"Haaaaaah…I feel like shit." I bring a hand to my temple as I lay back on my chair in anguish. I know this feeling. This lack of energy, this extreme exhaustion that makes even thinking seem like a bother; I'm all too familiar with it. It's been a while since I've last felt like this, and I have to say, the me in the past whose every day was like this must've been an insane existence. I haven't spent more than half a day like this, and I'm already at my wits' end. Truly amazing how resilient I was back in the day; it’s really surprising that I survived till today.

"…At times like this, it’s just better to forget everything by going to sleep, but…I can't do that here." Leaving out another sigh, I turn to look around me. I’m at the university’s cafeteria, just where I told Rei I’d be. It was a bit challenging to find, I’m not gonna lie, but oh well, the effort more or less paid off. After having a quick tour inside, I found this nice spot just outside one the side entrances to the cafeteria. That being said…no matter how nice it is, that doesn’t mean I can just fall asleep here. 

Hmm…in that case, I'll just try to think about happy things to help me forget. Yup, that should work; come on, Sakura, think of happy things, like how you’re already behind schedule on your work, or about how you need to clean the house later today, and how you'll soon need to go buy groceries…Haha…those are not happy things at all, are they? …I'm stupid.

Tch, tch. This wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t left Rei behind. If he were here, he’d surely be able to keep me distracted enough so I don’t even get the chance of thinking about unnecessary things.

“Haaaaah…I guess I deserve it.”

“Heh, well, if you’re so sure you deserve it, then come with me. There’s a prize I can give you, pretty.” The moment that voice enters my ears, I can feel my expression twist into a seriously ugly one. I spare a glance at the owner of the voice; a tall guy that seems older than me, wearing a university jacket with his hair combed backwards and standing with a smug smile on his face. Tch. Tch. Tch. Tch. I’m not in the mood, and now there’s an annoying fly that seems to be begging me for death. 

"........."…Fuuuu, don’t say things like that; just breathe, Sakura, breathe—don’t make a scene. With my right eye still twitching in sheer frustration, I try to reform my facial expression into a more amicable one, in hopes of being able to get out of this situation in a peaceful manner.

“...I’m sorry, but I’m waiting for my boyfriend.”

“Heh, that doesn’t matter. He surely won’t mind if you disappear for a few minutes...” The guy eyes me up and down as the words leave his mind, and at the end nods to himself. So…he’s looking for a quickie…? I mean, that’s the only conclusion that can be reached from what he’s saying, right? Why else would he need me just for a few minutes? To hold hands? As if. I thought he was just some random guy trying to flirt with me, but…he’s even worse than that. Those guys mostly just strike up a conversation with me and leave once I politely reject them; while they are annoying, they aren’t very disrespectful, or at least that’s what I’ve learned from personal experience. But this guy…doesn’t respect me at all. If he did, he wouldn’t be eyeing me with such disgustingly lustful eyes. Tch, it’s riling me up.

“Tch. I said no, so fuck off.” Clicking my tongue at him in irritation, I turn my attention to my phone as I wave at him dismissively with my hand.

“Heh, playing hard to get, are we?” Hah?…I don’t even want to know what kind of crazy thought process he had to go through to get the idea that I’m ‘playing hard to get.’ Is this what they call having a god complex? Like, thinking there’s no way I’d refuse him, and thus interpreting my rejection as just me trying to seduce him by ‘playing’ the tough girl? How delusional.

“...Why are you still here? I’m sure I told you to fuck off, didn’t I?“

“......Hmph, alright. I think that’s enoug—” Perhaps starting to feel impatient, the guy puts his hand on my shoulder, and I immediately brush him off.

“...Put your hands on me just one more time, and I swear on my name I’ll make you regret it for the rest of your life.” 

"............Tch, hey. Listen here, pretty. I’m all with tough girls like you, I really am, but even I get tired of playing nice. Remember that."

"Pffffft! Hahahaha! Oh, really now?" …I wonder what kind of expression I have right now. Definitely not one I would ever show to Sora. My expression has long gone past rage, with a smile slowly creeping its way up my face. Heh, I'm smiling, but I'm not happy; I’m laughing, but there’s nothing about this situation that I find funny. It seems my anger and my irritation have found its way into the expressions of their opposites. So infuriated that I’m smiling…so annoyed that I’m laughing; …I must’ve gone mad. If this is not the expression of a demon, then I don’t know what is.

Taking a deep breath, I stand up from my chair, standing face to face with the guy. Even he seems a bit creeped out by my face, as he momentarily takes a step back. The guy’s much taller and bigger than me, but he doesn’t feel intimidating in the least. Rather, he seems to be the one being the most intimidated by me, as his arrogant smile is starting to crack. Even so, he still seems to have a bit of his composure, as even then he’s still refusing to back down.

