36. The Close Friend Speaks
Thinking about it, I had seen that ‘I had enough’ expression from Natsukawa many times. Rather than angry, it looked like she was sick of me… As expected, she was that annoyed with me.
Well, when it came to the emotional Natsukawa, that part of her always crossed my mind first.
But, Natsukawa today was different. Never before was she this straightforward towards me with her anger. It’s almost as if I did a detox diet and the effect came instantly…. Ara～, oh dear… am I always this pretty?
“Well, you’re right. I also felt like something was off, but… say, this noon, what was that about?”
“……”
“A,Ahhー… My back hurts…”
“Umm…..!”
Looking at Natsukawa’s awkward expression, I could tell that she must have had some reason for it. Not to mention that it really reeks of her not wanting to talk to me about it… Ahh, it smells. I’ll smell it more. Let me smell it more!
“Ah……Umm… Sajo-chi…”
“W-Wait a minute!”
Right as Ashida spoke up, she was interrupted by Natsukawa.
Eh? Is it something that she really doesn’t want to talk to me? If so, there’s no need for her to force herself…. I’m not a demon, you know? Well, to be honest, if it’s not something that going to trouble her, I don’t really want to know though…But, if it’s something that going to trouble her, then tell me! I’ll gladly welcome it!
“That’s enough, Ai-chi. Today, you really crossed the line.”
“I-I know it was my bad…! B, but…!”
I’m really happy that Ashida’s on my side, but if she’s that hesitant to say it… as I thought, it must be something troublesome, right? Be it Sis or Natsukawa, there’s so many things I don’t really understand about them, but I’m not angry either….. Alright, I guess if I just pull out myself here, then everything should be resolved peacefully, right? I’m an adult after all.
“Um, you don’t have to say it, you know?”
“…..Eh?”
“It must be hard to say, right? it’s okay. You just want me to not talk about something vulgar with Koga or Murata, and be careful with my choice of words towards Sis, right? If I do that, we could end this case peacefully, right?”
In the first place, I never had any plans of spending more time with that irregular group of girls. And unless something irregular like today happens, I won’t use any curse words when talking to Sis. Leaving out my exchanges with Natsukawa, every conversation today was just exhausting. Perhaps, something like this won’t happens again in the future…
Just like Yuuki-senpai said, if all of these problems are related to my behavior, then this is just the consequence from what I did… yeah, just that or… perhaps everything just slowly starting to move into the right direction. It’s not something that will stay like this forever.
I guess Natsukawa, who is in a sense always being so close to me, is just being irritated by the change that happens in her daily life. Yeah, I’m sure of it.
That’s why, I’ll just be a cushion that ready to take all the blame and catch her sof───
“—I-It won’t end!”
“?!”
Eh, wha…?
I-Is she angry? She’s angry after all? Even Ashida unconsciously leaning herself backward in shock like me.
Isn’t this crazy? I’ve never thought that the day would come where Natsukawa want to keep clinging at me like this. Usually, she would straight take a distance from me. Fine, if you’re going that far, then I’ll stick around until the you’ve had enough…… Well, perhaps she hated me because I keep saying something like that.
Ashida gave Natsukawa a criticizing gaze. Natsukawa showed an awkward reaction, and she faintly opening her mouth.
“B-but….. i-if I left you alone, you would do something weird again…”
“Cute ─── No, of course I won’t.”
“Sajo-chi, your true feelings. It’s leaking… Why are you pretending like you didn’t say it now…”
A goddess? An angel? Nah, she’s a goddess. What kind of cute reaction is that? What am I supposed to do here? Should I ‘turn around 3 times and bark’? I’ll do that you know? Even if I need to pay money? [TN: ‘Turn around 3 times and bark’, this is not really that widespread in Japan, and might be different depend on the area, but the meaning is, ‘be obedient’, but if the MC really do that, he’s a ‘M’]
“Something weird?… For example? What would make you angry, Natsukawa?”
“T-That’s…”
“Well, if it’s hard to say, you don’t need to.”
“Wha…W-Wait…! What’s wrong with you! Can’t you show a bit more interest?!”
“If it’s only interest, I have. Especially in you, Natsukawa.”
“W-Wha…!”
“O, Oooh…Been a while since I heard that from Sajo-chi.”
Ah, crap, I said my true feeling unconsciously.
