It seemed the group date was being held in a karaoke-equipped rental space near the university, so I decided to return to my apartment first to wash off the sweat.
After getting back to my room in a twenty-year-old apartment building about an eight-minute walk from campus, I took a shower, changed clothes, slipped on the black jacket I borrowed from Azaki, and headed out.
“Ugh… it’s kinda cold.”
Spring in Tokyo still had a chill in the air.
I had warmed up earlier because of practice, but after a shower my body couldn’t handle the cold. I bought a disposable hand warmer from a convenience store on the way and shoved my hands into my jacket pockets.
“Hm? What’s this?”
The thing my hand grabbed was… that rubbery thing, and a folded piece of paper.
“That horny little bastard… why’d he put this in here?”
Even while saying that, I quietly tucked the item into my wallet.
(Well… things might go that way.)
“And this paper that was with it…?”
I unfolded the memo that had been folded multiple times, and some writing appeared.
“To my best friend Makishima.”
Wait—this letter is for me?!
“Makishima, you have a mission. At this group date, everyone except you will sit in front of the girl they’re targeting. Since you don’t have a target, sit at the leftover seat, and take home the leftover girl sitting in front of you! Your best friend, Azaki.”
In an age where smartphones are everywhere… why a handwritten letter? I honestly didn’t get it.
Reading the letter a few more times as I walked, I finally understood the gist. Basically… they have girls they’re aiming for, so I should just get along with whoever’s left?
Damn that Azaki—he’s way too selfish!
I’m already doing them a favor just by filling the numbers, and now he wants me to take home a leftover girl?
“You’ve gotta be kidding me—!”
I was about to rip the letter apart when I noticed more writing on the back.
“—If you complete the mission, there’s a reward. The reward is the brand-new pair of spikes you wanted—worth several tens of thousands of yen—plus five sets of new stockings, AND two SS-seat tickets to Tokyo Frontier’s third match of the season (take the girl with you!). Total value: 60,000 yen. I’m serious. I’m counting on you, Makishima!”
Azaki… you bastard…
Damn… I’ve got the best friend ever!
“Spikes…!”
For someone like me who desperately wanted new spikes, this mission was too good to be true.
Doing one group date (basically like a one-time part-time job) and getting 60,000 yen worth of stuff? That’s incredible!
Excited beyond belief, I skipped my way toward the venue.
I arrived at the rental space about five minutes from campus.
Laughter spilled out from inside the room.
Looks like they were already having fun.
“Excuse me—coming in.”
“Makishima, you’re late!”
“My bad, my bad.”
I winked at Azaki as I walked in.
He winked back, clearly noticing I had read the letter.
“Good to see you here, Makishima!”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m here, partner. Now hand over the spikes already.”
Inside the room were three guys from the soccer club and four girls.
They had been chatting happily across the long table, but once I entered, the girls’ gazes all turned toward me.
“Uh, I’m Makishima Yuutaro. Same soccer club as these guys.”
“Nice to meet you~ Makishima-kun.”
“Come sit, Makishima-kun!”
Guided by a strong-willed straight-haired girl and a fluffy bob-haired girl, I sat at the far end of the guys’ side.
“Aihara, Makishima-kun’s here. Good for you.”
“Yuuko, stop it…”
The girl sitting diagonally to my right—Aihara—had her hair in a side-up style.
So that’s the one Azaki’s after.
I mean yeah… compared to the others, she was definitely the cutest.
—But that didn’t matter right now.
All I could see was the “spikes” sitting in front of me.
The brand-new, lightweight, perfectly fitting spikes…
The ones I tried on in the store but couldn’t afford…
I want them so badly…!
“Okay, while we wait for the food, how about we talk one-on-one? We’ll use a roulette app to decide the order.”
Everyone gave a “yeaaaah!” and the roulette spun.
✳︎✳︎
For the one-on-one talks, we spread out across the room and chatted in separate spots.
After finishing the rotation, we could then freely talk to whoever we thought we hadn’t talked enough with.
I went first with the fluffy girl, then the strong-willed girl, introducing myself and chatting about various things.
Both of them were very “modern college girls.” Takano-san, the fluffy one, posted fashion videos on social media and apparently had over a hundred thousand followers.
Igarashi-san, the strong-willed one, was in the track team and had won national competitions multiple times through junior high and high school.
And after Igarashi came Aihara.
“Um… I’m Aihara Yuzu. You’re Makishima-kun, right?”
“Y-yeah.”
Aihara blinked rapidly, never meeting my eyes.
Did I do something wrong without realizing it?
“I, um… watched your B Team match the other day. By chance.”
“The one where I messed up the trap and they countered and scored? Yeah… that was pretty embarrassing.”
