The whistle marking the end of the morning PE class seemed to press the pause button for the group of boys and girls shedding sweat on the Sports Field.
The clamor of free time came from a distance, but this liveliness had nothing to do with Imaizumi Keita, because today was his day for duty.
He kept his head down and carried the used Hurdles one by one, walking toward the Sports Equipment Warehouse next to the school building.
As soon as the door opened, a smell of rust mixed with old rubber hit his nose.
The light inside the warehouse was quite dim, relying only on the light leaking through the crack in the door and the small, dust-covered window on the wall to barely illuminate the space.
Various sports equipment were piled on the shelves, casting patches of dark shadows.
Imaizumi Keita leaned the last hurdle against the wall and put several basketballs and Markers scattered on the ground back into place one by one.
After completing all the work, he clapped the dust off his hands and prepared to turn and leave.
Just as he turned around, a dull "clatter" suddenly came from behind him, followed by a "click," like the sound of an old door lock automatically falling into place.
His vision suddenly went dark.
Imaizumi Keita's movements paused for a moment, and he turned around in confusion to look at the door.
A figure was standing with her back to him, her hands still in a pushing position, having completely shut the heavy iron door.
In the dim light, that short brown hair stuck to her cheeks from sweat, along with the sports T-shirt and shorts that wrapped around her tight and energetic body curves, clearly indicated that this girl was Shioyaki Lemon.
She also didn't seem to expect that closing the door would make such a loud noise; her whole body froze there, unsure for a moment whether she should turn around or continue pretending she was just passing by.
"..."
Imaizumi Keita didn't speak, just quietly watched Lemon, waiting to see what she would do next.
Finally, Shioyaki Lemon seemed to have made some kind of decision, and her body turned around bit by bit in an extremely slow and stiff manner.
Her face wore a complex expression mixed with nervousness, shyness, and a sense of desperation; her eyes were a bit evasive, and a slightly awkward smile hung on her face.
"Th-that... Imaizumi..."
She opened her mouth, reached out to brush away the strands of hair stuck to her cheek, and said softly, "I... I have something I want to say to you..."
"Okay, what is it?"
"It's... it's about before, I saw... you and... Kouki, talking in the classroom..."
She stammered, finally getting the start of her reason for coming out.
"Oh, that matter."
Imaizumi Keita nodded, a look of understanding appearing on his face, "He wanted to borrow a book from the Literature Club, I was just helping him ask."
"Th-then... did Kouki... take the book?"
A flicker of expectant light reignited in Shioyaki Lemon's eyes.
"No, not yet. I only just got the President's permission and haven't had time to tell Ayano about it yet."
After Imaizumi finished, he saw a look of surprise and joy immediately appear on Shioyaki Lemon's face, and she said without thinking: "Then if it's convenient... could I help you give the book to him?"
Looking at Shioyaki Lemon's eager and cute appearance, the slight unpleasantness Imaizumi Keita felt from being disturbed quietly dissipated.
Imaizumi Keita immediately understood her intention for coming to find him.
It was nothing more than wanting to use the reason of "returning the book" to create an opportunity for herself to be alone and communicate with Ayano Mitsuki.
It really was... a strategy so simple and easy to understand that it was almost cute.
Looking at Shioyaki Lemon's shy and nervous face, he couldn't help but want to tease her a bit.
"So, Shioyaki, do you want to use borrowing a book to get in contact with Ayano? If that's the case, maybe I can give you a better suggestion."
"Eek—!"
Shioyaki Lemon let out a short cry of alarm and took a step back. "N-no! I didn't mean that, Kouki and I are just plain friends."
After saying that, she seemed to realize her own airheaded nature; since the Imaizumi in front of her had good grades like Kouki, he was likely much smarter than her, so she hesitantly asked for Imaizumi's suggestion.
"Kin-chan, what is that better suggestion you mentioned? Can I hear it?"
Imaizumi nodded: "If you want to spend as much time as possible with Ayano, Shioyaki, you could actually pretend to visit the Literature Club when Ayano comes to borrow the book. That way, the two of you can spend more time together in the club."
"Eeeehhh!"
Shioyaki Lemon let out a cry of amazement, and with an excited look, she rushed over, grabbed Imaizumi's hand, and jumped a couple of times. "Kin-chan, you're too smart!"
After saying that, Shioyaki Lemon felt she was perhaps a bit too excited, so she let go of Imaizumi's hand and tried to cover for herself: "Kin-chan, don't get the wrong idea! Kouki and I are still just friends for now..."
"When you give suggestions, please be a bit more subtle and consider a girl's modesty more."
Modesty?
Imaizumi Keita's gaze swept over her athletic outfit, which outlined her tight lines with sweat, and he thought back to her valiant appearance on the track.
No matter which way you looked at it, this tomboyish athletic girl in front of him didn't seem to have much to do with the word "modesty."
Of course, he didn't voice that kind of retort, which would only make things more troublesome.
He just looked at Shioyaki Lemon's angry yet cute appearance and felt his mood had inexplicably improved a bit.
After all, he was only pushing a loser to face their inevitable failure; he wouldn't do something as enviable as playing matchmaker for a couple.
"I'll be more subtle next time."
Imaizumi Keita responded perfunctorily to Shioyaki Lemon.
"Then, then... I'll leave this matter to Kin-chan..."
"Yeah, I'll pass the word along for you."
Imaizumi Keita nodded, fully accepting the task.
To him, it was just a small favor.
"Great! Thank you, Kin-chan!"
Shioyaki Lemon relaxed completely, that bright smile returning to her face.
"Well, if there's nothing else, I'm heading back to the classroom first."
As Imaizumi Keita spoke, he stepped past Shioyaki Lemon and stood at the warehouse door.
"Okay! Bye-bye!"
Shioyaki Lemon also turned around and waved goodbye.
Imaizumi Keita placed his hand on the doorknob, turned it downward, and pushed hard.
The door didn't budge an inch.
He tried again, increasing the force.
It remained completely motionless.
The doorknob turned normally, but the lock seemed stuck from the outside, or... it was locked.
He frowned and shook the iron door forcefully; the door panel made a dull thudding sound, but it still wouldn't open.
"What's wrong?"
Sensing something was wrong behind him, Shioyaki Lemon asked curiously.
Imaizumi Keita let go, turned around, and looked at Shioyaki Lemon with a serious expression, stating the facts in a heavy tone.
"It seems we're... locked inside."
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