listen, actually, It's My First Time. 87 Days Until My First Time With a Loose-Ish, Innocent Girlfriend V1 - Ch 6.5

 Chapter 6.5 : Kagaya Saki's View on Love

[Kagaya Saki's June 29th]

 

Kagaya Saki sees herself as having a personality that is the complete opposite of her best friend, Nakamura Hiyori.

Hiyori is friendly and warm, someone who can brighten up the atmosphere just by being there. In contrast, Saki tends to give off a cold impression and isn't the type to actively engage with others.

Because of this, at the beginning of their first year, Saki often found herself isolated in class due to her lack of words and unwillingness to socialize. Despite that, Hiyori casually approached her, found Saki's natural self endearing, and quickly closed the distance between them. Thanks to Hiyori, Saki was able to expand her circle of friends to include Aihana Ran and others, making her school life enjoyable.

That's why, when Hiyori's long-standing crush on Hayato finally blossomed into a relationship, Saki was genuinely happy. Although she never voiced it aloud, she always wished for Hiyori's happiness.

"It's so hot! Oh, hey, don't you think holding hands in this weather makes your hands super sweaty? How do you even take care of that? Do guys care about sweaty hands?"

After third-period PE, Hiyori returned to the classroom, cooling herself off with a handheld fan while asking Saki.

"Are you bothered by Kaburagi-kun's sweat? You're fine with it, right? Then he probably doesn't care much either, so I think you're good."

Saki enjoyed listening to her best friend's love stories. When Hiyori talked about love, she was pure, innocent, and incredibly cute. …Of course, there were plenty of times Saki found herself wanting to make snarky comments or sigh in exasperation.

Seeing Hiyori nod in agreement with a simple "I see," Saki felt reassured that her friend was experiencing a lovely romance. She had spoken with Hayato a few times; despite his reputation as a playboy, he seemed kind and genuinely cared for Hiyori.

People say that growth comes through pain, but Saki didn't want to see her dear friend hurt if she could help it.

"Next up is modern society... ugh, this is going to be rough. I'm so sleepy, but I can't afford to doze off with exams coming up."

"Did I tell you about the study session you skipped the other day? Hayato's friend, Kengo-kun, ranked third in our grade for modern society. He looks kind of scary, but he's amazing, right?"

"Study sessions always end up being a mess. I want to focus and study properly. Did Kengo-kun actually help you guys with studying?"

"...No, we just ended up chatting the whole time."

"Exactly what I expected. Hayato’s group seems like they’re all about having fun, so I’m glad I didn’t go. …Were Ran and Aika okay? Did Mori hit on them or anything?"

"Everyone was actually really nice when we talked! Oh, and Mori-kun wasn't there. He had something else to do. …Wait, Saki, are you interested in Mori-kun!?"

"…Like I told you before, absolutely, definitely not."

Even if I end up getting hurt, I want to follow my heart when it comes to love.

That’s Saki’s policy, but she doesn’t want to jump into something when the red flags are obvious from the start.

…Still, she had to admit that she had reevaluated him a bit. He was more responsible than she initially thought—he was good with babies, offered help to struggling mothers, and was surprisingly observant of his surroundings.

"Eh, but you always say you never know what’ll happen when it comes to love," Hiyori teased.

"Yeah, I do say that… but I don’t want to fall for him. Besides, I only interact with him when you and Kaburagi-kun are around, so it’s not like we’ll get any closer than this. …So give up on that double date idea, okay?"

Saki laughed at Hiyori’s easily readable disappointment, but before they could continue, the bell signaling the start of fourth period rang.

Whether it was due to sleepiness or the lingering thoughts from their earlier love talk, Saki found it hard to focus on the lesson despite the upcoming exams. She let out a quiet sigh and gazed absently out the window.

She wished she could fall for someone sincere, but just because someone is sincere doesn’t mean she’d fall for them. Her past boyfriends had mostly been after her body, and cheating was something she had gotten used to.

Whenever she was in a relationship, she became so engrossed that she failed to see their true nature—a frustrating realization. She often thought she wasn’t in a position to give Hiyori love advice, but if she could serve as a cautionary tale, maybe there was some value in that.

── I hope the next person I fall for will truly cherish me.

When will Saki's prince charming finally appear?

Her story, too, continues to unfold.