I Have A Rejuvenated Ex-wife In My Class V1 - Ch 3

 Act 3: Can Friendship Between Men and Women Exist?

Saturday in mid-April.

I was heading to the movie theater.

The movie I was aiming for was "Kimiuta."

The official title is 'I Want to Deliver My Voice to You.'

It's a work where idols selected from each fleet to end the long-lasting space war run around the battlefield with a microphone in hand, and I've completed the character songs for all characters.

Lately, the passion had completely cooled down, but after accidentally seeing a commercial yesterday, I decided to watch it for the first time in a while.

This week, you can get a film as an admission bonus.

I'll draw the same amazing scene as last time!

With such enthusiasm, I visited the movie theater and bumped into Yuzuhana.

"You were here too. What's your target? Kimiuta?"

"Yes. You too?"

"Me too. I felt like watching it after a long time."

"I'm watching it for the first time in a cinema."

"You weren't an otaku back then, were you?"

"Yes. Because of that, I had to endure your showing off with 'Kimiuta was so impressive in the cinema.'"

"Showing off... I just expressed my impression."

"For me, it was showing off. Plus, you boasted about the bonus film. I'll get a amazing scene better than yours and make you regret it."

"There's no way you can get a divine scene better than mine."

Destiny isn't something that can be easily changed. Since I drew the divine scene last time, this time too, the amazing scene should come to me.

We operated separate ticket machines. As expected of Kimiuta, about seventy percent of the seats were already taken.

I was hesitant about which seat to choose, but maybe watching from the front row isn't bad once in a while. Normally, I would never choose it because the screen is too close, but I've seen this movie so many times.

We bought the tickets almost simultaneously, entered competitively, and received the visitor's bonus.

Let's open it after watching the movie, but first, shall we go to the concession stand?

Checking the theater merchandise, the Kimiuta section was completely empty.

Yuzuhana looked down, disappointed.

"The merchandise is wiped out..."

"It's almost the end of the screening period, after all. Well, I managed to get some."

"When?"

"Twelve years ago. I think I went on the opening day and bought keyholders and mechanical pencils for all characters."

"Because of people like you who buy in bulk...!"

"Don't blame me. Completing the collection is the basics, right? You also bought a lot of Anipara goods. It's immature for something aimed at kids."

"It's fine! I made sure to buy them in stores where kids wouldn't come! ...By the way, did you have mechanical pencils or something?"

"They're in my desk drawer. ...Do you want them?"

"W-what? Are you trying to show off again?"

"It's not like that. I thought I'd give them to you if you wanted them."

If it were the old me, I wouldn't have made such an offer even if threatened, but recently, my dislike for Yuzuhana has diminished. Even talking like this, I don't feel irritated anymore.

I'm not going to be on good terms like we were in the past just because of this. At least, not until she sincerely and wholeheartedly apologizes, saying, "I'm sorry, Kohei! It was all my fault!"

Anyway, we've become the kind of friends who talk when we meet. If I give her the mechanical pencils, she might see me in a new light. She should start interacting with me in a calmer manner, and our arguments should decrease.

"..."

"Why are you silent?"

"When someone suddenly acts kind, it feels creepy."

"And here I am, trying to be kind, and you say it's creepy..."

"I mean it in a good way, creepy! If you're giving them to me, I'll take them. ...Thanks."

I was taken aback by her straightforward gratitude.

When did she learn to say thank you? Before, she had an attitude like it was only natural for me to do things for her. Well, while it's confusing, it's not a bad feeling.

"..."

"Why are you silent?"

"When someone thanks me sincerely, it feels creepy. ...In a good way."

When I added that, seeing her eyebrows raise, Yuzuhana softened her expression, saying, "Well, if that's the case, it's fine."

After that, I parted ways with Yuzuhana, looked at some posters, bought a drink, and headed to the theater room.

And then, I bumped into Yuzuhana in the front row of the theater.