“...This will be the last time I’ll say it. FUCK. OFF.”

“...Y-You!” Finally losing his patience, the guy makes an attempt at grabbing my arm…and fails.

“Bwuogh?!” Unlike what one would normally expect, the one screaming in pain isn’t me, but him. Why? Because the moment he tried to grab me…I jumped forward and kneed him in the crotch. Yes, in the part of the male body that’s supposed to be the one that hurts the most when hit. I’ve read on the internet that even something as light as randomly crashing into someone from the front could be enough to induce mind-numbing pain. I don’t know if it’s exactly true but…it probably isn’t too far off, going by how this piece of crap in front of me is starting to cry. 

The previously towering man falls to his knees with a pained expression on his face. His smug, arrogant smile crumbled to the point that it made one doubt if it would ever come back, even when everything was resolved. In a position akin to kneeling, the guy is covering his crotch with his hands as tears drop from his open eyes—which are staring at me with a hateful look. 

“…I told you, didn’t I? …That you’d regret it if you tried to put your hands on me again.”

“Bwegh?!” Refusing to let him have even a single second of relief, I jump forward once again, striking once again on the same spot, but now with a full-blown kick. Having the rest of his physical strength taken away by that blow, the man finally falls to the ground on his back. Let alone his senses, he’s probably not able to even think anymore due to the pain. …But I’m still not satisfied.

“...You’re into tough girls…was it? Heh…scum.” Not feeling a drop of pity from his pathetic figure for even a single second, I kick him once again. I of course make sure not to miss, hitting him precisely in the same place as before. He has his hands in the way this time, but…just like how you have to hit a nail over and over again to have it go through a wooden plank, I just need to kick him over and over again until his hands aren’t a problem anymore. What can I say? If in addition to his manhood he also wants his hands to be unusable…then who am I to reject that wish of his?

“Aargh?! Y-You………Y-You…s-slut…”

“…Save it. I’ve already heard enough of that for a lifetime.” 

“Aargh?! …”  And there goes the fourth blow, adding an extra layer of vicious pain for him to withstand. Tears pour from his eyes as if they were rivers, and other than his moans of pain, it seems he has finally shut his mouth. Hmph, what a pathetic sight.

“ …Where did all your haughtiness go, huh? Is your arrogance that frail? Tch. You walked up to me as if you ruled everything on land, and now you can’t do a single thing—CAN YOU?!”

“Aaaaauurgh?! …………..I-I’m so-sorry, p-please stop…”

…Tch. Why are you looking at me as if I’m the bad guy? This wouldn’t have happened if you had backed down while I was being nice; this wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t been such a pushy piece of shit. Isn’t that right?

“Tch. Pathetic.” Leaving him on the ground to cry, I walk away from him and grab my phone from the table, where I had left it beforehand. 

Hmm, no messages from Rei…where the hell is that guy? He surely isn’t still dealing with that random dude from before, right? Tch, whatever. I’ll just send him a message saying I’m going home, I’ve already soured my mood.

“…Hmm?” As I try to send the message, though, I notice that there’s a couple of people looking at me from a distance. 

Crap, this is bad. Last thing I need right now is some curious onlooker coming to ask what’s going on.

…Huh? Wait…it’s just Rei. Phew, that could’ve been bad. All’s good, then. I should be thankful that the person who saw me unintentionally—not really—castrate a guy was the only person I know who wouldn’t report me for violent behavior. 

…Hmm? Wait…he’s…not alone?! W-Who is she?! Staring deep into my eyes, as if in a daze, is a girl who seems to be around my age. Her beautiful golden hair flutters slightly due to the wind as her round amethyst-like eyes shine under the bright sunlight. Seeing her figure in the distance, I can feel my mood improving, even if just for a second.

 …Wow…she’s so prett—wait! Now’s not the time for that! If she’s staring at me like that, then that must mean that, just like Rei, she also saw everything that just happened! Crap! It would’ve been fine if it was just Rei, but what about this girl?! What if she goes around telling people about what I did?!

B-But, she seems to be with Rei, so she surely wouldn’t do that….right? A-A-And, just approaching her out of nowhere and asking her to keep this a secret is a bit…y-you know. E-Eeh?! You don’t?! You’re saying that I just don’t want to go greet her ‘cause I’m flustered ‘cause she’s c-c-ute?! Nonono! No way! There’s no way in hell! I-It’s just my shyness kicking in! Yes, that’s right!  She seems to be about my age, a-and meeting people my age makes me nervous! Yup, that’s it! I’ve never been good at making friends, so this is just my fear of rejection showing! Yup! That’s all there is to it! It doesn’t have anything to do with her being p-p-pretty! A-And, I am also nervous because I don’t know who she is! I can’t ask a stranger to keep a secret for me, after all! This is all completely reasonable! 

