Chapter 53: Shinjou Saya 2
From that miraculous, moving encounter, Yuuki-kun and I began meeting from time to time, and little by little, I came to understand what kind of person he was.
Apparently, something had happened when he was in elementary school, and he’d been bullied because of it. What that something was isn’t very clear.
There were all kinds of rumors, like that he stole the recorder of a girl he was close to, or that he’d used violence, but I don’t know which, if any, were true.
It seems that after his parents, or perhaps someone else, spoke to the school, the bullying died down. Even so, his position is still somewhat awkward, and he seems to be isolated in his class.
When I first heard that, I was cautious too, but after meeting him several times, I started to think that Yuuki-kun probably hadn’t done those things.
Still, they say there’s no smoke without fire, so something must’ve happened. Because of that, I kept just a little distance even now.
Even while I was lost in such carefree thoughts, I was still being bullied by those same girls.
Their actions kept growing more and more cunning. At first, they sometimes left marks in places people could see, but now they left injuries in places that couldn’t be seen.
As I wondered how long this would continue,
“W-what are you doing? Please stop.”
Yuuki-kun came toward us.
His legs were shaking slightly, but his face was filled with determination.
Perhaps because they’d been seen at the scene of the bullying, the girls panicked.
“W-we were just playing around a little, okay? So you don’t need to worry about it.”
Saying that, they ran off as if fleeing the scene.
Yuuki-kun held out his hand to me as I sat there, his face full of concern.
“I’m sorry. I was a little late helping you.”
“That’s not true. Thank you for helping me.”
I took Yuuki-kun’s hand, and he helped me to my feet.
Yuuki-kun’s kindness soothed my heart, which had been roughened by the bullying, just a little.
“Um, uh…”
“What is it?”
“Aren’t you going to report this to the school, Student Council President?”
Yuuki-kun asked that with a worried look on his face.
“I know it might seem like I’m butting in, and I know you probably have your reasons. But I don’t think there’s any reason it’s okay for you to be bullied like this.”
When he said that with those straightforward, pure eyes that held no deceit, my heart wavered.
“But I want to be a perfect student council president, someone everyone can rely on.”
That was what had always been stuck in my mind. I can’t rely on other people. That’s partly because of how others see me, and partly my own fault.
Wanting to be perfect is just my selfishness, but because I’ve lived that way until now, I end up believing that if I’m not like that, I have no value.
So I try to deal with this situation on my own.
I’ve tried talking things out and doing everything I can to get those girls to change their ways.
Because of that strange sense of justice and kindness, they took advantage of me, and that’s why I ended up like this again today.
Yuuki-kun squeezed my hand just a little tighter and looked at me with serious eyes.
“I’ve heard that the student council president is a good person everyone can rely on, and I know you’re popular too. But if that’s the reason you’re suffering, then that’s wrong.”
“But…”
I understand what he wants to say.
Even so, my small sense of pride wouldn’t allow it.
Responsibility.
Being perfect, being someone everyone relies on.
The responsibility that comes with that.
Acting like an adult, convincing myself I’d taken responsibility, pretending to be perfect and acting like I was shouldering responsibility, even though I couldn’t really do anything on my own.
It felt good.
Being relied on. Being seen as perfect by those around me. And yet, because of that pride, I was tightening the noose around my own neck.
“I understand. Then I’ll solve this myself. I’ll become someone you can rely on, Student Council President.”
The kindness I felt through his hand was real, and without thinking, I asked him.
“Why would you help someone you’ve only just met?”
“Of course, part of it is because I was bullied too, so I understand how it feels. But more than that, it’s because I want to be like the person who helped me. And I also have a promise with my dad.”
With that, Yuuki-kun smiled softly.
Looking back now, this was probably the moment when I clearly fell in love with Yuuki-kun.