As expected, the habits I got over the years won’t vanish that quickly… To flirt on Natsukawa is almost like my second nature. In that meaning, I guess it really would be better for me to keep my distance… But, staying away too far would be bad as well. I don’t know how to properly draw the line here.
Up until now aren’t I always fail at staying modest? Even with Inatomi-senpai’s case, in the end I talked it to Shinomiya-senpai…. Seriously, ‘I’ am troubled with myself. [TN: He use girly way to say ‘I’]
All I knew is that I messed up, so I waited for her insults. Well, in the first place, the case regarding Natsukawa was my fault…
“T,Then ───”
“Huh…?”
Hhnnnmm…? T-That isn’t the reaction I expected. Isn’t she going to call me gross and disgusting with a tired face, and go to clean her hands after that like always? Eh, why does she look so determined ───
“─── Then……C-Come to my place!!”
“……”
Natsukawa asking Sajou to come
….Eh?
………
……….. ───@$#%????!!!
“A, Ai-chi… Do you plan on killing Sajo-chi…?!”
“…..? Ah…?! ～～<writhing>～～～!!!”
“Hey…! Both of you, stop writhing!! I’m the most embarrassed here! Hey, stop! Listen to meee!!”
◆
O impure temptation which eating away at my soul, with the power of words vanish this instant and return me to reality.
Haaaaaaaaaaahhhhaaaa〜〜…..!
Japanese Math English Physics Chemistry History Social-Science Politics Economy Ethics───
“…Alright, neutralised.”
“What exactly?”
By forcefully filling my consciousness with reality, I managed to keep my tension under control……When you’re a veteran like me, this is just a trivial matter. I’m good now. No matter what Natsukawa might mean by those words, I can endur───Ah, this is bad, I’m remembering it again───
“……Fuhihi.”
“Uuuh, disgusting….”
“……”
Family restaurant at night. In such a local place, I created the greatest theory for shock treatment. Especially the most effective one was the verbal abuse of a classmate of mine. Despite I was flying high in the sky, that simple word dragged me down to reality instantly. In return for that, I lose a few drops of water from my eyes… SOB, SOB
“Well, well, my bad, sorry. I was just having a hallucination.”
“Well, I can’t blame you for that…..Ai-chi said it in a confusing way after all.”
“So, what was that about? Even now, I still feel the urge to shout out loud.”
“You’ll just bother everybody else, don’t do that.”
GRUMBLE GRUMBLE…..!
Rather than a shout, it was a death growl. Even if I couldn’t shout it out loud, I need to do something else to hold my urge to shout.
Even if Natsukawa’s words didn’t have any special meaning, just hearing it alone….. Aahh, what a happiness.
“So, Sajo-chi, listen. About today…”
“Eh? We’re not done yet? See, even Natsukawa is hiding her face with her hands now, you know.”
“It’s fine, this is Ai-chi’s limit right now. At this rate the talk is going nowhere.”
Eh, what do you mean? Does she have some mental problem? As Natsukawa’s number one fan, to ignore her despite her being right next to me is painful for my heart. Can I not pat her on the head? I can’t? You demon!
“So, let me just get to the point. Ai-chi wants to introduce you to Ai-chan.”
“I see………Hm?”
Eh, who?… Ah, Natsukawa’s younger sister? Their names are so similar I couldn’t understand what she means for a moment. Seriously, Ashida’s naming sense is questionable. She makes her name almost overlapping with Natsukawa’s. It’s Airi-chan, right? Airi-chan….. Sounds like the name of a famous soccer player’s wife. [TN: If I were to guess, the person that the MC mean is ‘Airi Nagatomo’]
….Wait, What?!
“Eh, why? Didn’t she said that someone disgusting like me, who also could negatively influence Airi-chan, should not approach her?”
“Jeezz! There’s no way Ai-chi would really be feeling that way!”
“Eh? I’m not disgusting?”
“Whether it’s true or not, let’s put that aside for now!”
“What am I supposed to feel……..”
This girl… Why didn’t you just deny it? … Now, I don’t know if I should be happy or sad.
…Eh, don’t say that I’m actually a…. No way, right? It’s a general knowledge that I’m a human being, right? I have a hand to hold the rice bowl, alright? I could properly take and use the toilet paper in the toilet, you know? I can dry my hands after washing it away, you know?
