She opened her beautiful lips, charming like a blooming flower, and threw these next words at me.
"Don't get the wrong idea, okay. I definitely don't like people such as you!"
—This was my fateful encounter with the tsundere girl that definitely won't go dere with me.
My name is Yafune Shibuki, and I'm a closet otaku. Up to my first year in middle school, I wasn't hiding my otaku interests. As a result of that, I was constantly insulted and called 'gross' by my classmates, spending hellish days to no end. After this one year ended, it was decided that my Dad's workplace would change—and that we'd move.
I thought that this was a perfect chance. Until my new student life would start, I dieted as best as I could, and took perfect care of my skin, changing my hairstyle at an actual stylist, practiced on my voice and way of speaking, and rammed as much knowledge about popular topics and sports into my head. Every single thing about this was hard for an otaku like me, but using my beloved light novels as a reference, I tried my best. I really did.
After a lot of setbacks, a lot of effort, doing it in a frenzy, I reached this self that nobody would be able to ridicule. Basically, let alone high school debut, it was a transfer debut. My hard work seemed to have paid out, because I reached the top of the school caste at the school I transferred to. Ever since this school year began, I've been respected and treated kindly by everyone.
Honestly speaking, there are times where I feel the urge to talk about manga or anime. More than that, I really don't get why talking about something popular right now is funny or interesting, and talking with normies like these is fairly exhausting as well. But even so, I don't want to return to those hellish days I suffered through. That's why I try my best to read the atmosphere around me, and kill off my inner thoughts so that I don't get kicked out of my friend's ring, and don't stand out negatively in class.
With that in mind, Aotsuki Mifuyuu is an inexplicable existence, and one that I don't want to get in touch with. Despite possessing the looks to immediately end up at the center of an idol group if she just tried it, she doesn't use this at
all, and instead lives along the lines of making enemies at any given moment.
Every student in this class, maybe even the entire student year, is giving her an odd eye, almost as if she's a landmine ready to blow. Not to mention that whole '"Don't get the wrong idea, okay. I definitely don't like people such as you!'…What are you, a tsundere? Of course, there's actually no affection in her words at all, and there's only pure hate to find.
A beauty like her on top of being a tsundere, that's something that only happens in 2D media. As this is reality, she's not going dere at all, nor is she a tsundere. As a result of that incident, I was treated as the hero who succeeded in the Aotsuki-san Challenge, but I'd rather not get involved with her again. Not to mention that she even said it herself. Even if you get lured in by the sweet scent of honey, you wouldn't just shove your hand into a bee nest, right.
Classes ended for the day, and as I sat in my classroom, doing some stuff on my phone, Gami approached me and interrupted my thoughts.
"Yafune~ class 2's Ayu just said they're heading to the game center now. You got time?"
I put away my phone, and showed an energetic smile. "Hell yeah. I'm coming!"
"Sakana, you'll be there as well, right? Shimizu and Suzuki are coming as well."
"Yeah~ I'll show them how I got I am at the crane games~"
Without ever bothering with Aotsuki Mifuyuu again, I created a perfectly fake smile and played the idiot in this class. The fact that I don't look forward to it at all, and that this isn't who I truly am, I stuff away these thoughts deep inside of me. What I truly like, what I truly am—these kinds of precious things are best hidden from others. Because there's a lot of people in this world who are ready to hurt you for what you like.
Soon enough, the season moved on to the rainy season. Although I had decided to not pay her any more mind, my eyes just naturally started tracing her. Ever since that incident, Aotsuki Mifuyuu had been standing out in class. Always alone, never talking with anybody, and when she opens her mouth, it results in a blizzard of words. It's honestly baffling how she hasn't become the target of bullying yet…Maybe there's just nothing there to bully her for.
The only worthwhile way to properly show their distaste for her was for the girls to exclude her from the group, and make her stay alone. That being said, she was never part of any group, so 'kicking her out' was not an option. Not to mention that Aotsuki-san excelled in both her studies and athletic abilities, so besides her cold way of speaking, she's a perfect human being. There's no opening to use against her.
As a girl, if you were to attack her carelessly, you'd just be seen as jealous towards her talent, and ridiculed by the people around you. Although the general caste of this class had been decided, in this uncertain first term, nobody would do anything to hurt their impression within others. As a result of that, Aotsuki-san became this odd existence that 'Cannot be bullied but should be avoided'.
