The Day After I Told My Shut-In Genius Childhood Friend, Who’s Highly Dependent on Me, “I Got Confessed To,” She Showed Me a Hypnosis App - Chapter 15

◆ “Momose Nanaka”

I remembered how I became friends with Honamin, or rather, Mizumura Honami-kun.

At first, I just thought he seemed like a dependable person.

Class representative, student council… he was always helping out for all sorts of reasons.

But no matter how busy he was, he always smiled lightly and never seemed stressed.

That’s why everyone ended up relying on him.

Still, there was one thing about him that caught my attention.

(Sometimes, does he seem a bit spacey?)

Back then, I still called him Mizumura-kun.

Sometimes he would just stare off into nothing, all alone.

I tried to follow his gaze, but there were people and things everywhere, and I couldn’t tell what he was looking at.

(Why is that?)

I wondered, but I quickly forgot. At that time, he was just another classmate. I didn’t care enough to try figuring him out.

―That changed the day I dropped something.

“Eh? Whose keychain is this?”

In the corner of the classroom, my favorite anime keychain from “The Magical Girl Prism☆Sparkle” had fallen to the floor.

The moment I heard that, I felt all the blood drain from my face.

(That’s mine…)

I had secretly attached it inside my bag so no one would see it. I didn’t tell my friends I liked Prikle. I didn’t want anyone to make fun of the anime I loved, even in a small way.

But somehow, it had come undone and fallen.

“Eh, this is bad? Who even watches this kind of anime in this class!?”

And to make it worse, it was picked up by a boy from the neighboring class, the one who was always loud and annoying.

He sometimes came over just to shout around, and most people found it bothersome. Plus, he knew some of my friends, so he often bothered me, too. I didn’t like him.

Now he had found it.

Even worse, he spotted my friend and came over while grinning.

“Hey, whose is this?”

“Eh, I don’t know.”

“Momose-chan?”

My heart jumped when he called me out of the blue.

I didn’t like being called so casually, but more than that, my mind went blank when he shoved my secret right in front of me.

No one should have noticed. But I couldn’t react fast enough.

“Ah… um…”

“Eh? Wait, is this Momose-chan’s!?”

The boy got excited over something I didn’t understand.

Really? My friend asked, and I couldn’t answer that either.

I hated being found out like this. I couldn’t stand seeing my favorite anime being touched by such a boy.

I had failed. I had brought it because I loved it, because it made me happy. I could have just said it’s not mine, but I was too flustered to even do that. If I knew this would happen, I shouldn’t have brought it at all.

“―Hey, cut it out.”

Just as tears were about to come, a calm and serious voice echoed in the classroom.

Everyone looked toward the source of the sound.

Mizumura-kun was standing up while he was frowning.

The noisy boy lowered his voice.

“…Huh? Who are you? Wait, is this yours?”

“That’s right. Give it back.”

(…Eh.)

The boy showed off the keychain, holding it like he was teasing me. Mizumura-kun nodded without hesitation.

That couldn’t be. That was mine.

“Wait, you’re still watching this kind of anime in high school?”

“Who cares what anime anyone watches? And if you underestimate a kid’s magical girl anime, an adult boy might just knock some sense into you.”

“…You’re not trying to defend her, right? You nerd.”

Mizumura-kun’s serious words seemed to make the boy change his target.

It might have been a guess, but what Mizumura-kun said was true. The boy definitely didn’t have a Prikle keychain.

“Nerd? That’s fine by me―”

But Mizumura-kun suddenly muttered, still completely serious.

“I hate people like you the most in the world.”

“Huh?”

“That line is from Episode 3, ‘The Mysterious Transfer Student!?’. Luna from Prikle says it. Her first meeting with the main character starts with a sharp remark.”

Everyone around looked confused. They had no idea why he was saying this.

I was surprised too, but for a different reason.

He was right. Every word was correct. That line really existed in the show.

