Prologue – The misunderstanding happened suddenly

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https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818622176550308690/episodes/16818622176754307436

—Ayata Akito has a crush on his childhood friend.  

Her name is Fujisaki Renka.  

She is beautiful and talented, the idol of the school that everyone admires. I foolishly fell in love with her, who is even called a perfect beauty. 

“…Well, for a mob like me, I guess she’s just out of my league.”

After school, I muttered to myself as I strolled down the hallway of the first building, bathed in the evening sunlight.  

It was 5:30 PM. The classical guitar club, which Renka belongs to, was probably just finishing practice and starting to clean up.

I decided a few minutes ago that I should go pick her up myself for a change.  

That’s right. Renka and I always walk to and from school together. That’s the privilege of being childhood friends.  

(That’s right. Renka and I are childhood friends. With that advantage, even I could…)

Well…being childhood friends isn’t always a good thing.

For example, her attitude.

For some reason, Renka has always been harsh with me.

“Idiot” “pervert” “loser”…I’ve been subjected to insults like these every day. It’s probably because we’re childhood friends, but being treated that way by someone you like is honestly a little painful.

(But on the bright side, it’s proof that she’s opening up to me…right?)

Thinking such optimistic thoughts, I arrived at the empty classroom used by the classical guitar club.

Then, I heard the voice of a female student who seemed to be a club member coming from inside the classroom.

“—-Hey, Fujisaki san. Seriously, what’s your relationship with Ayata kun?”

Ayata kun. Needless to say, that’s my last name.

And the person she was talking to seemed to be…

(…Renka, is it? This is bad, I’m dying to know the answer…)

This might be a golden opportunity to find out Renka’s true feelings.

I swallowed hard—half anxious, half excited. My heart began to race uncontrollably.  

In that state of mind, I stopped where I was and held my breath to listen in.  

“Eh, Ayata…why is Akito’s name coming up now…?”

The familiar soprano voice reached my ears once again.

Koiuta was not only beautiful in appearance, but also had a lovely voice…I couldn’t help but think such perverted thoughts. That’s how beautiful Renka’s clear voice was.

“I mean Fujisaki san always goes home with Ayata kun, right? And look, you even make him lunch boxes.”

“Well, um…it’s Akito’s fault ! Because if I don’t make it for him, he’ll only eat cup ramen ! As a childhood friend, I can’t just ignore that…”

“But it’s a homemade lunch box, right? I think you’d only do that for someone you like.”

“So what? It’s nothing ! He’s just…Akito is just a childhood friend.”

Ugh…well, yeah, I guess so.  

I knew from the start that Renka didn’t see me as a romantic interest.  

(But…she doesn’t hate me, right?)  

But right after I thought that,  

Renka’s words—cut through my faint hopes with ease.  

“That Akito…I obviously hate that loser”

Eh—?

What the hell was that? I thought.

Sure, I’ve been insulted by Renka hundreds…no, thousands of times before.

But.

I don’t think she’s ever directly said she hates me.

Could it be…that was Renka’s true feelings?

Everyone has a public face and a private face. They might act friendly toward a friend on the surface, but behind their back, they might be talking trash about them—that’s just everyday life for high schoolers.  

And in most cases, that hidden side is the real, unfiltered truth.  

If that’s the case…then those three words, “I hate him” are Renka’s true feelings.  

The moment that terrible thought crossed my mind, cold sweat started pouring down my body.

“I mean, we’re talking about that Akito, right? On the contrary, what’s there to like about someone like that?”

Those words were as sharp as shards of glass.

They pierced my body mercilessly, one after another.

“He’s lazy, sloppy, irresponsible, and not very good at studying or sports…”

One after another.  

Every time I heard Renka’s true feelings, my heart screamed in pain.  

“Plus, he stays up late playing games all the time, and he always has dark circles under his eyes. There’s nothing to like about such a loser, nothing at all.”

“So, that’s how it is. Then, Fujisaki san, what would you do if Ayata kun confessed to you?”

“Eh? Well, that’s—”

Ah…I can’t take it anymore.

I absolutely don’t want to hear what comes next.

(Damn it…!)

Before I knew it, I was running down the hallway.

—I just couldn’t bear to hear the rest of that conversation.

—I felt like if I heard it, something inside me would break.

So I chose to run away from that situation.

But…that doesn’t mean I can escape from this reality.

(Damn it….damn it, damn it, damn it…)

I ran and ran and kept running down the hallway in the twilight.

Along the way, I felt like students or teachers were staring at me as if I were some kind of freak. But I didn’t have the luxury of caring about that right now.

Eventually, I ran out of the school building and kept running until I reached an empty riverbank.

As I struggled to catch my breath, I—

“…So that’s it. My first love—had ended without me even noticing.”

I snapped back to reality and let out a self-deprecating smile.

My voice trembled. My vision blurred. My head began to ache.

I gently placed my right hand on my aching heart, then sat down, hugging my knees, and cried pitifully.

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