Now that the Battle Royale had come to an end, the students all worked together to tidy everything up. As Taichi folded up the gym mats lying out on the athletic field, he reveled in the post-event high. The scarlet sunset signaled the end of another hectic day.
“Yaegashi, people are talking about having a wrap party with the rest of our class. Want to come?” Katori asked.
“Sure, I’ll go. You know, you really don’t have to help us clean. You’re the VIP here.”
“Why does everyone keep saying that?” Katori laughed wryly. “Anyway, be sure to invite Inaba, will you? Oh, and Fujishima, too.”
“Wait a minute... You’re just scared to ask her yourself because she’s depressed!”
“Yes, well, I’m the VIP, remember?” he grinned, deftly using Taichi’s own words against him. “Anyway, see you later.”
And with that, he walked off. Taichi looked around.
There was a lone figure leaning against the fence, gazing out at the sunset. It was Fujishima Maiko, the main organizer and number one proponent of this event.
“It seems Lady Luck simply wasn’t on my side... Will I forever be a wallflower...?” she sighed.
“Don’t you think that’s a little melodramatic?” Taichi retorted before he could stop himself.
“Well, well. If it isn’t the infamous Yaegashi-kun. Where’s your precious Himeko-nyan?”
“Wow. And here I was, actually worried about you for a minute!”
“Relax, I’m just messing with you. While I am a little depressed, I understand that life simply isn’t that easy. I really did want to win, though.”
“Yeah, you seemed to have your heart set on it.”
She even went so far as to use a clever strategy to land herself in the finale battle.
“I mean, anyone would want to take first place at some point during high school... or even just once, period! Obviously we’re all special in our own ways, but... sometimes you find yourself wanting real proof.”
“I get that, but... you know there’s plenty of people who see you as Yamaboshi’s number one, right?”
“I just wanted the title. I thought maybe... I’d find my soulmate or something.”
Knowing her, she’d be back to her usual self come Monday morning, but in her current state, there was no way she’d have fun tonight at the wrap party.
“Hey, Fujishima-saaaan! Let’s invite all the other classes to the party!” Nagase, the other VIP, called cheerfully. And she wasn’t alone.
“Join us, Fujishima-san! We’ll all have a blast!” said Nakayama.
“And we can’t have a party without our main organizer!” Setouchi added.
“I mean, like, it’s all thanks to you that we had so much fun today!” Kiriyama gushed.
“Fun?! Did you forget the part where you kicked me in the nads?!” cried Aoki.
“Pull yourself together, Fujishima. You’re killing the mood,” Himeko goaded.
“I flagged down everyone who was nearby,” Katori explained, bringing up the rear. It was a considerate gesture, and Taichi could easily understand how he had gained so much voter support.
But though they tried to cheer her up, she wasn’t having any of it.
“I’m sorry... I appreciate you all reaching out to me, but this is something I simply have to get over. Don’t worry — I promise I’ll be back to normal next week.”
That said, her absence would be conspicuous, and it would almost certainly make the whole party awkward. After all, she had thrown together a massive event that had left special memories in the hearts of all those who participated. Surely some of the seeds it had planted would go on to take further root. There was only one winner, and half of the participants never got to win a single battle, but even then, it was still a uniquely fun time.
But events — like all other good things — had to come to an end, whether they wanted it to or not. Some people were bound to have regrets; hell, a majority of the participants probably wished they could have stayed in the tournament for just one more battle. But eventually those feelings would pass, and then the event would truly be over. No one could fight the flow of time.
Just then, a shadowy figure appeared from a different direction. It was Watase Shingo, Fujishima’s partner. Like Fujishima, he had really hoped to win — because he was planning to confess his feelings for her if he did. But their victory never came to pass, and so their dreams scattered in the wind like flower petals.
“F-F-Fujishima-san!” Watase shouted. Everyone in the vicinity turned to look at him.
