Volume 4 - CH 5

“Mmm…”

Inside Aichi’s arms, small arms and legs were flailing about. When I gently rubbed Ai-chan’s back, she showed a relaxed expression, and rubbed her cheek against Aichi’s breasts, going back to a deep sleep again. How nice, Ai-chan…Wait hold on!

“What did you do…?”

“Aren’t you a bit too guilty…?”

When I was genuinely trying to hear out Sajocchi, Aichi joined after me, but it sounded like she was trying really hard to hold back her anger. I wholeheartedly agree with you, Aichi…Even I have a few words I want to say.

Sajocchi himself was unable to look at the wonderful scene Ai-chan was offering, and only looked down at his knees, like he was truly feeling awkward. Even his expression was saying ‘Why did I tell them…’ and to be honest, it’s already too late to worry about that, Sajocchi.

“Um, could you just act like you didn’t hear that…”

“No can do.”

“Not happening.”

You can’t expect us to turn a blind eye to that outrageous statement of yours. We won’t be able to rest easy unless you tell us what that was about…I mean, having a girl bow down on the floor in front of you, that’s no joke. How did you end up like that, Sajocchi!

“…Um, ehm.”

“Tell me. Explain yourself.”

Aichi sure is strong, huh. Not too long ago, she all looked like ‘I want to be of help for him’, and like ‘A family member’s problems’ treatment? Well, not like I can stay calm myself now.

“Also…isn’t that your fault, Sajocchi?”

“Urk…Well, you could call it a tragedy caused by me not considering the other party’s personality…”

“Is it…a quiet girl…?”

“……” Sajocchi nodded in silence.

Aichi gave Sajocchi a stern gaze. I might actually look the same as her. I mean, making a quiet and docile girl do that, I can’t even imagine that. Not to mention that Sajocchi was the one to do so…

“……” Aichi’s eyes grew more sharp.

At the same time, Sajocchi stayed silent. Now he should know that running away won’t work. But, being terrified doesn’t help either. If he doesn’t tell us everything in full honesty, we can only make him spit it out. Though, he might get away with covering it up. However, Sajocchi showed an upright expression, so he’s probably ready to let us hear him out. I felt relieved to see that expression, because I was worried that he wouldn’t tell us.

“It might be a bit of a complicated story, but…”

“……”

Sajocchi started explaining himself. I could tell that things only grew more confusing the more we listened to it. But, I also realized that Sajocchi was carefully choosing his words to make it easier to understand for me and Aichi, who never worked part-time. At first, I was left baffled, and then confused. Sajocchi is being serious about this. Knowing him, I figured it was some odd reason, and I didn’t expect that Sajocchi was actually doing his job properly. I know that I’m being rude.

Aichi was diligently listening to Sajocchi. I knew that she wasn’t feeling the same way I did, and it wasn’t shocking to hear him be serious either. She knows how serious he can be after all. Thinking about it, that should have been something obvious. Aichi and Sajocchi have known each other since middle school, knowing facts and faces of each other I have no idea even exist.

Not to mention that their emotions show on their faces almost instantly, which results in them both being oddly sensitive towards the other, which I can tell best myself. Or, that’s what I want to think, but we’ve only known each other for about half a year. When I glanced over at Aichi, she was gently caressing Ai-chan’s head, yet showed a saddened expression.

“So you…well…ended up this emotional…”

“…I mean, I guess…”

I’ve seen him be emotional before. It was back when he and his older sister were talking up on the rooftop. That definitely wasn’t a trivial matter. Hearing Sajocchi be angry for real, I myself thought ‘So he can speak in such a low voice’. It surprised me enough to forget the guilt about eavesdropping, and because it was such an odd situation, I wasn’t given time to properly think about it, but…

“Well, yeah, this is what’s been on my mind…So, I was wondering what I should do tomorrow…”

“……”

“……”

I can’t think of anything. He kept it simple and short, but since I never worked part-time, I can’t talk about customer service. There’s no docile girls in the volleyball club either, and I don’t have any connections to any introverted girls. I know that trying to be considerate will just end up with you being a bother.

But, now that it’s related to work, Sajocchi was practically forced to hold the bare minimum of what you could call a conversation. That’s why, I think Sajocchi had no other way to say it…and it made me realize that even things like these happen.

“—What do you think? Even I have my own share of problems.”

“U-Um…Yeah, you must have it rough, Sajocchi!”

“It’s not just rough…Just kill me…Ahh, I want to die.”

