I didn't pry any further.
There was no need to.
Shizu was visibly distressed, so I was afraid of upsetting her even more if I approached the topic.
I really wanted to know what she meant by that, but I'll let it go for now.
This is a problem bigger than what I can handle.
"Is that so..." I murmured. "Do you want to play another game?"
"What is wrong with you!" She yelled.
I had never heard or seen Shizu this mad before.
It's a peculiar thing seeing someone normally so gentle and kind be so angry.
"You're always like this! Ever since we were kids, you would always run away from problems!" Shizu screamed at me. "Why won't you confront them?!"
"..."
It was true that I always had a natural tendency to run away from problems I couldn't handle.
That's just the kind of coward I am.
I won't make any excuses, I'm just a pitiful coward that's scared.
Scared of change, scared of confrontation, and scared of opposition.
I'm a horrible person, and that's not because of any traumatic event that happened.
I was just born this way.
Born a coward.
"I'm sorry..." I apologized to Shizu.
"There you go apologizing right away again... You're not understanding why I'm mad!"
Does she want me to pry into her business?
I'm trying to be respectful here and not pry into her business, and this is how she's reacting?
"What do you want then? I know I run away from problems, but I was trying to be respectful and not pry into your business," I tried to explain.
"That's another part of the problem, I think we're a little bit past the being respectful stage," Shizu corrected me. "We've been friends for how long? Like eight years? We shouldn't have to mind each other when the other person is clearly troubled. That just shouldn't be the case..."
Shizu has been nothing but right so far.
I've just been masking my insecurities by using excuses to put everything off.
I'm just a coward who likes running away.
I can't do anything but avert my eyes from the situation in front of me.
It pisses me off that I'm such a pitiful person.
I should just drop dead.
"You got this!"
A past memory of Shizu encouraging me to give my best just had to happen now of all times.
What convenient timing, but I shouldn't complain.
My resolve... has been renewed.
Seeing Shizu change so much compared to me who is still the same, that really hurts my heart.
I may be a coward right now, but that could possibly be different in the future.
The times are changing, and so must I.
"Okay, I understand," I nodded. "I'll try my best to stop running away from problems."
"That's a good start," Shizu finally smiled. "Well, I guess that's okay for now. I can't expect much out of you, can I?"
"Oi, that's mean."
I can't be a coward forever.
Not when there's someone standing right next to me cheering me on.
When I saw her distressed expression for the first time in a long time, I had already somewhat knew what I had to do.
There was no way I could keep standing still while she kept moving forward.
After our reunion, I didn't want to be distanced from her anymore.
That's why I'll give it my all to stand by her side.
As her best friend...
That feels really weird to say for some reason.
"So, would you like to go in depth on why you said you were jealous of Sakura?"
"Nope, too late. Teehee~"
"Grr..."
God damn it, this girl pisses me off sometimes!
Even if I would like to know what she meant by that, it's already a little bit past the relevant time for the conversation.
It's completely my fault, but what can I do at this point?
"Fine, let's go get some food then. I'm starving."
"Yahoo! Let's go to RcDinald's! I'll have the 10-nugget combo with fries~"
"Why are you telling me?"
"You're paying for me, right?" Shizu asked me while batting her eyes. "Pretty please~"
"..."
This girl... Does she have no shame?
"Where did your shame go? Do you not feel anything when you're asking others to pay for you?" I chuckled.
"It's okay because it's you~ I'll let you pamper me as much as I want because we're best friends," Shizu happily said.
She's acting awfully chipper right now, even wanting to be spoiled.
Is this cute creature really my childhood friend?
"You thought of something rude, didn't you?"
"Nope."
I'll take that thought to the grave.
***
-Sakura POV-
It's almost done!
"Big sis, what are you doing?"
My little brother came up to me while I was busy cooking in the kitchen and pulled in the hem of my shirt.
"I was just making a special lunch for Haruto tomorrow."
"Big bro's lunch? I think he'll be very happy tomorrow when he receives it from you!"
My little brother was very fond of Haruto to the point where he would call him big bro even though they weren't related.
It was just a matter of course though, Haruto was generally a very kind person that has been friends with our family for many years.
As expected of my Haruto.
"I hope he'll like the taste," I happily muttered with a giant grin plastered on my face.
Haruto's special bento tomorrow is going to be spectacular!
Let's do my best to win his heart then ☆