“Thank you! I’m going to frame this and make it my family heirloom!”
“You don’t need to go that far! Are you an idiot!?”
“I’m fine with being an idiot! Ahh, Azuchi’s autograph. The one and only in the world, written just for me. Muhahaha! Duhuhuhu!!!”
“Ew, gross!? Don’t get happy like some creepy old-school otaku! Ugh… I’m starting to feel sick…”
Kushibiki is so harsh. Otaku, you see, are people who pursue their hobbies to the extreme and enjoy them. It’s outdated to dismiss such people as creepy and discriminate against them.
What’s wrong with saying you like what you like! I think it’s much more radiant to have things and hobbies you love than to spend your days in nothingness. Kushibiki just doesn’t understand yet…
Uh, excuse me, Kushibiki? You shouldn’t look at me with such disgust, as if you’re looking at trash—ahaha!
“Who would have thought that Azuchi herself would be so close by? What a lucky man I am…”
Even though I’m influenced by Tachibana, I never imagined I’d meet my favorite V-streamer in person. Maybe that’s why I’m shedding big tears and trembling with joy.
“Ugh… why are you crying?”
“Hah… You wouldn’t understand this feeling, Kushibiki.”
“Gross!? What are you even saying!?”
Kushibiki stepped back. Was my way of speaking that cool?
Pretty good, indeed. And that includes myself as well.
“Are you done here? Hurry up and go home! Your presence is rotting this house!”
“Whaaat?!”
Danger, danger, danger. For a moment there, I almost let Tachibana’s will take over my mind and body.
I can’t forget my original purpose; that would be counterproductive.
Slapping my own cheek as a reminder, I carefully place the autographed paper in a protective case and then into a frame… Let’s display it at home!
“Hey… what are you doing!?”
“No, I was thinking of decorating my room with it.”
“Stop it! It’s kind of embarrassing, you know…”
“What’s the harm? It’s not like it’s going to decrease in value.”
I securely stored the autographed paper and then turned back to face Kushibiki.
Kushibiki was already looking at me with the eyes of someone watching a criminal, keeping her distance.
“Well, sit down for now.”
“No way. I don’t want to get close to a creepy guy like you. I’ll have to disinfect everything you touched later…”
“Don’t treat me like a germ. What are you, a grade schooler?”
Stop it. It brings back the trauma from elementary school. Who was the one who came up with the idea that the last person touched is infected with germs?
“That’s not important right now. I came all this way because I wanted to talk to you. About Takahashi, and by the way, about me too. And give me back my smartphone. You have it, don’t you, Kushibiki?”
“…Takahashi-kun?”
The moment Kushibiki mentioned Takahashi’s name, I reacted like a fish biting at bait.
“Yeah. Sit down. It’s hard to talk while standing, isn’t it?”
“No way. Your presence is just too unsettling for me to bear.”
“That was just a momentary lapse of judgment on my part. I apologize, so could you please sit down for now? I’m really sorry.”
I quickly prostrated myself.
“Don’t you have any pride?”
“That’s something I threw away a long time ago. I feel like I could do anything you ask of me now.”
“Wow… so if I told you to ‘lick my feet,’ you’d actually――”
You think I’d stop at that?
I approached Kushibiki’s feet like a centipede, trying to lick them, but I got kicked instead. A splendid soccer kick… that hurts…
“Hey!? Wha, wha, what… what are you thinking?! I can’t believe it?!”
“You said it, Kushibiki. ‘Lick my feet.’ I was just following your order.”
“Gross! Ah, I’m shivering all over… I really can’t handle it. Don’t come into my field of vision!”
I was showered with Kushibiki’s merciless words, but they were nothing more than scratches to me.
“It was a joke. Come on, let’s sit down and talk, Azuchi Hoshimiya.”
“…I’ll sit down as you say, but if you say something weird again, I’ll really kick you out of the house. And don’t call me Azuchi Hoshimiya! If you call me that again, I’ll stab you. Got it?”
“Of course. I’m not that stupid.”
“…”
Kushibiki reluctantly accepted the request and cautiously moved forward to take a seat.
I noticed she was sitting a little further back from the chair than before, but I decided to leave that for later.
“So, about that. I’ll overlook the fact that you threatened me with an air gun and even brought a stun gun to attack me… If I had been shown the broadcast right in front of me, I would have considered becoming a monk out of sheer embarrassment. But you went too far. If you had made one wrong move, you would have been the one arrested, Kushibiki.”
“…I’m sorry for that.”
“That’s fine. The conversation is over since I got Azuchi’s autograph. Ah, tonight I’ll sleep with this autographed paper by my pillow!”
“Stop it! Are you making fun of me!?”
“Not at all. I just want to sleep with it because I love it so much.”