“S-Sajocchi! Cheer up!”

His words sounded like they were begging for us to cheer him up, despite him clearly not listening to them. Devoid of any strength, Sajocchi fell backwards onto the sofa. It made me feel how heavy this was for him. I felt frustrated at the fact that I couldn’t come up with anything. I can only tell Sajocchi to cheer up, and try harder. I mean, I really want to help, but…

At the very least, after hearing him out, I realize that it’s not 100% Sajocchi’s fault alone. However, this is also a world I don’t know too well, so I was also scared to say anything irresponsible.

“—You’re not the only one at fault.”

“…Huh?”

Both Sajocchi and I immediately looked at Aichi. She had her hand on her temple, showing Sajocchi a troubled gaze. Unlike me, she seemed to be properly thinking about this. A bit of her stern gaze remained, so she doesn’t seem to be Sajocchi’s full ally just yet.

“So, I don’t know how to properly put it into words, but…From how I can take it, if she was properly able to communicate and express herself, something like this wouldn’t have happened. You were just thinking in terms of being a senior at work, right?”

“…Well, I guess you’re right.”

I didn’t think she would side with him. And, Sajocchi calmly responded. He pushed himself up on the sofa again, and fixed his posture to properly listen to Aichi. Even so, his gaze was still bewildered. Though I’m pretty sure he can expect more from Aichi at this point.

“You had…a proper reason…”

“……”

This time, Aichi was the one to avert her gaze from Sajocchi. She seemed to be flustered even. Eh, hold on.

“Aichi, are you…trying to comfort Sajocchi?”

“Wha…!? What are you talking about!”

“Your words might have been pretty objective, but…”

It’s not that she was arguing about who is right and wrong, and rather ‘You’re not the only one at fault, so cheer up’, you know? I wouldn’t have been able to tell without Aichi’s attitude. It feels natural, and it makes sense. There’s no way Aichi would be able to remain calm with Sajocchi being this depressed in front of her.

“…I see.”

“T-That’s right.”

Sajocchi showed a gentle expression, as he looked at Aichi. He gave a relieved impression. Since I’ve never been around when we talked about serious stuff, only now did I really understand ‘Aichi’s kindness’, which he often mentioned. I feel like Sajocchi cheered up a bit. Maybe giving him a push was more important than trying to find a way to resolve the situation. Well, it’s still Sajocchi who made a girl do such a thing, but…

Thinking about it though, it’s not really closely related to the work after all. Feels like something that might happen in a club as well. Like, me joining the club despite not being able to do receives? And then I’d get scolded, etc etc?

“…Huh?”

Thinking about that, it felt like something was off. If it really came to that, let alone the person in question being angry, or disgruntled, they would just leave instead, right?

“What’s wrong, Ashida.”

“Hey, why did that girl not quit?”

“Eh?”

“If it was too much, she could just quit, right?”

I feel like there might be some special reason. A reason that even made an introverted girl prostrate herself, even. Sajocchi thought that she would be happier if she quit as well. Even though she would have been fine, and in a much more comfortable position if she quit, she said herself that she did not want to.

When I looked at Sajocchi, he showed a troubled reaction, as he put one hand on his head. It seems like he was too preoccupied with the guilt and regret that he never asked the girl about her specific circumstances.

“I’m pretty sure that…I wouldn’t be able to bend and find common ground with her, just like Sajocchi. But, if you found out about her reasons, you might at least agree with it?”

“That’s true, but…”

“Since she’s an introverted girl, everything is over if Sajocchi breaks, huh…Maybe you can only forcefully get it out of her.”

“Urk…” Sajocchi showed another troubled expression.

Seems like I gave him a difficult problem to deal with…But, continuing their relationship with this event unresolved will just be bad for both sides. If there’s a girl whose thoughts you can’t read, then you can only directly ask her.

“—Then, we’ll use it.”

“…Eh?”

“Wha…”

Aichi suddenly announced something. I was completely lost, I looked over at Sajocchi, but he seemed equally confused. In the end, we could only wait for Aichi’s next words.

“Wataru’s ‘Punishment’…We’ll use it like that.”

Eh, wait…Aichi? This punishment we gave Sajocchi was because of a stupid prank he pulled, and scared Aichi as a result. I brought it up in hopes of Aichi becoming a bit more honest towards Sajocchi, but to think she’d use it for that.

“Tomorrow, you will ask about that girl’s circumstances. That is your punishment.”

“Ah…” For a second, Sajocchi showed a panicked reaction.

