Chapter 29 Compromise and Flow

Compromise and Flow

——Finally, the hellish lunch break is over.

(Phew…I’m so tired already…)

I guess it was because I was so tense the whole time. I felt very tired…and my body was kinda limp, so I couldn’t even get into my afternoon classes.

I’m in a math class right now. I’ve been listening to the middle-aged teacher’s nonchalant explanations, but I can’t get into the content at all. My eyelids got heavy, so I laid down my head on the table and closed my eyes.

I should stop having lunch with them tomorrow.

There is a possibility that Takeshi will find out about Hana-san’s homemade cooking. However, if I refuse without a reason, he might get suspicious, so I have to have a clear reason.

…Well, we’ll think about it tomorrow.

For now, I want to sleep. I wanted to sleep and recover…but my math teacher wouldn’t let me.

“Sasamiya. Don’t sleep! I can see you.”

“… yes, sorry.”

I can’t sleep if I’m being noticed.

I had no choice but to wake my body up and fight the sleepiness for the rest of the day.

Sigh…I hope school ends soon.

I’m already tired and I want to go home and have a good rest——

And so school finally ended.

“Takumi, I’m going home. I’m also going to stop by the clothing store in front of the station, so hurry…hey, Kaori’s going too, right?”

Takeshi tried to leave with me as a matter of course and I shook my head with a smile on my face.

“Sorry. I’m still not feeling well, so I’ll go home first.”

“Sorry too. I have some things to do today.”

…Surprisingly, Kaori followed my example and declined Takeshi’s invitation as well.

From what I saw, she seemed to like Takeshi quite a bit, so I was a bit surprised that she turned him down.

And Takeshi was even more surprised.

“What, even Kaori? …tsk. Shucks, I’ll just go out with another girl.”

“You’re as popular as ever~haha. See you then, bye.”

Takeshi showed his irritation but walked out of the classroom easily. I’ve heard rumors that he’s been playing with different women since he entered…High School.

Unlike me, he’s used to women, and that’s why I used to ask him for love advice…but now let’s put aside the fact that that was wrong.

“…then I’ll go too.”

“Yes, I understand.”

“I’m going to have some things to do after school for a while. I might not be able to come home with you for a while.”

In contrast to her attitude towards Takeshi, Kaori was a bit brusque.

She looks like she’s not interested in me…Well, I’m not hurt by that and I’d rather not be with her, so it’s an offer I’m grateful for.

But I’ve also thought about it.

“Does Kaori really like me?”

A question that suddenly popped into my head.

I felt a little uncomfortable with her attitude, which didn’t seem to favor me at all.

You don’t have to like me.

But if she didn’t like me, I wondered…why she accepted my confession.

“Huh? Well, if I’ve to say whether I like you or not, I like you, don’t I?”

“That’s not what I meant.”

“This is annoying. It’s nothing special. I’m going out with you, so isn’t that a good thing?”

“No, I don’t really care. It’s just…it seems like you’re not really interested in me. I was just wondering why you agreed to go out with me.”

“Haa…it’s so annoying!”

She seems to be really annoyed with me.

In response to my question, she said with a sigh.

“I just went out with you on the spur of the moment, so I didn’t really have a reason to go out with you. I didn’t have a boyfriend and I don’t dislike Takumi, so I thought it was okay.”

…I see.

So you just accepted my confession out of compromise and flow.

“Seriously, can you stop? I’m not good at this.”

Saying that, Kaori walked out of the classroom with a sullen look on her face.

If she had acted like that, I wouldn’t have had to go out with her.

(Actually, it would’ve been a nice memory if you had turned me down.)

I’m convinced now.

I’ve had a vague feeling for a while now, but me and Kaori clearly have different values.

First of all, I think we were never compatible in the first place.

I’m sure it would’ve been fine if we were just casual friends, but as soon as we got a little deeper into a relationship, this is what we got.

(We were wrong from the start.)

My first love was terrible.

But at this rate, it will only be a matter of time before we officially break up. Even if I don’t make any moves, it seems like she’s going to break up with me.

I didn’t want to prolong the relationship forever, so this was a blessing in disguise——