I Was Unreasonably Dumped By My Girlfriend And Had My Heart Broken. When I Rescued A Beautiful Girl Who Was My Former Classmate And Idol In My Class From A Group Of Yarisa, My Gray College Life Started To Shine - Chapter 29

Episode 29: Becoming an Official Couple Within the Circle

♢

That day, the weather was beautiful in the morning.

The sun, shining strongly in the cloudless sky, radiated its brilliance, making it feel a bit hot even in long sleeves.

It was a perfect day for an outing.

Perhaps because it was a weekend, Ueno Station was quite crowded.

Amidst the crowd, I was searching for Aoba’s figure.

“Hey, I’m in front of some kind of statue!”

Due to the vague message, it was difficult to spot her location.

When it comes to Ueno, there are several statues…and I get skeptical.

As I was about to move to search elsewhere, I caught a glimpse of it: the four-leaf clover necklace.

Finally, I met up with Aoba safely.

She seemed a bit annoyed, pursing her lips.

“Come on, Nogami-kun. You almost walked right past me, didn’t you?”

“Well, you looked completely different today. It couldn’t be helped. Besides, with the hat on, I couldn’t recognize you. It was only when I saw the necklace that I noticed.”

“I still wanted you to notice. Well, I guess I might have overdone it with the tomboyish look. Maybe I put too much effort into it because we’re going hiking.”

Aoba stretched out the hem of her gray parka, looking at her outfit.

For beginners, it was like a perfect mountain outfit.

She dressed in navy skinny jeans, a brimmed hat, and a backpack, all items that anyone could put together.

Despite appearances, comfort was prioritized in her attire.
Even the amount of skin exposed was minimal.

Yet, even in such attire, her charm never faded.

Several passersby had been glancing back at us since earlier.

One particularly tall, handsome guy even muttered, “I want to hit on her,” but Aoba seemed oblivious to such remarks.

“Anyway, I’m glad I wore the necklace. With this, even if we get lost, you’ll find me, Nogami-kun.”

She lifted the necklace to her shoulder and smiled at me.

About two weeks had passed since the day I let Aoba stay over at my place.

She had been using the necklace as promised ever since. I had seen her wearing it quite frequently during these two weeks.

It was reassuring that she was using it even at today’s circle event.

Probably, memories were being overwritten like this, I realized.

“Don’t be silly and let’s go. We have to take a train for an hour from here.”

“Yeah! Um, which platform was it again? I checked it earlier, but I forgot.”

“There are too many platforms, it can’t be helped.”

With our smartphones in hand, we each checked while heading towards the ticket gate.

Although we were a little lost, we eventually boarded the train.

The entire circle was gathering at the nearest station to the mountain for litter picking.

When Aoba and I arrived at the station, quite a few people had already gathered.

As we stood a little apart, we made eye contact with clubmates, and both Aoba and I waved.

Naturally, we drifted into separate circles of boys and girls.

“You’re late, aren’t you? You should have come a year early and waited, you know, normally.”

It was Hayashi, who I had a close match with during the bowling tournament.

“What’s with that outdated senior move?”

“Haha, do you get it? That’s what the seniors in the kendo club used to say such crazy things.”

He said so and suddenly put his arm around me.

We weren’t that close. It was surprising how familiar he was, considering we only met in the circle.

“But you guys seem close. Did you come here after your date at home?”

… He really was an insensitive guy.

“It’s not like that. We just met at the station and came here together.”

“Well, let’s leave it at that. But it’s getting hard to say she’s not your girlfriend anymore.”

“It’s not like that. We’re just in the same department, and we’re from the same hometown.”

“Hmm. Atmosphere-wise, I thought you were already having sleepovers or something. You’re quite reserved, huh?”

Hayashi seemed like a fool but strangely sharp.

His words made others comment, “That’s nice,” “You’re such a lucky guy,” “Just share a bit with us,” as they pleased.

But as long as I didn’t say anything more, the conversation naturally shifted.

Talks turned to what clothes everyone was wearing, what they brought with them, like we were about to go on a field trip.

At that moment, I suddenly heard something.

“Oh, Hikari-chan, you came like that? It’s quite simple, but that necklace is cute. The four-leaf clover isn’t too flashy; it’s just right.”

“Right? Nogami-kun gave it to me. He has good taste, doesn’t he?”

“Huh, it’s actually nice. Nogami-kun… Wait, what!? Nogami-kun!?”

The girl who exclaimed in astonishment was just as surprised as I was.

It was a completely unexpected turn of events. Just when I thought I had overcome a difficult situation, I got shot right in the head.

It was a bombshell statement, to say the least.

“W-Wait, explain!”

As the girls huddled together, their conversation took on a secretive tone. Even from the outside, you could feel their excitement.

Meanwhile, among the boys’ group,

“Hey, Nogami. Is that true? If it is, it’s a big lie that there’s nothing going on.”

“I don’t think that’s a good thing to say. Since they’re probably talking about it over there, why don’t you let us know?”

…It was turning into an interrogation that was far from peaceful.

With everyone crossing their arms and gradually approaching, it was downright scary.

I could even feel the pressure that I mustn’t escape.

“Let’s calm down for a moment, everyone. Alright, let’s hear the story, defendant Nogami.”

Hayashi took charge and grabbed my arm.

I tried to break free, but…

“I’d rather you not underestimate my past in the kendo club. I’ve held a bamboo sword plenty of times.”

I was stopped in my tracks.

There was no escape from his grip with my going-home club strength.

“…I don’t remember committing any crime?”

“But you remember the necklace, right? Come on, spill it. It’ll be a relief to let it out, won’t it?”

I was cornered, and I reluctantly admitted to giving her the necklace.

But I didn’t say anything more than that.

“W-Wait, I stayed over!”

But Aoba started leaking information, causing me trouble.

Even about that, I only gave the minimum explanation and diverted the topic.

“Alright, it’s time. Looks like most of us are here, so let’s start the roll call!”

Just as we were doing that, President Nagano finally gave the order.