Chapter 6 - The Beautiful Girl in The Next Seat Still Hasn't Given Up
Sinking into the softness of my bed, I—Tsukishiro Rei—gaze at the screen of my smartphone. The light of dusk filters through the gap in the curtains, painting the walls of my room in a warm orange hue. It’s a quiet, peaceful moment.
The name displayed on the screen—Kanzaki Tsubasa. Just seeing it makes my chest gently warm.
“I finally... exchanged contact info with Kanzaki-kun.”
The moment I said it aloud, embarrassment overwhelmed me, and I buried my face into the pillow. I could never let him see me like this.
But when I look at Kanzaki-kun’s name, a memory surfaces. That was my first love. Spring of third-year middle school, in the library—
It all started with something small. I wore glasses and spent my breaks reading alone—that was all.
At first, people would laugh and say, “You’re so serious,” but before I knew it, the words changed to “gloomy” and “otaku girl,” and I found myself outside the circle of the classroom.
People stopped talking to me, and one day someone scribbled on my desk. The faces of the kids laughing as they looked at me were terrifying, and all I could do was hang my head. Gradually, I started thinking, “I don’t want to go to school.”
It was during that time. While avoiding others, I began frequenting the library—and that’s where I met him: Kanzaki Tsubasa.
He was reading a book alone. Normally, I wouldn’t pay it any mind, but I couldn’t take my eyes off the book in his hands. It was The Heroine in The Next Seat Project—my favorite novel.
A plain, unnoticed girl is chosen to play the heroine in the school festival play, and that sparks a gradual transformation—that kind of story.
It’s a chaotic comedy, but the ending is so moving it squeezes your heart... No matter how many times I read it, I always find courage in the protagonist, Yuuka-chan.
“That book’s really good, isn’t it?”
I spoke without thinking.
“Yeah, it’s amazing. You read it too?”
From there, the conversation flowed. The charm of the characters, the twists in the story, the author’s quirks—we talked about it all. Before I knew it, I was completely absorbed in our exchange.
And then, in a fleeting moment, I realized—
—I’m smiling.
How long had it been since I could talk and laugh with someone from the heart?
Kanzaki-kun never called me “loner” or teased me about my glasses. He simply treated me like a fellow person who shared the same interests.
From that day on, I started going to the library after school. Even on days when I didn’t know if he’d show up, I’d sit at a desk, open a book, and turn the pages.
When the door opened and he walked in, it felt like my whole day had been saved.
I realized—this feeling wasn’t just gratitude. I felt safe when I was with him. I wanted to talk to him. I wanted him to smile.
—Ah, I’m in love.
I gathered my courage in the spring of third-year middle school. Before the cherry blossoms had fallen, I stopped him in the library after school.
My heart felt like it was going to leap out of my throat. But even so, I had to tell him. I’d never been so brave in my life.
“Kanzaki-kun, I like you. Please go out with me.”
The moment I said it, it felt like the world stopped. But what came from his lips was—a gentle yet unmistakable rejection.
“Sorry. I can’t go out with you, Tsukishiro-san.”
I didn’t know the reason. I didn’t have the courage to ask. All I heard was the sound of something crumbling deep inside my chest.
—It must be because I’m plain and dull. Because I wear glasses, have a gloomy face, and nothing special about me. That’s why he turned me down.
That night, crying as I returned home, my eyes fell on the cover of The Heroine in The Next Seat Project sitting on my desk.
I have to change. I can’t stay like this. I want him to look my way again.
I switched from glasses to contacts. Learned makeup from videos, grew out my hair and took care of it. Bit by bit, I studied fashion. Even started exercising, though I wasn’t good at it.
All of it so that when I saw him again, he wouldn’t be disappointed. And because I couldn’t bear the thought of saying goodbye, I chose the same high school as him.
The spring air was still cold, and the cherry blossoms in the schoolyard were in full bloom. It was our middle school graduation ceremony.
While my classmates cried and laughed, I pushed through the crowd, searching for him.
—I want to tell Kanzaki-kun again.
That’s what I was thinking.
I’d taken off my glasses, grown and styled my hair, and kept working hard. I’d gained more confidence than before. So today, I thought I could finally say, “I haven’t given up.”
—That’s what I thought.
But the moment I saw him standing among the crowd in front of the school gate after the ceremony, I couldn’t breathe. The person there wasn’t the Kanzaki Tsubasa I knew.
His posture was straight and tall, his body slim and toned. The uniform suited him, and his profile in the light looked like a movie star. The girls squealing around him—it felt completely natural.
—He’s way too cool.
My chest tightened. Just that alone blew away all the words I’d prepared.
I was supposed to tell him, “I haven’t given up,” but my legs wouldn’t move. My voice wouldn’t come out.
I hid in the shadow of the school gate, and all I could do was watch him.
Maybe he doesn’t remember. Maybe he’s even forgotten that I confessed to him.
Even so—
I still haven’t given up. This time, I want to stand beside him and smile—