Chapter 28 - Memory
"I'm home!"
"Excuse me for intruding."
After spending the day at the shopping mall, I headed to Mashiro’s apartment, just as planned.
We ended up with quite a lot of stuff.
The clothes Mashiro and I bought, along with some daily necessities and ingredients for tonight's dinner.
I carried all of that by myself, so I was pretty exhausted.
In my previous life as a working adult, I wouldn’t have hesitated to take a taxi. But now that I’m a high school student, I can’t afford such luxuries.
As I placed the bags on the floor of the apartment, Mashiro looked at me with a worried expression, holding a black and white stuffed cat.
"Are you okay...? It must have been heavy, right?"
"Nah, it’s no big deal. If anything, it was a good workout."
I smiled as I said this, but Mashiro still looked uneasy. Sure, it was heavy, but nothing I couldn’t handle. It really did feel like a good workout.
"I kept saying I’d help, but you were so considerate about my leg. Thank you so much, Ryusuke."
"Even though it's healed, I still worry. Don’t sweat it."
"Yeah... But, but now that we’re at the apartment, there’s no need to push yourself anymore. I’ll help carry the rest!"
"You’re the host, Mashiro, so I’ll follow your lead. I wouldn’t know where to put everything anyway."
"Then let’s do it together."
"But you take the lighter stuff. I’ll carry the groceries and daily necessities to the kitchen."
"Okay! Thanks, Ryusuke!"
Mashiro smiled happily, setting down the stuffed cat and picking up a large paper bag filled with clothes. After taking off my shoes, I grabbed the remaining bags and followed Mashiro.
For Shindo Ryusuke, visiting Mashiro’s apartment had become routine. It felt like I spent more time here than at my own home.
But for me, having reincarnated into this world, this is the first time. Actually, I had never even been inside a girl’s home in my previous life. No matter how familiar it might have been for Shindo Ryusuke, I couldn’t help but feel nervous, my body stiffening. But I couldn’t let that show, so I gathered my courage and followed Mashiro.
The apartment where Mashiro lived was clean.
It was a 3LDK—quite spacious for someone living alone.
I wondered why she lived in such a large place alone—.
Suddenly, memories of the days spent here with Mashiro began to flood my mind.
Playing games side by side, laughing until we cried while watching videos on our phones, sometimes even fighting... These memories passed by like a flash, warming my heart.
For me, for Shindo Ryusuke, every day spent with her was full of joy. These moments gradually brought the hazy memories of Shindo Ryusuke into sharp focus.
It might have been a small trigger.
But it was enough to completely restore the long-forgotten memories of Shindo Ryusuke.
I now clearly remembered.
There was a deep reason why Mashiro lived alone in this large apartment.
Originally, this apartment was home to Mashiro and her parents. But when Mashiro entered junior high, her father passed away in a car accident.
Grieving her husband’s death, Mashiro’s mother threw herself into her work to distract herself from the pain, spending less and less time at home. Eventually, she stopped coming home at all.
Since then, Mashiro had been living in this apartment all alone.
A young girl, enduring day after day of loneliness.
The depth of that loneliness was unimaginable. No one to see her off, no one to welcome her home. Eating meals alone, sleeping alone—her goodnights and good mornings swallowed by the empty silence. She continued this painful existence even now, as a high school student.
And within my heart, Shindo Ryusuke whispered the reason why he was always at Mashiro’s place.
'—I didn’t want Mashiro to be alone.'
That’s why he dragged her around with him. Shindo Ryusuke couldn’t leave his downcast, shy childhood friend alone. He wanted nothing more than to make her smile.
He spent time with her in her apartment, took her out into the night, trying to create happy memories so she could laugh.
And in his desire to protect Mashiro, Shindo Ryusuke began to admire strength.
But he misdirected that admiration.
The turning point was when Mashiro, still in junior high, was accosted by delinquents. Shindo Ryusuke tried to defend her, but he was still weak.
