"I knew it!"
"Yes! …Um, you're the one who was in the magazine with Miu-chan before, aren't you?"
"Eh? Ah… yes. That's right, but…"
"U-um! Can I take a photo with you?"
"P-photo?"
Why do they want my photo?
As I panicked, the women closed the distance between us and took out their phones to snap a picture with me.
"Um, thank you!"
"Eh, no, it's…"
After taking the pictures, the women left looking happy, although I had no idea why. Oh, I guess this is what people call coming in like a storm and leaving like a storm…
As I watched them leave in a daze, I heard Kaori's voice.
"Yuuya-san!"
"Eh? Ah, Kaori…!"
Then I saw Kaori's figure and was transfixed. She was wearing a cute white swimsuit and a hoodie, and when she noticed me, she shyly averted her gaze.

"U-um… My swimsuit… Isn't it weird…?"
"Huh? N-no! Not at all! It looks good on you! It suits you well!"
I was so nervous that I didn't know what I was saying, but Kaori smiled happily at my words.
"I-is that so… I'm so glad that Yuuya-san said that."
"….."
This is not good. Until I came here, I was completely unaware of the fact that… playing on the beach means that everyone will be wearing a swimsuit! That's right! They said they were going to change their clothes, right?
Because of the school lessons, I didn't think anything of it, but after thinking about it, I realized that this is how women get into their beautiful swimsuits.
…Huh? This means that───.
"Ah, Yuuya-kun! Oooii!"
"Fuh… It's so hot outside!"
"…I feel like I'm melting."
After Kaori, Kaede, and the others came to me, despite my nervousness and stiffness.
Kaede wore a cute frilly swimsuit and hot pants, Rin wore a black sporty swimsuit, and Yukine wore a salopette swimsuit and carried a floating ring.
Each of them looked great… W-what should I do? I'm not sure where to put my eyes. They are all very attractive, so I had trouble finding a place to look.
"H-hey, look over there…"
"Whoa! Their level is too high!"
"Can we talk to them?"
"No, they're that guy's friends, aren't they?"
"I-I'm so jealous!"
The men around me were admiring Kaori and the others in their swimsuits. When I looked closely, I saw that some of the women were also admiring them. They are beautiful even from a woman's perspective…
The sight of Kaori and the others made me feel unrealistic, and I couldn't help but think that while having a faraway look in my eyes.
Then, Kaede peeped into my face curiously at my situation.
"Yuuya-kun? What's wrong?"
"Huh? Ah, no, it's nothing!"
"Really? So, um… what do you think of me?"
"Uee? It looks good on you! Y-yeah!"
When Kaede asked me that, my cheeks flushed red, I replied in a hoarse voice.
"Is that right? …I see… Ehehehe…"
"Mm…"
I didn't know what the right response would be, as I had only recently been able to have a proper conversation with the opposite sex. However, there was no indication that Kaede was unhappy with the answer, so I think I didn't make a fatal mistake.
"…Yuuya. What about me?"
I didn't know anything about this topic, but as if chasing after me, Yukine continued the conversation by asking me something like that!
"Um…"
I'm not sure what to say in this situation. Is it enough to say that she looks good as well? What does Yukine want from me in the first place?
When I was confused about how to answer, Yukine put her hand on her chest and looked at Kaede for some reason.
"…As expected, it's the breasts."
"How did you come to that conclusion?"
I didn't think of anything in particular, and I didn't say anything, but Yukine glared at Kaede's breasts with resentment and then looked at me with a frustrated gaze. I didn't even think about the breasts one bit, you know? It's a false accusation!
While I was puzzled about the opinions of Kaede and Yukine regarding their swimsuits following Kaori's, I was so flustered and I didn't notice that Kaori's cheeks were puffed up. But seeing my continued fumbling, Rin came up to me with a grin and poked me with her elbow.
"Oya? Oyaoya? Yuuya. Are you nervous seeing Kaede and the others in their swimsuits?"
"Uh, t-that's… of course it is…"
"Ahahahaha! That's surprising. You look like you're already being used to this kind of situation, though."
My answer made Rin laugh out loud.
She said that I'm used to it… There's no way. Where does that come from anyway? I don't know…
"Well, unlike me, Kaede has a great style, Kaori is beautiful, and Yukine is cute."
"Eh? No, Rin is also very beautiful, though…"
"Huh?"
Because she said something strange, I couldn't help but tell her what I was thinking, and she raised her voice in an unusually indifferent way.
In response to Rin's reaction, I realized that I had just said something embarrassing.
No, it was because Rin said something weird that I reflexively replied! I'm not the kind of guy who can say something like that without hesitation. I want to be able to say that out loud one day, though!
I mean, Kaori, Yukine, Kaede are all beautiful, but Rin is also very slender, like a model, and looks great in a mature swimsuit. I wasn't sure why she was saying that.
"It's just that I'm so nervous when people approach me so openly…"
"I-is that so? Ahahahaha…"
Rin said and quickly walked away from me.
On closer look, it's unusual to find that Rin's cheeks are dyed red, and she's averting her gaze awkwardly. I-it makes me more embarrassed when she reacted like that…
"W-well then, let's get going! Ryo and Shingo-kun have already gone ahead and saved a spot for us."
"I see… If that's the case, we should get there quickly and thank them…"
"You're right!"
I was not too fond of the situation, so I told everyone about Ryo and Shingo-kun. The atmosphere returned to normal, so I took a breath. T-thank goodness… it's too stimulating for me to deal with everyone by myself…
As soon as we met up with Ryo and Shingo-kun, we did some careful warm up exercises and then all headed to the beach to start playing. Ryo seemed to be able to do just about anything, and he showed off his athleticism on the beach as well, swimming far and wide.
Shingo-kun was not so good at swimming, so he played in the shallows with a beach ball that Kaori and I had brought with us.
Then, when Ryo came back from the long swim, Kaede suggested.
"Hey! Let's all play beach volleyball together!"
"Oh, that sounds good!"
We all agreed to Kaede's suggestion, and when it came time to divide the teams, Shingo-kun volunteered to be the referee.
So, we decided to make three teams: Kaori and I, Ryo and Yukine, and Rin and Kaede.
"Yuuya-san, let's do our best!"
"Yes, let's do our best."
The moment I nodded to Kaori's words, I remembered the ball game tournament the other day. On that day, due to some trouble, Kaori and I were paired up to play tennis… That was where I found out that I should not let Kaori play sports.
However, by the time I remembered that, the match was about to start, and our opponents were Kaede and Rin.
"We immediately get to face Yuuya-kun and Kaori, huh… Can we win this?"
"I don't know. Please go easy on us, okay?"
"Well…"
I think I would have to work harder rather than being soft, though.
As I thought about it, the match began with Kaori's serve…