*Kenichi's POV*
Sometimes I wonder...
What was the purpose for which I was born into this world...?
I can't help but have that thought as I watch the sunset from the rooftop of the school. The bell marking the end of the day at Sainan Academy rang quite a while ago.
I could see from above how all the students were starting to leave the school while walking animatedly. Most of them were possibly heading home, others were most likely going out to hang out with their friends, and the rest of them were walking straight to their clubs to do their afternoon activities.
It was the typical scene you'd see at any other school—no big deal.
It should be as simple as that, though...
Then...
Why do I feel so out of place?
At this point, I would normally be running home to look at magazines, play perverted games and watch videos, or even go out to karaoke for some carefree fun with my friends. But for some strange reason, I've been feeling off lately. It all started a few days ago when school began.
Does everything that seemed normal to me until now feel strange?
What I'm seeing right now is a good example...
In the distance, near the exit, a boy of incredibly short stature (Chibi) can be seen running desperately while wearing a woman's white panties as a mask. He is being chased by a group of girls who have incredibly annoyed expressions.
Sohara: "Stop, Tomo-chan!! How dare you steal the girls' underwear from the swim club!!!?"
Tomoki: "Hahaha~!! You wish! I know that when you catch me, you're going to hit me!"
He kept running while laughing loudly until he unexpectedly stumbled and fell to the ground in an exaggerated way. The girls didn't waste the opportunity and, together, gave him a brutal beating. You could even see how he jumped with blood in a strange way.
Tomoki: "HAAAAAAAAA!!!"
The me of a few days ago would have been laughing at this scene; I would even have found it normal. But now I question if this is really normal. That kid just did something that would normally get him expelled, but he gets away with it and just gets beaten up. Even though he was beaten in such a brutal way, he just got up as if nothing had happened. He is just limping a little and has several bumps and bruises, but the strangest thing of all is that the next day he comes to school without any injuries, almost as if he had never been beaten.
And it's not just him; there are several people in the school to whom similar things happen. When I see them, I can't help but remember anime...
I'm pretty sure this is the kind of thing you would see in an anime...
But...
This has been going on for most of my life...
Why does it only seem strange to me now?
While I was thinking that, I looked in the direction of the courts, where I could see several students doing the sports activities of their clubs, like the soccer club or the baseball club. Although most of them were just having fun instead of doing their activities, you could notice that there were some who were really serious about it and put a lot of effort into their activities.
For example, on the tennis courts, you could see the figure of a girl who was diligently practicing with her tennis racket. She was slim, a little short in height, had short purple hair, and also pretty purple eyes.
I knew her very well; her name is Sairenji Haruna. She is a member of the tennis club, the representative of class 1-A, and she has also been my classmate since junior high school. She is a very quiet and kind girl; maybe that's why she is quite popular with everyone in the class. After classes are over, she usually meets with the other members of the tennis club to practice.
Now that I think about it, she is quite cute. I feel that until now, I had never paid attention to her appearance or her way of being. I wonder why.
Even though they were on activity time, all the other girls in the club were gathered together, Adulating the teacher in charge of the club. She was the only one who was taking her activities seriously. I have to admit, she looked pretty good as she put in the effort.
As I watched her practice, I noticed that in a corner somewhat far away from the court, I could see the shadow of someone who was hypnotized, looking at her completely motionless.
Kenichi: "That idiot... He's stalking her again. I am surprised that, with how little he talks to her, he wants to confess his love to her..."
This is without a doubt the weirdest thing of all, Why can't I leave that guy alone? Something inside me always urges me to help him, even though I almost always end up in trouble because of it.
After thinking, I left the rooftop and walked to the tennis courts, more specifically to where that shameless stalker was.
Rito: "Haa... Haa... Haa... Ha-Haruna-chan..."
He doesn't look like someone who wants to confess his pure feelings to the girl he likes; right now, I just see a perverted stalker who sighs weirdly.
