The Boy Who Gave Up on Romantic Feelings ~I’m Done Because I Was Betrayed by The Girlfriends I Used to Date~ - Chapter 13-14

Chapter 13

I return to the classroom and tell Kotaro about what happened.

“—I see.”

He replied me with just one word.

However, there seem to be a lot behind that one word.

After all, he got caught up in the bullying for hanging out with me.

Thinking about that, I feel truly sorry.

“I’m sorry. Because of me, you got caught up in the bullying.”

“What are you talking about, don’t worry about that. Even if I didn’t hang out with you, I would’ve ended up in a similar situation, maybe even worse. I used to be a delinquent after all…”

Because Kotaro used to be a delinquent, there are many instances of him being looked down upon and getting involved in violence, especially during out first year when I wasn’t around.

I just learned about this recently.

However, he mentioned that if he hadn’t hung out with me, things might have escalated even further.

But having Kotaro as a friend really saved me. It’s not an exaggeration to call him a saviour to me.

After class, Motomura joins us and apologizes to me again inside the classroom.

He immediately apologizes loudly as soon as he arrives, surprising everyone in class.

Among them, the one who is surprised most is Kotaro.

Then, Kotaro whispers to me,

“Apologizing to you twice, and especially the second time doing it publicly. I never thought he would go that far, considering the possibility of him being bullied. At first, I thought that he was not a decent guy, just a cunning guy trying to free himself from guilt.”

Ater apologizing to me, Motomura also apologizes to Kotaro.

Kotaro responds casually saying,

“I wasn’t particularly bothered, so it’s fine.”

For the time being, it seems there are no conflict between these two, I feel relieved.

Afterwards, the three of us walk home together.

Occasionally, there are people who look us with surprised look on their faces, but we try not to let it bother us.

“Hey, Maeshima, Miyazaki, how about going to the ramen shop in the neighbouring town sometime?”

“Hmm? Sounds good. What about you, Kotaro?”

“Yeah, I don’t mind…”

“All right, thanks. Let me treat you guys as a little apology.”

“Are you sure? I feel bad.”

“It’s fine. Since we’ve become friends after all.”

We continue to talk with each other on the way home. Surprisingly, Motomura turns out ot be a good guy, and we have a lot in common.

It’s quite refreshing since I rarely have the chance to talk to people other than Kotaro.

Our main topic of conversation is mostly about games, and surprisingly, Motomura plays the same games as me and Kotaro do.

Moreover, our levels are quite close with each other, and we talked about what struggles us the most when levelling up our characters.

“See you.”

“Yeah.”

“See you at school.”

On the way, me and Kotaro part ways with Motomura.

Having talked this far with him, I realize that my judgement isn’t wrong.

While the days spent with Kotaro are undoubtedly interesting and fun, talking with Motomura, even for this short time, feels enjoyable.

“That’s great.”

Kotaro mutters a few words softly.

I can feel joy in his words.

Perhaps, he also feels a bit lonely because we only always hang out with each other.

Motomura is the first friend Kotaro made aside from me.

Despite what had happened, it’s clear that we can understand each other in this way.

For some reason, I find myself thinking that this might be the starting point for overcoming my trauma.

Chapter 14

Third Person POV

After that series of incidents, Otsuki is living comfortably at his new school, as if nothing has happened.

He made new friends, enjoy hanging out with them, actively participating in club activities, and even got himself a new girlfriend.

In short, he is enjoying his youth to the fullest.

However, the seemingly perfect life he built upon the sacrifices of others will definitely crumble in an instant one day.

“Good morning—”

Just like any other day, he arrives at school as usual.

However, there is a somewhat eerie atmosphere in the classroom.

Though Otsuki feels a bit curious why the class atmosphere is like that, he decided to ignore it and take his seat without thinking much about it.

“H-Hey…”

Then, a classmate approaches and speaks to him.

The classmate’s demeanour seems somewhat awkward. Despite feeling puzzled by the classmate’s behaviour, Otsuki responds as usual.

“What?”

“If I’m not mistaken, you have a girlfriend, right?”

“Yeah.”

“T-Then, who’s the girl in this video?”

“Hmm…!?”

The video is blurred, making it impossible to recognize the faces in it or even the background location of it.

However, the video is edited in a way that would be immediately recognizable to anyone related to the people in the video.

“W-What is this…? I-I have no idea.”

“B-But, this is certainly you, right…? It can only be you.”

At that moment, a girl enters the classroom.

She is the girlfriend that Otsuki is currently dating.

“Akito! What does this mean!?”

“…huh!? I-I don’t know!”

“This is definitely you, right!?”

“N-No, it’s not me!”

“But you just transferred here recently, right?”

Another classmate asked so.

Those words made Otsuki break into a cold sweat.

From there, it gradually spread throughout the entire class.

“I think you transferred to this school last year, right? Where did you come from?”

“Umm…this is your old school, isn’t it? Look, I tried searching in on the map, there is a school in the area with the same uniform as in the video.”

“Ah, you’re right. It’s definitely the same uniform. Almost identical, if not exactly the same.”

“…so, the reason Otsuki transferred here…”

“Ah! That private school is affiliated with our school!”

“So, it’s confirmed, right? So that means…Otsuki is actually…”

In an instant, the rumour spread, hitting one crucial point after another.

Once the evidence is gathered, the people in the classroom completely changed their image of Otsuki.

“—he’s a scum.”

It’s almost the same as what Otsuki did to Maeshima.

The only difference is it was based on rumours, this time, it’s based on facts.

“You’re the worst! I never thought you would do something like that! We’re done!”

“N-No! That is not me! It’s someone else! I would never do something like that!”

“Shut up! You lied to me, and yet you have the nerve to say that! Goodbye! Never show yourself in front of me again!”

“W-Wait!”

Gradually, Otsuki’s other classmates also begin to speak up.

“So that’s how it is…so that’s the kind of person Otsuki was. I’m disappointed.”

“Yeah, that’s right. Let’s avoid getting involved with him from now on.”

“Hey, don’t speak too loudly. He might hear us.”

“No, isn’t that fine? He lied to us. We don’t have to show pity for someone like him.”

“N-No…”

Even when Otsuki tries to speak, his voice is drowned out by the voices of his classmates around him.

What goes around comes around. Those words fit him perfectly.

For the first time, Otsuki begins to feel a sense of guilt for what he has done.

However, even though he feels guilty about it, it’s already too late.