Prologue
– Earth (地球) History July 2020 —
Today’s weather is cloudy just like the recent state of my mind.
While it was still a bit chilly, I walked toward the convenience store along the avenue where the street lights were lit, and I could see a familiar figure about 50 meters ahead.
When briskly walking for a better look, I, Kashiwagi spotted my childhood friend, Tendo Ayaka, walking while looking up at the sky.
「What’s up with that girl? It is dangerous to walk the night road alone 」I muttered to myself.
She was a childhood friend, we got along well as children, but recently she became estranged from me.
Even though I said to myself, it was me who started taking a distance from her, and not the other way around … … Tendo Ayaka has no idea why.
It just got that way before I was aware.
Around first grade in elementary school, I started going to a neighborhood Karate Dojo. I did not know until I started going, but the daughter of my karate sensei was Ayaka. I don’t go to the Karate Dojo anymore either.
The bullying started in class after entering high school, I helped Tatsuya Arakawa who was being bullied, I appealed to the other classmates to stop the bullying, and consulted the teacher … … Utsugi Katsuya was the one who initiated the bullying, a guy with a veneer of being a good guy.
Classmates also became more and more inspired by Utsugi Katsuya, my persuasion had no effect at all, on the contrary, I started getting bullied.
Furthermore, Tatsuya Arakawa whom I protected, to suck up to Utsugi Katsuya, turned around and started bullying me, I was disgusted.
From that point onwards, I began to dislike, in particular, unreasonably cruel treatments and acts of betrayal.
Because I did Karate when I was younger, only when I am first attacked, only then do I reciprocate with a [BokoBoko]¹ . After that, the ignoring and backbiting, and more insidious harassment began.
After the [BokoBoko], the matter was strangely relayed to my karate sensei which led to me getting expelled from the dojo. Ayaka strenuously defended me to my karate sensei, but it all fell on deaf ears.
When I did the [BokoBoko] my parents were summoned to the school and, at that time, even my parents heaped the blame on me for the incident.
The teacher was already on the side of Utsugi Katsuya, and my karate sensei drove me out. Due to this case, I have lost my trust in adults. I wonder if there are some adults who can be trusted, but I have not met any yet. I have the same feelings towards classmates, so I can’t just limit it to adults.
Since Ayaka is a different class, I do not know if the bullying or harassment would spread to her if she was with the current me, there is a risk of harassment spreading over to her, so I decided to take some distance.
Ayaka is the most popular girl in the school year, she is cute enough to compete for first or second place but … I have known her for a long time. I am at a mentally weak place, ah, from the standpoint of a popular person, if you get the bullied you will not have spirit.
When I turned back my diverted thinking and saw Ayaka again, Ayaka crossed the crosswalk while the signal flashed. Suddenly when I glanced to the right, a car that was clearly going to run the red light was accelerating. I started running in haste. When I was about to catch up to Ayaka, I yelled out.
「Hey! Ayaka! There is a car coming !!」
Ayaka looked back at me, and after noticing me she smiled for a moment, then caught sight of the car. Her cute face instantly turned pale.
「Damn! Make it in time!」
I increased my running speed further, reached the side of Ayaka, and pushed her back. Although Ayaka raises a small scream with a 「Kya!」, she managed to get out of the way of the car’s path.
In that moment of relief, I bounced off the car and was dancing in the sky, in that instance, I heard Ayaka’s voice scream out 「Nooo, Ahhhhh!!! Ruiiiiii!!!」—
[Kashiwagi’s flashback] (TN: Added due to reader feedback, this should remove any further confusion.)
◆ In my final moments, I heard Ayaka’s voice 「 From an early age, I have always loved Kashiwagi.」But recently you have been taking a long distance. Even if I call out to you, you would leave immediately.
Even on the phone or via e-mail, you are curt.
I wonder what I did something to be avoided so much?
It is painful… Today, I don’t know if you are aware of it, I was only thinking about Rui.」
In such a case, I heard a voice I love, I thought I was hallucinated for a moment.「Hey! Ayaka! The car is coming!」
When I turned around, Rui was running towards me. As I saw the appearance of Rui, I was smiling all over, but I felt something entered my sight for a moment.
Suddenly I saw a side of the car, it was right before my eyes. And I was pushed on my back and I gave a brief little scream.「Kya!」 After being pushed to the ground and rolling back, I turned around at once, Rui was hit by a car and was dancing in the sky ……「Nooo, Ahhhhh!!! Ruiiiiii!!!」
Whilst receiving the cold, hard, and cruel reality, I lose my consciousness–
TN Notes :
1. BokoBoko [ボコボコ] usually refers to an onomatopoeic word for the sound that a severe beating makes.↩
Editor: Blaze
