Chapter 170 Endo and Yumi's Father

Endo and Yumi’s Father

Endo’s PoV

A message was received from Aono-kun.

Apparently, a junior member of his club has been involved in a bullying problem. It’s a bad turn of events. It bothers me that we went to the trouble of getting rid of the soccer club, but we still haven’t gotten rid of the pus, which is the literature club.

[Of course, I’ll cooperate. If it’s possible, you can introduce me tomorrow at lunchtime. Oh, how about a lunch meeting in the canteen?]

Imai agreed too, and our plans for tomorrow’s lunch were set.

I might like to try the curry and rice in the school canteen, which is rumored to be delicious.

While I was thinking about that, a police car stopped in front of me.

A familiar policeman slowly gets out of the car.

“Hey, it’s you, Kazuki, right? Long time no see…”

His voice is calm as always. It’s been a few years, but he sounds so familiar that I feel like I’m greeting him every morning.

“Uncle Domoto? It’s been a long time…”

He was Yumi’s father. I’ve known him for a long time, and he’s always been a good uncle.

But since Yumi and I are more than friends and just a little less than lovers, it’s a bit complicated.

“I heard about you from Yumi. That was tough. I’m glad to hear that you and Yumi are getting along again. I’m going back to the office now; my work is done. I wonder if we could have dinner together after such a long time. I’ll let your parents know that you’re with us…”

If he said so, I have no reason to say no. Anyway, my parents will be home late from work today, so I’ll just pick up some side dishes from the convenience store.

“Are you sure, Uncle?”

“Of course. I wanted to have dinner with Yumi tonight. She would definitely be happy if you came…”

Saying that he handed me a piece of paper with the name of an old yakiniku restaurant in the neighborhood written on it.

Yumi’s father was a policeman and a very athletic person, so I remember he often took me to yakiniku restaurants.

As I stood outside the yakiniku restaurant, enjoying the delicious smell of smoke, a man came on his way home from work. Yumi was nowhere to be seen.

“Sorry to keep you waiting. Yumi will be here in about 15 minutes, so let’s go inside first. It’s hot here. I can hardly wait for a cold beer…”

I entered the restaurant without asking. It was a little awkward, and I was hoping that Yumi would come soon.

As soon as we entered the restaurant, Uncle Domoto ordered beer, edamame, salted cabbage, and a Coke.

“Yumi would get mad at me for eating meat, so let’s get some vegetables first.”

“Cheers!”

The beer and coke cups made a nice sound when they collided. It’s hot, so the cold drinks are very helpful.

“It’s especially great because I can drink with Kazuki. Actually, you know, it’s been a little dream of mine to have a drink with my daughter’s lover like this…”

Boom!

The sudden bombshell makes me almost spit out my Coke.

“Just kidding. Haha, you guys are still friends, right?”

The emphasis on “still” shows that he was intentional.

“Please don’t do that. I have a very serious problem, Uncle. I’m not sure I’m really the right person for her…”

Hearing this, he nods and takes another sip of beer.

“This is your youth. You know, I’ve been valuing you for a long time. Well, you match my daughter well…”

“Ah, thank you.”

Sensing my slight anxiety, Uncle puts on the face of a competent policeman.

“This may sound rude, but listen to me. You got yourself into some serious trouble in middle school. We, the adults around you, should’ve been able to protect you. I still regret that, and I’m really sorry…”

“No, that’s …”

“No, any failure to protect a child is the responsibility of the adults. Given what happened to you, there are plenty of adults who can’t take it either. But you tried to get over it. Even though you had to delay your entrance into school for a year, you passed the entrance exam for a local hard-to-enter school, even with the handicap of having your heart torn to shreds because of the hardship you went through. That’s an amazing accomplishment. You’re truly amazing. When you grow up, you’ll understand. You may think you wasted a year, but you didn’t. The experience of overcoming setbacks and difficulties is invaluable. I respect you as a person just for being able to do that, Kazuki…”

My eyes burned unintentionally. The uncle laughed and said,

“That’s enough. Let’s order meat now. Let’s enjoy a yakiniku party…”

It seemed as if he was already preparing to be scolded by Yumi, who would come later.