V3Ch19: Blue Reunion

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Translator: Soafp

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Around noon, the doorbell rang.

I went to greet Aoyama. I hesitated about where to bring her, but I decided to invite her to my room since it would be awkward to explain if my parents discovered any traces of her being here after they returned.

“This is the second time I've been here.”

“…The second time?”

“Yeah, during the cooking contest. Just so you know, I didn't come in without permission. Shirase said she got approval.”

I knew about that, but I wouldn't tell her that I was actually hiding in the closet back then. That's a secret even from Shirase.

I had Aoyama sit down in front of me.

…Looking at her like this, she's grown.

I took a good look at her.

Her trademark ponytail was still there, but her face had become much more mature compared to before. Her clothes were casual, just like back then, but now, no matter how I looked at her, Aoyama clearly looked like a girl. It's strange to think that she once looked like a boy to me.

That thought probably only came to me now because I had never really faced Umi Aoyama properly until this moment.

“So, you said you had something important to talk about.”

Aoyama had figured out who I really was.

However, her purpose for coming here was still unknown.

I haven't told Renji about this yet. I didn't want to bother him on a weekend. If he knew, he'd probably rush over to my house.

Besides, Aoyama doesn't mean any harm.

At the very least, she feels the need to apologize to me. That much is clear from her past messages and from the conversation we had at the diner during the tournament planning. So I'm thinking this conversation won't go in a bad direction.

“I've always taken detours and messed things up during moments like these. So today, I'm going to be straightforward. Let's get right to the point.”

“Uh, okay.”

Aoyama stood up and bowed her head.

“I'm really sorry about back then!”

An apology right off the bat?

I didn't expect that.

“W-why are you apologizing?”

“Don't play dumb. You know what I mean.”

“…What do you mean?”

“I'm talking about Shota. I know that the person standing in front of me, Shota Nijitani, is really my old friend, Shota Mukawa.”

So she really did figure it out.

There was no point in hiding it anymore after she'd gone this far. I gave in.

“…You figured it out, huh.”

“Yeah.”

“Since when?”

I didn't even need to ask—it was probably around the sports festival. I was really hyped up back then, and I must've made a careless mistake without realizing it.

I want to know what gave me away so I don't make the same mistake again in the future.

“Right after you transferred. I felt something was off when we passed each other in the hallway, but I was sure when I talked to you.”

“…Eh?”

She figured it out right after I transferred?

Wait, calm down. Stay composed.

“Are you serious?”

“Why would I lie about that now?”

“How did you even figure it out!?”

“Isn't it obvious? Honestly, you didn't hide it very well. It would've been weirder if I didn't notice right away.”

That's ridiculous. I thought I'd completely reinvented myself.

“Yeah, you've changed a lot since middle school. But of course I'd recognize you. The way you look now is exactly the way you looked back when we used to hang out the most. Anyone who knew you back then would be able to tell.”

“…”

“Did you really think switching to contacts and cutting your hair would be enough to fool anyone?”

Damn it. Now that she's said it, it all makes sense.

I thought I'd changed, but when I think about it, I didn't wear glasses as a kid, and my hair was short back then too.

“I've known all along. I knew, but I was avoiding it. I kept finding excuses to push it aside. But honestly, I should've done this from the very beginning.”

With that, Aoyama bowed her head again.

“…You can raise your head. Let's just talk first.”

“Yeah, okay.”

“If you've known from the start, why are you only apologizing now?”

“Because I think you are okay now”

“Okay now?”

I didn't understand, so I just repeated the word.

“Before I explain that, will you listen to my story? It's kind of a stupid one.”

“Go ahead.”

“The first time I saw you, Shota, you looked shocked when you saw my face. It hurt, but I understood why.”

“…”

“When I saw that expression, I realized you didn't know I was attending the same school. So I thought it would be better to pretend not to notice you. I mean, honestly, I figured you probably didn't want to see me.”

She's not wrong about that.

