Chapter 154: Chapter 154 – Lost youth
Yukio, still feeling a bit sleepy, was pulled out of the class canopy by Ibuki, preparing for the three-legged race with mixed-gender pairs.
"What's going on? Wake up! It's almost our turn!" Ibuki complained, hoping Yukio would be a bit more alert.
Yukio wasn't drowsy; he was just thinking about Karuizawa's recent decision. He had anticipated that by stepping in to help Karuizawa deal with Sudo, she would become more loyal.
But he hadn't expected the impact to be so significant, leading Karuizawa to be committed enough to break up with Hirata and end their fake couple relationship.
After all, the former Karuizawa relied on stronger people for protection; if no one shielded her, she would end up being bullied.
But now, she was renewed, unafraid, full of her own ideas and determination, like a flower that might wither after blooming, yet her resolve was deeply admired by Yukio.
Being dragged along by Ibuki, they soon reached the starting line, where everyone was already using straps to tie their ankles together.
As Yukio was observing his competitors, Ibuki had already squatted down to tie the strap, then stood up and habitually put her arm around Yukio, her slightly blushing face getting close.
For a three-legged race, staying too far apart makes it harder to run.
Seeing this, Yukio chuckled, "We've been practicing for a month, how are you still getting shy and blushing now?"
"Huh?!" Ibuki exclaimed loudly, her eyes darting around in circles: "What, what are you talking about? I'm just... the weather's too hot, yeah, that's why I'm blushing!"
"Pfft~" Ibuki's cute act made it impossible not to laugh.
Noticing Yukio's amusement, Ibuki's expression turned fierce, like a lone wolf on the plains: "What's so funny? Focus and run properly, don't fail to place later on."
There was no time for more jokes; the sports festival was tightly scheduled, with each event's timing precisely coordinated to finish everything in a day.
So there was almost no room for delays. Once everyone was in position, the race had to start.
The referee's whistle interrupted all conversation. As everyone lined up at the starting line, the referee raised the starter pistol toward the sky and pulled the trigger.
Hearing the "bang" of the starter pistol, Yukio's eyes focused, and he and Ibuki took their first step with the same stride length, getting ahead of the entire grade.
Everyone had trained for a month, and those who dared to compete had a minimum level of teamwork. Every team ran with a different stride, yet perfectly synchronized with their partner's pace and rhythm.
Once people stepped onto the track, they had no time to think about anything else. With competitors on both sides, chasing closely, there was no room to contemplate other things.
The only thing that drove you was to run faster, to quicken your pace, and leave the competitors far behind.
Fortunately, Yukio and Ibuki had good control over themselves, not influenced by any subconscious urgency. Their stride length and step frequency remained quite synchronized, avoiding the chaos that could result from mismatched pacing midway through the run.
As they passed by Ichinose's class canopy, they heard: "Go, Yukio-kun! Go, Ibuki-san!"
"Shibata-kun don't let them overtake you! Run well!"
Ichinose's voice, along with those of others from her class, came through clearly. After cheering a few times, they turned to encourage their own class's Shibata to speed up and not let Yukio and Ibuki win.
This spurred Yukio and Ibuki on.
Was it a surprise that Ichinose's class could cheer so enthusiastically for familiar faces?
Soon, they passed by Ichinose's class and reached their own class's canopy, where the cheers grew louder, coming from all directions.
"Go, Yukio-san! Go, Ibuki!"
"Show them what you've accomplished in this month's training! Let them see how great you are!"
"Yukio-san, get first place! Nishino said she'd give you a foot massage! Ibuki too—get first, and Ishizaki will give you a foot massage!"
Besides the loudest voices, the rest of the noisy cheers and shouts of encouragement were harder to hear. It was unclear whether other classes' loud voices drowned them out or if the airflow from running made it difficult to discern.
Yukio raised his eyebrows, quite pleased to hear the enthusiastic cheers from their class's canopy and the various incentives for winning first place.
It made him want to quicken his pace, not because getting first place was important, but because Nishino, the quiet girl, was willing to give a foot massage. What guy wouldn't like getting a foot massage from a girl?
If someone didn't like it, they were probably "unique".
Ibuki shot Yukio a fierce glance, her savage look full of warning!
Meanwhile, her mind kept cursing, what's going on? Doesn't he know that slowing down to get second place is an option?
Ibuki had really wanted to get first place—she's the type who gets competitive and wants to win—but hearing her classmates cheering made her not want to get first anymore.
Under no circumstances did Ibuki want a foot massage from Ishizaki!
At the start of the race, Yukio already had his hand on Ibuki's shoulder, but now he held on more firmly, almost half-hugging her into his embrace.
At the same time, he quickened his pace, and because Ibuki was held by Yukio, she was almost entirely pressed against his side, feeling a strange sensation of not quite touching the ground.
Looking at it, it felt less like a three-legged race requiring teamwork and more like Yukio carrying a weight as if running solo.
"Hey, hey, hey! You, you!" Ibuki instantly lost her composure, wanting to complain, to ask Yukio to put her down.
"Haha, I didn't expect that our classmates' cheers could be so uplifting!" But unusually, Yukio responded with a bright and cheerful voice.
It made Ibuki widen her eyes—she had never seen Yukio so sunny and bright, no longer the usual deep, inscrutable, overly mature high school student.
It was as if his whole demeanor had gotten younger, successfully fitting into the enthusiastic, energetic high school atmosphere.
Yukio himself couldn't quite explain it. Hearing the cheers from his classmates on the track seemed to bring back memories of his youth from a previous life. The long-forgotten sense of excitement and energy returned.
All this time, Yukio had always felt somewhat out of place, not that he was excluded by the class—no one would dare—but simply because he didn't fit into the youthful atmosphere.
Many fun things seemed dull and childish to him, while they were incredibly enjoyable for his classmates, creating a sense of distance between Yukio and the class.
But now, things were different. The enthusiastic, genuine cheers for him seemed to awaken long-buried memories—he had also once run through a crowd of cheering voices, with abandon and joy.
It was truly an unforgettable youth in his past life.
Now Yukio didn't want to lose, not at all. He wanted to fully embrace this long-missed feeling of youth.
Then he held onto Ibuki, racing to the finish line, securing fifty points for his class. Ibuki wanted to say something, but she noticed that Yukio's eyes had regained their usual depth.
This made Ibuki instinctively lower her head, and she could easily see the ties around their ankles.
Staring at the ties, she couldn't help but think that if he could be this cheerful and sunny more often, he would really be her type.
***
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