I Got Cheated On, so I Thought I’d Cheat Back and Went to a Group Date, I Ran Into a Classmate Who Used to Boss Me Around and Now We’re Living Together - Chapter 16

~side: Rinne~

“—You! You really went and did something outrageous!”

“The university just told us they’re expelling you. What are you going to do? Hey, answer me!”

Three days had passed since Rinne’s arrest.

She hadn’t been detained and was technically released, but her normal life was over.

Her parents had come from the countryside to negotiate a settlement with Sousuke, whom she had injured. That was helpful, but right now, she was getting scolded in the room she still lived in.

“Your mother and I work hard every day for you. We’ve paid for everything you need. Your rent, allowances, that ridiculously expensive private school tuition, and this is what we get? Are you mocking us?”

Rinne had no words.

She just cried.

“I’m the one who wants to cry. You’re expelled from university… A hopeless daughter…”

“For now, just stay calm, okay? If the police ask for anything, you have to cooperate properly. Otherwise, don’t leave the house. Stay put until we settle this. You can do that, right?”

Her parents said it sharply and returned to the hotel where they were staying.

Rinne stared at her phone and was still crying.

No calls came. She had no one.

Her friends had already abandoned her after her arrest and expulsion. Even the people she had been involved with stayed away once her name became public.

(…It’s over.)

If life had an end, this would be it.

But she didn’t dare to die.

From now on, Rinne would probably live in a world with no dreams or hope.

That much was certain.

◇

~side: Sousuke~

“―Come on, drink up! Forget that mean girl!”

“Yeah! Cheer up, Sousuke!”

That day, my friends Ogata and Nohara had invited me to drink at Ogata’s place in the evening. The news about Rinne had already spread around campus, and my reputation had completely recovered.

To celebrate, Ogata and Nohara had invited me over for a small drinking party at home.

The party ended around 10 p.m. I took the train home and arrived at my apartment around 10:30.

The apartment was dark and empty. Machida-san wasn’t home. She had her own university-related drinking party today. Since we had messaged each other about being late, there was no need to worry.

But… honestly, I was a little worried. I didn’t know what kind of party it was, but the image of college girls at parties often makes me nervous. And Machida-san was cute…

…What kind of party was Machida-san even attending? Her university was co-ed, so there were probably some guys there.

…Why am I even worrying like this? Machida-san is just a roommate… I don’t need to worry.

Still, I cared… about Machida-san. After what happened with Rinne, I thought I didn’t need a girlfriend right now, but.

―Clatter.

Suddenly, there was a noise at the door.

“I’m home! I’m sorry I’m so late.”

Machida-san stepped into the living room, and I instantly felt relieved. She wore a black blouse with high-waist skinny jeans. She sighed as she opened the fridge and poured some oolong tea into a glass.

“W-welcome back… what kind of gathering was it?”

I asked casually and was curious about her party.

Machida-san put the oolong tea bottle back in the fridge and said,

“Ah, it was a cooking club meeting.”

“Ah…”

I felt relieved. A cooking club made sense for her. But I wanted to know a bit more.

“So, um… a cooking club. Are there mostly girls? Were there any boys there?”

“Eh, no, sometimes a few guys show up hoping to meet mostly girls.”

!?

I-I guess guys like that show up sometimes…

“They’re so obvious when they hit on me. It’s really annoying. Why are guys always so easy to read?”

“I-I’m sorry…”

I said it without thinking, and Machida-san let out a small laugh.

“I wasn’t talking to Shiraki~”

“O-of course.”

Yeah… so if she hates those guys, there’s no need for me to worry.

“Oh, by the way, I brought some leftovers. Do you want some?”

Machida-san pulled a Tupperware container out of her bag, with ice packs under it. Inside… There were lots of foods. I could see things like shrimp chili and fried chicken.

“So you rented a kitchen studio for the gathering?”

“Yeah… we made our own food.”

“Ah, so you brought home the leftovers?”

“Yeah. I couldn’t finish it all, so I brought the rest home. If you want some, go ahead. As for me, I’m about to eat mine now.”

She moved the food onto a plate and started to heat it.

I decided to eat too. When the food was hot,

“Here, ah~”

Machida-san fed me while we sat next to each other at the table. My left hand still wasn’t working well. At the party with Ogata and the others, I had only eaten food that didn’t need chopsticks.

Now she was feeding me shrimp chili. I didn’t know if she made it herself, but it was really good.

“Hm. I think it tastes better after the sauce soaks into the shrimp than right after cooking.”

She took a bite herself with the same chopsticks.

…Is this okay? No, it’s weird to think about kissing through chopsticks at our age…

…Anyway, Machida-san didn’t seem to notice, so I decided not to overthink it.

◇

~side: Nene~

Later, during bath time.

“…I just had an indirect kiss…”

Nene was sitting in the bathtub, quietly muttering to herself, and was totally aware of what had just happened.

◇

~side: Sousuke~

“Ah, Sousuke. Aren’t you going to thank me for something?”

The next day at university, Sousuke was approached by a beautiful girl with long black hair.

Her name was Tokitou Umi.

She was a friend from high school who had been spreading the correct story among the girls, countering the false rumors about Sousuke that Rinne had made up.