This guy's name is Yuuki Rito. He has orange-brown hair and brown eyes. He is about the same height as me, and although his appearance is average, he is well known to everyone at school.
As with Sairenji, we have been classmates since high school. He is generally a kind and good-hearted boy who cares about others.
Rito: "Haa... Haruna-chan... While practicing tennis... Haa... She looks so lovely..."
Although he usually has a kind and simple expression, the one he had at that moment was quite stupid. Anyone who saw him would definitely think he was a perverted stalker, which, strangely, didn't happen.
This is another one of the things I've found strange lately...
Even though he was making a pitiful attempt to hide—after all, he was only behind a tree with half of his body completely exposed—no one saw him. He was shamelessly spying on the activities of the women's tennis club, which only had girls, with a stupid grin, and no one noticed.
Kenichi: "Hey, Rito! Are you stalking her in the middle of the day again?"
Rito: "!!!"
When he heard those words, Rito couldn't help but jump exaggeratedly while emitting a strange sound like that of a scared baby deer.
Rito: "WHO ARE YOU CALLING A HARASSER, YOU BASTARD!!!"
Kenichi: "Hoo~ So, what were you doing behind that hidden tree~?"
Rito: "..."
Kenichi: "I bet you were looking at your beloved Haruna-chan as usual, right?"
Rito: "..."
At my words, he could only remain silent, and how could he not if everything I said was true?
When we were in high school, after a certain incident that happened at that time, Rito fell madly in love with Sairenji, but he has always had a shy personality with the female gender (he was a coward with women). That's why, whenever he tried to talk to her or confess his feelings, he ended up frozen by nervousness. Sometimes, he even ended up in ridiculous accidents that made him quite notorious in school.
Rito: "Shut up, today I'm not just looking at her... I'm waiting for the right moment."
Kenichi: "The right time?"
Rito: "Yes... I've already decided... Today finally... TODAY I'M FINALLY GOING TO CONFESS MY LOVE TO HARUNA-CHAN!!"
Kenichi: "..."
Kenichi: (How strange... Even though I've heard him say the same words almost every day, why do I feel so weird when I hear him say them...? It feels like I've already heard it a thousand times in the past.)
This is similar to what happened with the guy earlier...
While I was immersed in my thoughts, Rito started running in Sairenji's direction, completely ignoring that she was concentrating.
Why am I a friend of Rito's to begin with? Although most of the time he's a nice guy, we have almost nothing in common. Plus, I always have an impulse to want to help him when he's in trouble. Even though I always end up affected by it, I can't even count the number of times I've been beaten up for covering up several of his perverted accidents anymore.
That used to seem normal to me, but now that I think about it... Why do I care so much about him? I always help him, and he never thanks me. Plus, I always have to listen to his complaints about how he can't confess his feelings to Sairenji.
Rito: "S-Sairenji... I-I have to tell you... S-Something very important..."
It was clear that Rito was trying his best to confess his feelings to Sairenji while stuttering, but he definitely picked a bad time to talk to her. Just when she heard his voice, Sairenji was so startled that, in her nervousness, she ended up hitting the tennis ball with her racket in Rito's direction.
Haruna: "A-AH! BEWARE!!!"
Rito: "EH..."
Rito was also startled when, instead of Haruna's figure, he saw a tennis ball flying at high speed towards his face. Either by good or bad luck, he stepped on a banana peel, which conveniently made him fall down in a comical way, avoiding the impact of the ball.
Kenichi: "(Wait... A banana peel? Why on earth would you find something like that in the middle of a tennis court?)"
Kenichi: (Also... Is it just my imagination, or is that ball coming at high speed in my direction?)
This was strange; it was like time was running in slow motion, similar to those situations that often happen in sports anime. The ball was supposed to take only one or two seconds to hit me, but I had enough time to think. I even had time to laugh a little at the weird way Rito fell to the ground.
