Chapter 17 – Temari's Revenge, Beyond the Smartphone

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After school, something felt off. The kind of bad feeling that gnawed at the back of my head like an itch I couldn't scratch. The kind that whispered in my ear, “Get the hell out before you get dragged into some stupid drama.”

And when you get that kind of feeling, there's really only one smart move—run. Whether it's one of the Thirty-Six Stratagems or a back-alley escape plan, the best tactic is always retreat.

I slung my bag over one shoulder and picked up the pace toward the front gate.

But of course, standing there like a checkpoint I couldn't bypass, was the absolute last person I wanted to see.

Mobuko A.

She stood at the edge of the crowd, eyes scanning faces like she was on a mission. And unless I'd suddenly developed the kind of delusion that made me think I was the protagonist of a dating sim, I knew exactly who she was looking for.

Her eyes were a little red and puffy. Great. Crying? Seriously?

That just made everything worse.

My instincts screamed to turn around and take the long way out through the back gate, disappear before she noticed. But no—doing that would've felt like waving a white flag. I wasn't giving her the satisfaction.

I'd play it cool. Walk past like she didn't exist.

Phone out. Eyes down. Just a guy obsessed with his mobile gacha game.

It's not like we had anything to say to each other anymore anyway.

“…Hey.”

Didn't even flinch. I kept my eyes locked on the screen like I was reading scripture.

“Oh, nice. A new Uma Girl just got unlocked. Let's see… ‘Ikuiku Cox' and ‘Maguro Bed Queen' with a new SSR outfit. Hmm… not really my type. Definitely not wasting rolls on this batch.”

“Hey, come on…”

“Ah, s**t. Dropped a rank. Guess I gotta retrain my team for the stadium again.”

“Stop ignoring me!! Yuuya!!”

Tch. She really just said my name like that. So damn casual.

Wait. That is my name.

Why the hell is she this worked up?

“All right, here's a quiz. How many guys named Yuuya go to this school, you think? Oh—pardon me, skinny guy coming through.”

Okay, even I had to smirk at that one. What a dick move.

Still, I didn't look at her. I'd made my decision. I said I wasn't talking to her anymore. I meant it.

“Hyuah!?”

The hell?

Just as I was about to step past the gate, she yanked my bag hard—way harder than I expected.

Caught me totally off-guard. My phone slipped from my hand.

Some unholy noise escaped my throat as it bounced once—thankfully not on concrete—but before I could grab it, her fingers snatched it up.

“…Oi. Give it back. Don't go touching people's s**t.”

She ignored me completely.

Her fingers danced across the screen at lightning speed.

What the hell was she doing?

Scratch that—how did she even have the guts to go through someone else's phone like this?

“Give it back!”

“…Here.”

She handed it over like nothing happened.

Dust clung to the screen, but that wasn't what caught my eye.

The LINE app was open.

And then—bam. Messages started flooding in.

I'm sorry.
I'm really sorry. I didn't mean it.
I just got embarrassed, that's all.
I never wanted to hurt you.
I swear I won't ever say something like that again.
I know all I can do is apologize, and I'm sorry for that too.
What can I do to make it up to you?
I'll do anything, just tell me.

…The hell?

So because I said I wasn't talking to her anymore, she decided to dump all her emotions into LINE like some kind of teenage confession flood?

That's… wow.

Desperate much, Tamari?

I looked up.

She stood there gripping her own phone like it might shatter if she let go. Shoulders stiff. Hands shaking.

…Hah.

So she really did regret it.

Kind of killed the momentum I had going. Made it hard to stay mad.

Guess I'm too soft.

Fine. Just this once, I'll break the silent treatment.

I tapped out a reply.

Just now, you said you'd do anything, right?

The second she saw it, Tamari's head jerked up. Eyes wide.

“…Anything but something pervy.”

Our eyes locked.

Her cheeks went red like she'd just realized what she'd said.

She actually said it out loud.

No filter. No shame.

I had no idea what she thought I was thinking, but she beat me to the punch.

That made it even funnier.

I have no idea what you're talking about, so I'll take my time thinking about what you can do for me.

Still not saying a word, I hit send.

She didn't answer.

I closed the LINE app, slid the phone into my pocket, and stepped out through the gate.

I wasn't planning on forgiving her that easy, but…

Whatever.

They say a saint forgives three times.

I'll let her off the hook—for the dust on my screen.