(Hi there! Author here! Before you start reading the whole chapter, I just want to say that first, I apologize in advance if this chapter was too long for you. Although with a staggering amount of 7k+ words, I felt that this was necessary to lay everything. I also added Hoshizawa's POV 10 here as I deemed that it was necessary for this chapter.

Again, I'm terribly sorry if you dislike long chapters, but I felt like it was necessary for this chapter. This doesn't happen often for sure, but if it does, I just wanna say in advance that it was necessary for that chapter. Thanks for reading this! let the chapter begin!)

*****

Volume 4, Chapter 3: To The Beach! Part 1

*****

Today was the day for us to go to the beach. Us guys had planned to meet up where we met up yesterday to go together to the meeting place where the girls would be waiting. In order to not keep them waiting, we talked about it so that we'll be going an hour and a half earlier

We did it that way just in case someone in our group we'll be arriving late or if the traffic gets too crowded. As usual, Ryu and I had gone together to the boy's meeting place to meet up with Yuu and the others...

*****

...

"Looks like we're the first ones here, Shun"

"Seems like it"

We've arrived at the arcade, the boy's meeting place at 7 AM sharp. Since we've planned this out already, them being late for 30 minutes wouldn't be an issue...

...

...And just a few minutes after, they finally showed up

"Hey! Shun! Ryuuto! We're here!"

"Aww! Shunicchi and Ryuuichi are the first ones here? I thought we'll beat them to it!"

"You underestimate Shun too much, Blondy. Of course he'll be the first one here since he's the one who planned this"

"Do you perhaps forgot about me?"

"? Oh, I didn't know you were there, Browny"

"Is my presence really that weak to you?!"

"Alright...so there's Yuu, Take, Masa, Ryu, and Me here..."

"That means we're down to only one more person"

"Tsk! That Pinky's got some nerve to make us wait here!"

"Huh? What do you mean, Fuji?"

We looked behind, at the entrance of the arcade, only to see Maria there standing

"Maria?! You were there the whole time?!"

"Why are you so surprised? Of course I'll be here!"

"Um, Maria san, did you forget that we'll be going to the beach today?"

"Huh? Why would I even forget about something so important like that?"

"Then...don't tell me..."

"Yep! I've been here since 6 AM! I figured that I won't be late if I arrive at that time, plus, I get to play here while I wait for you guys!"

'Wow' was the expression that was imprinted in our faces. It was a double win for her since she likes to play. Although Masa's reaction to it was quite different...

"Are we really still gonna bring Pinky, Shun? She looks like she didn't even prepared at all"

"Hey! You don't see me often in this outfit at all! Its a rare sight!"

What Masa was referring to was about Maria's clothes. Maria was wearing a pink hoodie for her upper part and matching it with a skirt for her bottom part. She finished it with a stylish sandals for her feet. Maria is a short girl with a ponytail hairstyle so I'd say the outfit suited her...although I don't think this was the right outfit to choose for this kind of occasion...

"You look like you aren't even gonna go to a beach"

"What does that mean?!"

"You suck! Don't you have any fashion sense?!"

"Says the one who's wearing a plain green shirt right now!"

"Now, now, Masa. I did let Maria decide here if she wants to go with us. If she wants to go, let her be"

"*Sigh*...if you say so, Shun"

"Hehe! Thanks Shun! I know that you're the only one who can make Fuji obey"

"Tsk! Shut up!"

"Now that everyone's here, shouldn't we go now to the actual place?"

"Eh? You guys aren't gonna play?"

"Do you really think we have time to play, Pinky?"

"*Boo* we still have 30 minutes to spare..."

"That may be right, but the address that I got from Hoshizawa san is quite far from here Maria. We might get caught ourselves in traffic"

"I agree with Shunicchi's logic!"

"Same here"

"Me too!"

"Got anything more to say, Pinky?"

"S-Shut up!"

Masa looked at Maria with a smug on his face like he had won over her on something...

...As planned, we all took a bus and headed for the address that Hoshizawa gave us. I was surprised at the address that she gave me since it'll be my first time going in there, but I hid my expression and agreed to it...

*****

...

"...Yep, this is the address alright"

"Wait, are you sure, Shun?!"

"Browny's right, Shun, you didn't got the address wrong, did you?"

"I'm sure this is the place. I checked it two times already"

"S-Shouldn't we check it again for the third time? we might got it wrong somehow"

"No, I'm pretty sure this is it..."

"B-but...THIS IS A MANSION!"

I would have the same reaction as Masa and Ryu right now, but because I'm aware of Hoshizawa's status, it didn't faze me that much anymore...

"Yeah, although I didn't expected this to be this big, Hoshizawa san is really, really rich"

"And yet, commoners like browny, you and I are going to enter there..."

"You're telling me...THAT THIS IS HOSHIZAWA SAN'S HOUSE?!"

"Why are you so surprised about this?"

"WHY AREN'T YOU GUYS SURPRISED?!"

"I mean, didn't you already expected it from a daughter of a ChokoChoko Company?"

"To be honest with you, this seems about right for someone like Hoshizawa san"

"Ryuuichi, A house this big doesn't surprise us at all! Although its a little big than our houses..."

"Ito kun's legs are shaking! That's hilarious!"

Ryu looked at Masa, the last one who hasn't said anything yet

"MASATO! DON'T TELL ME YOU ALSO-"

"Yeah, like Shun, I wasn't expecting it to be this big, but I've seen Musclehead and Blondy's house many times that I've already gotten used to it"

"No way...am I the only one who's sane here...?"

'No, you're the one who's overreacting' was everyone's reaction to Ryu...

...As I've mentioned earlier, this would be my first time going to Hoshizawa san's house. Honestly, I'm a bit nervous to go in, since like Ryu and Masa, I'm just a commoner...

...but then again...Ban san is her father...a friend of mine...

"Hey...do you think her father would be inside right now?"

"Maybe not? He is the CEO of the ChokoChoko Company after all"

"What if he's a strict dad?!"

"But we heard from Shunicchi that he's kind, right, Shunicchi?"

"Yeah, he is"

"Wait wait wait wait! Shun! You've met Hoshizawa san's father?!"

"Oh yeah...you didn't know about that Maria. Long story short, yeah, I do"

"Hoho? Already getting permission from her father?"

"What do you even mean about that?"