…I don’t even know what I’m saying anymore. 

Looking behind me for a moment, I notice the pitiful figure of my victim on the floor, moaning painfully with tears dropping down his eyes. I’m not sure when he’ll be able to stand up again because, well, I did hit him pretty badly. With that said, I guess it should be alright to just leave him here. He can leave whenever he regains control of his legs.

As for me, I should probably walk up to Rei. I’m nervous of meeting the unknown girl, but…if I don’t move from here.the plot won’t progress, so…there’s really nothing else I can do, even if I don’t like it. It’s tough being the protagonist, you know?

“What’s up with that face of yours?” Ah, Rei? Have I walked that much already? Raising my face from the ground, I notice that I have already walked quite the distance while I wasn’t paying attention.

“What with my face? Am I so breathtakingly beautiful that you’ve fallen for me already? Heh, I’m sorry, Rei, but I’m not interested in—”

“Hah, as if. If you’re saying things like that, then maybe I should reconsider how stupid you are.” Not waiting for me to finish, Rei cut me short with a disgusted expression on his face, as if what I said was something completely impossible. That’s good, though. It’s good to know we’re on the same page.

“Haaaah, just forget it. Are you more relaxed now?”

“...More relaxed? I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I take a quick glance at the girl standing besides Rei. Hmm, looking at her from closer, she really has a charming face. She has the type of face I’d call c-cute, rather than hot, if you know what I mean…ah, I’m getting off track. I turn my eyes back toward Rei, who seems to understand what I’m trying to say.

“Don’t worry about it. She won’t tell anyone about what happened. I’ll guarantee it.” I breathe a sigh of relief at his words. If he says he’ll guarantee it, then there’s nothing for me to worry about. He must trust her quite a fair bit, in that case. Who is she, I wonder?

……Ah. Is it that?! Is she his girlf—

“I can read you like a book, stop with the stupid thoughts.” Hah?! Excuse me?! How is that a stupid thought?! I thought it was a pretty brilliant deduction, let me say!  Hmm…or maybe not? He’s quite the troublesome guy, after all. Only an extreme masochist would be able to date him.

“...You’re thinking something rude, aren’t you?”

“Nope, not at all. More than that, what were you asking me before? If I was more calm now, or something?”

“..Yeah. You’ve been pretty on edge the entire day, with everything about…you know.” 

…How tactful of you, Rei.

“Yeah…I’m sorry about that. I guess you could say that what just happened really helped me leave out some tension, but I didn’t really just beat him up because I was moody, you know?” The guy wouldn’t back up no matter what I said, and in the end decided it would be a good idea to try and lay his hands on me.  Those are the reasons why he’s laying on the ground back there. It didn’t have that much to do with how I’m missing Sora right now. I might’ve been able to keep my cool for a bit longer if it wasn’t for that, but the end would’ve been the same.

“I know, I know. Your expression still seemed to be a bit conflicted, that’s why I asked you if you’re more calm now. “ …Conflicted? Me? Hah, as if.

“You must’ve been seeing things. What would I even be conflicted about?”

“.........I guess you’re right. There’s no way a heartless monster like you would ever have that kind of conflicted expression.” How rude. When you say it like that, I certainly end up looking like the bad guy.

“I-I think she did a good job!!! It’s no good to let others take advantage of you! You’re not a monster!” Cutting into our conversation, the blonde girl on Rei’s side completely disregards my personal space and grabs my hands as she retorts to Rei’s words. 

“Eh? Huh? A-Ah? Yes…?” Whah?! This is blis—wait, no?! What’s up with this girl?! She’s acting as if we’ve known each other for years?! L-Let go of me, you—Oh…her hands are so soft…w-wait! She’s trying to trick me! Hah, I nearly fell in your trap, you devil! 

“A-Ah, I-I’m sorry!” Most probably noticing the bewildered expression on my face, the girl hurriedly lets go of my hands and takes a few steps back as she apologizes. 

“N-No, don’t worry about it…” I can feel a faint warmth in my face as I try to get her to stop apologizing. I-I-I originally thought she was more of a calm, shy girl, but maybe I was wrong?! S-She seems to be embarrassed now, though?! A-Ah, could it be that she's one of those who act impulsively and then get easily embarrassed…?

“...”

“...”

We stare at each other in silence, probably both of us blushing to the tip of our ears. I-I say probably because I can’t see my own face, you know?! B-But as for her, she’s as red as a tomato.

“...”

“...”

“...Do you want me to get you two a room? I think I there’s a hotel nearb—”

““REI, SHUT UP, YOU IDIOT!””

