Chapter 61 Declaration of Severance

Declaration of Severance

Nakano Yuya’s Perspective

Akari’s shocking words echo in my head.

She didn’t even know I was hospitalized?

No! N-No way…

“W-What are you saying, Akari? That’s not funny, even as a joke…”

“I really didn’t know. If we were in the same class, maybe I would have heard about it, but we’re in different classes, and it wasn’t that big of a rumor.”

“Ugh…! B-But Akari, you’re my childhood friend, right? And we used to date. If something like that happened to me, you’d definitely hear about it… R-Right? Please, just stop joking, Akari. I’m not mad or anything. I just…”

“It’s not a joke. I really didn’t know.”

“Wha…”

Judging from Akari’s expression, she doesn’t seem to be lying.

Which means she truly never heard about it in the first place…

“W-What the hell…?”

Then what am I supposed to do with these feelings?

“And like I’ve told you before, Yuya, we’re not childhood friends anymore. Stop making me repeat myself. We can never go back to that relationship.”

“Eh? W-Wait a second! Sure, you said that, but not childhood friends…? We’ve been together for over ten years!?”

“…But Yuya, you cheated. While we were dating, you went to a hotel with another girl.”

“That… That was definitely my fault! I’m truly sorry! I’m so sorry!!!”

I bow my head with all my strength.

“B-But still, ending a relationship built over ten years because of that is… C-Come on, Akari…?”

As I say that timidly, Akari glares at me with sharp eyes.

“Hiik…!”

I’ve never seen Akari make that face before.

Her eyes are filled with pure hostility and rejection.

“This is all your fault, Yuya. Maybe you don’t get it, so I’ll say it clearly: cheating is a horrible thing. It hurt me so much. I cried a lot… and my chest ached.”

“Akari…”

Akari clutches her chest.

“That’s why… we can never go back to how we were.”

“…!!”

I can feel the weight of Akari’s seriousness pressing down on me.

Ever since we broke up, Akari has rejected me again and again.

And each time, I convinced myself that our years together would be enough to fix things.

But now, I finally realize there’s an unbridgeable wall between us.

Akari feels distant. She’s rejecting me, pushing me away, making sure I can never come close again.

“A-Akari…!!!”

Without hesitation, I act on what I must do.

I drop to my knees, placing my hands on the ground, looking up at Akari.

“I’m really sorry! For cheating on you! For hurting you! I truly regret it! I’m sorry!! I’m so, so sorry…!!!”

I press my forehead against the ground.

A sincere and desperate dogeza.

As Akari remains silent, I continue.

“I… I want to make up with you no matter what, Akari!! Cheating was my fault! Everything is my fault!! …But I still want to be with you as childhood friends! It’s for both of our sakes! So please… just let me apologize properly! I’m sorry, Akari…!!!”

Silence fills the air.

Then, Akari finally speaks.

“…Lift your head, Yuya.”

Hearing those words, I feel certain.

My sincere apology has reached Akari!

So now, surely, Akari and I can—

“Your apology doesn’t move me at all, Yuya.”

“…Eh?”

I lift my head, my mouth slightly open in shock as I meet Akari’s still-stern gaze.

“If you really felt bad about it, you would’ve apologized like this from the start. You had plenty of chances. But instead, you kept making excuses, trying to dodge the blame, acting like it wasn’t your fault. And now that you know I won’t go back to how things were, you suddenly decide to apologize? That’s not real—it’s just a way to get what you want. An apology like that doesn’t mean anything.”

“Aka…ri…”

“It’s too late, Yuya. No matter what you do now, the fact that you cheated won’t change. I can’t forgive you. I won’t forgive you. And I don’t want to be involved with someone I can’t forgive. I don’t want to be your childhood friend anymore.”

“…!!!”

Akari’s words stab deep into me.

At last, I fully understand what she means.

She’s right. Apologizing now just sounds like a tool to make things right again.

And yet, I didn’t even realize that until this moment…

Kiin-koon-kaan-koon

The warning bell rings through the air.

Akari exhales lightly, then looks at me and speaks.

“I’ll say it clearly. I don’t want anything to do with you anymore, Yuya. This is a complete severance.”

“Sev…erance…”

“Goodbye, Nakano-kun.”

“…!!!”

Eh? Nakano-kun… Why…

Akari turns on her heel and walks away.

“W-Wait… Akari…!!!”

I reach out toward her.

But my hand cuts through empty air, falling weakly to my side.

“…It was already too late.”

I finally realize it.

There’s no repairing what’s been broken between us.

Akari’s declaration of severance…

That was the final answer.

“Ugh… Uu…”

Tears drip down one after another.

It was too late. I had already…

“N-No way…”

Alone, I curl up and sob quietly.

I had already lost her—

My childhood friend, someone precious to me.

And by the time I realized it, there was nothing I could do.

“Uwaaaaaahhhhhh!!!”