“No, it wasn’t! That happened because you, as a forward, dropped unusually deep into midfield for a post play, and got hit by their defensive midfielder’s hard press. That turnover wasn’t really on you—our whole team was pulled too far back—”
“Uh, Aihara?”
“—!”
Aihara, who had been passionately defending me, snapped back to reality when I called her name and immediately blushed.
“I-I just… really like soccer!”
“Oh? What team do you support?”
“Tokyo Frontier!”
“Seriously?! I’m from out of town, but I’ve been a Tokyo Frontier fan forever!”
Oh crap, not good.
When it comes to soccer, I tend to get carried away.
This girl is Azaki’s target, after all. I should be assisting him, like a forward doing a proper post play.
“In that case, don’t you think you’d get along with Azaki? He may look flashy, but the guy’s got crazy high soccer IQ. Coach says he might be starting in A Team next year.”
“Y-Yeah… haha…”
Aihara forced a dry laugh and picked up her juice.
Does she… not like Azaki?
Still, I needed to help him. Otherwise, I might not get the spikes.
“Next is Azaki, right? He’s flashy, but he’s really a good guy—”
That’s when it happened.
A pale hand suddenly reached between us.
“Aihara-san. I’m done talking, so I came over.”
It was the last girl of the group.
The one sitting in front of me earlier—the girl with the red headband, glasses, and a black mask that hid her expression.
“S-Sorry, Sasaki-chan.”
Aihara bowed politely and added, “I’ll come back if we get to talk again,” before heading toward Azaki.
Azaki, I’ve done everything I can. The rest is up to you.
“…Hey, what’s your name?”
The girl who had just interrupted our conversation now asked me directly.
“I’m Makishima Yuutaro.”
“Hmm.”
She had a different vibe from the other girls—mysterious, with wavy medium-short hair and thin eyebrows.
Around 160 cm tall, with skin so pale it seemed unhealthy, and an extremely slender build—her legs looked like they’d snap if stepped on.
“I’m Sasaki Ayane.”
Sasaki Ayane, huh.
Her impression was vastly different from the other three.
Her clothes were calm and refined, and her bag and earrings were high-end brands. She definitely seemed like someone from a wealthy family.
“S-Sasaki, you seem kinda different from the others. Why’d you come to a group date?”
“I’m just here to fill the numbers. No choice.”
“Numbers?! Seriously? Actually, I’m kinda here for numbers too.”
“…That’s a lie.”
She muttered it while looking away.
“Huh? I’m not lying—”
“But the other three girls were talking about you nonstop on the way here.”
Me…?
What the hell does that mean?
As I sat there confused, Sasaki quietly murmured:
“I see. So they used you as bait.”
“B-Bait?”
“Bait to lure the other girls.”
“…Bait?!”
Of course! That explains everything—the forced invite, the girls’ reactions when I arrived… everything lined up.
“That damn Azaki! He’s no partner—no best friend! He used me as bait?! What a bastard!”
“Are you mad?”
“Of course I am! He used me!”
“Hmm… then I have a proposal for you.”
“P-Proposal?”
“I want to get out of here. And you were used as bait. Our interests align.”
“So… you mean the two of us should leave together?”
“Exactly. And… I’ll show you something only you get to see.”
“Show me… what?”
Right then, Sasaki removed her glasses and pulled off her mask, then finished her juice.
The tiny beauty mark under her left lip…
Those sharp, slightly sadistic-looking eyes…
This face… I knew this face…
“Don’t you recognize me?”
—!?
The memory returned—me, three years ago, peeling tangerines under a kotatsu while watching TV.
“Y-Y-You’re… Ki—”
“Shh! Let’s go, Makishima.”
Now I remembered completely.
She wasn’t Sasaki Ayane.
She was the idol who served as the official promotional manager for the High School Soccer Championship when I was a first-year…!
Sasaki put her mask and glasses back on, grabbed my hand, and walked toward Igarashi.
“Igarashi-saaan! I’m leaving with Makishima-kun. We hit it off!”
“Eh—wait, Sasaki-chan! Makishima-kun is—”
“Oh Makishima! It’s fine if you leave!”
The girls all suddenly looked displeased.
The three guys—including Azaki—(being idiots) winked and encouraged me.
Azaki, what you did to me deserves a red card and three-match suspension, but thanks to VAR (Sasaki Ayane), it turned into the greatest killer pass ever.
Because the girl they brought just to fill the numbers was actually…
Hand in hand, Sasaki and I ran out of the venue.
“Phew! We really escaped, Makishima-kun.”
“…Yeah.”
We kept walking until we reached the riverside grass field near the university and sat down side by side.
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