Chapter 54 - The Sea and the Villain (4)
While holding Mashiro's hand, I stood in front of the beach house, waiting for Mai to return.
Holding hands like this made us look like a real couple, and just as Mashiro had predicted, no sketchy guys approached us with any shady intentions. Plus, with the beach towel covering us, I no longer felt the sharp gazes from the men that had been on us just moments ago.
Still, being so close in front of all these people was incredibly embarrassing, and just holding Mashiro's hand made my heart race uncontrollably. Mashiro, who had been acting so calm at first, seemed to have been bluffing because now her face was flushed all the way to her ears, and she was looking down in embarrassment.
Even so, neither of us let go. Instead, we tightened our grip, as if seeking more from each other. It made me wonder if we had a natural talent for becoming one of those overly affectionate couples.
As I was lost in these thoughts, waiting with Mashiro, it wasn’t long before Mai came back carrying a beach umbrella and a leisure sheet.
Out of embarrassment, we quickly pulled our hands behind our backs, acting as if nothing had happened, and greeted her casually.
"Onii-chan, Mashiro-san, sorry to keep you waiting!"
"Welcome back, Mai. Did you get what we asked for? That umbrella looks pretty big."
"I thought it should be big enough since there are three of us! But... both of your faces look really red. Are you two okay?"
"A-Ah, we’re fine. Maybe just a bit of heatstroke."
"Y-Yeah, same here... Haha."
"Oh no, Mashiro-san! Are you alright? Do you need to rest?"
"N-No, I’m fine! Let’s hurry and go find a spot. After all, it’s the beach! I want to have fun as soon as possible."
"Yeah! Let’s all head over then!"
With a little hop in her step, Mai walked ahead, her beach sandals thudding against the sand as she moved.
Mashiro and I exchanged glances, then hoisted the cooler box and bags over our shoulders and followed her.
The beach was packed with people, each enjoying their time in the water in their own way.
As I looked around, trying to figure out where we should set up base, a particular group of people caught my eye.
"Those guys..."
"Hm? What’s wrong, Ryusuke?"
Mashiro looked puzzled as she saw me stop and furrow my brow.
Following my gaze, she, too, turned her attention to the group.
Under the beach umbrella, two beautiful girls in swimsuits were sitting around a boy.
One was a refined, graceful girl with long red hair, and the other was an energetic-looking girl with twin blue ponytails that reached her waist. The boy sandwiched between these two beauties had short black hair and a rather plain appearance.
That trio was none other than the heroines of this story—Hanazaki Yuna and Himeno Karen—and the protagonist, Fusegawa Raito. For some reason, the student council president, Sakuramiya Miyuki, wasn’t around.
Mashiro seemed to recognize them too, her eyes widening in surprise.
"Aren’t those your classmates, Ryusuke? What a coincidence!"
"Yeah, it is. We actually bumped into them at the beach house earlier too."
I kept my eye on Fusegawa Raito and the others. They were huddled together, chatting and laughing happily.
Hanazaki Yuna was holding sunscreen in her hand and speaking to Raito.
"Hey, Raito-kun, could you do me a favor before we go into the sea?"
"Yuna, don’t tell me you want me to put sunscreen on you?"
"That’s right! I mean, only if you don’t mind…"
"But that would mean I’d be touching your body, is that okay?"
"If it’s you, I don’t mind. Actually, I’d prefer it if you, um... covered me everywhere... I-I mean, forget I said that! Please forget it!"
Yuna realized her slip-up and quickly covered her face with both hands, but her ears were beet red, showing that she was both embarrassed and sincere.
However, as a typical dense harem protagonist, Raito didn’t seem to catch on. He simply tilted his head in confusion at Yuna’s flustered state.
Seeing Yuna’s bold confession, Karen, the other heroine, lit up with determination.
"Yuna, you’re so daring. I can’t lose either... Hey, Raito, can you put some on me too? I can’t reach my back properly."
"W-Wait, Karen too? Couldn’t you just help each other out?"
"No way! I think it’ll work better if you do it. Please, Raito!"
"Well, if you insist that much, I guess I have no choice."
Raito smiled wryly as he accepted their bold advances, but it was clear he wasn’t completely against it. Both girls smiled shyly, clearly pleased with his response.
"Please be gentle, Raito-kun."
"Make sure you apply it thickly, so I don’t get sunburned, okay?"
The two beautiful girls lay down on the leisure sheet, reaching back to undo the straps of their bikini tops and exposing their backs.
Raito moved behind them, taking the sunscreen in his hands.
It was a classic rom-com scene, with the protagonist applying sunscreen to the beautiful heroines—truly a textbook example of a harem love-comedy event.
While the surrounding background characters were also captivated by this scene, it felt like the center of the world was now under that beach umbrella, with Raito at the heart of it all, as if showing off to the readers that he was indeed the rightful protagonist.
As I coolly analyzed the situation, Raito suddenly made eye contact with me.
He glanced my way and gave a slight smirk, as if mocking me.
Surrounded by the best heroines, he wore a smug, triumphant expression.
‘Jealous, Shindo Ryusuke? This is something a villain like you could never pull off,’ his intense gaze seemed to say.
He continued applying sunscreen to the girls' backs, grinning as though to flaunt his protagonist privileges.
However, when Raito saw Mashiro pop up beside me, his smirk quickly faded.
Mashiro looked up at me mischievously, poking me with her elbow.
"Your classmates seem pretty close, huh? Hey, Ryusuke, do you want to try putting sunscreen on me like that?"
"Don’t be ridiculous. Don’t tease me like that."
"Hehe, but it’s okay, you know? I wouldn’t mind if it was you, Ryusuke."
"No way. If we did that, I’d pass out from heatstroke, forget about sunburn."
"Hmph, Ryusuke, you’re being way too serious. I wish you’d be a little bolder."
Mashiro puffed her cheeks in a playful pout.
I sighed and reached out to pat her head.
"Being serious is a good thing. Come on, let’s go before Mai leaves us behind."
"Okay, let’s go, Ryusuke."
With that, Mashiro clung to my arm. It was something she did all the time, and while it was still a bit embarrassing, I had gotten used to it.
As I looked over at Raito, he was clearly gritting his teeth in frustration.
Seeing me, the villain, getting along so well with Mashiro, the most beautiful girl, seemed to bother him. His eyes were filled with obvious jealousy.
(Sorry, but I can’t afford to lose either.)
I had made up my mind to enjoy a summer just as perfect as the protagonist’s.
I squeezed Mashiro’s small hand and began walking again, determined to make the most of this time with her.