Almost a month has passed since I heard that strange woman's voice. Nothing has happened since then. My life continues as always—boring, monotonous, and pathetic.
With nothing to do, I mostly stared at the empty sky, feeling a sense of hopelessness for the future.
"Hey, hey! Wanna grab some drinks after school~?" Aiko said, cheerful like a dog playing in the park with its owner. Aiko Suzuki is the girlfriend of my friend, Kai Yamamoto, whom I have been friends with since elementary school.
Kai is known as the most handsome boy in the school. I wonder if he knows that or not. He has blonde hair that suits him perfectly, and he stands around 5'11".
Even though I call him my friend, it often feels like he's stuck with me, as if I'm pulling his rope to keep him from leaving.
"Of course, let's go! Also, let's invite Ren," Kai said, a big smile on his face that has the ability to light up the room.
Both of them are good-looking, so almost the entire school knows about their relationship. And of course, being attractive doesn't make them famous; they are both kind and excel academically.
"Uh-huh," Aiko nodded, agreeing with what Kai said.
If I were to describe Aiko, I would say she has long hair that almost reaches her back, a vibrant shade of red that shines brightly, and her body curves like a model. She is the perfect girl in most people's eyes.
As close as I am to Kai, I'm also pretty close with Aiko. Whenever they go out, they drag me along too, which has made us a tight-knit trio. Sometimes, I hear whispers in the hallways, rumors that we are the best trio in school. I wonder if that's true.
They are the only people who bring a little light into my life, so I can't easily break their relationship. If I wanted to, of course, I cared for them too. But if their relationship were to break, it would affect me as well. So, no matter who it is—whether the president of the country or a god—I could not easily agree to destroy what they have.
Therefore, I don't take any action on what the strange woman said.
"Oi, Ren, daydreaming again," said Kai as he caught my neck.
"Just thinking about something," I replied.
"Tell me what you're thinking!" Aiko said as she came closer to us.
Glaring at her chest, I replied, "About how much I want to touch some boobs." You may be wondering what kind of guy would say that to a girl. Yeah, for sure, I could never say something so careless to a girl.
"Ahah... funny. I know that you're not even interested, so stop with the pervy jokes," Aiko scolded, rolling her eyes but unable to hide her smile.
"Ren, don't say such jokes to my girlfriend," Kai said, glaring at me. "If you want to, then you can get a girlfriend too, you know."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Not giving it much thought, I replied while picking up my bag as the final bell rang. Most of the students started heading home.
"You know, you're also pretty popular with girls; why don't you accept their love?" Kai said. I wondered how I was considered popular with girls like him. I mean, I'm not like Kei, and I like to stay alone most of the time, so how did I become popular?
"There are no girls who suit my test," I replied as we walked through the hallways.
"Then I can introduce you to some of my friends who go to another school," Aiko chimed in. "They're looking for a boyfriend who looks cool."
"How am I cool in the first place?" I asked. I already knew what her answer would be, but—
"Your looks," Aiko said. "The girls in our class say you look cool, but to me, Kai is the only one who is cool." She hugged Kai's arm, and I could see him getting a little embarrassed. They were both lovey-dovey, like something out of a Rom-com anime.
"Hey, save that for when you're alone!" I said, taking off my shoes from the shoe locker. As I pulled out my shoes, something fell out along with them.
"Ohh! You got another love letter today too!" Aiko exclaimed, her cheerful energy infectious. The thing that had come out with my shoes was indeed a letter. I wondered who still wrote letters these days.
Taking a look, I read the letter. As you might expect, it said to meet in the school's backyard, just like in every anime. It felt so old-fashioned now.
"Hey, Ren, how many love letters have you gotten since starting high school?" Kai asked as he leaned in to take a look.
"Hmm, I wonder... maybe around 16."
"Ohh, by the way, are you going to meet that girl?" Aiko asked, trying to peek at the letter. I wondered if she could even see it; Kai and I were blocking her view.
"Yeah, I don't want to waste someone's effort." I said as I left them, holding the letter in my left hand and waving goodbye.
"Okay, we'll be waiting at the store; try to come as soon as possible!"
***
As I walked to the school's backyard, no one was there, which is kind of strange, as I know most of the time the girls would be there before I came. But I cannot complain to anyone, so I decide to wait for a while, as they may be busy.
But it didn't take a few minutes before a mysterious girl appeared in front of me. She had long white hair that gleamed like beautiful moonlight, and she emitted a mysterious and enigmatic aura. I wondered if she was from another school, as there was no way a girl like her wouldn't catch the attention of the entire school.
"Greeting, Ren Tanaka," she spoke, her voice gentle, like a fairy's whisper. "I, Suko Frost, would like to take your precious time a little." Frost? Is she not from around here?
"Yeah, say what you want to talk about. My friends are waiting for me." I replied, leaning against the wall, not caring too much what she had to say. Even though the girl was incredibly pretty, I don't feel any attraction to her, which most boys would likely experience upon encountering such beauty out of nowhere. I just wanted to hurry and get to where Kei was waiting.
"Break your friends' relationship, Ren Tanaka," she said. I looked at her in shock, nearly falling to the ground. I had expected her to confess her feelings like any other girl, but she didn't change her expression when she said that. Did she really know what she was talking about?
"W-what are you talking about?" I stuttered, wondering if she might know about the strange voice I had heard. Of course, I couldn't suspect her outright, but the timing of her appearance felt strange, so there was a chance she might know.
Without changing her expression, she said, "Ren, try to break them up as soon as possible." With that, a sudden gust of wind swept through, blocking my view.
"Oh! Are you saying she's going to disappear in the gust?" I thought. No way, it's not a joke; someone please just explain what is happening!!
When my view returned to normal, she was gone—just like in an anime. It was predictable; if I'm being honest, what would happen next I can predict mostly.
***