CH 18

“Eh? Eh? E? E?”

Sakino san, I am already full for that response from Naka earlier.

Once again, I held up my head with Sakino san having the exact same reaction.

Ichikawa san, on the other hand, froze at the unexpected appearance of Sakino san.

I guess even Ichikawa san can become like this……

Ichikawa san’s impatience here made me, on the contrary, calm.

Ichikawa san helped me out earlier, and now it’s my turn.

“T-that Aoi….? Eh? Komiya kun…?”

“Shizuka, T-this is…”

“Sakino san. The truth is, I met Ichikawa san along the way. She wasn’t feeling well, so I was giving her help.”

“!!”

Interrupting the unusual rushing Ichikawa san, I give the same explanation as before.

Ichikawa san looked surprised as if she did not expect me to interrupt her.

“So that’s it”

Houuuu…Thank god. Somehow I managed to foo—-

“That’s a lie right?”

“Eh ?!?”

Seems I was wrong

Why ?!

“I mean, she’s not feeling well, but isn’t she a little too sticky? Does she have to be that attached to you?”

“Uuu…”

So sharp.

Unlike Naka, it seems that it is not a simple matter.

“So, what happened?”

“N-no, this is…”

Somehow scary.

Where is the lively character you used to be!?

“Hey, can’t you answer the question?”

“N-No…this is…”

I am one-sidedly choked, and I am at a loss for words. This makes my earlier explanation even more unconvincing.

“Shizuka ! This is–”

“Please stay quiet Aoi. I’m asking Komiya kun”

S-so strong…

That Ichikawa san was held down!?

The usual look is no longer there.

So scary, this girl….

Why don’t we just tell the truth already?

No, but I can’t just say it on my own, and if I say anything…….I’m in danger…..Tss!

“I-it’s the truth. Ichikawa san wasn’t feeling well. I think she was off balance earlier, and it just looked like she was all over the place after I supported her.”

Can I finally fool her….?! Please ! Please let be fooled!!!

“…..hmm?’”

“….”

She Doubts. It may be impossible after all.

“Well, whatever. If you think about it, that’s true. There is no way Aoi would go out with someone like Komiya-kun who watches naughty videos outside.”

“Wait, that’s..”

“Naughty video? Heee”

Don’t go stepping over landmines without permission!

Maybe I could have fooled her somehow, but then another problem strikes.

There is a terrible amount of pressure from the side……

“Shizuka, Can you tell me more about it?”

“The other day, was it Saturday? I happened to meet Komiya kun, and he was grinning at the screen, so I called out to him and he panicked! It was like he was looking at naughty pictures. I only caught a glimpse of it, but I saw a woman’s underwear on the screen. I could see some kind of exchange, so I guess it was a picture sent to him by someone he’d connected with on social media or something. Isn’t that bad?

……You’re lying, right? Did you see that at that moment when I called out to you?

“Hey, what do you think?”

“Tss. W-well, That’s perverted.”

….Huh? Isn’t this hurting Ichikawa san?

She seemed to realize that the naughty things Sakino san was referring to were those pictures that Ichikawa san herself had sent.

Aside from the fact that I’ve become a pervert who saw something nasty from a specific person out there.

“the one who sees it is the one who sees it, but the one who sends it is the one who sends it, too right? Well, Maybe it can’t be helped, though, since there are a lot of people with loose chastity on social networking sites…”

“Gohok Gohok” (SFX coughing)

Stabbed.

Every time Sakino san says something, Ichikawa san gets hurt.

Ichikawa san was not safe from her best friend’s blunt words.

It may be unusual to see her so distraught.　

That was also somewhat fresh and made me laugh lightly.

“Aoi, are you okay?”

“…..Eeee. I’m fine. Well, Don’t blame him so much. It could just be something going on.”

“…Hmm?”

Perhaps fearing the damage that would continually come to her if she continued to talk about the subject, Ichikawa san dropped the subject.

“Well, it’s fine though. But I’m worried! I’m worried that a pervert like Komiya kun will play a prank on Aoi because she’s not feeling well.”

