I’m an Introvert, but After Taking Care of the School’s Most Beautiful Girl Who Lives in an Apartment When She Was Sick, She Became Attached to Me and Started Inviting Me Over to Her Place! - Chapter 65-66

Chapter 65

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I had long since noticed that Natsuki-san’s gaze was never directed at me from the very beginning. From the start, she had been the target of arrows of affection from dozens of boys, but she had never once shown her own arrow of affection toward the opposite sex. She scattered smiles and treated any guy kindly. But if you flipped that around, it meant she was level—perfectly flat—in her interest toward any boy, holding nothing more than neutral, even curiosity.

I was surely just one of them at first. When I moved up to my second year and my wish came true that I ended up in the same class as Natsuki-san, I forgot about making friends of the same gender and instead went straight to building a friendly relationship with her. I didn’t want to be disliked, but at the same time I struggled against the resolve that refused to do nothing. 

I was careful with my actions…. I was very careful. At first, it started with meaningless small talk. Then I looked up, one by one, all the manga, anime, and anything else she said she liked, absorbing the knowledge so I wouldn’t run out of topics. Before I knew it, she started talking to me on her own, and only then did I finally get her to exchange contact information with me.

That day, I sent her a sticker and a greeting for the first time. I remember pouncing on the cheerful message she sent back several dozen minutes later.

I’m definitely the closest to Natsuki-san in this class. I’m absolutely going to tilt her arrow toward me.

A faint confidence took root, along with a sense of superiority that I had the upper hand over the other boys. My chest swelled with anticipation, and going to school became something I looked forward to. In the process of building my relationship with Natsuki-san, I also gained some important friends. One was a guy who looked timid and lacking in confidence but was oddly good at taking care of others, and the other was a cool, handsome guy wrapped in a calm atmosphere.

Since I was always going to Natsuki-san first instead of making friends, I might have ended up isolated in the classroom if these guys hadn’t been there. Then one day, she recommended a certain novel to me. It was a light novel, which was rare for Natsuki-san, and I thought, “So she reads stuff like this too,” feeling like I had learned another unexpected side of her. As she happily explained the synopsis, her voice filled my heart. I thought maybe—just maybe—she truly trusted me, and that she might even come to feel affection for me. But I was wrong.

When did it start, I wonder? Natsuki-san began often fixing her gaze on a certain person. In brief lulls during class, in the crowded flow of students during classroom changes, and… While waiting in line at the amusement park. That person was always there. He was always at the end of Natsuki-san’s gaze, and I was the one chasing after her. Maybe that was why I could realize it. I didn’t want to realize it. I wanted to look away. I wanted to cling to the possibility that I could still become Natsuki-san’s “special” one.

No matter how much I wished, time wouldn’t stop. Even when I understood that the arrow of her heart had begun to tilt, I couldn’t put my hand out to stop it. I didn’t have the courage to reach out.

—『Um…So, Natsuki-san. Would you exchange contact info with me…?』

—『Mm! Sure~♪』

—『I think it suits you. Keeping your hairstyle the same as usual makes it familiar and cute, and since it’s the first time I’ve seen you in casual clothes, it’s kind of refreshing.』

——『Huh!?』

While I hesitated for even a moment, that guy moved several steps ahead without even intending to. The ice around Natsuki-san’s heart, which I had been the one melting at first, was steadily being melted by him instead. By then, I was already halfway resigned to the inevitable fate. No matter how much I stood in front of Natsuki-san with my arms spread wide, I would no longer remain at the end of her gaze.

So I gave up on pairing up with her on the Ferris wheel. So I stopped sending her private messages. Even so, I couldn’t wipe away the feelings that clung to my heart. It wasn’t just love at first sight. Her smile, her brightness, the way she talked… I fell in love with all of it and made a genuine effort. If this was the result, then even my past self would surely forgive me. Because I could say, with my chest held high, that I truly tried.

“W-Well…Maybe thanks to that guy, I was able to give up… ngh, damn it…!”

I comforted myself over and over. I told myself excuses, trying to sink my faint feelings of love, but like an overinflated inner tube, they kept bubbling back up again and again. Even now, I still escape into the thought that maybe I still have a chance.

“If… If I were that guy…! I’d do more… More…”

I wanted to say, “If it were me,” but that guy was just too genuinely good, and he had something I didn’t. That was why Natsuki-san was drawn to him.

“Do your best… Sorato Suzuya…”

Don’t ever let go of the arrow that’s pointed at you.

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Chapter 66

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“Hah…! Hah…!”

In the school building the students had already left behind, the sound of a single person’s footsteps and breathing echoed sharply. The sun had sunk much lower than when he had been talking with Kohaku, and the color of the stretching shadows was gradually being swallowed by the night.

He sprinted up the stairs, reaching the classroom by the fastest, shortest route. He roughly slung the bag left on his desk over his shoulder and, without even stopping to catch his breath, dashed off again at full speed across the open, well-lit connecting corridor.

『Are your feelings for her really that shallow? …If you already went that far, then seeing it through is what a man does. That’s what I was going to do at least.』

Kohako was acting just like usual. But Sorato knew. He knew it was bravado in Kohaku’s own way, and the best encouragement he could give as a rival. It felt like being kicked in the back—before he realized it, Sorato was already running. When Sorato turned his back, Kohaku said nothing more. But for Sorato right now, that was the greatest encouragement he could have received.

