Chapter 6 Tsundere
#22MotoKanoTsundere
Several days had passed since the molestation incident. I was still living the high school life of a boy named Iori. But, as always, making close friends seemed out of reach.
That said, after spending a few days in this classroom, I had started to get a sense of what kind of person one particular girl was.
Tachibana Mirei was a girl who stood out slightly, even in a class that wasn’t particularly lively. Outside of lessons, she spent most of her time fiddling with her smartphone at her desk, earbuds in, radiating an aura that practically screamed: Don’t talk to me.
“Tachibana-san, want to have lunch together today?”
Yet, despite her apparent aversion to socializing, there was one boy who still called out to her. Of course, it wasn’t me. It was one of our other classmates. Every single day, without fail, as soon as lunchtime arrived, this classmate would invite her to eat together.
She had the kind of figure that made you wonder if she was a model, glossy short twin-tails, and large eyes framed by long eyelashes.
Even though she had the personality of a lone wolf, her striking beauty made her the center of attention in the class.
“Why would I eat lunch with someone like you?”
But just because someone invited her casually didn’t mean she would just go along with them. The way she coldly brushed them off made her rejection crystal clear.
“See? Told you. Trying to win over Tachibana-san is nothing but a fool’s errand.”
The boy who had been rejected received what were meant to be words of comfort from his friends—but they sounded more like exasperation.
“But that’s what makes her so great.”
“Agreed.”
How ridiculous.
Letting out a sigh, I left the classroom. As always, I hadn’t managed to make a single friend. They say first impressions are everything, and after my spectacular blunder on day one, the way my classmates looked at me remained as cold as ever.
Still, maybe because I had lived more than twice as many years as these kids, being alone didn’t really bother me. If anything, it was easier—no need to worry about slipping up.
The only problem was the promise I had made to Kaori.
Bring a friend home. As I expected, that felt like something that would have to wait until after I graduated high school—if not even further into the future.
No, that’s not right. That’s not good enough. Right now, I’m the only one who can stop Kaori from being sad.
“What have you been so busy with all by yourself this whole time?”
Just as I was trying to pull myself together, a voice called out from behind me.
“Tachibana-san.”
When I turned around, I found myself face-to-face with her—the very girl who had been hassled by those boys earlier. Her narrowed eyes made it clear—she was practically itching to scold me.
“What are you doing here? You were just dealing with those guys a moment ago.”
“I-It’s nothing…! When someone talks to me that openly, it just makes it too awkward to stay in the classroom.”
Looking away, she clutched a bento wrapped in a furoshiki. It seemed that thanks to those guys, she had lost her chance to eat lunch in the classroom.
“Then why not just eat with everyone?”
“No.”
“Why not? It’s a good thing when others take an interest in you.”
Saying that made me feel like I was admitting no one in class was interested in me—that I had no friends. A dry chuckle slipped out.
“There’s nothing good about it.”
Tachibana-san spat out the words, almost like she was disgusted by the very idea.
“Eating with people I don’t like is nothing but torture. Why should I waste my precious lunch break suffering through a meal with someone I have no interest in?”
“…Once you become an adult, most of your meals end up being with people you don’t like.”
I spoke as if giving advice, though it was mostly just based on my own experience.
“What, do you think you’re some kind of working adult or something?”
She shot me a suspicious look. That comment sent a chill of sweat down my back.
“I was just speaking in general terms.”
“Hmph.”
Her skeptical expression remained, but at least she didn’t press the matter further.
“…So, where are you going?”
“Where, you ask…?”
To be honest, I was heading to the cafeteria. That’s where I always ate lunch.
But before answering, I found myself wondering—why was she even asking? What was her goal in prying this information out of me?
“…Come with me.”
“Huh?”
“Have lunch with me.”
Why?
Before I could even ask, her face turned bright red, and she started speaking in a rush.
“I told you, didn’t I? I can’t eat in the classroom today, not after being approached by someone I don’t even like. …So, have lunch with me.”
“But you said eating with someone you don’t like is torture, didn’t you?”
“That’s right. Got a problem with that?”
“Well, I wouldn’t say limiting your social interactions is exactly a good thing.”
I was just stating my honest opinion, but apparently, that only made her more flustered. Her face grew even redder as she bit her lip and glared at me in protest.
A long silence stretched between us. I stood there, feeling awkward under her sharp gaze.
She was still staring at me.
It wasn’t that I was intimidated by her. I hadn’t lived such an easy life that a single glare from a girl twenty years younger than me could shake me.
But after a moment, I finally realized something.
My mind flashed back to the molestation incident the other day.
Back then, even if I had meddled more than necessary, I had ultimately saved her from that predator’s grasp.
Maybe this invitation was her way of repaying me.
Maybe, from a classmate’s perspective, she had noticed how few friends I had and was offering this as a token of gratitude.
“Alright. I was heading to the cafeteria anyway, so let’s go eat together.”
“…You should’ve just said that from the start.”
“Sorry, sorry.”
If this really was her way of repaying me for that day, then there was no reason to stubbornly insist on eating alone.
“Come on, let’s get going already.”
“Yeah. Sorry for making you wait. You must be hungry, huh?”
“I-It’s not like that!”
No need to raise your voice just to deny it.
Smiling wryly, I headed to the cafeteria with Tachibana-san.