[Sad News] Living Together with the Unattainable Beauty—Her Overwhelming Affection Is Way Too Calculated - 34

Chapter 34: Fujigaya-san, Will You Go Out With Me?

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Several days had passed since the intruder in my bed—the incident of Fujigaya-san’s night visit. A strange and intensely awkward atmosphere hung between us like a thick fog. 

Since that night, she hadn’t come to my room in a half-asleep state again, and I, unsure how to process what happened, had been avoiding her gaze, indulging in pathetic days of recalling her lascivious behavior and masturbating. Yet, I couldn’t help but feel her gaze carried more heat than before.

And I started noticing her provocative behavior in places I couldn’t see. When I went to the bathroom after her, I found the vibrator from that night, slick and wet, left in the tub. While she sat in the living room, I caught a glimpse of a rotor’s switch clipped to her thigh, just barely visible. Or I’d see a tail sprouting from her while she cooked.

It felt like a quiet determination to not let that night be forgotten. It was also true that something inside me had undeniably begun to change. That black babydoll, the soft warmth of her sleeping in my arms, her exposed lasciviousness—it wasn’t a hallucination. It was an undeniable reality. She existed now, in the present.

And that reality strongly suggested the possibility that Kanoko Fujigaya, a girl I thought was untouchable, like a being above the clouds, might harbor some special feelings for someone like me. That impossible possibility had changed me, even if just a little.

I sought advice from my otaku friends, Kimura and Satou, and started paying attention to my hair and clothes. I even managed to hit it off with Tanaka-san, a plain otaku girl from my class, talking about anime.

The world began to look a little more colorful. Maybe even a hardcore introvert like me could change. I started to hold onto that faint, fragile hope. That is, until that guy appeared.  During lunch break that day, I was, as usual, having a pointless debate with Kimura and Satou about which light novel would be adapted into an anime next season.

“No way, based on the source material stock, it’s gotta be The Academy Dropout Sword Saint. It’s perfect for an anime adaptation.”

“You’re too naive, Gen-chan. Based on the production company, it’s definitely an isekai next. I’m betting my entire fortune on Corporate Slave Reincarnated as a Slime to Save the World.”

While engaging in that unproductive conversation, I unconsciously glanced toward the classroom entrance. Fujigaya-san was laughing cheerfully with some girls from our class as she headed out into the hallway.

Chasing her sparkling figure with my eyes had become an irresistible habit. She disappeared around the corner of the hallway. At that moment, I noticed some girls nearby whispering to each other.

“Hey, did you see that just now?”

“Yeah, yeah! It was Yamada-kun from the soccer team, right?”

“He was hitting on Fujigaya-san again, wasn’t he? He never gives up.”

Yamada-kun? From the soccer team? That name made my chest stir with a small, unpleasant sound. Ryou Yamada.

A super handsome guy from another class. Nearly 180 cm tall, with a refreshing smile and a well-trained physique—a perfect extrovert. The ace of the soccer team, wildly popular with girls. The absolute pinnacle of the school’s caste system. That was Ryou Yamada.

He and I existed in different dimensions. Light and shadow, sun and moon, a king and a roadside pebble. The contrast between him and me was painfully cruel. And that Yamada was after Fujigaya-san?

A bad premonition sent cold sweat racing up my spine. I stood up from my seat, barely registering Kimura and Satou’s voices.

“Whoa, what’s wrong, Gen-chan? Sudden stomachache or something?”

“…Uh, no, it’s just…”

Leaving behind incoherent words, I walked out into the hallway, drawn as if by some force.

I was determined to find Fujigaya-san. And I found her almost immediately. Near the window of the connecting corridor, by the vending machine, two people were talking.

One was Fujigaya-san. The other, as expected, was Ryou Yamada. I instinctively hid in the shadow of the staircase. My heart pounded loudly, like an alarm bell. They were too far away for me to clearly see their expressions or hear their conversation. But the sight was more than enough to shatter the fragile confidence that had just begun to sprout in me.

Yamada leaned against the wall with one hand, looking down at Fujigaya-san—a scene close to the classic “wall slam.” His face seemed to carry a smug, confident smile. Every so often, he’d casually run his fingers through his sleek hair, a gesture that looked annoyingly polished.

What kind of expression was Fujigaya-san making? Was she troubled? Or…

She seemed to flash a smile every now and then. That smile cut through my chest like a sharp knife.

Stop it. Don’t laugh with a guy like that.

Of course, my heart’s cries didn’t reach her. I could only watch the scene helplessly. How much time passed? Suddenly, Yamada took a step closer to her. And in a voice clear enough for even me to hear, he said.

“Just give it up already. It’ll definitely be fun with me.”

His voice was sweet, commanding, and brimming with absolute confidence.

“I’m serious about you, Fujigaya-san.”

And then he delivered the decisive blow.

“Fujigaya-san, will you go out with me?”

The world went silent. My mind went blank.

Oh, right. Of course.

Her place wasn’t next to an introvert like me, who reads light novels in the corner of the room.

It was beside a guy like him, shining brightly under the sun, a chosen one. That was only natural. That was the proper order of this world.

I had thought I wanted to change. I got carried away just because I paid a little attention to my appearance and managed to talk to Tanaka-san. How foolish and ridiculous I’d been. The veneer peels off quickly. In the face of someone with true radiance, my makeshift confidence was nothing more than dust.

I couldn’t stand there any longer. I was too scared to hear her response. I turned on my heel and fled the scene. I thought I faintly heard Fujigaya-san’s troubled voice behind me, but I couldn’t look back.

The short hallway back to my classroom felt endlessly long. The afternoon light streaming through the window felt painfully bright. That wasn’t the color of the world I belonged to.

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