Hakuta walked alongside her in silence for a bit. The pair simply headed down the sidewalk like any other normal couple would. Except they weren't a couple dating each other. Considering what he told her before, they weren't even a pair of friends either.
But he gave her all the time she needed before speaking up. This was Iruka's time and he wanted to be fair. Especially since it seemed she needed a little bit of time to prepare herself to chat with him personally on the matter.
"I talked with Shiuka for a bit earlier." She finally broke the silence between them. Her words spiked into his ears, nearly causing the boy to jump when she did speak up. "She seems to care about you a lot."
"I suppose that kind of stuff happens when you end up living together." He answered. Considering his close relationship with her, Hakuta understood it might be confusing for someone like Iruka who was on the outside looking in. Perhaps she might even have some feelings of jealousy on how someone who was a gyaru did manage to become his friend and yet she couldn't for those very reasons. "It was out of our control."
"It really was, wasn't it?" She giggled, thinking back on the ridiculousness of the situation. "Some of us really don't get lucky sometimes."
"I'm sorry." He quickly apologized. "I never meant to hurt you in any way. Even though I wanted to be honest, I guess maybe that wasn't the right way to go about it." Hakuta had no clue on what would be considered the right way to handle it. He didn't want to lie and be stuck with her, but at the same time he already knew it was unavoidable on how things would turn out if he got what he asked for.
"It was really hard, but it's not like I blame you for it." She responded. "The truth is, when you rejected me, it just reminded me of something else."
"Something else?" He couldn't imagine what occurred in her past that would cause such a strong reaction. Especially over something that was far from a traumatic experience, at least in his eyes. "From your old school?"
"From when I was in junior high." She told him the story that led to her emotional state earlier that day. A story about her when she was merely a third year in junior high, barely a teenager.
It was a special time for Iruka, as it might be for most people her age. One of the biggest parts of her was change, in this case one who was allured by the appearance of the gals.
She already fit in quite well under most people's views of how they acted. Her attitude was there and the spirit certainly was as well. She met a fair number of other wonderful girls who shared in the same tastes as her. While she hadn't reached the point of the tanned skin she had now, Iruka already had the makeup, hair, and fashion sense to go with it.
Everything seemed to be going by perfectly for her, but this would not last. Not in the manner she hoped it would.
Growing up, Iruka had a childhood friend she knew quite well. A boy who lived in the same neighborhood whom she shared many special memories of playing with as they grew up from elementary together. She was a boy she held very close to her heart, even as she changed during junior high.
Unfortunately, he too also went through changes as they grew up. This boy turned into someone rather serious, strict. He already was the more mature one between them, but he become someone closer to a person similar to Hakuta. Glasses, preferring to stay at home instead of partying with friends.
She never liked him any less, but it was undeniable looking back that they didn't spend as much time together as they used to growing up. In a sense, they were drifting apart as it were, but he took it one step further when he realized what was occurring.
This was when he decided it was time to talk with her privately. When he invited her over one day, she had assumed nothing wrong was going to happen. If anything, Iruka was extremely excited to be able to spend some time with the friend she had growing up again.
That was when he broke the truth to her. She still remembers the words spoken to her that day. How different they were. How people like them don't hang out together. How she was better off with her new friends instead of him.
When Hakuta heard her recount this part of the story. He felt his heart sink into the depths of the abyss. This all sounded to familiar to him as he had done and the exact same things her old friend told her before. It made much more sense now why she reacted the way she did. He had unknowingly brought back a painful memory to her.
Ultimately her story didn't have a happy ending. While she still say her old friend from time to time, as they lived near each other and went to the same school. They never held the same relationship as they did before.
It felt a bit sad. Iruka didn't sulk on the matter forever and she would soon return to enjoying time with her new friends instead. Which was the concern she thought of how unfortunate things ended. That reality didn't fit with that of a fairy tale.
"When I transferred to this school, I remembered the part when he told me how people like us don't mix well." She said. "I wondered if he might've been right after all." Before moving away, Iruka did later realize all she did was hang out with the expected people. It worried her that perhaps things wouldn't be different at all when she came to this school. That she would end up being limited simply because of who she was.
"So that's why you wanted to talk to me so much." He said. The pair had stopped in their walk home to continue this conversation and understand her story. There was a wooden bench along the way where they sat. At this time of day, there were few walking by to interrupt them.
"You really do remind me a lot of him." She admitted, staring at him intently. Scanning along his face and body to point out all the bits of him that were similar. "I guess the two of you act a lot more similar that I would've thought too."
"I'm so sorry about what I said to you earlier." He apologized again. It wasn't anything he had any control over, but it didn't make him feel less guilty.
"You didn't know. It's not your fault." She assured him. "It's not like I'm mad at you anyway." Iruka laughed, giving him a pat on the back. "Oh right you don't want to be buds." She had unintentionally acted in a manner familiar to her, as this was a topic she had grown used to growing up.
"Yeah, I guess that's what I asked for." He replied, pausing to think about his actions. "And normally what I ask for isn't the best thing at all."
"Hmm? What are you trying to say?" She asked. "I guess all of us don't make any sense at all." Iruka laughed. Despite all the struggles, it seemed she fit in way better than she anticipated.
"I meant that I shouldn't have just shot you down before." He clarified. "The truth is I'm already surrounded by a bunch of girls like you. What's one more?"
"Ah, well that's nice and all but you don't have to force yourself." She panicked and tried to change his mind despite this being the result that benefited her the most. "I'm not some kind of important person that you need to bend over backwards for at all."
"And I'm just some random dude who happens to sit in front of you." He chuckled. They really were just some random high schoolers who happened to live a slightly more interesting lives than most. There wasn't anything special about either, so it wasn't like he needed any special treatment. "I'm not saying we're best buds." And he wasn't certain if having to formally state they were friends made any sense. Especially with a girl he had only known for less than a month. "But there's nothing wrong with hanging out whenever you want. I don't want to avoid you."
"You really mean it?" Her eyes lit up on the prospect that she might've finally made a break through. "Oh thank you so much." Iruka rushed onto him and gave him a tight hug in her joy. He got to feel up practically all her body thanks to this move, which prompted him to try and end it quickly.
"Okay, okay, it's not a problem at all." He tried to speak up, but it was hard with how tight she squeezed him. "I don't mind getting to know you." Though he had his doubts on how well this would go. Hakuta could tell she was being genuine, even if perhaps he might just be a guy trying to replace a hole in her heart.
"I promise you won't be making a mistake with me." She said, finally letting go of him. "I think some people might think I'm trying to take you for a ride. That's probably why Shiuka seemed a bit worried of me." He could see that as being a potential issue. But it was unlikely to happen with this girl. "Anyway, I'm about home here. So you don't need to walk me all the way. I can make it from here."
"That's good." He sighed. It had begun to get late and he wanted to get home to finally take care of himself. Today had been a long day, so Hakuta just wanted it to end so he could finally put a lid on everything which had occurred. "I'll see you at school then."