"*Sigh* nothing, nevermind that"

"...?"

I tried to understand what Maria was referring to, but we were suddenly interrupted by someone via Hoshizawa's high tech security system

"You guys! What business do you have in here?"

"Eh? Did you heard something, Shun?"

"I did...I think its this thing"

"...?"

Masa, Ryu, and I walked over towards the thing, or what we learned in school named "Gate Intercom"...or something along like that...

"So, you aren't even aware of this technology?"

"Sorry, maam. This is the first time we've interacted with one"

"Hm...if that's the case, are you guys just a bunch of commoners then?"

"I-I wouldn't say that-"

"I'm sorry for the late introduction, Sir. My name is Yuudai Murata, and the one beside me is Takeshi Ishimoto"

"Hai! Hai!"

"Surely you've heard of us...right?"

"Murata...Ishimoto..."

"...?"

"...Murata...Ishimoto..."

...

"! N...No way...one of the big companies?!"

"Exactly right. They may be commoners, but they're good friends of mine and Takeshi's"

"Yuu..."

What Yuu and Take just did made me felt grateful that I was friends with them. I'm sure that Ryu and Masa felt the same way right now

"I-I'm very sorry for being rude, Murata sama!, Ishimoto sama! I hope the earlier statement of mine isn't going to ruin any business relationship in the future!"

"Its fine, we're going to let it slide. Besides, its for our fathers to decide, not us"

"No need to be so formal too, mister...?"

"Shuji, I'm Shuji Nabe, Head of the guards of Hoshizawa residence"

"Nice to meet you! Shujicchi!"

"S-Shujicchi?!"

We all just looked at Take, who already addressed a nickname to the head of the guards as if they're already that close

"*Ahem*...a-anyways...what can I do for Murata sama and his friends?"

"About that, Hoshizawa, or rather, Miu Hoshizawa san said that we'll be meeting here, in her house"

"In here? I apologize in advance, but we've never received any orders from Miu Hoshizawa sama herself"

"Eh? Is that so? Shun? Didn't Hoshizawa san told you that this will be the place that we'll all meet?"

"Yeah...I even made sure to double check the address too..."

Did I got the address wrong somehow...?

...

"W-wait! Is there someone named Shun in there?"

"Yes, that'll be me"

I came closer to the monitor so that the head guard can see me clearly

"Shun...Amagasa?"

"Yes, that's me"

Its as if the Nabe san, the head of the security, sweated bullets nonstop when he finally knew that it was me

"I-I-I'M SO SORRY FOR BEING RUDE TO YOU! AMAGASA SAMA!"

"E-EH?!"

"IF BAN SAMA KNOWS ABOUT WHAT I JUST DID, I MIGHT GET PUNISHED! WORSE, I COULD EVEN GET FIRED! I'LL DO ANYTHING SO PLEASE DON'T TELL HIM!"

I tried to make Nabe san calm down as he took a deep breath a few times

"Um...can you tell me what happened...?"

"A-As you wish!"

"You don't need to be so formal with me so suddenly..."

I preferred the way how he talked to me earlier to be honest...

"Ban sama instructed me that someone by the name of Shun Amagasa will come today. As his good friend of his, he ordered me to give that man the best service that he can get"

"W-what?! Ban san said that?!"

I know that Ban san would go through such lengths, but I didn't expected this!

"A good friend of his...huh?"

"Looks like we didn't even need to use our status here, Takeshi"

"And I thought I was going to be some sort of hero to Shunicchi today!"

"As expected of Shun, nothing like browny over here"

"I'm so jealous! I can't even make moves on Hoshizawa san's father yet!"

Aside the side comments of my other friends, Ryu sounds like he meant that in a different way than what he intended it to be...

"If you would be so kind...PLEASE DON'T TELL BAN SAMA ABOUT THIS!"

"C-Calm down, Nabe san! I won't be doing that even if you didn't told me to!"

"Thank you, Amagasa sama! I'm relieved that there's still commoners like you out there, You really are a good friend of Ban sama!"

"I didn't do anything at all to be thanked at..."

Seriously...I didn't even do anything at all...

"I shouldn't keep you waiting, I'll open the gates now. Please wait for approximately five minutes"

"Okay, thank you, Nabe san"

"Shuji's fine, Amagasa sama"

"I would appreciate it if you drop the honorifics though..."

Nabe san didn't seem to heard the last bit of what I've said and instead went ahead to open the gate for us

...

After five minutes had passed, the brown, thick, wooden gate opened slowly, showing the inside of Hoshizawa's house

"1, 2, 3! We welcome you, Shun Amagasa sama!"

"W-w-what's with this kind of greeting?!"

Between each sides, there were guards, saluting us and a red carpet in the middle that was laid out...

...

...was this the reason for the whole five minute wait? If so, then they're awfully fast to prepare something like this!

"Surprised huh, Shun?"

"Shunicchi, although this might be a first for you, this is quite a common thing for rich people, especially for important guests such as you right now"

"But isn't this a bit too much?! We're only here for a short while!"

"Hahaha, you'll get used to it"

Get used to it? I'd rather not! It feels wrong doing something like this for me...that has no social standing whatsoever...

"S-Shun...a-are you...secretly a royalty all this time?!"

"Are you hearing yourself?!"

"Browny's brain already shut down as it seems"

"His legs are still shaking! Hahaha!"

Feeling obligated, I tried to greet every guards that I passed by as we walked down to the red carpet...

*****

"Welcome, Amagasa sama!"

Oh no...deja vu...

After we passed by the red carpet, we then took some stairs to get to Hoshizawa's house...

...Hoshizawa's house was painted in plain white, but has beautiful floral decorations on it. The inside was nothing like that as it was painted in yellow with chocolate designs on it...one might say a weird combination, but oddly enough, its almost appealing to my eyes...

...

After we got in, a new red carpet was waiting for us with this time, maids and butlers greeting us side by side

"Uh...Yuu? When will this end?"

"The what?"

"...Nevermind..."

...

...As I tried to navigate my way in, someone greeted us at the end

"Ah! Shun! There you guys are! Welcome!"

"Ban san! Thanks for letting us in here"

"Its nothing! HAHAHA! Anything for you and my daughter!"

"So that's Hoshizawa san's father?"

"Looks like it, he fits with the description that Shun said to us..."

