My Japanese Childhood Friend Is Too Flirty - Chapter 51



50. What happens when your childhood friend gets sulky (2)

Physical fitness test.

It’s a student physical fitness assessment system that’s done in elementary, middle, and high school. We used to call it the physical fitness test, but nowadays they call it PAPS, the English acronym. At our school, we do it twice, once in the spring and once in the winter.

Of course, some schools might do it more or less than that. Anyway, there are five events.

When you think of fitness tests, you think of the shuttle run, push-ups, sit-ups, the 50-meter dash, and body fat measurement.

The body fat measurement just involves standing on the InBody machine, so it’s always first. The shuttle run is the hardest and most tiring, so it’s always last. So, Class 1 and 2 of the 1st grade gathered in the gymnasium and went straight to the health office for the InBody test.

“Oh, look, Overweight Kim Sungmin is here?”

“Shut your mouth, Stick.”

“A stick is better than overweight, right, you agree?”

“Nah, no way, girls like guys with some bulk better than sticks~”

As soon as they got their InBody result sheets, my friends started looking at each other’s, arguing about who was better and who was worse.

‘…I think I saw something similar back in elementary and middle school.’

Guys never really change, even as they get older.

I don’t know if it’s endearing or childish. It was so funny to watch, I couldn’t help but chuckle. Then Sungmin and Jaehyun glanced at me, who was smiling, and gestured me to come over.

“What’re you smirking at, Ju-uju. You come over here too.”

“Why?”

“Why what? You gotta show us your results too.”

“Yeah, everyone shows everyone else, fair and square. Hurry up and get it, dude.”

“Mine’s nothing to see….”

I’d checked it all already. I mumbled under my breath, but still handed over the results sheet.

Then Sungmin and Jaehyun snatched it away like they were waiting for it. They scrutinized it with eyes that looked like they were going to rip me apart if they found the slightest flaw.

“Weight 78, body fat 10, skeletal muscle mass 40… No way, why are you so good? What’s this?”

“Body fat percentage of 12%, what the hell, Joo-woo-joo, you b*stard, why’d you work out so damn hard?”

“Why? What’d it look like?”

“Hey, Dong-ho, check this out. This dude’s InBody results are seriously messed up, right?”

Jae-hyun and Sung-min started showing my result sheet to the other guys, but I didn’t stop them, just took a step back and watched quietly.

I thought the results might be bad since my abs seemed to be getting buried lately, but maybe thanks to working out steadily, the results came out better than I expected, and I was already itching to brag.

Honestly, I just let them look because I kinda wanted to show off a little.

“This body with a BMI of 24? Looking at it, something’s off. With Joo-woo-joo’s build, shouldn’t it be like 30?”

“BMI and actual physical condition aren’t really related—”

“Shut your mouth, you shit.”

“This b*stard, he’s so ripped, that’s why he goes around dunking even though he’s not supposed to.”

“Lucky you’re so ripped, you mutt.”

‘……Hmm, this is it.’

I’m just getting a bunch of curses thrown at me, and yet I feel so damn good.

I can’t quit being a show-off because of this taste…….

“You guys were the ones who wanted to see it. You asked to see it, and now you’re suddenly cursing at me?”

“We asked to see it because we didn’t know it would be this good, you b*stard.”

“Yeah, if you knew, would you have asked? You would’ve torn the results without even looking.”

“Hey, I found something weird though. Joo-woo-joo, he has more leg muscle than upper body muscle.”

“What? Isn’t it usually the other way around?”

“Yeah, why does he have a higher ratio in his legs? His upper body is 115 and his lower body is 120?”

“Wait a sec, no way….”

Jaehyun trailed off.

His gaze landed near my waist, or rather, more precisely on a spot that’s a little awkward to mention.

He didn’t say anything, but somehow, I knew what he wanted to say. He probably wanted to ask, ‘No way, is that why your lower body muscle ratio is higher?’

“Hey, does a guy’s… that thing even count as muscle?”

“Isn’t it just a spongy mass? I dunno, should we look it up?”

“……Ah, whatever. It’s probably just ‘cause I have a lot of lower body muscle.”

“Nah, looking at this dude’s size, that might actually be muscle. Hey, quick, look it up….”

“Woo-joo~chan, what are you guys talking about?”

Someone’s voice cut in then.

There’s only one person in this world who calls me by that peculiar nickname, ‘Woo-joo~chan.’ It’s my childhood friend, Aki.

I turned around and, sure enough, Aki was standing there, a results sheet in one hand, probably just having finished his InBody scan.

‘Ah, that startled me….’

I was momentarily shocked since we were having a pretty embarrassing conversation, but judging by his face, he didn’t seem to have heard what we said. I casually replied.

“We were talking about the test results. You all done with your test, Aki?”

“Yeah, just finished. And the results were better than I thought!”

“Really? Can I take a look?”

“……What are you saying? Of course not, Woo-joo~chan.”

“Ah, sorry….”

“Mmm, good, you got it. Oh, but….”

“Came to keep an eye on your boyfriend, Fujiwara-san?”

“Huh? Oh, it’s Nam Jaehyun-san. Heh, no. It’s not like that?”

“You sure it’s not? He was staring so hard from way over there, I thought a hole was going to burn through Joo Woo-joo’s face….”

“It’s not like that, Nam Jaehyun-san…?”

Aki’s eyes narrowed into slits, and Jaehyun waved his hands as if it was all a joke, muttering, ‘Whew, scary… Just kidding, kidding.’

Watching them talk, I thought to myself.

‘…Aki does talk to other guys, huh.’

It feels like just yesterday I was grabbing her when she tried to run off from Jaehyun’s birthday party, saying she didn’t need anyone else but me. I’m relieved that she seems to have adapted well. Guess there won’t be any issues with guests later.

