CH 195

In retrospect, the story from her point of view has not been told much until now.

In other words, the character “Shiho Shimotsuki” in this story was created through the filter of Kotaro Nakayama.

Shiho Shimotsuki, as he sees her, is a very pure and innocent girl.

A little possessive, a little clumsy, and a little soft and gentle for a high school student, that is the “Shiho Shimotsuki” for Kotaro Nakayama.

That, of course, is not a mistake.

His perception is mostly accurate.

But it is not enough.

It is difficult to describe Shiho Shimotsuki with only that level of description.

If you look deeper into her mind, you will understand that Kotaro Nakayama’s perception is shallow.

(Can he really love me like this?)

Shiho Shimotsuki understands her abnormality well.

Unlike Kotaro Nakayama, she was well aware of herself.

She is neither too self-affirming to be conceited nor too self-denying to be despicable.

She knew her cuteness, her clumsiness, her talent, and everything else.

And of course, Shiho even knew her own “distortion”.

（I’m not a coward anymore.)

The girl who was once afraid of the stares of others has grown up to be a strong woman.

Of course, she is still not very good at it, but she is now able to be comfortable in public.

(For you, I’m not afraid of the stares of others…)

She can no longer be the one who is always hiding behind Kotaro Nakayama’s back.

In order to repay the boy who protected her so much, and to fulfill her love for him.

First of all, she has to make a clean break.

(Who was the person who hurt Kotaro-kun?)

She must break the chains that bind Kotaro Nakayama.

In order to do so, Shiho Shimotsuki was trying to find out the fate that was entangled in his life.

(Is that Kururi Kurumizawa?)

It was lunchtime. On that day, she was unusually eating her lunch in the classroom. Normally, she would share her meal with Kotaro Nakayama, but she had to restrain herself because she knew she would cause him pain if she stayed with him.

(Kotaro-kun has gone somewhere… hah. I miss him, but I guess it can’t be helped.)

Sighing inwardly, she closed the lid of her lunch box.

She had no appetite, probably because she was still recovering from her sickness.

She felt bad about leaving her favorite mother’s home-cooked food, but she couldn’t help it if she couldn’t eat it. Putting the lunch box away in her bag, she slowly stood up.

(Well … I wonder what she’s up to?)

With a sideways glance, she checked the back of the classroom.

The far corner of the hallway is where Shiho used to sit.

However, the one sitting there now was Kururi Kurumizawa.

(I see. So she is having lunch alone, too.)

The pink colored girl was alone and lonely, eating a sweet bun.

Her gaze was frequently drawn to the seat next to her.

(I know, I know. Even though I know he’s not there, I’m still anxious to see him.)

Next to Kururi Kuruizawa is the seat of Shiho’s beloved Kotaro Nakayama.

And it is also the seat of the person Kururi loves.

Shiho was also concerned about the seat of the person she loves.

That was why she understood Kururi Kurumizawa’s feelings.

(Ara? That sweet bun… that Kotaro-kun often eats.)

In addition, Shiho rounded her eyes as she realized again the strength of her love rival’s feelings.

(Hmmm. I wonder if it’s a fact … that she likes him?)

She tried to make an assumption based on her behavior.

But it felt kind of strange to do so.

(I can’t explain how she could like him so much in such a short period of time, unless … something really happened.)

For example, maybe he saved her life.

If there had been a fateful encounter of that kind, it would make sense why she had such strong feelings.

But Shiho never heard such a story.

(If there was such a memorable event, there is no way Kotaro-kun would not have told me about it.)

So she is suspicious.

(I wonder if Kurumizawa-san really … likes Kotaro-kun?)

Is that feeling genuine?

She wanted to know.