Reincarnated Into a Delinquent Manga… Where the Genders Are Reversed and Everyone’s a Girl - Chapter 27: Out of the Trash Heap

Chapter 27: Out of the Trash Heap

After surviving Yayoi’s endless bragging session—er, I mean, her heartfelt praise of Tanigawa—I found myself dragging my feet on the way home.

And no, it definitely wasn’t because of Yayoi.

It’s not like she went on and on, telling the same story in fifty different variations until I thought my ears might fall off.

Nope. Not at all.

My bag was practically empty, yet it felt absurdly heavy.

The thin strap dug into my shoulder, each step fusing it tighter to my body.

By the time I reached home, I was completely drained.

I didn’t even bother with a “I’m home.”

Just trudged straight up the creaky wooden stairs.

This house was apparently built when I was born, but fifteen years had taken their toll.

It wasn’t like the floor was about to collapse, but every groan of the boards was a reminder of time’s not-so-subtle handiwork.

I pushed my door open with a lazy hand and let my bag fall to the floor.

Then, with the same abandon, I threw myself onto the bed.

“Ahhh…”

My body sank into the mattress.

My consciousness followed soon after.

Back when I first realized I’d been reincarnated, I used to crash like this all the time.

Lately, though, not so much.

Guess today just really took it out of me.

Even the thought of taking a bath vanished as sleep claimed me—and didn’t let go until the clock’s short hand pointed to four.

A hot shower later, my head was clear as day.

Honestly? Best wake-up I’d had in a long time.

Now, to cool off my overheated body—and because I’d heard morning walks were supposed to be good for you—I decided to take a stroll.

It was way too early to even call it “early morning.”

The streets were nearly empty, save for the occasional elderly person walking their dog.

I even greeted them with a cheerful “Good morning!”

Something I’d never do normally.

Guess there’s just something about this crisp morning air—it sweeps away hesitation and fills you with this weird, easy optimism.

Summer break was still about a month away, but you could already feel hints of summer creeping in during the day—especially in PE class.

But right now?

Even the birds weren’t awake yet.

No trace of summer here.

Instead, the only thing breaking the silence was the roar of a motorcycle tearing through the streets.

The deep vroom-vroom echoed off the surrounding buildings, so loud it felt like the sound itself was visible, rippling through the air toward me.

I’d been walking for a while when I finally decided to head back.

That’s when I saw her.

A girl. Lying on the side of the road.

No… “lying” didn’t quite fit.

More like—

She’d been discarded.

Her bluish-black hair was matted with trash, and—was that… a banana peel on her cheek?

Judging by the state of things, she’d probably been dumped here yesterday.

She wore her hair down instead of tying it up—a “natural down-style,” I guess—but that only made things worse.

The ends of her hair had buried themselves in a garbage bag like it was home sweet home.

Even the cute barrette she’d probably bought with care was ruined, crushed and filthy.

And the worst part?

I knew this person.

I’d just met her yesterday.

Uta Tanigawa.

Right now, she was radiating the stench of alcohol, cheeks flushed bright red, giggling “Eheheee” like a clueless child.

I, on the other hand, was not laughing.

Not even close.

It felt like I’d stumbled onto some forbidden truth of the universe—something I was never meant to witness.

Should I help her? Or just… leave her here?

I tried not to dwell on the fact that she was already literally discarded and took a moment to think.

First, could she have gotten caught up in something bad?

Unlikely. Not a single scratch on her.

Since we’d at least spoken before, I crouched down, pinched my nose shut, and tried to wake her.

No response.

Nothing but the sound of her blissful, drunken snoring.

Yep. Definitely not in any trouble.

In Fist, Uta Tanigawa was an idiot.

And on top of that—a hopeless drunk.

Which made no sense, considering she couldn’t even hold her liquor.

Worst combo imaginable.

Her drinking habits were awful—clingy when drunk, refusing to stop even when everyone begged her to.

She was a born boozehound on a one-way express train to liver failure.

Even Chiaki Haruna, the story’s main character, had nodded in reluctant acknowledgment of her “legendary” dedication.

…Not that there was anything admirable about it.

I snapped myself back to reality.

No matter how much of a pain she was, leaving someone I knew lying in a trash heap didn’t sit right with me.

What if some garbage truck actually picked her up?

With a grunt, I hefted Tanigawa up—heavier than she looked—and immediately shuddered when a strand of hair, still carrying bits of trash, brushed against my neck.

The banana peel perched on her head apparently held on for dear life.

A few steps in, it finally dropped from above like some kind of divine punishment.

I barely managed to sidestep it.

So much for that refreshing morning vibe.

By the time I got home, I was drenched in sweat.

Completely defeated the purpose of that hot shower earlier.

Luckily, it was still early enough that my parents weren’t awake—and I didn’t have to explain why I was carrying an unconscious girl into the house.

Not that there’s anything “lucky” about bringing home a girl you literally picked up from a garbage dump.

I figured I couldn’t just leave her covered in trash.

So I lugged her to the bathroom, and that’s when it hit me—

“…What do I even do here?”

Major crisis detected.

I’d completely forgotten that Tanigawa was, in fact, a girl.

To be fair, she’d been radiating zero feminine charm up until now, but still—

Once you got past the disaster zone she was currently in, she actually qualified as a bona fide beauty.

Which made this whole situation way more complicated.

I’d been thinking of it like washing a stray dog or cat, but now? Yeah… not so simple.

Lying on the hard bathroom floor must’ve finally woken her up.

With a small yawn, Tanigawa slowly opened her eyes.

Panic hit me like a truck.

I’d literally dragged her here unconscious. If she got the wrong idea about this… I was dead.

“…Where am I?”

“My house.”

“Whose house…? Ah—Takumaaa!”

“T-Tanigawa-san?”

She beamed at me with the pure, innocent smile of a child—

Then wrapped her arms around me.

It was… disgusting.

Not in the “ew, a girl’s hugging me” way—

But in the “dear god, she’s still covered in garbage and reeks of booze” way.

No matter how I looked at it, there was nothing remotely romantic about this beautiful girl clinging to me.

“I was so sad, y’know?”

“…What happened?”

“I got dumped by Takuma, so I went on a drinking binge.”

“…Hah?”

She wailed dramatically, explaining that after barely drinking anything, all her friends bailed on her—claiming they couldn’t afford to be hungover the next day.

And honestly?

I couldn’t blame them one bit.

Whoever those “friends” were, I felt for them.