Stealing Spree

Chapter 2685: Pair Battles

Prompted by the whistle of Eguchi-sensei, the Wakaba and Shirai pairs went to their positions. Wakaba and Shirai decided to be the ones to dive first while their partners waited at Platform Alpha.

Ogawa looked a little confident, as if he was showing off to everyone, while Wakaba’s partner looked nervous.

With another whistle, Wakaba dove smoothly under the net barrier. Her form was impeccable as she kicked powerfully toward Platform Alpha. I guess that’s expected of someone from the swimming club.

Shirai followed suit, his speed no less impressive as he sliced through the water. Within seconds, both reached Platform Alpha. Wakaba hauled herself up effortlessly, tagged her trembling partner’s hand, and passed the flag.

The girl fumbled her dive which created a splash, making it harder for her to navigate through the buoy corridor.

On the other hand, Ogawa, after getting the flag from Shirai, executed a clean dive and weaved through the obstacles efficiently, pulling ahead.

By the time both pairs reached Platform Bravo, the pair Shirai and Ogawa had a clear lead.

"What do you think, Nami? Is he back to how he used to be?" I asked my girl, who positioned herself behind me, her chin resting on my shoulder and her arms wrapped around my waist.

She hummed thoughtfully as Ogawa climbed onto Platform Bravo, waving at Shirai, who immediately dove to follow after him.

"It seems so. He finally let go of that weird obsession with me," Nami murmured, "It must be thanks to his relationship with Mami."

"Is that how you see it?"

"Why? Does it seem like he’s still trying to get me back from you?" Nami tilted her head while her finger curled at my sideburns. Her voice was teasing, but her grip tightened around my waist.

"No. He knows he cannot do that anymore but I think... he’s just biding his time. Thinking that when the time comes, we’ll break up."

Right. While he’s truly attempting to be a ’good’ boyfriend to Mami, he’s the type of guy who’ll never truly give up on someone he once obsessed over. Especially when he sees Nami looking happier than she ever did with him.

"Un... Let’s say that’s what he’s hoping for. If that happens, what will happen to Mami-chan?"

"Either he’s going to copy me and date both of you or he’ll break up with her," I turned my head slightly, catching Nami’s eyes.

As we were both the observer type, it wouldn’t be hard for her to also reach that conclusion if she tried to think deeper about Ogawa’s character.

"I’d hate him even more if he did that, Ruu." Nami pursed her lips, her gaze hardening as she watched Ogawa, "But there’s no way I’d return to him. And you promised me... you won’t leave me."

After saying that, her arms tightened possessively around my waist. Good thing most of the other students were focused on the pool. But still, Satsuki and Umeda both looked at me as if I were a fool.

Especially Satsuki, who pinched my thigh sharply. "Idiot. Don’t flirt at this moment."

Umeda simply shook her head as a faint blush dusted her cheeks before saying, "I told you to observe Wakaba, Onoda-kun."

She then gestured towards the pool where Wakaba’s partner had finally surfaced at Platform Bravo. The girl immediately followed suit as she tried to catch up at their opponent’s pace.

Unfortunately, while Shirai and Ogawa had switched for the return lap, her partner had just finished touching the other end of the pool.

That gave their opponent a considerable lead. However, the girl had yet to give up. As soon as her partner returned to Platform Bravo, she immediately dived to get the flag that was left behind at the other end of the pool. She finished that in half the time her partner took to get there, catching up slightly to their opponent.

For their return lap, her partner dived first and waded through the buoy corridor again before Wakaba followed after.

Since the pairs needed to return together from Platform Alpha, even Ogawa had to wait for Shirai before continuing.

With Wakaba still exhibiting strong form, she closed the gap significantly during the return buoy corridor. Due to that, the advantage of Shirai and Ogawa was cut down to a second. From everyone’s eyes, the two pairs almost dived down at the same time to return to the starting point.

"That was intense," Nami murmured with Satsuki and Umeda nodding their heads.

"Who won?!" At this time, Kushii also approached us along with her partner.

"Obviously, it’s the girls." Maaya was the one who answered as her partner, Misumi, trailed behind her.

Misumi waved at me, ignoring how I was practically surrounded.

"Wakaba-san’s partner pulled off a miracle comeback!" she exclaimed, her voice bright. "They won by only half a second! Hehe."

"Is that so?" I tilted my head before looking at Ryouko-san, who was holding her stopwatch.

Before long, she raised her hand and announced the winner. "Team Wakaba wins by 0.5 seconds!" Ryouko-san declared, her voice carrying over the splash-filled echoes.

Wakaba’s partner beamed, flushed with exertion and triumph, while Ogawa slumped against the pool edge, frustration tightening his jaw. Shirai patted his shoulder, but Ogawa’s gaze flickered toward us, specifically, toward Nami, whose arms were still draped possessively around my waist. His eyes narrowed briefly before he looked away, jaw clenched.

See, I was right.

But I didn’t think much of it.

Soon after that, Ryouko-san signaled for me to assist her in repositioning the net barrier that had drifted slightly. We swam together while the next pair was preparing for their match.

Of course, we didn’t have any opportunity to flirt. But underwater, we sneaked in a few kisses before we surfaced. That got her blushing, but she didn’t scold me. Instead, she whispered, "Later."

For the next thirty minutes, six more pairs went through the same obstacle course.

Nami and her partner, unfortunately, lost against Tadano and his partner. The guy looked guilty though, as if he was still too considerate of his childhood friend.

Satsuki and her partner won against Fukuda and his partner. It was an overwhelming lead that the guy tried to walk out right away. He was disciplined by Orimura-sensei, who came to check on the progress of the activity.

And lastly, Sakuma and his partner won against Kushii and her partner. It was also a close fight between the two pairs. Sadly, Kushii’s foot got tangled in the net at the return lap, which slowed her down considerably.

Her partner was a good sport though. She didn’t blame Kushii for the loss. Instead, she helped Kushii climb out of the pool while rubbing her ankle that got a little sore from the entanglement. Naturally, I also ended up standing up to check on her, ensuring she’s alright.

"Should I bring you to the infirmary? You know... so we can skip our turn?" I murmured, kneeling beside Kushii as I rubbed her ankle.

"Onoda-shi, you’re exaggerating," Kushii murmured, "Besides, it’s your turn next. This isn’t going to stop me."

She flexed her foot experimentally, wincing only slightly. Her partner hovered nearby, looking concerned. "See? Barely a twinge."

"Is that so? Alright then. I’ll bring you there later." I stood up, offering Kushii a hand to pull her to her feet. Her partner helped steady her as she tested her weight.

Kushii tried to look the other way to hide the blush creeping up her neck. Her partner giggled from that before saying, "Onoda-kun, stop charming all of the girls. What will you do if we all fight for you?"

"Shiraishi-san, you’re jesting. Anyway, I’ll leave her to you then."

Right, I remembered. She’s one of the girls inside the shower room stalls last week. Since only Umeda faced me back then, she only told me the names of the other four showering at that time. All of them were from Class 3, after all. I also owed them a favor for keeping it a secret. But according to Umeda, they’re just hoping to get to know me more...

Yeah, right... Get to know me more, huh? I filed that thought away as Ryouko-san blew the whistle sharply. "Final pair! Onoda and Umeda versus Itou and Misumi!"