“Ew!? Hey, seriously, I can’t handle it! Can you stop breathing? You’re contaminating my house.”
“Hey, hey. Don’t treat people like they’re toxic gas.”
Really. This classmate has an even worse mouth than Ayase. But!
Now that I’ve got Azuchi’s autograph, I’m invincible! Nothing anyone says can hurt me!
“Seriously. Now to the main point. Kushibiki. You have business with Takahashi, right? Maybe you felt threatened by Ayase and Takahashi getting along and approached him… Am I wrong?”
I can’t think of any other reason. Whether Kushibiki is shy or just never found the right moment to speak up, I can’t decide which is correct.
It’s also possible that Ayase, who might become an enemy, was nearby.
Takahashi and Ayase have become friends, and the three of us, including me, often talk together.
Thanks to that, the silly rumors about me and Ayase have disappeared, but it’s Kushibiki who has started to feel threatened by this.
Takahashi may not realize it, but his looks and good nature make him popular with everyone, regardless of gender.
Especially among the girls, many want to deepen their relationship with him, and it seems he’s been confessed to and asked for his contact information in places I don’t know about.
But he turns down all confessions and often avoids exchanging contact information.
Whether he’s indecisive or just not interested in women, various things are said, but the truth is in the dark.
I’m not a psychic, so I have no idea what Takahashi is thinking. All I know is that I’ve been reincarnated as Tachibana Chihaya in the world of the manga “I Can’t Stop Loving You!” and I’m in the position of being the friend of the protagonist, Takahashi Hiroto.
Ayase and Kushibiki are also one of the heroines. According to the story of the manga, I have to connect them to Takahashi. But I’m living days far from the development I know.
Is it because of me, the irregular?
If that’s the case, I have to correct this different path.
“…”
“Not saying anything means you’re not denying it, right? He’s more cautious than you’d think. Even if you ask him for his contact information, there’s a low chance he’ll give it to you. Of course, I can’t give it to you either. Takahashi hates that kind of thing the most.”
“Is that so…”
“You like Takahashi, don’t you?”
Kushibiki suddenly jumped up from her chair like a frog.
I couldn’t help but give a wry smile at her blatantly obvious reaction. Is Kushibiki the type who can’t lie very well?
If that’s the case, then this is probably her true nature.
“Wh-what are you talking about? I don’t understand~”
“Yeah, yeah. Thanks for the easy-to-read reaction. Confessing to Takahashi now would only end in failure. Just give it up. He doesn’t seem to be very interested in romance or anything like that.”
“Eh…”
“I’ve been with Takahashi since the first year. I can feel it in my skin.”
Even when I trace back Tachibana’s memories, I’ve never heard Takahashi say he likes someone or that he’s interested in someone. This is not a lie.
But Kushibiki seems dissatisfied with what I said, puffing up her cheeks like a hamster. Cute, isn’t she?
“First, you should become friends with him, and then you can start making your move. Well, good luck. And give me back my smartphone.”
“…”
Kushibiki slowly disappeared from the spot, and there was a tapping sound from the living room door.
Maybe she went upstairs to her room. After a while, Kushibiki came back and threw the smartphone at me to return it. I almost dropped it but managed to catch it at the last second.
Good… My smartphone seems to be safe. Welcome back, my smartphone.
“I don’t get it. Why are you doing this for me and Takahashi? What for? I’ve been terrible to you, and it wouldn’t be strange if you hated me. You even came all the way here to return my bag and belongings, and there’s nothing in it for you.”
Kushibiki’s point is very valid. Because of her questioning, I crossed my arms and pondered for a while.
I mean, I could say that this world is a manga world and I’m just fulfilling the role of Tachibana, but saying something that distorts the foundation of the world doesn’t guarantee my life.
Well, honestly, I don’t care about Kushibiki’s matter. But since coming to this world, I’ve felt surprisingly satisfied.
Takahashi is a good guy, and Ayase has a bit of a delinquent side, but she’s not a bad person. There are others whose names I’ve forgotten, but there’s a flirty guy and a basketball idiot, and it’s fun.
A day is more fulfilling than I could have ever imagined before I became Tachibana.
It’s fine if it’s a dream. It’s fine if it’s the afterlife. That’s all.
“Do you need a reason?”
“That’s…”
“I’m just doing what I think is right, Kushibiki.”
“What?”
“I like you better when you’re not pretending to be someone else like you do at school, but rather the real you, like now.”
“…Huh?”
“Don’t put on that thin, flimsy mask you wear at school, and try living as the real Kushibiki. It’s a waste.”
“Huh? Huh!? What are you talking about!?”
“I’m just saying what I think, that’s all.”
“Ugh…! Get out!”
“Eh?”
“Get out! You’re an idiot! Gross, gross, gross, gross, gross! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!”
“…Eh.”
Comments
Post a Comment