"Hm? Is there something you want to say?"

Ban san asked while looking at my friends

"N-Nothing at all! Ban Hoshizawa sama!"

"Oi, oi! Why you're so stiff and polite? Aren't you Miu's and Shun's friends? You can just call me Ban!"

"B-but..."

"Any friend of my daughter and Shun here is a friend of mine!"

"T-then...Ban sama"

"Mm! Good enough!"

For some reason, my eyes shifted to Ryu, who's apparently been dead inside and out...

...He was standing there like a statue who can't move or talk at all. I quickly shifted my attention to Ban san afterwards

"By the way Ban san, did Hoshizawa san told you about our plans for today?"

"She did. Although it was so sudden, I made it so that you can have the place all to yourself! You can even stay there for as long as you want!"

"Thanks for going through such lengths Ban san, but I don't even think that we'll stay overnight in there, right guys-"

"YOU HEARD BAN SAMA! LET'S STAY IN THERE UNTIL SUMMER VACATION ENDS!"

"I'M IN RYUUICHI!"

"Hold on! There's no way we would do that!"

...although I can make some excuse...

"I don't care either way, as long as I get to play my games"

"No way! We get to stay as long as we want?!"

-Okay...I take it back...

"HAHAHA! No need to be shy! Take all the time that you need if you want to stay in there!"

"Thanks Ban san, but We'll let Hoshizawa san decide for this one"

"EH?! WHAT ABOUT OUR ANSWERS, SHUN?!"

"Dude! Its not even our place to begin with!"

"*Chuckles* I'm fine with it, Amagasa kun"

As I heard that familiar voice, I already knew who was coming

"Miu, you're done with everything?"

"Yes father, all we just need to do now is to get ready for leaving"

"I see, is this everyone?"

"No, there are more that will come later"

"If that's the case then I should check up on the food to see if everything's ready. You entertain your friends, Miu"

"I will, father"

I was staring at Hoshizawa the whole time that I didn't even noticed that she was already done talking with Ban san...

...The white, flowered design sundress that she was wearing complimented the light brown cardigan that she was also wearing on top of it...

...She topped it all off with a straw hat for her head and cute sandals for her feet...

"..."

"...Um...Amagasa kun...you've been staring at me for a while now..."

"O-oh, um! Sorry..."

"Its okay..."

"O...okay...?"

...

...Is it just me, or was Hoshizawa happy about it?

...

...No...of course she wouldn't be...

...if anything, I looked like a creep just now!

"Miu! Sorry we took a while!"

"Its fine! You're just in time. Welcome to my home, Fay, Maki, Risa!"

"Uwa- first name basis...I can't compete with that!"

"Dude, of course they would be that close to each other!"

"Amagasa kun! Let me introduce you to my friends!, From the furthest to my right here is Fay Fujiwara"

"Hello! I'm Fay! You can call me whichever you like!"

Fujiwara had a brown ponytail hair, hazel brown eyes, and proportioned body waist. To me, it looks like she's the type of person who can be described as "classic of the classics"

"I feel like someone called me classic just now!"

Yikes! Her intuition was sharp just now! She's just like Ryu!

"Next to Fay is Maki Imai"

"Sup, I'm Maki. I prefer it if you call me just Maki"

Maki, light blue long hair, light blue eyes, shorter than Fujiwara san, but almost the same height as Maria. With those droopy eyes, it looks like she's a listless person...

"And next to Maki is Risa Sakai"

"Hai Hai! I'm Risa! Just call me by my first name! I hope we can be goood friends!"

Risa, black, one side ponytail hair, yellow eyes, and has a..."manly" body waist for some reason...

...with the vibes she gives, she looks like a lively and energetic person...

"So Facchin, Makicchin, and Risacchin!"

"Fa-Facchin?!"

"Risacchin...not bad!"

I guess I shouldn't be surprised about Take addressing nicknames to everyone that he meets, I mean, he already did it to Nabe san...

"I guess I should introduce these guys then. From my furthest left is Masato Fujioka"

"I'm Masato, but you can call me Fujioka"

"S-Sure..."

Uwa- shouldn't it be the other way around?!

"*Ehem*, Next to Masa is Takeshi Ishimoto-"

"We already knew about Takeshi kun, he's popular at school. Being the Basketball club's ace and all"

"I might be the ace, but someone else here is even more surprising!"

Take looked at me as he said that, trying to avoid it, I quickly introduced the next person

"I'm pretty sure you also know Yuudai Murata then, since he's the captain of the basketball club"

"Yep! The walking wall of the basketball team!"

"Walking wall?"

After hearing that from Risa san, I looked at Yuu to get some answer

"Stop it! Its embarrassing to hear that title!"

Wow, this is the first time I'm seeing Yuu getting embarrassed over something...

"He got that title because whenever he's in the court, there's no one who can pass his defensive plays!"

"...Yet someone did..."

"Eh? Who?"

Yuu subtly looked at me after that statement, making it not noticeable for Risa to see. I immediately introduced the next person while clearing my throat

"*Ahem* anyways, next to Yuu is-"

"I'm Maria Kaneko! You can call me Maria, Kaneko, or whatever you prefer! Nice to meet you ladies!"

"Why you're talking like you're roleplaying some sort of a bad boy?"

"Your introduction to us was a bit boring, so I spiced it up a little bit!"

"There's hardly any change at all!"

While I was arguing with Maria, Hoshizawa seemed to be looking at Maria for a while now...

"..."

"Hoshizawa san? Is there something wrong? You look like you've seen a ghost or something"

"H-huh?! Oh, yes..I'm fine..."

Suddenly, Risa smacked Hoshizawa's back, it wasn't that hard, but definitely hit a spot

"Don't think about it too much, Miucchi!"

"O-Okay..."

"...?"

"Finally! Its my turn! I'm-"

"Ryuuto Ito"

"Ryuuto Ito"

"Ryuuto Itocchi!"

"-Y-yeah...that's me..."

Looks like he was looking forward to the introduction. I bet he came up with something for his introduction part that's why he was so eager about it...

...Well...too bad that he's so popular in school like Take that he didn't got the chance to do it...

"Then lastly, I'm-"

"Oh, We also already know about you, Amagasa kun!"

"Oh? Is that so?"

"Yep! Miucchi here told us many things about you!"

