Imaizumi Wants More Than Just Seeing a Swimsuit

Shio Lemon stood at a busy intersection, staring blankly as the traffic light changed from red to green, then from green to red.

People streamed past her, each with a destination in mind. Only she had no idea where to go.

Anna and Imaizumi… they had already walked off in another direction together.

Shio Lemon let out a soft sigh, holding her unfinished cup of orange juice as she looked for a place to throw it away.

Anna had told her to go do something else, to distract herself.

Something else…

But aside from track and field, and Koki, did her world even have anything like “something else”?

Since middle school, her life had been filled with just those two things.

Running on the track, sweating it out, feeling every heartbeat and the ache in her muscles—that was her purest joy.

And during breaks in training, secretly thinking about going to talk to Koki while he quietly read, then walking home together—those were her most precious memories.

Shio Lemon shook her head, trying to throw the image of that bespectacled figure out of her mind.

She couldn’t think about it anymore.

The more she thought, the more it hurt.

She subconsciously looked up toward the direction of the school.

As if responding to that most primal impulse in her heart, Shio Lemon turned around and started jogging toward the school.

Her steps grew faster and faster, her backpack bouncing on her back, but she didn’t care.

Right now, she just wanted to return to that place.

The locker room still carried the lingering heat and smell of sweat from daytime training. Shio Lemon skillfully changed into her sports tank top and shorts.

The tight fabric wrapping around her body gave her floating, defeated heart a sense of grounding at last.

She didn’t do any extra warm-up. She simply walked straight onto the empty red track.

The evening breeze carried a slight chill, brushing against her exposed skin.

She bent down, placing her palm against the rough surface of the track, feeling its elastic texture.

This was it.

Only here could she forget all the messy thoughts in her head.

Ayano Koki, Asagumo Chihaya, being the “losing heroine”…

She took a deep breath and suddenly dashed forward.

The wind rushed past her ears, the school buildings and gym quickly retreating from her view.

In her world, there was nothing left but the track stretching beneath her feet and her pounding heartbeat.

Keep running.

As long as she kept running, those troubles wouldn’t catch up to her.

……

In Imaizumi Keita’s room, only a desk lamp was lit.

He leaned back in his chair, letting out a long breath as he rubbed his slightly sore wrist.

On his laptop screen, the word count of his document had steadily surpassed fifty thousand.

The first volume of his light novel was already more than halfway written, and the plot had been mostly sorted out.

He enjoyed the process of turning the ideas in his mind into concrete words.

It was a kind of creative control, different from the satisfaction he felt when spending time with Yanami, but equally addictive.

Just as he was about to get up to pour himself a glass of water, his phone on the corner of the desk received a message from Yanami.

He casually picked it up, unlocked it, and opened the chat.

Then his movement stopped.

On the screen was a newly sent photo.

The background of the photo was a girlish bedroom, with cosmetics and accessories scattered across a vanity.

And occupying the center of the image was… a reflection in the mirror of a fair-skinned body wearing a swimsuit.

That yellow-and-white striped bikini appeared before his eyes once again.

It was clearly the same swimsuit, yet paired with the setting of a girl’s room, it carried a completely different charm.

Her flat, toned abdomen, and the curves outlined by the swimsuit, were clearly visible.

The composition of the photo was clever—it only captured the area from below the collarbone to above the thighs, without showing her face.

But there was no need to guess who the owner of the photo was.

What was this woman trying to test this time?

He looked at the “typing…” indicator at the top of the screen. Nearly half a minute passed, yet no new message came.

Clearly, the sender of the photo was caught in some intense inner struggle.

The corner of Imaizumi Keita’s lips lifted slightly, uncontrollably.

He knew very well that Yanami’s hesitation and shyness right now were meant to wait for his initiative.

Since that was the case, as her “boyfriend,” there was no reason for him to disappoint her.

His slender fingers quickly tapped on the screen, sending a teasing message.

【Nice figure.】

After sending it, he could almost imagine Yanami’s face instantly flushing red upon seeing it.

But that alone wasn’t enough.

Looking at the tempting pale skin in the photo, he slowly added another line.

【It would be even better if I could do more than just look.】

……

“Ahhhhhhh—!”

Yanami Anna flipped her phone face-down on the bed and collapsed backward in a starfish position, pressing a pillow tightly against her burning face.

She swore, she had only wanted to give Imaizumi Keita a “small surprise.”

To avoid making it seem too deliberate, she had even deliberately avoided including her face.

But she had never expected his reaction to be so… so direct!

What did he mean by “nice figure”?

And that “it would be even better if I could do more than just look”…

What exactly goes on in that man’s head?!

Yanami Anna felt like her brain was about to burn up from all the chaotic thoughts.

She grabbed her phone again, staring at those two lines, her face heating up even more.

Biting her lower lip, she typed and deleted several times, and in the end only sent a single emoji before tossing the phone aside.

That guy…

Why is it that even through a screen, just being praised by him makes my heart beat this fast?

“Pervert Keita…”

She muttered softly, her voice carrying a hint of coquettishness that even she didn’t notice.

Her gaze uncontrollably returned to her own selfie.

Through the mirror, she looked at herself in that swimsuit, a complex feeling of embarrassment mixed with a bit of pride rising in her heart.

Does he… really think it looks good?

She subconsciously adjusted her shoulder straps, glancing down at her reflection, her ears turning even redder.

Hmm…

It actually… does look pretty good…

That thought made her blush and her heart race even more.

She clearly remembered that in the family restaurant, she had said Kusuke abandoned her for Himemiya Karen, that “cow-like girl.”

So then… would Keita like… this kind?

When he said she had a nice figure, was it just casual praise?

Or did he really think her body was already enough for him?

One question after another flooded Yanami’s mind.

The more she thought, the redder her face became, and the faster her heart pounded.

What is happening to me?

Since when did just a few words from that man make me lose control like this?

We’re clearly just “pretending” to be a couple.

Even those so-called “lover-like interactions” are just a strategy to make Kusuke and Karen believe we’re together.

At most… at most… at most, I only go along with those interactions because they feel nice…

Then why am I starting to care more and more about what he thinks?

About how he evaluates me?

About whether he… actually likes me?

Yanami Anna buried her face deep into the soft pillow, letting out a muffled groan.

That guy…

What exactly does he… think of her…?