Chapter 10

“…I really messed up.”

Souhei, Shizuna’s childhood friend, was clutching his head in despair almost the moment he arrived at school. Right after leaving his house that morning, he had spotted Shizuna. They talked often and crossed paths regularly… and unlike the old days, physical contact had decreased, but there was no doubt she was a girl he cared about romantically.

“Shizuna!”

He had called out her name and hugged her from behind… It was something they used to do all the time when they were kids. He had assumed that if nothing else was different from the past, she wouldn’t reject him. Yet, contrary to Souhei’s expectations, she told him she hated it. Part of it was the shock of that realization, but he also reluctantly understood that pulling a stunt like that out of nowhere would earn him the exact same cold response, even from a close childhood friend.

“…I seriously blew it.”

Shizuna’s gaze had been sharper than he expected, and her voice had carried a distinct edge. Faced with a look and words she had never directed at him before, Souhei had fled from the spot as if running for his life.

(…Shishido Ryuichi.)

The pariah of the class, one of those delinquent students even the teachers struggled to handle. Souhei had heard numerous rumors about him, as if they lived in entirely different worlds. And the rumors floating around weren’t just about Souhei—they involved Shizuna, too.

Lately, Shizuna had been talking with Ryuichi a lot. There had been zero sign of that happening before, yet suddenly the two of them had closed the distance. Ryuichi looked bothered by it all, but the fact that Shizuna was the one proactively initiating conversation was something Souhei couldn’t believe.

“…Why?”

He couldn’t think of a single reason.
Souhei didn’t know Ryuichi personally, but he had no desire to go out of his way to talk to him. It was the same as how someone trying to live a peaceful school life wouldn’t willingly get involved with a delinquent.

“Yo, what’s wrong, Souhei?”
“…Toshiki?”

Yamamoto Toshiki, a classmate who could practically be called Souhei’s best friend. He had been watching Souhei clutch his head for a while now, and apparently, his curiosity had finally gotten the better of him. Naturally, though, Souhei couldn’t just blurt out the honest truth—Hey, I hugged my childhood friend and got rejected—so he dodged the question.

“It’s nothing. Just the usual.”

He said that while looking away, but it apparently looked painfully obvious to Toshiki. Still, perhaps picking up on Souhei’s desire to brush it off, Toshiki simply replied with an is that so. Right as those words trailed off, Shizuna walked into the classroom.

A beauty striking enough to draw the eyes of everyone in the room made her way inside and joined her group of friends. During that entire time, she didn’t cast a single glance toward Souhei. It felt a little lonely, but it was also a moment that made him realize how everything had changed from the way it used to be.

“Hey, hey, what is up with Rindo lately?”
“You mean about Shishido?”
“Yeah, exactly. I mean, they never used to talk before, right? She’s definitely being blackmailed.”
“………”

Being blackmailed. Thinking that, Souhei had given Shizuna a warning. However, Shizuna had insisted that wasn’t the case at all. He couldn’t entirely rule out the possibility that she was lying precisely because she was being blackmailed, but Shizuna’s words from that time kept echoing inside his head.

“He hasn’t threatened me at all. Shishido-kun is a good person. He’s very kind, and just the other day, he…”

To those words, Souhei had immediately shot back that there was no way in hell that was true.
The phone call had cut off right after that, but upon careful reflection, Shizuna’s voice at that moment had sounded considerably irritated.

“………”

If… if Shizuna genuinely trusted Ryuichi from the bottom of her heart, then from her perspective, the things Souhei had said could hardly have felt pleasant.

“…Ah.”

While he was lost in those thoughts, Ryuichi arrived at school.
His striking blonde hair, sun-tanned skin, large frame, and muscular build, combined with a sharp glare and the earrings piercing his ears, only served to accentuate his delinquent nature. Inside the classroom, hardly anyone approached him; at best, it was just other bad-rumored boys who seemed close to him.

“Shizuna…”

And with Ryuichi’s arrival, Shizuna naturally gravitated toward him.
As always, Ryuichi looked thoroughly inconvenienced, but Shizuna wore a smile as she chatted with him. There was no sign of coercion or fear; it was crystal clear that she was genuinely enjoying the conversation.

“…Damn it.”

A quiet mutter slipped out, unheard by anyone.
Shizuna wasn’t the kind of girl to get mixed up with bad people—that was something Souhei, her childhood friend, knew better than anyone. That was precisely why Souhei began to wonder if swallowing the rumors whole and writing Ryuichi off as a bad person was actually the wrong move after all.

“You never used to see a sight like that. Is this really okay? Rindo’s gonna get snatched away by that guy, you know.”
“That… can’t…”

He couldn’t bring himself to say be true.
She was someone he had harbored faint romantic feelings for since childhood. Putting aside mere worry, seeing her direct a smile like that toward anyone other than him made his chest ache.

