28th December.
Since it’s the end of the year…
Yuzuru decided to spend the day hanging out with his two male friends—Satake Soichiro and Ryouzenji Hijiri—just the three of them, no distractions.
And while they were having lunch at some random family restaurant, Yuzuru suddenly made an announcement.
“I’ve seriously fallen for Arisa.”
Soichiro and Hijiri glanced at each other.
And then…
“O-oh…”
“…Isn’t it a bit late for that?”
So you’ve finally realised your own feelings, huh, their expressions seemed to say.
But Yuzuru ignored them and carried on talking.
“I realised it on Christmas. Like—yeah, I don’t want to let anyone else have her.”
“Right…”
“…So what exactly are you trying to tell us?”
“Arisa’s my woman, so don’t even think about making a move on her, got it?”
In short, he was laying down the law.
Both Soichiro and Hijiri were good-looking enough that even Yuzuru, as a guy, had to admit it.
Of course, neither of them were the type to go after someone else’s fiancée…
And in the first place, while they might appreciate Arisa’s beauty, they probably didn’t want her as a girlfriend.
But still.
Apparently, when people fall in love, even the smallest things start to bother them—and jealousy creeps in.
Yuzuru just couldn’t help himself.
“Like I’d need you to tell me… I’ve already got my hands full dealing with Ayaka and Chiharu. Chill.”
Soichiro said that with a perfectly calm face.
Yuzuru and Hijiri both thought, Is this guy trying to get himself stabbed?
“I’ve got no intention of making a move on a mate’s girl either… but just hypothetically—what happens if I did?”
Half-joking, Hijiri threw the question out.
Yuzuru answered in an utterly serious tone.
“I’d never forgive you.”
“Mate, that’s terrifying! Don’t say it in that voice!”
He’d meant it as a joke, but his voice had come out lower than expected.
Yeah… this wasn’t something he could just laugh off.
Yuzuru silently reaffirmed his resolve: Arisa would be his, no matter what.
“So what are you gonna do? Say ‘please go out with me’… even though you’re already engaged?”
“…Yeah, I guess it is kind of weird.”
The thing complicating Yuzuru and Arisa’s relationship was that word—fiancée.
They’d already skipped past being lovers and gone straight to engagement.
Of course, the plan had always been to call it off eventually…
Though now, Yuzuru had no intention of breaking it off.
“If you confess to Yukishiro as things stand, it’s basically the same as asking her to marry you.”
Soichiro pointed that out coolly.
Their engagement only worked because both of them supposedly didn’t have romantic feelings.
But if that premise collapsed… then they’d just be an ordinary engaged couple.
“…Unless I’m mistaken, I think Arisa actually likes me.”
At that, both Soichiro and Hijiri nodded.
“Yeah, sounds about right.”
“From the outside, you two just look like a sickeningly lovey-dovey couple.”
“…We’re not that bad, are we?”
Yuzuru protested at the way they made it sound like he was constantly flaunting affection in public.
“You really don’t realise it, do you?”
“That’s what being a lovey-dovey couple is like.”
“I said—ugh, whatever.”
He wasn’t happy about it, but arguing wouldn’t get them anywhere.
So he gave up and moved on.
“But if I say ‘marry me’… will she actually say yes…?”
“You’re still in high school.”
“Yeah, that’s a bit heavy.”
Arisa was a smart girl.
That was exactly why Yuzuru had fallen for her… but also why she wouldn’t make any rash decisions.
“If you want my advice, sooner is better than later.”
Soichiro suddenly cut in.
The way he said it made it sound like he had experience—like he’d confessed to someone before… and it hadn’t gone well.
“…Oi, Soichiro.”
“Don’t tell me…”
“…Yeah. I said it. To Ayaka. On Christmas.”
He spoke awkwardly, like he didn’t quite want to admit it.
Soichiro and Ayaka were extremely close.
Not just childhood friends—they’d always had something more, and they’d maintained that bond for as long as they could remember.
“So? How’d it go?”
“She said, ‘Huh? We’ve been a couple for ages already.’”
““……””
To be fair, they had basically been a couple already.
Yuzuru and Hijiri had always teased them about it…
…but apparently Ayaka herself saw it that way too.
Thinking back, her behaviour had always made it pretty obvious she considered herself Soichiro’s girlfriend.
“When she said it, I was like… yeah, fair enough, I guess…”
“You seriously didn’t realise?”
“Guess you just got too used to it.”
Yuzuru and Hijiri were exasperated.
But then again, for those two, that level of closeness had been normal since birth.
They’d always been like a couple, so ironically, the awareness of actually being one had been vague.
“Anyway, that’s not the important part. After that, Ayaka punched me.”
“…Why?”
“Yeah, why’d she suddenly punch you instead of stabbing you like usual?”
The confession hadn’t failed—it had already been fulfilled.
So why had Ayaka hit him?
Yuzuru and Hijiri tilted their heads.
“She goes, ‘Did you think I’m the kind of girl who’d do that with a guy who’s not even my boyfriend? Would you do that with a girl who’s not your girlfriend? You’re the worst! Idiot! Scumbag! Womaniser! Go die!’—that’s what I got.”
“Sounds about right.”
“Yeah, hurry up and die.”
“Shut up, I’ll kill you.”
As Yuzuru and Hijiri heckled him, Soichiro snapped back.
Still…
If what he said was true, then he and Ayaka had briefly been on the verge of a full-blown fallout.
“So, how exactly are you planning to apologise? By dying?”
“Going for seppuku like a proper samurai? Want me to be your kaishaku?” Kaishaku means the person who beheads someone performing seppuku to end their suffering.
“I’m not dying. …Chiharu helped smooth things over, so it’s more or less sorted now. No need to worry.”
Apparently it had all worked out.
Yuzuru and Hijiri felt relieved.
Even if he was a scumbag, they still wanted their friend to be happy. Even if he was a scumbag.
“So yeah, point is—if you don’t want to end up like me, make sure you draw a proper line somewhere. Just because the lukewarm water feels nice doesn’t mean you should stay in it forever. You’ll end up like a boiled frog.”
“…I’ll keep that in mind.”
Soichiro’s scumbag anecdote turned out to be surprisingly useful.
…Though thinking about it calmly, it might already be too late.
“By the way, Soichiro—what are you planning to do about Chiharu-chan?”
“Huh? …Well, don’t worry. I can’t go into details yet, but it’ll work out… probably.”
“…You sure about that? Maybe you should apply your own advice before lecturing Yuzuru.”
Yuzuru and Hijiri couldn’t help worrying that Soichiro might still end up as the boiled frog.