"Many things. Including the part where she's-"

"Stop right there"

"*Mmf?!*"

"Ahaha...don't mind it, Amagasacchi!"

...A...Amagasacchi...

...

They quickly covered Maki's mouth from saying anything. I was curious about the last bit, but if her friends don't want to share it, then I won't gonna pry it further...

...

...A few minutes later, someone called Hoshizawa

"Miu! Food's ready! Get your friends here to eat with us"

"Yes father! We'll be there in a minute!"

"DID YOU HEAR THAT SHUN?! WE'RE ABOUT TO TASTE SOME FIVE STAR MEALS! THE FOODS THAT ONLY RICH PEOPLE GET TO EAT!"

"You bounced back quick. You seem pretty gung-ho about this"

"Aren't you?! This will be our first time you know!"

"I can't disagree with that, *chuckles*"

"Are you ready to go? Amagasa kun?"

"Yep, we'll be right behind you, Hoshizawa san"

Hoshizawa lead the way as we walked down the hallway to go to their dining room to eat...

*****

...

"Man! I'm stuffed!"

"You sure did ate a lot back there, Ryu"

"Of course I did! Its a once in a lifetime you know!"

"I want to argue with what you just said browny. Take myself as for example, after I ate at Musclehead and Blondy's houses, foods like that are just a common thing for me now"

...I don't think that connects to what Ryu had just said. Moreover, was it just me, or Masa's asserting his dominance over Ryu just now?

"The chefs back at our home also makes those kinds of foods, but I've never experienced that level of taste"

"Same here! And here I thought that the dishes would just be the same as ours"

"Can't we just appreciate that Hoshizawa san even treated us breakfast? Like, we didn't expected this at all! Right, Shun?"

"Yeah, you're right"

To be honest, I thought that we'll be eating at the beach once we got there, but it seems like Hoshizawa already prepared everything including this...

I mean, I should've expected of Ban san of all people, but do rich people always do these kinds of things? It felt like I was too lucky to be friends with Hoshizawa and Ban san...

...I know this might be silly to ask now, but I wonder what they truly think of us, of me? A commoner...?

...

While my mind was preoccupied, I sensed a glare that was directed towards me...

...That glare came from Hoshizawa san, who was in front of us...

...

...wait...I don't think she's looking at me at all...

...

...it looks like she's looking at...Maria...?

"Hey...Maria..?"

"? What?"

"Don't you notice something?"

"What are you talking about-"

She quickly noticed what I was talking about and decided to not make a fuss about it, instead, it looked like she was about to do something else

"Ho...?...Hehehe, I see now..."

"What do you mean by that- whoa!"

"Shun! Give me a piggyback ride!"

"What's with you all of a sudden?!"

"Just do as I say!"

"No! Find someone else to do it for you!"

I was struggling to get off from Maria's arms that was wrapped around me

"Pinky's acting childish again"

"M-Maria san, I don't think this is the right time to do that kind of thing"

"Seriously, Maria! Stop it! You're being rude to Hoshizawa san and-"

-Wait...

...

...what's with this atmosphere...?

...

...When I looked around, I saw the corner of Hoshizawa's eyes, slowly turning into a void, like a death stare that was directed at Maria...

...

...or rather...to us...

...

...Hoshizawa was about to take a step between us when suddenly-

"Now, now, Mariacchi!"

-Risa san stepped in instead

"M-Mariacchi?!"

Why do I felt like I've seen this kind of attitude in someone before? 

"Us girls want to know more about you! Shouldn't you be hanging out with us girls instead of boys?"

"What's that supposed to mean, Risacchin?!"

"Figure it out, Ishicchi!"

"I-Ishicchi?!"

Uwa- he got a taste of his own medicine just now!

"Come with us, Mariacchi!"

"W-wait! Don't pull me in so suddenly!"

Risa san then pulled Maria from our group to their group. She then smacked Hoshizawa's back again and said something to her that made her flustered. I don't know what Risa san said to her just now, but it definitely helped to snap Hoshizawa back to reality...

After eating and walking down the hallway back to the main entrance, all that was left to do was for us to leave and head on to the beach, to which Hoshizawa said that Ban san had prepared for us a car to get there. I want to refuse because what they're already doing for us was too much, but I kept my mouth shut to respect their efforts...

*****

...

...After a few more hours of travelling, we finally reached our destination

"Whoaaaaa!"

"ITS THE BEACH!! (Umi da!!)"

We were all amazed at the beautiful scenery of the beach that Ban san had in store for us. It was quite far away from Hoshizawa's house, if I were to calculate it, it would take approximately 2 hours for us to go here without any traffic...

...and it just so happens that there's hardly any traffic at all when we got here, so the road trip was a smooth sailing

In addition, the beach itself had far surpassed my expectations! I was already imagining something big, but I didn't expect it this!

The beach was shaped in a crescent moon when looked from above. The right side of the beach was like a jungle of some sort, but safe for us to go through...

...As for the left side, there is a dock and lots of rocks where seashells can also be found and picked

In front of us was a massive land, perfect for whatever we wanted to do with it!

...And lastly, behind us was 2 cottages that's colored blue and pink. I assume we can use those cottages because Ban san told us that we can stay in here...

"This is nothing like the beach that we have!"

"For reals, Yuuchin! This is massive!"

"And we get to stay here as long as we want? Isn't this a bit too much?"

"What are you on about, Fuji? Of course that's normal!"

"That kind of hospitality isn't normal at all!"

"Miu! I didn't know you own the biggest beach here!"

"My senses tells me that I can stay in here forever! Can I, Miucchi?!"

"If you do that, how are you going to survive here?"

"*Pout* Maki's too realistic!"

"I'm just stating the facts"

"*Chuckles* This is also my first time coming in here, so I'm glad that you guys like it"

"If this is Miucchi's first time, then we'll just have to go here many times!"

"Yep"

"Definitely"

"Ahaha..."

I'm glad that Ryu and I asked Hoshizawa out to go to the beach. She now gets to try new things that she hadn't experienced yet in the past. Although we're here to have fun, I still hadn't forgotten about my promise to her, for her to have the best time of her life...

...yet...there's that matter that I need to settle with her...

"..."

"Amagasa kun? Is something wrong? Do you perhaps...don't like this place?"