(That’s… right. I’ve just been coasting along, taking our relationship as childhood friends for granted. If I don’t make a move myself, nothing’s going to change… What a twisted irony. To think I’d have my eyes opened to that by Shishido, of all people.)

For just a moment, he felt like he wanted to summon a little courage.
No matter how things turned out, he didn’t want to regret doing nothing. Well, for now he’d keep an eye on things a bit longer—thinking like that was, in a way, very much like Souhei.

“…Achoo!”

During lunch break, Ryuichi let out a magnificent sneeze.
Was someone talking about him, or had he somehow caught a cold? Either way, it was such a massive sneeze that it drew a flurry of stares. Ryuichi didn’t particularly care, pulling a tissue from his pocket to blow his nose.

“…Guess I’ll go kill some time on the roof.”

Since there were still nearly thirty minutes left until the next class, Ryuichi stood up from his seat and headed for the roof. The rooftop was generally unlocked at all times, but since very few people ever visited it, it made for a quiet, secluded spot.

“…Maybe I should drop by that place for the first time in a while today.”

“That place” referred to his regular bar, which he hadn’t visited much lately. He didn’t have any particular plans involving a girl or anything, but dropping by might give the bar manager some peace of mind for various reasons.

“Shishido-kun?”
“Please… tell me you’re not Rindo.”
“Too bad, it’s me.”
“…Sigh.”

Knowing who it was just from the voice alone, Ryuichi let out a sigh.
Shizuna stepped up beside Ryuichi and began gazing out at the scenery visible from the rooftop. When Ryuichi cast a sideways glance at her, he caught sight of her profile as she used a hand to hold down her hair fluttering in the wind. She really is a striking beauty, he muttered inwardly once more.

“Come to think of it, did something happen this morning?”
“Eh?”
“…Well, just a hunch.”

Shizuna’s eyes widened at Ryuichi’s question. Ryuichi had no idea why he had even asked, but simply lacking any other topic of conversation, he had thrown it out there. Shizuna began to speak slowly.

“Nothing special happened, but… well, I just realized all over again that we’re growing up.”
“Are you an old hag?”
“How rude!”

Shizuna gave Ryuichi’s shoulder a slightly forceful poke.
Naturally, an attack of that scale didn’t even make Ryuichi budge. The two of them silently stared out at the view for a while longer, until Shizuna suddenly brought up an unexpected topic.

“Hey, Shishido-kun, about tonight… um.”
“What about what we’re eating for dinner?”
“How did you know?”
“…You were actually thinking that?”

Anticipating her drift from her hesitant demeanor, Ryuichi had tried to preempt her, but it turned out his prediction had hit the bullseye. Ryuichi was surprised himself, but once things reached this point, the memory of that nikujaga’s flavor flashed across his mind. Even though he had already finished lunch, it made his stomach practically rumble.

“I was thinking of heading into town a bit tonight. To a bar run by a manager who takes care of me—well, ‘regular spot’ is a bit of a stretch.”
“Are you going to drink alcohol?”
“As if I would. I’m a minor, you know.”
“You have zero persuasiveness with that look of yours, Shishido-kun.”
“You’ve gotten awfully bold with your comebacks lately, haven’t you?”

Compared to how she was at the very beginning—well, they had only recently gotten acquainted, but Shizuna had grown comfortable enough to speak her mind to Ryuichi without holding back. Surprisingly, it wasn’t unpleasant; her smooth, natural grace at slipping past people’s emotional guards was truly impressive.

“I’ve made up my mind, Shishido-kun.”
“About what?”
“I’m going to tag along with you, partly to keep an eye on you so you don’t do anything foolish like drinking alcohol.”
“You’re joking, right?”
“I’m completely serious.”
“………”

This time, Ryuichi’s jaw dropped open in sheer disbelief.
He had previously been surprised by how much of an initiative-taker Shizuna could be, but nobody would ever expect her to take it this far. Still, putting a stop to this right now was essential.

“Forget it. That’s not the kind of place a good girl should be hanging around.”
“In that case, the moment I decide to tag along with Shishido-kun, I stop being a good girl. So there’s no problem.”
“Don’t talk to me with that twisted logic.”

Shizuna meant it. She was genuinely planning to follow him.

“…Sigh!”
“Fufu~”

What on earth is so funny? Letting out one final, magnificent sigh, Ryuichi gave in.

“Mom, I’m going to be eating out with a friend tonight.”
“Is that so…? Understood. In that case, maybe I’ll grab something outside before coming home, too.”
“…You’re not going to ask who?”
“No. Have a good time, sweetie.”
“Yup~”

Sakie offered a soft smile at her daughter’s joyful voice.
Since she had already told her daughter she’d be eating out tonight, she didn’t have any particular spot in mind yet.

“…Maybe I’ll head over to that place for the first time in a while.”

A bar holding memories of a boy far younger than herself—wondering if she should visit that place, Sakie smiled to herself.

God is truly cruel.