"Ah…!"
One day, the girl sitting next to Aotsuki-san went to take a sip of water, but the bottle slipped out of her hand, and splattered water on the floor. That water even reached up to Aotsuki-san, drenching her socks.
"Ah, I-I'm sorry…"
It really didn't seem like she did it on purpose, and it was merely an accident. Naturally, the girl was scared, thinking that she might have angered Aotsuki- san, so she carefully looked up at her. However, Aotsuki-san didn't seem angered by any means.
"You're not feeling well, are you?" "Eh…How…did you know?"
"Your face is red, and your hands are shaking. You probably dropped the bottle because you couldn't properly hold it."
"I-I'm sorry, I'll wipe it right away…"
"Don't need that. I'll take care of it myself, so you just head off to the infirmary."
"Eh, b-but…"
"You're just a bother to me at this rate. I don't want your cold."
"Ah, um…I'm sorry…" The girl showed a bewildered reaction, and staggered out of the classroom.
She must be heading over to the infirmary now, just as Aotsuki-san ordered her. The people who listened in on this conversation were secretly criticising Aotsuki-san.
"What's up with her? Was there really any need to say that much?" "Aotsuki-san is so scary~"
…Is she scary? Her choice of words were quite rough, but I think that what she's been is nothing but kind. Why does she always act like that? She's not a bad girl or anything, so why can't she just get along with everyone?
"Hey, if you have a problem with me, why don't you just say that to my face? I can hear you all whispering in the back. So lame."
Yet again, she poured more oil into the fire. Does she like campfires or anything like that?
"…So annoying."
Next to me, I heard an annoyed voice. Sipping on the 'royal strawberry chocolate milk lemon tea' they are selling here at this school's vending machines, Gami directed a bothered gaze directly at Aotsuki-san. As someone who stands at the top of the class, standing out in a different way
from Aotsuki-san, it must be quite irritating for her to see Aotsuki-san not bow down to her. Trying to ease the anger inside of her, she eventually burst out laughing.
"Who even cares? Just leave her alone. Let's talk about something more interesting than that. There's a store across the train station that just opened up, you know~"
Be it yourself or others, let them drift, and drift along. If you just swim with the stream, these three years will go by smoothly.
Something I never understand is why all these normies go on to play around like this. Karaoke, family restaurants, cafes, game centers, fast food, or just staying behind in the classroom in case they're low on money. For the sake of my human relationships I do try to tag along with their nonsense, but there are times where I think to myself 'They really don't have a worry in this world'. Even today, tagging along with Gami robbed me off the rest of the day. By the time I was heading home, the sky was already dark.
I really wanna watch some anime at home right now. Thinking about which one to enjoy later, I walked down the closed road home.
"…Hm?"
Mid-way—I spotted the shadow of a person sitting on the swing in a public park. They wore my school's uniform, and their long and glossy hair swayed in the wind. It was hard to make out in this darkness, but…that's Aotsuki- san, right? What is she doing here this late, not to mention all alone? She was sitting on the swing, looking down at a book in her hands.
Though if you asked me, she's not even reading the book, merely spacing out with an open book in her hands. It's like she's just waiting for time to pass.
After all, she showed no intention of flipping over the pages. It's pretty late already, so leaving a girl all alone here is dangerous. If this was a game, I could already see the choices popping up on my screen.
Call out to her. Ignore her.
Is it just me, or is this basically the moment to raise a flag with her? This might just be the decisive point that could get me down the Aotsuki-san route. With these thoughts in mind, I felt the urge to call out to her. However, I can't be shaken by these feelings. I want to have a peaceful high school life, so I need to avoid any possible landmines.
"..."
I acted like I didn't see anything, and was about to walk away—However, my legs wouldn't move. Weird, did I break my legs? If I was the protagonist of a sports manga, there'd be some drama of me realizing that I suffered an injury mid-match. Sadly enough, I'm not a member of any sports club, so there won't be any drama like that.
As a matter of fact, my legs didn't hurt either. I just couldn't help but be curious. Not to mention that a chance like this might never come again. I always thought it was weird. Why would Aotsuki-san take such a stance towards the people at our school? After all, isn't she like a XXX who accepts all danger that befalls her? Is she really fine being excluded from the class, being treated like someone weird? Even though I know that she hates me, I want to hear this answer from her own mouth.
