Chapter 343: If you don’t go swimming, nobody else will work.
“So, Kazumi, have you been sharing a dorm with Kiyomizu-san these past few days?”
In the beach’s food court, the blond young man took big bites of his hamburger while looking with some surprise at the short-haired girl sitting in front of him with a cold expression.
“Mhm.”
The girl responded with a single, expressionless word, nodding her assent. She picked up a french fry from the plate, skillfully broke the long fry in half, and then dipped the end, revealing its soft white interior, into some ketchup before slowly putting it into her mouth.
Actually, Kazumi herself hadn’t expected things to turn out this way. While it was quite common for girls to form small groups and exclude girls they had no interaction with, the generally well-liked Mai Shinomiyai clearly wasn’t part of that category.
The current situation felt more like because a certain girl, who had been separated from the others, was unwilling to share a dorm with her, Mai Shinomiyai, who thought she had a good relationship with Kazumi, had proactively taken over this hot potato and become her roommate.
[This is so troublesome…]
The girl pouted with a bit of jealousy, unable to help but complain inwardly. Compared to this troublesome kindness that had sought her out, Kazumi would have preferred to spend these three days of vacation without any interaction with a girl she didn’t know.
“Oh, that’s great! You and Shinomiyai have quite a good relationship, so you won’t be alone. I’m out of luck, though. I got paired with荞麦田, and he snores so loudly during his naps, I feel like I won’t be able to sleep well tonight.”
Sato Shinichi, seemingly not noticing his girlfriend’s depressed mood, was still happy that the girl was living with a girl she had a good relationship with, even if it was rare. In the whole class, Mai Shinomiyai was probably the only one Kazumi could call a friend. After all, Kazumi had even visited her with him. It was definitely different from friends like Nákamura Yū, who were so familiar with everyone.
“Mhm.”
The boy’s words made Kazumi’s expression become even more subtle. A good relationship? Probably. She had actually seriously regretted not finding an opportunity to kill Mai Shinomiyai earlier.
It seemed that even when in a normal state, not affected by her abilities, the hostility and dislike towards a psychic who restrained her abilities [rival in love (imaginary)] had not been eliminated.
“So, Kazumi, do you want to eat this? It tastes surprisingly good. The meat patty inside isn’t like the synthetic meat used in regular fast-food restaurants, and the sauce also has a nice seaside flavor…”
Sato Shinichi was long accustomed to his girlfriend’s indifferent attitude. He finished the last small half of the hamburger in his hand, picked up one from the pile stacked like a city wall in front of him, and offered it to Kazumi.
“I’m fine with just the fries, I can’t eat that much.”
Her gaze swept over the vast pile of hamburgers before focusing on the boy’s perfect abs, which even while sitting down, showed no excess fat. She pointed to the bag of fries in front of her and shook her head, refusing.
Heaven knows how much Sato Shinichi trained normally. His seemingly endless and terrifying appetite was one thing, but to maintain such a low body fat percentage while eating so much was enough to say he was a capable person with a physical ability.
She was completely the opposite. Although the food in the food court was indeed quite good, the girl’s appetite seemed to be naturally smaller. She already felt full after eating a medium-sized portion of fries.
“Mhm, okay.”
The boy, who had some understanding of his girlfriend’s appetite, was only asking out of concern. He nimbly tore open the wrapper of the hamburger in his hand and took a big bite.
“Kazumi, do you want to go to the public beach later? Hayato and the others seem to have invited some people to play volleyball. We could also go swimming, I can teach you!”
While eating his hamburger, Sato Shinichi looked at the girl in front of him. Kazumi was wearing a more conservative swimsuit, a pure black one that looked like a combination of a short-sleeved shirt and a short skirt. Furthermore, the parts that were basically exposed were mostly covered by a long towel, making her look not much different from her usual clothes.
“Swimming… forget it, I don’t want to play volleyball either…”
Sato Shinichi’s suggestion made the girl’s interest rise a little, but then she silently compared the benefits and troubles of these options in her heart and instantly gave them all up.
For Kazumi, who was both unsociable and lacked athletic ability, being here for the training camp instead of hiding at home was already entirely for Sato Shinichi. As for further participation in the games of those brats?
Absolutely impossible, no one would be able to make her go, no matter who it was!
“You have to play in the water when you come to the beach, or it’s too hot on shore, and besides…”
“Sato-kun! Hmm? Kiyomizu-san is here too.”
Just as Sato Shinichi was trying to figure out how to persuade his girlfriend to go to the beach with him, a slightly surprised and sweet voice came from behind.