Honestly, with the speed of the ball, it shouldn't be so hard for me to dodge it, but for some strange reason, I can't move my body freely.
Kenichi: (How strange... If I'm not mistaken, this kind of thing only happens to Rito? If it were as usual, the ball would hit him and send him flying exaggeratedly; a few minutes later, he would wake up with his spirits down and go out depressed.)
But out of any expectation, the ball was flying straight at my face. My mind was in chaos...
But for some reason, I didn't feel nervous or scared....
*Impact*
When the ball finally hit me, I'm pretty sure I was sent flying pretty far away while doing somersaults in the air until finally, my body touched the ground.
Kenichi: (SHIT!!! What the hell do they feed that girl to have so much brute strength? With a serve like that, I bet she can even easily go for the World Championship.)
Haruna: "SARUYAMA-KUN!!!"
I could hear Sairenji shouting worriedly when she realized that she hit me by accident. I don't know if it might have been due to her kind personality, but she ran straight to help me while completely ignoring Rito, who was also lying on the ground.
Haruna: "A-Are you okay... Saruyama-kun?"
After hearing her worried voice, I started to get up with some difficulty while shaking from the pain.
Kenichi: "Saruyama...? A-Ah, that's right... That's my last name... I don't mean... I'm fine, don't worry, Sairenji."
Haruna: "Are you sure...? I hit you directly on the head..."
Kenichi: "(It would be more accurate to say that you hit me in the face...) Seriously, you don't have to worry so much. Although I'm just saying that to play hard to get, if I'm being completely honest, this really hurts like hell... But leaving that aside... Y-You have a really good serve; I almost thought you were going to rip my head off..."
Haruna: "This is not the time for jokes, Saruyama-kun... I'm so sorry... T-This is all my fault... I'll accompany you to the infirmary."
Kenichi: (I wasn't kidding; had I known it was going to hurt so much, I would have done my best to dodge it.)
It seems that Sairenji was a bit embarrassed by my comment and also had a sad expression; it was obvious that she felt quite guilty for hitting me.
Kenichi: "No... I'm serious, don't worry. I was here from the beginning, and I know this wasn't your fault, so you don't have to apologize so much... Besides, I'm kind of guilty too; this is supposed to be the women's tennis club court. I shouldn't be standing here watching you while you practice... I'm sorry."
Haruna: "Eh...?"
For some reason, I could feel that Sairenji was looking at me strangely, and I honestly don't blame her. What was that I just saw right when she hit the ball at me...? I can't remember it, but I feel like it was something very important... Ah, damn, I'm still kind of disoriented...
Haruna: "Th-That's not true... It was my fault..."
Kenichi: "I feel like we're not going to get anywhere if we both apologize all the time, so let's call it an accident, what do you think?"
Haruna: "Hehehe... If you say so."
Kenichi: "Well, I'd better go home... I have some things to do... See you tomorrow, Sairenji—"
Rito: "Sairenji! ARE YOU OK!!?"
Just as I was about to finish saying goodbye, Rito suddenly shouted as he ran in the direction Sairenji was standing while ignoring me.
Kenichi: (What do you mean 'Sairenji, are you alright?' The one who took the hit was me.... Besides, this all happened because of you, stupid Rito!)
Haruna: "E-Eh.... Y-Yuuki-kun, what are you doing here...?"
Sairenji was quite surprised to see Rito running in her direction; anyone would realize just by looking at her that she also has feelings for him. I guess any girl would be surprised if the guy she's in love with suddenly calls her like that.
Kenichi: (I have to admit that Sairenji is a very kind girl; she cared so much about my well-being that she even ignored Rito, even though she's completely in love with him.... But for some reason... I have a bad feeling when I see Rito running around like that.)
And as if confirming my doubts, Rito slipped on a banana peel again.
Kenichi: (I'm serious.... How many banana peels are there on this court? And why only this idiot slips on them? It's a miracle no one has had an accident so far...)
Rito: "HAAAAAA...!!!"