“Oh…you two are in sync. …Are you sure you don’t—”

“R-Rei, If you say another word, I swear I’ll have S-Sora get rid of your ‘Uncle’ title!” Feeling both annoyed and embarrassed, I get close to Rei and whisper those words into his ear, effectively cutting him short. I-I didn’t want to resort to this, but I had to take out the big guns! I-I’m really bad when teased with things like that, and he knows it! I-I need to silence him now! It’s a good thing I know your weakness, you seemingly cold hearted idiot!

“Y-You wouldn’t dare…” The moment he processes my words, his face shifts into one of shock, as if he was hit by lightning. Sora likes her Uncle Rei a lot and that’s also true the other way around! Rei has a sweet spot for my baby girl! Having his title of ‘Uncle’ removed…how painful must that be?! 

“Try me.” Rei audibly gulps as he stares at me, as if trying to discover whether I’m telling the truth or not. Too bad, my friend, but my bluffing skills are top notch! What he said just now is true—I wouldn’t dare. I wouldn’t force Sora to just call him ‘Rei’ because I want him to feel miserable. Like I said, Sora likes her ‘Uncle Rei’ quite a lot; she’d be sad if I suddenly told her that she wasn’t her uncle anymore. …But there’s no need for Rei to know about all of this!

“......Tch…fine, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Rei scratches his head while pouting, and then lowers his hands, as if surrendering. The blonde girl doesn’t seem to have listened to what we were saying, because she was tilting her head to the side in confusion—with her face still a bit red, though.

“Let me introduce you two. Sakura, this is my sister, Angela. Angela, this is my…friend (?) Sakura.”  Hey?! What do you mean with that dubious tone, huh?! I’m your friend, right?! Right?! Your best friend, am I not?! Don’t you dare smirk at me, Rei, you idiot! Is this payback for what just happened?! You childish fuck! You’re the only friend I have, how can you treat our friendship as if it meant nothing to you?! You’re hurting my feelings, you mean fuck!

“N-Nice to meet you, S-Sakura, my brother has told me a lot about you.” …Wait, that’s right, she’s his sister?! A-Ah, now that I look at them side by side, I can kind of see they resemble each other…is what I’d like to say, but what the hell is this?! The only thing they share is their hair color! For being twins, they’re completely different! Their personalities don’t match each other at all, either!

“N-N-N-Nice to meet you, Angela.” 

“A-Ah, y-you can call me Ange…everybody calls me that…” 

“I-In that case, you can call me Saku…nobody calls me that…”

“...O-Okay, S-Saku...”

“...’K-Kay, A-Ange...”

As we stare at each other from close, with our friendship just freshly established, I can’t help but…

“…You two, seriously. Get a room.”

…consider killing this guy.

—--------------

Afterword

It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Allow me to reintroduce myself, in case you’ve forgotten about me already. My name is Asora, I’m a fourth-rate author who never meets the deadlines he imposes on himself. Okay, jokes aside, I’m sorry for the wait.

I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter. Like, A LOT. It wasn’t until I started trying to write this chapter that I noticed that I messed up big time at the end of last chapter.  Whatever I did, I just couldn’t come up with a good narration to continue the story from that point, and trust me I tried. A LOT. I don’t know what I was thinking when I wrote that chapter last time, I must be truly stupid. 

What happened at the end of last chapter didn’t go well with the image I have of Sakura, so no matter how hard I tried to connect the ending of last chapter to the beginning of this one, I just couldn’t find a way to naturally get from one point to the other. It always seemed forced, or I simply didn’t like it.  So I just decided to completely rewrite the ending of the last chapter. Well, I say ‘completely’, but I really just removed some sentences from here and there.  What happens remains the same, I just removed some awful dialogues. You can give it a check if you want, but you wouldn’t miss a lot now that you’ve read this.

Anyway!

How was today’s chapter? Did you like it? A lot of things happened in this chapter. Including the apparition of a flustered Sakura! That’s certainly something that isn’t seen every day! I had a lot of fun writing that side of hers, especially after the whole issue with the random asswhole who she beated up. I liked the contrast between those two sides of her quite a bit! I also ended up showing a bit of the more emotional side of Rei, which I think was pretty c-c-cute, if I do say so myself.

Anyway!

Next time, Sora’s back on the scene! …I think! I hope! I actually have no idea what I’ll write for the next chapter, but if everything goes well, Sora will be here next week! The core of this story are Sakura and Sora’s interactions, after all. I can’t forget that! 

And so with that said, that’s all from me today. I’ll do my best to have the next chapter done by Wednesday, in order to normalize the schedule once again. And so, I hope to see you around next time! Bye bye!