Don’t call it a prank. It sounds like a crime.

“…I’m fine. He got me here with no problem.”

“…Okay”

Sakino san, concerned about Ichikawa san, nodded her head and tilted her head toward me, her gaze sharp and piercing.

It’s scary.

“….”

When she stares at me, Sakino san comes up with something.

“S-Sakino san?”

“[But the thing before is really …..No, that can’t be right. But here’s one thing. I’ll let you feel a little pain. Okay.]”

“Ugh?!”

Sakino san suddenly looked up when I thought she was mumbling something.

“I’ll go first, but make sure you take Aoi to school with you.”

“Eh?”

“Your answer?”

“Y-Yes !”

Aren’t you going with Ichikawa san?

“If you make Aoi cry, I’ll chase you to the ends of hell.”

This does not seem to be the case.

S-scary..

“Aoi, if you’re not feeling well, walk slowly! Bye!”

In an instant, I thought my eyes were shot, but then I turned around. Smiling, Sakino san headed off to school.

I’m still afraid of her.

I feel as if I have seen a side of her that I should not have seen.

“Did she get fooled?”

“I wonder. Maybe Komiya kun has been identified by Shizuka as a person to watch out for by the looks of her.”

What did I do…….

“I mean, the real reason you said you couldn’t tell your best friend before is ……”

“Yeah. She’s so blind when it comes to me. If she finds out about our relationship, it will be very difficult for her. Of course, it’s true that stories spread fast. Maybe she’s just playing for a fool.”

“Ha…Hahahaha”

All I can get out is a thirsty laugh.

I heard that Ichikawa san and Sakino san are best friends, but I get the feeling that they are more than just friends. What is it?

“Well, Do your best to get her approval. Komiya kun.”

“…..”

Could you not say that as if it were someone else’s problem, Ichikawa san?

What will happen to me now that Sakino san, who is said to be as troublesome as Ichikawa san, has her eyes on me?

◆

I, Sakino Shizuka , left early today.

There was no particular reason, but since I had woken up early, I thought I would wait for Aoi at the meeting place slowly by chance.

The usual crossroads.

That is our meeting place. Aoi has not come yet.

I bought a can of coffee there and was about to wait in the fresh morning sun when I saw a figure from the other side of the street.

Perhaps Aoi has already arrived?

I looked in that direction and saw Aoi with her arms around a male student.

Moreover, the other party was Komiya kun.

Komiya Youta kun.

He is an ordinary boy with no special characteristics who is friends with Naka kun in the same class.

The last time I saw him, I teased him and exchanged contact information with him because his reaction was amusing.

We exchanged at first, but it was still just a normal conversation, so the lines became less and less appropriate from the middle of the day, and we stopped.

If I just wanted to have a normal conversation, it was more fun to communicate with the usual members or with Naka kun, for example.

So his position in my mind was just a classmate. That was all.

And yet, he is doing like that with Aoi…?

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing, and I stormed around him.

He then said that he was just accompanying Aoi, who was not feeling well, to school when he happened to meet her.

And the reason for the sticky situation was that Aoi got dizzy and lost her balance.

I thought it was too obvious a lie, but when I thought about it, I realized that there was no way that Aoi would fall in love with and hug an ordinary boy like Komiya kun.

If it’s the other way around, no worries. He’ll be dumped anyway.

But I’m going to make sure.

Although it was a difficult decision, I asked him to make sure Aoi got a good walk to school.

I arrived first, waited for them to come to school, and looked at them.

“Oi….oi…”

“What happened? What’s with that guy?”

“Who is the guy beside her?”

“Damn ! Get lost!”

“He’ll be in the dark later.”

As Aoi and he approached the school, they were met with strong stares from all around.

Mainly boys. There are definitely a murderous intent in their gaze.

Aoi, Sorry…!

I apologize from the bottom of my heart.

This storm of stares. Aoi never feels good about it.

But this is for Aoi’s sake!

I have to protect Aoi