A Cheeky Junior Denied Me My Entire Life, so I Tested What Would Happen if I Jumped off a Rooftop to Vent My Anger
“─ ─ You seem to be having a lot of fun, Aoi-kun. If you like, can I join you too?”
Asama-san, a girl with white hair, suddenly appeared.
“…… Asama Ion.”
Seeing her, Rengo backs away as if intimidated.
Asama-san is tall, but she is about the same 170 cm as me; Rengo, who is over 180 cm, is much taller. Despite this, there is something about Asama-san that makes even the strong-willed Rengo back away.
Asama-san glances at Rengo, then holds out her hand towards me as I fall on my buttocks.
“I thought you were just going to the nearby convenience store, but it was so late that I came to check on you and it looked like you were doing something fun. Aoi-kun.”
“…… Nothing, I’m not having fun.”
I take Asama-san’s hand and stand up. Then, just in case, I touched the cheek where Rengo had punched me, but as expected, there was no pain.
“Hey, Susumu. Why are you with that woman?”
Rengo glares at me. I exhale, as if to let out the resentment in my chest.
“It’s none of your business.”
“You mean it’s a relationship that you can’t tell me about? Don’t you like Ririka?”
“I’ll have a proper talk with …… Usa-san sooner or later. Maybe you have something you need to tell me. Why were you walking hand in hand with Usa-san? ”
“…………”
The two of them are not only ready to accept whatever relationship they have, but if they don’t want to tell me, there’s no need to force me to ask them.
“That’s enough, Rengo. There’s no point in talking to you any more. You should go home now.”
“…… What about you, then? Do you have somewhere to go?”
“…”
There, interrupting my words, Asama-san stepped forward.
“Aoi kun, I’ve decided to take care of him. …… Aoi-kun is special in many ways.”
“What the hell is that? what’s special. He’s not good at exercising or studying, and he can’t even draw, which is his specialty, because he keeps making excuses. There’s not a single thing this guy can do better than me. ……That’s it. That’s why Ririka doesn’t want this guy, but me――”
“Your feeling is that of inferiority.”
Asama-san declares, interrupting Rengo’s words. Rengo steps back again.
“…… Why should I feel inferior to this guy? There’s nothing …… I’m inferior to this guy.”
“Then why weren’t you get chosen?”
“…… what are you talking about?”
“Your story.”
Asama-san laughs. A mysterious smile that seems to swallow you up. For some reason, my heart skips a beat.
“Why was it that you were wandering around town at this hour?”
“That’s …….”
“It doesn’t look like you were worried about Aoi-kun and was looking for him, nor are you playing around. But that doesn’t mean you look like you’re on your way home from somewhere.”
Asama-san slowly approaches Rengo.
“You know, you were afraid that Aoi-kun was going to win. You should have won in everything, but you couldn’t help shouting that you were better than him.”
“What ……”
“If Aoi-kun had really killed himself, you would have remained a loser for a long time. You were only deprived, not chosen. That’s why you just want Aoi-kun to…”
“S-Shut up! Don’t interrupt me from the side as a woman who doesn’t know anything. ……!”
Rengo shouted. But that voice doesn’t have the same authority as before. Rengo looks small, like a child being scolded by his teacher.
“Fufu, I’m going to quit because I feel sorry for you… Er, sorry. What’s your name again? Well, anyway, you, too, should go home soon. Your beloved girlfriend is waiting for you, isn’t she?”
“……!”
Rengo raises his fist. I panicked and tried to stop him, but Rengo wouldn’t do anything like raise his hand to the girl. He took a deep breath as if tired and lowered his fist.
“…Susumu. I don’t think I lost to you. Just don’t do anything that will make Ririka sad.
That’s all I want to say.”
“I don’t give a damn …….”
I don’t know if he heard my mutter. However, Rengo quickly leaves this place, as if he is running away.
“Fufu.”
Asama-san looked at Rengo’s back and laughed with a face like a fool.
“The ingrained feeling of inferiority is something that doesn’t go away easily. Before you know it, it turns into a feeling of impatience, and eventually turns into anger. If he continues like that, he’ll eventually ruin everything.”
“…… How could Asama-san know that?”
“That’s because I’m, special.”
Asama-san smiles happily and grabs my hand.
“Moreover, since we’re here, why don’t we go on a date? Today is the first time in a while it’s not even raining.”
“H-hey ……!”
Asama san forcibly leads me by the hand and we start walking. Even if you said you were going on a date at a time like this, I wouldn’t go, right? I can’t understand those words. Words like that can’t stop this girl.
“So, where are you taking me?”
“Somewhere fun.”
Where exactly?
“That’s a secret.”
