133 - Ayaka Tōjō's Decision①

RAW

I lay on my bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.

The silence around me made the sound of my heartbeat echo clearly in my ears.

"If anything ever happens to you, Ayaka, I'll protect you. I promise I'll never let you feel sadness."  

The words he spoke, looking at me with such serious eyes.

"Geez, Haruto... Are you trying to make my heart race like crazy? I might not survive this..."

I pressed my hands to my cheeks, trying to cool down my heated face caused by my wonderful boyfriend's words.

Making our relationship public.

Dating him openly.

To say I wasn’t scared at all would be a lie.

I was worried about Terazawa-san and couldn’t easily forget what had happened in middle school.

But now, unlike back then, Haruto is by my side.

Just that alone made me feel like my heart could grow infinitely stronger.

"Besides, there are so many things I want to do with Haruto at school."

I want us to sit together and eat lunch in the courtyard during break.

We could swap food, or maybe even feed each other playfully...

Oh, and we absolutely have to go on a date in our school uniforms!

The time we have to wear them is limited, after all.

Like Haruto mentioned earlier, we only have about a year and a half left before we graduate. Next year, exams are waiting for us, which means the time we get to enjoy our high school lives together to the fullest is so very precious.

"I can’t waste even a second!"

Now that I’ve decided to date Haruto openly, there’s no time to sit around and worry!

As I made up my mind, the infirmary door opened.

Thinking the nurse had returned, I turned toward the door. But I let out a surprised gasp at the unexpected person who walked in.

"Shizuku-chan?!"

"Ah, I thought I might find you here, Aya-senpai."

With her usual blank expression, Shizuku-chan slowly walked over to the bed I was lying on.

"What’s wrong? What about class?"

"I slipped out of class."

As if it were the most natural thing, Shizuku-chan sat down on the edge of the bed.

"When I said my stomach was in the worst shape ever, the teacher panicked and let me leave."

Shizuku-chan’s face might not show it well, but she probably thought she had pulled off something clever.

...Not that this was the right time for such confidence, though?

While I tilted my head at her puzzling attitude, Shizuku-chan’s gaze shifted to my right foot.

"Did you hurt yourself?"

"Yeah, I tripped during P.E. It’s just a minor sprain."

Shizuku-chan stared intently at my right ankle, now taped up.

"I see. So Aya-senpai has a clumsy-girl trait too, huh?"

"I’m not that clumsy! And don’t make it sound like I’ve got some strange personality traits!"

When I protested with a chuckle, Shizuku-chan retorted as if I’d said something ridiculous.

"But Aya-senpai, you’ve already got two solid traits—being a natural airhead and, well... secretly pervy."

"Wait, what?! I’m definitely not secretly pervy!"

As I fiercely denied it, Shizuku-chan shot me a skeptical look.

"Really~?"

"It’s true!"

"I saw it, you know? From the classroom window. Aya-senpai being carried princess-style by Haruto-senpai."

"Th-that’s because I sprained my ankle! Haruto just carried me here!"

Apparently, the reason Shizuku-chan came to the infirmary was because she had witnessed Haruto carrying me.

Honestly, Shizuku-chan... You should be paying attention in class, not looking around like that.

"I get that. But what about after that? When I arrived, the nurse wasn’t here. You were alone with Haruto-senpai in this room, weren’t you?"

"Th-that’s true, but..."

"So, did nothing happen? You were alone with Haruto-senpai in an empty infirmary. Did nothing happen at all? Hmm?"

"N-nothing happened..."

I avoided Shizuku-chan’s eyes as I muttered my reply.

She kept staring at me, her expression blank.

When someone with such an unreadable face looks at you in silence, it feels like they’re peering into your soul. It made me feel like I had to confess everything.

"...W-we just... hugged a little and k-kissed, that’s all..."

"Congratulations, secretly-pervy Aya-senpai."

"Ugh... I’m not secretly pervy..."

Shizuku-chan smirked mischievously for once, and I weakly denied her claim.

We’re high school students, after all. Hugging and kissing a little is normal, right? Nothing weird about that... right?

As I pouted, reassuring myself, Shizuku-chan’s smirk faded, and she returned to her usual calm demeanor.

"But Aya-senpai, are you okay with it? Being carried princess-style by Haruto-senpai in broad daylight? I’m sure plenty of others saw it too."

"Ah, yeah. Actually..."

I shared with her my decision to make my relationship with Haruto public.

Hearing this, Shizuku-chan gave a small sigh, looking a little exasperated.

"Finally, huh?"

"You’ve been helping us keep it under wraps, haven’t you?"

"I was only helping you two interact naturally at school. I didn’t really care about keeping it a secret. Honestly, I thought it was kind of pointless."

"Pointless? That’s harsh!"

When I puffed my cheeks in protest, Shizuku-chan shrugged.

"It’s because of that thing in middle school, right? Your fear of history repeating itself?"

"Yeah."

Shizuku-chan looked me straight in the eye as she continued.

"I told you before, didn’t I? Friends who’d distance themselves over something like that aren’t worth worrying about."

"The ones who stick by you no matter what are the ones who matter, right?"

"Exactly."

Shizuku-chan nodded slightly and went on.

"That’s just how I see it. I’m not saying you have to think the same way. You have your own way of dealing with your friends. But honestly, people who’d criticize you for ‘stealing’ someone they like? They’re not real friends."

Hearing her firm words, I couldn’t help but lower my gaze.

"It’s their own fault if they lacked the courage to confess. Blaming you for that is just wrong."

Shizuku-chan fell silent for a moment, and I raised my head curiously.

Then she met my gaze and spoke slowly.

"I... liked Haruto-senpai. Actually, I still do."

"Wh-what?!"

Her sudden confession left me speechless.

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Ayaka’s Decision: Protecting Her First Kiss with Haruto at All Costs… “Shizuku’s Special Forehead Flick!”  

“Gyaaaah!”

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Not like that pls

well it shouldn't be long before their relationship is public but Shizuku complicates things a bit