The Story About How I Was Fired From My Company and Then Picked up by a Possessive Streamer With Over 5 Million Subscribers - Chapter 91-92

Chapter 91: Food Grudge Is Terrible

The loud, shocking noise had reverberated through the classroom, reaching the ears of everyone present.

All eyes focused on the source. In the back of the room lay a plain-looking girl with glasses, toppled along with her desk, while standing before her was a flashy, popular girl who seemed to have knocked her down.

“Hurry up and go buy it! Or do you want to get hit again?”

The popular girl, Suzuna Hariyo, had snapped furiously at the girl on the floor, her anger barely contained.

The girl on the floor, Muchiri Aione, with tears brimming in her eyes, had desperately shaken her head.

“I-I’m sorry! But I really don’t have any money…I just don’t have any!”

Hearing her pained plea, the whole class had understood instantly. She had become a target for Hariyo, the popular girl.

Though she had been in school that day, Sumemagi Rinmei, better known as Scarlet, had also once been tormented by Hariyo.

Cold and aloof, Rinmei had endured relentless bullying from her, though Rinmei herself didn’t remember much of it now. But her bullying had reportedly been cruel and unyielding.

After Rinmei had stopped coming to school, Hariyo had shifted her attention to Aione, who was in the same class.

“Then just steal money from your parents’ wallet or something! I don’t care about your excuses!”

“Th-that’s…impossible! I could never do something like that…”

“Oh? You sure you want to say that? I could just post that little thing of yours online, you know?”

“W-what!?”

Seeing this, Aione’s face had turned ghostly pale. Hariyo had held up her hidden phone, showing a video of Aione’s secret on the screen.

“If you don’t want this to go public, hurry up and buy it for me.”

“No…please, I…”

Aione had begun to sob, but no one reached out a hand to help her.

No one dared stand up to Hariyo at that school. Not even the well-known Keisuke Kadzuhara, teachers, or the principal could defy her.

Hariyo kept dirt on many people through her secret connections, using that information to blackmail them across the school. With such leverage, she could bully as openly as she pleased without fear of consequence.

Everyone in class had known that standing up for Aione could make them Hariyo’s next target, so no one moved.

“Who…”

——Everyone except one.

A low, menacing voice, surprising for a woman, had shattered the tense silence. The entire room had tensed up, and even Hariyo had stiffened.

“…Who stole my lunch?”

A chill had run through the room.

Slowly, Rinmei had stood up, her movements eerie and haunting, causing Hariyo to shrink back in fear. Her expression had been so intense, the terror it invoked had made even the legends of red demons seem mild.

“Wh-what…It’s none of your business! Stay out of it!”

“You?”

“W-what…?!”

Rinmei’s angry eyes had locked onto Hariyo.

“I was finally going to eat Eiji’s bento…I’d been looking forward to it…”

With a loud slam, Rinmei had struck the desk beside her with such force that it echoed through the classroom.

“Eek!”

The sound had been so powerful it didn’t seem like something a girl could make. Blood trickled from her palm, vividly showing the depth of her anger.

“The resentment over food…I’ll make you understand it.”

“Aaaahhhh!”

The moment Rinmei had spoken these words, Hariyo had let out a strangled scream, fleeing from the room.

With Hariyo’s departure, silence filled the classroom. Some had been in shock, others had fainted in fear, while others had slipped out of the room as quickly as Hariyo.

The cause of this scene, Rinmei, had slowly sunk to her knees.

“…Eiji’s bento…I really wanted to eat it…”

The sadness in her voice had been hard to believe, given how fierce she’d seemed moments before. Watching her closely, Aione had spoken up.

“Uh, um…thank you for earlier…”

“I’m…so hungry…”

“Uh…haha…”

Aione couldn’t help but give a faint laugh at Rinmei’s expression, which was somber but on the verge of tears.

“Um…Sumemagi-san?”

At Aione’s hesitant call, Rinmei had finally looked her way, her eyes red from tears.

“…Who are you?”

“Um, I’m Aione. You helped me earlier…”

“…I see…that’s good…”

“Um…are you alright?”

Aione had grown worried for Rinmei, whose sorrowful expression was palpable. But Rinmei couldn’t answer, her gaze locked on the scattered remnants of Eiji’s bento.

“…Eiji’s bento…”

Seeing Rinmei’s expression, Aione had hesitated before speaking.

“Sumemagi-san, if it’s alright with you…”

With a gentle tone, Aione had extended an invitation to Rinmei, who was on the verge of tears.

“Would you like to eat lunch with me?”

For Rinmei, those words had held a glimmer of salvation.

—

Chapter 92: Friends

“Oh, um, Sumeragi-san? You didn’t need to gobble it up so fast…there was still plenty left.”

At that moment, Rinmei and Megane were eating Megane’s lunch on the rooftop after cleaning up the remains of the bento that Eiji had prepared.

Rinmei, engrossed, devoured the surprisingly large meal with enthusiasm.

“…Delicious…I didn’t know bento could taste this good…I’m moved…”

“Oh, oh, I’m glad you liked it…”

Originally, it had been made for the popular girl and her friends, but Rinmei had already devoured it with ease. Megane had been a bit stunned by Rinmei’s appetite as she silently ate her own portion of the bento.

