When an Oblivious Handsome Older Man Went Back in Time and Was Building Harlem

I was living a life as heavy as mud.

Every day, I think of Sakura-chan. Even though I have someone I like, she never appears in front of me, I can’t hear her voice, and I can’t see her. I had no choice but to throw myself into work. Although I’m in a department that’s said to be black, I think I’m working more than twice as hard as before.

Even my boss who always nags me is telling me to take a break. But if I didn’t focus on work, I felt like I would get overwhelmed thinking about Sakura-chan.

I came home for the first time in a month, but I really think I’m living like a corpse. I only get the bare minimum nutrition from supplements and nutritional aids, then come home and sleep. Is there any meaning to living?

Since I ran out of things to clean up and came home early, I’m eating the bento I bought at the supermarket. Unable to endure the soundless space, I turn on the TV. The variety show that happened to be on featured an influencer I had never seen before.

(Who is it…?)

“Today’s guest is the model Nana-san who is also renowned as a beauty expert!”

I think Nana was the model name for Nitta-san. With a scream of excitement, the guest, Nana, appears. That face looked so much like Nitta-san’s that it was beyond just a resemblance. In the previous world, there was no nana. What does this mean?

(Maybe the world has changed because I went back to being a high school student…?)

But those expectations were in vain. There was nothing left of my interactions with Sakura-chan. Thinking that Midori might know something, I hurriedly got in touch.

<I have something urgent I want to ask you. Contact me when you have time.>

About 30 minutes later, I received a reply from Midori saying that the incident was resolved today, so he will be free tomorrow.

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I decided to meet with Midori in a semi-private room in an izakaya. Even though we were close friends, I was reluctant to expose my pathetic situation.

“What’s wrong, Aki-chan? You said it was urgent?”

“Um… do you remember Miwano Sakura-san?”

“Eh, Wait, Aki, what’s going on with you? Do you remember?”

Remember? What does that mean? My mind is filled with question marks.

“I thought my best friend had finally made his first love come true, and you were living a super sweet life together, but it was around the time we were in college, remember? You suddenly broke up with Sakura-chan and went on a self-destructive spree, didn’t you?”

“Huh? What… Do you mean?”

Was I dating Sakura-chan? And I forgot? I think there’s no way that could happen, but since Midori said it, it must not be wrong. There’s no way this guy would lie at a time like this.

“I heard that when you were on a date, Sakura-chan got stabbed by your stalker, got seriously injured, and you broke up.”

There, along with a severe headache, past memories resurface. That’s right, I was troubled by a stalker during my first year of university. She thought we were dating without my consent and even came to my house uninvited. Since I went to a different university than Sakura-chan, the stalker didn’t know about her.

While we were on a date there, Sakura-chan was stabbed by that stalker. Because of me, Sakura-chan got hurt. I inflicted a wound that will never heal. Sakura-chan was on the verge of massive blood loss from a serious injury, and she survived thanks to a blood transfusion from me. Sakura-chan’s parents treated me like their own son and were worried about me, but I chose to part ways with Sakura-chan because I had made her a damaged person and feared that being with me would lead to more trouble.

I had forgotten such an important thing until now. Did I time leap to remember this? Thinking that way makes sense.

“If I were to go pick up Sakura-chan now, do you think she’d accept me?”

“…Probably. It’s a cruel thing to say, but at our age, it wouldn’t be strange if she already had kids. That’s only if she isn’t married, though.”

“I’m going to go see Sakura-chan.”

Living while forgetting about Sakura-chan is impossible, so I want to struggle if that’s the case. Due to my job, I can easily access personal information and find out if Sakura-chan is married, but I want to find her without resorting to such means.

“I couldn’t bear to see Sakura-chan after she got stabbed, Aki. After she was stabbed and you two broke up, you were like a zombie for about a month, and before I knew it, you had lost all memories of Sakura-chan. I wonder if it was worth it to keep saying that having a partner is great after all. The fact that you remembered her now means…”

Indeed, Midori has always said that it’s better to have a partner. This isn’t the reason, but if I had to say, it would be like this.

“I had a dream about dating Sakura-chan.”

“It’s a happy dream. I will support you. Although I didn’t mention it because you haven’t gotten your memory back, I saw someone who looked like Sakura-chan at the mall in Yokohama before.”

“Yokohama?”

I got quite important information from Midori. At the same time, I wonder why he didn’t tell me, or rather, why I couldn’t remember her. Anyway, I was running around trying to meet Sakura-chan again.