When I Started a Food Delivery Part-Time Job, I Ended up Being Invited to the Home of a Gloomy, Clumsy Beautiful Girl - Chapter 5: Hiyori’s Secret

Chapter 5: Hiyori’s Secret

The next day.

It was a day with gym class.

Classmates changed into gym clothes and headed to the gymnasium.

The boys played basketball, and the girls played volleyball.

I naturally looked for Hiyori.

And I found her right away.

She tied her long silver hair with a scrunchie into a ponytail.

A different vibe from usual. Just changing her hairstyle made her look so cute.

—Not that she wasn’t already cute without the ponytail.

Look, the boys around were staring at her.

After some simple practice, the class moved to a game format.

I glanced at the girls, and Hiyori was jumping to spike the ball.

“N…!”

With a loud smack, Hiyori landed a perfect spike, and cheers erupted.

“Kyaa! Hiyori, that was awesome!”

“Nice one!”

She was usually gloomy and listless, but in sports, she was like a different person. …Though she barely made a sound.

Come to think of it, when I first went to her place, she was in workout clothes.

—Maybe she was actually really athletic.

Her tall height probably helped too.

In volleyball, her height shone, and she stood out on the court.

“Hey! Yuki!”

“—!”

Renji’s voice called out.

The next moment, a basketball hit the back of my head.

I was distracted, looking elsewhere.

My vision shook, my consciousness faded—and I passed out.

◇◇◇

“…Ugh, ah…”

“You awake?”

When I opened my eyes, I was on a bed in the infirmary.

Renji was beside me, smirking as he looked at my face.

“What… why am I…?”

“You were staring at the girls during basketball and got hit by the ball. Knocked out. —Man, what were you doing?”

“Haha…”

“Well, Hiyori was there, so I get why you looked. But don’t do anything dangerous.”

“…Yeah. You’re really kind, Renji.”

“Heh. I’m a kind, handsome guy.”

Renji said it with full confidence.

He was joking, but he always looked out for me, which helped a lot.

“I kinda hate that you call yourself handsome.”

“Hah. Well, come back when you’re better. I’m gonna grab some food.”

“Okay.”

When Renji left, I was alone in the infirmary.

My head throbbed a bit, but resting would probably help.

I checked my phone; thirty minutes of lunch break were left.

—I’ll rest a bit more. I closed my eyes.

Then, a rattling sound as the door opened.

Footsteps came closer, and the curtain parted.

“Aizawa… you there?”

“Eh… Hiyori…?”

It was Hiyori, now in her school uniform, looking at me with concern.

“Does your head hurt?”

“Well, a little.”

“…So, you can’t come to my place today?”

“That’s what you’re worried about…?”

“Caught me… but I’m worried about you too. Really.”

Her words could be true or not.

But just her coming to check on me was enough.

“This isn’t a big deal. I can still do my job. Gotta earn money too.”

“Money… you need it?”

“Yeah. I kinda ran away from home, so I have to cover school and living expenses myself.”

“That’s why you work so much.”

“Yup.”

I’d only told Renji about this.

I never thought I’d tell Hiyori.

“By the way… do you live alone, Hiyori?”

“Asking now? Yeah, I do.”

As I thought.

Her apartment, empty past nine at night. It was a place for someone living alone.

“…I see.”

“You didn’t ask about my parents.”

“Some things are hard to talk about, right?”

Living alone in a fancy apartment.

She said friends visited, but not often.

“I’m like my mom’s doll… So, she lets me do whatever I want outside her work.”

“Hmm…”

“I only see her when she’s working… So, it’s a bit lonely.”

That felt like Hiyori’s true feelings.

She wanted to see her mom, but felt like her mom only saw her as a business tool.

“That’s why I’m kinda happy when you come to my place.”

“…I see.”

“It feels… kinda nostalgic…”

Her voice made me sleepy.

The comfy bed didn’t help, and my eyelids grew heavy.

—With Hiyori’s voice as a lullaby, I drifted off.

◇◇◇

“Ugh… sniff… ugh…”

There was a big girl for her age.

She was crying alone on the steps to the riverbank, her chubby body shaking.

“Hurry, hurry, hurry… ah!?”

A small boy with a backpack ran up.

He tripped and fell hard on the way.

“Ouch…”

“Ah… ugh… ugh!?”

“Whoa!? Your crying’s kinda gross!”

The boy, still on the ground, met the sobbing girl.

Her deep, guttural cries made him chuckle.

“I… I’m fat…”

“Yeah. So?”

“My mom says I have to lose weight…”

“Why do you have to lose weight?”

The boy didn’t get it.

Fat or thin, wasn’t that a person’s choice?

“Because I’m ugly…”

“Wow, that’s harsh.”

“My mom… isn’t harsh…”

“I see. You love your mom.”

“Yeah…”

She couldn’t stand her mom being insulted.

But she felt lonely, unloved by her.

“I think you’re pretty as you are.”

“Huh… why…?”

“Look, your skin’s so soft, and your hair’s super smooth. …My dad’s got this curly perm, super lame…”

“I don’t get it, but… thanks. I’m happy.”

Slowly, the girl’s crying face softened.

Her cheeks turned red, and she smiled shyly.

“Well, I gotta go—”

“W-Wait! You’re… bleeding a lot…”

“Huh… whoa!?”

The boy’s knee was gushing red blood.

He hadn’t noticed because of the adrenaline.

The girl quickly offered a handkerchief.

The boy took it, pressed it to his knee, and left.

—The girl, left at the riverbank, still felt her heart racing.