[clum! '95 #04] Lunch Break Strategy Meeting [Creative Awards 2026 Romance Novel Category]

← To the previous story

Lunch break in mid-April.

The classroom of 1st Year Class B was bustling with the voices of students who had begun to settle into their new class.

In the midst of this, I, Kazuyori Hayasaka, was slumped over my desk at my seat. It seems that having fun and being comfortable are two different things.

“Ugh... my whole body hurts...”

My entire body was screaming because of the baptism of “100 basic footwork drills” I received from Rikka Sano-senpai at club practice yesterday.

Although I opened the bento my brother made for me, I didn't even have the energy to pick up my chopsticks.

If I went to the library, I might be able to see Okamoto-senpai.

I thought that, but my whole body hurt so much I couldn't move.

“Hey, you okay? You look like a dying hamster.”

Suddenly, the boy in the seat in front of me called out with a smirk.

It was Takafumi Nose. Like me, he had just joined the basketball club, but he had a carefree, somewhat philosophical air about him.

“Oh, Nose-kun... yesterday's practice was tough, wasn't it...”

“Well, yeah. I know how to slack off properly, so I'm fine, but you're too serious. If you listen to everything Sano-senpai says, you'll break your body.”

Just as Nose-kun laughed and snapped his chopsticks apart,

“That’s why! That was love! Love!!”

A small, loud-voiced boy had cut in from the side with tremendous energy.

He leaned over the desk, his eyes sparkling as he pressed in on me.

“You’re Hayasaka, right? I saw you in the gym yesterday! To be coached one-on-one by Rikka-chan herself, what kind of good deeds did you do in your past life!?”

“Eh, ah, ehhh? Rikka-chan...?”

“Inagi, your voice is loud. It’s ringing in my eardrums.”

Nose-kun covered his ears in annoyance, but Inagi-kun didn't stop.

“I’m Yoshihiko Inagi! Nice to meet you! Actually, Rikka-chan and Jin-chan... oh, Sano-senpai and Oritachi-senpai, their houses are near mine, so they’ve been playing with me since I was little! That’s why I know! That coaching from Rikka-chan is a sign of high expectations!”

“I-is that so!? ...I wonder if she has high expectations for me.”

Just thinking that made my body, which had been heavy until just a moment ago, feel a little lighter.

“Of course! Rikka-chan doesn't even look at people she isn't interested in! ...Well, Jin-chan was sometimes called a ‘mad dog’ back in the day, though.”

“Hey, stop it, Inagi. Don't say Oritachi-senpai's name. ...I get chills just remembering it.”

Nose-kun suddenly turned pale and started trembling.

It seems Nose-kun was caught by Oritachi-senpai when he tried to slack off during the first day of practice.

I haven't heard the details.

But.

Since he's trembling that much,

it must have been terrible.

“Eh, is Oritachi-senpai really that scary...? She even gave me a drink the other day?”

“Huh!? Hayasaka, what kind of filter are you looking through? Those eyes are the eyes of a killer.”

When Nose-kun retorted, Inagi-kun grinned and put his arm around my shoulder.

“Well, anyway! Hayasaka is liked by Rikka-chan! Nose is being targeted by Jin-chan! ...You guys are the best ‘Victims’ Association’ ever!”

“Don't call us victims...”

“But, maybe you're right. ...Alright, let's form an alliance.”

Nose-kun grinned and placed a sausage shaped like an octopus from his own bento onto Kazuyori's bento.

“An alliance?”

“The ‘Anti-Beast Senpai Survival Alliance.’ I’ll think of ways to evade Oritachi-senpai’s surveillance. Hayasaka will accept Sano-senpai’s love. Inagi will gather information. ...How about it?”

“Oh! That’s great! Sounds interesting!”

“Eh... isn't this becoming a big deal?”

Kazuyori was bewildered, but seeing their smiles, he couldn't help but smile himself.

It had only been about two weeks since I enrolled.

I didn't have anyone to eat lunch with in class.

That's why.

The two noisy guys looked a little reliable.

“...Yeah. Nice to meet you, Inagi-kun, Nose-kun!”

“Yeah! Hayasaka, tell me about basketball after you finish your lunch! I’ll tell you about my karate too!”

“Give me a piece of fried chicken too.”

And so, the three of them pushed their desks together to surround their bentos.

The me from back then,

never imagined that until the day I graduated,

we would end up pushing our desks together like that every single day.

The club room after school.

As Nose-kun and I were changing, Oritachi-senpai walked in wearing her jersey.

“...Nose. Double the basic drills today.”

“Hiiieee!? W-why, Oritachi-senpai!?”

“...You called me a ‘killer’ during lunch break, didn't you.”

“Y-you heard that!! (Super hearing!?)”

While Nose-kun let out a scream of despair, Sano-senpai approached me.

“Hayasaka-kun! Today we’re doing defensive footwork! Are you prepared?”

“Y-yes! Please!”

In the gym gallery, Inagi, who didn't join the club, was watching the scene with a smirk.

“Hayasaka-kun! Nose! Good luck, fellow alliance members!”

...Hehe, Rikka-chan and Jin-chan look happy to have a junior, too.

The gym is noisy again today.

But.

A little more than before,

it didn't feel uncomfortable.

↓ Click here for the collection magazine ↓