“Hmm? Watase-kun?” Lethargically, Fujishima raised her head and looked at him.
“Nngh...!”
Watase seemed to be getting cold feet. But he didn’t back down.
“There’s something I wanted to say to you... I was planning to wait until after we won, but that didn’t work out. But that doesn’t mean our whole lives are over!”
The event had ended, but their love story could still begin... No, that’s silly. Taichi shook the thoughts from his mind. Here, in front of all these people, while Fujishima’s mood was at an all-time low? Surely there was no way even a hopeless buffoon like Watase would think now was a smart time to confess.
“Watase, I think maybe you should save it for—”
“Fujishima-san, I’m crazy about you! Please be my girlfriend!”
He went there. The words couldn’t be unsaid. There was no going back — only forward, no matter what form her answer took.
Around them, everything went quiet. No one said a word.
“......What?”
Fujishima blinked.
“Huh? Wh-What?”
She couldn’t seem to process it.
“Wait, what are you — are you joking? Oh my god, are you serious? Oh my god?”
Blushing furiously, she stammered so hard, her glasses went crooked.
“I... I mean, you do compliment me an awful lot, and — and you put a lot of faith in me during the whole tournament, so I could tell you respected me as a person—”
“After this event, I’ve... I’ve fallen in love with you all over again!”
“R-Really? I... I’ve never received such a passionate confession in all my life... I don’t know what to do!”
Her embarrassment was rather charming in a sweet, innocent sort of way...
“Who are you and what happened to Fujishima?” Taichi retorted under his breath.
“Watase-kun, um... Do... Do you really f-feel that... strongly? About me?”
“Yeah. Like I said, I’m crazy about you.”
“Crazy about me, he says... Crazy about me... Eeeeheehee...!” Fujishima clapped her hands to her cheeks and swayed from side to side. This from the same person who once called herself the “Goddess of Love.”
After a moment of waffling, she took a deep breath.
“...Okay. I’ll gladly be your girlfriend, if you’ll have me,” she nodded casually, a gleeful grin on her face.
Clearly Watase wasn’t expecting her to actually say yes, because he froze like a statue.
“O-Okay...?” he asked in a tiny voice, almost like he was worried it was a prank. “So we’re... dating now?”
Bit by bit, it slowly started to sink in.
“I... I GOT FUJISHIMA-SAN TO GO OUT WITH MEEEEEE!”
He thrust his fists into the air in a victory pose. Then Fujishima ran over to him, reached up, and grabbed his hand.
“Let’s get going.”
“Yeah. Together, you and me.”
“Now and always!”
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!
“Uh, Fujishima? Should... Should we be congratulating you? Are you done being sad?” Taichi asked, mildly confused. It was just so... sudden.
“Now that I think about it, about three months ago... February, I think it was... there was a brief moment when I wasn’t sure what path to take. Then you came along and encouraged me to be true to myself. Perhaps this was fated to happen right from that very moment,” Fujishima reminisced wistfully. “Ever since then, I’ve charged full speed ahead — a mad dash down my destined path — and I haven’t stopped once.”
Evidently there was more to this love story than Taichi knew.
“Everyone, allow me to say one last thing,” Fujishima declared, looking at each of the others with a smile so composed, you’d never think she was downright depressed just a few minutes ago. She had adapted herself to this situation absurdly fast. “Happiness comes in many forms, and you never know where it might be hiding.”
Silence.
“You win some, you lose some. You can’t always be number one. So you can’t make value judgments based on that alone.”
More silence.
“So I hope you all discover what true happiness means to you.”
“You’re one to talk!” everyone shouted back in perfect sync.
In the end, it was Fujishima Maiko who started this story, Fujishima Maiko who dragged it out, and Fujishima Maiko who ended it on the most ridiculous note possible. All of this pandemonium, caused by a single girl chasing her dreams.
But spring wasn’t quite over. And though they were now in their final year of high school, it was shaping up to be the most thrilling year yet...