"Why did you choose this seat?"

"Because I've seen this movie so many times, I thought sitting in a seat I usually wouldn't choose would make it feel fresh. What about you?"

"I thought it would be more impactful."

"I see."

I thought she would say something like 'I chose this seat to avoid sitting next to you,' but... maybe the mechanical pencils worked their magic; she didn't start a fight.

We sat next to each other and waited for a while. The long commercial started, and Kimiuta opened its curtains.

Right from the start, with a live scene, my excitement was maxed out. Memories of being hooked on it came back, making me feel like I was back in high school. Maybe I should rent all the episodes on the way back.

While enjoying Kimiuta with those thoughts, we left the theater room still hyped up.

"I absolutely want to participate in the live event now!"

"That's obvious. I missed out last time, but I'll definitely get tickets this time!"

"Even if I'm the only one who gets a ticket, don't come crying to me."

"You're the one who shouldn't ask me to give you mine. Like when you showed off the amazing film."

"I won't say that anymore. Because this time, I'm going to draw the amazing scene."

"If you're that confident, let's make it a competition."

"That's what I want!"

Sitting on a bench near the restrooms, we finally opened our films!

"...What's this?"

"Which one? ...Pfft, it's all black."

"Of all things, space... What about yours?"

"It's a live scene!"

"Seriously!? From the beginning of the movie!? ...What is that?"

"I told you, it's a live scene."

"It's just a background character in the audience!"

"A live scene is a live scene! This competition, I win!"

"At least mine is more amusing."

"Can I tease you about this for the rest of your life?"

"I wouldn't like that either..."

"Then it's my win," Yuzuhana didn't concede.

She's really competitive. But that's why games against her are so exciting. I never let her win easily; we kept challenging each other for rematches, and games with Yuzuhana, who kept improving, were fun enough to make me forget about time.

"Fine, you win."

"Wow, you're surprisingly admitting defeat. ...Are you up to something?"

"No, I'm just being mature about it. Enjoy laughing at the old man in the background."

"You're really good at adding unnecessary comments."

With that, Yuzuhana stood up, and I also got up.

Back when we were close, we would talk about our impressions until the sun went down, but now, we're just acquaintances. We exchanged brief goodbyes, "See ya," and went our separate ways...

"I knew you'd come."

"I knew you'd be here."

We finished lunch at a nearby burger joint and decided to rewatch Kimiuta from the first season, visiting a rental store where we bumped into each other at the anime section.

She must have just arrived because her basket was empty. It's a pretty big store, so she probably didn't know where to find the anime she was looking for.

"Going for Kimiuta?"

"Of course. I'll binge-watch both seasons over the weekend."

"Your love for Kimiuta is weak. If it was me, I'd watch them all without sleep."

"Your love for Kimiuta is weak. You'd enjoy Kimiuta more if you slept to clear your head."

"Your love is weak. I love Kimiuta so much that watching it blows away any sleepiness."

"But I've got tons of Kimiuta merchandise."

"You're showing off again...!"

"That's because you said my love is weak. If your love was strong, you would have found the Kimiuta DVD by now."

"I just entered the store! I'll find it before you do and prove my love!"

"That's my line!"

We moved at the same time, checking different shelves, and met at the shelf by the wall.

"Found it!" "I found it!"

We found Kimiuta at the same time. There was only one copy left of each volume –!

We reached out simultaneously, but Yuzuhana was closer to the first volume. She snatched it, but I secured the second one.

"Hey! Give it back!"

"That's not yours!"

"Without it, I can't watch episodes three and four! It's an important story where Miine and Tiffany deepen their friendship over two episodes!"

"You give me the first volume! Without it, I can't see the first live performance!"

I knew well enough that she wasn't the type to hand it over easily. So, to advance the negotiation in my favor, we both hurriedly grabbed the DVDs.

"Hey! Don't take volume six! Without it, the first season won't feel complete!"

