Chapter 1 - Nakamura Wataru: I Want to Support My Childhood Friends (1)
■■■ Episode 1: Childhood Friend Becomes a Voice Actress and VTuber ■■■
The second-year high school opening ceremony is special. It's the day when we find out which classmates we'll spend this precious year with—a year where we're already accustomed to school and still have plenty of time until exams.
Class 2-C, in particular, is buzzing with excitement among the boys.
"Haruka-chan and Kagekawa-san are in the same class? Seriously?"
"Are they the top two in the school's facial attractiveness ranking?"
The classroom has been like this since morning.
"Alright, everyone, see you tomorrow! Let's get along!"
With bright eyes, Hyuuga Haruka waves to everyone. Her naturally brownish wavy long hair sways as she leaves the classroom, skipping homeroom after the opening ceremony.
"Wait, Hyuuga-san. We've created a class messaging group. Would you like to join? No pressure, though..."
A studious-looking girl, who seems like she might become the class representative, hesitantly approaches Haruka.
"Of course! I might not be able to post much, but I want to get along with everyone. Nice to meet you!"
"Ah! Can I exchange contact info too?" "Unfair! Me too!"
Girls flock around the class representative, who acts like a committee chairperson, with their smartphones.
What's impressive about Haruka is that she's popular not only among the boys but also with the girls.
“Wait a moment! You can do your personal business through the group later. Hyuuga-san will be working, so don’t disturb her.”
“Sorry everyone. After I finish work, I’ll send friend requests to everyone in the group, so please don’t reject them, okay?”
Haruka left with a smile on her face, and everyone looked at her with dazzling eyes.
"Wow, Haruka-chan, being an idol voice actress must be busy."
Watching Haruka's back with admiration, Sato, who has been in the same class for a year, leans on my shoulder. Despite having a reasonably handsome face, his occasional odd behavior means he's unfortunately only popular with girls from other grades who don't know his personality well.
We're friends, but our relationship is subtle—mostly limited to school.
"It's great that your childhood friend is an idol voice actress. Will you introduce her this year?"
"Sato, you're always fixated on that."
"Well, it's not like I'll ever have any contact with voice actors in my future."
"I don't know about your future, but I've decided to decline those kinds of requests. You'll have to work hard on your own."
Haruka is already bombarded with attention from unfamiliar boys. Why should I add to her burden?
"Hey, Wataru, we're in the same class this year."
Suddenly joining our conversation is Aoi Kagekawa. With her glossy, long black hair and tall figure, she's a striking beauty. She's also my other childhood friend.
"Really? Nakamura knows Kagekawa-san too?"
"Yeah."
"Kagekawa-san, I'm Sato. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to...meet you..."
Unlike her response to me, Aoi remains expressionless.
"I do game streaming on MeTube. Recently, I hit a thousand subscribers."
"Is that so..."
Sato's tendency to suddenly boast about topics that sound like bragging is one of his unfortunate traits. He doesn't seem to notice that Aoi is uncomfortable.
Her subtle reaction has another reason, though.
"So, how about exchanging contact info?"
What's with the "so"?
"Um...I'm not really comfortable with that."
"Come on! Aoi looks troubled!"
A lively girl with a short haircut defends Aoi. If Haruka and Aoi weren't here, she'd easily be considered the cutest girl in the class.
"You're Nakamura-kun, right? I've heard a lot about you from Aoi. I'm Iezuka Hitomi. Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you. What do you mean by 'a lot'?"
What's Aoi been telling her?
"Hehe, that's a girl's secret."
I doubt she's gossiping about me, but I'm still uneasy.
"Maybe I should ask Nakamura-kun, who's always in the top ten academically, to tutor me."
"Wait a minute, Hitomi. I’ve never asked Wataru to teach me before.”
Why is she giving me that slightly dark look?
I know Aoi isn't particularly good at studying, but I've never made fun of her or bragged about it.
"Huh? Really? It's a shame, even though you're childhood friends!"
"Then how about the four of us have a study group?"
Iezuka glances at Aoi after Sato's suggestion.
Aoi shakes her head slightly.
"That settles it."
"Hey, Nakamura, say something too."
"I don't want to either."
"Nakamura..."
Sato's shoulders slump.
The fact that he easily gets carried away and yet we still hang out together might be why I can’t really dislike him.
After Aoi and Iezuka returned to their seats, Sato, with his arms crossed, nodded thoughtfully.
“What’s wrong?”
“Kagekawa-san smiles like that when she’s in front of you.”
“Is it worth noting?”
“I always thought of her as a ‘cool beauty.’”
“Cool, huh...”
I know Aoi tends to be labeled that way based on her appearance. But if you really know her, that word would never come to mind.