"H-Hoshizawa san?!- *ahem* n-no! That's not it! I'm quite fascinated by it to be exact"

"Then...may I ask? What's with the look on your face just now...?"

"Oh...uh..."

"...?"

...

Should I tell her?...

...

...no...I think I know a place where we can talk it out...alone...

"Amagasa kun...?"

"Hoshizawa san!"

"Y-yes?!"

"Can we meet up later? At the dock? There's something I want to tell you. Its important"

"Oh..."

...

"...E-EH?!"

"Can't you...?"

"Y-yes I can...but...what will be talking about...?"

I wanted to talk to Hoshizawa about the rumors about us that we're spreading around in our school. I don't want anyone to come and eavesdrop on us, so I summarized the whole thing for her for now...

"Frankly speaking, its about us..."

"W-What?!"

"...?"

...Why's she getting redder and redder all of a sudden? 

"Y-Yes! I'll be there!"

"Thank you, Hoshizawa san. How does 3pm sound?"

"Y-Yes!, That's fine for me!"

"Are you sure you're fine with it? You seem to be fidgeting about it, Hoshizawa san"

"I-its nothing! I'm fine, really!"

"If you say so..."

"I-I'll be heading back to my friends now!"

"Yeah, sure..."

Hoshizawa ran back to her friends as fast she could...

...wait...

"Aren't we missing one person here...?"

...I turned around, only to see someone in the car who doesn't want to get out of it

"S-Sir! I beg you! Please get out of the car!"

"No! I don't want to! I'll never get to experience to ride in this thing once I get out! Just let me stay here for 3 days!"

"W-we can't do that sir!"

*Sigh*...it was Ryu, who apparently, doesn't want to leave from the car, the limousine car...

"What are you doing, Ryu?"

"SHUN! JUST IN TIME! PLEASE TELL THIS GUY TO LET ME STAY HERE FOR A LITTLE WHILE!"

"Amagasa sama, please get your friend off from the car, I was only instructed to take you here"

"Sorry about my friend, I'll take him out"

"NOOO! HOW COULD YOU BETRAY YOUR OWN BEST FRIEND!!!"

"Dude, this isn't even ours to begin with!"

I pulled out Ryu from the car, making him slipped through the sand. The driver quickly hopped in the car and drove off...

...

"NOOOOO! MY LIMOUSINE CAR!!!"

"IS THAT CAR MORE IMPORTANT TO YOU THAN WHAT'S IN FRONT OF US?!"

"Huh? What do you mean-OH! ITS THE BEACH!!!"

He bounced back the moment he turned around to see the beach itself

"Did you really just forgot what we came here for?"

"H-huh?! N-no! That's absurd!"

"...So you did..."

"I think your reaction's a little too late, Ryuuichi"

*Nod* *nod*

"Can't you just give me a little bit of time to be amazed?!"

We all laughed at Ryu, who was late to react to everything...

...

"Now we're here, lets unpack all of our things"

"Yeah, we should, but..."

"Yeah Musclehead, where should we start?"

"Uh..."

...

We were reminded of the abundance of food that Hoshizawa brought along. Hoshizawa and the others also brought beverages, but all of them are juice beverages. The beverages that Yuu brought however were sodas. The ice packs that Take brought along should be enough for the most part but aside from that...

...I think we brought a lot of things...

It should've been lesser than what we've planned from the start because everything's already at the beach. There's beach furniture and the cottages have already necessities from what I've heard from Ban san. All that's really left for us to bring was foods and beverages...

...But because of our poor planning, the oversupply of food made us guys so lost at where we should even start off with...

"Sorry boys! I think Miu and us girls packed too much!"

"Haha. Too much is still an understatement"

"Masa?! Your eyes seem dead!"

"Before I could even play video games here, we'll have to do some labour. Hahaha. This is fun"

"Masacchin lost it!"

"Masato! Come back to us!"

"C'mon guys! I don't think it'll take us that long!"

After Ryu had said that, he picked up one of the things and placed it somewhere else, only to see that what he just did didn't made any visual changes at all...

"..."

"..."

"..."

...

"...Shun, I think I had enough fun for today"

"STOP SAYING THAT WITH A SMILE ON YOUR FACE!"

"NOOOO! IT'LL TAKE US YEARS BEFORE WE COULD EVEN GET TO HAVE FUN IN HERE!"

"Look, I know this is a lot, but trust me Ryu, we'll be having the fun we need once we get everything done"

"Shun..."

"And besides, Hoshizawa san and the girls made every effort that they could do, we shouldn't waste that, am I right?"

"*Sigh*...you're right..."

"Now you said it, Shun!"

"Alright! I'm raring to go, Shunicchi!"

"I guess video games can wait, lead the way Shun!"

"Alright, lets do this!"

"YEAH!"

"Woah, they're into it now!"

"Amagasacchi has that leader spirit in him!"

"Cool, I'm seeing free labor here"

"Amagasa kun..."

...

Just like that, we worked on to unpack the thing that was in front of us, what it seemed like a mountain of provisions and equipment that's waiting for us to climb and conquer it. The girls offered a helping hand at first, but we refused and said that they can just go roam around or wait until we're done...

...

Before they eventually took up the offer, I saw Hoshizawa in the corner of my eye looking at us with both of her hands at her chest. Risa san walked up to her and grabbed her hands as she took away Hoshizawa san just like that...

...

...I wonder if Hoshizawa felt bad about what she did...? This isn't a bother at all though...

I shifted my attention to what's in front of me and quietly started on unpacking the things with Ryu and the others...

*****

(Hoshizawa's POV 10)

"Aww! Why do I have to go with you guys? I'd rather check the cottage back there..."

"That won't gonna do, Mariacchi!"

"..."

We were walking near what it seemed like a jungle of some sort. Amagasa kun told us that we can take a stroll while we wait for them to get finish...

"..."

"Miu? Are you still worrying about what happened back there?"

"I was...I didn't know that I packed too much..."

"Don't let it get to you! It's not like they said anything bad about it!"

"They just got surprised at the amount, Mi"

"...yet..."

"Yet...?"

"Amagasa kun didn't said anything about it...he looked at it in a different way..."

"I was surprised about Amagasacchi too! I thought that he would also have the same reaction!"

"I guess we're starting to know now why Miu loves him so much"

"Uuu...he's too kind..."

"A pouting Miu! Quick Maki! Take a picture!"

"Oh too bad, I left it somewhere in our pile of equipment"

"What?! That's unfortunate!"

"That reminds me, Mariacchi"

"What?"

"Do you like Amagasacchi?"

"!"

I quickly looked at Maria san to also know her answer...

"Huh? Shun? We're just good friends!"

"Sooo, no any romantic feelings at all?"

"I don't even see him that way. I'm sure the same goes for him too. He barely even sees me!"

"You heard that, Miucchi? She doesn't like Amagasacchi!"

"...Yes..."

I felt relieved to know that Maria san doesn't have any feelings for Amagasa kun...

...For some reason, I let my guard down around her even more after I heard her answer...

"Oh yeah, Hoshizawa san likes Shun, right?"

"So you knew about it too?"

"Knew about it? From a girl's perspective, isn't it kinda obvious?"

"Well...you are quite right about that..."

"If you knew about it, then why did you do something like that earlier Maria san? Asking Amagasacchi about giving you a piggyback ride"

"Oh that? I was teasing Hoshizawa san"

"Eh? Teasing her? Why would you even do that?"

"Eh? Why not? Doesn't it irritate you guys? Hoshizawa san should just ask Shun from the get go, he'll say yes for sure!"

"Well, you're right about that, but that doesn't irritate us at all"

"Eh? Seriously?"

"We respect Miucchi's decision, Mariacchi!"

"Yep"

"I want to...take my time to know more about Amagasa kun myself before I confess..."

"Are you really fine with that, Hoshizawa san? You know if you take too long, he might get taken away from you"

"T-thats!...I don't think that'll happen..."

I know the possibility of that might happening, I know!...

...but...

"You're a girl yourself, Hoshizawa san. Although we don't see the reason why you fell in love with him, some other girl might fall for him on under the same reason as you!"

"! N-no! I don't want that! He's mine!"

"Annnd there you have it, Hoshizawa san's true personality...well...some of it..."

"E-eh...?"

"You guys realized it too, right?"

"We really can't say we do, but we do feel Miu's affection towards Amagasa kun is very deep"

"So deep like I think Miucchi will do anything for him!"

"You're stretching it, Risa... although I can imagine Mi doing something that"

"Uuu...You girls are teasing me again..."

"Now were we? Oh yeah, that's right. Don't you notice it yourself, Miu?"

"Huh...?"

"The one that's within you, your true feelings"

"What do you mean by that...?"

"You've been suppressing it subconsciously, Hoshizawa san"

"Eh?! Isn't this my true feeling?"

"What we meant by that is, you've been holding yourself back. You're making your heart suffer from it"

"Suffer my heart...?"

"I don't understand it either! Makicchi, explain to us!"

"To make it simple and precise, let what your heart and mind wants to let out, Mi"

"Huh...?"

"If you want to say something to Amagasa kun, say it. If you want to do something for him, do it. Don't chicken out, just throw every feelings that you have for him"

"B-but!-"

"You can't, right? Well, not for now, but when the time comes that you really feel you can't take it anymore, just let it all out to him"

"..."

I understand what they were trying to say...what they're trying to convey...

...

...to be honest, I'm scared, I'm scared that Amagasa kun would get creeped out at me for having this kind of affection for him...

...too scared that I didn't even realized that I subconsciously sealed that intense feeling...

...

...and now I've even made my friends worry about it...

...they may be right...but still, I don't want this feelings that are deep within me to go out...

...who knows what kind of person I'll be if that happens...

...and what Amagasa kun would think if he sees that side of me...

I gave a half hearted response to them

"Thanks, I'll definitely take your suggestions to heart, Fay, Maki, Risa, Maria san"

"S-sure..."

I gave a forceful smile that made them not entirely convinced...

...As if Risa sensed the awkward tension, she stepped in to break the ice

"How about we go back to where the boys are now, Miucchi?"

"Y-yes...I think we should"

"About time! I wanna check out the cottages!"

"I wonder what our cottage looks like from the inside"

"You better not go in there just to lay there all day now, Maki"

"I-I'm already busted!"

"*Sigh*...so you were planning it..."

We decided to head back to where the boys are to see if they were done unpacking our things as I put everything on the back of my head about the conversation that we had just now...

(End of Hoshizawa's POV 10)

*****

...

"And here's the last one!"

I put down the last equipment that was seemingly waiting for me to get picked up

"WOOO! I CAN'T BELIEVE WE FINISHED ALL OF THAT!"

"Shut up, browny! You only lifted things that were light!"

"H-Hey! That's mean! I still helped didn't I?"

"That can be hardly called help at all!"

"Now, now, Masato. Ryuuto still helped out, didn't he?"

"Although I didn't felt it that much, Ryuuichi still did something!"

"Thanks for the backup guys, but for some reason, what you just said to me hurt even more than what Masato had just said!"

"What matters is that we're done, right? Now all that's left is to wait for the girls to come back and change into our swimsuits"

"AH! THAT'S RIGHT! WE GET TO TASTE ONE OF THE SCENES FROM ANIME, THE SWIMSUITS REVEAL!"

I was expecting Takeshi or Ryu to outburst that line, but unexpectedly, Yuu was the one who said it

"That's rare coming from you, Yuu"

"You guys should be looking forward to it! This is one in a million chance!"

"I don't know about that, Yuu. You can always see girls in swimsuits in any beaches"

"BUT THIS TIME IS DIFFERENT! AREN'T YOU GETTING IT?!"

"About what?"

"I'm talking about Hoshizawa san! We're gonna see her and her friends in their swimsuits!"

"Yuuchin's being unfaithful to his Ina chan!"

"Unlike your Amy chan, Ina chan doesn't mind about these kinds of things"

"W-what did you say?! Amy chan is far better than Ina chan!"

"Oh boy...here we go again..."

"Let them be Shun, We already know that Risha chan won by a landslide"

"Please...don't add any more fuel to the fire, Masa"

...

...While they were arguing, the girls finally came back to check up on us, only to see that we're already done unpacking

"Wow! That was fast!"

"Hehe! You underestimated us!"

"Dude, it sounds less convincing coming from someone who only lifted light things"

"Well then, since you boys are already done, shall we go ahead and change into our swimsuits?"

"Hai, hai! I want to change right now!"