"You're the one hogging the first volume! Without it, neither the first nor the second season feels like it's started!"

"Then give me all of the first season! In exchange, I'll give you the second season!"

"Show me the first season! I'll give you the second season!"

Although we said these things, we knew the negotiation wouldn't work out. We both wanted to watch all the episodes.

And then, to settle this situation – in a way that we could both agree on, I had long realized the solution. I knew it, but it was hard to bring up.

Yuzuhana seemed to have realized it too; she had a look like she wanted to say something. But perhaps she was hesitant to put it into words, she didn't speak for a while.

"I have a proposal." "I have a proposal."

In the end, we both spoke up at the same time.

"...Shall we watch it together, right?"

"Yeah. That's the only way. The question is where to watch it..."

"It's settled, at my place."

"Why?"

"Because my TV is bigger than the one in your room."

I don't know what Yuzuhana's room is like these days, so naturally, I don't know the size of her TV either.

I agree to watch it at Yuzuhana's place because I want to see it on a big screen, but...

"Is it okay to let me into your room?"

"It's fine. In return, you'll pay for the snacks."

We would split the rental cost, and I'd pay for the snacks for when we get hungry.

I'd like to avoid extra expenses, but... a large screen is tempting, and if I brought Yuzuhana to my family, they'd tease me, so I decided to go along with the proposal.

Yuzuhana's house is an apartment with an auto-lock.

The rent is apparently equivalent to two years of my New Year's money. It's a bit high for a child living alone, but for a woman living by herself, this level of security is better – you can almost see the parental concern in choosing such a place.

Yuzuhana comes from a super rural area. There were no high schools to choose from, so she moved here after middle school graduation. There was quite a bit of conflict at the time, but in the end, her father supported her living expenses, so I think he's a good person.

We took the elevator to the fifth floor, walked down a beautiful corridor to a corner unit. Entering the living room, there was a Nyantaro plush on a sofa that was large for one person, in a position where it would be hugged while watching TV.

Seeing that my old gift was still cherished by my "ex-wife" gave me a strange feeling. If it were the old me, I'd feel it was creepy, but... my relationship with Yuzuhana had recovered enough to visit her home. I felt a bit embarrassed, but I wasn't annoyed that my gift was treasured.

Yuzuhana moved Nyantaro to the carpet and told me to wait while she went to get glasses.

I placed the convenience store bag on the table and sat cross-legged on the floor. Even though there was carpet, sitting for a long time would hurt my butt. I wished she'd brought cushions too.

"Why are you sitting on the floor?"

"Should I stand and watch?"

"Of course not. There's a sofa right here."

"This sofa is for one person, though."

"We can both sit on it."

Well, since both Yuzuhana and I are on the skinny side, we could probably sit together, but...

"Are you okay with me sitting next to you?"

"If you sit on the floor, you'll be in my line of sight, flickering. We're here to watch Kimiuta, and if I see your head, it'll bring me back to reality."

It seems she weighed sitting next to me against watching Kimiuta.

Choosing to sit next to her ex-husband... Her love for Kimiuta is truly something else.

For me, sitting on the floor was tough, so I decided to take a seat on the sofa.

When I sat down, Yuzuhana set up the DVD and then took her seat.

Maybe because of the shared umbrella incident the other day, I didn't feel uncomfortable. Of course, I wasn't exactly relaxed, but watching Kimiuta would soon make that fade away.

I took out the juice and snacks from the convenience store bag.

"Speaking of which, all you chose are snacks for drinking."

"I picked them out of habit. You like them too, right? Persimmon chips and beef jerky."

"They're my favorites, but with this lineup, I feel like drinking beer."

"I'm looking forward to becoming an adult. Well, you should probably lay off the alcohol, though. You get really bad when you drink."

"I'm not that bad."

"You are. Don't you remember when we went out to celebrate finishing our thesis?"

