The Story of Becoming a Drinking Friend When I Saved the Cutest Senpai in University - Vol 1 Chapter 29

Senpai took me out to the balcony.

It’s past seven o’clock in the afternoon. The sun began to set, and a cool breeze stroked my cheek.

“Hey, senpai.”

In response to my call, senpai answered “Yes” briefly while fixing her tie.

In her typically emotionless sober expression.

“Today’s senpai is so pretty… Ah, you always look so pretty, but that dress really suits you…!”

Fairy golden hair and golden eyes. A mature look with a style comparable to that of a model. A gorgeous crimson dress that makes her even more attractive.

When I went out a little while ago, I remembered that she scolded me when I said she was cute, and before I was pointed out, I gave my honest opinion. She’s so beautiful that I’m fascinated by her. It’s hard to look directly at her sexy makeup.

“…Thank you.”

Senpai turned on the switch and was certainly expressionless, but her emotions were completely dead.

There are some things that ooze, such as looking happy or having fun.

What I saw on senpai’s face today was a look of sadness.

Was my compliment old-fashioned? No, senpai wouldn’t look like this for that.

“What’s the matter? Are you feeling unwell?”

After fixing her tie, senpai looked up at me and immediately looked down.

“…I’m sorry.”

“W-why are you apologizing? I don’t know what it means.”

“I’m sorry… truly, truly sorry. I’m sorry.”

She picked the sleeve of my jacket tightly with her finger and apologized over and over again.

Her face, which looked up at me from time to time, was as hard as iron, but she seemed to be about to burst into tears.

I do not know.

I don’t understand it at all.

When I ask her, “What do you mean?” she opens her rouge lips trembling.

“…I have caused Itomori-kun to do something rough.”

“Huh? Ah… N-no, that’s not the case. I talked to them for a moment, and they went to the bathroom with a stomach ache―”

Of course, it’s a lie. In fact, I took them to the bathroom, knocked them out quickly, and let them sleep in a private room.

She seemed to know that and shook her head gently from side to side.

“I knew you didn’t like fighting… I just hoped you’d get your hands dirty. It’s convenient just because I’m in a situation where I can’t do anything about myself, even though I bragged about how to be strong… I’m sorry, I’m… sorry, Itomori-kun….”

She gently put her forehead on my chest and her shoulders trembled.

Suddenly something fell on my leather shoes. There is no need to ascertain the true nature of that sound.

Truly… truly sorry, from the bottom of my heart.

I’m glad I met this person.

“Don’t apologize. I don’t care.”

When I put my hand on her shoulder, senpai looked up gently.

I wiped the tears that were about to fall with my fingers and stroked her glossy hair.

“I certainly don’t like fighting. But I hate it even more when senpai feels bad… So don’t look like that. I’m glad I’ve trained myself, and it’s only recently that I’ve come to think of it. It was senpai who took good care of me, so I want to protect you with all my might! … Can’t you think that way?”

I chose a cowardly word.

It’s hard to deny that I can’t do this.

As expected, senpai tied her lips with difficulty and eventually shook her head, saying, “I understood.”

There is no sign of sadness on her face, and a light smile mixed with affection and resignation is engraved on her face as if he were looking at a helpless child.

“I mean, why are those two here? You didn’t invite them, right?”

“Among the guests tonight, very few have actually been invited directly by me. The rest were relatives and acquaintances. They are the grandchildren of my grandfather’s best friend.”

“Eh. By any chance, does that best friend come to this venue?”

“Do Itomori-kun remember the old man who spoke to? That’s him.”

“…A-are you serious?”

A cold sweat gushed out of my body.

This is crazy. I totally did it.

In front of her grandfather’s best friend, I knocked the grandson out of the bathroom, and what I did was a complete yakuza. Far from helping her, I may have outrageously hurt her name.

“You were very helpful because the old man had pressed me to have a relationship with either of them. Thank you very much.”

“R-relationship? That kind of relationship, right? Isn’t that a bit much for a birthday party…?”

“It’s not just that old man, but a considerable number of people are here for that objective. Joining the Tennouji family offers many benefits.”

“…Haa?”

In an instant, my anger broke through the boiling point and blew away a little.

I apologized  quickly to senpai and looked down, saying, “I-I’m sorry!” I bit my back teeth hard and managed to soothe my boiling rage.

“…But I don’t mean to say that, but make sure you come to my birthday party. I think I’ll have a good time if you’re with me.”

I finally understood the meaning of what senpai said at that time.

There is no way to enjoy a birthday party where only people who look at themselves like that gather on the premise of celebration.

“Excuse me, but if that’s the case, why don’t we narrow down the number of participants? It’s only for the people you invited…”

I know there’s nothing I can do about it.

But I can’t help but interfere. This is absolutely strange.

“It’s not that easy because it was planned by my deceased grandfather. The purpose is to attract a lot of people so that I don’t feel lonely.”

