Chapter 44 An Evil Shadow and the Ex-Girlfriend

An Evil Shadow and the Ex-Girlfriend

Lately, life had been uneventful.

I, Kuronuma Nana 黒沼菜々, had some time to kill before my part-time job after school, so I headed to the school rooftop. The spot was usually quiet, especially after classes, as most students rarely ventured there. For me, it felt like a secret hideout. Sitting on a small bench in the corner, I closed my eyes to rest for a while.

Before I knew it, I had dozed off much longer than I intended. As I hurriedly checked the time, I realized my shift was about to start. Grabbing my school bag in a rush, I decided to take the less-used back gate to avoid running into anyone.

On my way there, faint voices caught my attention. I stopped in my tracks and peered cautiously from behind a shadow. Amagi Souta was walking with someone.

We’d been in the same class during our first year, so his face and name were familiar.

I always thought of him as a plain but academically excellent honor student.

However, the person walking beside him made me freeze. Heading toward the back gate alongside Amagi was Shirasaki Kanade—the most famous student in school. A national idol, part of a renowned group, there wasn’t a single person here who didn’t know her.

They weren’t holding hands, but their conversation seemed unusually close.

Watching them from the shadows, a sudden thought struck me: This could be a scandal waiting to happen. I quietly pulled out my smartphone and opened the camera. If I captured this moment of them secretly leaving school together, it might prove useful.

I carefully positioned my camera to capture their intimate conversation, snapping several shots just in case.

If I sell these, they might earn me some pocket money…

I murmured to myself under my breath.

The next day, during lunch break, I unexpectedly ran into someone in the hallway.

“Ah!”

The person I called out to was Aoyama Chiharu.

We used to spend a lot of time together in our first year, but we had drifted apart after moving up a grade.

“Chiharu! Long time no see! How’ve you been?”

“Oh, Nana. I’ve been doing okay, I guess.”

“You’re wandering around alone during lunch? Don’t tell me you’re a loner now.”

I’d heard vague rumors about Chiharu having trouble after her affair with Akagi-senpai. Judging by this situation, it seemed she’d been ostracized by her friends.

“I don’t want to hear that from you. Besides, aren’t you alone too?”

“Well, it’s just boring. My classmates all feel like honor students. Maybe I really do need you, Chiharu. So, how about we eat lunch together?”

“Eh? Well… I guess I don’t mind.”

Chiharu looked momentarily surprised but agreed.

Though we no longer talked often, we used to spend almost every day together back in our first year.

On a whim, we decided to have lunch together.

After that, we headed to the cafeteria and sat across from each other at a table. We reminisced about old times and shared updates about our lives. The conversation was lively—until I inadvertently brought up a sensitive topic.

“Chiharu, there was a rumor about you and Akagi-senpai for a while, wasn’t there? Why did you cheat?”

The moment I asked, her expression darkened. Her smile disappeared, replaced by a stern, almost pained look.

“Can you not bring that up?”

“Ah, sorry, sorry. Don’t be mad.”

I quickly apologized, but Chiharu stayed silent, her head bowed. After a brief pause, she sighed deeply.

“It’s fine, I guess. It’s all in the past now.”

Her voice was quiet, almost resigned. Maybe it really was a traumatic experience for her.

I decided not to pry any further, out of curiosity or otherwise.

Resolving to change the subject, I pulled out my smartphone, unlocked it, and lowered my voice.

“Hey, there’s something I want to show you. Yesterday, by chance, I took this picture. It’s Shirasaki Kanade and Amagi Souta leaving through the back gate together.”

I opened my phone’s album and showed her the photos.

On the screen were clear images of Shirasaki Kanade and Amagi Souta walking side by side. The two appeared relaxed, their closeness radiating through the pictures. Chiharu stared at them intently, a hint of surprise in her expression.

“How did you take these?”

“I just happened to spot them and took a few photos~”

“I see… Souta with Shirasaki, huh…”

Chiharu tried to appear uninterested, but I could sense there was more on her mind.

Sensing an opportunity, I decided to push a little further.

“I haven’t shown these to anyone else yet, and I haven’t done anything with them. But don’t you think this could turn into a huge scandal?”

“…What do you mean?”

“Like, selling these photos to a reporter or something. They could fetch a nice price, don’t you think?”

“…Hmm, maybe.”

“If you’re interested, Chiharu, you could help me out with this.”

My offer was met with a moment of silence.

Chiharu averted her gaze and finally answered.

“Well… I’ll think about it.”

It wasn’t the decisive response I was hoping for, but it felt like a promising start. For now, that was enough.

From that day on, Chiharu and I started spending our lunch breaks together.