Chastity Reversed: Part-Time Life by the All-Girls High School - Chapter 61: At The Very Depths Of Despair

“…”

—“Hey, did you hear?” 

“I heard he made Shuhei and his friends cry.” 

“He’s like a delinquent, even though he’s a guy.”

The opening ceremony.

As it ended and everyone returned to their classrooms, I sensed the attention from other classes.

Rumors were powerful. They spread so quickly—within not just a day, but an hour. Maybe Shuhei, the flashy guy, cried and spread it around?

—“I heard he suddenly changed.”

“Really?” 

“Aren’t Shuhei and his crew at fault too? They’ve got a bad reputation.”

Occasionally, I heard voices of sympathy. Not everyone was against me—I knew that.

But back in my classroom, at least among my classmates—

—“Scary.” 

“Sato-kun is crazy, right?” 

“I hate being in the same class as him.”

And there it was. Over. Wasn’t today the closing ceremony?

We still had three months of school left? Seriously?

“…Haah.”

Flinch

I sighed without thinking. The girl sitting next to me—Kumakawa-san—flinched.

She had thick-rimmed glasses and a bob haircut that was even messier than before. She seemed quiet.

…I felt bad for what had happened earlier. I must have been a major nuisance, shouting while she was in the middle of reading.

“Sorry, I was noisy earlier.”

“…”

“Oh, sorry, talking to someone like me must be unpleasant. I’ll be quiet.”

If she talked to someone like me, she’d end up looking like a troublemaker too. I had to avoid that.

…But that meant I couldn’t talk to anyone.

“Ahh…”

It was over. In this school, I was destined to be alone.

It was dreadful.

☆

Today’s school day felt longer than ever before.

I couldn’t talk to anyone. I spent my time in class enduring whispered insults.

“I’m home… Oh, right, no one’s here.”

I stumbled back home. Akari was—gone.

I had so many things to vent about…

“School’s back tomorrow… until the evening?”

I looked up at the ceiling in despair. But—I’d boasted to my parents.

I couldn’t slack off now.

“Ugh, this is awful.”

I felt too drained to do anything. Thinking back, ever since Akari attacked me, I hadn’t done any exercise or running.

The body shape I’d regained was now a mess. I looked like a skeleton, didn’t I?

I was just skin and bones. And I didn’t even feel like getting back in shape.

“…I can’t muster any motivation.”

I probably had zero energy. I used to be so full of life. Living alone meant I could do everything myself.

I even felt nostalgic for the times when I handled two or three things at once.

“…”

The dishes, laundry, studying for the post-summer break exams.

Everything, everything. I just couldn’t bring myself to do any of it.

So I went to bed. But I couldn’t sleep. I forcibly closed my eyes.

☆

Morning.

Filled with lethargy, powerlessness, and probably every negative feeling in the world.

“…I’m gonna skip school.”

I didn’t care anymore. A whisper, and I felt relieved.

Looking in the mirror, I saw dead eyes, dark circles beneath, like a zombie.

If someone saw me like this, I’d be shot on sight. There was no way I could go to school.

“—Yes, I’ve got a bit of a fever, so I might be absent for a while.”

I lied smoothly to the teacher over the phone.

…Well, I was confident in my acting skills. I fooled my own sister, after all! Maybe I should join the drama club. Romantic scenes were okay!!

I managed to make her say, “I hate you,” and I even dreamed of it earlier. Longing and all, I should never have a girlfriend.

“I’m off.”

I wasn’t sleepy, but staying home would drive me insane.

So I went outside. Aimlessly wandering around.

Just to pass the time. To forget the loneliness—

☆

“A convenience store here…? Maybe I’ll buy a Coke.”

—And then.

In this upside-down world, at rock bottom.

I found that convenience store.