Chapter 7

RAW

When Saki asked to borrow my phone, claiming that the battery was acting strange, I handed it to her without hesitation. This kind of exchange had happened many times before.

I got up to grab a drink, and it seemed like there was no shift in the atmosphere just because we were sitting together. However, when I returned, I noticed that Saki was looking at me with a serious expression, which immediately triggered an alert in my "relationship sensor" inside.

Reina and Yuko both had puzzled looks on their faces, probably because of Saki’s behavior. It didn’t seem like anything in the conversation had made her act this way, so I decided to ask her directly.

"Um… what’s wrong, Saki? Did something happen?"

I set down my cup and took a seat diagonally across from her.

"…What’s this about?"

She pointed to my phone, where the top message in the inbox was from an account named "Sato Hajime."

It looked like a message about a common friend, probably from when Hajime had sent a notification about heading out for his part-time job. The first line of the message read "I’m going now," indicating it was his message before leaving.

Then, it all made sense why Saki was upset. I had noticed it earlier—Hajime had the same profile picture as Sato.

"I knew you were hiding something, but I never thought you’d betray me like this."

Saki said those words, and immediately I tried to deny them.

"…That’s not it. Hajime is important to me, but he’s not the person you think he is."

"What? I don’t get it… Hajime is Sato, right?… I knew you had someone important in your life, but it’s him? What, were you mocking me all this time?"

"I’m telling you, it’s not like that! Just listen!"

I realized I’d made a mistake the moment the words left my mouth.

Saki, who had been holding back her emotions, suddenly shouted.

"Just now, in the group chat, you said you were going out with your family… I know the profile picture! I know the one you’re messaging individually! What’s going on? I understand that you’re rejecting messages from other guys, so don’t think I don’t get it! It’s just… I’m more hurt by the fact that you’re pretending this way!"

"…That’s not it!… The Hajime I’m with is the one in our class. The matching profile picture is just a coincidence. I barely ever talk to Sato from the basketball club. Please believe me, Saki."

Saki, on the verge of tears, became even more frantic as Reina and Yuko exchanged worried glances.

"Why are you saying that? I can’t believe this! Why are you bringing up the ‘second’ guy as an excuse? That’s just cruel!"

"…No, Hajime isn’t second! Saki, please correct that!"

I tried to explain, but Saki’s words pushed me over the edge, and I yelled back out of frustration.

"Then what do you want?! Why don’t you just tell me straight out? The guy you like is my boyfriend!"

Saki’s calmness shattered completely when I raised my voice, and her emotions went wild. The mix of confusion and irritation in my heart, despite her not meaning it, made everything feel out of control.

"Wait, Saki! I’ve seen you and Sato together! I’ve seen you both on a date, so it’s true!" Yuko suddenly intervened to defend me.

As Saki and I fell silent from the sudden interruption, Reina spoke in her usual calm tone.

"Couldn’t we just confirm this?"

"What do you mean confirm?" Saki asked, looking puzzled.

"Well, why not call the person in question here?" Reina suggested. "If it’s Sato from the same class, then that’s probably the truth. I honestly don’t think you’re lying, Chinatsu."

"No…!" I immediately protested at Reina's suggestion.

"Why not?" Reina asked, raising an eyebrow. "Of course, you may have your reasons, but if you keep denying this, it might look like you’re hiding something from Saki, like she said."

I tried to explain quickly, why I didn’t want to do that.

"Hajime… he’s different from us. He works hard for a living, and I don’t want to steal his time for something like this."

"…I can’t believe it. What do you mean by ‘he works’? Doesn’t that just mean Sato can’t come because he’s already with his family?" Saki retorted.

"I’m telling you, that’s not it! And Sato has nothing to do with this… Why can’t you understand me?!" I shouted again.

"I’ve been thinking about this for a while… Chinatsu, you haven’t been honest with me!" Saki finally exploded, her long, narrow eyes filling with tears. "But you’ve always listened to me and cheered me on, and I trusted you… I trusted you, but now this?!"

Seeing her tears for the first time, I was stunned. Memories of middle school flooded my mind.

Back then, the one who cried was always in the right.

The thought made my mind go blank, and I couldn’t find the words to say.

(Why? Why is this happening?)

I looked at Saki, who had collapsed in tears, being comforted by Reina. Yuko was staring at her phone, glancing between Saki and me with a troubled expression.

I thought maybe I should have just called Hajime as Reina suggested. But I didn’t want to bother him. That’s all I kept thinking. It felt like the punishment for everything I hadn’t done right up until now.

Time seemed to stretch on forever, and the air was heavy. Just as I was about to give up, the unexpected voice of Hajime reached my ears.

"Chinatsu!"

It was a voice that shouldn’t be here, a voice I knew well. I couldn’t have misheard it.

Turning to the source of the voice, I saw Hajime, out of breath, looking at me with concern.

Saki, who had been crying, and Reina, both turned to look at him in surprise.

I, too, was stunned, staring at Hajime in disbelief.

"Hajime? Why…?" The words slipped out before I could stop them.

"Well, I just got to work, and then I got a message that you were in trouble, so I jumped into a cab outside the store and came straight here… Haha, I even told the driver I didn’t need change, something I’ve never done before."

Hajime said it casually, but my heart sank with guilt.

"I’m so sorry…"

"It’s fine. I told the manager, and I asked the senior who was replacing me during the New Year to cover for me. When I said it was about my girlfriend being in trouble, they just told me to go right away."

"…I didn’t want to trouble you. I didn’t want to take your time, Hajime. I promised myself I wouldn’t let something like this happen."

I felt pathetic.

I didn’t want to be a burden to him over a trivial fight with my friend.

I didn’t want him to have to drop everything just for me, but there he was, doing it without hesitation.

And somehow, I realized how much I relied on him, and that thought broke through the dam I had kept up all this time.

"Sniff… I’m so sorry. I’m sorry for making you come all the way here for something so silly…" I sobbed.

Hajime hesitated for a moment, but then moved closer to me, pressing my head gently against his chest, soothing me as he wrapped me in his arms.

His warmth, his embrace, it felt like everything would be okay. Even though I was still crying, I couldn’t help but feel safe.

"But…" I began to protest, but Hajime gently interrupted.

"Don’t worry about it. Chinatsu, you’ve got it wrong. Yeah, my time is important, and my job is important too, but you’re the one who matters the most to me. I’d use up my work credibility, my money, anything, just to be here for you. Don’t try to carry it all by yourself."

He smiled, and for the first time, I realized how much I had been overlooking.

Since the day we found that kitten together, from that moment on, Hajime had been my everything, and he always helped me. He was the one who always gave me the words I needed to hear.