Kenichi: (Following the usual pattern, now Rito is going to go down in an exaggerated manner on Sairenji and conveniently touch her breasts and butt... Wait a minute... If I already know that's what's going to happen, then... Shouldn't I stop it?)
Kenichi: (I've never thought of doing that before; why am I hesitating? While it's true that this is all an accident... It's not fair for everyone to see Sairenji at such a compromising moment, let alone in public...)
Kenichi: (Wait... That's something I would say... In this kind of situation... I'm sure I would revel in the image of Sairenji being defiled by Rito... But... Why would I do that...)
Kenichi: (Shit... This damn headache again... This is like when I got hit by the ball; for some strange reason, time passed in slow motion, and I couldn't move... But why? Why doesn't my body react the way I want it to?)
While I was having an internal conflict, Rito, who slipped on the banana peel, was still quite far away from us, but even though he was falling, he still gave his best not to fall again...
But it was useless; the moment he stepped again, he slipped on a third banana peel.
Kenichi: "..."
This really isn't intentional; I'm sure it could fall in any direction, so...
Why is it only heading in Sairenji's direction!?
Rito: "WATCH OUT! SAIRENJI!!!"
Haruna: "KYAAAAA!!!"
Just as they were about to collide, I reached out my arm, grabbed Sairenji by the waist, and pulled her close to my body to prevent them from colliding. This caused Rito to run past me and finally crash into a tree.
Rito: "UGHHHH!!!"
Rito, who crashed straight into the tree, screamed in pain, while Sairenji looked shocked and stunned, not understanding the situation until she heard my voice.
Kenichi: "Are you alright...?"
Come to think of it... Isn't this posture somewhat compromising? I'm practically hugging her; I can even feel how her breasts are lightly pressed against my body.
Haruna: (T-This situation... I-It's exactly the same as the novel I read last week... The girl who is being attacked by a pervert is suddenly grabbed tightly by the waist by an unknown but incredibly handsome man who is looking at her with concern...)
Maybe she's still stunned by what just happened; she's just looking at me. Although I have to admit that she's even more beautiful up close, even though she's sweating, her scent is as sweet as that of a flower.
Kenichi: "Sairenji... Are you okay? Why don't you answer me? Did you get hurt somewhere?"
Haruna: "E-Eh...?"
Only when I asked her for the fifth time did she finally react.
Haruna: "I-I'm fine... T-Thanks for helping me, Saruyama-kun..."
Kenichi: "Don't worry... Even though you usually have these kinds of accidents with Rito, that doesn't mean you can't get hurt from the fall (Although I feel that even if she falls from a fourth floor, she'll come out unscathed)."
Haruna: "N-No, don't worry, Saruyama-kun... A-As you can see, I'm fine; I didn't get hurt."
I was finally able to breathe a sigh of relief; plus, now I feel a little better.
Kenichi: "I see... That's good. For a moment, I was worried about you not responding to me, but if you're okay, then there's no problem—"
Rito: "WHAT ARE YOU DOING, SARUYAMAAAAAAA!!!?"
Rito, who had finally gotten up from his fall, stood up with a flushed face and started yelling at me while pointing his finger at me. Plus, he had a slight frown on his face.
Kenichi: "Don't yell so much; I can hear you... And for starters, this is all your fault for not paying attention to where you step. What would have happened if you had hurt Sairenji with your fall? Remember, she is a girl and has a fragile body!"
Kenichi: (Although seeing the way she threw the ball that hit me, I now highly doubt she's actually a fragile girl.)
Rito: "E-Eh..."
Kenichi: "Don't confuse the situation; I had no ulterior motives. I was just moving her out of the way so you wouldn't accidentally hit her (Although this happens so often that if I didn't know Rito, I'd think she was doing it on purpose)."
Rito: "E-Eh... W-Wait... I was about to hit her...?"
Kenichi: "That's why I'm telling you... Anyway, I'm sorry for hugging you so suddenly, Sairenji."
