The brilliant July sunshine beat down relentlessly on the dog run set within the spacious park in the city center.
Normally, I would never even consider stepping outside without a specific errand to run, but today my steps were so light I felt like skipping.
"All right, go get it! Rooney-kun, Pii-chan!"
When I threw the pink ball, the Siberian Husky and the Samoyed darted after it with sheer delight. Watching the two race each other, I crouched down and stroked Hulk, the German Shepherd relaxing at my feet.
"You're always so calm, aren't you?"
Enjoying the fluffy texture of Hulk's coat as he leisurely rested his chin on his crossed front paws, my own expression softened into a smile.
"Hehehe..."
This was it. This was the real deal.
This racing heartbeat was a thrill I couldn't experience anywhere else.
I had been so excited yesterday that I'd barely managed to get any sleep.
"Hey, Hatsukade."
Hearing my name, I lifted my gaze to find Shinonome glaring down at me with half-lidded eyes. Her voice carried an intensely chilly edge.
"What is it?"
"This is completely different from the hangout I was imagining!"
Standing right next to Shinonome, Nakina nodded her head vigorously in agreement.
"We've already been at this dog run for a whole hour. Nobody told us it was going to be like this!"
"Don't go lodging complaints with me..."
How on earth was I supposed to know what kind of weekend outing the two of them had envisioned when they showed up?
"This is what I had in mind from the start when I invited you. I told you, didn't I? That I wanted to hang out after so long."
With the doggies, that is.
At that, both of their eyes narrowed in pure vexation.
"Ugh, I'm just Hulk's plus-one after all..."
"Don't use me as an excuse just to meet Pii-chan! Normally it's the other way around! I even went out of my way to pick out an outfit for today!"
Now that she mentioned it, Shinonome was wearing a skirt.
From beneath its short hem, her slender, pretty bare legs stretched out, and her pale skin was... While my thoughts drifted down that path, Rooney-kun came bounding back with the ball in his mouth, his tail wagging furiously.
"Ooh, good boy. Good job, Rooney-kun! You were close too, Pii-chan."
"..." "..."
"So, why are you dressed like that, Shinonome, even though I told you we were going to a dog run?"
"...Y-You jerk..."
"It suits you, though. I think it looks cute."
"Guh...! Ugh, seriously, what is your problem?! Unbelievable! Absolutely unbelievable! Hatsukade, you idiot!"
If she was going to get mad at me even when I complimented her, what was I supposed to do?
With that, I pointed toward a corner of the dog run.
"You two are complaining, but look over there. She's having a blast."
Over where I was pointing, Sakura was playing with all her might alongside dogs she had just met for the first time today...
Nakina, whose eyes had been as dead as a ghost's, muttered softly under her breath.
"Th-That's an exception... You know, Sakura's the type who can have fun anywhere because she doesn't think about anything."
Did she realize she was casually trash-talking her friend?
As for the person who had just been innocently slandered behind her back, she wiped the sweat glistening on her forehead with a beaming smile, apparently satisfied at last, and jogged over to us.
"Man, that was super fun! Best weekend ever! Thanks for inviting me, Subaru!"
Nakina and Shinonome's faces twisted as if they had just bitten into something bitter.
"I kind of feel totally defeated..."
"Me too..."
Even though the weather was this nice, the atmosphere around the two of them was so gloomy and damp that mushrooms might start sprouting from the ground.
"I played around too much and now my throat's parched. Let's all take a break."
Proposing that, we left the dog run behind us.
◇
The park bench lay nestled in the shade of the trees, casting dappled shadows across the ground.
Escaping the blazing sunlight, I let out a relieved breath as a subtle cool breeze brushed against my skin.
The dogs were resting quietly as well, panting with their tongues lolling out.
I sat on the same bench as Shinonome, while Sakura and Nakina occupied the adjacent one.
"It really is unusual, though, for Subaru to ask all of us out. Did you eat something weird off the ground or what?"
"Don't lump me in with you. There was just a lot on my mind that I needed to think through."
When I shook my head at Sakura's remark, Nakina, who had seemingly been wondering the same thing, leaned forward and turned her gaze toward me.
"A lot on your mind? Didn't you just want to see Hulk and the others?"
"Well... it's kind of hard to explain."
I mean, wanting to play with the dogs was certainly true, but that was only part of it.
I wanted to spend time with them and verify something.
Before I went to see Miko, I had gone on a date with Nakina.
However, with thoughts of my childhood friend snagged somewhere in the back of my mind, I hadn't been able to enjoy it from the bottom of my heart. That surely wasn't just limited to Nakina; it would have been the same even if it were Shinonome or Sakura instead.
...I felt guilty toward these girls, who always faced me with such sincerity.
But what about the me of right now?
Now that I'd settled things with my past and was looking forward, how would I feel?
Standing up from the bench, I looked at the three girls.
Still seated, they looked back up at me with puzzled expressions.
All three of them had completely different personalities and vibes.
Yet, every single one of them was incredibly charming...
In other words, if I were to put what I wanted to say simply:
"I realized I wanted to see you guys outside of school, too."
"!? " "!?" "!?"
Saying it aloud made everything click into place.
I didn't want us to just be accidental acquaintances who happened to end up in the same class; I wanted to forge a deeper bond with them. I still didn't know whether this feeling was romance or friendship, but...
A warm sensation welled up in my chest, and a chuckle escaped my lips.
At that, Nakina, her mouth hanging wide open, pointed a trembling finger at me.
"H-Hatsukade-kun just showed his soft side?!"
Sakura and Shinonome's eyes went wide as saucers as well.
"Wait, is this a dream?!"
"Did heatstroke make him see us as dogs or something?!"
That was pretty harsh.
After that, the sheer panic among the three of them was immense.
They bombarded me with endless questions about what kind of change of heart I'd gone through. Brushing them all aside with vague answers, I patted the dogs one by one while pondering which pet-friendly cafe or restaurant we should head to next.
Then, Sakura let out a sudden gasp.
"Oh! In that case, why don't we go work a sleepover part-time job at Subaru's relative's place over summer vacation?"
"My relative's?"
"You told me before that you help out there every summer, right? And that they're always short on hands. Hehehe, after saying something like that just now, you'd be lonely if you couldn't see us during the whole summer break, wouldn't you, Subaru!"
Come to think of it, I remember mentioning something like that to Sakura.
"I wouldn't mind. I'll ask my relatives."
And so, our plans for summer vacation were set.
And... it would turn out to be our first and last summer spent strictly as friends.