“…Mmm. Thank you for the meal.”

“What! Th-that was fast…”

She was speechless; she had just started eating her food, yet found herself staring at the empty bento box she had given Rinmei.

“This lunch was so good…I’d want to eat it again…”

“Oh, really? Want more?”

“…Is that okay? But…Eiji’s bento was also tempting…”

With arms crossed, Rinmei had contemplated, while Megane continued eating her own bento.

“…I’ve decided. I’ll eat both.”

“Both? You’re really going to eat both?”

“…Eiji…the person who made this bento for me…It must be delicious…but that flashy girl…got in the way…”

Rinmei had clenched her fists in anger, remembering the face of the popular girl who had interfered.

Megane had felt guilty watching her.

It was only natural; because of her own poor decisions, Rinmei’s lunch had been ruined.

“I’m sorry, Sumeragi-san. It’s my fault…”

As Megane apologized, Rinmei had shaken her head, unconcerned.

“…You weren’t at fault; you were just dragged into it. Besides, you gave me this bento. So you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“But…still…”

Even as she blamed herself, Rinmei had responded calmly.

“…Then from now on, make me lunch. That’ll make us even.”

“…Just that will make it alright?”

“Mmm…It’s the most I can ask of you.”

Rinmei’s words had made Megane blink, then burst into a quiet laugh. Not understanding why, Rinmei had tilted her head, but Megane had kept laughing.

“S-sorry. I just didn’t expect you to ask for food.”

“…? I don’t think that’s so strange.”

“It’s not strange for you. Okay then, I’ll make you lunch, alright?”

“…You’ll make it yourself?”

“Yeah. It wouldn’t be right to rely on my mom for this much food.”

“…Impressive.”

The awkwardness in their conversation seemed to disappear, and they had fallen into a comfortable, lighthearted exchange—something both Rinmei and Megane hadn’t experienced in a long time.

Just then, the school bell had rung, marking the end of lunch break.

“…It’s time to go.”

Rinmei had thanked her for the lunch and prepared to leave.

“W-wait.”

“Hm?”

Suddenly, Megane had stopped Rinmei with her voice.

Rinmei had turned to look at her.

“…Sumeragi-san. I…I’m really, really sorry.”

“Huh? For what?”

Rinmei genuinely hadn’t understood what she meant. Had she done something wrong? It shouldn’t be about the bento anymore…

“…Because I caught that popular girl’s attention, and she started bullying me, I finally understood how you felt, Sumeragi-san.”

Rinmei nodded, understanding. Lately, she’d been having so much fun that she’d almost forgotten about her own bullying and the time she’d stopped going to school.

“It took being abandoned for me to understand…what I did to you, Sumeragi-san.”

“…I’m not bothered by it. If that’s the case, then I’m also at fault. I didn’t know anything about you, either.”

“But you helped me today. Sumeragi-san, you’re amazing…”

Rinmei had shrugged, trying not to dwell on Megane’s pained expression.

“…If I have to say anything, it’s that…I think you’re amazing.”

“Huh?”

Megane, taken aback, had stared at Rinmei in surprise.

“…Back then, you stood up to her, that flashy girl.”

“T-that was only because I really couldn’t stand it anymore.”

“Mmm. But still, being able to stand up to someone shows strength…Back then, I couldn’t say a word.”

Rinmei had recalled her own silent self from that time. She would say nothing, doing nothing to defend herself. She had just let things happen. She was still not very different, but she regretted not saying anything back then, leading to things she couldn’t take back.

“…So I think you’re amazing. Even though you were alone, you stood up to her…but being alone is hard.”

“Oh…”

“So…um, in times like these…what do you say? Uh…”

Rinmei, a little embarrassed, had stepped closer to Megane and extended her hand.

“…I’ll be your support. Your…friend.”

“Huh!?”

“Um, I’m thanking you for sharing your lunch. And I’ll keep relying on you. Plus…I enjoyed talking to you…so…friends?”

Rinmei had spoken quickly, a rare occurrence, with a slight blush on her cheeks. Yet, Megane, oblivious to Rinmei’s expression, had grasped her outstretched hand tightly.

“…Is it really okay? Even though I’m like this? We’ve only just met, and I tried to abandon you…”

“…I don’t mind. I want to be friends with you…Is that not okay?”

“N-no! Of course it’s okay! I’ll be your friend, Sumeragi-san!”

Hearing those words, Rinmei sighed in relief. Thank goodness…If she’d been rejected, she might have been too heartbroken to return to school.

Deeply relieved, Rinmei had felt peace settle within her.

“…Then, no more formal language between us. It makes things feel distant.”

“S-sure…Even though I thought I was speaking normally.”

“…Then call me by my first name. I’m Sumeragi Rinmei…Call me Rinmei.”

“O-okay! Nice to meet you, Rinmei-chan! I’m Ichinose Haruka!”

Her expression had been bright, as though she hadn’t just faced bullying earlier. Hearing her name, Rinmei couldn’t help but think:

(…So her name’s not Yumetori Liana…)

Thinking about the strange name she’d once been given, Rinmei and Megane—Haruka—had returned to the classroom together.