Chapter 15 – Nakamura Wataru: Isn’t This Something I Shouldn’t Be Watching? (4)
It was Haruka I relied on.
It was about time for the date to change, so I asked if we could talk on the phone, but she came directly to my room.
"It's rare for you to want to talk at this time, what's up?"
She was dressed in pink pajamas with a gown, an outfit I rarely see even though she lives next door.
"Were you about to go to bed?"
The separate pajamas have a lower exposure than the uniform, but for some reason, it makes my heart race.
We sit facing each other at the dining table as usual.
"No, I was planning to stay up a bit longer, so it's fine."
Haruka smiles cheerfully, but I can faintly see the tiredness around her eyes.
Maybe it's work... or something might have happened at home.
I've heard from her before that things aren't going well at Haruka's house.
She seemed to regret having let it slip, so I make sure not to bring it up.
Before getting to the main topic, I serve Haruka some hot milk.
"Thanks."
Haruka blows on the milk and takes a small sip.
Her tense expression softens.
I can tell because we've been friends for a long time, even though it's a subtle change.
Anyway, she seems a bit more relaxed now.
"I want to talk about a friend."
At my prompt, Haruka responds with a mischievous smile, "Hmm?"
"If it's a consultation I received, 99 percent of the time it's about the person themselves, right?"
"No, no, it's really about a friend, okay?"
"The number of consultations I get a year exceeds a hundred, you know?"
She's busy yet so popular!
"As expected of Haruka-san. Please listen to my consultation too."
"Alright. So, what's the problem?"
"It's about a friend who's visually attractive and popular."
"Hmm?"
"Any questions?"
"I think... it's fine?"
Why does she look a bit pitying?
"I'm not talking about my own visuals, okay!?"
"Uh-huh. And then?"
Ugh... It's annoying how you seem to enjoy this.
"They're troubled because they keep getting approached by the opposite sex they're not interested in."
"Hmm, hmm...? Oh..."
Now she looks confused and a bit down.
She's a busy person.
"Moreover, they're also dealing with a lot of jealousy from the same sex. They're wondering what to do about it."
"Did you hate it that much when I talked to you?"
"Huh?"
"Sorry, I didn't realize. But you don't have to beat around the bush like this."
Haruka looks like she's about to cry.
"No, no, no! It's really not about me!"
"Really? You don't find me annoying?"
"Not at all, not at all."
"So, do you like me?"
The upturned eyes of a beautiful girl are the strongest.
"Well, that's..."
Certainly, she's an important childhood friend, and I think she's cute, but until we can go back to being like the three of us used to be, I can't really think about that...
While I was lost in thought, Haruka kept staring at me intently.
An anxious and fleeting expression.
I didn't miss the brief smile that appeared on her lips, which stirred a strong protective desire in me.
"Hey, at what point did this become a farce?"
"What are you talking about?"
Haruka looked away with a feigned innocent face.
She knew it wasn't about me and still played along.
"For now, I guess there's no choice but to keep rejecting, no matter how many times."
She suddenly goes back to the main topic.
"But if the person who's coming on to you has a lot of friends, it often leads from 'poor thing, got rejected (serves them right)' to spreading bad rumors about the one who rejected them. That's something to be careful about."
She's so lively!
Girls really like this kind of topic, huh?
"I want to reject as gently as possible, but with someone who won't give up, the fake girlfriend strategy is the way to go, right? It's classic and risky, but it's also common for the fake girlfriend to become the real girlfriend, which is a happy ending in itself."
The process is more detailed than mine, but the conclusion is the same, isn't it?
"Huh...?"
"Fake, girlfriend? Not boyfriend?"
"Huh? Is your friend a girl?"
"Yes, why?"
"You have female friends, Wataru?"
"Well, yeah, I talk to girls at school, but?"
"Are you close enough to discuss such matters?"
"Ugh..."
She hit a sore spot.
“...”
“...”
I wait for a while as Haruka frowns in thought.
"The fake boyfriend strategy is a terrible idea!"
She suddenly opens her eyes wide as if she realized something.
"What happened all of a sudden!?"
"It's the epitome of insincerity! You better not do anything like that, Wataru!"
Haruka is ranting with great fervor.
"Okay, okay. I wasn't planning on it anyway."
"Good."
Haruka sits back down and takes a deep breath.
Is it something to get so worked up about?
"So, about the countermeasures..."
She suddenly becomes serious.
I can't keep up with the change in tension.
"I understand because I've been persistently followed by annoying fans on social media, but the best thing is to not engage with them. If they're excessively persistent, firmly reject them once and then ignore them. That's the way to go."
"I agree, but it's not that simple since they work at the same part-time job."
"You might as well just date them... Ha! No, nothing! Hmm, in that case, jealousy is more of a problem than the person themselves."
"Is that so?"
"Girls' jealousy is scary, you know? As I said earlier, spreading bad rumors about the person who was confessed to is just the beginning."
"Seriously...?"
"Ah, of course, I wouldn't do such a thing. It's just that there are girls who would. Then you have to convince not only the person but also everyone around them."
"What a hassle."
"Right?"
Haruka sticks out her tongue with a look of disgust.
"Maybe saying you actually have someone you like is the best option."
"Hmm, hmm."
"But then you'll get questions like 'Why didn't you say so before?' or 'I'm obviously better.' Worst case, they might even demand to meet that person."
"Hmm, hmm."
I've become a complete nodding machine.
"I'll message you later about how to handle it since the patterns are pretty much set, even if the wording is different."
"That would really help."
"I always get meals and study help from you, so this is nothing."
Haruka smiles and quickly finishes the lukewarm milk left in her cup.
"If it's about girls, you can count on me."
I'll take you up on that.
It really helped.
I'd like to consult about the relationship between Haruka and Aoi too, if I could.
But that's not possible.