Chapter 21

"Your hands are as cold as ice, Naoko. If you're so uncomfortable, let's go on a date next time."

As if frightened by her pale face, Amemiya lowered his arm and held her hand.

He agreed.

Although he didn't understand why he had to ask for his opinion on such a thing.

For a while, Naoko's mind kept automatically playing the image of Amemiya soaked in blood.

Familiar and clear.

She shuddered.

Everything was calm - at least it seemed so, but he suddenly became a little neurotic, like one day he suddenly excitedly stuffed her with a bottle of pepper spray and a sharp knife.

"It's a love gift, Naoko, keep it with you."

Although it is understandable that this was to enable her to better protect herself, but...

"Why use such unromantic things as gifts? You are so boring, Amemiya-kun."

At least it should be flowers, or candy or something like that, right?

"Ah, I got it," he said, suddenly placing a kiss on each of the two gifts. "Does it feel romantic now?"

"..."

How could someone be so shameless...?

She was speechless.

But he acted oblivious to the awkwardness, sitting on her desk, holding her hand as if no one was around, and gesturing. "Do you know how to use these? Do you need me to teach you?"

Naoko nudged him uncomfortably, whispering a warning, "Amamiya-kun, we're in the classroom."

Where Amamiya-kun was, his gaze was always following him.

He shrugged it off, resigned, "They'd figured it out anyway, right?"

It was his casual attitude that made them figure it out!

She should never have agreed to his ridiculous request for a relationship.

"It's weird to carry around something like that," she said, pushing back the two heart-shaped gifts, emblazoned with Amamiya-kun's kiss.

He didn't seem angry, but pondered for a moment. "If Naoko doesn't want to bring them, fine. I'll protect you anyway."

Even so, she obediently put the items into her backpack, earning her two gentle caresses from Amemiya. "Good girl, Naoko."

Naoko's response was to shove him away without hesitation.

"Stop touching me... Move over, I need to go to the restroom."

It was baffling. There was a seat available, wasn't there?

Why was he always sitting on her desk?

The high school bathroom has always been a holy place for eavesdropping on gossip. When she was squatting quietly on the toilet, several chattering female classmates walked in:

"Amemiya-kun has been getting closer and closer to Kawase recently. It's really enviable..."

"Speaking of this, I grabbed the mineral water bottle that Amemiya-kun threw into the trash can yesterday. I'm so happy..."

"I really envy you, Aida-san."

"It would be great if Amemiya-kun could belong to me alone."

"Aida-san, you don't have that idea, do you?"

"I heard that Irie-senpai was going to take action against Amemiya-kun. However, it seems that he failed. When he came back, he was covered in blood!"

"If he succeeds and can give me a piece, how happy I would be."

"Aida-san, you, what do you mean?"

"Hey, are you still pretending? There is no one else here. Haven't Okada-san and Matsuki-san thought about it? Amemiya-kun's body must be very attractive."

...

Several people left quickly. Naoko covered her mouth and even subconsciously lightened her breathing.

Her arm dropped down, just touching the knife Amamiya had given her.

Was she dreaming?

In otome games, they usually call this kind of paranoid character a "yandere."

But why did such an incomprehensible thing happen in her ordinary life?

Should she tell Amamiya-kun?

How should she say it?

"Someone wants to kill you"?

Amamiya-kun would probably think she was joking.

She had been going to the bathroom frequently these past few days, hoping to get more information, but sadly, she hadn't learned anything.

This caught Amamiya's attention: "Naoko, even if you have a problem like urinary urgency and frequency, don't be afraid to seek medical treatment."

"...Go away."

Last time they came back from the amusement park, she had insisted on applying medicine to Amamiya-kun, but surprisingly, the coin-sized wound had completely healed by the time they returned home.

Regardless, this healing ability was incredible. But Amamiya-kun himself seemed accustomed to it.

"Ha, didn't I tell you? It's just a minor wound that'll heal in a few minutes."

She offered to call the police, but Amamiya dismissed it with a nonchalant attitude.

She wanted to scold him for being so careless and careless, but since it wasn't serious, she didn't press the issue.

"Amamiya-kun, just stay by my side for the next few days," she said earnestly, tugging on the cuff of his uniform.

