The Story of Making a Popular Girl Dependent on Me - Chapter 33

Thursday. The whole school was in an uproar from the morning.

“Hey, did you see that video?”

“Yeah, I did. Isn’t it pretty bad?”

“Hey, isn’t that person in the video…”

“Yeah, no doubt.”

While whispering, classmates were avoiding one student but watching him.

The student’s face turned pale, devoid of any color, trembling, and shaking his legs while his friends around him had significantly decreased, leaving only a few.

After a while, the homeroom teacher came in and called out to the student.

“Hayato, come to the principal’s office immediately.”

“…Yes.”

The student called Hayato Senagawa slowly stood up, swaying, and left the classroom.

“Now, what will happen to him next? It’s quite a sight.”

The commotion that happened today traces back to Sunday.

The day after Riho stayed over and we had a heart-to-heart talk. She had lunch at my place and then went back to her house.

Thanks to her, I had renewed my determination and messaged Hasegawa to get rid of the trash.

“Hasegawa, I’m thinking of executing the plan. Are you okay with it?”

“Yes! I’m fine! When will we start?”

“From Monday, please.”

“Got it!”

After sending the message, I lay on the bed, looking at the ceiling, thinking about the days ahead.

“For now, cleaning up the trash should be quick, so the next step is what to do with Setsune.

If she’s still unsure about being friends with me, then maybe we’ll have to part ways. …I don’t want that. I don’t want to break up. Please choose me, Setsune.”

The next day, Monday. In the usual school setting, I was still watching Setsune.

Although her health had improved compared to two weeks ago, the change in Setsune’s attitude left everyone puzzled, making things a bit awkward.

This was because Setsune blatantly ignored Hayato Senagawa whenever he tried to talk to her.

(Has there been a change in her feelings?)

Certainly, a week ago, there was an atmosphere of avoiding him and not talking when he approached, but it wasn’t as obvious as now.

As a result, friends who had been trying to set up Setsune with that guy were now unsure of what to do, and Hayato Senagawa himself seemed in a bad mood due to being ignored by Setsune.

As there was a slight change in Setsune and others by the end of the morning, a topic came up during lunch break in the class.

“Hey, have you seen this video?”

“What video? What’s it about?”

“It’s a video where several high school boys are hitting one boy.”

“Eh, is that true?”

“It was on SNS. Look.”

“Oh, you’re right. …Wow, isn’t it pretty bad?”

“Yeah, and the person in it…”

It seemed like Hasegawa and others had taken action promptly, as the incriminating video had been anonymously posted on SNS.

Yes. Our plan was simple and modern – to spread the recorded video on SNS to inform many people and eliminate that guy.

However, just because it was simple didn’t mean it wasn’t effective. Believers were slowly drifting away, and there was a sense of despair as one by one, no one was left.

This was like slowly strangling someone with cotton, causing them to suffer while killing them.

(SNS is really scary, right? It spreads good and bad things in an instant… Well, it’s just right for him who was concerned about others’ opinions.)

By the way, it seemed that one of the fan club members had been talking about the video with friends earlier. Quite reliable, indeed.

Subsequently, the video gradually spread from the class to the whole school, and many people on SNS watched the video and commented on its abnormality.

Initially, no one thought the person in the video was Hayato Senagawa, and even if they did, they couldn’t believe it due to denials from others.

“Hayato wouldn’t do something like this!”

“Yeah, everyone’s so mean. Just because he looks similar.”

“That’s right. Hayato wouldn’t do something so cruel. Hayato, don’t worry too much.”

“…Thank you, everyone.”

Friends around me, believing that he wasn’t the person in the video, tried to cheer him up.

However, Setsune, in that situation, didn’t speak to him and silently observed the surroundings.

(A bit surprising. I thought the kind Setsune would talk to him. Has she changed a bit?)

However, in the subsequent videos posted, there was always someone who looked like Hayato Senagawa, and gradually, people around him began to suspect him.

Yet, even though the teachers were aware of the videos, they couldn’t act on mere possibilities and chose to observe for a while.

As the friends around him didn’t like being looked at with disgust, one by one, they started to leave Hayato Senagawa.

(Haha. It’s going smoothly. I won’t let him off easily. Slowly, let him be exposed to the disgust from others and disappear. …That’s the punishment for trying to make a move on my Setsune.)