…A bit should be fine. Since nobody is watching, I might as well. "Yo, Aotsuki-san, what are you doing here at such a ti—"
I called out to her with the same tone of voice and attitude I did in class, only for Aotsuki-san to raise her head. In response, I froze up. From her glass marble eyes, tears came running down her cheeks.
"..."
"..."
Both Aotsuki-san and I froze up, like someone played the pause button on the TV. I don't even know how much time passed in this paused state.
Eventually, Aotsuki-san seemed to have organized her thoughts, and frantically wiped away her tears.
"—You will forget!!" She spoke up with a voice loud enough to fill the otherwise silent park.
"…What?"
"You! Forget everything! You just saw!"
Ahh, I was wondering what she was on about, but that's it? Normally, you'd say stuff like 'Forget that right now!' or 'Erase that from your memory!', right. It seems like she's still pretty confused. And, she must have been aware of this, as she awkwardly cleared her throat.
"…Forget about that! Okay? This is an order. If you dare not listen, then… Um…Ehm…I'll destroy the world!"
"I feel like you're planning too far ahead there."
She was trying her hardest to keep a calm and composed attitude, but she was desperate enough for her eyes to spin. She's not scary at all.
"A…Anyway, just forget about that. I'm leaving…!"
"Ah, wait a second." On a whim, I grabbed her arm before she could run away.
It really happened reflexively, so I didn't even have a particular reason as to why I did that. I didn't even think about the repercussions of doing that. But can you blame me, I was pretty much as shaken as she was.
"Did something bad happen?"
"Shut up. As long as you're alive, bad things happen all the time. I don't see any reason to listen to your fake sympathy."
"You say that, but it's already late, so I'm worried about letting you walk around alone…What were you even doing here, all alone?"
"Nothing at all. I didn't want to be at home, so I was just trying to waste some time outside."
She hates it at home, huh. Must be related to her desire of not wanting to deal with other people. That being said, we don't have the sort of relationship that would allow me to just investigate that problem, so I was at a bit of a loss on what to do.
"It's late already dark outside, so isn't it dangerous to still be out?" "Not really. My home is close-by."
"Eh, you live around here? Same here." "Really now. And?"
She must have gotten annoyed now, as she threw me a harsh glare. I know I'm being meddlesome here, but…
"Say…isn't our class hard to deal with?"
"…Not really. I'm at fault for standing out like that." "Right. So, why would you go that far?"
"Doesn't have anything to do with you."
"Do you like being treated coldly by everyone?" "I'll kick you to the ground and step on you, okay?!"
"I was just trying to brighten up the mood, I'm sorry."
Then again, being stepped on by a beauty is more of a reward than anything.
"I mean, I don't get the reason as to why you would make everyone your enemy like that. There's nothing for you to gain from that, right?"
"I'm not thinking about gain and loss. I just…say what I want." "Really? But, you're really kind, Aotsuki-san."
"Huh?"
"Your tone might sound a bit strict and unfriendly, but the motives behind it are clearly driven by consideration. The reason you didn't lend these girls your notes is because you were worried about them not studying at all, and you forced that girl today to head to the infirmary because she was feeling off, right?"
I know. Just because Aotsuki-san is kind doesn't mean I get any merit of this. But, I can't just ignore her now that I found her.
"That's why…it's just a waste. You should be more open about that kindness of yours." I said these words, expecting harsh words back in return.
However, Aotsuki-san didn't insult or berate me, let alone giving me a cold gaze. She just grabbed the skirt of her uniform with both her hands, and muttered with her gaze cast down.
"…Because that'll only get me hurt." "—Eh?"
"It's nothing. You're so annoying! Noisy!" Aotsuki-san pushed away my hand, and walked away.
However, after taking a bit of distance from me, she turned around one more time, like she was looking down at me.
"Just to let you know, but people just sometimes cry, okay! I just, well, got something in my eye, so you don't need to worry about me at all! Make sure you forgot about all of this tomorrow!" She left behind these words, and walked away for good.
…Her words just now. Although it pains me to say it, I'm not some romcom protagonist that just goes 'What did you say?' when faced with this kind of situation. I perfectly heard what she just said.
"Because that'll only get her hurt, is it…"
There's definitely something going on there. I know I shouldn't be looking into it, and yet…