"...I don't remember anything from the third bar."

"Right. You were so drunk you started hitting on people."

"I... was hitting on people?"

"You were hitting on me until you passed out! Saying things like, 'Hey Yuzuhana, there's a stunning beauty here!' or 'You're totally my type!' or 'Marriage is inevitable!'"

"That wasn't hitting on, that was just me being affectionate!"

"It was embarrassing being flirted with loudly!"

"If we're talking about that, you did something similar! At the cherry blossom viewing in our fourth year of university!"

"...I don't remember that."

"I bet! That was a real mess! You were so drunk, saying, 'I won't move until Kohei kisses me,' or 'Look at me, not the cherry blossoms!' or 'I'm done with job hunting! I want to be permanently employed by Kohei!'"

"I wouldn't say something like that! Don't make things up!"

"I'm not making it up! How many times do you think we kissed?"

"How many times was it?"

"More than fifty!"

"That explains why my lips were so sore the next day! It was because of you!"

"Technically, it was because of you! Anyway, when are we going to watch the anime?"

"It's your fault for talking about wanting beer! We'll watch it even without you saying so!"

Yuzuhana operated the remote, and our Kimiuta viewing began.

Right after our bickering, it was hard to focus at first, but gradually, we got absorbed into the world of Kimiuta. After the first live, the friendship episodes ended, followed by the serious episodes, the god-tier episode concluded, and we moved into the daily life episodes.

It was about time for dinner. Since it was a good stopping point, I thought about calling it a day and leaving, but then--

Thud.

Yuzuhana leaned against my shoulder, breathing softly in her sleep.

Hey, what happened to your love for Kimiuta? Wasn't watching it supposed to blow away your sleepiness?

She really does have moments like this. Even during our late-night driving date, she invited herself but fell asleep halfway through. ...Since it means she feels safe enough to sleep next to me, I didn't feel annoyed.

If it were the me from a few days ago, I would have shouted, "Don't mess around, wake up!" But seeing her sleeping so peacefully, that anger didn't well up inside me.

I switched to a news program and turned down the volume.

As time passed slowly, sleepiness started to creep up on me...

"...Sorry, Kohei... sorry..."

Her voice, almost fading away, woke me up from my drowsiness.

Was she dreaming about our fights as a couple? Yuzuhana looked very pained as she apologized.

Only Yuzuhana knows what that apology was for.

It could be an apology for eating the pudding I had in the fridge without asking, or for overwriting my game save data. Or perhaps, it was an apology for our marital disputes.

If that's the case, I have something I want to say too.

"...It's okay now. I'm sorry too."

I'm not saying that all the reasons for our divorce were my fault.

But I'm not about to pin all the blame on Yuzuhana either.

I don't have an answer for every reason she got irritated with me, but as she said, I might have been unknowingly flaunting my "otaku" seniority. Since I had more experience as an otaku, I might have been showing off my knowledge without realizing it was boasting.

I've probably said things that didn't need to be said, which irritated her, not just once or twice.

Yuzuhana is the same way. She has a habit of showing off too, and she often adds unnecessary comments.

The reasons for our divorce lie with both of us.

We were both at fault.

If Yuzuhana apologizes, I'll apologize too. I want to let the past wash away. I want to wash it away and build our relationship from scratch again.

This time, not as a married couple or lovers, but as friends.

Our marriage ended in failure, but the fact that we were the best of friends – that we had a relationship where we felt at ease together – is an undeniable truth.

 

◆

 

When I woke up from my dream, it was dark outside the window.

Kohei, who had been blankly watching a commercial, looked at me.

"Finally awake, huh?"

"...What time is it?"

"It's almost 10 PM."

"I slept that long? You should've woken me up..."

"I couldn't bring myself to wake you. You were sleeping so soundly."

Kohei does this sometimes. When he took me on a late-night drive date, he turned off the radio so as not to wake me up after I fell asleep.

