I Was Oblivious to the Subtle ‘Yandere’ Side of My Nonchalant Sex Friend Gyaru - Chapter 28-29

Chapter 28: 

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“Good afternoon, Aoyama-kun.”

On Sunday afternoon, when I arrived at the shop for my shift, I found Asou-san already standing by the register.

“Ah, good afternoon.”

I greeted her without meeting her eyes, feeling awkward, but Asou-san smiled as if she could see right through my timid feelings.

“Ahaha, even you feel guilty toward me, huh, Aoyama-kun?”

“No, of course I do. What do you think I am?”

“Hm, I wonder. Anyway, hurry up and get changed.”

“Got it.”

After I changed in the back and came out, the manager called out to me.

“Good afternoon, Aoyama-kun.”

“Good afternoon, Manager. Did something good happen?”

“Oh, you can tell? Well, I got to see my girlfriend for the first time in a while yesterday, and we decided to move in together next month.”

“Wow, that’s great. Congratulations.”

I said that, but the manager looked a bit worn out. The dark circles under his eyes were pretty bad. Had he and his girlfriend gotten carried away last night?

“Manager, are you sleep-deprived?”

“Ah, well, yeah. Actually, we were fighting all night.”

“Fighting? Even though you decided to move in together?”

“Well, that’s the conclusion of yesterday’s fight. At first, she just vented all her frustrations, and we were on the verge of breaking up. But thanks to that, we were able to talk honestly. I realized there really are things you can’t communicate unless you put them into words.”

“Put them into words, huh.”

When I repeated his words, a customer happened to come in.

“Welcome! Aoyama-kun, seat them at table two.”

“Y-yes!”

After that, customers started pouring in one after another, and I stayed busy until evening without a moment’s rest. But all the while, the words the manager had said kept nagging at me. Time flew by as I carried that restless feeling inside me, and before I knew it, Asou-san and I had finished our shift.

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“Good job today, Aoyama-kun. Let’s head out.”

Once again, I had been asked by Asou-san to walk her home, and the two of us set off toward her place. I thought there was no real need to escort her since it was still light out, but today I kind of felt like talking with her.

“Asou-san, I’m really sorry about yesterday.”

“You’re still worried about that? You don’t have to anymore.”

“I do worry. I was so restless that I ended up making you feel uncomfortable.”

“Restless, huh.” 

When I bowed my head, Asou-san muttered before continuing.

“Yesterday, you went to meet the girl you like afterward, didn’t you?”

“Well… It’s not like she’s someone I like.”

“But you did go see a girl. I mean, you seem like you’d be popular, Aoyama-kun.”

“I’m really not. I’ve never even had a girlfriend.”

It was true—I had never dated anyone before. Maybe it was just because I had never met someone I liked, but I thought my parents’ influence probably had something to do with it too. 

They had fought constantly when I was little. In the end, they divorced, and my mother, who took custody of me, got involved with another man and disappeared somewhere. The divorce had apparently been caused by my father’s affair to begin with.

It had left me thinking that love and affection were nothing but illusions and maybe that belief had been ingrained in me since childhood.

“I see. But… Do you want a girlfriend?”

“…I don’t know. I just feel like I’m scared of falling for someone.”

“Is that because of your parents?”

“Well, something like that. That’s why, when I heard your story, Asou-san, I thought you were amazing. Honestly, at first, I was kind of looking down on you though.”

“Ahaha, you’re way too honest. But what’s up with you today? You’re being really open with your feelings.”

“Well…”

It was probably because the manager’s words were still lingering in my mind.

“But, you know, Aoyama-kun, I think that side of you isn’t so bad.”

“It’s just today, okay? Anyway, look, we’re at your place.”

As her apartment came into view, I felt my guard go up a bit. But today, there was no sign of anyone suspicious. I let out a small sigh of relief as I stopped walking, and next to me, Asou-san giggled softly.

“What’s so funny?”

“Sorry, sorry. Just now, you kind of stepped in front of me like you were trying to protect me, didn’t you?”

“Ah, well… I mean, after what happened before…”

“That part of you is really sweet. Hey, Aoyama-kun.”

