Chapter 37

Ryuichi stepped outside and pressed the call button.

“Hello?”
“…”

To him, his paternal grandfather was not a warm presence like family, but an indifferent and completely negligible existence. There might have been a world where Ryuichi was cherished as a grandson, but at least in this world, there was no family to cherish him.

“…”
“What is it?”

The grandfather on the other end of the phone did not open his mouth at all. He wouldn’t bother calling unless there was some business to attend to, and precisely because he only ever made contact when transferring money, Ryuichi had no idea why his grandfather was remaining silent like this.

“I got a call from the school today. From a teacher named Hamasaki.”
“…Huh?”

The moment he heard Hamasaki’s name, Ryuichi clicked his tongue, sensing that something troublesome was about to happen. It was still fresh in his memory that just the other day, he had happened to walk in on Hamasaki talking with Shizuna during the lunch break. Thinking this might be about that, Ryuichi figured it was a bullseye.

“Finally… No, I’d been hearing things from the school for a while now. So you really turned out to be that woman’s son after all.”
“Ha, you mean having a relation with a woman? Isn’t that normal for a high schooler?”

Ryuichi spat out those words. Precisely because they were high schoolers, it wouldn’t be strange for them to have a romantic counterpart like that. If his grandfather was going to call after all this time, it was unsurprisingly just another matter of indifference to Ryuichi.

“Our relationship is cut-and-dry, but just not seeing your face is a relief. Seeing your face makes me remember that woman’s face.”

I should be saying that, muttered Ryuichi in his heart. He had known his grandfather despised him, and even if told such things now, he had long since passed the stage of being hurt. But whether it was because today was the limit of his patience, his grandfather finally directed strong words straight at Ryuichi.

“…”

Even so, he still didn’t think anything of it. It was probably just his seventeen-year-old adolescent phase that made him dislike only being on the receiving end of complaints.

“I’m also the child of your son. From my perspective, the old man and that psycho hag are the exact same level of trash.”

The moment Ryuichi uttered those words, a roar filled with fury echoed from the other end of the line.

“Don’t lump people like you in with my son!! In the first place, if it weren’t for you people, my son would have… my son would have! Cough! Hack!”

Perhaps due to raising his voice, the grandfather started coughing painfully. It was severe enough that Ryuichi almost instinctively asked if he was okay. Even so, Ryuichi couldn’t bring himself to say it, and naturally so. Ryuichi thought to himself, why on earth should he have to do something like that?

“Hah… hah…! Listen here, Ryuichi, you are a child who carries the blood of that trash. Your very existence made my son suffer! That is your sin!”
“…”

It was as good as being told indirectly that his very existence was a sin. Ryuichi looked up at the sky while listening to the voice coming from the other side of the phone. A clear starry sky, almost the complete opposite of the darkness Ryuichi had known in his childhood, was spreading out above him.

(…Shut up… Shut up, shut up, shut up!)

If it were just being told that he was hated or in the way, he had already surpassed the dimension of feeling anything about it. However, having his very birth denied still struck a chord deep within his heart. Precisely because his mother and father had told him so, words denying his existence were engraved like a curse deep into the roots of Ryuichi’s heart.

“I don’t want to think of you as my son.”
“I don’t want to think of you as my son.”

Ryuichi made an impulsive move to hang up the call.

“Hand it over.”
“…Huh?”

However, even faster than he could cut the call, Chisa, who had somehow gotten behind him, gently snatched the smartphone away from Ryuichi.

“Chisa…?”
“It’s fine. It’s going to be alright.”

With that, Ryuichi was pulled into Chisa’s embrace. As if all the strength was draining out of his body, he dropped to his knees on the spot, and his head was pulled in so that his face rested against Chisa’s chest. She smelled of alcohol, yet along with Chisa’s pleasant scent, he felt a sense of reassurance.

“Good evening, out of the blue, you must be Ryuichi’s grandfather, right?”

Just what was she planning to talk about? Even thinking that, Ryuichi couldn’t move. It wasn’t that he was curious about what kind of conversation she would have, but Chisa’s atmosphere made it impossible to interfere. Feeling the sensation of Chisa’s chest against his face, Ryuichi listened closely.

“Eh? A girl Ryuichi was messing around with… you say? Well, that’s not entirely wrong either, I suppose.”

Unlike usual, it was rare for Chisa to use such a teasing tone of voice with someone. Since voice calls on a smartphone leaked sound to a certain extent, the grandfather’s voice, growing even more furious at Chisa’s appearance, echoed clearly.