Excited that the plan was progressing smoothly, I simply watched as Hayato Senagawa was cornered.

And now, the scene returns to the beginning, where the teachers finally called him out.

The reason they called him out was that the video posted yesterday clearly identified Hayato Senagawa.

“Hey, Hayato. Isn’t it getting impossible to get money from this guy?”

“Indeed. I’ve received quite a bit from this trash, and lately, my wallet has been almost empty. It’s time to look for the next target.”

“Oh, great! I’ll find the next target. Also, let’s go to that convenience store again.”

“Oh, that convenience store. Sure.”

“Are Hayato and the others going there? Then I’ll go too. There are few staff there, making it easy to steal, right?”

The unpleasant videos continued, but while they had been silent videos before, this time, it had audio, making the name widely known.

Moreover, the video included remarks suggesting shoplifting, prompting the teachers to finally take action.

As Hayato Senagawa left the classroom, which had been quiet until then, it suddenly became noisy.

“If the teacher called him out, then…”

“Of course, his name is in the video, so it must be him.”

“Ah, I can’t believe Hayato did that. I always thought he had a shady side, but this is too much.”

“You’re saying something different from before. I believed in Hayato, and now this is hilarious.”

“I wonder what will happen in today’s class?”

“No way, that’s probably not the main concern.”

People who had been close to Hayato Senagawa or believed in him were now all criticizing him.

(Really, everyone’s changing sides so quickly. Well, as long as he disappears, I don’t care.)

After a while, Hayato Senagawa returned, and the surroundings quieted down again.

He returned to his seat, swaying like when he left, and his friends who had always been with him approached him.

Seeing everyone, he looked around with a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

“…Everyone. Thanks…”

“…Hey. What have you done? Because of you, rumors are spreading throughout the school that I might be involved in such things.”

“…Huh?”

The words directed at him were not words of comfort but filled with disgust, hatred, clear animosity.

“Exactly. I’ve been ridiculed by friends from other schools because of you. How will you fix this?”

“That’s… not…”

His eyes no longer held the light they had moments ago, completely engulfed in despair.

Still wanting to find some hope, he tried to seek help from the kind-hearted Setsune.

“Ah, Asahina-san…”

Hayato Senagawa said as he reached out to Setsune, but his hand never reached her.

Smack!

“Can you not touch me? You’re dirty.”

With those cold words and eyes, Setsune herself smacked his hand away and wiped her hands with a handkerchief.

Those affected by Setsune’s demeanor fell silent, contrasting the previous commotion.

“Asahina-san… why?”

“Why? It’s because my girlfriend was upset because of you. How dare you touch me with those dirty hands. Thanks to you, she misunderstood me, and people around us kept trying to leave us alone, which was really annoying.”

“Did you think I would help you? Don’t misunderstand. I have no interest in you at all. So, there’s no way I would help you.”

With those words from Setsune, Hayato Senagawa stood there with vacant eyes, unable to accept reality.

I was also surprised by Setsune’s words and couldn’t hide my astonishment as she suddenly kissed me in front of everyone.

“Scream!”

The girls in the class screamed in shock, while the boys fell silent.

After a while, Setsune parted her lips from mine.

“Now you understand. I’m dating Rokka. So, I never had any interest in you from the beginning.”

“That’s… not…”

Whether he was overwhelmed by the truth she told him, Hayato Senagawa remained silent.

Perhaps more shocking than Hayato Senagawa’s situation, no one in the classroom spoke about what had just happened between us.

As the chaotic classroom settled, the homeroom teacher returned, and Setsune spoke up.

“Teacher. It’s impossible to have class today, right?”

“Hmm?… Oh, right. We can’t have class after something like this happens. Did you discuss what to do?”

“In that case, Rokka and I will leave first.”

“…Huh?”

“Let’s go, Rokka.”

Setsune said and went back to her seat to get her bag.

I didn’t quite understand the situation, but I followed Setsune to get my bag as she had said.

“I’m in this mess because you tried to make a move on my Setsune.”

As I passed Hayato Senagawa on the way, I quietly said those words only he could hear.

He didn’t respond, but his vacant eyes didn’t leave me.

After preparing to leave, Setsune and I confidently linked arms and left the classroom.