I’m a Telepath, but It’s Tough Because the Cool Beautiful Girl Next to Me Is Having Pink Thoughts - Chapter 36

“Um… well…”

“…Yes.”

I forced out a shaky voice while struggling to find the right words.

She waited patiently, watching me with a serious expression, even though she looked a little confused.

But right now, I was about to crush that sincerity and her heart.

To erase myself completely from Tatsuki’s world, I’d have to use that. And I didn’t want to. Not if I could help it.

So instead, I had to make sure I became someone she’d naturally forget. Someone she’d eventually want to erase from her own memory. To do that, I needed to say something. A word sharp enough to push her away.

The thought alone made my chest tighten painfully. I’d never felt this guilty before. I should have been used to things like this. But this time, I couldn’t fit the situation into that familiar pattern.

…So I crushed my weak feelings, forcing my throat to move.

“Tatsuki-san… let’s… stop seeing each other. No, let’s stop getting involved altogether.”

“…Eh?”

Her eyes widened, and she was frozen in shock. Then her pupils trembled slightly and narrowed tightly.

“W-why? I’m sorry, I… don’t really understand what you mean.”

The guilt weighed down on me so heavily that I couldn’t look at her face. I turned away, but caught her in the corner of my eye. Her voice shook with confusion, and it stabbed into my chest like a nail.

“I… I can’t keep this up anymore. I can’t be around Tatsuki-san. I’m someone who shouldn’t be in your life.”

Her face twisted at my words. But only for a moment. She quickly put on a brave front.

“Don’t say that. You’re still you, Itsumi-san. Who decides that you shouldn’t be around me?”

Maybe she had misunderstood me. Maybe she thought I just needed encouragement.

If Kisara was right, Tatsuki understood her own influence on people. So she probably guessed that I’d overheard rumors that while I was sick and worn out, I let the negativity drag me down.

No, actually. She’d said that to me through telepathy.

But of course, that wasn’t it.

Or maybe… maybe she was too sharp. Maybe she could tell I was trying to push her away, and was choosing to lie to herself while grasping at that excuse as an escape.

If so, I had no choice but to crush that escape, too.

“…Ah, that’s not it. That’s not it at all. I really can’t… I can’t be involved with you. I just can’t. I… I really…”

My voice trailed off while shrinking to nothing. The words I needed wouldn’t come.

…No, that wasn’t true.

I knew the words. I’d known them from the start. I just didn’t want to say them.

Because deep down, I still didn’t want her to hate me.

Tatsuki lowered her head as her lips pressed together.

I couldn’t see her face, but I saw the fists resting neatly on her knees clench tight, trembling with the strength in them.

“Itsumi-san.”

After a long silence, Tatsuki finally spoke. Her voice was still trembling, but there was a quiet strength in it too, as if she had made up her mind.

“I… I probably can’t understand why you’re blaming yourself so much. Maybe it’s something far beyond me.”

She lifted her eyes, which had been lowered, and looked straight into mine.

“But at the very least… I—I…”

Tears glimmered faintly in her eyes. Yet she held her chin high, as though determined not to let me notice.

And then, at that very moment,

───A faint, sweet scent drifted through the air.

The next instant, I felt pressure against my body. A warmth. Before I knew it, I was being pulled into her arms and unable to resist.

“I want to be with you…”

Her voice trembled in my ear as she fought back her tears. Her hands rested gently, but firmly, holding me close on my back.

“Tatsuki-sa—”

Caught off guard, I couldn’t even remember how to resist. My mind went blank as my eyes darted in panic.

Even so, she only pulled me tighter, pressing her face into the crook of my neck. I felt her draw in a long, quiet breath.

Her hair brushed against me, its scent filling my nose. It was comforting, yet strangely unsettling all at once.

“…I’m sorry.”

Her whisper tickled my ear, soft and warm, carrying a heat that made me shiver.

Then, she slowly let me go.

The world seemed frozen in silence. Neither of us spoke. Seconds slipped by until she blinked, as if waking from a dream. Her cheeks were flushed, glowing with warmth.

“But… that’s how I feel. I… want to stay by your side.”

She looked shy, her face red with embarrassment, but her gaze was unwavering, firm, and true.

The words carried straight into my heart. It was a confession, pure and simple.

“Yeah… yeah…”

My eyes burned. Tears welled up and blurred my vision while making her face waver before me.

“It’s okay.”

Once more, she leaned lightly against me, offering a gentle embrace.

Her arms felt vast and warm, and I thought, if only I could stay like this forever, how happy I would be.

“…I’m sorry.”

I pulled back just enough to wipe away my tears.

“Yes…”

She smiled softly at me, her eyes filled with kindness.

It struck me then. What a truly wonderful person she was.

And the fact that such feelings were directed toward me… felt almost too precious to deserve.

───That was why I had already made up my mind.

I grabbed her shoulders and shoved her down hard.

Because of the difference in our strength, and because she hadn’t been expecting it, even Tatsuki’s weakened body sank easily into the bed.

Without hesitation, I clutched the collar of her shirt and yanked her face close.

“What do you really know about me?”

The voice that came out of me was so low and cold, it even startled me.

Tatsuki’s face had just softened a moment ago, as it froze again in fear.

“W–wait…”

Her expression shifted, confusion and fear. But I couldn’t stop myself anymore.

“Itsumi-sa—”

“Itsumi? That fake name… That’s all you can call me by.”

I glared down at her, my shadow swallowing her face.

In her trembling eyes, I saw the reflection of my own twisted and cruel expression.

“You only know the surface. So how can you act like you understand me? How can you accept me so easily?”

I shut away every trace of real feeling and spat out the worst words I could find.

“You assume, you act high and mighty, you convince yourself you’re special. You’re just another fool dancing to lies…”

I couldn’t hear what Tatsuki felt at that moment.

Maybe it was because the telepathy around us was too loud, or maybe… maybe I just didn’t want to hear it.

“What I hate most… are idiots like you.”

“…I hate you.”

Her face twisted in sorrow.

“…!”

And then, she shoved me away in that instant. I hadn’t been holding her down very strongly, so she broke free with ease.

Without looking back, she bolted. No, she ran for real, straight out through the front door.

I was left behind in the empty room, staring blankly at the door she had disappeared through.

On the desk, the bowl of porridge she had left for me had gone cold. Not a wisp of steam rose from it anymore.