"I wasn't asking you, Risa"

"Yeah, we should, Ryu here looks like he's raring to go to change into his swimsuit as well"

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's check out the cottage, Shun-"

Maria suddenly got pulled over by Fay, who wasn't letting her get out of her sight

"Where do you think you're going?"

"Eh? To the cottage"

"Then why are you going with Amagasa kun and the others?"

"Cause...I can...?"

"Mariacchi you're an idiot! You're a girl! You can't just change in the boy's cottage!"

"Why not? I can just change in a room while they change outside cant they-"

"They're boys! You don't know what they're capable of!"

"You make it sound like we're gonna do something to Maria"

"Haha, we could even care less about Pinky. She's also flat as a board"

"Hey! I still have my own appeal, Fuji!"

"You know we'll not gonna accept this, come with us!"

"W-wait! I don't want to! Guys, help!"

...

...And just like that, Risa and Fay took Maria into their group...

...

...meanwhile...

"..."

"Shun? Is something wrong?"

"Well...its just...don't you think Hoshizawa san was acting a bit sad?"

"Hoshizawa san? No, I don't think so, Why?"

"..."

If Ryu didn't noticed it, then I guess I'm overthinking too much about it...

"Shunicchi! Ryuuichi! Aren't you guys gonna come?"

"Yeah, we'll be there in a sec..."

Setting that thought aside, Ryu and I headed off to the cottage to change in our swimsuits as well as to check out the cottage in hand...

*****

"Now were all set!"

"Ryuuto! Are you sure you aren't gonna take a sunscreen?"

"Sunscreen's for babies! And I'm not a baby!"

"Don't come crying for us when you get sunburn tomorrow then, Ryu"

"What do you take me for! Sunburns don't affect me at all!"

That's a lie. Sunburns can't even make him get up from his bed

"*Sigh*...do what you want"

"Well if that's the case, I'll be going in first!"

"Wait! Lets wait for the girls here before you-"

Before I was able to stop Ryu, he already jumped in like a child who can't be stopped

"Seriously...that guy..."

"Ryuuichi really loves the beach, huh?"

"He is, there was one time where he even jumped at the shore"

"Wait what?! He did?!"

"Yeah, he said he saw a rainbow fish, hence why he jumped in to catch it"

"And?"

"Only to find out that it wasn't a fish, but a rainbow bracelet instead"

"I'm not gonna ask how he mistook a rainbow bracelet for a fish, but isn't Ryuuichi a little bit extreme?!"

"That was my thought at first, but as you can see..."

We looked out at the sea to find out that Ryu was already far away from us

"Is he going to be fine in there?!"

"Don't worry, that's normal for him"

"That's normal?!"

"Yeah, apparently, he's talented at it"

"I don't think you can even call it a talent anymore..."

Yuu said as we watch Ryu go over in the middle of the ocean, doing the butterfly style

"You'll get used to it"

"Huh? Who's swimming over there?"

Masa, who just got out from the cottage, also asked me

"Oh, that's Ryu"

"What? That's browny over there?"

"Yeah"

"I can't believe a wimp like him was so good at swimming"

"Well, he is"

After all, the guy you're looking at, was the guy who's been winning gold medals in swimming competitions since middle school...

...I wonder why he didn't join in a swimming club this year...?

...

"Sorry to keep you guys waiting!"

We turned around, only to see the girls behind us in their swimsuits

The first one that came out turned out to be Fujiwara. She was wearing a brown, apple designed, two piece swimsuit. Personally, I think it suited her-

"Two out of five"

"Three for me"

"Three for me as well!"

"Three for me too!"

-Are these guys seriously rating their swimsuits?! Fujiwara san can hear you guys you know!

...And since when did Ryu got here?!

"W-well, sorry for being too classic!"

Glad I didn't joined in on their own judging program!

"The boys are already here? I thought we're going to be first!"

The next one was Risa. She was wearing a light yellow, detailed lines, two piece swimsuit. I'd say her swimsuit matched with her whole vibe

"Oooh! That's a four!"

"3.50"

"Four for me!"

"I'd give it a three"

Well looks like her swimsuit was a pass for them...I think...

"Hehe! Look all you want!"

"Don't encourage them, Risa!"

"Ugh...so hot..."

The next one that came out was Maki san. She was wearing a light blue, pillow designed, two piece swimsuit. Her swimsuit definitely reflected her personality...

"This is a two"

"Two"

"Three for me!"

"Three here as well!"

"Hehe! I'm still winning!"

"What are you guys even on about?"

Just like Maki san, I don't even know what they're actually rating and judging as of now...

"Facchin, Risacchin, and Makicchin are already here..."

"Then that means, the next one might be...!"

As what Yuu had anticipated, the next girl came out of the cottage

"Yep! Its me!"

"..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

...

Oh...we forgot about Maria...

...Maria was wearing a pink, polkadot designed, two piece swimsuit...

...If I were to say something, I'd say that it matched with her hair and eye color...that's pretty much it...

"One"

"Zero"

"No comment!"

"I guess I'll go with one..."

"Do you guys secretly hate me or what?!"

Yes but, actually yesn't?...

...I don't know about Yuu and the others though...

"Glad I'm not below the ranking!"

"Eh?! Fay's crying?!"

"Why are you happy about it?!"

"*Sniff* its okay, Maria san"

"Stop it, Fujiwara san! It feels like you're pitying me!"

She is, Maria. She is...

"Oh! The main dish is coming!"

"Main dish...?"

I quickly looked at to what Risa san was referring to when suddenly...

...she came out

"S-sorry to keep you waiting..."

"...!"

Hoshizawa was the last one who came out of the girls' cottage. She was wearing a white, floral designed, two piece swimsuit...

...woah...

...that's...Hoshizawa...?

...

...There's a lot of things that I can say to her right now, but the best one that I can say to her right now was-

"Beautiful...too beautiful...!"

Crap! I blurted what I had in mind!

"Hoho? Amagasa kun just blurted it out from his mouth"

"You can tell Amagasacchi was telling the truth too!"

"Rather, you can tell it straight from his eyes"

"..."

I tried to hide my embarrassment as she slowly walked towards my direction...

"Ah! Um-"

"Thank you, Amagasa kun..."

"-Huh? Uhh...s-sure..."

I started to panic a little. Thankfully, it didn't came out as weird or creepy for Hoshizawa...She's too nice...