After walking with her hand being pulled for a while, we came to the front of an abandoned building on the outskirts of town. Asama-san opened the door as if it were a matter of course and went up the fire escape.
“Is it okay to enter this without permission?”
“It’s alright, it’s alright. it’s my property.”
“Belongings are on a different scale…….”
Words and actions I don’t understand. …… Ah, but it’s still true. Next to this girl, I can forget about unnecessary things.
“Oops, too bad. When it’s clear you can see beautiful stars, but today it’s cloudy, so I can’t see anything.”
On the roof of a dimly lit building, Asama-san laughs. The way she takes her hands off me and spreads her arms out and smiles is still …… beautiful.
“…… Hey, Asama-san. Thank you for that …… just now.”
“Hmm? what?”
“No,……, I was a little bit mad. You helped me out.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’m on Aoi-kun’s side.”
Words of convenience. No one loves unconditionally. I know that, but the gentle voice makes me want to believe it.
“Hey, Aoi kun, Can I ask you why you can no longer draw pictures?”
“That’s sudden, isn’t it?”
“If you don’t want to, you don’t have to answer.”
“…… it’s a boring story, you know?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll laugh if it’s boring.”
“What’s that? Don’t worry about it.”
Unintentionally, I laugh. …… it’s nothing to hide. But when I think about it, I never told anyone about my weaknesses.
I look up at the sky. The sky is dark, with no moon or stars in sight. But that day, the sky was even rougher. The sound of rain, which should …… not be audible, is audible.
“When I was in junior high school, I suddenly wanted to paint the stars, so I rented a cottage at the foot of the mountains and holed myself up alone and painted. At the time I was on a roll after winning a great award, and painting was all I could think about.”
At the time I thought I was a genius. I was so smug that I thought I was born to paint.
But unfortunately, a typhoon came and the train stopped and I couldn’t go home, so my mother and father had to pick me up in the car.
I stop speaking there and touch the fence on the roof. It’s not very high. It’s easy to climb over. I let out a small, gasping breath.
“But no matter how long I waited, they never came. I tried calling them again and again, but they wouldn’t get through. When I came to, it was dawn and the typhoon had passed. Later, I was told that my father and mother had died in an accident ……. If I hadn’t done something unnecessary, …… they wouldn’t have died.”
I regretted. I repented, and I resented. But no matter how much I cried, my father and mother would not come back.
“When I hold the brush, I can hear the sound of the rain, which I shouldn’t be able to hear. The dead faces of my kind father and mother stick in my …… head and I can’t get rid of them.”
I find myself sweating all over and almost falling over from hyperventilation. It’s been years ago and I still haven’t forgotten or got over it.
“In the end, all I wanted to do was run away. I fell into the contest, I was kicked out of my relative’s house, Usa-san and Rengo were walking hand in hand, and Kamiya-san made fun of me. Well, of course I’m hurt, but that’s not enough to make me want to die.”
From the dimly lit sky, I turn my gaze towards Asama-san.
“I just wanted to get away from myself, from the fact that I was incapable of ……. That’s all.”
It’s pathetic to put it into words. But that was the essence of my problem.
“Then I’ll make you forget.”
Asama-san approaches me slowly. Without laughing, mocking or pitying me, she just stares straight at me.
“Aoi kun, I’ll show you a world so special that you’ll forget your pain and suffering.”
“A special world?”
“Yes, a special world.”
I thought Asama-san was joking and gave a small laugh, but she did not laugh.
“In return for Aoi-kun telling me about himself, I’ll tell you my secret too.”
The moonlight shines through the gaps in the clouds. The red eyes of Asama-san reflect the moonlight and glow bewitchingly. I thought it was …… beautiful. It’s truly so beautiful that I forget everything, and I can’t help but fall in love with it.
Asama-san said with a smile that seemed to blend in.
“─ ─ Actually, I’m not human.”
For some reason, I get choked up. Seeing me like that, Asama-san laughed, as if she was really enjoying herself.
“I’m only joking, joking. I know it’s hard for you, but thank you for telling me. …… Shall we go home soon? Oh, don’t forget to buy ice cream on the way home. Your sister will buy you the ice cream you like.”
Asama-san pulls my hand again and starts walking away. I don’t know the meaning of Asama-san’s words. But I was certainly attracted to this girl.
[TLN : Eh?…..Is it really supernatural? Is she really a vampire? lmao]
Man… What kind of childhood friends are they? Even more so, his supposedly “girlfriend”? Don’t they understand the pain of being left alone, and to top it off, the feeling of being responsible for his parents’ death? It’s great that Susumu looks like finally able to move on. And Susumu, definitely treasure Asama