“…What do you mean you’re not lonely?”

“Today is my birthday―”

Suddenly, there was a shadow on senpai’s face.

Her lips hesitated to follow. I looked into her face to see if she was all right, and she took a little deep breath…

“At the same time… it’s the anniversary of my mother’s death.”

She said so quietly while staring me in the eye.

“My grandfather cares to celebrate my birthday in a big way so that I don’t hate my birthday as a child. Whatever the actual situation, I can’t make a fool of that feeling.”

She said with a sudden glance.

The entrance connects the hall and the balcony. On the other side of the glass door, more than ten men were glancing to see what was going on. I guess they’re waiting for senpai to come back.

“I will say a few words, and when I receive any invitation, I will say no. It’s hard, but this is also my duty… So, Itomori-kun, please stay by my side. If you’re here, I can do my best to the end.”

Her voice was so fleeting that it almost disappeared when the breeze blew.

I’ll be by your side. I’ll do so without being asked to.

Many here have witnessed what I have done, and if I had glared at them, they would show up.

But is that all right?

What’s your duty? What do you mean you can do well?

Even though it’s her birthday… and it’s the anniversary of her mother’s death, I don’t think that’s enough.

Even when we go to a villa in Okinawa, she still cares so much about her mother that she lets me accompany her because she doesn’t want to cry.

And yet… What the hell is that? Don’t be silly.

I would never stand it.

On the anniversary of my mother’s death, I feel nauseous to see other people and I don’t even want to do it.

…I’d rather destroy everything, everything.

I can’t do this because there’s a birthday party like this.

I could go on a rampage and force the event to cancel it. It’s possible to kidnap senpai more peacefully from here. That’s right, that sounds good.

“What’s wrong? I’m a little scared of your eyes.”

“…A-ah, no, I’m sorry, I’m all right.”

No, no, no.

What’s wrong with me? I’m a fool. That’s not an option.

I’m letting my emotions get the better of me. I need to calm down and take a deep breath.

There are other people at today’s event who were invited directly by senpai like me.

Of course, there are close relatives, and not everyone else has come for a purpose that doesn’t make sense. There is no way that senpai wants to cause trouble to people who have nothing to do with them.

Even senpai’s mother would get angry if she did that.

“…Understood. I’ll do my best to make senpai feel happy on that day! Leave everything to me, even if it’s a one-off show!”

“Yes, thank you. You promise?”

“Yes, It’s a promise.”

Think. I have to think about it.

If I can’t change the situation here, I don’t know why I made such a promise.

Those guys are the cause of senpai’s headache.

There must be ways to remove the seeds peacefully, safely, and without causing trouble to anyone.

“…Ah.”

I shook my poor head and I grabbed on one idea.

I don’t know if this is the ideal or the best.

To be honest, I’m not confident that this will really be enough to overcome the current situation.

Still, this is all I can think of now, and I don’t have time to look for other ideas.

“Senpai—!”

I took her by the hand.

I clenched my hand so that I wouldn’t let her go anywhere.

◆◆◆

Ichijou’s POV

Suddenly, Itomori-kun held my hand.

He was sweating a lot, perhaps because he came in a hurry or because the temperature was high.

As I tilted my head for no reason, he looked away and bit his lips. Nevertheless, he would not let go of my hands, rather, he would sweat harder.

“…Um, Itomori-kun?”

I glanced behind me.

The guests who are looking for me are watching us now waiting for me to return. If I don’t go quickly and deal with them properly, they’ll talk to me.

“S-senpai… well, um… I!”

His tense, jet-black eyes reflected only me.

His cheeks were burning red, his lips trembled, and he spun something unspeakable.

“…I…I, I…!”

“I?”

“…I, I like you!!”

I felt as if the sound of insects had stopped.

It was very quiet, and inversely, the sound of my heart was very loud.

Itomori-kun’s big, rugged hand gripped my hand even harder.

A dripping hand sweat. He was sweating all over, perhaps because it was spreading through me.

“No matter what happens, I’ll make you happy! So… P-please go out with me!”

Itomori-kun’s face was so full that it almost exploded.

Of course, I don’t have a millimeter to call it easy. A face as hard as iron melted away as I could tell, with a smile on his face as if he were crying.

Why, why are you saying that now?

I think there will be a better time and place.

There are endless questions, but there is no time to ask them here.

My body was holding his hand back before I knew it.

I took a breath, exhaled a little, and let go of the heat that seemed to make my eyes flutter. The liquid, which I didn’t know whether it was tears or sweat, ran down my cheeks and dripped from the tip of my chin.

“…”

I looked into his eyes as I looked away at the droplets.

“Y-yes…!”

A calm self whispered, “Is this the right answer to his confession?”

But this is the best I can do right now.

I don’t know if there’s such a happy thing in the world, and I can’t put it into words anymore.