"10 out of five! Best time of my life!"

"Four for me"

"Five here!"

"I'll guess I'll choose five too!"

"What?! I lost to Miucchi?!"

"Of course you will! Its Miu we're talking about here!"

"Um...where did Risa lost?"

"Don't mention it, Hoshizawa san!"

"Yeah Hoshizawacchi! Its nothing!"

"H-Hoshizawacchi...?"

...

Why am I not surprised that Take casually addressed Hoshizawa like that...

"Less talking, more having fun! We're at the beach you know!"

"Ishicchi's right, lets all dive in!"

"Yeah, I guess its about time, right, Ryu-"

I looked to my left, only to see that Ryu was already gone

"Um...Who's that swimming over there?"

"Oh, browny's already there"

"What?! Since when?!"

"Why are you so surprised about it, Shunicchi? Aren't you the one who told us that its normal?"

I did said that...can't believe I'm still not used to it though...

"*Sigh*...you're right...I forgot that guy's weird overall too"

"I'll stay here, I can at least look for our stuff here"

"Masacchin just doesn't want to swim!"

"How about you try to dive in for a change, you otaku gamer"

"Shut up, Musclehead! I'll join in if I want to!"

"Same here, I can at least look for the girls' stuff"

"Ah! Fay! Maki's gonna lay down again!"

"Oh no you don't!"

"Aaaaaah someone's dragging my body!"

That's the most dead response from someone who's calling out for help! 

As Fujiwara san was dragging Maki san's body, Maki san didn't resist at all and just accepted her fate...

"You know, I didn't think that I'll get to experience another level of going to a beach. I thought this only happens in animes!"

"Yeah Yuu, you already said that like three times now though"

"I did? It feels like its my first time saying it"

"Anyways, who's the winner?"

"Winner of what?"

"The rating game that you just did earlier. Which swimsuit was the best?"

To clarify, I wasn't asking for myself, I was basically curious! Yeah...curious...

"Eh? Swimsuit?"

"Eh?...weren't you guys rating their swimsuits?"

"Huh? Who said that we're rating their swimsuits? I was rating entirely something else. I don't know about the others though..."

"..."

...I'm afraid to ask about what Yuu was rating earlier since I think I got the gist of it, so my curiosity suddenly disappeared and I didn't further question about the matter...

...

...meanwhile...Hoshizawa was standing behind us, looking at our direction. Being worried and all, I walked up to her...

"Hoshizawa san?"

"Y-yes?!"

"Calm down, I'm not gonna bite or anything"

"S-sorry, I was just happy to see that our friends are having fun"

"Of course they are, its the beach after all"

"Y-yes..."

I know its a normal thing for me to see, but for Hoshizawa san, it was the first time for her to go out with her friends and see them having so much fun at it...

"Aren't you gonna go and have fun too?"

"O-of course! I will!"

"I see. I guess we'll see each other again, at that place"

"Y-y-yes! We will!"

And with just that, Hoshizawa, while seemingly fidgeting, ran off to her friends to join in on the fun...

...

"...I guess I'll join with Ryu then..."

I then also went ahead to meet up with Ryu to have a friendly match with him just like the old times...

*****

After a few hours, I came back from a match against Ryu and looked at the time. It was almost time for the clock to strike at 3 pm. I wouldn't want to make Hoshizawa wait since I'm the one who invited her and all, so I quickly gone off to the dock, to where Hoshizawa and I will meet. Hoshizawa already knew that it was time since she saw me heading towards the meeting place just now...

...

"Whoa! It looked like some small rocks from up there, but they're really big!"

When I arrived at the dock, big rocks and seashells were scattered all over the place. I made my way through everything and almost slipped myself because of a seaweed that I stepped on

"That was close! There's lots of seaweed laying out here!"

I wasn't even exaggerating, the dock was mostly covered in seaweed. I tried to clear most of it to make a pathway, but I eventually stopped midway...

...

"It doesn't need to be in the dock, we can just talk somewhere else..."

I said that to myself when suddenly...

...I heard someone calling out my name

"Shun? Why are you here?"

"M-Maria? Why are you here?"

"Hey! I asked you first!"

"Oh, well..."

...

Should I tell her?...

...

...no...knowing Maria, she'll definitely spill everything when she gets back...

"I just wanna check out the dock. What about you then? What are you doing here?"

"Oh me? I was looking around at the beach by myself when suddenly something caught my eye. These seashells! There's awfully a lot here! And you don't see these types of things in other beaches!"

"Oh...so that's why..."

"Oh, I already had this one, time to throw it somewhere else then"

Maria quickly stood in front of me as she threw one of the seashells far and wide to the sea

"Oh! That was better than my last attempt! I should've been throwing in here!"

"Um...Maria"

"What?"

"Aren't you awfully close?"

"Hoho? Is our little Shun sensitive?"

She said while trying to get closer to me

"Actually, nevermind, I don't feel the embarrassment anymore"

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

Maria took a step back and didn't realized that she was about to step on a seaweed that I halfway cleaned out

"Hey! Watch out!!"

"Wa!-"

I instinctively grabbed her arm and pulled her with all my might...

...

...so much that We ended up in an awkward situation...

...

"Ouch...that hurt..."

"Are you okay Shun?!"

"Y-yeah...somehow..."

"I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking at all!"

"Its fine...more importantly, shouldn't you get off of me?"

"O-Oh yeah! My bad-"

"-A...Amagasa...kun...?"

"*Gulp*!"

Oh no...of all the people who could've witnessed us just now...

...

...it just so happens that it had to be her!

...Maria and I looked infront of us only to see Hoshizawa...

...

...staring at us...

...

...in this awkward position that were in...

"..."

"..."

"..."

...Oh no, no, NO! THIS IS BAD! HOW CAN WE EXPLAIN THIS TO HOSHIZAWA?! I CAN'T JUST LIE NOW CAN I?!

WHAT'S WORSE IS THAT SHE SAW THAT MARIA WAS ON TOP OF ME!

WHAT WOULD SHE THINK OF MARIA NOW?! 

"..."

CRAP, CRAP, CRAAAAP! WHAT SHOULD WE DO?!

...

As Hoshizawa stood there, staring at us with dead eyes...

...I was at a loss to even think of what I should do or say to make her believe us...

*****

End of Chapter 3