It's an another day, since that night when we sneaked past the security guard to go home without troubles. I walked next to Yuuma-kun on the way back. We didn't utter a word along the way. Yuuma-kun insisted to apologise to my parents for causing me to go home late. To think back, we really did this years ago, that's the day where Yuuma-kun came up with this promise huh?
My parents said it's fine if it's Yuuma-kun, since they trusted him. Well, I trust him too... Well, I went to bed after a bath. Back to the next day, Yuuma-kun is walking behind me, perhaps wanting to prevent the delinquents from attacking me again. We reached the usual traffic light which lies in the middle of my journey to school without the delinquents so far. I was kinda scared of them sometimes, they even tried to use a razor blade last time. Now I wonder, is Yuuma-kun is popular to the fact that girls would even murder to make sure no girl stick close to him? Perhaps it's these kind of girl's fault that Yuuma-kun couldn't even get married in the future.
The green lights lit soon after the red lights dimmed. Yuuma-kun suddenly grabbed my wrist and pulled me back.
"Ahhh!" I screamed. A bike who was speeding stopped before the zebra crossing, He apologised profusely. I forgived him and walked forward. Yuuma-kun even warned him to not speed before traffic lights.
"Ah, I'm still sorry that I almost hit your girlfriend, I'll be careful in the future!" The rider said. Yuuma-kun blushed.
"Y-You better be!" He said before moving forward.
I had no idea, but I felt like I've been very close with him today. Although it felt nostalgic to be like this, I shouldn't indulge too much. Especially in front of girls from our school. I kept a minimum distance away from him, a distance I still feel close to him.
"Uh, Rika-chan, you are quite far away..." Yuuma-kun said.
"Ah, I don't want the other girls to give me death stares, give me a break." I said.
"Well, I could't even make friends with girls because of that huh?" Yuuma-kun lamented.
"Pffft..." I giggled. Well, at least a conversation like this made me feel at ease.
Haruko walked towards me as soon she spotted me.
"Good morning, Rika-san. Are you feeling well today?" She asked.
"Ah, sorry for worrying you about it, I felt okay after Yuuma-kun helped me." I said.
"Eh... That was another guy." Yuuma-kun said.
"Huh? Then who was that?" I asked.
"The guy we met back then during the new year's shrine visit. He even showed up in the hospital." Yuuma-kun explained.
"Oh, I wonder how did he even help with headaches." I said.
"Rika-san, the headache you had yesterday were a result of accessing erased memories. Well, I believe you will remember them one day." Haruko said and then walked into the school.
"Good morning! Ricchan!" Haruno appeared after that. That seriously surprised me.
"Ah, good morning, Haruno-chan..." I replied.
"Ah, how about... Waaaah! Y-Yuuma-kun?!" She got very surprised when Yuuma-kun walked past us. I guess she felt embarrassing acting outgoing just now. I continued walking, leaving her petrified. She recovered a few seconds later and caught up.
"Oh dear, that was sooooo embarrassing!" She said. Of course it is, but that's where your charm lies, Haruno. You never knew how many guys in our class was into you. Perhaps even had an anti-Yuuma club going on somewhere.
I changed my shoes and went straight to class. I saw a crowd around my seat. Yuuma-kun is there, rubbing something on my table. Hikaru and Kaito too, helped him with it.
"What's the matter?" I asked. The people around me, mostly girls looked at me with a disgusted face. I looked at my table, bad words were scribbled on my table. I think I know who was behind it. Yuuma-kun who helped me with this started a rumour. Haruno who just entered the class minutes later were shocked, after seeing Yuuma-kun cleaning my table with me.
"R-Ricchan... What was the meaning of this?" She asked.
"I didn't know, I seriously..." Before I finished my words, she slapped me in my face.
"I hate you! I hate you!" She shouted before running off.
"So Yuuma-kun is charmed by this slut... So indecent!"
"Don't get close to her, you don't want some weird scent from her."
"How did a girl like him even seduced Yuuma-kun?"
"So she really did have a relationship with Yuuma-kun?"
Yuuma-kun, perhaps had reached his limit.
