The Story of Waking up With My Beautiful Childhood Friend and Realizing We Had Spent the Night Together - Chapter 29.2: Moonlight

Chapter 29.2: Moonlight

…What the hell.

I was so dumbfounded, I couldn’t react.

Hurt? Morishita-senpai?

…And I was supposed to apologize?

“…Don’t mess with me.”

“What?”

“I don’t know anything about Sekiya-senpai. I haven’t done anything.”

Summoning all my courage, I stood my ground.

But in the next instant—

“—What?”

The warmth drained from their expressions.

And the next moment, pain exploded in my head.

“O-ow…!”

“What are you misunderstanding?”

“…”

My hair was grabbed and shaken from side to side.

A few strands of hair fell to the floor.

“We’re saying this for your sake, you know? Do you really want to be completely shut out by everyone at school?”

“…That…”

“If you apologize now, Morishita will forgive you.”

She smirked while still gripping my hair.

The other two looked at me with disgusting grins.

…Looking at these three, who didn’t even seem human…

A hot rage flared up in my stomach.

“…No.”

“Huh?”

“I absolutely refuse. I won’t apologize…!”

I mustered all the pride I had and glared at them.

It hurt, and I was scared. But this was wrong.

I didn’t want to lose to such unreasonable violence.

As soon as I said that, the smirks disappeared from their faces.

“…Huh. I see.”

She suddenly let go of my hair roughly.

I held my head in pain as one of them pulled out a smartphone.

“—Hey. Let’s strip her.”

“…What?”

Hearing those words, I could only respond in shock.

Another one giggled.

“Oh, that’s a great idea! Let’s take pictures and send them to Sekiya-kun! That way, no one will ever take this bitch seriously again!”

She clapped her hands, laughing loudly.

As I watched them, I felt my face go pale.

(…What are they even saying…?)

There’s no way they could get away with this.

But… these people might actually do it.

My body started trembling uncontrollably.

And then, the last one—the senpai who had just been grabbing my hair—

“…Hear that? Too bad, Inoue. If you had just apologized, you wouldn’t have to go through this.”

She took a step closer with a cruel smile.

The other two also stepped forward, surrounding me.

“…N-no…”

Fear threatened to break my spirit.

I was scared. I didn’t want this.

Someone, help me.

“…Help… me…”

I finally whispered the words.

The person who came to mind at that moment was a certain senpai.

…And just then—

“—What are you doing?”

A clear, beautiful voice rang out.

“…?!”

At that voice, the senpais all turned around at once.

Standing there was a girl so beautiful she seemed almost unreal.

There wasn’t a single person in this school who didn’t know her.

(…Onee-sama…?)

I was stunned.

And so were the senpais.

“…Huh? Yukimura Mizuki…?”

One of them muttered.

But soon, she forced a twisted smile.

“…Hah… What do you want, Miss School Idol?”

Trying to cover up their momentary hesitation, one of them stepped forward.

The other two turned toward her as well.

“Asahi-chan looks scared.”

But Mizuki-senpai wasn’t fazed in the slightest. She only stared at me.

Her attitude must have irritated them.

“Hah? So what? This has nothing to do with you.”

Another senpai spoke, sounding annoyed.

In response, she calmly took out her smartphone.

…Click.

“…I took a picture. What will you do?”

She said it so indifferently.

It was a clear threat—asking if they really wanted her to spread it.

For the first time, the senpais’ expressions changed.

“…”

“That bitch…!”

They wavered slightly.

They realized she had undeniable proof, and I could see their panic.

They were probably trying to figure out how to silence her.

But soon, they looked at her with the same cruel smiles they had given me.

“…Hey. Let’s get her too.”

“Yeah! A nude photo of this girl would sell for a crazy price!”

They started laughing.

Hearing that, I turned even paler.

(…No… Because of me, even Onee-sama is…)

No. Please run away. I wanted to say that, but my mouth wouldn’t move.

I was panicking, unsure what to do.

…But then—

“…Stop it.”

The senpai who had grabbed my hair earlier finally spoke, sounding irritated.

“Huh…?”

“Wait, what…? Why?”

The others looked confused, caught off guard.

I also looked up at her in surprise.

But she only stared at Mizuki-senpai and said—

“…Do you even know how many people in this school worship her? Do you want to end up like Takato from last year?”

“…Ah.”

“Ugh…”

…Takato.

I had heard that name before.

He was an obsessive fan of Yukimura Mizuki who had pushed things too far and ended up withdrawing from school on his own half a month later.

Rumor had it that her fans had completely ruined him.

Remembering that, the senpais turned pale.

“No matter what, this is a bad idea… We’re leaving.”

“…”

“Tch…”

Their faces twisted with frustration and unease as they left the storage room.

On their way out, they shot me a sharp glare.

And then…

“…Are you okay, Asahi-chan?”

Before me stood a breathtaking beauty, speaking to me with kindness.

…The person I admired most in the world.

—Thank you.

—Please don’t do anything reckless.

I had so much I wanted to say, so much I had to say.

(…This isn’t fair.)

My chest felt tight, and I couldn’t speak.

Being saved like a princess by the person I admired most—

What was I supposed to say after that?

“Onee-sama…”

“Yes?”

She responded when I called her.

Even though “Onee-sama” was such a silly title, she answered.

That made me happy. It reassured me.

My mind was a mess.

“…That must have been scary.”

She gently stroked my head.

And I couldn’t hold it in anymore.

I clung to her and sobbed uncontrollably.