The Love of My Childhood Friend, Who Has Overcome a Terminally Ill Diagnosis, Is Overwhelming
โKanade, itโs about time you cheered up.โ
After she changed into her going-out clothes and stepped out into the hallway, I brought her back into the roomโonly to find that she had shed the cheerful mood sheโd been in just a moment ago and, for some reason, was now in a bad mood.
With her cheeks puffed out, her face turned away, and ignoring everything I said, Kanadeโs mood just wouldnโt lift.
In fact, even nowโas weโre leaving the house to keep our appointment with Takagaki-san and riding the trainโsheโs still ignoring me.
โKanade, Iโm sorry.โ
I say it with sincere regret, but Kanade still wonโt answer me.
โฆHmm, I wonder what on earth is making Kanade so angry?
The questions are endless.
Endless, butโฆโฆ if I meet Takagaki while weโre still in a fight, sheโll probably say all sorts of things to me again, so Iโve got to somehow cheer her up before I see her.
โฆโฆBut how on earth can I cheer Kanade up?
Come to think of it, I made Kanade angry just the other day, too.
Iโm pretty sure the reason she got mad back then wasโฆ because I totally crushed her on the test.
If thatโs the caseโฆ maybe Kanade is angry this time, too, because of something inconsiderate I did.
If so, if I can remember the inconsiderate thing I did to her right before she got angry, I might be able to cheer her up.
โฆMy inconsiderate behavior toward Kanade, huh.
ใโฆโฆ
ใโฆโฆโฆโฆ
โฆDid I do anything like that?
โKanade. Kanade.โ
Damn it. If I canโt think of anything, thereโs nothing I can do.
โKanade, come on, cheer up already.โ
In that caseโฆโฆ Iโll use the same tactic as last time.
โIf it means we can make up, Iโllโฆ do anything.โ
This is itโthe secret technique: the โIโll do anythingโ strategy.
Itโs the same strategy as last time, but for some reason, Kanadeโs attitude completely changes the moment I say Iโll do anything.
Come on, I hope it works this time too.
With that hope in mind, I declared Iโd do anythingโฆ but.
โโฆโฆโ
Kanade didnโt respond.
โฆSeriously?
โKa-Kanadeโฆ Come on, say something already.โ
If this keeps up, Takagaki-san is really going to give me a hard time.
Truly at my witsโ end, I resorted to the โplay the victimโ tactic.
โโฆHm?โ
As I pleaded with her, on the verge of tears, Kanade gave me a carefree look.
โSorry, A-kun. I was so focused on your jacket that I completely forgot to answer you.โ
Completely oblivious to my feelings, Kanade said this in a carefree tone.
When I looked closely, she had the sleeve of my baggy jacket up to her mouth. โFocusedโโthat probably meant she was sniffing it.
โฆWhy was she so focused on the smell of my jacket?
Could it be that it smells?
โฆNo, what does โfocusing on the smellโ even mean?
โโฆSorry. What were we talking about just now?โ
My question didnโt make it out as a voice, and as a result, Kanade asked me a question of her own.
โNo, itโs nothingโฆโ
โHmm.โ
Kanade was still sniffing the jacket.
โHey, Akkun,โ
Kanade continued, still sniffing the sleeve of my jacket.
โAkkun, didnโt you just say youโd do anything for me?โ
โYou were focused on the smell, but you heard that part?โ
I couldnโt help but point that out.
Kanade is amazing.
โHehe. I happened to hear it.โ
โHaha. Thatโs a bit of a problem.โ
I scratched my head with a wry smile.
โSo, Akkun. I donโt know what happened, but is it okay if I ask you to do anything for me?โ
โHmmโฆโ
โฆโฆI crossed my arms and pondered.
After all, I only said Iโd do anything for Kanade to cheer her up. If she hadnโt been upset to begin withโฆ I wouldnโt have needed to say Iโd do anything.
So, since she wasnโt actually upset this time, I donโt think I need to do anything.
โHehe. A-kun. If you wonโt do anything for me, I might just ignore you.โ
โWhaโฆ!โ
โHehe. A-kun, will you do anything for me? Or wonโt you?โ
H-how underhandedโฆ!
โโฆIโm n-not going to answer that.โ
โIs that okay? Are you really sure itโs okay?โ
โโฆUgh.โ
โIf you wonโt do anything for me, Iโm going to ignore you. For the rest of my lifeโฆโ
Kanade, who had been smiling, suddenly froze.
โโฆI donโt want it to be for the rest of my life, so Iโll just ignore you for thirty minutes.โ
โAhaha. Kanade, youโre a genius at cutting corners.โ
After just a few seconds of thought, the duration of her ignoring me had been cut from a lifetime to thirty minutes.
Well, if itโs just thirty minutes or soโฆ the answer Iโve come to is clear.
โAlright. Iโll do anything.โ
โโฆHuh? Is that okay?โ
โYeah.โ
I nodded.
โBecause I donโt want to lie to you, Kanade.โ
Maiasa