We spent a lazy moment relaxing together after the meal.
Akise-san and I sat side-by-side on the sofa while Yui pulled a chair from the living room to join us. We were all enjoying some idle, meaningless chatter. Yui had practically forced us to sit right next to each other, but since we spent every lunch break on the same bench anyway, I figured it was a bit late to start feeling awkward and just went with it.
As I sat there, zoning out to the cheerful background music of the two girls laughing together, a soft chime rang out.
It was a LINE notification. It seemed to be from my phone. Until a week ago, I hadn’t been used to that sound, but lately, I’d grown accustomed to hearing it during my nightly chats with Akise-san before bed.
I checked the screen, wondering who it could be.
"Is something wrong?" Akise-san asked.
"No, I just don't recognize the sender... The name is 'Rino' in English. Maybe it’s spam?"
The moment the name left my lips, Akise-san’s expression stiffened. "That... might be Makabe-san."
My heart skipped a beat. Makabe. That was a name I wouldn't soon forget. She was the one who had tried to blackmail Akise-san using her past and then, out of spite for being thwarted, had spread rumors that we were dating.
To be perfectly honest, I felt almost nothing toward her. She and her friends were the kind of petty people who derived joy from cornering a single person from a position of one-sided superiority. They were the type to spread groundless lies the moment their fun was interrupted.
From my perspective, I didn’t have the time or energy to waste on people like that. But for Akise-san, who had actually been targeted and whose school life could have been ruined, it wasn't something she could just brush off.
At least, that’s what I thought.
"What does the message say?" she asked. Her voice was calm—no trace of anger or fear. "She must be up to something if she’s messaging you directly."
"O-Oh... Let me see."
Confused by her unexpected composure, I opened the message from the person I assumed was Makabe. My breath hitched as I read the lines.
'I know about that violence incident you caused in middle school.' 'If you don't want me to talk, come to the Civic Studies Prep Room on the 4th floor on Monday.' 'Don’t tell anyone.'
Talk about perfect timing. Or maybe it was the exact opposite? In any case, receiving this just after I’d resolved to tell Akise-san everything felt like some kind of sign. Perhaps this was the push I needed to start the conversation.
I turned the screen toward Akise-san and Yui. Akise-san’s face immediately tightened. I gave a single nod to Yui, who was watching me with deep concern, and then turned my full attention to Akise-san.
"Akise-san, there’s something I need to tell you. It might be unpleasant to hear, but will you listen?"
"Yes," she replied, her gaze steady. "I’ll listen to everything."
She was smart; she probably already had a general idea of what 'violence incident' referred to. Even so, she straightened her posture and looked me straight in the eye, as if bracing herself.
Her gaze was so full of trust that I almost looked away. I clenched my fists and forced myself to stay firm. Don’t run away, Tatsumi.
"It started back when Yui was in her second year of middle school—"
I began to recount the incident from a year ago. With Yui occasionally filling in the details, I laid out the facts as objectively as I could. I tried to keep my personal feelings out of it, but my voice still trembled when I reached the part where Yui was nearly attacked.
"—That’s everything. That’s the 'violence incident' she’s talking about."
I finished the story and realized I was staring down at the floor. Silence fell over the living room. Neither Yui nor Akise-san moved a muscle.
I couldn't bring myself to look up. What was she thinking? Was she looking at me with sympathy? Disgust? Disappointment?
I was terrified to see her face. Despite all my big talk yesterday, I was still a coward when faced with the truth. I had grown into a big man, but I hadn't matured at all.
Don't look away, I told myself. This is the result of your own actions. Accept it. Even if she abandons me now, I have to—
"Yanagida-kun."
I felt something warm. Akise-san’s hands were wrapping around my clenched fists.
Startled, I looked up. Her eyes met mine. There was no disgust or disappointment there. There was only unwavering trust and affection. A soft, caring smile played on her lips.
"First... thank you for telling me."
"It's... not something you need to thank me for. I just..."
"Did you think it was unfair that only you knew my secret?"
"I... yeah."
"But that wasn't all, was it? Keeping it hidden... it was starting to hurt, wasn't it?"
Her voice wasn't accusatory. It was so gentle it made me want to cry, as if she were trying to pull all the pain out of me.
"Maybe. I just wanted you to know, Akise-san. I wanted you to know what I’m really like."
"What you're really like?"
"I’m weak. I’m the kind of person who uses his fists without thinking of the fallout. I didn't think about the consequences or the trouble I would cause others..."
"Mm-hm."
"...And more than anything, even if I regret the trouble I caused, I don't regret the act itself. To this day, I still think that punching those guys was the right thing to do."
That feeling had never changed.
"That’s why I’ll probably do it again. If something happens to Yui... or to you, Akise-san, I know I’ll jump in without a second thought. That’s just who I am."
My size and my strength didn't matter. I was someone who couldn't control himself, someone who didn't hesitate to hurt others and wouldn't even repent for it if it meant protecting the people I cared about. That was the reality of the weak man named Tatsumi Yanagida.
