ALL NOVEL chapter 31
31
Why? How could this be?
Before such questions could even form, a sense of emptiness washed over me.
My mind went blank, and I couldn’t think straight.
I couldn’t move my body, and my gaze was fixed on the two of them.
“…”
I knew it, despite myself.
The one walking next to Mio was my classmate, Shido.
There was no way Mio would be walking with Shido against her will.
And I realized that there was some kind of bond of trust between them.
Since when?
I don’t remember ever seeing them talking in class.
So, did they suddenly become close recently?
It entirely was possible. After all, I hadn’t tried to contact Mio in weeks.
It wouldn’t be surprising if the two of them had gotten closer while I was ignoring her.
That’s right.
Even when she wasn’t talking to me, Mio was still acting as an idol.
It was a change that was unimaginable when she was dating me.
Two weeks ago, the moment I ran away from Mio, she must have decided that I was done for.
“hahahaha…”
Shido is handsome. And he’s also smart.
He was the ace of the soccer club and the student council president.
On top of that, he’s got a great personality. Shido was the one who cared about me, a loner with hardly any friends.
And me? I’m not handsome, and my personality isn’t that great either.
I couldn’t keep up with her changes, and I didn’t even try to change myself.
Moreover, I was such a pathetic wimp that I couldn’t even bring myself to confront the two of them and demand an explanation.
Ha, what the hell.
It was a lost cause from the start.
Of course Mio would have more fun with Shido.
Especially since I was already thinking about breaking up with Mio.
Then this would work out perfectly, wouldn’t it?
That’s right, it has to be.
Oh, this is great. Now I have an excuse.
I’ll be able to break up with Mio smoothly with this.
If Shido is by Mio’s side, then I’m sure she’ll be fine.
He’ll protect Mio much more than I, who can’t do anything, ever could.
That’s right. It’s okay now.
Let’s break up. Let’s break up and set Mio free.
That would be better for Mio.
No, maybe I haven’t been in Mio’s sights for a long time now――――?
“Excuse me, are you alright?”
Was I thinking too deep?
I reacted to her voice a beat too late.
“Uh, ah…”
“You stopped moving, so I was wondering if something had happened.”
She peered into my face with a worried expression.
The eyes I could see through the gaps in her hair were so beautiful that I gasped for a moment.
“It’s nothing. Sorry, I’ll pick it up right away.”
“Please wait.”
I hurriedly tried to pick up the book, but for some reason, she stopped me.
Before I could ask what was wrong, something soft was pressed against my cheek.
“I don’t think it’s anything. Because…”
“You’re crying right now.”
…Crying? Me?
That can’t be right. I’m happy.
I finally have a reason to break up with Mio. I can’t be with Mio anymore.
A guy who can’t protect her or be by her side shouldn’t call himself her boyfriend.
So this is good. I’m not sad. I’m, I’m…
“It’s not anything… I just got something in my eye…”
“I know it’s strange for me to say this when we’ve just met,”
Her hand moved smoothly.
The handkerchief she had pressed against my face slowly wiped away my tears.
“When you feel like crying, I think it’s better to just cry. It’ll make you feel better.”
“Th-that’s…”
The kind words she uttered were the trigger.
All of a sudden, tears began to well up in my eyes.
I couldn’t stop them.
“I’m s-sorry… I’m…”
“It’s okay. It’s fine.”
Really, what am I doing?
Suddenly bursting into tears in front of a girl I just met. What am I doing?
“Wh-what…”
I feel so pathetic. Really, I’m really hopeless.
I was happy. It had been a long time since someone had said kind words to me.
Was I so desperate that I’d be happy over something like this?
“It’s okay to cry. You can think about what to do after you’ve finished crying.”
Truly, her words were kind.
The consoling words of this girl who knows nothing about me sawped into me like water.
“It’s okay to stop or to run away. You don’t have to face difficult things.”
It was as if those words had given me courage, like magic.
“Is that okay…”
“Yes, it’s okay. Even I…”
She didn’t finish her sentence.
There was just a brief moment of silence, and then she left to catch her Shinkansen, and we parted ways naturally.
I didn’t ask her name.
There wasn’t a good time to ask, and somehow it felt like that was okay.
I felt like I might meet her again someday.
When that happens, I’ll properly thank her.
I cried and cried and cried.
But even so, I gained a firm determination.
The next day, Monday.
I called out to Mio.
In an empty classroom after school, to end it all.