Chapter 11: Haruki’s Plan
Haruki’s Plan
“…”
What should I do?
In the end, that was the only thing I could come up with.
Haruki, who was looking at me right now, looked incredibly cute.
But still, that couldn’t be a valid reason.
Obviously, Haruki was a minor, and there was no way I could let her stay over.
Taking her to a hotel was completely out of the question.
Come to think of it, don’t hotels usually ask for age verification?
“Do you really understand what you’re saying, Haruki-chan?”
“I-I do. I’m not a kid anymore.”
“…”
Even Haruki couldn’t keep her composure, it seemed. Her ears had turned red.
You could tell clearly, even with makeup on.
That only showed me just how serious she was about this.
What should I do?
To be honest, the problem wasn’t just that she was a minor.
Well, that was an issue too, but there was something even more important.
I see now.
That’s what all this had been about.
“Haruki-chan.”
“W-What?”
“Thank you.”
More than anything, I felt I had to express my gratitude.
I lowered my head.
“W-What are you talking about? I, I just…”
“You were trying to stop me from killing myself, weren’t you? That’s why you did all this.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
Haruki gave a small nod, looking a little sad.
“It was a couple of days after I broke up with Fuyumi that you came to see me. That part wasn’t strange. I was clearly in shock.”
I had been cheated on by Fuyumi and told she wanted to break up.
My heart had been completely broken.
If Haruki hadn’t come to see me, I probably would have gone through with it.
“At first, you probably just meant to check on me. But once you entered my room, you saw it. The open window, and the balcony beyond.”
Someone who had been hurt and weakened.
If the balcony door was open.
Haruki wasn’t so foolish that she wouldn’t understand what that meant.
“You didn’t want to leave me alone. You wanted me to have hope. So you decided to stay and made something to eat. That probably wasn’t what you had planned at first, was it?”
“Right. Luckily, the fridge just happened to be stocked, but if it hadn’t been, we might’ve ended up going grocery shopping together.”
Haruki added her own comment.
“Either way, after eating together, Haruki-chan decided she still couldn’t take her eyes off me. So you invited me out and tried to take me on a date.”
Honestly, if I had been in Haruki’s shoes, I would have thought the same. If she hadn’t invited me, and I’d been left in that room again, I can’t say for sure I wouldn’t have taken my life.
There was something else too. I hadn’t wanted to say it aloud, but I knew. There was another reason Haruki had tried to get me out of that room.
From the furniture to the smallest bits of trash.
That room was filled with memories of Fuyumi.
And by now, those memories were nothing but trauma triggers for me.
“Even if I had said no, you probably would have pushed through anyway. Something like, ‘What, are you trying to embarrass me?’ right?”
“How’d you know?”
“I don’t know, it just seemed like something you’d say.”
“Well, yeah, I guess that tracks…”
Haruki touched her chin, thought for a moment, and seemed convinced.
“Anyway, Haruki-chan’s plan was a huge success. I enjoyed today’s date, and I barely thought about Fuyumi at all.”
“Barely, huh… she really is strong, that woman.”
Only when she said “that woman” did Haruki’s voice turn ice cold.
It was a tone completely different from how she usually spoke. It carried scorn and hatred.
Or maybe there were even more complicated emotions mixed in, but unfortunately, I couldn’t tell.
“In short, you didn’t want to leave me alone in that room. That’s why you said you wanted to stay over.”
Haruki said she knew what that meant.
She was ready to offer her body if it meant keeping me alive.
I didn’t know why she’d go that far.
Maybe it was because I helped her when she was little, or maybe it was guilt over what her sister had done.
Even so, I felt it was too much.
No, maybe that wasn’t something I should be saying.
I’m sure some people would think I was going too far too, just because I got betrayed by Fuyumi and considered suicide.
What matters is that I was saved. And I should be properly thankful for that.
And also…
“It’s okay now, Haruki-chan. You’ve done more than enough.”
“B-But if it happens again, then… no, I-I don’t want to leave you alone.”
Maybe she was flustered because her plan had been exposed. Or maybe she really thought I’d try again.
Haruki didn’t even have the strength to keep up her gyaru speech anymore.
“Then make me a promise.”
“A promise?”
“Go on another date with me next week. If you promise me that, I won’t die.”
“Ah…”
That’s right. It’s only natural.
If you’ve had a first date, you need to ask for a second.
Otherwise, you can’t call yourself a man.
More than anything, I had to show Haruki.
“I’ll prove it through my actions that tomorrow is still coming for me. So it’s okay now.”
I just wanted Haruki to feel at ease.
“You’re really something, you know that.”
Haruki gave a bitter smile.
“Okay. Sure.”
She nodded.