36. The Close Friend Speaks
Thinking about it, I had seen that ‘I had enough’ expression from Natsukawa many times. Rather than angry, it looked like she was sick of me… As expected, she was that annoyed with me.
Well, when it came to the emotional Natsukawa, that part of her always crossed my mind first.
But, Natsukawa today was different. Never before was she this straightforward towards me with her anger. It’s almost as if I did a detox diet and the effect came instantly…. Ara～, oh dear… am I always this pretty?
“Well, you’re right. I also felt like something was off, but… say, this noon, what was that about?”
“……”
“A,Ahhー… My back hurts…”
“Umm…..!”
Looking at Natsukawa’s awkward expression, I could tell that she must have had some reason for it. Not to mention that it really reeks of her not wanting to talk to me about it… Ahh, it smells. I’ll smell it more. Let me smell it more!
“Ah……Umm… Sajo-chi…”
“W-Wait a minute!”
Right as Ashida spoke up, she was interrupted by Natsukawa.
Eh? Is it something that she really doesn’t want to talk to me? If so, there’s no need for her to force herself…. I’m not a demon, you know? Well, to be honest, if it’s not something that going to trouble her, I don’t really want to know though…But, if it’s something that going to trouble her, then tell me! I’ll gladly welcome it!
“That’s enough, Ai-chi. Today, you really crossed the line.”
“I-I know it was my bad…! B, but…!”
I’m really happy that Ashida’s on my side, but if she’s that hesitant to say it… as I thought, it must be something troublesome, right? Be it Sis or Natsukawa, there’s so many things I don’t really understand about them, but I’m not angry either….. Alright, I guess if I just pull out myself here, then everything should be resolved peacefully, right? I’m an adult after all.
“Um, you don’t have to say it, you know?”
“…..Eh?”
“It must be hard to say, right? it’s okay. You just want me to not talk about something vulgar with Koga or Murata, and be careful with my choice of words towards Sis, right? If I do that, we could end this case peacefully, right?”
In the first place, I never had any plans of spending more time with that irregular group of girls. And unless something irregular like today happens, I won’t use any curse words when talking to Sis. Leaving out my exchanges with Natsukawa, every conversation today was just exhausting. Perhaps, something like this won’t happens again in the future…
Just like Yuuki-senpai said, if all of these problems are related to my behavior, then this is just the consequence from what I did… yeah, just that or… perhaps everything just slowly starting to move into the right direction. It’s not something that will stay like this forever.
I guess Natsukawa, who is in a sense always being so close to me, is just being irritated by the change that happens in her daily life. Yeah, I’m sure of it.
That’s why, I’ll just be a cushion that ready to take all the blame and catch her sof───
“—I-It won’t end!”
“?!”
Eh, wha…?
I-Is she angry? She’s angry after all? Even Ashida unconsciously leaning herself backward in shock like me.
Isn’t this crazy? I’ve never thought that the day would come where Natsukawa want to keep clinging at me like this. Usually, she would straight take a distance from me. Fine, if you’re going that far, then I’ll stick around until the you’ve had enough…… Well, perhaps she hated me because I keep saying something like that.
Ashida gave Natsukawa a criticizing gaze. Natsukawa showed an awkward reaction, and she faintly opening her mouth.
“B-but….. i-if I left you alone, you would do something weird again…”
“Cute ─── No, of course I won’t.”
“Sajo-chi, your true feelings. It’s leaking… Why are you pretending like you didn’t say it now…”
A goddess? An angel? Nah, she’s a goddess. What kind of cute reaction is that? What am I supposed to do here? Should I ‘turn around 3 times and bark’? I’ll do that you know? Even if I need to pay money? [TN: ‘Turn around 3 times and bark’, this is not really that widespread in Japan, and might be different depend on the area, but the meaning is, ‘be obedient’, but if the MC really do that, he’s a ‘M’]
“Something weird?… For example? What would make you angry, Natsukawa?”
“T-That’s…”
“Well, if it’s hard to say, you don’t need to.”
“Wha…W-Wait…! What’s wrong with you! Can’t you show a bit more interest?!”
“If it’s only interest, I have. Especially in you, Natsukawa.”
“W-Wha…!”
“O, Oooh…Been a while since I heard that from Sajo-chi.”
Ah, crap, I said my true feeling unconsciously.
