My Childhood Friend, a Vtuber, Treated Me Like Trash—I’m Never Producing For Her Again
You mean Mizuta is going to come wake me up every morning?
Faced with this completely unexpected proposal, I was simply speechless.
Come to think of it, I feel like there were characters like that—childhood friends—in light novels and anime, too…
“Um, well… How should I put this? Isn’t that a bit too much of a burden?”
Every morning, she’d have to wake up earlier than me and go out of her way to come all the way to the room of a guy her own age.
Even though we’ve gotten closer, if you asked me whether we’re on the kind of easy, no-strings-attached terms you’d have with a childhood friend, it’s a bit of a gray area.
I can’t help but think it’ll just make things awkward for both of us…
“Huh? Y-Yeah, you’re right… From Komachi-san’s perspective, having my face be the first thing you see when you wake up in the morning—you’d hate that to death, right…?”
“No, no, not at all. Actually, I’d be happy about it.”
“Huh? R-really…? Are you serious…?”
“Yeah, there’s no way I’d mind being woken up by a cute girl like Mizuta-san. It’s a treat for the eyes first thing in the morning, you could say.”
It seemed my words had been taken the opposite way I intended, so I hurriedly added a clarification.
I feel like I might have gotten a little carried away and said a bit too much—
“Hehe, hehehe…That’s the first time anyone’s ever said that to me. Even if it’s just a compliment, I’m sooo happy…””
Mizuta-san pressed her hand to her cheek and smiled shyly.
I wasn’t quite sure why, but as long as she was happy, that was good enough.
“So what I’m trying to say is, isn’t this a lot of work for you, Mizuta-san?”
“Not at all…? Actually, I think this helps with self-discipline.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Actually, once I fall asleep, I have a really hard time waking up. Unless I have a clear goal… But I thought that if my goal was to wake Komachi-san up, I might actually be able to get up on time.”
Ah, I think I sort of get it.
For Mizuta-san, school isn’t really a fun place.
That’s probably why it doesn’t give her a reason to wake up early.
Still, since she absolutely doesn’t want to be late, she might have just stayed up all night playing video games and let the morning come naturally.
“S-so, if Komachi-san doesn’t mind, I was wondering if I could take it upon myself to go wake you up…”
“I’d absolutely love that.”
Mizuta was going out of her way to create a childhood friend scenario that would never happen in real life.
As far as I was concerned, I had no reason to refuse.
Especially since she’s now a beauty that everyone agrees on.
“In that case, I’ll let my dad know ahead of time.”
“Ah, y-yes…! Come to think of it, I’ll have to say hello to Komachi-san’s dad, too…”
“Well, don’t make a big deal out of it. He’s just a regular guy.”
But for Mizuta-san, who’s extremely shy around strangers, anxiety is bound to take over.
I should probably give her a little reassurance.
“So, since we’re walking home together today, how about I make dinner at my place, and we’ll just naturally introduce you to my dad while we’re at it?”
“Huh? T-today? Out of the blue…?”
“Yeah. You’d feel more at ease with me there, right? Better than running into him alone first thing in the morning.”
“T-that’s true…! If I suddenly ran into him alone, I’m pretty sure I’d end up apologizing over and over for accidentally pushing the door open before running away…”
That’s basically just ringing the doorbell and running away, isn’t it…?
I chuckled softly and said, half-jokingly.
“I’ll go say hello to your mom sometime, too, Mizuta-san. When I do, you’ll have to back me up, okay?”
“Y-yes…!”
Mizuta-san fidgeted with her fingertips and muttered shyly.
“I-it’s just… introducing each other to our parents feels kind of… Hehe, hehehe…”
It was the kind of muttered remark that could easily be misinterpreted.
◇
After school.
Just as we’d agreed during lunch break, I grabbed my bag and stood up from my seat.
I was about to head straight for Mizuta-san’s desk, but—
“Mizuta, Mizuta. Do you have plans today? Want to go to karaoke with me?”
“Mizuta, you’re on LINE, right? Want to exchange numbers?”
“Mizuta, you look really good at kendo—why don’t you try out for the kendo club?”
Once again, a crowd had gathered around her.
And this time, even girls from other classes were mixed in.
I mean, what kind of person starts recruiting for a club in a situation like this?
(Maybe I should just keep a low profile today.)
For Mizuta-san, this is a chance to make new friends besides me.
As for my original goal of fending off the pick-up artists, this should work out just fine.
Just as I thought that, my phone vibrated in my pocket.
Exactly the same as this morning.
“Please help me.”
“……”
The sender and the message were exactly the same.
If I just sent it back telling her to figure it out on her own, it’d just end up the same way it did this morning.
I walked over to Mizuta-san’s seat and called out to her, deliberately raising my voice a little.
“Mizuta-san, let’s go home.”
“Ah, y-yes…!”
Right, there’s no need to explain anything.
Just that I had prior plans.
I just needed to create an atmosphere where that much came across.
But—
“What the hell, you? Why are you butting in out of nowhere?”
“Huh? Mizuta, what’s your relationship with Komachi?”
“Are you two dating or something?”
“No way! You two don’t match at all!”
Before I knew it, I’d ended up being used as a punching bag.
I’m basically a wallflower myself, so situations like this really put me on the spot.
How could I smooth things over?
I was just agonizing over that when—
“U-um…!”
Mizuta-san suddenly jumped to her feet and came over to stand next to me.
“I-I, w-well, I promised to go home with Komachi-san today, s-so I’m s-sorry…!!”
After bowing sharply at a right angle, she grabbed my sleeve and bolted out of the classroom as if fleeing.
A surprise breakaway.
Apparently, Mizuta-san has a side to her where she just charges ahead on impulse.
“Ugh…”
But before we’d even run two minutes—and before we’d even reached the shoe lockers—Mizuta-san leaned against the wall and started retching.
……It seems she really is hopeless at sports.
“Sorry I wasn’t much help.”
“I really wasn’t up to the task, was I……”
“Yeah, well. I’m kind of a wallflower myself, after all.”
Mizuta-san laughed, “Hehehe,” looking a bit tickled.
“This is my first time doing something like this. Somehow, when I’m with Komachi-san, everything feels like a first.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Every day feels fresh. To be honest, I feel like I’m having the most fun of my life right now.”
Maybe I feel the same way.
It was definitely Mizuta-san who lifted my spirits when I was feeling down about the Yui situation.
However, the moment Mizuta-san muttered, “Ah…,” her face suddenly turned pale.
“What’s wrong?”
She continued speaking while glancing furtively at my expression.
“I think I left my bag in the classroom…”
“……”
She’s full of energy, but she always seems to miss the mark when it counts.
I thought to myself that this was the one phrase that perfectly summed up Mizuta-san.