Am I being simulated by their love affair.

Chapter 329 They're all lying
Amidst the cacophony of chattering like magpies, the boys and girls at the finish line returned to their classrooms.

"As expected, it's someone she likes." The girls sitting in front of Yamami Maki exclaimed, "She's really brave. As expected of Tomatsu."

"After all, she confessed to Matsueda before," another girl said with a hint of gossip. "Everyone thought there was no hope for them back then, right? Now it seems like there's still a chance."

"With that kind of patience, it feels like only she could win over Matsueda-kun."

"I really want to see what kind of expression Matsue-san has right now!" someone said excitedly.

"It's a bit of a shame, though, everyone already knows that Tomatsu likes Matsueda Jun. It would have been more interesting if someone else had drawn this question."

Yamami Maki tilted her head back and scanned the entire playground. The second and third-year students had mostly stopped after a few cheers, but the first-year students still looked excited—after all, it was just an event that didn't even count as a confession, so the impact didn't seem to be that big.

So what? The girl hugged her legs, silently staring at the narrow patch of ground between her white sneakers. The uneven, bumpy surface of the rubber track mirrored her inner state at that moment.

If Yuka has that thought, she can openly express her love at any time. Whenever Matsueda is present, she can try to get the seat closest to him.

Unlike herself, she could only watch from afar as the girl's shoes slowly ground against the lonely pebbles beside the track, the black particles tumbling and disappearing from her sight.

The phone lying to the side vibrated. Yamami Maki tapped the screen and saw a message from Matsueda Jun.

"Sorry, senior."

"I didn't know Tomatsu drew this."

"It was really unexpected," the girl originally wanted to say, but her fingers hovered over the phone keyboard for a moment before she finally just tapped an emoji.

It is a miniature parrot with one wing outstretched, resembling a human waving hand.

"It's okay~", that's what the emoji said.

"Moji, are you ready to go on stage?" a girl standing up reminded her.

"Okay!" The girl put down her phone and walked onto the track.

At the camp of Class 6, Grade 2, everyone welcomed the four returning students with applause.

"Another champion!"

"Now there's no doubt that the class with the highest score in the second year of high school will be the top one!"

As they spoke, they glanced at Tomatsu Yuka and Matsueda Jun a few more times. The distance between the two was no different from when they came on stage, so no one brought up any inappropriate questions.

After all, the students in Class 2-6 already knew that Tomatsu Yuka liked Matsueda Jun—the two girls sitting next to Matsueda Jun were always around him.

Mochizuki Haruka sat down again and looked at the nonchalant girl beside her.

"You didn't plan this all along, did you?" Her tone was unfriendly.

"It's just a coincidence~" Tomatsu Yuka said with a smile, "I didn't expect it to be like this either."

Tomatsu Yuka was very satisfied with this situation. After Matsueda had appeared a few times at the sports meet, several first-year high school girls had casually passed by the camp of Class 2-6. What they were thinking was obvious to the girls at a glance.

Tomatsu Yuka thought to herself, "This is a good opportunity to warn them." She hoped there would be another chance during this year's school festival, otherwise, by graduation, a bunch of upperclassmen might still be wanting Matsueda's buttons.
"A coincidence?" Mochizuki Haruka chuckled; she didn't believe it at all. "Let me see your note."

"I already threw it away." The girl blinked innocently. "The host said it was disposable, so why would I keep it?"

"Yamami-senpai is about to go on the field, let's watch the game." Matsueda Jun interrupted their conversation, looking at the light pink-clad girl standing in the last batter's position.

For him, whether it was true or false didn't really matter. Quite a few people at school already knew about his relationship with Tomatsu. After the brass band competition, the girls had been secretly watching him from outside the window.

The problem is that the senior student is here too. Matsueda Jun has a bit of a headache. Judging from the replies on his phone, the senior student is indeed still upset.

How should I comfort her? The boy pondered as the whistle blew.

The first three relays went by quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was time for the obstacle course race. Yamami Maki reached her hand into the box; she wasn't in the mood for the competition and just wanted it to end as soon as possible.

However, looking at the unfolded note in her hand, the girl rubbed her eyes, thinking she was seeing things. "The person I like."

But the notes inside the box were all different, and there was only one of each. This was something her junior classmate, who was the executive committee chair, had told her.

Yamami Maki paused for a second, then quickly realized something—

Yuka lied.

Why did the girl feel both sad and angry?

I clearly didn't win the lottery.

It's clearly not yours.

Why lie at all?

She turned around and left the track, running towards Class 6 of Grade 2.

"Everyone's looking for someone," Jun Matsue said, looking at the runners scattering on the final 100-meter track. "Why is it that so few people have won any items in this year's 'Borrowed Items Race'?"

"Maybe it's a new trick from the committee?" Tomatsu Yuka's smile faltered. "Is my senior heading this way?"

"It seems so." Jun Matsue looked at the pale pink shimmering in the sunlight. His eyesight was excellent enough to confirm that Yamami-senpai was looking in his direction.

Yamami Maki ran to the front of Class 2-6's campsite, and all eyes were on the slightly out-of-breath girl.

"Sorry to bother you." The girl caught her breath and smiled at the three of them.

"Yuka, could I borrow Matsue-san for a moment?"

"Huh?" Tomatsu Yuka exclaimed in surprise. She had thought that her senior had drawn "good friend" and that was why she had come to find her.

“Of course you can.” Mochizuki Haruka smiled brightly. “The pine branch isn’t hers, you can borrow it if you want.”

Yamami Maki looked back at the track and saw that some classes had already borrowed people and were sprinting towards the finish line.

"Hurry up!" The girl looked at Matsueda Jun, who had stood up, "Matsueda-kun, come with me!"

Stepping back onto the track, Jun Matsueda gripped one end of the baton and looked at the girl beside him, her hair fluttering in the wind. "Is this alright?"

Weren't we supposed to put on an act in front of Tomatsu?
Yamami Maki, panting, didn't say anything, but turned her head and smiled at him. Matsueda Jun had no choice but to follow the girl's steps and run towards the finish line.

Tomatsu Yuka stood on the sidelines, her expression no longer as relaxed as it had been a few minutes earlier. Instead, she stared intently as the host, microphone in hand, approached the Class 3-4 line.

"There are so many classes borrowing people to race today!" the female host said with a smile. "People we like, people we dislike, lovers, and even people wearing hats have all appeared."

"What question did Yamami-kun draw?"

Yamami Maki took a deep breath and looked in the direction of Class 2-6, seemingly sensing the gaze of a certain girl.

"A person who can eat a lot."

In the end, she also chose to lie.

Even if the girl wanted to confront him, she wouldn't do it in such a public place; she wouldn't make such a thing known to everyone.

However, Yamami Maki was equally unwilling, so she chose to stand in front of Tomatsu Yuka and borrow Matsueda.

It was just to tell his juniors something.

Liars always pay the price.

(End of this chapter)