Volume 1 - CH 20

Posted on March 19, 2022by Soafp

Translator: Soafp

Saturday arrived.

What is so sad that I have a date with my ex-girlfriend? In the first place, I never dated that girl during the short time we were dating.

So, in front of the station.

When I arrived before the meeting time, Shirase was already there.

It was fresh to see her in plain clothes for the first time.

Shirase stood out from the crowd. People who passed by her stared at her and were surprised at her cuteness. She looked very neat in a one-piece dress. She was approached several times, but Shirase didn’t pay attention to them.

“You are late”

“I’m right on time, no?”

“It’s a basic rule of thumb on a date to arrive well in advance.”

“Sorry about that.”

“Well, that’s all right. So, first of all, what do you think of my clothes. Or rather, compliment me.”

“It looks good on you.”

“……Thank you very much”

Shirase’s cheeks flushed red.

She is still cute on the outside. That much is for sure.

“Nijitani-san is looking good too.”

“Thanks for that one.”

“Now then, what do we do now?”

Shirase asked.

“Do I get to decide?”

“I’m the type of person who leaves dating to men.”

I thought that since she asked me out, she should decide what to do, but I accepted the invitation because I didn’t want to follow her plan.

“Then, a movie.”

“That’s too safe”

“Shut up. I don’t care if it’s safe.”

Shirase looks disappointed.

I was a little annoyed, but I am not the one who gets angry at this level.

“Have you contacted your brother ……?”

“No problem. He’s probably following me.”

“All right then.”

We headed for the movie theater with little conversation. On the way, Shirase almost fell down in the middle of nowhere, but she was mumbling and complaining about the ground.

“Now, what shall we watch?”

I look at the posters in front of the cinema showing movies. Many of them are romance movies. There is also an animated movie, which is very popular these days. Personally, I would like to recommend anime.

“As I said, it’s an act. It is impossible to watch a romantic movie together and expect to get intoxicated by the atmosphere and have a chance.”

Shirase looks at the poster of a man and a woman hugging each other and gives me the jitters.

“Don’t worry. I have no intention of doing that.”

“I wonder. There are very few men who would not fall for my charms.”

“Don’t say it yourself. Besides, I think you’d be better suited to this one.”

It’s a horror movie about a child’s evil spirit going on a rampage. In this exciting film, a child who has met a tragic end becomes an evil spirit and attacks happy-looking children one after another.

This title has been shown for a long period of time and has taken the world by storm with its brutal content. It is also highly acclaimed by the public.

“…..What do you mean”

“It’s similar, isn’t it? This evil spirit.”

I pointed to the poster.

The girl who seemed to be a child actress had a face similar to that of Shirase. She was probably about the same height as Shirase.

“Oh, so you’re saying I’m an evil spirit?”

“To me at least.”

“……”

“Pssst!”

Silently, she stepped on my foot.

“It’s decided. I’m definitely going to watch this.”

“Are you serious?”

“I’m serious. Here, it’s decided.”

She had actually made up her mind when we were talking about heading to the movie theater.

Why?

This is because this girl is not good at horror stories. I remember she was not good at ghosts and hauntings.

“What, are you scared?”

“Y-You think I’m going to be intimidated by a horror movie of this caliber?”

“Your voice is shaking. Totally, you’re just as much a child on the inside as you are on the outs– ouch!”

She stepped on my foot again.

The attack with all her weight on me hurt more than I had imagined.

“Funn, all right. Let’s enjoy this movie. I can handle it, but I wonder if you can stand it. I’ll enjoy watching you get all scared and teary-eyed.”

Me and Shirase were to watch the movie together.

“–Have you stopped shaking?”

When I mouthed the words in dismay, Shirase smiled awkwardly.

“W-what are you talking about?　I am not shaking.”

We left the movie theater and headed for a cafe. It was a little far away from the school so that people wouldn’t notice us.

This girl was screaming a lot more than I had expected. Several times she almost fainted, and during the screening she hugged my arm multiple times while I was sitting next to her, and every time she would get angry and glare at me. Unreasonable.

Shirase reaches for the parfait she ordered.

After taking a bite, her complexion suddenly changed. She seemed to like the parfait so much that she started to eat it without saying a word. I sipped my coffee as I watched.

Suddenly, Shirase started laughing.

“What’s wrong?”

“No, I just thought Nijitani-san was a funny guy.”

“You’re so abrupt and rude.”