It didn't seem to matter, after all, she was just a powerless otaku.

"Oh, is that a confession?" The guy, hunched over his desk, smiled at her, as if harboring some ill intentions.

She quickly retorted, "Of course not..."

"If not, I can't agree to that."

"You change your face so quickly, Amamiya-kun." She was speechless for a few seconds, and as she was about to get up and leave, he grabbed her hand and pulled her back.

He was only sitting on the chair, but when he straightened up, he was almost as tall as Naoko.

He whispered in her ear, "You are so impatient, Naoko. Won't you beg me again?"

As soon as he finished speaking, the already scorching gazes around him became even more naked, almost solidifying into substance and piercing through her.

"..."

What an unexpected disaster, she didn't want to attract the attention of other classmates at all.

She shook off his hand and reminded him in a low voice: "Hey, I just want to go to the bathroom! Let me go, do you want me to become a sitting duck?"

Although she had already been one.

"Oh, okay then." He was silent for a long time before nodding reluctantly.

Naoko didn't dare to look back, lowered her head and hurried out, but after a few steps, she felt a figure following behind her, step by step, like a shadow.

"Why are you following me?" She said angrily.

He put his hand on her head and rubbed it twice: "Ha, didn't you beg me to stay with you just now?"

"You wouldn't follow me to the bathroom, would you?" she muttered.

Is this guy a pervert?

He replied calmly, his voice deliberately drawn out, "Because I can't leave you, Naoko. Not even for a moment."

Instead, he leaned against the wall outside the bathroom, waving at her with a smile, "Hurry up, Naoko."

"..."

But it was all right this way. With her, Amamiya-kun would be safer... right?

But when she came out again, he wasn't there. As she looked around, a familiar hand pinched her face.

"Are you looking for me?"

Amamiya stood there, holding a baseball bat. His uniform had somehow become stained with dust, leaving a noticeable black drag mark on the white fabric.

"Where have you been?" she grabbed his hand warily. "You smell of blood."

He tossed the bat aside, "Maybe it's this stick? I was itching to play with it, so I picked it up."

Naoko glanced at the bat on the ground. As he'd said, there was a bright red mark on the shaft.

"What are you picking it up for?"

Amemiya replied casually, half-seriously, "Of course, to get rid of some nasty 'flies.'"

He kept saying "□□," then "rat," then "fly," almost like he could be in Animal World.

She looked him up and down, finding nothing unusual, and breathed a sigh of relief. "Even if you want to swat flies, you should pick something handy, right? A baseball bat is nothing. How about we buy a couple of fly swatters?"

He replied nonchalantly, his hand resting naturally on her shoulder. "Come on, Naoko, it's time for dinner."

"Oh, right. I just overheard something in the bathroom. I'll tell you later."

As for what it was…

Irie-senpai had suddenly dropped out of school.

The reason was some serious illness.

He had seemed so energetic before.

But considering his spirits during their previous meetings, Naoko felt it was only natural.

This should be a good thing for Amemiya-kun…

No, it's more likely a bad thing.

Because this meant Irie-senpai might have more time...

But there was no need to tell Amemiya-kun about this speculation.

She whispered, "I heard that Senpai suddenly dropped out of school. It's unbelievable."

Amemiya, who was helping her unpack her bento and soup box and pushing them in front of her, glanced up calmly. "Huh, bringing up that stupid 'rat' again?"

His tone was a little impatient, but he clearly didn't seem surprised at all, as if he'd known about this for a long time.

"There's no need to use such an offensive name for Senpai," Naoko said. "It's strange, isn't it? Senpai seemed so healthy before."

He replied nonchalantly, "Perhaps he has some hidden illness. After all, he's a 'rat,' isn't he? And he did such a disgusting thing to me. I hope you remember, Naoko, that he's your mortal enemy." "

... As expected, mentioning such things to the cold-hearted Amemiya-kun is completely asking for trouble.

What kind of mortal enemy? Would this word appear in daily life?

However, she couldn't help but shudder when she thought of the scene of Irie Reo climbing up the water pipe with a crazy look on her face.

"Besides, it's a good thing for him to drop out of school, isn't it? That way, he won't be able to do anything to you, Naoko."

