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Chapter 27
Talk
The flurry of cherry blossoms soon stopped.
Strangely enough, the petals on Mana's palms disappeared.
It had rained so much that a carpet of petals should have formed, but when I looked at the ground, nothing had fallen.
It was possible to do something similar with magic, but making non-existent flower petals fall over such a large area was impossible.
Humans are incapable of doing so.
—I believed it for a while, but I guess the Goddess really existed.
Mana didn't seem to notice the cherry blossoms that had stopped blooming and immediately grabbed my hand and forced me to sit on the edge of the bed to talk.
Mana then sat next to me and because of it, were side by side with each other…
“I'll start from the beginning. I'm…”
“Mana, wait a minute. I don't think I need this right now.”
I looked at the clasped hands at the end of my gaze.
This happened when Mana led me here, but now it's time to discuss something important from my previous life, and this did not sit well with me.
“Because doing this calms me down, Is it bad?”
“Ye—No…”
“Hmm? Grandpa…?”
“...No…”
(Tired: Yeah I don’t get it either…)
“Yes, it's bad,” I almost said, but I quickly stopped when she looked at me.
I guess coming out has made me lose my mind, and the mood was like when we were together in our previous life.
We can't keep going like this.
I let go of her hand and sat down on the bedside chair that Christa had brought.
Because of that, Mana looked at me in frustration.
“Don’t give me that look. There's a lot I'm not convinced about.”
Mana's shoulders slumped when I looked at her, then I saw the tears slowly welling up in Mana's eyes and thought to myself, “Yes, that’s right.”
“First of all, promise me you won't cry during the discussion or else we won't be able to talk properly.”
I felt guilty when she cried, but I was so desperate to keep her from making it rain that I couldn't listen to what she had to say.
When I saw Mana biting her lip and nodding her head, I regretted saying something cold, but I think I would be able to think more calmly if we talked with this much space between our minds.
I wasn't sure where to start, but first I had to confirm that thing.
“I thought you made a statement admitting you cheated on me, but you said 'I didn't,' so in the end which one is it?”
“I didn't!”
Mana stands up vigorously, clenching her fists.
“Calm down.”
I cautioned her to sit down and talk, and she flopped back down to her original position like a wilted flower.
“My friend's brother was having problems with a girl who was following him around despite the fact that he didn't want her. Because I was in a similar situation, we decided that if he and I were dating, we should keep people out. So, for the sake of convenience, we pretended we were dating...”
The wrinkles between my eyebrows are as deep as they can get.
Just for convenience, you started going out with him???
“I saw both of you having a great time shopping together. Does that have to do anything with just ‘for the sake of convenience?’”
“I was asked by that person to 'pretend’ to be on a friendly date with her because his friends suspect that it's unnatural that we're not always together even though we're in a relationship!”
“Haa?”
What was that request…?
Something was not right about it… Did she really believe those words?
…Well, she believed it…
“Was that guy really just trying to avoid people?”
“Eh?”
“The way that guy was acting in the store, it didn't look like he was pretending to be friendly to me.”
It seemed like he was treating her as a real girlfriend, not pretending, or even bragging that she was “My girl.”
“If he was that good-looking, he must have known a lot of girls besides Mana. Why did he go to the trouble of asking his sister's friend? Wasn't he aiming for Mana from the beginning?”
I was getting angry as I talked to her.
I told myself to stay calm, but the words were getting rougher and rougher.
When I asked her accusingly, Mana trembled with her eyes wide-opened.
“...Un. Just as you said, you were right. I found out after Haru disappeared. It seems that my friend was planning to put me and her brother together from the beginning. ‘You just lost your boyfriend, so why don't you go out with him?’ She said to me like it was nothing…”
“Ha?”
I didn't instantly understand what she said at first, but when I did my mind went blank with anger.
“…That guy…That guy is not your friend at all!”
That would mean Mana was set up too! I doubt she was really human to be able to say “just” to someone who was dead.
“That’s right. I'm so stupid that I didn't know until it happened. I should have talked to Haru about it…I'm such an idiot…” (Tired: Yeah you u fkin dmbass.)
Mana tried her hardest not to cry because she had promised not to, but the tears she couldn't hold back began to fall.
Even though it wasn't raining, the sky was dark.
I understood that Mana never intended to betray me.
But still—I have unforgivable feelings toward Mana as well.
“'To keep people out,’ didn't you tell them you have a boyfriend, which is ‘me?’”
“I did! At first, I only said I had one, but people started to suspect me and tell me I didn't really have one, so I told them about Haruka, but..there were still people who persisted in approaching me…”
“I see,” I thought to myself. Then I let out a dry laugh.
“...So I’m not good enough to be a wall for you, huh? I high school student really can’t be with a college student.”
“That’s not what I meant…”
“Is that so? In a matter of fact, Not only did you not depend on me, you didn't even let me talk about it with you.”
It’s because I’m good enough, and it’s because we don’t suit each other.
So she turned to someone they could agree with.