Suddenly, the warmth on my hands vanished. A heavy sense of loss washed over me, followed by a cold sense of resignation. She was giving up on me. It was only natural. For someone who had been a victim of bullying, I must have looked just like her tormentors—
Squish.
"Wha—? Akise-shan?"
Her hands hadn't pulled away; they had moved to my face. She was now sandwiching my cheeks between her palms, kneading them back and forth. I blinked in total confusion, my previous angst momentarily forgotten.
Akise-san let out a little giggle. "I could tell you were thinking about something stupid. First of all, let me be clear: hearing that story won't ever make me hate you."
"But—!"
"Getting angry for someone else's sake and moving to protect them is a virtue, Yanagida-kun. You helped me too, remember? Even though I was a stranger. I know better than anyone that your heart is filled with kindness."
"Akise-san..."
"But I suppose you won't be satisfied with just that," she said. She gave me a radiant smile, like a flower in full bloom. It was so beautiful it took my breath away. "So, I’ll stay by your side."
My heart hammered against my ribs.
"If something like that happens again... I’ll be there to stop you. And then we can think about what to do together. That makes it okay, right?"
"..."
"That... that sounds like you’re saying you’ll stay with me forever."
"Yes," she whispered, looking a little shy. "I want to be by your side forever."
I felt like I was going to explode. I wanted to shout for joy.
"What about you, Yanagida-kun? Don't you feel the same?"
"I do. I want that too. I want to be with you forever, Akise-san."
"Good," she said, her smile turning relieved.
I couldn't help but smile back. There we were, grinning at each other while she still held my cheeks, until a sudden sob from the side broke the moment.
"Uwaaaaaah... h-hic!"
"Yui? Why are you the one crying?"
"Because! Because it’s so...! I knew Brother was hurting because of me, but I couldn't do anything! But now... I’m just so happy he has someone who understands him!"
"You're right," Akise-san said, pulling the wailing girl into a hug. "It must have been hard for you too, Yui-chan. You did so well."
"Uwaaaaaah! Haruka-shaaaaan!"
Yui clung to her and cried even harder. It was a complete mess. I hadn't seen her cry like this since the day of the incident. She must have been holding it all inside for a year. As her brother, I felt a little pathetic for not noticing.
It took a while for us to soothe her, but eventually, we got back to the matter of the LINE message. Yui, however, refused to let go of Akise-san, remaining glued to her side on the sofa. I was a little jealous, but I kept it to myself.
"So," Yui sniffled. "What are we going to do?"
"Honestly, I don't care if she talks," I said. "I didn't have many friends to begin with, and the ones I do have already don't like me because of my relationship with Akise-san."
"That's not true! You've been getting along with people lately. You were great at basketball the other day!"
"Yeah, and that was followed by a total disaster after you hugged me from behind."
"Ahaha... sorry. Did you hate it?"
"It wasn't exactly unpleasant."
No guy would hate being hugged by the girl he liked. Yui gave us both a look of pure judgment.
"Hey, stop flirting."
"Ahem! Right. Anyway, we can't ignore her. It’s not just about me; she knows about your past too, Akise-san."
"Haruka-san's secret?" Yui asked. "Can I hear it too?"
"I'll tell you later, Yui-chan. Oh, wait—should we exchange LINE info?"
"Really? Yes! Let’s do it!"
The two girls happily pulled out their phones. I waited for them to finish before we resumed the discussion. We went back and forth for a while, but eventually, I realized we were overcomplicating things.
"You know, I don't think this is a problem we have to solve ourselves."
"You're right," Akise-san agreed. "Let's rely on an adult. We haven't done anything wrong. We can go talk to a teacher on Monday. Maybe our homeroom teacher, Mr. Azuma?"
"Mr. Azuma knows my history and he’s been looking out for me. I think he’d be willing to help."
"That’s a relief!"
And so, it was settled. I might have been taking it a bit lightly, but I had no reason to deal with people like Makabe head-on. I’d rather spend my energy on a much more difficult problem.
Namely, when and how I was actually going to confess to Akise-san.
I felt like our 'forever' talk had basically served as a confirmation of our feelings, but I didn't want to leave things vague. We were on the same page, right? She wouldn't say 'I didn't mean it like that' after all that, would she?
Thinking back, we had said something even bigger than a confession. That was basically a propo—no, stop. That’s too fast. But being together forever meant eventually get marr—I said stop it!
"Umm... Haruka-san? Can I... can I call you 'Big Sister'?"
"Wait, what? But that sounds like...!"
"Please! I've always wanted an older sister. And you're going to stay with my brother forever, right? So it’s just a matter of time anyway."
"U-Uuugh... I mean, I guess you're right. Oh my god, did I really say something that bold?! But I meant it... Okay! From today on, I’m your big sister, Yui-chan!"
"Thank you, Big Sister Haruka!"
I told you both to stop it!!
After that, Akise-san told Yui about her past with the bullying, and Yui cried all over again. It was a full-blown wail. She spent the rest of the evening stuck to Akise-san like a burr. When it was finally time for Akise-san to go home, I had a hell of a time peeling Yui off her.
Well, at least they were getting along. Akise-san seemed pretty happy about it, too.