When Aoyama called out to me, I was stunned. To be honest, I didn't want to see her at all. I thought I was lucky that she hadn't realized who I really was.

“I should have kept my distance. Pretended I didn’t know who you really were, and we could’ve stayed out of each other’s lives. That way, you could’ve enjoyed your high school life.”

“…”

“But instead, I thought I could rebuild our relationship from scratch, even while hiding your real identity. It was all because of the lingering regrets. I thought maybe we could go back to the fun times we had back then. And I also wanted to protect you from those devils… It was really stupid of me, considering I was the one who ruined your life back then.”

Regret and lingering attachments, huh?

I won't deny that my childhood was fun. If I could go back to those days, I'd want to.

“Why did you change your approach all of a sudden?”

“It's like I said earlier. I was convinced that you'd be okay now. That you were mentally stable and could handle the rest of your school life just fine.”

It was a strange way to phrase it. I couldn't think of anything specific that would make her believe that I was “okay.”

The only thing that comes to mind is what happened during the sports festival.

“Was it when you saw me talking to Momoka and Renji?”

“So, you did see that, when you were with Momoka.”

Since Aoyama also went to the same elementary school, I considered her a childhood friend. Although she wasn't that close with Akazawa, she knew about her younger sister, Momoka.

“Just to be clear, it was a coincidence. I happened to be walking by and overheard voices. I don't know what was being said.”

“I know. There's no way you could've heard from that distance.”

But using the word “convinced” made it sound like she knew what was going on. That would mean Renji told her about it, but I can't imagine him doing that behind my back.

“Renji didn't tell me anything.”

“Then how did you—”

“It was your energy.”

Aoyama cut me off abruptly.

Lately, I had been feeling very energetic.

It was because I had reunited with Renji, but would that be enough to make her so certain? Anyone can get a bit excited sometimes.

“I was convinced by Renji’s energy.”

“…Renji's?”

“He holds grudges like no one else. Whenever he saw my face, he used to glare at me like he was seeing his worst enemy.”

That's not surprising. I'm sure he did.

“But on that day, when he walked in while I was talking to Momoka, he wasn't as angry with me as he used to be. He was upset, sure, but nowhere near as furious as before. He looked like he had everything under control. And from that, I could tell a lot.”

“…”

“I figured it out right away. Renji was calm, and you were also full of energy, so I knew you two had reconnected.”

Come on, Renji.

You once told me that you were always harsh on them, but it turns out your emotions are written all over your face. You should work on that.

“I see.”

“And besides, I feel comfortable leaving you in Momoka's hands.”

“Leaving me?”

“Never mind, forget I said that.”

Aoyama let out a short sigh.

“Now that you've got Renji, an unwavering ally, I'm sure you'll be fine. He's the best protector you could have, much better than me.”

“So that's why… it led to today.”

“I figured your life would stabilize, even if those devils came back. That's why I thought about it long and hard. And in the end, I realized I still wanted to go back to the way things were. I know it's selfish, though.”

“…”

“Regardless, I needed to take responsibility. I don't know if you'll forgive me, but I couldn't move forward without apologizing for what happened back then.”

Reuniting with Renji has definitely helped stabilize me emotionally. I'm not alone anymore. I have a friend who I know would never betray me.

Strictly speaking, Shirase is also on my side, but if you asked me whether I could trust her completely, my answer at this point would be no.

“I figured you'd agree to meet. I noticed you read the messages I sent to your old account.”

“…Now that you mention it, reading a message on Discord does show as ‘read.'”

So, Aoyama had been keeping tabs on me, huh?

“Actually, not everything adds up. Didn't Renji mention last year's council meeting? I think I should talk about that.”

“Shirase told me about it.”

“…Eh?”

This time, it was Aoyama's turn to be shocked.

“W-why Shirase?”

“Well, Shirase and I reconciled during the summer.”

I had never seen Aoyama with such a bewildered look before.