Chapter 498 - Friend
—It's basically a one, two, three, go rhythm.
The first step is a kick-off with the right foot, toes angled slightly outward.
I have no idea what to do with the second step. Just kind of gauge the distance, I guess.
The third step, also no idea. Just adjust the distance for the final part—
The fourth step. With my right hand, which had been swinging in tandem with my feet…
"—Hah!!"
—I extended my arm, focusing on drawing a clean arc, and threw the ball straight ahead, abandoning all clever techniques—THUNK!
"Aaargh…!!!"
"Phah, kuku…! Y-you're really terrible at this…!"
It was only natural that another round of unrestrained laughter hit my defeated back. Anyone would laugh at four consecutive gutter balls. I deserved it.
I came here fully aware that I was laughably, hopelessly bad at this. I had no choice but to accept it as part of the fun.
Only one throw left in the game. Compared to Toshiki, who's nearing a score of 160, my score is a tragicomic 40 flat. Even for someone bad at this, this is just pathetic.
"…W-well, just you watch. I'm the man who performed a miracle on the very first throw of his life—"
"Yeah, I've heard that like twenty times. How many times are you gonna tell that story? We don't need to hear the legend of how you burned out after a beginner's luck strike anymore."
"I haven't said it that many times…!"
Actually, I'm not so sure. There have been so many pathetic moments that I might have unconsciously blurted it out each time as an excuse. Damn it, there's no way I'm ending this in shambles!
Just watch me, you bastard! In the end, all I have to do is throw it as hard as I can without it curving, right?! And a one, a two, a three—YAHHH!!!
Whoosh! Thud! CLANG!!!
"Aaarghh!!"
"Bwha…! Heh, guh… —Haaaah, you're the best. My opinion of you has gone up a lot in these last twenty minutes, Nozomu. Good for you."
"I'm not happy about that…!"
It was evening, a guys' after-school hangout.
Toshiki must have just been being considerate of my busy schedule, flitting between the real and virtual worlds, but he had invited me out of the blue that same day, asking, "Wanna go hang out somewhere?"
I didn't have any plans or summons today either, so I agreed without a second thought, thinking it would be a nice change of pace. After wondering what to do for about five seconds—
"Ah, that was a good laugh. Definitely the most fun single game of my life."
"I'm so honored, you jerk."
—we had ended up at a comprehensive amusement park… or rather, an indoor theme park that could practically be called an amusement park. It was a crazy place with a futuristic interior where a compact roller coaster nonchalantly zipped by.
It wasn't so much that we came here as two guys to have a blast, but more that he brought me here to show me around since I'd never been. We decided to save the screaming and shouting for another time with the girls, and just do something lightly active this time.
And this was the result of our first memorable activity.
I haven't had much experience with it in my life, so it's natural that I'm bad, but even so, my bowling sense seems to be well below the general average.
I even lost in score to an elementary schooler who was playing with her dad in the lane two over. As an eighteen-year-old guy, that's honestly pretty embarrassing.
"Man… If I'd known it would be this fun, I should've brought the girls. Or at least recorded it. If I tell Shoko, she'll get mad and say, 'Don't have fun without me.'"
"I am absolutely never bowling again in this lifetime."
A second game was out of the question. I quickly changed my shoes and grabbed the ball to escape the lane, and Toshiki fell into step beside me, chuckling.
"I bet Kaede and Mizuki would want to see it too, you know? And you're pretty weak to a girl like Kaede making a reserved 'request,' aren't you?"
"Anyone would have a hard time saying no to that, guy or girl."
I tossed my shoes into the return slot and shot a sidelong glance at my friend, who wouldn't stop teasing me. Damn this jock-wannabe, getting all cocky just because he got a good score.
"Besides, if you just kept your mouth shut, we could avoid such a tragic future, you know?"
"That's asking the impossible. If I keep quiet, Shoko will get mad and say, 'You're hiding something fun from me, spit it out.'"
"You two are really close…"
How can she get mad if he's quiet? Is it some kind of childhood friend ESP—
◇◆◇◆◇
"—So, how've you been lately?"
"How, what do you mean?"
"What do I mean? I mean, with your 'partner,' your 'fairy-sama,' your 'princess,' you know?"
"Hey, two guys having love talk is not something sane people do."
I was in a corner of the food court, where we'd stopped for a break and a snack.
As I took a bite of my hamburger and reached for a fry, the 'friend' across from me scowled in a very obvious way.
I smiled at his perfectly predictable reaction, and Nozomu took a bite of his donut, feigning displeasure. For the record, the phase of me teasing him for his choice of a limited-time Fruity Angel French and caramel macchiato with a "Are you a girl?" was already over.
I knew he had a sweet tooth, but it seems he's more hardcore than I thought.
"It's not like that. I'm just checking if you're okay, mentally speaking."
I said it with a self-aware, deliberate tone—as his supporter and follower.
"Ah… well………… Right. I'm not okay, but I'm okay. Yeah."
He slumped back and looked up at the ceiling, his reply coming in fits and starts. He didn't look okay at all… but that was probably exactly what his words meant.
"Well, if things get tough, just let me know. I'll listen to you vent or whatever."
"Hah, that's reassuring."
It was a cliché word of encouragement and support. I was still not capable enough to offer more than that, but Nozomu probably didn't need anything more from me right now.
It wasn't about the fact that he had other people to help him—'big shots' who were on a completely different level from your average university student.
It was because this friend of mine, whose atmosphere had changed as if a switch had been flipped recently, was always looking forward without a hint of gloom, no matter how much he worried or tired himself out.
He really is special, I thought strongly. I thought it every time I saw different sides of him, in both the real world and the virtual one. And because I could see that he was special…
"—Alright, let's move on. What else are you bad at?"
"Why? Stop trying to expose my weaknesses with such glee."
—I think his struggle to move forward without letting go of his 'normal' side is something that deserves to be cheered on.
I'm worse than him (my personal best is 67).