"Ah?" She didn't think this matter had anything to do with her.

"Instead of letting him drop out of school, what I should do is kill him. "As he spoke, he clenched his teeth with a ferocious look, making them creak.

He must be very angry, right?

Right?

He didn't know if Irie-senpai's suspension of school had anything to do with Amamiya-kun, but he still lived his usual life of being surrounded by the stars.

Naoko didn't have time to observe his life anymore, because something happened that made her ecstatic:

she inexplicably received a friend request from a female classmate on her social software.

Yes, she was finally going to make friends besides Amamiya-kun.

She was pulled into a small group of three people. This was her first time trying this kind of group chat.

Because of her poor popularity, the classmates... Her female classmates never invited her when they created a small group.

Amemiya-kun did suggest to create a group chat with her, but a group chat of two people... what's the point?

Besides, they spend at least fifteen or sixteen hours together in a twenty-four hour day, so there is no need to send any group chat messages.

Naoko lay in bed with her phone in her arms, looking at the number 4 next to the group name again and again, and even her heart skipped a beat.

Would they suddenly kick her out...

saying "the wrong person was invited" or something like that?

She carefully took a screenshot as a small commemoration of her first time joining the small group.

Fortunately, it seems that this was not their mistake, and Naoko was warmly welcomed by the group members:

[Matsuki: Welcome, Kawase-san~ Are you and Amamiya-kun neighbors? I saw the flowers you posted, they're so beautiful.]

[Aida: Yes! I'm so envious of you.]

She quickly replied,

"We're neighbors, of course. If you want to see more of the flowers in the Amamiya family garden, I can take some pictures right now!"

This statement came across as almost boastful, and the atmosphere in the group immediately cooled.

It took a while before someone chimed in:

[Okada: Haha, Kawase-san and Amamiya-kun are really close.]

[Okada: I heard you're in a relationship, right?]

Neither answering "yes" nor "no" felt satisfying. Finally, she decided to tell the truth:

[Naoko: Ah... yeah.]

She'd expected them to be resistant, but surprisingly, they just accepted it:

[Aida: Eh~ Is that so? Then can I ask you something?]

[Naoko: What?]

[Aida: For example, what do you guys do on a date?]

[Matsuki: Also, what does Amamiya-kun like to eat? Since he never attends dinner parties, no one knows him very well.]

[Okada: Oh, right, did you kiss?]

They seemed very interested in their private lives and asked a lot of questions, from the date location, to the details of the date, Amamiya-kun's posture when kissing, and the temperature of his lips...

Although she was a little embarrassed, in order to perform well in front of new friends, she answered every question one by one in detail.

After chatting for a few days, Naoko finally mustered up the courage:

[Naoko: Are we friends now? Then can I say hello to everyone at the academy from now on?]

Of course, no one responded.

After a full twenty minutes, staring at her phone until it nearly broke, she finally received a few sparse replies:

[Matsuki: Of course, we're friends.]

[Aida: Then Kawase-san, please tell us more about Amamiya-kun.]

[Okada: How close our relationship is depends on Kawase-san's efforts~]

Judging by the replies, they seemed to have gone through quite a mental struggle.

But Naoko didn't care. All she knew was that she'd made a new friend! And a female one at that!

It was so exciting!

She felt so light-footed on her way to school that she felt almost light-footed.

The next day, Naoko mustered up the courage to greet the academy trio in the restroom.

As for why the restroom...

it was because making new friends wasn't something she could tell Amamiya-kun about just yet.

They responded indifferently, rushed over, grabbed her hair, cuffs and skirt, looked her up and down, and finally concluded:

"Ha, there's nothing special about you, Kawase-san."

"Your legs are a little thick, and your skin doesn't look very good up close."

"Oh, is that so? Maybe it's because I often stay up late playing games..."

They became even more excited:

"Ah? No way? Kawase-san, are you a otaku? I really didn't expect it."

Naoko waved her hands in panic and said, "Probably... not really, right?"

They obviously didn't care how she defended herself. After belittling her from head to toe, they asked mysteriously in her ear:

"By the way, what color panties are you wearing today, Amamiya-kun?"