Chapter 17 – Tell Them How You Feel While You Still Can

“And that concludes Miina-sensei’s dark history. Thank you very much for your kind attention~.”

Having finished telling everything, Miina stared at him with a smile. She remained completely silent.

He didn’t know what kind of answer she was looking for after digging up her own wounds and exposing her past. Even so, he didn’t think keeping his mouth shut and saying nothing was the right answer either.

That was exactly why Shinta conveyed the thoughts her story had brought up without sugarcoating his words.

“Honestly, there’s only so much a guy like me can say after just hearing the story. But your mom… she might have lost sight of the right way to do things, but I think she loves you from the bottom of her heart. So, why don’t you try having a proper talk with her?”

“…Huh?”

The very next moment after Shinta conveyed exactly what was on his mind, the atmosphere of the place clearly shifted.

The air changed. Just as Shinta tried to shift his gaze to Miina beside him, without a single word, she lunged at him right there on the spot.

Straddling Shinta after pushing him down onto the bench, Miina brought her face close to his. Her expression was as blank as a Noh mask. She opened her mouth, directing eyes full of hostility at him.

“Hey… are you messing with me right now? Or are you just making fun of me?”

Seeing a quietly furious Miina show a side of her she had never displayed before, Shinta intentionally answered with calm composure.

“I’m not so much of a clown that I’d screw around after hearing a heavy story like that. I said it from the bottom of my heart.”

“Don’t screw with me! After hearing all that, do you really think that woman and I can just have a ‘proper talk’ now!?”

In stark contrast to Shinta calmly responding, Miina’s anger flared up all at once. She grabbed Shinta by the collar and began to vent her welling resentment.

“What the hell would someone like you understand!? Before I even knew it, my mother had become a resident of the porn world! When confronted with a reality like that, what am I, her daughter, supposed to do!?”

Saying that, Miina forcefully yanked at his collar with both hands. She shook Shinta’s head back and forth. Every time she did, his head slammed hard against the back of the bench. Even so, he didn’t show the slightest sign of pain. He refused to avert his eyes from her.

“My head is already a complete mess! Why do I have to be the only one going through this!? A cheating father, a mother debuting in porn… what the hell does that make me, their daughter!?”

Halfway through, Miina didn’t even know what she wanted to say anymore. The patience she had kept sealed deep in her chest until now was unleashed. It left her emotions a jumbled mess.

Unable to hold them back, her spilling tears fell onto Shinta’s face like a light drizzle.

“Hey… what am I supposed to do… tell me?”

Like a lost child, Miina begged him to tell her what to do with her future.

Shinta didn’t possess any clear-cut answer for her. He could only offer advice on what he thought she ought to do.

“Like I said before, you need to talk things out with your mom.”

“I don’t know… what am I even supposed to say?”

“Sorry, but I’m not a teacher. What you talk about is entirely up to you.”

“That’s so irresponsible…”

Saying that, Miina buried her face in Shinta’s chest and let out a sob.

It was irresponsible advice, just like she said. No, he didn’t even know if you could call something like this advice.

Even so, there was no way that a blood-related mother and daughter continuing to pass each other by could be the right answer.

Peeling the pressing weight of Miina off of him, Shinta continued speaking.

“Words are something you gotta say to the person you want to hear them while you still can. Otherwise, you’re gonna regret it… just like me…”

“What do you mean by that?”

Not quite understanding the meaning behind his words, Miina asked. At that, Shinta spoke with a slightly mournful look on his face.

“When my grandma died… we basically said goodbye right after getting into a fight.”

Miina was shaken by the truth that came out of Shinta’s mouth. Her loose tear ducts tightened, bringing her tears to a halt.

“During middle school, when I was completely out of control, my grandma was the only one who always worried about me. But despite that, I just found her words annoying. Hell, sometimes I even said some horrible things to her.”

The more he thought back on it, the more he wondered why his past self hadn’t listened to his grandmother’s words more seriously. Even when everyone around him feared and despised him, his grandma remained the only ally who tried to bring him back to the right path.

“Right up until the moment she died, my grandma worried about my future. And I couldn’t even properly apologize to her for all the stupid shit I kept doing. Talk about a terrible grandson…”

(Human destiny can come to an end in a single, unexpected moment due to an accident, illness, or some other irregular event. That’s exactly why you have to convey your feelings when you still can. Because if you lose the opportunity forever, you’ll end up cursing yourself for the rest of your life. Just like an idiot like me…)

“Listen, Miina, I just can’t believe you hate your mom from the bottom of your heart. If you truly rejected her deep down, there’s no way you’d have brought up a past that tears open your own wounds just to confess it to me.”

“…Is that… right…? Honestly, I don’t know.”

Though Miina let a question mark slip from her lips, the truth was she realized he was right.

Miina absolutely did not hate her mother from the bottom of her heart. She was certainly angry about some things. But even so, she knew full well how her mother had desperately struggled just for her sake.

“You’re still in plenty of time. So, go on.”

Hearing Shinta’s words, Miina sank into thought for a moment. Before she knew it, she had unconsciously stood up from the bench.

“Sorry, Shinta, do you mind if we call it a day here?”

“Yeah, I don’t mind.”

“Thanks. Well then, see you at school tomorrow…”

Saying that, Miina broke into a light jog and ran off.

Toward her receding back, Shinta sent out one last cheer.

“Do your best, Miina!!”

It was a clumsy cheer lacking in words. However, receiving those words at her back, Miina’s heart felt mysteriously lighter.