Even though we had arrived at her place, Asou-san didn’t move to go inside. Instead, she looked straight at me, her face turning red as she said.

“I… I really like you, Aoyama-kun.”

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Chapter 29: 

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“Haa…”

Alone in my room, I let out a deep sigh. I didn’t know how I should respond to Asou-san’s feelings. I had kind of sensed it might be like that, but… When she actually put it into words, I had no idea what to do.

What words should I have used to answer her? What words should I have used to turn her down? And besides, even Asou-san—

“Fufu~ You should tell your feelings to the person you like too, Aoyama-kun.”

That was what she said before quickly going back into her house.

I don’t get it.

If she really liked me, how could she support my love life with someone else? Or maybe that wasn’t a confession at all, and she was just teasing me? But she hadn’t looked like she was joking…

“…Even when they say it out loud, I still don’t get it.”

I muttered, almost like complaining to the manager, while staring up at the ceiling. Outside, the sky had already gotten completely dark.

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The weekend had ended in the blink of an eye, but I still felt exhausted when morning came. When I tried to get up, I realized—

“…I have a fever.”

Even though it was hot, I felt chills running through me. On top of that, my vision was blurry. When was the last time I had a fever? I couldn’t even remember having one in elementary school.

I had always kept myself on edge. I didn’t want to burden my grandparents by getting sick, and I never even considered taking a break from baseball.

“…This is bad.”

I wondered if I could force myself to get through it, but the moment I tried to stand, my vision distorted from the dizziness. Even just getting to the kitchen for some water felt overwhelming. I should take a day off today. 

“I should probably call the school… Oh, right, I don’t even know the number.”

Feeling a bit uneasy about skipping without notice, but lacking the energy to do anything, I collapsed back onto the bed and closed my eyes.

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“…So hot.”

When I woke up next, I was drenched in sweat. A look at the clock told me it was already past 4 p.m. I sat up, feeling uncomfortable. I was still feeling lethargic, but my body felt much lighter. It seemed like my fever had mostly gone down. But I wondered if the teacher would be mad at me tomorrow.

“…Hm?”

I heard a noise coming from the hallway.

Could it be… A burglar?

Come to think of it, I remembered I hadn’t locked the door last night, thinking Kurenai might come over. Encountering an intruder in my condition would be the worst.

Maybe this is karma for how I’ve been living.

I thought sarcastically through the haze in my head. The door slowly opened. I instinctively tensed up… Only to immediately lose all strength.

“…Huh?”

“Oh. You’re awake… What’s with that stance?”

“Uh, well…”

The one who stepped into the room was Kurenai. She stood there in her school uniform, looking at me with her usual cool, slightly exasperated expression.

“Did you think I was a burglar? Sorry, the door was unlocked.”

“No, it’s fine, but—”

“Here. I made you some rice porridge. I borrowed your kitchen.”

“Huh? Rice porridge?”

“You had a really high fever. Also, shouldn’t you change your clothes?”

“Ah, right…”

How long has she been here?

Before I could ask, Kurenai had already turned back toward the kitchen. I changed into my sweats and was about to bring my clothes to the washing machine. Just as I stepped into the hallway, Kurenai swiftly took my dirty clothes from me.

“Here, I’ll throw these in the washer. Just go lie down.”

“A-are you sure?”

“It’s fine. It’s not like we have the kind of relationship where we’d complain about a little sweat, right?”

“…Yeah, I guess.”

Watching her carry my sweat-soaked clothes to the washing machine without a hint of disgust made me feel my body heat up all over again. And when I returned to my room, a bowl of rice porridge was set on the table.

“Here. Eat this, then go back to sleep.”

“Uh, um…”

“What? You’ve been hesitating this whole time. I only came to check on you because you didn’t show up at school. The door was open, and I found you tossing and turning in bed.”

“But still, doing all this for me…”

“A sex friend can’t worry about you?”

“Huh?”

“Nothing. Just eat already.”

She roughly set down the spoon at that.

“We’re out of drinks, so I’ll go buy some.” 

She said before walking out of the room.

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