“Because, you know, it’s true.　For someone who said that he didn’t want to be friends with me, Nijitani-san’s behavior seemed as if you were enjoying the date. You were laughing just now. Your words and actions don’t seem to mesh with each other.”

My heart races with surprise. We watch a movie together and have tea at a cafe. From the outside, we are a perfect couple.

And I was laughing?

That’s impossible. No matter how much time is a panacea, I haven’t forgotten what happened.

“You don’t seem to understand your own heart.”

“tsu”

“Well, boys can be abusive to girls they like, calling them ugly and so on. I have also had an experience in the past where a boy who teased me by calling me ‘short’ confessed his feelings to me. So I can understand. You really wanted to get close to me, didn’t you? You have a cute side, don’t you, Nijitani-san?”

What is the devil saying?

I’m–

“It’s not like I’m having any fun at all.”

“Really?　I thought I was—“

Shirase’s phone vibrated.

Her expression changed to one of relief when she checked the contents.

“…… Speaking of which, what happened to your brother’s end?”

A big exhale and a change of subject.

“It’s perfect. I just received a call. It seems he believed me. He saw me going in and out of the movie theater, and he was convinced.”

“Seriously, it’s that simple. Then the plan worked.”

“For the time being, yes.”

For the time being?

That’s an ominous word.

“It should buy me some time. Good for you, isn’t it?”

“Why are you looking at me? This is the end of my part.”

“No, my father is not the kind of person who would give up after something like this. The agreement I made with Nijitani-san was ‘until the problem is solved’. The fundamental problem to be solved is to settle the relationship with my father. My father will not give up just because he backed out once.”

“……”

What’s that? You’re acting like a fraud again.

Perhaps Shirase’s mental state, worn out by the horror movie, had recovered, and her expression was relaxed, a complete change from the horror-stricken expression she had earlier.

“Please continue to pretend to be my lover.”

“I refuse.”

“Are you going to break the contract?”

“You obviously deceived me. It’s invalid.”

“…… I see. I’m sorry, but it can’t be helped. I’m sorry to hear that, but I don’t have a choice. I understand.”

She gave up easily for a proposal.

“But the promise to stay away from you in the future is meaningless, you know?”

“……Seriously?”

“Do not worry. I do not intend to embarrass you as Black. But now that we are involved in this way, we cannot be strangers, can we? I don’t want my brother to suspect that we aren’t involved in a relationship anymore. How about we just be friends from now on?”

“……”

“I will try not to be too friendly. I’m sure you have similar relationship with the other devils, right? Is there any reason why I should be excluded?”

It can’t be helped.

I nodded and Shirase muttered a small “…… okay.”

I’m friends with my ex-girlfriend.

But this girl is so pushy. She should learn how to make friends from someone. That way is definitely not the way to go.

“Now, once again, my friend, Nijitani-san.”

“What?”

“I apologize for getting involved by forceful means, but my feud with my father is real.”

“… You were about to get married.”

“That is only the cause of my running away from home. My relationship with my father had been cold even before that. Specifically, since I was in middle school.”

So you were cold. I didn’t have any pretense of that back then.

I hear that puberty for girls is intense. I’ve heard that they don’t want to share hot water with their fathers, or that they try to separate their laundry. I heard that some families get into fights because of that.

“What caused the cold feet?”

“It’s the engagement fiasco there, too. It was a big deal at the time, but it drifted away.”

That’s what I’d expect from the president’s daughter. I can’t imagine getting engaged in junior high school or anything like that to me.

I was dating this girl in the winter of my eighth grade year. Maybe there was some trouble back then.

“That’s when the fight broke out. I was going to go to the high school of Himemiya Jogakuin, but I defied my father and enrolled in Tenkain Academy. I didn’t like the idea of being at that man’s beck and call.”

“So the fights escalated and you finally left home to live on your own.”

“That’s right.”

In terms of the situation, it was a clash between the daughter’s selfishness and her father’s arrogance.

“By the way, my mother is on my side. She prepared the necessary documents for me to start living on my own.”

“And then your brother came to take you back.”

“I am sorry for causing such a commotion because of the mess among my people.”

Shirase bowed deeply.

I have a general grasp of the situation. So she found me there, who happened to be causing a ruckus with Kuromine, and approached me, thinking that she could take the transfer student vote away from Kuromine if she had the chance.

“…… how are you going to solve the underlying problem?”

“So let’s have a strategy meeting now. My friend Nijitani-san.”

And so the strategy meeting began.

I don’t remember much of the meeting. But what Shirase said to me, [You don’t seem to understand your own heart.] remained in my mind.