The next day, after our dinner, I went to school as normal. And of course, as always, there was a group of girls I overheard talking trash about me…
I have gotten used to people doing that, so it didn't even bother me. But right after those girls, there were 3 guys who rushed towards me. I'm also used to boys approaching me to flirt, so I didn't really care. But there was this one annoying guy…
"Oh my beautiful princess, I wish you a good morning today."
I felt something bad about this guy… Though I don't know how to describe it… I believe it was called "cringy" from the internet?
Anyhow, I only barely managed to keep my facade up that time, so I decided to be more careful from now on and up my resistance to such things. So, I started heading to my classroom.
But on my way, I noticed that Inoue-san saw the whole thing unfold…
—
Later that day, Inoue-san would see me eating my lunch… which was a cup of instant ramen.
So, in that afternoon, he approached me and asked me if I want to eat dinner with him.
"Want to eat dinner in my house again? I'd like to talk to you about something while we eat."
He asked me after his approach. Of course, still surprised by the fact that he darted up to me, and the fact that the question he asked was weird, I responded to him in my cold voice.
"Umm, Inoue-san… are you asking me out on a date?"
It seems like he was surprised by my response as he backed off a bit. But eventually, he explained how it was a misunderstanding and I accepted his invitation.
Inoue-san's food was great, as always. So much so that I accidentally let out a smile…
Not good… I wasn't able to keep my poker face…
I hoped that Inoue didn't see it.
But after dinner, Inoue-san revealed the reason he invited me for dinner. He said that it was because he saw my lunch and felt bad, so he wants to cook lunch for me from now on…
Well, naturally, as I was trying to save up, I would love to accept it. But, a part of me also feels bad for getting all of these for free. Noticing the discomfort on my face, Inoue made an offer.
"How about you teach me history for midterms?"
That was what he wanted in exchange for his offer. Of course I accepted it, but I still felt bad afterwards.
Also, we exchanged contacts that day too.
—
It is now Friday and Inoue-san has been making lunch for me since then. As you would expect, they were delicious. Many girls during lunch actually saw it too and praised it.
"Wow, that lunchbox looks good! Did you make it yourself? Sakurai-san?"
The girl who always likes to stick with me, for some reason, asked. I just replied with:
"No, this is made by a friend of mine."
I told her as I looked towards Inoue-san who was eating somewhere else.
But anyhow, after lunch, I just headed towards the classroom as I waited for our next class. And during that wait, the girl who enjoys sticking with me came over again and told me something.
"Hey Sakurai-san, did you hear the rumours that we'll be having a joint PE class with Class 1-2?"
"Really?"
I was surprised by what I have just heard. Specially since joint activities are very rare in this school.
"Yup. Man, the boys from Class 2 must be thrilled right now. They're having a joint PE class with the school princess. I can only imagine the joy in their face when they find out."
"I-Is that so?"
"Yup!" the girl said before running back to her seat as class was about to start.
Meanwhile, I was left thinking:
Well, I guess it is true… why does everyone want to get along with me anyways? I know that my looks are better than most, but still… one shouldn't just judge a person by their looks.
Maybe that's why I'm fine with Inoue-kun? Since he treated me like any other girl instead of treating me like a princess like other would.
Anyway, a few minutes later our teacher arrived and class started again. And after that, the P.E class came… which confirmed the rumours. There's a joint class between Class 1 and 2.
—
I woke up in a bed surrounded by white curtains… What happened? I thought. But then I remembered.
"Ah… I almost collapsed while running, so they brought me here to rest…"
I muttered to myself as I got up from the bed.
As I opened the curtains, there was a nurse waiting outside. She told me to rest but I just ignored it and told her that I must attend class. She hesitantly gave in and let me go back to class.
I was able to go through class afterwards.
But, as I was heading back home, right at front of the door of the apartment complex, I almost collapsed once again… But thankfully, caught me.
"Oh… it's just you, Inoue-kun"
Although I worded it this way, I was actually glad it was him. after all It's-
"Because I know that I can trust you."
I then lead him to my apartment, where he saw the drawings for the game I was working on for a company as a freelancer. I told him to not tell anyone as it was classified, but to my surprise, he was also working on the game too!
He told me he was a programmer instead of an illustrator and quickly ended the topic.
After that, as you would expect of Inoue-kun, he took great care of me as I laid down in bed. At this point, it almost feels like He's my mom…
But, of course, I had to give something back for what he has done today. So, I asked him what he wants me to do, he then responded with a strange request.
"Want to watch anime with me tomorrow?"
—
The next day, we watched anime together. It was a show called C-Off? It was a show about 4, no, 5 girls forming a band and doing… stuff. And I must say, it was pretty good… so good in fact that the other side of me accidentally came out, leading me to sleeping inside Inoue's house in their guest room…
Whenever I get into something, for some reason, I can't stop… Which leads me to situations like this. I couldn't go back home at midnight as there are curfews in my apartment complex.
But back to what's happening. I went downstairs where I saw that it was empty. I then waited for Inou-san to wake up and we then had breakfast. Thinking that I owe Inou-san another favour again due to what I did, as soon as I heard a chance to pay him back, I got too excited and rushed it… I quickly went back home after he agreed on letting me help him with his homework.
Oh yeah, also, I cooked fried rice with Inoue yesterday… It's the first time I've cooked with someone in a while…
—
After that day, I began my studies with Inoue-san for our exams, until finally, the day of our exams arrived. I could answer the test easily, so I asked Inoue-san if he had any trouble with the exam.
He told me he didn't. And so, today is the day when our results came out. I went to Inoue's house earlier than usual to receive my lunchbox because I wanted to check the results of the exam while it wasn't crowded yet.
But apparently, Inoue-san is still cooking the lunch and was just about to finish it. He then me if I could wait a little, to which I answered yes. He also asked me if I have had breakfast yet, which I have not…
So he graciously asked me to join him in his breakfast, which I accepted… But, as I was waiting, after he heard what I usually eat for breakfast, he told me this…
"Sakurai... Please go here at 6:30 from now on."
"Eh why?"
"...I'll also cook breakfast for you."
"Eh?"
And with that, Inoue-san would start cooking for me 3 times a day… Of course, I am very grateful, but, at the same time, I felt very useless…
I couldn't give anything back… But, I had just decided to forget about it for now, as I opened the drawing I made for Inoue for the hard work he did studying for the exam, No matter how he did on the test, I would give this to him as he deserved it. But, the results of his exam would shock me…
"He ranked 15th in the entire grade…"
It was something which even I thought was impossible. A class 2 student, getting 15th place in the entire grade. It was crazy, since our class, class 1, dominates the top 30. In fact, Inoue-san was the only non-class 1 in the top 30. So, as you would've expected, this caused some rumours about him in my class as they were surprised.
Some didn't like the fact he ranked so high, while most were surprised in a positive way. Some girls were even talking about how they think he was cute and smart… weirdos.
As expected, dinner that day was quite special, as he prepared his apparently favourite food for dinner, lasagna.
And after we the delicious lasagna he made, he brought something for dessert.
"Is that… A black forest cake?"
"Yup."
He had brought with him a cake, not just any cake, but my favourite cake. I then remembered the question he asked me about what my favourite cake was a few days ago.
…
"Hey, Sakurai-san."
"What is it?"
"What's your favourite cake?"
"Hm? What's with the weird question all of the sudden?"
"Don't worry about it, just answer."
"…Well… I like black forest cakes, I guess?"
"I see…"
…
Nevertheless, we ate the cake for dessert and we both enjoyed it. But, before we ate, I showed Inoue-san the thing I worked on as a gift for his hard work. Though, I feel like it's more insignificant than what he has done for me today.
But it would seem like Inoue-san had the opposite idea.
"It's amazing"
"Eh? … thank you."
He thought that the simple chibi drawing was amazing as he praised me for it.
After that, we ate the cake he had made. It was delicious, as you would expect from him.
—
It is now Saturday and currently, me and Inoue-kun is watching an anime called Oreg**ru. He told me that it was a Romcom so I thought it would be a funny story, but…
"Well, the first season can be called a romcom, but…"
"But?" I said, tilting my head.
"…I won't tell you, you should probably experience it firsthand."
So we started watching it.
However, while we were in the middle of watching Episode 6, the doorbell suddenly rings. I asked Inoue-kun if he should check it, but he said no, and instead, he just ignored the noise.
But this would appear to be the wrong choice, because, just a few moments later, we hear a voice behind us.
"Hey, pathetic big brother of mine, I'll be staying here for a whi-"
The little girl said, though stopping as soon as she saw us.
Quickly, she grabbed the phone from her bag and…
"Yes hello? Is this the police department? Yes, I'd like to report a kidnap."
She misunderstood the situation.
…
..
.
..
…
Inoue-kun then introduced me to the girl. She's Inoue-kun's little sister, Inoue Sayuri. After that came the usual things that come after an introduction. She was nice to me and nothing really happened.
Though, it would seem that wasn't the case, because…
—
"Sakurai-san."
"Yes?"
"How did you and my brother meet?"
"...Why do I feel like I'm being interrogated?.."
"It's because you are."
"Eh?"
I am currently being interrogated by Inoue-kun's little sister. She was suspicious of me leeching off her brother… which is actually a fair point. Even I feel like i'm leeching off of Inoue-kun, which is why I want to know what he'll make me do in return to all the things he has done to me.
But, we quickly fixed the misunderstanding, and she apologized about what had just happened.
Shortly after, we started calling each other by our first names and we talked about each other's life.
Though we mainly talked about her life since mine was nothing special.
It was fun talking with her.
Also, the very next day, I went out with her and Inoue-kun. We went around the city to watch movies and buy clothes. It was very fun. But, I feel a little guilty since they were the ones who paid for everything.
After that day, there was a rumour in school that I went out with a guy yesterday. I didn't really pay any mind to it and denied any allegations but I wonder how that information got spread out…
—-
(Chapter 31)
I quickly ran away from the bench afterwards. I knelt down on the grass as I tried sorting out what had just happened.
'What did I just say?! (*@&#(^' I thought, recalling on what I said on the bench
'I'll say thank you. Thank you for all the things you've done to me.'
'I… I want to die… I'm too embarrassed'
Finally, after recovering from that event, I went back to our classroom. Though, what happened stuck to me the whole day.
Afterwards, I resumed the day as normal, and it was going normally, though the atmosphere between me and Inoue is weird, but that's the only difference between today and any other day.
Well, that was the case. Until I got a call from my father.
"...Oh, I'm sorry, I'll have to take this."
I told the two while we were watching something on the TV. Inoue responded with:
"Hm? Sure."
I quickly went to a corner and answered the call.
"Ah hello? Dad? Did anything happen?"
"…Well… something did. You see… your mother is currently at a hospital."
"Eh? ... Hospital?"
"Yes… Thankfully, she's okay now. But… I'm so sorry… I couldn't prevent this from happening again…"
"…No, don't worry about it... You don't have to apologise, dad... I'll see you later, bye."
Silence filled the room.
"...I'm sorry about that... Umm... Inoue-kun, I have to go right now... There's something urgent that happened."
"Oh, yeah... don't worry about it…"
After that, I immediately went back home.
My plans for this month have been destroyed… I may not be able to go to school anymore…
—
It is now October 31st. My morning was normal and Inoue-kun acted as if nothing happened yesterday too.
Though, this changed in the afternoon, where Inoue-kun suddenly asks me to stay after dinner.
"...What is it?"
"We need to talk."
…
"Sakurai-san, I have a confession to make."
Inoue said so suddenly, in a very serious tone.
'Wait… what?'
"You see... Actually..."
"Wha- What is it?"
"You know the company you previously worked with for the illustrations I saw?"
"Ahh? Yes?"
"Well, you see, I'm actually the son of the current CEO there."
"Eh? ...EHHH?!"
I was very shocked by what he just said. His father is the head of one of the biggest game companies in the world…
I could not wrap my head around this…
But Inoue-kun continued talking
"And that's why I'm looking into hiring you."
"Hiring me?"
"Yes, your illustrations can be compared to the top illustrators in japan. They are superb. And so, I thought I could hire you for my project."
"..."
Apparently, he wants to hire me.
He then explains his circumstances. How he's making a game as a test by his father and why he needs me.
Though there was something that called me off guard.
"Sakurai-san... The truth is... I know what your current situation is right now."
"Ah?"
"Actually, I told my father's friend to look into you since I got worried after that incident yesterday. So, I'd like to apologise for invading your privacy."
"Ah no, it's okay. It seems like you did it with no ill intentions, so..."
I was surprised about what he just said, but there was probably no ill intention, so I was fine with it.
After that, he explained how he needed an illustrator and, most importantly; he told me what my possible salary is.
"But anyhow, let's go back to the topic. I'm willing to give you 300,000 yen a month and a living space for this job."
"EH?! 300,000!?"
It was an incredible amount for me, someone who worked a part-time job for 1/4 that amount.
But there was another thing that caught my eyes, or rather, ears. He mentioned a "free living space".
I asked him more about that.
"So um... where is this living space located at?"
"Well... It's the guest bedroom in this house."
"EHHHHHHH?!"
As you would expect, I was surprised.. Again.
"Uwaa, I've never imagined you could scream that hard... But, of course, I won't force you to living in the same house as me. After all, I might do something bad to you. So it's totally understandable if you don't want t-"
"No, I have no worries about you attacking me."
"...Excuse me?"
"Well, I mean, there's no way you'll attack me. You are THAT kind of guy after all."
"You know, it hurts when you say that."
"Besides, I've learned some basic martial arts from my mom, so I can probably beat you up too if you ever do something bad to me."
"That's uh... kinda scary."
"Oh, you better be scared of me alright."
I said, trying to lighten up the mood.
But Inoue-kun did physically back off a little…
"That's besides the point! So? Will you accept it? Sakurai Fumiko-san. 300,000 a month for at least 5 months with a free living space? Yes, or no?"
This is the final question. Probably one of the most important things I'll ever decide on. So, I thought about it for a whole 3 minutes. Until finally…
"Inoue Haruki-kun... I-"
—
"So you're Sakurai Fumiko?"
"Yes, sir…"
"I see… I've heard a lot about you from Haruki-kun."
"…Really?"
"No, he hasn't."
"Ahahahaha."
Currently, I am talking with one of the biggest people in the company. Ken Watanabe…
"Anyways, so you're the girl who Haruki wants to hire, huh."
"Yes…"
"I see… I will say, the illustrations you made for our game is superb. So I'm happy that Haruki has brought you here."
"Thank you…"
"But, with that being said. Let's get straight into business shall we?"
"…"
…
"Sigh- Finally, the meeting with your uncle is done."
"Yeah… I'm sorry about that. I did hear that Uncle Ken goes heavy on the questions for the newbies, but I didn't think it would be this bad…"
The meeting with Inoue's uncle is finally done. Although the things we talked about were normal, the atmosphere around Mr. Watanabe was intense…
But that doesn't matter right now. Since we are currently heading towards a park as Inoue thought that it would be the perfect place to cool down after the intense talks with Mr. Watanabe.
"Ahahahaha… Well, Mr. Watanabe sure is intense with his questions. But besides that. May I ask why we are going to a park again?"
"Hm? Well, I just assumed that the talk between you and uncle will be intense, so I already considered going to a park to loosen up afterwards."
But as we were walking towards the park, Inoue-kun brought up something I did not expect.
"Is that so?"
"Yes. Also…you know you can speak normally to me, right? Hearing you being formal to me sends shivers down my spine, especially after all the trash you've talked to me. Just talk to me casually, okay?"
"…sure…."
"Besides, that's not the only thing you need to change when talking to me. Don't think of me as your boss. Instead, think of me as your colleague. As your equal. And since we're going to be spending a lot of time together from now on, call me by my first name. Okay?"
"Eh?!"
" 'Eh?!' is not my name. It's Haruki. Okay?"
"…Fine."
After that, we continued our walk towards the park.
After a few minutes of walking without either of us talking, we finally arrived at our destination. It is also at this time where Inoue, no, Haruki-kun broke the silence between us.
"You know, I've already said this before, but. The amount of change that happened in our relationship and the way how you talk to me is amazing."
"You think so?"
"Well, yeah, of course. After all, it's only been a month since we've met, no?"
"Well, I guess that's true…"
"Alright then. Shall we go continue our walk inside the park?"
"…sure."
We continued on with our peaceful walk. Eventually, we reached a bridge.
As we conversed, I realised how glad I am for Haruki. If it wasn't for him, my life would've been a mess by now.
So, helping him out with his game is the least I could do.
And for that reason, I just want to tell him…
"I am very grateful for the things you've done for me, Haruki-kun!"
I told him while we were crossing the bridge. I said those words with my truest of feelings.
As I told him this, I felt my body become lighter. It's as if something relieved me off my worries.
That's why, right now, I'm the happiest I've ever been in a while.
Thank you, Haruki-kun. I truly do appreciate everything you've done to me.
But now, it's time for me to repay all the kindness you've given me.