While I Was Giving Love Advice to My Best Friend, the School's Most Beautiful Girl Somehow Became the Closest Person to Me-Chapter 8Volume 1 .3 - ※Alisas Wish

※Alisa’s Wish

*Asahina Alisa’s POV

“It seems like you might have a fever, but then again, maybe not. If you’re feeling unwell, please take it easy and rest.”

“Wh-What are you doing, Kogure-kun?”

“I just can’t help wanting to take care of you when I look at you, Asahina-san! You remind me of Hiyori.”

“…Treated like a five-year-old. I understand the sentiment, though.”

Shizuku pulled me closer to her, and I could no longer feel the warmth of Kogure-kun’s palm… I felt a sense of longing.

“Leave Alisa to me. The game is about to start, and Kogure-kun, you should go too.”

“That’s true. Well then, you two enjoy watching the match.”

Kogure-kun ran up the stairs to the second-floor seats.

“Hhnggh.”

“Alisa, you still say you don’t like him?”

Was Kogure-kun always that cool? I barely have the courage to see his face!

Finally, it seemed the final match was about to start as the players began to gather on the court.

I haven’t really watched basketball much, but it’s played in four quarters, right?

Shizuku is probably looking forward to seeing Hirasawa-kun’s performance, but I don’t mind either way. If Kogure-kun isn’t a regular, he probably won’t play the whole time.

“It looks like the basketball team has noticed Alisa.”

The entire basketball team was looking this way while making a commotion. Even though they were too far away for us to hear what they were saying, it probably wasn’t anything good for me.

“Maybe they want to show off because Alisa is watching. Everyone seems really pumped up.”

“Where’s Kogure-kun… Ah, there he is.”

“Alisa is only looking at one person, huh?”

Kogure-kun and Hirasawa-kun were talking. They must be close to talk even before a match.

I’m getting jealous. But since it was Hirasawa-kun who approached to talk, maybe Kogure-kun to him is what Shizuku is to me. Kogure-kun looked this way, and Hirasawa-kun, following his gaze, stared in Shizuku’s direction.

“Shizuku.”

“I-I know.”

Shizuku raised her hand slightly. Then Hirasawa-kun started waving back enthusiastically.

“Ugh…”

Embarrassed, Shizuku lowered her face as her cheeks turned red. She looked really cute.

“He’s really looking at me.”

“Maybe it’s time to admit it. Hirasawa Reo likes Otsuki Shizuku.”

“Don’t say that. I’m not ready to accept it yet.”

The match was about to start. The starting ten players lined up on the court, and the game began with a jump ball.

Now then… I lay down and rested my head on Shizuku’s soft thigh.

“Hey, Alisa!”

“Wake me up when Kogure-kun comes out.”

“Geez!”

Shizuku’s thighs are just so comfortable to sleep on. I feel like I could sleep forever… But the lap pillow from Kogure-kun at the amusement park was also great.

I wonder if he’ll let me use his lap again. No, maybe I should be the one to offer my lap for him to rest his head on.

As I ponder this, I close my eyes, and before I know it, I drift off to sleep.

“Alisa, Alisa! Perfect timing!”

“Ugh… No, let me sleep a little longer.”

“Do you really want to be tickled that much?”

“Eek! I’m up, I’m up!”

Shizuku wiggles her hands and starts to tickle my sides. I’ve always been ticklish, and she often uses it to wake me up. It’s a weakness that I can’t let anyone know about except for my childhood friend.

I really can’t stand it for even a second… wait, Kogure-kun is out!? I jump up and peer over the edge of the field. My movements are sluggish because I’m not fully awake yet.

“What’s the situation now?”

“It’s the fourth quarter with one minute left. We’re down by four points.”

“It’s almost over!”

“You overslept! I tried to wake you up a few times.”

The crowd around us is getting noisy. According to Shizuku, it’s been a back-and-forth game. Hirasawa-kun’s performance was especially amazing, and it seems he made an incredible shot after breaking through the defense of four players.

I was fast asleep, but Shizuku forcibly woke me up because Kogure-kun had come out to play.

“One minute left, and we’re down by four points with the opponent’s ball. We need to score twice since one goal can be worth up to three points. Normally, it would be impossible.”

“But… if it’s Hirasawa-kun… Hirasawa-kun can do something about it.”

Shizuku seems to have placed all her hopes on Hirasawa-kun. Today’s game must have been truly amazing.

