Reading further into the diary revealed some truly shocking entries.
"August 20th. On the way back from Mom's Sepak Takraw game, I found a cat in the parking lot. It belonged to a really beautiful girl with black hair who was riding in a massive car. She was so happy when I gave it back! My elementary school name tag was still pinned to my shirt, though, and it was embarrassing when she called me by my name!"
T-this... this was the exact same story Rui had told me!
No way... so Rui and I really...?
"August 23rd. On the way home from Anumate, it was so hot I stopped at a park vending machine for a drink. A cheerful, cute girl there started talking to me! We built sandcastles, played tag, and just had a blast. She went to a different school so I didn't know if I'd see her again, so I gave her my favorite manga as a gift. I'd better start saving my allowance again!"
This one too...!
The encounter in the park Yuria had mentioned during summer vacation...
It matched perfectly, right down to the part about giving her the manga.
"August 25th. I got my last bit of summer allowance from Mom, so I decided to go all-in. I was determined to pull the Pink Ranger from a pack of sentai wafers! But when I got to the candy store, there was this incredibly cute girl sitting on the bench. I wanted to talk to her more than I wanted the card, so I just gave her the wafer. I ended up pulling the Pink Ranger anyway and got to talk to a girl. Talk about killing two birds with one stone!"
No, this was definitely the thing with Airi... Wait, what kind of precocious little brat was I back then?! I was way too eager to talk to girls!
Deciding I wanted to talk to any cute girl I happened to spot... Did my younger self have some kind of ultimate potential where I could have become either a total extrovert or a creepy otaku?
Well, I ended up as the latter, so I'm just a creepy otaku now.
But... it was a fact that those moments had left a deep impression on all three of them.
And if those memories were so important, didn't that mean I was the one they had fallen for?
"Honestly... what does that even mean for me?"
I’d received lewd selfies and kisses on the cheek from them. They'd let me dive into their breasts and stare at them. They'd even let me touch their thighs or look at them with perverted eyes... We were undeniably close, but it wasn't like we were in a romantic relationship.
If they just saw me as a guy friend, what if the confirmation that I was their childhood crush made them lose interest? What would I do if they suddenly got weirded out?
"Agh!! Damn it!! How am I supposed to face them tomorrow?!"
The conversation had gotten derailed by that disastrous dark hot pot, but how was I supposed to react if the diary came up again?
As I sat in my room, head in my hands, a notification from Rui popped up on LIME.
I expected the usual selfie, but for some reason, she’d sent an extreme close-up of her face today.
Her eyes seemed to be teasing me, and her perfectly shaped nose led down to a calculated, pouty duck face, as if she were waiting for a kiss.
Wh-what... is this?
As usual, Rui was just too damn beautiful.
"W-well, whatever. Thinking about the future is a waste of time. Alright... Rui, thanks for the meal. I'll be enjoying this photo tonight."
I saved the selfie and felt the night deepen as I sat alone in my room, the air cooling against my skin.