Or so I thought, but he quickly showed a serious expression, thinking about it. He closed his eyes, and returned an answer.

“…Got it.” He agreed rather quickly.

So we’re going to use his punishment for that…Well, if my selfish desires pushed onto Sajocchi would help him in return, then I don’t mind…Though, a big part of this is just Aichi being kind.

“……”

“……”

“……”

A long silence followed. With Aichi’s proposition, it basically ended the whole ‘Giving Sajocchi advice time’, and he said that ‘I’ll take it into that direction’, which resulted in this silence. But…Hmm…I feel like this is a waste.

“Are you sure about that, Aichi? You could have Sajocchi treat you to all sorts of stuff~”

“I-I don’t really…”

“I’m always ready to treat you to something, though?”

“You shouldn’t waste your money like that!”

“How nice, Aichi, it’s like you have a one-person patreon supporter.”

“I didn’t hope for that!” Aichi panicked a bit.

I’m pretty sure that Sajocchi being this excited is just driven by his love. Though, it’s crossed a normal threshold, which is a bit scary. If Aichi was some bad woman and fully used Sajocchi, he probably would end up like a pet…

“…Well, I don’t mind treating you to something either, Ashida.”

“Aeh!? Eh…w-why?”

Sajocchi suddenly acting all dere with me had me baffled. It was so outside of my range of expectations, I let out a weird voice. What is this? Is he…cheating on Aichi!? Sajocchi!? Are you fine with me!? No, I can’t, I don’t want to hurt Aichi!

“I mean, I didn’t expect you to take my trouble so seriously…So I feel a bit bad…?”

“Eh, what’s up with that…”

Though, I did feel a bit happy. Sajocchi’s actually thankful. Since he’s mostly rough and rude towards me, I didn’t quite expect that. He could just always be honest like that, not cute at all.

“Why do you not seem satisfied at all? Even without that, I wouldn’t mind giving you some service.”

“Eh, seriously?”

“Yeah, if it’s Kei, then…”

“…Huh?”

Instigated by Sajocchi, even Aichi now looked at me. Eh, why are they all treating me so kindly? When did I end up in this position?

“E-Ehhh! What happened, you two? Why are you so kind now?”

“W-Well, you know? My instincts can’t go against Ashida, I guess?”

“What are you talking about…It’s just, I’m always in your care, and you’re working hard with your club, so I want to support you…I want you to rely on me more…”

“Same goes for the guys in class.”

“Awawawa…H-Hold on…!?”

Suddenly receiving such overwhelming praise, I didn’t know how to react. D-Don’t just throw all of that at me…Ah, my face feels hot! I’m not used to this!

“Kei…come here.”

“Why’d you suddenly turn into an Onee-chan, Aichi!?”

I looked over at Sajocchi, seeking help. He however just put one hand on his chin, grinning to himself. Don’t look over here, pervert! You’re staring way too much when Aichi and I are flirting! We’re not doing this to show off to you, okay! Giving Sajocchi a blank stare, he swiftly averted his eyes.

“Anyway, I’m just saying that you shouldn’t hold back. That would make Natsukawa happier as well.”

“You be thankful to Kei as well!”

“I get it, I get it. Thanks for everything, Ashida. You can flirt some more with Natsukawa.”

“W-What do you mean flirt!? We weren’t doing something weird like that!”

“Not even aware of it, huh. That’s the best kind. Bless.”

“What do you mean bless!?”

Because they really emphasized flirting now, I could see the scenery in my head. As a result of seeing something I shouldn’t have, my head grew hot as well. Not to mention that me not feeling satisfied made it all the more embarrassing. Come back, my rational thinking. I gently slapped my cheeks a few times. This isn’t like me. I don’t like being done in by Sajocchi and AIchi! I need to…properly think this through.

“You don’t have to hit yourself like that.”

“You two are at fault, Aichi!”

Even I would break down receiving so much kindness. Even if it’s Aichi, I’m not at an age where I want to be treated and spoiled like a child. But when I explained myself, I just got back a wry smile. I can’t accept this. We were just talking about Sajocchi, so why…Is that their attempt to avoid the topic?

When I looked at Sajocchi, he had his gaze dropped down on his knees again, lost in thought. The punishment Aichi talked about—he really has to talk with that girl he made cry and figure out her reasoning, but…I don’t think it’s that complicated, and just awkward.

I feel bad for Sajocchi, but it felt like I got to see some fresh faces of theirs at least, so I’m happy.