Looking around, I see that all the students from our school are cheering with all their might. The members of Hirasawa-kun’s fan club are also shouting their support loudly. And then the play resumes with fifty seconds left.

The opponent is passing the ball around to kill time. That’s the normal thing to do. Hirasawa-kun and the others are desperately trying to steal the ball, but it’s not working.

Everyone focuses on the ball when Hirasawa-kun suddenly starts running in the opposite direction. Everyone is drawn to his movement. But I was only watching Kogure-kun, so I knew why.

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.

He took advantage of a lapse in the opponent’s passing, scooped up the ball from below, and stole it. Then Kogure-kun threw a long pass to Hirasawa-kun.

Hirasawa-kun, positioned outside the three-point line, took the shot, and it went in. Now we’re only one point behind.

“He decided to make it at that moment!”

“That’s our Hirasawa!”

“Kyaaaah, Reo is so amazing!”

“Hirasawa-kun is amazing, isn’t he? Right, Alisa?”

“Y-Yes.”

It was indeed amazing that he made a three-point shot at that timing. But didn’t anyone notice Kogure-kun’s play, stealing the ball and immediately passing it to Hirasawa-kun?

I glance at the scoreboard again. Thirty seconds left and we’re one point behind. Anything could happen now.

The final play starts with the opponent’s ball.

“Come on, you can do it!”

Shizuku clasps her hands together as if praying. With only twenty seconds left, I hope for a victory.

Everyone is playing defense desperately trying to steal the ball.

“Ah!”

Hirasawa-kun steals the ball and rushes toward the opponent’s side with a fast dribble.

Fifteen seconds left. If this goes in, we win. He uses a combination of passes and dribbles, and the opponents are desperate to stop him. One, no, two players close in on him.

“Hirasawa-kun is being held back…”

Shizuku’s murmur draws my gaze to the scene. Two defenders are on Hirasawa-kun, putting pressure on the ace with scoring power. The opposing team is also desperate.

In the final moments, with only a few seconds left, Hirasawa-kun passes to Kogure-kun. Catching the ball, Kogure-kun immediately launches a high-arching shot towards the goal.

It’s a shot, but maybe it’s actually a pass?

Following the ball with a long hang time, Hirasawa-kun rushes under the goal and leaps up with incredible height. His hand catches the ball and slams it into the ring.

The dunk shot with two seconds left on the clock scores points, and the game ends there.

“That’s incredible… so incredible!”

“Yeah… a dramatic victory.”

Tears well up in Shizuku’s eyes next to me, and Hirasawa-kun’s fan club members are ecstatic.

After witnessing that last powerful shot, anyone would be captivated. Everyone crowds around Hirasawa-kun, who made the final shot. Only one person stands a bit apart, watching the scene.

My heart flutters as I look at his face. Yes, Kogure-kun looks genuinely happy for his friend’s success.

The game is over, both teams bow in respect, and the players leave the court one by one. I only saw the last minute, but it was quite an intense game… I regret not watching it from the beginning.

“Alisa, I’m going to the restroom for a bit.”

“Okay.”

After watching Shizuku take her belongings and head up the stairs, I continue to watch the court from the second-floor seats. I’ve been hearing non-stop praise for Hirasawa-kun.

Indeed, Hirasawa-kun was amazing. The three-point shot and that dunk were definitely worthy of an ace. But I can’t help feeling a bit frustrated. The one who assisted the strongest ace should also be a topic of conversation.

Wasn’t Hirasawa-kun’s performance made possible by Kogure-kun’s actions?

“Asahina-san”

“Ah! K-Kogure-kun.”

As I was thinking about Kogure-kun, he appeared. Perhaps because the game had just ended, his uniform was damp with sweat, and his hair was disheveled.

The rugged look of him, so different from usual, was striking.

“Have you seen Reo? He disappeared suddenly after the game ended. I wonder where he went.”

“He hasn’t come this way.”

“I heard that Reo went into the locker room, so I went there, but he was already gone. By the way, where did Otsuki-san go?”

“She said she was going to the restroom… but she’s taking a long time.”

Then, a possibility crossed my mind, and it seemed Kogure-kun thought of the same thing.

We immediately left the game venue. If a confession was to happen, it definitely wouldn’t be inside. That left the outside of the gymnasium.

We went around the exterior of the building and came upon an open area where Shizuku and Hirasawa-kun were.

…Perhaps the moment of resolution had arrived.