Chapter 15: TS Girl, Getting Awkward with Someone from Her Past

Ughhhh… I really messed up.

Well, “messed up” might not be the right word. It’s more like… I completely embarrassed myself. Yeah… I had a fever, but apparently I said a bunch of weird things.

I seriously can’t remember any of it. What did I even say!?

They told me I was acting like a little kid, and I even slipped into my “ore” way of speaking sometimes! I didn’t say anything too strange, right? Right!?

Ugh… now I get it—this is what people mean when they say they want to crawl into a hole and disappear. I just want to hide from the world for a while. Isn’t there some way to do that?

…Reina’s cooking was delicious, though.

Still, because of all that, I’ve been having trouble going to the team room. It’s awkward facing everyone… Wait, this smell—

"Akegami-san."

Ah—it’s Nagisa-kun.

I can’t quite focus my gaze. I can’t look him straight in the face. Ugh, I’m overthinking this way too much.

"Nagisa-kun!"

Screw it—I’m going for it. I throw myself into his chest.

I inhale softly. That familiar scent fills me.

The trembling inside me gradually fades. The parts of me that had been all tangled up start settling back into place.

"Akegami-san, I’m glad you’re feeling better."

Huh? He’s just… accepting this like it’s normal? When I look up, Nagisa-kun doesn’t seem flustered at all. Wow… how boring.

Well, whatever. I pull away from him.

I feel a little calmer now.

"You’ve gotten used to me, Nagisa-kun. That’s no fun."

"I figured it wouldn’t be great to forcibly peel someone off right after they recovered."

"Geez, you’re usually the one getting flustered."

"Maybe because I saw you all flustered yesterday, Akegami-san."

"Gahhh! Don’t remind me of that!"

Ugh… now I’ve ended up on the receiving end of teasing. That’s not how this is supposed to go. That’s not my role. This is humiliating.

"But seeing you yesterday made you a bit easier to approach."

"Wow, that’s not cute at all. I liked watching you panic all the time, Nagisa-kun."

"Please spare me that…"

"Should I just go ahead and give you a kiss on the cheek or something…?"

"Don’t jump straight to that!?"

I wouldn’t actually go that far, though. Maybe just up to the brink.

Since it looks like Nagisa-kun was heading to the room as well, we walk side by side. Without thinking, I reach out and brush my fingers against his hand.

He’s clearly not used to this—he flinches slightly. Slowly, I lace my fingers with his.

"…Yeah, you really are Akegami-san."

"What, would you prefer me all spacey and cute?"

"I didn’t say that."

"I’m plenty cute even now."

"You’re saying that yourself?"

"You’re the one who said I’m a cute girl, remember?"

"Did I say that? …No, yeah, I did…"

Nagisa-kun’s hand is a bit rough—definitely a boy’s hand. Maybe because I’ve gone a bit overboard lately, I don’t even feel any resistance to things like this anymore. Not that I mind—it’s kind of a perk.

"Come to think of it, you changed how you address her."

"Hm?"

"Kisa. You’re calling her by her first name now, right?"

"Oh, yeah."

"And she calls you Shinozaki-kun too. Were you that close?"

"Who knows. After that incident, she stopped avoiding me like before."

"Ohhh, so you’re going to win her over next?"

"Is that the only option in your head, Akegami-san—either you win someone over or you don’t?"

I mean, when someone switches to first names, you kind of assume that, right?

That said, Kisa just stopped forcing herself and became easier to talk to. It’s not like she’s fallen for him or anything.

Though Kisa is easy to get along with, she can also be a bit of a hassle.

I sneak a glance at Nagisa-kun. Our eyes meet.

"…Should I call you Yuri-san too, Akegami-san?"

"—Don’t."

That came out lower than I expected.

It sounded like I really hated it. No, that’s not it. I should fix that.

"I’d rather you call me by my last name, Nagisa-kun."

"…I see."

Nagisa-kun lowers his gaze. …Did he take that the wrong way?

"It’s not that I dislike you or don’t want you calling me that. Do I seem like I hate you?"

"Yesterday, you said you didn’t know whether you liked me or not."

"Wait, I said that!? That’s not fair—asking something like that when I had a fever."

"…"

He goes quiet. I didn’t say anything that harsh, did I? I peek at his face, and he looks oddly tense. Wait, what’s going on?

"Don’t suddenly go silent. That’s scary."

"No, sorry, it’s just…"

"Well, whatever. Heyyy!"

We’ve reached the room, so I open the door.

I still don’t let go of his hand, though. Nagisa-kun seems down, after all. A beautiful girl’s hand-holding service is important in times like these!

"My, you two are close again today."

Reina snaps her book shut.

She feels different somehow—softer, maybe? Her whole vibe has changed.

Did something happen while I wasn’t around?

…No, something still feels off. Even the way she looks at me has shifted a little. Didn’t she say she wasn’t good with me before? Eh, whatever.

"Um, Akegami-san… shouldn’t you let go…?"

"Oh, right—we’re still holding hands."

