I'm in a Messed Up Situation that I Couldn't Care More. - Chapter 18: Should I Tell Mamejiro About Fake Aoi?

Chapter 18: Should I Tell Mamejiro About Fake Aoi?

I ran to the station while holding my bleeding arm.

Both my cheeks were throbbing from the slaps I had received from the fake Aoi-chan.

I had accepted the strange job offer from the Hannya and the live-in gym assistant job from Hiruma-san, thinking, “That’s a little strange~” 

But I have accepted them nonetheless.

However, this incident with the fake Aoi-chan was something I couldn’t just accept.

She wasn’t the real Aoi-chan.

She was an imposter.

I knew instinctively that she wasn’t the real deal.

The question was, why did this imposter exist?

What was going on?

When did I start getting involved in such strange situations?

Ah…

I just wanted to see the real Aoi-chan.

I wanted her to call me “weakling” and choke me like she usually did.

I arrived at the station and took a moment to catch my breath.

My heart was still pounding fiercely.

I looked around warily but didn’t see any sign of the fake Aoi-chan following me.

That’s right. 

I should tell Mamejiro about the fake Aoi-chan.

He’s knowledgeable about a lot of things.

Maybe this has something to do with that parallel… whatever world he mentioned.

I took out my smartphone and called Mamejiro.

But that guy didn’t pick up the phone.

There was no read receipt on my message either.

“Mamejiro, what are you doing when I need you?”

I had no choice.

I started walking back to my room at the gym, glancing over my shoulder repeatedly to make sure I wasn’t being followed.

——————————

“Wait, weakling!”

After club activities ended, as I was about to head to my part-time job, Aoi-chan approached me and called out.

Since she called me “weakling,” there was no doubt that she was the real Aoi-chan.

I couldn’t help but smile at the familiar nickname.

“Show me your left arm,”

Aoi-chan said, holding out her hand.

We were on the landing of the stairs in front of the club room.

There was no one else around.

“My left arm? Why?”

“During practice, you kept shielding your left arm.

I’m curious if something happened to it. Show me. Show me.”

“Eh? Were you watching me the whole time? That makes me really happy.”

“Th… That’s not it! I always keep an eye on you because you’re suspicious!”

Aoi-chan stammered, her face reddening.

She was incredibly cute.

My left arm was still throbbing from where the fake Aoi-chan had cut me.

I must have unconsciously shielded it during practice.

And Aoi-chan noticed it even though I didn’t realize it myself.

“And what about the bruise on your cheek? Who hit you?”

“Ah, this?”

I touched my cheek.

The area next to my mouth was turning blue because the fake Aoi-chan had slapped me.

I hesitated.

Should I tell Aoi-chan about the “fake Aoi-chan”?

No, no way.

I couldn’t tell her.

If I said that I was punched and slashed by a girl who looked exactly like her, she would think I was crazy.

“Umm… I was attacked out of the blue.”

“By whom? What did they look like?”

Aoi-chan frowned.

“……A woman.”

“A woman?! Why would a woman hit you?? Do you know her?”

Damn.

I should have just said I was attacked by a thug.

I’m such an idiot.

“I don’t know her. She just suddenly attacked me.”

“Even though you’re learning self-defense, you just let her hit you?”

That was true.

Moreover, the attacker was just one girl.

But the fake Aoi-chan was very powerful.

It was a fact that I was scared when she threatened to gouge out my eyes and leave scars on my face.

“Where were you attacked? What did the woman look like? How old was she? How tall was she?”

“……At night, at the university. She was around the same age as me, maybe a little shorter.”

(She looked exactly like you, Aoi-chan… she was you, in a way,)

I muttered in my heart.

“Aoi-chan, are you worried about me? That makes me really happy.”

“Don’t be ridiculous! I’m not worried about you!”

Aoi-chan raised her voice.

“It’s my job to punch and kick you. No one else is allowed to lay a hand on you.”

Aoi-chan said quickly.

“Anyway, show me your arm.”

“……”

I reluctantly rolled up the sleeve of my shirt to reveal my injured arm.

“That’s a terrible wound!”

Aoi-chan exclaimed as she took in the extent of the injury.

“It was done with a very sharp blade. Normally, you’d need to go to a doctor to get stitches.

Did you report it to the police?”

I shook my head silently.

“If you don’t get proper treatment, the scar will be more noticeable, and it will take longer to heal.”

Aoi-chan took my arm in her hands and gently touched it while looking up at me with upturned eyes.

Her touch was gentle.

Even when it was just the two of us, she was a “gentle Aoi-chan.”

Maybe, without joking, she was genuinely worried about me.

The thought made my heart skip a beat.

“Weakling, go to the doctor now.”

“I don’t think I can. I don’t have the time or the money.”

“You don’t have the money?

But you seem to have a part-time job almost every day.”

Aoi-chan always asks me straightforward questions.

“It’s embarrassing, but since you’re asking, I’ll tell you the truth.

I’m poor. I can barely afford my tuition, food, and the monthly club fees.

I have to work part-time.

Aoi-chan, thank you so much for worrying about me.

I’d love to talk more, but I have to be at work at 5 pm.”

As much as I wanted to stay and chat with Aoi-chan, I couldn’t afford to be late for my job.

“I don’t care about you!”

Aoi-chan shouted quietly at my back as I ran off at a small trot.