"Hello there."
A smooth yet slightly uncertain voice filled the air, accompanied by the soft hum of an engine.
"I'm Toru. You must be wondering why I'm sitting in this luxury car, holding a notebook."
He lifted the notebook slightly, glancing at it as if questioning its very existence.
"This thing? It belongs to Kota." A pause. "Or to be exact, he left it with me. And then—because he's a total airhead—he forgot to take it back."
Toru sighed, tapping his fingers against the notebook's cover. "So here I am, being the good citizen that I am, returning it to him."
He leaned back against the leather seat, letting out a slow breath.
"Me? I'm not his friend. At least, I don't think I am... Maybe? I don't know."
His lips twitched slightly, as if even he wasn't sure what to make of their relationship.
"Kota is... my rival. Or, well, he was supposed to be. But things didn't exactly go the way I planned. It all started on that day—"
His mind drifted back to the past, to a moment that he hadn't really thought about in a while.
A Few Months Ago—P.E. Class
Toru stood alone near the gym entrance, hands in his pockets, trying not to look too out of place.
There was a buzzing energy in the air—students chatting, stretching, groaning about the upcoming activity.
Today's P.E. class required students to pair up in groups of three for a three-legged race.
Toru internally groaned.
Why does this school love humiliating its students so much?
He glanced around.
Most of the students had already formed their groups, leaving a few stragglers.
Toru frowned. Great. He didn't do groups. He didn't need a group. If anything, a solo event would have been better.
The only person he talked to was Ayumi, and she was in the girls' division. That left him...
Alone.
Toru clenched his jaw. Whatever. I'll just—
"Oi."
Toru blinked, turning his head slightly.
Standing next to him was a familiar face—Kota.
And beside Kota was Don, the quiet, introverted kid who barely spoke more than three words in a conversation.
Kota tilted his head, eyes filled with his usual mischievous energy. "You need a group?"
Toru narrowed his eyes. What's this idiot planning?
Kota smirked. "C'mon, I know you don't have anyone else. We need one more person, and you look lonely."
Toru twitched. "Excuse me?"
Kota grinned. "I said you look lonely."
Toru was about to tell him to mind his own business when he noticed Don shifting awkwardly beside Kota.
Don also didn't have any other friends.
Toru exhaled sharply. His pride was screaming at him to refuse, but...
Three-legged race.
They needed three people.
He gritted his teeth. "Fine. But don't slow me down."
Kota shrugged. "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, rich boy."
Toru ignored him. This is just for the class. I'm not making friends.
The Three-Legged Race Begins
The three of them were tied together—Toru on the left, Don in the middle, and Kota on the right.
Toru immediately regretted everything.
Don was stiff, Kota was unpredictable, and Toru was trying way too hard not to strangle them both.
The whistle blew.
"LEFT!" Toru shouted.
Kota moved right.
"RIGHT!" Kota yelled.
Toru moved left.
They nearly crashed.
"CAN YOU GUYS DECIDE?!" Don cried, desperately trying to keep balance.
Toru growled. "I am deciding! Kota's the one messing it up!"
Kota snorted. "No, you are!"
They stumbled forward, somehow managing not to eat dirt.
"Just—just move when I say!" Toru snapped.
"Okay, okay!" Kota agreed. "ONE—TWO—LEFT!"
Toru and Don moved—
Kota didn't.
Toru crashed straight into Don, who stumbled into Kota, and the three of them fell in a tangled mess.
The entire class roared with laughter.
Toru lay on the ground, staring at the sky, contemplating his entire life.
Kota, on the other hand, was laughing hysterically. "Bwahahaha! That was horrible!"
Toru groaned. "I hate you."
Kota grinned. "No, you don't."
"Yes, I do."
"Nope."
Toru huffed. "Get off me."
Eventually, they got up, tried again, and somehow—somehow—managed to finish the race without another disaster.
Afterwards, Toru was exhausted.
He leaned against the gym wall, catching his breath, when Kota suddenly handed him a cold water bottle.
Toru looked at him in confusion.
Kota smirked. "You're not bad after all."
Toru scoffed, taking the bottle. "You're not the worst either... even though you're a complete klutz."
Kota grinned.
And that was that.
Toru didn't know when exactly things changed, when he started considering Kota as more than just an annoying rival.
But looking back...
Maybe it all started there.
Present Day – Toru's Car
Toru let out a slow breath, glancing down at the notebook in his hands.
"That was the foundation," he muttered to himself. "I don't know when we became friends, but..."
He sighed, running a hand through his hair.
"Yeah... what happened, happened."
The car slowed to a stop.
Toru pocketed the notebook and stepped out—
Only to freeze when he
saw Ayumi standing near Kota's house.
Ayumi turned and blinked in surprise.
Toru stared.
Ayumi stared back.
Toru's brain: ...Oh.
And just like that—
The chapter ends.