“Oh. …Ahem, Woo-joo~chan?”

“Yeah, what’s up?”

“I(Atashi), left something in the classroom… Could you maybe come help me look for it?”

“Now? We’re about to start the physical fitness test, though?”

If it’s not urgent, couldn’t we look for it later?

I asked with just my eyes, but Aki shook her head no.

“I have to go right now… Right now.”

“Ah, really? Then, well….”

I have no choice but to follow. I tapped Sungmin and Jaehyun on the shoulders.

“Sorry, I’m going to go with Aki for a bit.”

“Oh, you don’t have to come back~”

“Bring a Melona when you come back.”

The reactions are all over the place, kinda funny.

I chuckled, leaving the others behind, and followed Aki out of the nurse’s office.

The next physical test is the 50-meter dash on the field, and it won’t start until all the InBody scans for Class 1 and 2 are done, so we’ve still got about five minutes to spare.

‘I don’t know what she left behind….’

It must be pretty important if she’s breaking away in the middle of waiting like this. Probably her phone or her wallet, maybe both.

──*Shlrrk!*

Lost in thought as I walked, I suddenly arrived at Class 1.

Aki, who had opened the back door, gestured for me to come closer.

Without thinking much, I followed her in. Then, she reached behind me and *shlrrk* closed the classroom door.

“Uju~chan.”

Aki looked up at me intently.

Naturally, we were incredibly close.

Close enough to reach out and touch anywhere we wanted, if we felt like it.

“……Why?”

“You said it earlier, right? That you’d accept anything I did today….”

What is this.

This vibe is…

Maybe it’s because we’re in someone else’s classroom, but it’s giving me a weirdly unsettling feeling.

Cautiously, I nodded.

“Give me your hand.”

“Hand?”

When I held out my right hand, Aki grabbed it without hesitation, yanking it around to the small of her back.

“……?!”

I was surprised for two reasons.

One, because Aki was suddenly doing something she never did.

The other, because I was nervous about someone possibly seeing us like this.

I mean, if we were at home, maybe, but…

No, even if it were at home, I’d probably still be surprised…

Anyway, it made my posture a little awkward. Right now, I’m in this in-between state, not quite hugging Aki, but not *not* hugging her either.

“……Aki?”

“……Hug me.”

Right here, right now?

I stared at her, wondering if she was serious, and Aki answered with just her eyes.

‘You said you’d accept anything…?’

“Someone might come in, that’ll be a problem….”

“Yeah, it’s fine.”

“No, still….”

“……You said you’d accept anything.”

“…….”

I shouldn’t have gone and said I’d accept anything.

It was said to comfort Aki, but I shouldn’t have said it.

‘……No, wait.’

If I hadn’t said it, would she still be this mad?

Thinking about it, it feels like I did a good thing after all…

“…You’re not gonna do it?”

“……”

Ugh, I don’t know.

It’s something I said, so I have to follow through.

I reached out my other hand and wrapped it around Aki’s waist, then carefully pulled her into an embrace without using any force.

It was 4th period, so we were both wearing our gym uniforms, and thanks to that, it was the soft fabric of her uniform that I felt against my chest, not the scratchiness of her shirt.

“……”

“……”

Squish.

Aki’s soft body presses against different parts of mine.

No, it’s not exactly pressing…

It’s more like, touching and pressing. Something I can’t put into words.

“…Woo-joo~chan.”

Aki, still held in my arms, lifted her head.

She called out my name softly, met my gaze, and then,

just like that, a kiss.

“……Mm.”

A fragrant scent and soft body crashed over me.

Aki had gone completely limp, letting her weight fall on me, and I instinctively took a small step back, leaning against the back door.

Just in case someone came in, I could block them with my body.

And, to hold Aki even tighter.

“……Mwah.”

“……”

It was a sudden kiss, but honestly, I was kind of expecting it.

I don’t know if she realizes it… but when Aki wants to kiss, her eyes change a little.

Standing on her tiptoes, Aki made a slightly suggestive sound as she nibbled on my lower lip and softly sucked.

It wasn’t the kind of grown-up kiss with tongues, but to me, this was more than enough to feel hot, and as I felt my heart pound, I focused on savoring the taste of Aki’s lips.

Moist and sweet.

The sweetness was the taste of Aki’s lip tint, and the moistness must be from Aki’s lips…

It’s ridiculous how I can differentiate them now, after just a few kisses.

“……Haaah.”

Lost in the new, strange sensation, I was brought back to reality when Aki, panting, broke the kiss.

A single strand of saliva stretched between our lips, like a thread, before dripping onto the floor.

“……Good luck, Uju~chan.”

“……Huh? With what?”

“The physical fitness test. …Do well.”

“……”

Huh.

Wait, was that… did she just cheer me on?

Honestly, I’m a little dizzy and my heart’s pounding, I can’t really make heads or tails of it.

So I just blinked at Aki, making eye contact, and she gave me a sultry smile, wiping my lips with her thumb.

“You’ve got some tint on your lips…”

“…Weren’t you, like, not supposed to be mad until today?”

“Yeah, I am gonna be mad. But being mad and cheering you on are two different things, y’know…?”

“…Ah.”

Even though she’s mad, she’s still cheering me on.

…My childhood friend is the best,

“You can do it, right…?”

“Yeah, but…”

“…You wanna do it one more time?”

“Yeah…”

“…Heh, not just like that.”

Aki held up her index finger.

“If you get first place in the shuttle run later… I’ll do it for you when we get home.”

“…When we get home?”

“Yeah, when we get home. Slowly, leisurely.”

“……”

I need to run until I’m on the verge of dying.