A sense of special crisis permeated the girl. Her eyes sharpened, and Kazumi slowly turned her body. As expected, she saw that elegant figure that made the girl incredibly disgusted.
Her skin was like congealed fat, rosy white, gentle like jade, crystal clear. Her pale skin was like natural beauty, exuding the flawless charm of a young girl.
Her tall figure, perfectly proportioned features, combined with a pale blue floral print swimsuit, revealed her exceptionally beautiful clavicle in a manner that was both modest and daring. Her jet-black long hair was tied up high in a ponytail, showing a few touches of youthful vitality that were completely different from her usual demeanor.
Her high chest pushed the swimsuit into a beautiful curve, showing an unexpected capacity beneath her usually bulky uniform. Even more deadly were her slender legs below, her thighs beautifully curved, forming the most perfect arc of a girl her age, with a touch of mature youthfulness that was almost intoxicating.
Her calves were long, smooth, and well-proportioned. Her smooth skin had no scars or blemishes to disrupt her beauty, perfect and moving. Her slender feet stepped on the sand, each toe joint natural and full, like beautiful jade or delicate lotus root. The light-colored nail polish on her fingernails was the most eye-catching embellishment on this elegant picture, like a solitary work of art, making one want to hold these jade feet in their hands and play with them.
Her emerald eyes sparkled with dazzling brilliance, especially captivating in the sunlight. The elegant aura of the girl was replaced by youthful vitality, adding a sense of reality that made people yearn for it.
“Shi… Shinomiyai…”
As if drawn by a black hole, the boy’s gaze couldn’t help but drift to the girl’s pale legs, but for just a moment, as if realizing something, Sato Shinichi quickly withdrew his gaze, kept his eyes on his nose, and greeted the tall girl in front of him.
“Hmph.”
Like a cold wind from a deep ice cave, a cold snort emanated from Kazumi’s nostrils, expressing the girl’s displeasure at that moment.
The moment Mai Shinomiyai appeared, Kazumi looked at her own “dog” as if she had smelled something, and Sato Shinichi, this golden retriever, completely lived up to his masculine nature, only glancing at those naturally beautiful legs.
The first glance was instinct; not looking a second time was restraint.
Having been a boy in her previous life, Kazumi knew this principle well. No matter the age or situation, when faced with such a sight, physiological instinct would always make people take a glance, or perhaps more.
This was originally a trivial matter, and Kazumi understood the principle, but that didn’t stop the girl from being unhappy at this moment.
“Do you want something to drink? I came to buy water for Hanako and the others. They’re playing volleyball with some classmates over there.”
Seemingly noticing the strange atmosphere, Mai Shinomiyai quickly changed her posture, took out a few bottles of drinks from the bag she was carrying, and offered them to the two.
She came here because she happened to be buying water and saw the two eating, so she thought she’d come over to say hello and ask if they wanted to play together, as they were all classmates.
“No, thank you, we’ve already bought drinks.”
Just as Sato Shinichi was about to reach out and accept the drinks Mai Shinomiyai offered, the girl sitting on the other side suddenly stood up, with a smile that could kill, and waved her hand, rejecting Mai Shinomiyai’s kindness.
“Kazumi…”
Her girlfriend’s behavior at this moment seemed a bit impolite to Sato Shinichi, but his incredibly sharp sixth sense seemed to feel something. He only called out his girlfriend’s name and then turned to offer an awkward smile of apology to Mai Shinomiyai.
“Let’s go!”
Seeing that the boy still dared to smile at Mai Shinomiyai, Kazumi became even more angry. She had to admit that Mai Shinomiyai was indeed excellent in all aspects, even to the point that she, as a fellow female, felt some admiration. If she looked back at her previous life’s circumstances, not to mention having the courage to pursue her, it would probably be fine to be an unrequited love object for a few years.
Grabbing Sato Shinichi’s arm, the girl, puffed up with anger, dragged the boy, wanting to walk towards the other end of the beach.
“Hey, Kazumi…” “Sorry, Shinomiyai, we have to go.”
While packing the hamburgers on the table into a takeout bag, Sato Shinichi raised his arm and apologized to the stunned Mai Shinomiyai. Then, turning around, he stumbled, clearly not daring to exert force to hurt the girl and twisting his body into a strange shape.
Stumbling as he got up, the boy followed the direction of Kazumi’s pull step by step and couldn’t help but ask.
“Kazumi, where are we going?”
“Swimming!”
