The gym

The faint smell of sweat and fresh wax lingered in the air as Shirou Emiya walked into the school gym, his thoughts preoccupied with the usual—training, chores, and whatever random errand Fujimura-sensei had lined up for him later. He was in his school uniform, though he hadn’t bothered to fasten his belt properly. It dangled loosely, but he figured it wasn’t a big deal. Besides, who was going to notice?

The gym echoed with familiar voices. Ayako Mitsuzuri, the captain of the archery club, was chatting animatedly with her usual group of friends—Kaede Makidera, Kane Himuro, and Yukika Saegusa. All of them were in gym clothes, decked out in tight-fitting tops and booty shorts that left very little to the imagination. Shirou couldn’t help but glance for a moment—okay, maybe a few moments—but he quickly looked away, trying to keep his focus.

At that moment, Ayako’s sharp eyes caught him.

“Shirou!” Ayako called out with a grin, waving him over.

Shirou blinked, surprised but also a little wary. Whenever Ayako greeted him like that, it usually meant one of two things—either he was about to get roped into something, or, well… no, it was always that. He was about to get roped into something.

“Hey, Ayako,” Shirou said, smiling politely as he approached the group. “What’s up?”

Ayako’s grin widened as she pointed at the ropes hanging from the ceiling, swaying gently in the drafty gym.

“Rope climbing challenge. You and me. Let’s see who gets to the top first.”

Shirou raised an eyebrow. “I haven’t climbed ropes since—well, in a while."

Kaede snorted from the sidelines. “Hope you don’t chicken out, Emiya. Ayako’s been working out, you know. She’s not gonna go easy on you.”

Shirou shrugged off the teasing, rolling his shoulders to loosen up. “I’ll give it my best shot then.”

The ropes were hung next to each other, and the gym was suddenly filled with a competitive atmosphere. Ayako cracked her knuckles, ready to prove her athletic prowess. Shirou, however, felt the vaguest discomfort. Something about his belt, maybe? No time to fix it now. He tugged his uniform shirt down and approached the rope.

They lined up side by side. Ayako’s legs were toned, the shorts clinging tightly to her as she stretched, clearly showing off the results of all that training. Shirou tried not to stare—focus on the rope, he told himself.

Ayako glanced at him with a smirk. “You ready?”

“Always,” Shirou replied, grinning back.

They both grabbed onto the ropes, and at Ayako’s shout of “Go!” they began climbing.

Shirou ascended with steady, rhythmic pulls, his arms and legs working in tandem. Ayako was right beside him, showing off her athleticism as she kept pace. For a while, it seemed like a fair match—until, halfway up...