“Huh? But—”
She silenced me with a shake of the head. “I got all jammed up thinking about other people before. But I’m going all in now. All in on me. Not betting on anyone else but myself, ’cause I’m gonna win, and I’m gonna keep on winning. And no one’s gonna give me crap or call me selfish, because they’re not the ones winning. If they do, well, I’ll just beat them too.” Her smile never faltered. Never wavered as she spoke. “Truth is, I don’t need clichés. Don’t want ’em.”
This smile wasn’t a mask. It wasn’t that of the resigned. From the depths of her endless, brown eyes poured resolve, all hints of uncertainty purged from their abyss.
“Gunning for nationals then, huh?”
“Nationals?” She scoffed. “Please.”
“No?”
“The nationals are coming to me, Nukkun. They’re mine.”
Hers? What, was she going for first in every event or something? That was insane. Yeah, right.
She pointed at me. Straight at me. “Better not blink, or you just might miss it.”
Literature Club Activity Report, Special Issue: Yanami Anna—I Choose You
I’m standing in front of the usual convenience store. But I don’t go inside. I can’t. All the signs are down, and there are sheets over where the windows were.
“Hey, A-ko-san. Place go out of business?” XX-kun asks like the idiot he is. He needs everything explained to him.
I saw it. Last night, they were carrying in new shelves. They’re not out of business. Just renovating. When they come back, they’ll be better than ever. While I’m handling him, I take out three different kinds of fried chicken from my bag—much to his surprise. I don’t expect him to understand.
They took down the big sign by the road too, so there’s a chance the store reopens as an entirely different chain. So I made sure to get up bright and early. I did the rounds and went to three different ones, taking samples of their boneless chicken from each. I’m gonna use them to try and predict what it’s going to be.
First up. My first bite is a blast of spice, but not so powerful that it kills the taste. The aromas exit through my nose, which are then replaced by meaty, umami flavors. I have my answer.
But this is for science, and good science is fair, so I give the second chicken a shot. My first impression: crisp. But it’s immediately tempered by the juicy flesh within. This is it. Final answer.
But the third’s getting cold. I must act fast. This one has a crisp look to it too, but the breading is deceptively smooth, and the unique textures mingle like a waltz in my mouth. Every bite is something new. I could chew for hours and never get bored. This is it. This is it.
Unfortunately, they can’t all be it. This demands a second trial.
XX-kun stares at me. Is he hungry? What a glutton. But he does give me food a lot, so I decide to be nice just this once. I tell him he can have a bite.
He shakes his head. “Can’t eat after people. I’ll pass.”
You try to be a good person. Can you believe this guy?
I press all of my chicken together and bite into all three at once. Because I’m angry now. This must be how kings eat.
XX-kun doesn’t stop staring. “Where are you gonna eat breakfast now?”
At home, obviously. I only started coming here because I wanted to walk to school with ***-kun, but he’s dating J-ko-chan now, so what’s the point anymore? But XX-kun’s got this sad puppy dog look on his face that makes me want to mess with him.
I stuff the rest of the chicken into my mouth. It’s more fun to leave him hanging. All will be made clear once they reopen.