The television I was watching displayed a picture of Yamada-kun. The news reporter was talking about Yamada-kun's death. Upon learning that Yamada-kun was the victim of the armed attack, a question arose in my mind.
"Will they stop bullying me now?" With just one week left until final exams, I hadn't even studied properly. Moreover, I didn't even know which high school I wanted to attend.
Lost in these thoughts, I turned off the television with the remote. As soon as I switched it off, the doorbell rang. I initially wondered who it could be, and couldn't help but have some negative thoughts. Whoever had shot Yamada-kun might be looking for a place to hide.
Therefore, I approached the front door cautiously. As I reached the front of the door, I called out, "Who is it?" but received no response. Just in case, I took off one of the gloves I was wearing and put it in the back pocket of my pants. With my gloved hand, I slowly began to open the door.
"Oh my, it's Araki-kun..." The person right in front of the door was our next-door neighbor, Hamari-san.
"When I heard the gunshot, you were the only one who came to my mind. Thank goodness you're okay." Hamari-san suddenly lunged forward and hugged me tightly.
"Hamari-san, I'm suffocating... You know I don't like being in close contact with people."
"Shut up, you fool. I was worried about you."
"As you can see, I'm fine, so please stop suffocating me..." If she had continued to hold on tightly, I might have passed out from lack of breath. She has surprisingly strong arms for a middle-aged woman.
"I saw it on the news, the kid who passed away goes to the same middle school as you, right? Did anything happen at school?" Hamari-san seemed to have learned from the news just like me.
"No, he wasn't someone who talked a lot at school. He would just hang out and chat with his own friends." I knew better than to tell our neighbor that I was being bullied at school. I could twist the story a little bit.
"Oh, no... I must have left the water on the stove. I apologize, Araki-kun. Please lock all the doors and windows for your safety. And don't open the door for anyone." Hamari-san hurriedly ran out of the house through the backyard and headed back to her own house.
(Sigh)
'I have nothing to do...' After closing and locking the door, I went to my room and started studying, trying to put some effort into preparing for the upcoming finals.
'Hmm, no matter how many times I read this question, I just don't understand it. Ugh... I really hate geometry.' No matter how much I struggle, I always get stuck on these geometry problems. I rested my head on the table and let out a sigh.
When I glanced out the window, I noticed that it was already getting dark. 'How long have I been studying... Ugh, I'm starting to get hungry.' After putting away my textbooks in a corner, I turned off the lights in the room and went downstairs. As I descended the stairs, I remembered that some parts of the railing were still covered in coal dust and I stared at it for a moment.
'Maybe one day I should remove these railings. If Hamari-san sees them like this without warning, I don't know how I would explain it to her.' After reaching the bottom of the stairs, I entered the kitchen, opened the cupboard, and started cracking a few eggs to prepare dinner.
The delightful aroma of the scrambled eggs, made from the mixture of egg whites and yolks, made my stomach growl even more. Additionally, I sprinkled some spices that would enhance the flavor just before taking the scrambled eggs off the heat.
Now, it's time to eat...
"Itadakimasu..."
After finishing the eggs, I took the dirty dishes back to the kitchen. Once the washing was done, as I always did, I sat in front of the picture of my grandfather in the living room and had a brief conversation. But this time, instead of going to sleep, I opened the back door and sat outside, gazing at the sparkling stars in the sky.
The sky was clearer and brighter today, as I was far away from the city center, and the stars that were invisible due to the streetlights now shone with their full brilliance.
After watching the night sky for about an hour, sleep started to overcome me. It would be better for me to go to school in the morning and start studying before the final exams approach.
I closed the back door and went back to my room, changed my clothes, and lay down on my soft bed, closing my eyes. After some time, I must have fallen into a deep sleep, as I found myself in a different place again.
As the black smoke slowly dissipated, my vision became clear. This time, I found myself in my grandfather's workshop. My grandfather seemed to be working on something.
When I approached to see what my grandfather was working on, I saw the chest that I had encountered at the temple that day. So, my grandfather was the one who made it.
"Goya, Goya?" The person calling my grandfather was my grandmother, who was waiting outside the workshop. "Are you still dealing with that chest? Do you really think things will turn out that way? And how do you know they will find us?" I saw a side of my grandmother that I had never seen before. She wasn't usually this talkative and curious.
"I need to be prepared for everything. If I die one day, the only person who will open this chest will be my grandson."
"Don't be ridiculous, dear. Nobody has the power to kill you, you know that."
"Haha... Don't make me laugh, we've both grown old."
(The sound of something falling.)