“No, it’s not like I don’t want to rely on Haru! I just don’t want to bother you! There were even people who went out of their way to see Haruka…so I had to do something quickly…and I thought if I couldn't solve this problem on my own, I would fail as an Older Sister!”
“A bother or not if it happened to Mana I wanted to be involved! What is it with you trying to be an Older Siter or whatnot!? I can't have someone I love in trouble and not have them rely on me…But in the end, you rely on someone else and I don't know anything about it…!”
I feel more empty than angry.
I may have been spinning my wheels, but in my own way, I had tried my best to be Mana's boyfriend.
But all that was meaningless.
I felt so pathetic that I began to cry.
“That's what you call cheating. For whatever reason, it's two-timing to publicly announce him as your boyfriend without telling who your real partner is.”
“I only like Haruka! It's really just for convenience! We just went out once and had lunch together on campus…!”
“That's a common excuse for cheaters! That’s enough if that's all you've to say! I don't care if it's for convenience or not, you're guilty as long as you don't tell me!”
“I’m sorry…Haru, please forgive meee!”
“Don’t cry!”
“Hmm!”
Mana then held her mouth, trying not to cry.
It was painful to see her like that.
If it had been in my previous life—if I was still Kuga Haruma, I would have been able to hug her and make up with her, saying, “That's enough.”
I can't blame only Mana.
I have things to reflect on, too.
(Tired: Yeah, this is mostly on her ‘cause Haru was already doing his best, like dude he already got a part-time job in his first year of high school just for her, and he’s like 15 to 16 years old at that time man.)
“It was my fault for parted ways with you unilaterally without listening to your story. I'm sorry.”
I died right after I sent the message, so I think it must have been hard for Mana, who had no chance to explain herself and had to hold on to it for a long time.
“Haruuuu!”
“Please don't jump on me, okay?”
“Why!?”
I don't want the whole chair to fall over again.
Mana, who had made the first move and was unable to jump, was sitting on the bed while fidgeting around.
She was lying on her face with her hands on her thighs, but she spoke to me, asking me how I was doing.
“We didn't break up, did we? You remembered me, and we're going to get back together, right?”
I believe we broke up.
I sent her a goodbye message about our relationship, but I did not get Mana's approval.
So it's still ongoing—I could say that, but we've clearly broken apart by death.
If we were going to be in a relationship, I think we should start by agreeing to start over again.
But, just as I was about to explain this, there was a knock at the door.
Who was it at a time like this?
We were in the middle of taking it in, so I thought we would get it again when I heard the door click.
A head came out of the slightly opened door.
“I'm not in favor of reconciliation this time.”
“Christa!? Why didn’t you leave yet?”
“I came back to see if something had happened to the saint because of the strange petals that fell. I’m sorry, but I heard what you two talked about. I will apologize again later for that, but…excuse me!”
After saying that, Christa went inside and walked staunchly toward us.
No, don’t be rude.
Please refrain from doing it now!
While I was puzzled, Christa stood in front of Mana.
“I will not allow you to do such a thing! I will not allow you to do such a thing as not trusting Edward-sama and sneaking off with a man!”
“I-I did not do it with him!”
Mana immediately stood up and refuted Krista, who seemed to bushily decry her.
Wait, don't get all hot and bothered with me, both of you!
“If Edward-sama was your favorite, you should have given interloper the second best in a dignified manner!”
“No, that's not what we’re talking about, Christa…”
“I'm devoted to Haru!”
“If you say you are devoted to Edward-sama, then you must give the second best something to keep him in the shade!”
“There is no second best!”
The two of them started arguing with each other without engaging.
What am I going to do now that Krista's here and now we can’t get together!?
“Anyway, please get out of here…”
“That's an interesting story, isn't it?”
I was startled when I heard a voice coming from the door.
I didn’t sense any signs of him!
I turned my eyes and standing there were two of Astraea's most handsome men.
“Lucas-sama…and Elder Brother Alvin?”
Lucas approaches me in a good mood, waving his hands in the air.
It may be my imagination, but his eyes are sparkling like a child who has found something fun to do.
“I was originally headed this way because I was going to find out about the situations that the saints cause here, you know? But suddenly mysterious petals started falling, so I came here as quickly as I could. So, can you tell me what happened? Edward or should I say, Haru-kun?”
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteher being to stupid to realize she cheated and betrayed him doesn’t mean she didn’t cheat and betray him, there is no reason to forgive her if all it takes for her to cheat are friends people trying to get her to cheat
ReplyDeleteand her not wanting to rely on him? how stupid is that, being a couple means being able to rely on each other
While I know that he definitely will take her back, I hope he doesn’t … or atleast makes her show her conviction and loyalty
IKR??? You know, even though she denied it in her POV last chapters, she really only see Haru as a cute "pet" to protect rather than a person/boyfriend who she could rely on. She's fkin stupid that I hope Haru would end up with Christa cause this girl is waaaay smarter and better than her who only "act" like an Onee-san.
DeleteLooks like everybody heard them.
ReplyDeleteNext chapter please
ReplyDelete