"So, is it fun to say such things about people?" Yuuma-kun said. Well, you don't really want to make Yuuma-kun angry, because it's going to be horrible. The class noticed this too late. They all went silent. However their silence weren't enough to qwell his anger.
"I've been enduring for years. From middle-school up to now." He said.
"Eh? What?!" Some of the people started whispering to each other.
"I'm just a normal guy who wants to have a normal school life, yet putting me up like this, isn't making me glad at all. All of your thinking, has caused the one I love distanced away from me." Yuuma-kun added. The whole class was shocked, including me. Are you really going to say that out loud?!
"All of you, with your goodwill all focused on me, I'm grateful for that. But how about the other guys? It's too unfair to them. Or perhaps, you shouldn't even have to have such feelings towards me. It's too excessive to the extent that your so called 'love' had became unhealthy." Yuuma-kun added, the girls seemed sad, because their goodwill were being rejected in this instant moment.
"Don't touch Rika-chan anymore, and start to notice your surroundings. You'll find someone who you'll love, and of course will love you soon." He said. I was too embarrassed. I can even feel fumes coming out from my head.
Haruno returned to class, along with a disciplinary teacher. She came in and looked at the half cleaned table of mine, with some remnants of bad words on them.
"Yuuma-kun was right, you know?" Sensei said. The class were surprised at her words.
"The way you show your goodwill towards Yuuma-kun were always an obstacle to keep your behaviours in order." She said.
"It's not about you are not allowed to love someone. Take a look at yourselves. Aren't you just acting selfish?" A truth that caused an absolute silence, it's impossible to rebut, so they all noticed.
Haruno came to me with her eyes teared up.
"Ricchan... I'm so sorry! I hurted you, do you need to go to the infirmary?" She apologised, she's so sincere, that I'm touched as well. However she even exaggerated a lot, that's so like her.
"Sensei, the ones who did it was a group of delinquents, Maki!" A girl in a corner confessed. Sensei shook her head, it seems like she already knew who did it too huh? Apparently students even break rules because of Yuuma-kun. That's why sensei always remembers most of the cases.
"Sensei, please leave it to me." Yuuma-kun bowed. Sensei reluctantly agreed. The bell rung, I was asked to get a spare table from the storage room. Yuuma-kun volunteered to help me with it. As soon as Yuuma-kun stepped out of the classroom, it's Ruri, who moved a table to class 2-B.
"Just give it to Rika-san, don't waste everyone's time." Ruri said, with her face obviously blushing.
"Thanks a lot, Takigawa-san." Yuuma-kun smiled gently. Ruri left, presumably flustered.
Classes started, an unknown feeling surged my mind, I felt happy, but for no reason. I paid it no mind, since it felt so good. Perhaps I should find out the answer soon. Classes went on like normal, when sensei left the class, some girls surrounded me.
"I'm terribly sorry, Mizuhara-san!" One of the girls apologized. Followed up with the other girls.
"With this, can we get along together after this?" A girl asked me to be her friend. I accepted them, and they felt relieved.
Perhaps they were guilty because they were responsible of distancing away from me purposedly. Since venting their frustration through me were a norm. It were a bit bitter for me to accept them, but I'll try to not be toxic here. I felt a change, where I was freed from the chains of guilt that imprisoned my thoughts. Perhaps that was the reason I was so happy.
It's lunch time, the girls with lunchboxes flooded over to my place and invited me to eat together with them, I don't really like to eat with so many people around me, but I think it's fine anyways. they started talking about how they felt about me before, and apologised to me. I understood them since I even thought like that to myself back then. Some of them even shared fashion tips with me. I'm fine with fashion as well, so I took up their offer.
"So Ricchan, how close you were with Yuuma-kun?" Haruno suddenly asked, with her face filled curiousity.
"Uh... We were childhood friends..." I answered. The entire group of girls went "Ehhhhhh?!"
"Ricchan! Tell us more about it!" Haruno added. The lunch time were fun for the first time. I even shared about the fact I was bullied back then in middle school. Thus they started a "Ricchan Protection Club". Well, I'm still worried about the delinquents, because they would've become more aggressive after this. Ruri came in with Haruko a few moments later.
"Rika-san, can we... Can we talk a bit?" Ruri said while curling her hair with her finger. She looked reluctant, I wonder what is she up to.