—『Suzuya-kun!』

—『Suzuya-kun!?』

—『Suzuya-kuuun!』

Her calling voice. Her smile. Her constantly changing expressions were irresistibly adorable. Whenever she called his name, his heart always felt as though it were floating away, light and fluffy. Sorato’s state of mind was anything but calm. It was like a pot where all kinds of things had been thrown together at random, a complete mess.

Even so, with all those feelings swirling inside him, all he wanted right now was to see Natsuki-san.

Run. Run. Run.

And tell her… The rest of those words.

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“Huh? Natsuki-san?”

Hearing her name, she snapped her head up. She tore her eyes away from the distant scenery she had been staring at blankly, and there stood Kudou-kun, unusually trying to head home alone.

“Kudou-kun, have you seen Suzuya-kun?”

The moment I saw his face, I asked him that. Kudou-kun answered without looking particularly puzzled by my question.

“Huh? If you mean Sorato, he said he had something to do with Kohaku and went off somewhere just now. He should still be in the school, though… Did you have some kind of plan with him?”

“No. Thank you. I’ll try waiting here a little longer.”

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The person I was waiting for seemed to still be inside the school. I unlocked my phone and looked back at the message I had sent him this morning. Up until just a few days ago, our chats had been full of emojis and stickers, but today’s conversation alone began with my emotionless words and ended with nothing but his short reply: 『Understood.』

The uneasiness and anxiety settling in my chest. Even though I was the one who had said, “Come over to my place,” I started thinking that maybe he wouldn’t come after all. Unable to wait any longer, I ended up standing here alone, waiting for him to pass by. I wanted to apologize for yesterday.

A long time ago, no one took my outstretched hand. Because of that, before I realized it, relying on others had become my greatest fear. I never wanted to feel again the pain of having my hand shaken off by someone I trusted. That was why I rejected him back then. I thought “You’re cute” was just empty words, and that the moment I opened my heart a little more, the hand we were holding would slip away.

But that was wrong. Suzuya-kun wasn’t that kind of person. He would absolutely grasp the hand I reached out. No—before I even reached out, he would offer his hand first.

—You’re just being deceived by sweet words.

No. He isn’t that kind of person.

—He’s only after your looks anyway.

That’s wrong too. He doesn’t judge me by my appearance alone.

—You don’t have anyone on your side.

That’s not true. The memories I carry inside me prove it.

Right now, I had so many people around me. A cool, beautiful woman. A cute girl who was always smiling. Someone calm, like everyone’s mom. Someone who could be a little childish like the youngest sibling, but still dependable. And…. Someone like an older brother who would always reach out his hand when I lean on him.

—You’re probably still stuck in the past.

I told Kudou-kun I’d “wait a little longer,” but… I want to go see you right now. I want to talk with you like always, as soon as possible…

I slowly turned around. My body naturally faced the school building as I suppressed the fear welling up inside me. 

What if he hates me? What if he won’t talk to me? I can think about that when it happens.

Being afraid before I even try…. That was what scared me the most right now. That was what I was taught.

『I’m sorry, Natsuki-san. I can’t do this anymore.』

He would never say something like that. Because he was far too kind a person. I couldn’t wait any longer.

“Natsuki-san?”

“Yes…?”

At last, I had come to terms with the fear inside me. The trembling in my fingertips had stopped without me even noticing. I took a deep breath, and just as I was about to step forward to look for Suzuya-kun, Kudou-kun—who had been on his phone the whole time—called out to me.

“What are you doing? It doesn’t look like you’re with Kaede and the others today.”

“…I was waiting for someone. I’ve already waited quite a while, and maybe they won’t come today after all. Ehehe…”

“I see.”

When Kudou-kun replied briefly, I gave a self-deprecating chuckle and then surprised myself when words slipped naturally from my mouth. I had been standing here for about an hour already. At first, I’d planned to wait at home just like the message said, but I didn’t have the confidence to calmly wait there until he came.

And more than anything, I wanted to apologize to him as soon as possible, and if he forgave me, I wanted him to come to my house after things returned to our usual atmosphere. It was selfish, but right now, I couldn’t possibly rein myself in.

“Then I’ll wait too.”

“Huh?”

Kudou-kun leaned his back against the concrete wall of the opposite school gate and said,

“I was just planning to wait for someone myself.”

“Oh, is that so? …But then, why are you standing on the opposite side to talk…?”

“Because it would be a problem if the person you’re waiting for misunderstood, wouldn’t it?”

“Eh…!?”

Kudou-kun answered with a gentle smile, his expression showing eyes that seemed to see straight through people’s hearts, just like always. I felt as though even the person I was waiting for was reflected deep within his gaze, and my heart leapt at how spot-on his comment was.

I figured Kudou-kun probably knew who I was waiting for from the start, even without me saying it. The reason he deliberately moved to the opposite side was for Suzuya-kun, who was quick to misunderstand.

“If it’s the one you’re looking for, Natsuki-san, he should still be in the school. It hasn’t been that long since we split up.”

“…Got it…!”

Receiving those final words from Suzuya-kun’s friend, I was finally able to take a step forward. A brief silence. After our gazes crossed for a moment, Kudou-kun murmured to my retreating back.

“Please take care of Sorato.”

“…Leave it to me.”

Kudou-kun smiled softly, added a quiet “Do your best,” and then lowered his gaze back to his phone. My feelings would no longer waver.

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T/N: If you think the chapter is a bit weird (because Natsuki already told Kudou she’s waiting for Sorato), it’s already like this in the raw. I guess the author couldn’t decide which scene to use and forgot to edit this chapter.