I’m a Loner, Gloomy Guy Who Accidentally Witnessed the Moment the Top Girl in the Class Got Dumped. I Didn’t Know What to Say to Comfort Her, So I Just Gave Her a Cola and Somehow We Started Having Lunch Together~ - 51

Chapter 51: What It Means to Love Masaki

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー

With Masaki gone, Karin’s expression stiffened. Being left alone with Noa made things unbearingly awkward.

(After all, the guy Noa and I are in love with is the same person.)

Noa and Hina liked Masaki. The moment she saw their faces when they barged into the room that day—the day they had rushed in while she was on the bed with Masaki—she understood immediately. Since then, Karin had no longer known whether it was okay for her to keep loving Masaki.

Loving Masaki… Put another way, it meant competing with Noa and Hina. Karin, who cherished her friends, was terrified of ending up in that kind of relationship with her two best friends. And yet, she couldn’t bring herself to give up.

Her feelings for Masaki weren’t something she could just cut off cleanly. Today was proof of that. The moment she thought she would get to see Masaki, she got so restless that she arrived at the meeting place two whole hours early. Honestly, she no longer knew what she was supposed to do.

The reason Karin had been so weighed down lately was because she kept drifting through days like this, unable to choose either way.

“I guess you and I have pretty similar tastes, Karin-chan.”

Sitting diagonally across from her, Noa spoke in her usual bright tone.

(Did she notice that I like Masa!?)

Karin’s face stiffened. Her heart leapt into her throat, and cold sweat ran down her back.

“You know, I confessed to Touma back at the beginning of June. …But he turned me down.”

(Oh… So it wasn’t about Masa.)

Relief washed over Karin as she murmured that that explained it. The mystery she had been carrying for so long finally unraveled. Noa and Touma had once been incredibly close, but starting one day, they had suddenly begun keeping their distance. It had been obvious that something had happened, yet she had never known why.

But now it all made sense. If something like that had happened, there was no way they could stay together anymore.

(If I confessed to Masa and failed… Would I not be able to stay with everyone anymore either…?)

A negative image flashed through her mind. The already heavy atmosphere surrounding Karin grew even heavier.

“And Murase-kun happened to see the scene by chance. After that, a lot of things happened, and we started talking.”

“And that’s when you… Started liking him? Masa, I mean?”

“Hmm… I wonder.”

With her arms crossed, Noa tilted her head slightly.

“I have a lot of fun when I’m with Murase-kun, and it feels really comfortable. But I don’t know if that feeling is romantic love or not.”

“…Are you seriously saying that? That’s definitely what ‘liking someone’ is.”

“Is it? Oh, but you know, there is one thing I feel for sure. I don’t want to give him to anyone else. Not to Yuuki-san… And not to you either, Karin-chan.”

Uncrossing her arms, Noa looked straight at her with a serious expression. It was filled with an intensity Karin had never seen from her before. Her stomach twisted painfully. She felt so uncomfortable that she wanted nothing more than to run away from here immediately.

“So, what do you think, Karin-chan?”

“…About Masa?”

“Of course.”

This was it. The moment had finally come. Noa was already certain that Karin had feelings for Masaki. There was no way to dodge it. She would have to confess her true feelings and become Noa’s enemy. The relationship they had shared since fifth grade would end right here.

Unable to look Noa in the eyes, Karin lowered her gaze.

“…Masa is… He’s just a friend.”

(…I couldn’t say it.)

Such an obvious lie would be seen through instantly. All it would do was needlessly upset Noa. She knew that and yet, Karin still couldn’t tell the truth. She simply couldn’t find the courage.

(How pathetic can I be…?)

A self-mocking smile crept onto her face. As she waited for Noa’s response, she already had a rough idea of what it would be. Words of anger directed at her for telling such a pointless lie.

“I’m sorry. I made you lie.”

But what came was something she never expected. Not anger, but an apology. Startled, Karin looked up to see Noa wearing an apologetic expression.

“You’re always thinking about your friends, Karin-chan. You were holding back for my sake, weren’t you?”

“It’s not like I was holding back or anything—”

“No, no, I can tell. Well, I only realized how you really felt today, though.”

Noa smiled faintly.

“Because you were staring at Murase-kun nonstop! And it looked like you’d already given up on Touma, too. So at that point, it was very obvious!”

Karin had never thought she was following Masaki with her eyes, but if Noa said so, then it must have been true. Apparently, she had been doing it unconsciously. The fact that her true feelings were exposed because of that made it all feel painfully foolish.

“…But why? From your perspective, I’m basically your rival, right? So why would you go out of your way to provoke me like this?”

Noa’s actions felt like she was deliberately trying to draw out Karin’s true feelings. And yet, those actions were contradictory. Provoking Karin and strengthening her feelings for Masaki was, in a sense, cheering her on. Doing that for a romantic rival brought Noa no benefit at all. If anything, it only put her at a disadvantage.

Karin couldn’t understand why Noa would do something like that.

“You’re right. I know it’s stupid, I think so myself. But I really didn’t want to make you lie, Karin-chan. Because you’re my precious friend!”

Putting extra emphasis on her last words, Noa smiled brightly. Even knowing how contradictory it was, she still chose to think about Karin. That feeling made Karin genuinely happy. She had never felt more grateful than she did today to have become friends with her. Warmth spread through her entire body at her best friend’s thoughtful gesture. She was so overwhelmed that if she let her guard down, she felt like she might start crying.

“And besides, I kinda want to fight a serious Karin-chan! You know how they say the harder something is, the better it feels when you finally achieve it!”

“You’re already acting like you’ve won. Geez… You’re as confident as ever. …Don’t blame me if you regret provoking me!”

A clear, refreshing smile appeared on Karin’s lips. Noa—her precious best friend—was telling her to come at her seriously. In that case, she was done lying.

(I’ll be honest with my own feelings!)

The lingering haze in her chest was blown away all at once. She felt refreshed, better than she had in a long time. This was all thanks to Noa.

“Alright then, let’s do this, Karin-chan!”

(Thanks, my best friend.)

As Noa started shadowboxing with quick sh-sh movements, Karin poured all her gratitude into those unspoken words.

＊＊＊＊＊＊

After finishing my call with Mai, I returned to the table where the two girls were sitting.

“I’m at the supermarket right now, do you have any requests for dinner?”

That was the call I had received. It was nothing even remotely urgent. I appreciated Mai’s thoughtfulness, and under normal circumstances I would’ve been happy about it, but right now I really wished she hadn’t called. The timing was just too bad. Well, even so, I was still happy about it…

Wait, huh?

Takashiro-san suddenly seemed way brighter? When I came back to my seat after just a few minutes, Takashiro-san’s whole atmosphere had completely changed. She looked refreshed, as if a weight had been lifted off her. That brooding, troubled air was gone, and her energy had returned.

Something had definitely happened in the few minutes I was gone that brought Takashiro-san back to herself. And it was probably Amamiya-san’s doing.

I was glad she was feeling better, but… How did she do it? Amamiya-san had accomplished what even that amazing movie couldn’t. And she did it in just a few minutes. What kind of magic did she use?

“What happened while I was gone?”

“Ehh, what should we tell him? Karin-chan?”

“Yeah, what should we tell him?”

The two girls exchanged looks, narrowing their eyes as they grinned at each other. It was nice that they were having fun, but I was curious, so I really wished they’d stop dragging it out and just tell me.

“Sorry. We can’t tell you yet.”

Takashiro-san’s answer was a firm no. Apparently, I didn’t have the right to know yet. Would the day ever come when they’d tell me? Looking at Takashiro-san’s bright, refreshed smile, I found myself wondering that.

ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー