I Want to Wear the Swimsuit You Buy for Me

“Sw-swimsuit?!”

The redness that had just faded a little from Yanami Anna’s cheeks immediately heated up again.

She subconsciously thought of the swimsuit lying dormant in her wardrobe for almost a year, and answered somewhat uncertainly.

“I—I think I have one…

It’s the set I bought last year when I went to the beach with friends.

I haven’t really worn it much, but it should still fit, right?”

“Bought last year?”

Imaizumi Keita’s eyebrow lifted almost imperceptibly.

“I can’t imagine what it looks like at all.

Do you have a photo?”

“A p-photo?”

Yanami Anna’s heart skipped a beat.

Looking at Imaizumi Keita’s perfectly natural expression, her eyes instantly filled with vigilance.

“W-why do you need to see a photo?!

You’re not thinking of doing something weird, are you?!”

“Something weird?”

Imaizumi Keita wore an innocent look that clearly said what nonsense are you talking about.

“I’m just showing concern about your outfit in advance.

That’s perfectly normal, okay?”

“And besides, I want to see the swimsuit.

It’s not like I’m asking to see your underwear, Yanami.”

He paused, then suddenly changed his tone.

A slightly hurt, disappointed expression appeared on his face as he also put some distance between them.

“Forget it.

Since you think I’m that kind of person, then let’s not look.

It doesn’t really have anything to do with me anyway.”

Seeing his cold, I don’t care either attitude, that stubborn, competitive streak inside her flared up again.

“W-who said I won’t show you!”

She hurriedly took out her phone, flipped through her gallery, and quickly found the photo of herself in the swimsuit.

“H-here!

Look!”

Yanami Anna held the phone screen up in front of him, her face wearing a defiant expression.

Only then did Imaizumi Keita reluctantly turn his head and let his gaze fall on the small screen.

The subject of the photo was, without question, Yanami Anna herself.

She was wearing a yellow-and-white striped bikini, accented with refreshing blue lines.

The edges of the swimsuit were decorated with cute frills, perfectly outlining her lovely figure.

In the photo, she was smiling brightly at the camera, with a hint of shyness mixed in.

Very cute.

And also very… ordinary.

This was simply a completely normal souvenir photo a girl would take while at the beach.

There were no suggestive angles or poses like the ones Imaizumi Keita might have imagined.

He clearly wouldn’t do anything strange with a photo like this.

“……”

Imaizumi Keita fell silent for a moment.

Then, under Yanami Anna’s expectant gaze, he raised his hand and lightly knocked his knuckles against her smooth forehead.

“Ow!

What was that for?!”

“That’s it?”

Imaizumi Keita’s face was filled with speechless annoyance, as if to say are you messing with me.

“I thought it was going to be some incredible photo, the way you were acting so nervous.

And it’s just this kind of completely ordinary swimsuit picture?”

He withdrew his hand and looked at her as though she were making a big deal out of nothing.

“Who wants to see something like this!

Healthy!

Normal!”

“Hah?!

O-ordinary?!”

Yanami Anna covered her forehead, her cheeks flushing red from embarrassment and irritation.

“T-then what kind of photo were you expecting?!

I don’t have any weird, unhealthy photos like that!”

“I-I just wanted to see whether you were interested in swimsuits at all!”

The more she spoke, the less confident she sounded, her voice growing smaller and smaller.

“So…”

In the end, she still couldn’t help asking in a soft, aggrieved voice.

“…is this swimsuit actually cute or not?”

“If I said it wasn’t,” Imaizumi Keita asked back suddenly, looking at her, “would you go buy a new one?”

“Eh?”

Yanami Anna instinctively thought about her nearly empty wallet and shook her head with a troubled expression.

“I…I don’t really have extra money.”

Then her eyes suddenly lit up, and an expectant smile appeared on her face.

She leaned closer to Imaizumi Keita, gently nudging his arm with her elbow, her tone carrying a hint of coyness as her gaze kept drifting toward him.

“But, you know…”

“If Imaizumi-kun were willing to buy one for me, then it wouldn’t be impossible.”

“I refuse.”

Imaizumi Keita answered without a second thought.

Seeing Yanami’s face instantly fall, he sighed helplessly and explained.

“I don’t have much money right now either.

Let’s talk about things like that after I actually start earning some.”

Hearing this answer—which sounded like both an excuse and a promise—Yanami Anna puffed out her cheeks in dissatisfaction.

She turned her body slightly and nudged his arm again with her elbow, her eyes fixed on him with a probing look.

“Hey, Imaizumi-kun.”

Her voice carried a hint of intimacy.

“Were you serious just now, or were you just brushing me off?”

Seeing how serious she looked, Imaizumi Keita asked her in confusion.

“Why are you suddenly taking this so seriously?

Even if I don’t buy one, that swimsuit of yours is already cute enough.

There’s really no need to change it.”

“That won’t do!”

Yanami Anna immediately shot back, sounding a little rushed.

“That’s different!

Because… because I want to be more attractive too!”

As she said that, her voice unconsciously softened.

“You said something before about 8K and 4K…

So wearing a cuter swimsuit and making myself more appealing—isn’t that a perfectly normal thing?”

Looking at her pitifully cute expression, Imaizumi Keita couldn’t help but laugh.

He reached out naturally and gently tucked the strand of hair that had slipped down beside her cheek behind her ear.

“Hey, Yanami.”

His voice was light, carrying a trace of helpless tenderness.

“Whether you’re attractive to me—didn’t you already find that out when we kissed?”

“Eh?”

“Besides, your figure is already great.

That swimsuit suits you really well and highlights your strengths perfectly.”

He paused, looking at her face turning rosy from the straightforward praise, the smile on his lips widening.

“You didn’t seriously start seeing yourself as one of those clumsy heroine types from shoujo manga, who needs to put on a ‘decisive swimsuit’ just to catch the male lead’s attention, did you?”

“Hah?!

O-of course not!”

Yanami Anna covered her burning cheeks and stubbornly retorted.

She knew Imaizumi Keita was praising her, but his teasing way of doing it always left her unsure how to respond.

Should she be shy?

Or should she first object to being compared to a “country bumpkin” heroine?

After a brief internal struggle, instinct won out, and she softly steered the topic back to what she cared about most.

“Really… it’s actually… not bad?”

Her voice carried a trace of uncertainty.

“But…I always feel like my figure isn’t as… as good as Karen’s.”

Imaizumi Keita shook his head and stated his view plainly.

“Isn’t it enough that someone likes it?”

“If you keep comparing upward, there’ll never be an end.

Even Himemiya Karen will always have someone with an even better figure out there.

What matters is whether there’s someone who thinks that the way you are right now is already good enough.”

That’s right.

As long as he likes it, isn’t that enough?

What’s there to compare?

Whether it’s Sōsuke or anyone else, their opinions no longer mattered that much.

Having realized this, the tight knot in Yanami Anna’s heart—born of insecurity—finally loosened.

“Mm.”

She nodded, then openly reached out and took Imaizumi Keita’s hand resting on the bench.

With a lighthearted whistle, she smiled brightly.

“Hmm~”

She swung their interlocked hands gently, a sly yet sweet smile hanging on her face.

“Alright then, since you say so.”

She leaned forward slightly, bringing her face closer to his, her bright eyes fixed on him as she announced,

“If, someday, Imaizumi-kun really does earn money and buys me a new swimsuit…”

“…I’ll wear it.”

After saying that, she deliberately gave him a playful wink with her right eye.