“You…”

“But after that, she grows closer to the main character. She questions him, ‘I don’t understand what you’re thinking,’ or opens up a little with, ‘You big fool,’ and eventually even starts saying, ‘I’ll protect you if it’s you.’”

To my shock, everything he was saying was actual lines from Prikle.

He tilted his head at the boy, who was completely dumbfounded.

“I can keep going. Do you want me to say more? I’m an otaku, after all. I could do a ‘Prikle’ quote ASMR just for your ears.”

“…Ugh. So lame.”

“Give me back the keychain.”

The boy threw the keychain carelessly, and Mizumura-kun caught it.

He wrapped it in a handkerchief, put it safely in his bag, and sat down as if nothing had happened.

Just then, the bell rang, signaling the end of break.

The boy went back to his class, and the teacher walked in slowly. My classmates hurried back to their seats, and the tense atmosphere faded under the teacher’s calm voice.

(Mizumura Honami-kun… right?)

After that day, I started watching him more often.

◇

That afternoon, I finally gathered the courage to talk to him. From that day on, Mizumura Honami ―Honamin, as I came to call him, and I became friends.

A secret friend to quietly talk about Prikle with.

As we talked, I realized I was starting to care about him more and more.

Honamin’s gentle way of replying and how he enjoyed the things I liked felt really comforting.

The more I watched him, the more I began to understand why he sometimes seemed so lost in thought.

(―He’s looking at the empty seat of a student who doesn’t come to school.)

I noticed this after we had a seating change.

The direction of his gaze changed depending on his seat, before and after the change.

The common point was one empty seat near the window.

That seat belonged to a girl named― “Shinonome Mio.”

(Why is he looking at her seat?)

Since enrolling, I had never seen the girl named Shinonome Mio.

Our homeroom teacher said lightly that it was for health reasons, and she seemed to fade from everyone’s memory in the class after that.

(Could he know her somehow?)

If it’s for health reasons, maybe she’s sick.

Maybe he’s hoping she can come back to school. Or maybe there’s another reason.

I haven’t asked him yet.

For a moment… I quietly took a mental snapshot of his distant-looking profile.

(I’m looking at you, yet.)

Why are you staring at a girl who isn’t even here?

◇

Even though there was a small cloud hanging over me, the time I spent with him was fun.

It all ended because of me.

“D-Did you see it?”

“…I-I didn’t see… all of it.”

“You totally saw it!”

I had set a photo on my lock screen, believing a rumor, and Honamin saw it.

But it couldn’t be helped now. I couldn’t change what had happened. I could only think about what comes next.

“Um… I like you… Will you go out with me…?”

I couldn’t hear his answer right then and ran away.

(I-I said it…!)

I confessed without any preparation. But I didn’t really regret it. I knew I would say it someday anyway. It was better than never saying anything.

After that, all I could do was wait for Honamin’s reply.

No matter if it was yes or no, I felt like I could accept it if he told me.

The next day, as I was worrying about it.

Suddenly ―Honamin hugged me.

(Eeeeeh!?)

It was a total shock. Like lightning striking out of a clear sky.

(W-why a hug!?))

I didn’t understand. My head felt like it was going to explode, I didn’t know what to do, and I think I shouted something and ran away.

But ―it somehow made me feel free.

If he can do something like that, then I can do it too, right?

If he’s acting a little strange, it’s okay for me to act a little strange too.

Just because I confessed, it doesn’t mean my approach is over.

Since I told him I like him, I feel kind of unstoppable.

“Then let’s go on a date.”

When I said that in the nurse’s office, Honamin’s eyes went wide, and he looked surprised.

But after thinking about it, he nodded… Does that mean he’s interested? Maybe?

I wanted to ask, but he still seemed unsure, so I held back.

I linked our pinky fingers.

(It’s a promise.)

Even if he’s looking at someone else, I’ll make sure he looks at me.