Although he managed to protect Mashiro, Shindo Ryusuke was severely injured, making her cry because he couldn’t fully protect her smile.
The helplessness he felt then led him down the wrong path.
He wanted to change his weak self, to become strong enough to protect Mashiro. But instead of finding the inner strength to support her, he sought to display strength through violence.
The delinquent manga that filled Shindo Ryusuke’s bookshelf weren’t the cause of his descent into the dark side. They were evidence of his struggle, his desperate search for a way to become strong enough to protect Mashiro.
And so he ventured into the world of delinquents, sinking deeper into the darkness. The path he had started down to protect Mashiro twisted, veering off course, until it eventually drove them apart. Before he knew it, he had become a hopeless villain in this world.
Realizing this, he began to distance himself from Mashiro, adopting a cold attitude.
If she stayed with him now, he wouldn’t make her smile—he’d only bring her misfortune.
That’s where the original story ends.
Shindo Ryusuke, the villain of this tale, meets his ruin, and Amanatsu Mashiro disappears soon after.
Shindo Ryusuke knew this was where things were headed, but he felt powerless to stop it. He had walked so far down the wrong path that there was no turning back.
This story, this world, forced him to be the villain. It pushed him toward an inescapable doom.
Inside, he silently screamed.
'I don’t know what to do.
I want to go back, but I can’t.
In my current state, I can’t make Mashiro happy.
Someone, please help me, someone...!'
Shindo Ryusuke wished for it.
Deep down, he cried out for help.
And that wish led to a miracle.
I, the person I am now, was reincarnated into Shindo Ryusuke’s life. Me, who is serious by nature, and has never had anything to do with delinquency.
I’ve inherited a body strong enough to protect Mashiro.
What I need now is the inner strength to continue supporting her.
That’s where I come in. Together with Shindo Ryusuke, we can protect Amanatsu Mashiro from the loneliness that plagues her.
We’ll save Mashiro from the tragic end.
Ryusuke and I will overturn the worst future together.
With my memories fully restored and my resolve strengthened, I felt that I had finally become one with Shindo Ryusuke in the truest sense.
"Ryusuke? What’s wrong?"
Mashiro, having finished putting away the bags, tilted her head, looking at me curiously.
It seemed like my deep thoughts had worried her.
I shook my head and placed the bag of groceries on the kitchen table as I answered.
"No, it’s nothing. I was just remembering things... about the past."
"Today? It was fun, wasn’t it? We made friends with Reo-kun and Nishikawa-kun, and we bought so much stuff!"
"Yeah, it was fun. But the day’s not over yet. I’m going to make you the most delicious dinner."
"I’ve been really looking forward to it! I can’t wait to eat your cooking, Ryusuke!"
Mashiro beamed with an innocent, carefree smile.
I walked over to her and gently placed my hand on her head.
She widened her eyes in surprise but soon closed them, looking content.
"Mm. I’m so happy... It’s been a while since you’ve patted my head."
"Yeah, it has, hasn’t it? It really has been a while."
Mashiro had always liked being patted on the head.
So whenever I did this, she would give me a happy smile.
When I vividly recalled my memories as Shindo Ryusuke, I saw her smile like this when her head was patted.
It was so cute that I wanted to see it again. I wanted to engrave it in my memory, never to forget it.
As I started to pull my hand away, Mashiro grabbed it and placed it back on her head. She then looked up at me, her clear blue eyes meeting mine.
While gazing at me, Mashiro spoke.
"If I ask you to do it more, would you?"
I ran my fingers gently through her hair as I replied.
"Then just a little longer."
Mashiro smiled happily.
"Okay."
As I gently stroked her head again, she closed her eyes, her expression softening with happiness.
Just seeing that soft smile spread across Mashiro’s face filled me with a sense of fulfillment. My resolve only grew stronger.
This world is already moving to destroy us. But I refuse to let it end in ruin—I won’t let it happen. I want to keep protecting Mashiro’s smile.
—Let’s do it, Ryusuke.
You and I will make Mashiro happy.