As expected, the habits I got over the years won’t vanish that quickly… To flirt on Natsukawa is almost like my second nature. In that meaning, I guess it really would be better for me to keep my distance… But, staying away too far would be bad as well. I don’t know how to properly draw the line here.
Up until now aren’t I always fail at staying modest? Even with Inatomi-senpai’s case, in the end I talked it to Shinomiya-senpai…. Seriously, ‘I’ am troubled with myself. [TN: He use girly way to say ‘I’]
All I knew is that I messed up, so I waited for her insults. Well, in the first place, the case regarding Natsukawa was my fault…
“T,Then ───”
“Huh…?”
Hhnnnmm…? T-That isn’t the reaction I expected. Isn’t she going to call me gross and disgusting with a tired face, and go to clean her hands after that like always? Eh, why does she look so determined ───
“─── Then……C-Come to my place!!”
“……”
Natsukawa asking Sajou to come
….Eh?
………
……….. ───@$#%????!!!
“A, Ai-chi… Do you plan on killing Sajo-chi…?!”
“…..? Ah…?! ～～<writhing>～～～!!!”
“Hey…! Both of you, stop writhing!! I’m the most embarrassed here! Hey, stop! Listen to meee!!”
◆
O impure temptation which eating away at my soul, with the power of words vanish this instant and return me to reality.
Haaaaaaaaaaahhhhaaaa〜〜…..!
Japanese Math English Physics Chemistry History Social-Science Politics Economy Ethics───
“…Alright, neutralised.”
“What exactly?”
By forcefully filling my consciousness with reality, I managed to keep my tension under control……When you’re a veteran like me, this is just a trivial matter. I’m good now. No matter what Natsukawa might mean by those words, I can endur───Ah, this is bad, I’m remembering it again───
“……Fuhihi.”
“Uuuh, disgusting….”
“……”
Family restaurant at night. In such a local place, I created the greatest theory for shock treatment. Especially the most effective one was the verbal abuse of a classmate of mine. Despite I was flying high in the sky, that simple word dragged me down to reality instantly. In return for that, I lose a few drops of water from my eyes… SOB, SOB
“Well, well, my bad, sorry. I was just having a hallucination.”
“Well, I can’t blame you for that…..Ai-chi said it in a confusing way after all.”
“So, what was that about? Even now, I still feel the urge to shout out loud.”
“You’ll just bother everybody else, don’t do that.”
GRUMBLE GRUMBLE…..!
Rather than a shout, it was a death growl. Even if I couldn’t shout it out loud, I need to do something else to hold my urge to shout.
Even if Natsukawa’s words didn’t have any special meaning, just hearing it alone….. Aahh, what a happiness.
“So, Sajo-chi, listen. About today…”
“Eh? We’re not done yet? See, even Natsukawa is hiding her face with her hands now, you know.”
“It’s fine, this is Ai-chi’s limit right now. At this rate the talk is going nowhere.”
Eh, what do you mean? Does she have some mental problem? As Natsukawa’s number one fan, to ignore her despite her being right next to me is painful for my heart. Can I not pat her on the head? I can’t? You demon!
“So, let me just get to the point. Ai-chi wants to introduce you to Ai-chan.”
“I see………Hm?”
Eh, who?… Ah, Natsukawa’s younger sister? Their names are so similar I couldn’t understand what she means for a moment. Seriously, Ashida’s naming sense is questionable. She makes her name almost overlapping with Natsukawa’s. It’s Airi-chan, right? Airi-chan….. Sounds like the name of a famous soccer player’s wife. [TN: If I were to guess, the person that the MC mean is ‘Airi Nagatomo’]
….Wait, What?!
“Eh, why? Didn’t she said that someone disgusting like me, who also could negatively influence Airi-chan, should not approach her?”
“Jeezz! There’s no way Ai-chi would really be feeling that way!”
“Eh? I’m not disgusting?”
“Whether it’s true or not, let’s put that aside for now!”
“What am I supposed to feel……..”
This girl… Why didn’t you just deny it? … Now, I don’t know if I should be happy or sad.
…Eh, don’t say that I’m actually a…. No way, right? It’s a general knowledge that I’m a human being, right? I have a hand to hold the rice bowl, alright? I could properly take and use the toilet paper in the toilet, you know? I can dry my hands after washing it away, you know?