“Say, Grandpa, this is out of the blue, but I happen to know a really wonderful boy. His name is Ryuichi Shishido.”
“…”

The hand resting on Ryuichi’s head stroked him slowly. It felt like a mother calming her child, or perhaps a sister calming her younger brother. Of course, Ryuichi couldn’t know for sure, but it somehow felt that way.

“He’s very good at treating girls, and he’s extremely good at making them happy too. Not just me, there are plenty of other girls who love a Ryuichi like that. Oh, that’s right, listen to this. Ryuichi went and saved two girls, you know? He rescued them from some nasty guys.”

Two girls… that was likely referring to Shizuna and Satsuki.

“There are girls who were saved by Ryuichi, who fell for him and got involved with him because of it. In this world where so many people won’t even speak up or try to help no matter how much trouble someone is in, Ryuichi actually saves people.”

What is she trying to say, the grandfather’s voice sounded to Ryuichi. He seemed irritated that Chisa didn’t make sense and was talking about matters of no importance.

“Don’t you think that’s amazing? Apparently, there’s this trashy father out there who doesn’t look after his own son at all and says it would have been better if he was never born. I’m not necessarily comparing them to such a person, but don’t you think a kind boy like Ryuichi is truly wonderful precisely because people like that exist?”

Chisa was smiling all the while. However, the expression she wore next was filled with anger. Though Ryuichi couldn’t see it, Chisa was definitely angry.

“Well, past Ryuichi aside, the changed him is just that kind of person. He’s younger than me, but he’s super dependable, and Ryuichi is a truly good boy.”

Cutting her words short there, Chisa raised her voice and continued.

“Who do you think the trashy father I mentioned just a moment ago is? …Ah, I see, you don’t get it? I’m talking about your son, you bastard.”
“H-Hey…”

Chisa’s words did not stop.

“Ryuichi has the kindness to help someone, the heart to love someone, and the capacity to make someone happy. Ryuichi has what your son lacked. Your son didn’t love Ryuichi, didn’t help him, didn’t make him happy! The precious thing your son lacks, the current Ryuichi possesses!”
“Shut up! You’re nothing more than a loose woman after all! You’re no different at all from that whore who stole happiness away from my son! The words of trash like you hold no meaning!”

This time, the grandfather’s voice was loud enough to be vividly audible to Ryuichi as well. It was loud enough to make one want to tell him that if he made any more of a fuss, he’d start coughing like before.

“My own matters don’t matter, you old bastard. Well, neither I nor Ryuichi have anything more to talk about with you. Even so, I’ll say just one thing.”

Chisa gazed down at Ryuichi. Those eyes reflected only Ryuichi, filled with boundless, gentle affection. Taking a small, deep breath, Chisa continued her words, declaring this to be the last.

“Ryuichi is wanted by us. We are the ones who want Ryuichi. He is by no means an unwanted existence; to us, he is an irreplaceable person.”
“?!”

With a sharp crack, a fissure formed in the darkness enveloping his heart. Ryuichi noticed that the corners of his eyes had grown hot, but he was still too stunned to place his hands over his face.

“I’ll say it as many times as it takes. Ryuichi is not an unwanted existence. If you people deny Ryuichi, then we will prove him right. Because to us, he is an infinitely precious person.”

With those words, Chisa hung up the call.

“…Oh, haha… It’s alright, Ryuichi. I feel like I might have gone a bit too far, but I figured saying at least this much was for the best.”
“…Yeah.”

Perhaps because the call had gone on for a fair bit, Shizuna and Satsuki were peeking over with worried looks. Thanks to Chisa stepping back, Ryuichi’s expression was exposed, and Shizuna rushed to Ryuichi’s side faster than anyone else.

“…Tch… Damn it, how many years has it been since I last cried?”

As if something was overflowing from a fulfilled heart, Ryuichi shed tears after a long, long time. With current events, any relationship between Ryuichi and his grandfather was likely beyond repair—no, it wasn’t a relationship that could have been expected to be repaired in the first place. But Ryuichi thought that was fine. Even if they denied him, there were presences by his side who affirmed and wanted him. Not just them, but his other friends as well.

“Ryuichi-kun, I’ll stay by your side forever. So don’t cry.”
“…I don’t wanna cry. I don’t wanna cry, but somehow the tears just won’t stop.”

Ryuichi smiled as if putting up a strong front. Looking at Shizuna, Chisa, and Satsuki in turn, Ryuichi continued with these words:

“…Thanks.”

It was a short expression of gratitude, but those words properly reached them. It was a starry night sky, but the darkness in Ryuichi’s heart had cleared up as well. There was no longer any need to envy anything, for his heart too had begun to shine, covered in light.