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 44
Episode 44: Call Me by Name
“Hey, Nogami-kun…!”
“Let’s just go.”
I aimed for a deserted place and ran. Finally, when we reached the exit from the station concourse to Ueno Park, we were freed from prying eyes. At least, there were no curious glances or cameras pointed at us.
“What are you doing, Aoba-san? Or rather, what was that line you just said?”
When I said and sigh, Aoba kept her head down and murmured, “but”
she looked away and pouted.
“I got mad because she was saying such mean things, Nogami-kun. It’s weird, isn’t it, saying stuff like that after how she dumped you. She’s wrong, that person.”
I completely agreed, but…
“…So why pretend to be my girlfriend? She’s going to Ikebukuro, too. What if we run into her again?”
“If I just said we’re friends, it would seem like you’re making excuses. So, I wanted to make her believe it’s true.”
Or so Aoba said, drawing a line there.
With a pout, she continued,
“Also, why were you with your ex? I’m a little mad, you know? Today was supposed to be our outing.”
“We just happened to meet there. That place, with the statue of a wing and all, is often used for meetings.”
“But you don’t need to be with her. There’s no point in asking about where we’re going.”
“She came up to me first. I was trying to give vague answers and walk away, but then you showed up.”
There was no lie in any of it.
But looking back, my luck was truly terrible.
If someone heard this story from me, they might think it was just an excuse.
“Seriously, by the way. I messaged Aoba-san too.”
“…I don’t like that.”
“Huh?”
“That way of calling me ends today. From now on, call me ‘Hikari’.”
It was a sudden request.
Taking a step closer, Aoba looked up at me from just under her chin.
Even though I hadn’t even addressed her by her first name yet, she suddenly asked to be called by it.
It’s common knowledge that college students often use each other’s first names, but it felt a bit embarrassing to suddenly start calling her by her first name, considering we’ve known each other for a while.
But she didn’t seem inclined to back down.
“I won’t call you ‘Nogami-kun’ anymore either. I mean, even though your ex-girlfriend used to call you by your first name but we’re closer now, it’s weird, right? So, from now on, I’ll call you Keito-kun! Keito-kun, Keito-kun, Keito-kun! Yeah, let’s go with that!”
Her face was flushed like I had never seen before.
And even though I wasn’t used to being called by my name like that, just hearing it made my heart race as if it were about to leap out of my chest.
“Keito-kun. I want… I want you to call me too.”
Beneath her long lashes, her beautiful brown eyes looked at me.
It seemed like there was a bit of wavering, perhaps a mix of expectation and anxiety.
“Come on, try saying it? We might run into your ex-girlfriend again in Ikebukuro, right? If you call me by my last name, it’ll expose the lie.”
“And if it’s exposed? Is it bad?”
“Then, you’ll be called ‘Rent-a-Girl’ again. Don’t you hate that? So, just say it.”
Before I knew it, she had come too close for comfort.
I stepped back, but she closed the distance again.
“…Hikari.”
So, I murmured quietly.
After saying it, an uncomfortable sensation washed over me.
I had just addressed Hikari Aoba by her first name.
Even the handsome guys who were the center of attention in class would only call her ‘Aoba’, but here I was, calling her by her first name, and she was begging for it.
“Again, please.”
“…Um, Hikari…”
“More! Again and again, like Simon says, repeat after me, ‘Hikari’!”
“Is this an English class…?”
“Alright, alright, never mind that. Can you say it?”
“Hikari.”
“Ugh, that intonation makes it sound like a bullet train. Not like that, it’s ‘Hikari!'”
It was an incredibly difficult demand.
But I just repeated it as Aoba asked.
“Yeah, that’s good. From now on, let’s go with that.”
Personally, it didn’t feel much different from the beginning, but I received some kind of mysterious approval.
“Alright, shall we go? Keito-kun.”
“…Uh, yeah, sure.”
Still feeling bewildered, I followed the cheerful Aoba, who started walking ahead. And thus, our outing together began with a tumultuous start.