After Being Dumped With the Insult, “You’re So Clingy!” and Finding Her in Despair, I Kept Encouraging My Beautiful Classmate and as a Result, That Beautiful Girl Started Directing Her Heavy Emotions Toward Me Instead, but Since I Like Emotionally Heavy Girls, It’s No Problem - 17

Chapter 17: The House Next to the Jujoji Residence

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“Haaaaah… That was nerve-racking.”

After finishing the meeting with her parents, I left the Jujoji residence. Maybe because the tension had finally drained away, I felt a wave of exhaustion crash down on my shoulders all at once.

“Hehe♪ Good work. But Dad wasn’t angry, was he? If anything, it seemed like this incident made him rather fond of you, Kokonoe-kun.”

Jujoji offered me words of appreciation. Honestly, I was truly relieved that he didn’t seem angry. To be frank, I had wondered what I would do if he started shouting at me with that intimidating face that could put even a yakuza to shame.

…The meeting ended safely. That was good.

However, even if it was just to keep the conversation smooth during the discussion, I had ended up telling her parents that Jujoji and I were in a romantic relationship. Why had she explained things to her parents that way in the first place?

“Hey, Jujoji, about what happened earlier…”

“Which matter would that be…?”

The moment I was about to ask her for the reason, a sudden loud clank—like metal striking metal—rang in my ears. We both turned toward the direction of the sound. It seemed to have come from the house next door.

“That guy is…”

What entered my sight was Reiji Senkawa, the very person who had been Jujoji’s childhood friend and the one responsible for leaving a deep emotional scar on her.

“See you.”

“Yeah, see you later, Reiji.”

Senkawa was standing in front of the neighboring house’s gate with a blonde-haired girl. The girl waved at him, said her farewell, and walked away.

…Come to think of it, earlier Shiro-san had mentioned, “Reiji-kun next door…” It seemed the house beside the Jujoji residence was the Senkawa household. Thinking that it would be troublesome if Senkawa spotted us, I exchanged a glance with Jujoji. We crouched down together and hid in the shadows of the plants in the garden.

“Now that that jinx is finally gone, it looks like I might finally be able to get a girlfriend too. Heh-heh!”

The “jinx” he referred to was probably Jujoji. I wouldn’t say she had no faults at all, but that was going too far.

“…Tch, this damn gate’s still as hard to close as ever. Making me struggle… Damn you!!!”

Apparently, the metal parts of the gate had rusted, and it wouldn’t shut easily. He forced it closed with brute strength. Once again, that loud metallic clank echoed through the area. So that was the source of the noise. He was as rough as ever.

After closing the gate, Senkawa went inside his house. Once we confirmed he was gone, we stood up from behind the plants where we had been hiding.

“Looks like he didn’t notice us.”

“…Yes.”

Jujoji was clearly in a bad mood. Her voice had dropped in tone, and she wore an expression as if she had just seen something she absolutely didn’t want to see. It was like she unexpectedly spotted a cockroach.

…It was only natural. She had just witnessed a man she once loved badmouthing her and secretly meeting another girl.

“Ah, just so you know, I’m in a bad mood because I had to witness something unpleasant. It’s not because I’m jealous of Banri-san or because I still have feelings for him or anything like that. Please don’t misunderstand. Right now, my heart is completely filled with you!”

Perhaps noticing my sympathetic gaze, she hurriedly tried to cover it up. Her flustered manner left me a bit bewildered.

“O-Oh… By the way, who’s Banri-san?”

The unfamiliar name caught my attention, so I asked.

“Natsuki Banri-san. The blonde girl who was just talking to Reiji Senkawa. She’s in the class next to ours, by the way.”

“Oh, I see.”

Now that she mentioned it, I vaguely remembered seeing her a few times at school.

“She’s a rather promiscuous girl, so I told him to be careful. It seems my warning didn’t reach him. Well, I suppose it doesn’t matter anymore.”

Jujoji muttered that with a weary tone while looking toward the direction where the girl named Banri had left. For a while, the conversation between us died down, and a somber atmosphere settled around us. Wanting to change that gloomy mood, I spoke to her.

“Hey, Jujoji. There’s somewhere I’d like to stop by after this… Are you free?”

“Yes. Of course, I’ve kept my schedule open for you, Kokonoe-kun.”

My role was to heal the wound in Jujoji’s heart. She had just had an old scar reopened and was in an unpleasant mood. If that was the case, then I had to lift her spirits. More than anything, I wanted to see her smiling. That was why I decided to carry out a plan I had been considering for some time.

…That plan was to treat Jujoji to her favorite cream puffs. The Western-style confectionery shop Rokkado, which Musashi had told me was famous for its delicious cream puffs, was located exactly halfway between my apartment and Jujoji’s family home. It was the perfect opportunity, so I had been planning to stop by there.

“Do you know Rokkado?”

“Rokkado… I know it’s a Western confectionery shop that opened recently, but what about it?”

“I heard the cream puffs there are really good. …Actually, I suddenly felt like eating cream puffs. But it’s kind of embarrassing for a guy to go into a pastry shop alone, right? So I’d appreciate it if you’d come with me, Jujoji~?”

The reason I invited her wasn’t just because I wanted to see her smile again… It was also to thank her for everything she had done for me. However, knowing her personality, if I said it was to thank her, she would probably refuse. So I intentionally phrased it this way.

…Now then, how would Jujoji respond?

“Hehe. …You’re still terrible at inviting someone out. Was that why you asked about my favorite things this morning? But I like that part of you.”

The moment she heard that, Jujoji burst into soft laughter. As expected, she had seen right through me.

…Even I didn’t think it was a particularly smooth invitation, but it was the only way I knew how.

“…So, what do you say?”

“In that case, shall I gratefully partake?”

The smile returned to her face. That alone made me happy.

Just as I thought, girls look best when they’re smiling.

With Jujoji by my side, I headed toward the confectionery shop.

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