"Could you maybe phrase that differently?"

Reluctantly, I release Nagisa-kun’s hand.

Man… I kind of want this as emotional support from time to time. It’s soothing.

"Oh, right. Someone who knows Akegami Yuri came by yesterday."

"Huh? Someone I know?"

"I believe it was Shishiba Honoka… or something like that."

"…Huh?"

Shishiba Honoka came?

Wait, hold on. I kind of brushed her off, and we didn’t really have a proper conversation—she didn’t seem like the type to follow up.

So why did she come?

"…Why did she come?"

Ah—did I say that out loud? Careful. Don’t panic.

"…You invited her to the team, didn’t you?"

"Oh. Right."

"Akegami-san, when you do something like that, please inform the team properly first, okay?"

I got seriously chewed out. I mean, it’s not like I expected her to actually show up. Maybe it’s because I threw in a parting jab when we last met.

Well… if she joins the team now, what should I do? Hmm… eh, whatever! I’m sure it’ll work out somehow.

Apparently, she hates the “lying me.”

"Oh, Yuri’s here. Hey."

"Kisa, long time no see."

"It hasn’t even been that long. I kinda wanted to see ‘Loli Yuri’ a bit more, though."

"Wait—what kind of nickname is that!?"

"Yesterday’s Akegami Yuri was adorable."

"Reina too!? Hey, Nagisa-kun—everyone’s being weird!"

"The contrast was pretty intense."

"So you’re on their side too, Nagisa-kun…"

…It’s embarrassing, like people know a version of me I don’t even remember.

"Anyway, enough about me! Let’s train, train!"

This school actually has training facilities. It would be dangerous for Curse Seekers to suddenly use their abilities in real combat, after all. So for the first few months, you use your abilities here to get a feel for them.

After forming a team, you can use those facilities together. The specs are impressive—they even have something like a simulator where you can fight Deep Calamities.

Now that everyone’s gotten closer, it’s the perfect timing for some practice.

"Hmm, so you are here today, Akegami."

…That voice sounds familiar.

What comes into view is a girl with light brown hair tied to the side, neatly styled instead of messy, sharp eyes, and a faintly mocking smile—Shishiba Honoka.

Hmm… she’s actually put together properly. What happened to that sloppy look from before?

"Uh, Shishiba-san, right?"

"Works for me, Connector girl. You all heading to training together?"

"Yep."

Judging by everyone’s reaction, she really did come by while I wasn’t around. Now how am I supposed to deal with this?

Maybe I’ll respond a little sharply.

"So you came after all, Honoka. Even though you looked like you didn’t want to?"

"I don’t want to join your team. But telling everyone about your middle school days? That sounds fun."

"—Huh?"

"Ooh, scary. If you hated it that much, you shouldn’t have invited me."

What a nasty piece of work.

Talking about my middle school days? There’s no way I’d allow that. You’re not supposed to pry into someone’s inner self like that.

Nagisa-kun and the others look surprised at the tense atmosphere between me and Honoka. Did they think we were close?

In the first place, Honoka and I only started interacting because of something back in middle school—we weren’t even really friends.

Ugh, what should I do…? Whatever, I’ll just settle this with her.

"Sorry, everyone. I need to talk to Honoka for a bit—could you go ahead to training first?"

When I glance at him, Nagisa-kun seems to understand and nods. Kisa and Reina look like they want to say something, but they follow along.

"Got it. We’ll start practicing."

Man… this is all ad-lib at this point. Hardly anything is following how things went in the original story.

At the very least, I want my ending to play out properly.

"…So? What did you want to talk about so badly that you sent everyone away?"

Honoka strides into the room and sits down like she owns the place. You’re not even part of this team yet!

"I was the one who invited you, but try not to say anything weird, okay?"

"Wow… you really never drop the act, do you?"

"I’m not doing that anymore."

I’m not bringing out my “ore” self again. It just messes me up inside.

"Do you hate it that much? People knowing about your middle school days?"

"…Is that a problem?"

"Nope. Makes sense, really. After all—you’re Akegami Yuri."

That mocking smile again. What an awful person.

She acts like she can see right through me. Resting her chin on her hand, she glares at me from the side. Her attitude is awful.

"So what?"

"…You’re not going to say it yourself?"

"I’m not."

"Huh. So you’ll just disappear like that?"

"Who knows."

"Heh. And with that attitude, you invited someone to your team?"

"I didn’t think you’d actually come anytime soon."

She lets out a particularly deep sigh.

"I went out of my way to come here for you, and this is the reception I get?"

"Wow, thanks so much."

"I liked the old you better—the prickly Akegami. …If you’re planning to disappear, I won’t forgive you."

Her voice turns ice-cold. After saying that, Honoka leaves the room.

Even if she doesn’t forgive me, my disappearance is inevitable. It’s fate—I doubt anyone can stop it.

…Man, now I feel gloomy. Lately, I’ve been separated from everyone else on the team a lot.

And I hate being alone.

Time to go back to everyone.