The Reason Why I was Cheated on By My Girlfriend - Chapter 33

A Conversation Between Yua and Kaguya

After leaving the Skytree, the three of them return to Tokyo Station without making any detours and board the Shinkansen.

It’s a weekday evening.

In the reserved seat carriage, there are only a few other students in the same uniform scattered here and there. It seems that Haruki and his group aren’t the only ones who decided to enjoy their free time to the last minute.

Their seating arrangement is the same as on the way there. Kaguya sits by the window, Haruki in the middle, and Yua by the aisle.

“Haruki-san, you look sleepy.”

Kaguya said so with a smile on her face about five minutes after the Shinkansen started moving.

“…sorry. I might have gotten a little too excited.”

“Eh? You didn’t seem that excited though.”

When Yua voices her question, Haruki looks at her with sleepy eyes.

He doesn’t say anything, but his eyes seem to say, ‘Try to guess’.

Yua gives a weary expression. In fact, she understands that Haruki has been secretly excited.

Yua has known Haruki for such a long time, so it’s easy for her to know about such things.

“Haru-kun, you’re swaying.”

Yua said so with a laugh.

Haruki straightens his posture, but soon he starts swaying again.

“On the other hand, aren’t you feeling sleepy, Yua?”

“Not at all. I’ve been sleeping well lately.”

Yua replied so.

Haruki knows that Yua has been having nightmares.

In order to help Yua ease her nightmares, Haruki has been helping her in various ways.

It’s something Haruki can’t talk about with Kaguya.

“What about you, Kaguya?”

Haruki hurriedly asks the next question.

“I’m fine too.”

“……”

“I know that you’re looking at me while thinking ‘even though you’re the most excited one’, but I’m really fine.”

Kaguya said so in a slightly sulky tone.

Haruki gives a wry smile at Kaguya, and the conversation pauses for a moment.

“Kaguya, sorry, can we switch seats?”

Haruki eventually asked so, looking a bit embarrassed.

Kaguya narrows her eyes gently, and without saying anything, she moves to the aisle.

“Thanks.”

Haruki thanked her and leans against the window, resting his cheek on his hand.

Yua and Kaguya both stare at his profile.

“…what?”

Haruki said so in a slightly sulky tone, and the two of them just laugh and say,

“Nothing.”

Haruki sighs in annoyance, but he can’t fight off the sleepiness, and soon his eyelids begin to droop.

And then—

“……”

“……”

Kaguya and Yua fall silent.

Even after ten, twenty minutes passed, neither of them says anything.

It’s not that they are ignoring each other.

Yua occasionally glance over at Kaguya, and Kaguya notices her gaze.

They area both aware of each other, but no one says anything.

Sitting next to a romantic rival is incredibly uncomfortable.

Eventually, Kaguya lets out a long sigh.

Then she turns to Yua and says,

“Haruki-san has fallen asleep, hasn’t he?”

“…y-yeah, he has!”

Yua straightens her posture as if she has been caught dozing off during class.

“He must have been really tired.”

Kaguya tries to continue the conversation somehow.

“…yes, that’s right.”

Kaguya looks at Haruki.

Yua’s heart races as she looks at Kaguya.

Then, Kaguya turns to face forward again.

As if searching for the right words, Kaguya looks down and turns to Yua.

“Yua-san…”

She said so.

Kaguya leans in close to Yua’s ear and whispers in a very small voice,

“Do you like Haruki-san?”

“H-Hmm!?”

Yua is so surprised by the sudden question that she made a strange noise.

She pulls away towards the aisle and looks at Kaguya with a confused expression on her face.

“……”

Kaguya says nothing more.

She is just quietly waiting for Yua’s answer.

Yua’s eyes wander around.

She didn’t expect Kaguya to ask her that question at all, she doesn’t know how to respond.

“…yeah.”

But in the end, she nods.

“I like him.”

Yua’s heart is racing.

For her, saying that is a bold move.

She once tried giving up her love towards Haruki.

But she couldn’t. So, she decided to fight.

The old Yua would never have said those words.

However, the Yua who has accepted her imperfect-self chose not to back down.

“…I’m glad to hear that.”

Kaguya said so with a smile on her face.

And then, noticing Yua’s confused expression, she continues,

“Haruki-san has always cared about you, Yua-san.”

Yua looks down.

She realizes that Kaguya doesn’t consider her as a ‘rival in love’.

She is simply thinking about Haruki.

As if to confirm Yua’s intuition, Kaguya continues,

“I’m happy to know that Haruki-san’s efforts aren’t in vain.”

This is Kaguya’s true feeling.

Although she does feel some jealousy, her top priority is still Haruki’s happiness.

“…doesn’t it bother you?”

“Why would it bother me?”

And with that, Kaguya continues,

“It’s nice when someone you like is liked by someone else, isn’t it?”

For a moment, Yua’s mind goes completely blank.

“…Sakashita-san, you’re amazing.”

In Yua’s eyes, Kaguya seems incredibly dazzling.

Pure, straightforward, and completely different from herself.

Yua can’t help but feel that Kaguya is the one who deserves to stand beside Haruki.

“What do you like about Haru-kun, Sakashita-san?”

This time, Kaguya’s eyes widen in surprise.

She glances at Haruki beside her and whispers to Yua.

“He’s right beside us, you know?”

“Haha, you’re saying that now?”

As Yua laughs, Kaguya replies with a slightly annoyed tone.

“I’ve said this before. I like everything about him.”

“Could you be more specific?”

“For example, he has a big heart.”

Kaguya said so in a soft voice.

“…I totally get that.”

Yua nods sincerely.

If Haruki could accept even her flawed self, then surely he can understand and accept anyone.

He would make an effort to understand them at the very least.

“Now it’s your turn, Yua-san.”

“No, no, I can’t do that.”

“Why can’t you?”

“Well…he’s Sakashita-san’s boyfriend, right?”

“So what? Does it really matter?”

“Well, I think that really matters.”

Yua laughs awkwardly.

Then, she thinks to herself.

(I still can’t quite understand Sakashita-san. However, Sakashita-san is definitely not a bad person. As expected, Haru-kun is good at reading people. But I won’t lose, I definitely won’t give up.)

After that the two of them continue to talk about romance.

It’s an awkward situation, one of them is Haruki’s girlfriend and the other loves Haruki.

But once they get used to it, it becomes an enjoyable time for the both of them.

“Hey, Sakashita-san.”

“What is it?”

After getting comfortable with the conversation, Yua asks,

“Is it okay if I call you Kaguya-chan?”

“Of course!”

Yua’s eyes narrow with happiness.

Even though it’s just a change in how she calls her, it feels like the distance between them has closed significantly.

They still don’t fully understand each other.

The fact that they are romantic rivals hasn’t changed.

However…

(I don’t think I’ll come to dislike her.)

That is Yua’s thoughts as she sits on the Shinkansen, where the sound of conversation can be heard here and there.