A few minutes later.
I arrived at the infirmary carrying Sasaki-san. But it seemed the school nurse was not present.
「Hmm? The nurse isn’t here? Umm… ah.」
Looking around the infirmary, I saw a note on the whiteboard saying “Will be back in 15 minutes”. So I think she’ll be back soon.
「Alright. Then I’ll put you down on the bed for now.」
「O-Okay… got it…」
With that, I gently lowered Sasaki-san onto an empty bed. And she sat down on the edge of the bed.
「Sasaki-san, you twisted your ankle, right? So for now, should you take off your shoes and socks, I guess?」
「Eh? A-Ahh, yeah, right. Then…」
As I said that, Sasaki-san leaned forward to try and take off her shoes. But at that moment…
「Ugh!? Ouch…」
「Eh!? A-Are you okay?」
「Ah, y-yeah. I’m fine… It just hurt a bit when my ankle moved as I leaned forward. Ah, but, I’m totally fine, so you don’t need to worry about me──」
「Sasaki-san.」
「Eh…?」
Sasaki-san was about to say she was fine to not make me worry, so I interrupted her. Because anyone could see that she was not fine.
Then I kneeled down in front of Sasaki-san. She looked at me with a puzzled expression.
「Y-Yamada? W-What are you doing…?」
「Look, you don’t need to think about anything right now, just put your foot here for now.」
「Eh… ehh!?」
As I said that, I patted my knees with my hands. I was telling Sasaki-san to rest her foot on them.
Then, seeing my actions, Sasaki-san blushed and hurriedly replied.
「N-No, what are you saying!? I-I mean, putting my foot on your knees, um… I was just at club activities, so I’ve been sweating a lot… i-it’s dirty, right…?」
「Haha, no need to hold back. Besides, didn’t I say it before? That you can rely on me anytime if something happens.」
「Eh… b-but…」
「It’s really fine. We’re friends, so you don’t need to hesitate about this. No one will say anything if you depend on me a little.」
「Uhh… f-fine. T-Then… here.」
Sasaki-san said that, her face bright red, and placed her foot on my knee.
So I slowly removed her shoes, being careful not to move her ankle too much.
「Nn…」
「Are you fine? Now I’m going to take off your socks, alright?」
「Nn… I-I’m fine. Yeah, p-please do…」
With that, I gently slid off Sasaki-san’s knee-high socks.
I was as careful as possible, but her ankle still moved a bit, and Sasaki-san made a very pained face.
──Light Novels──
──Read Here──
(T-This…)
After removing Sasaki-san’s socks, I could see that her ankle was bruised and slightly swollen.
It’s obvious at a glance. This must hurt a lot…
「U-Umm…」
Worried, I looked up to check on Sasaki-san, and our eyes accidentally met.
Despite the sweat on her forehead, Sasaki-san tried to maintain her usual nonchalant attitude as she spoke to me.
「I-I’m fine. Don’t look at me like that… I’m totally fine… actually, it doesn’t even hurt that much…」
「…No, what are you saying? You’re clearly not fine.」
「…Eh?」
「I mean, anyone can see that this must hurt. If I had the same injury, I’d definitely say it hurts. So… it does hurt, right?」
「…T-That’s…」
Even though it must hurt a lot, Sasaki-san stubbornly continued to say she was fine.
But well, I understand because I’ve known Sasaki-san for a while. Because Sasaki-san…
「Haha, I’ve thought this for a while, but Sasaki-san… you have a habit of putting yourself last, don’t you? Well, I guess it’s because you’re so kind and have this big sister-like personality, always wanting to help others in need.」
「Eh? Umm… w-what are you talking about… all of a sudden…」
As I said that, Sasaki-san looked surprised. But I continued speaking to her.
「I’ve known you for quite some time, so I know that you’re incredibly kind and always act for others, you’re a really cool girl. But, you know, maybe right now you don’t have to act like that reliable, kind, and cool girl? I mean, it’s just the two of us here.」
「Eh… t-that’s…」
As I spoke, Sasaki-san began to look a bit flustered.
「And of course, I know that you’re admired by your juniors and have this big sister-like presence… but I’ve always treated you as just a normal girl, okay?」
「T-That’s…」
「So it’s okay now. You can be honest with your feelings. Because It’s just the two of us in this infirmary. And for me… even if you’re not cool, not a big sister type, just a normal girl, I still want to spend time with you and be friends with you!」
「Y-Yamada…」
I said that while looking straight into Sasaki-san’s face.
She immediately looked down and went silent, but after a while, she opened her mouth slightly towards me.
「…gusu… sorry…」
「…Eh?」
As she muttered that, Sasaki-san began to shed large tears.
「…Gusu… Yamada… sorry, I… I lied… I’m not fine at all… it hurts so much… hic. And… seeing it swollen… I started to get more and more scared… gusu… uhh…」
「Yeah, I thought so. It hurts, isn’t it? And yet you’ve done well not to cry until now… Sasaki-san, you’ve endured so well. The nurse will be back soon, so just hang in there a little longer.」
── Pat, pat…
「Yeah… gusu… thank you… hic…」
It was the first time I saw Sasaki-san shedding big tears like this.
But I wasn’t surprised by her appearance, and I gently patted her head for a while.