He could have yelled, "You're the one who invited me, right?" but instead, he showed me kindness and consideration.

When we were on bad terms, I thought he was a man who only cared about himself, but Kohei has his good qualities too.

"How far did we get with Kimiuta?"

"Up to episode eight of the first season."

"You kept watching TV all this time after I fell asleep?"

"We promised to watch it together, right? But I couldn't exactly wake you up either."

"Then you should've just left me here and gone home."

"I don't have a key. I can't leave the door unlocked and go, right?"

"It's fine. It's an auto-lock apartment."

"Even so, that doesn't mean it's absolutely safe. An outsider could sneak in with a resident. You should have a bit more caution."

It sounds condescending, but I didn't feel angry. His concern came through.

The fact that he worries about me like this means our relationship has improved to that extent.

That doesn't mean I want to go back to how things were – to being lovers again.

But...

"...When are you coming over next?"

"My Kimiuta craving has been satisfied, so you can watch the rest on your own."

"You don't want to watch it?"

"It's not that I don't want to watch it, but..."

Kohei hesitated.

I know what he wants to say. Coming to the apartment to watch anime together – that's not something you can call just acquaintances anymore. That kind of relationship is what you call friends.

Lately, we haven't had any real fights.

We argue sometimes, but it's not like the end of our marriage.

If we can be together without feeling annoyed, we can say the conditions for being friends are met.

But we got divorced.

It might not be uncommon for couples to go from lovers to friends, but it's rare for spouses to become friends. Divorce isn't something light.

"...Aren't you uncomfortable with me being here?"

There's the awkwardness of divorce, and above all, to avoid repeating the same mistakes, we have to be cautious.

So Kohei asked, probing.

"It's not that I'm not uncomfortable. You still make me irritated sometimes, and I can feel on edge."

"Same here."

"I figured. But... unlike at the end of our marriage, it's within the realm of tolerance now. Even friends around here would feel this level of emotion. So..."

I'm not sure if what I say next is right or not.

Maybe I'll regret it later.

But the time I've spent with Kohei recently has been enjoyable enough for me to want to take this step with courage.

So...

"I'll become your friend."

So I took that step.

Kohei didn't seem all that surprised, as if he knew I'd say that.

"...Do you really want to be on good terms with me?"

"I wouldn't lie about something like this. ...Do you not want to?"

"...I don't dislike it. After watching Kimiuta, I thought about staying up all night talking like we used to. ...But we're ex-spouses, you know? Do you think we can be friends?"

"That... we won't know until we try being friends. One thing I can say is that our relationship got messed up because of marriage. Before that, we had a perfect relationship, didn't we?"

"Well, yeah... it wouldn't be an overstatement to say that was the most enjoyable time of my life..."

"Right? Kohei was... the best friend for me. But you weren't the best husband. Neither was I the best wife for you."

Even as I said it, I didn't want to admit it readily.

Because our married life wasn't all bad memories.

We had plenty of fun and happy memories.

But because it ended on the worst note, I can't say marriage was a good thing.

Anyway.

It's a fact that Kohei and I were the best of friends.

The problem is...

"The problem is that you might fall for me again."

"...Huh?"

"No, it's that you might fall for me again, right?"

"No way, you were the one who fell for me first."

"You're the one who confessed and proposed, weren't you!"

"You said 'yes' instantly! Besides, even if I was the one to confess, we don't know who fell in love first."

"So what? Are you saying you don't even want to be friends with me?"

"I'm not saying that! If you swear you won't fall for me, I'll be your friend!"

"You too! If you swear you won't fall for me, I'll be your friend!"

Despite the sparks flying, we became friends again.

They say male-female friendships don't work, but since we've experienced failure once, we can stand our ground as friends.

"Then, see you tomorrow."

"Yes. See you tomorrow."

With the promise to continue watching Kimiuta tomorrow, we parted ways.