Haruna: "N-No, it's me who's sorry, Saruyama-kun... Yuuki-kun, you don't have to worry; Saruyama-kun was just keeping me from getting hurt..."
Haruna: (Kyaaa... T-This is looking more and more like that novel I read... This is a lot like the situation where the cute guy who saved the heroine is questioned by his childhood friend for being too attached to her... And then the two would start fighting for the girl's affection... Kyaaa... It's so romantic...)
I couldn't do anything but look at Sairenji, confused. She suddenly blushed and started to exaggeratedly shake her head.
Kenichi: "Rito... You should apologize to Sairenji as well... Even though it was an accident, you shouldn't have interrupted her while she was concentrating on practicing."
Hearing my words, Rito immediately became nervous.
Rito: "I'm really sorry, Sairenji... B-Because of me, you almost got hurt."
Haruna: "Y-You don't have to apologize, Y-Yuuki-kun... I was the one who got distracted."
Kenichi: "You know what... At this rate, I feel like we're going to be apologizing all day. Once again, we apologize for interrupting you while you were busy. It's late; we'd better get going, right, Rito?"
Rito: "E-Eh... Yes...?"
Haruna: "It's okay... See you tomorrow, Saruyama-kun, Yuuki-kun... And once again, I'm sorry for hitting you, Saruyama-kun."
Kenichi: "Don't worry about it; see you tomorrow."
Rito: "I-I'll see you tomorrow... S-Sairenji..."
Haruna: "Yes, see you tomorrow."
After saying goodbye, we quickly left the school.
*Haruna's POV*
I could only watch with a blank stare as Saruyama-kun and Yuuki-kun left together from the school.
Haruna: "After all, it wasn't my imagination... Saruyama-kun really was acting differently than usual... Normally, he would have apologized to me, but after a few seconds, he would have been joking around."
I can't help but blush when I remember the way he protected me while hugging me; it was exactly like that novel.
Haruna: "W-What am I thinking... I'm such a fool!"
How can I have those kinds of thoughts while having feelings for Yuuki-kun?
Sasuga: "What are you doing, Sairenji?"
Haruna: "A-Ah, sorry, Sasuga-sensei, I'll go back to practice right away."
*Narrator's POV*
Rito: "Ugh... I failed again... Damn... Why do these things always happen when I try to confess my feelings to Haruna-chan?"
Kenichi: "Believe me, I get what you're saying. How fucking lucky can you get that there just happened to be banana peels everywhere you stepped while running? This doesn't seem like a coincidence anymore... This is almost as if the world itself doesn't want you to confess."
Rito: "Uuuu... Don't joke about it; what if it turns out to be true?"
Kenichi: (No... I'm serious... No matter how unlucky a person is, I don't think what happened today is just due to bad luck. I even froze for a while when it happened... I really felt like an external force was keeping me from moving.)
Kenichi was lost in his thoughts while Rito kept complaining about his bad luck, completely ignoring his best friend's weird behavior. Until finally, after a long moment of silence while ignoring his complaints, he spoke.
Kenichi: "Sorry, Rito, normally I would have invited you somewhere to cheer you up, but today I have other things to do, so I'm going home. Bye."
Rito: "No problem, see you tomorrow, Saruyama... (Is it just my imagination, or has Saruyama been acting strangely for a few days now? Especially for a while now, it's the first time since I've known him that I've seen him put on such a serious expression... He even asked me to apologize to Sairenji... Maybe something happened to him. I think I shouldn't bother him with my problems for now; more important is what Mikan has prepared for dinner tonight.)"
Kenichi continued walking slowly in the direction of where his house was. He kept walking all the time with a serious and thoughtful expression; this kind of behavior was too unusual for him.
But when he was about to reach his house, he muttered something under his breath...
Kenichi: "My name is Saruyama Kenichi... And I am... The supporting character of an... Anime Ecchi"