And she still had a great relationship with Nanashi.
I hated her. I hated him.
So, I did something unforgivable.
I revealed Eri Kashiwagi's identity to the whole school.
And I spread a rumor—
A vicious one.
That Eriri was a slut.
From that moment on, everyone at school looked at her differently.
She was ostracized. Bullied.
She trembled. She was terrified.
And I—
I felt the thrill of revenge.
I thought—
She'll come back to me now.
But—
Damn it. Damn it. DAMN IT!
Once again—
He stood in front of her.
Why?! Why is it always him?!
He…
—
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
A sharp horn blared.
BANG!!!
A sickening collision.
—
What… what's happening?
I… flew?
Pain—blinding pain—
"Aahhhh!!!"
A woman screamed.
"Someone call an ambulance!"
"There's so much blood! Help!"
Panic. Chaos.
—
At the Street Corner
Watching the commotion up ahead, Eriri hesitated, her voice small.
"What's going on over there?"
Nanashi pinched his chin, observing.
"Looks like a car accident. It's the guy on the bike from earlier."
"Huh?"
Eriri's mouth dropped open before she muttered,
"Well… that's what he gets for riding so fast."
Instinctively, she grabbed the hem of Nanashi's shirt, inching closer.
It wasn't clear if she was afraid of the scene—
Or if she just wanted to be near him.
Without a word, Nanashi wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
With his free hand, he gently covered her eyes.
Darkness.
Eriri stiffened in surprise.
Then, she heard his voice—low, soothing.
"Just follow me."
A pause.
Then, in a soft whisper,
"Okay."
Even with her vision obscured, surrounded by nothing but black—
She felt safe.
—
As they passed the accident site, Nanashi took a brief glance.
And then—
"Huh? It's him?"
His eyes widened in recognition.
It was Tomoya Aki.
That explained why the cyclist had seemed familiar.
—
"Huh? Who is it?"
Eriri's voice held a tinge of nervousness.
"Do you know them?"
Nanashi didn't hide the truth.
"It's Tomoya Aki."
—
Silence.
A name that froze Eriri in place.
Her body trembled.
As if she had just heard the name of a demon.
Tomoya Aki.
The one who destroyed her reputation.
The one who turned the entire school against her.
The one who made her feel so worthless—
So helpless—
That she had wanted to end it all.
He was a monster.
Her grip on Nanashi tightened.
Memories of junior high came rushing back.
The whispers. The stares. The laughter. The cruel words.
Nanashi felt her trembling and gently patted her head.
"It's okay. It's all in the past."
"Let's go."
She swallowed hard.
And then, like a frightened rabbit, she nodded.
"…Mm."
She didn't let go of him.
She couldn't.
Meanwhile, on the bloodstained road, a pair of lifeless, unblinking eyes stared at their retreating figures.
—
The Next Day
The news spread fast.
Tomoya Aki had died in the hospital after failing to recover from his injuries.
When his name was mentioned—
No one felt sorry for him.
The general reaction was indifferent.
"Oh, that crazy otaku?"
At most, people said, "It's none of my business."
No one mourned.
No one cared.
Except for Nanashi, who simply thought to himself—
"Well. Good riddance."
—
Yes.
Eriri's childhood decision had hurt Tomoya Aki.
But—
What Aki did in junior high was beyond cruel.
Eriri had almost taken her own life because of the relentless bullying he had caused.
Some wounds never heal.
Some scars never fade.
And some sins—
Are simply unforgivable.
—
Break Time – Paranormal Research Club
The clubroom was filled with the quiet hum of activity.
Yukino sat by the window, absorbed in a book, sunlight casting a soft glow on her.
Yui, sitting beside her, attempted to strike up casual conversation.
Meanwhile, Megumi sat off to the side, lazily scrolling through her phone.
Naturally, Yui and Yukino ignored her.
—
"Yukino-chan, what kind of activities does our club actually do?"
Yui's curious voice broke the silence.
—
"…"
Yukino frowned.
She had reminded Yui countless times not to call her that, yet the girl never listened.
Resigning herself, she sighed and answered,
"We take on commissions related to supernatural events and conduct investigations."
Yui's eyes lit up with excitement.
"Whoa! So, have you and Nanashi completed any cases yet?"
Even Megumi looked up from her phone, suddenly intrigued.
—
"…"
Yukino glanced at Nanashi, who sat across the room, eyes closed as if he were resting.
Then, with a straight face, she answered—
"Not even once."
—
"Eh? Seriously?"
Yui and Megumi turned their gazes toward Nanashi.
Their expressions practically screamed, 'Is this club even functioning?!'
—
But at that moment, Nanashi wasn't paying attention to their conversation.
His focus was elsewhere—
In the chat group.
—
Nami: "@Nanashi, you're the worst!"
Cough.
The moment she messaged, he already knew what she was about to complain about.
—
Nanashi: "Didn't you start it?"
Nami: "But I begged for mercy later! Why didn't you stop?!"
Nanashi: "Oh, so I'm just supposed to stop whenever you say so? Where's the fun in that?"
Nanashi: "Honestly, Nami, you didn't even last 30 minutes. That's kinda lame."
Nami: "T-That's because you're too much!"
March 7th: "Oh my god! Are you two fighting?!"