The sound of something falling echoed from inside the house to the backyard, and at that moment, I could even see the cold sweat dripping from my grandfather's forehead.
"What's happening?" my grandmother asked.
My grandfather whispered a few words and took off his gloves, placing his hands on the chest.
My grandfather's hands were painted with strange symbols, just like mine, and after a short while, the symbols disappeared on their own. When my grandfather was out of breath, the chest suddenly disappeared.
"Goya, what's happening?"
"Wait for me, don't go alone."
As I stepped out of the workshop, my vision became blurry again, and I found myself waking up on the floor, having fallen from my bed.
Once again, I began to see memories from my grandfather's past. I don't know how long this will continue, but as I see these memories, negative emotions start to creep in, making me feel nauseous as if I'm about to be sick.
Looking at the clock, it seemed like I still had some time before I needed to go to school. So, I didn't rush to put on my school uniform. I went downstairs and prepared a small breakfast for myself in the kitchen.
After finishing breakfast, I went back upstairs and started preparing my school items.
Once everything was ready, I was prepared to go to school, even though I didn't really want to... Before leaving the house, I took a deep breath, put on my shoes, unlocked the front door, and stepped outside. As I started walking towards school, I noticed our neighbor, Hamari-san, talking to police officers in front of her house.
Hamari-san must have noticed me because she looked in my direction and waved her hand, giving a brief greeting before inviting the police officers into her house. Perhaps the police had come to gather information about Yamada-kun's death.
Without thinking too much, I continued on my way and walked towards school. This time, I could sense more faces looking at me along the road. These faces were not curious onlookers but rather those who had ill thoughts about me.
Most likely, during the time I was absent from school, I had been subjected to rumors and false accusations by Yamada-kun and his friends.
Approaching my shoe locker, I hesitated for a moment, unsure of what I would find inside. Slowly, I unlocked the locker and gently opened the door, half-expecting things to fall out, but to my surprise, nothing happened.
While initially taken aback, I realized that Yamada-kun was no longer there. Since he was the leader of those who bullied me, his friends followed his lead.
After changing my shoes, I walked towards my classroom, gently sliding the door open. As expected, all eyes in the classroom were on me. Glancing towards the back rows of the class, I noticed Yamada-kun's friends looking at me with tearful and angry expressions.
I apologize for the misunderstanding. Here's the translation of the text you provided:
As soon as I stepped into the classroom, Nomura-kun, one of Yamada-kun's friends, stood up abruptly from his seat. "YOU!" He kicked his chair backward and swiftly ran towards me, grabbing the collar of my uniform.
"IT'S ALL BECAUSE OF YOU, FREAK!"
Just as I expected, it turned out this way... After all, I am the cursed student of this school, aren't I? However, I have learned that no one is as intimidating and chilling as Yamada-kun.
"How do you know it's because of me?" I asked, looking directly into Nomura-kun's eyes with an expressionless face.
"B-Because I last saw Yamada following you. Tell us what you did to him, you freak..."
I feel like laughing at any moment, but I have to restrain myself. Am I really the one who killed Yamada-kun, after all the bullying I endured from him all this time? Honestly, if I had the chance, I might have wanted to do it, but I am not the one who did it.
"So what if he followed me?"
"HOW DARE YOU SPEAK LIKE THIS?! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE!"
I guess I have angered Nomura-kun a bit too much. He was about to punch me in the face when one of the female students in the class stood up and shouted, preventing Nomura-kun from hitting me.
"Enough already! After Yamada-san's death, are you still going to keep bothering this kid? Go and mourn for Yamada-san first." What was her name again? Uh... What was it?
"But Izumi-san! How can this stupid Yamada dare to speak about him like this?"
"Enough is enough. Yamada-san is no longer here. Let's keep our grief inside and focus on the upcoming finals. Leave the fights behind and think about your future," the class president said, performing one of the expected actions. I don't know if she is defending me, but the main reason for this might be Yamada-kun's absence.
As long as Yamada-kun was in this class, no one could act without his permission.
"Tch... I'll deal with you later. Let's go, guys," Nomura-kun, who was trying to become the new bully, left the classroom, taking his friends with him. When Nomura-kun forcefully closed the door, silence fell over the classroom once again.
All eyes were on me once more. If I listened carefully, I could hear the whispers and rumors circulating about me. Just as I was about to sit at my desk, the classroom door opened and the faculty member on duty entered.
"Is Araki Tatsuya here?" The duty teacher called my name as they entered, and I lifted my head to look at them.
"The principal wants to see you. Follow me," the duty teacher said, and then walked out of the door, starting to walk down the corridor.
The principal? Why do they want to see me?