Episode 60 – Let’s just skip school and go on a date, shall we?

The blond, scalloped-headed thug in front of me was staring hard at me.
I was in despair.

I had run, but in the end, I had not been able to avoid the future and had gotten myself into a lot of trouble.

I had failed to run.

That was all I could think about.

“What the hell?”
“We’re going to play with this girl now, can’t you get out of my way?”

Oh, how classic and predictable. Even if I could see the future, it was up to me to avoid it.
I guess it was a mistake to walk away on the way there. I want to go home.

“Arase, help me!”
“Tss”

Fujibayashi asked me for help when I had lost all motivation.
Fujibayashi clung to my arm, just as I had seen in the future. I’d appreciate it if you don’t …… let me know how it feels on your arm.

“They are so persistent. I told them I didn’t want to do it. I almost beat them up.”
“……”

I regretted that I had done this only after she had beaten them to a pulp.

“Look, if you get rid of those guys, I’ll give you a little bit of a good time. I’ll do it for you!”
“!? S-Stop it!”

I felt my body tremble as she whispered sweetly in my ear.
It’s not that I was expecting anything good to happen. It’s just that I’m not used to the experience of having someone whisper in my ear. Because it’s definitely not.

……but even at times like this she’s got a lot of nerve to tease me like this. You’ve got a lot of time on your hands, don’t you?
get rid of them. ……

The other two guys were just two guys. They are thugs with a certain look. I, on the other hand, was an earnest, naive young man. Before we met, I might have been able to help her out somehow, but now I don’t think I have a chance to win.

If I try to fight them, I’m sure they’ll hurt me.

“Can’t you just let me go?”
“Haa? Why?”
“You go away.”

That’s right. It’s not a conversation at all.
So here it is……

“Fujibayashi.”
“……?”
“Run.”
“Eh? Wai!?”

The answer I gave was to run away.
I took Fujibayashi’s surprised hand and ran out of the place.

“Wait for me!”

I hear the voices of men following behind me.
If it were just me, I might be able to escape easily, but now Fujibayashi is here too.

“Haahaaaa…Arase…Wait a minute..Haahaa…”

Fujibayashi is gasping for air painfully beside me.
Let’s not think about the fact that this is strangely charming.

After all, the basic physical strength of girls and boys is different, and if I don’t do something about it, I’m going to be out of shape.
As I was thinking about what to do, I saw a certain scene in my mind.

＊＊＊

“I got you.”
“You asshole.”

＊＊＊

“Fujibayashi, next right.”
“What?”

I pull Fujibayashi’s hand and turn right.

“Next left.”
“Ha!?”

Then I moved in a twisting and turning motion, giving instructions to turn right, right, and left one after the other.
Fujibayashi followed, puzzled each time.

“Hey, how far …… do we run ……?”
“Just a little more ……!”

Fujibayashi and I rounded the last corner.

“Haa….Haa….Haa…imposibble…can’t run anymore..”
“….right……”

Fujibayashi crouched down on the spot and gasped for air.

“Hey, are you okay……?”
“Yeah, I’m fine ……!”

As for me, I was holding my head down with a strong headache.

When I was being chased around, I saw a series of short futures.
So when I was on the run, I could avoid risk and escape. For the first time, I feel like my future prediction worked properly.
However, I am suffering from a very strong headache.

“Hey, you look like you’re having a hard time! Take a break there!”

Somehow, I managed to escape to a place near the station.
We sat down on a bench there to take a break.
I tried to be strong, but it was very hard.

“Wait a minute.”

As I was holding my head, Fujibayashi left me and went away.

“Look, which one?”

A few minutes later, Fujibayashi returned with two bottles.

“……, the carbonated one.”
“This one then.”
“Thank you.”

Fujibayashi handed me the bottle.
I needed the sweetness and refreshment of carbonation when I used my head like this.
I’m not sure if I would call predicting the future a smart move.

I opened the bottle and poured it down my throat.

“…………”
“aha!”
“………… not carbonated.”

There was no sensation of irritation in my throat. It tasted a little thin and peachy.
I guessed it by looking at Fujibayashi, who was smiling happily beside me.

“The soda is this.”

Saying this, Fujibayashi proudly opened her own bottle. Fujibayashi then drinks from it as if to show off the bottle.

“Ahh, I’m coming back to life. ……!”
“………….”
“Don’t look at me like that mouuu!”
“You don’t know what it’s like to have your carbonation expectations betrayed.”
“Hahaha, it’s just a joke,! I just wanted a sip too. Here!”

Fujibayashi exchanged hers for mine and then, without hesitation, took a sip and began to drink.

I could only watch as she drank with a gurgling sound in her throat.

“Ahhh~, I knew it would be better with this much sweetness!”

……I’ve seen something like this before. that time it was Suika, but unlike Suika, I don’t think this guy has anything to be ashamed of.

I felt that pointing out every single thing would give her something to make fun of me again, so I didn’t care and sipped on the soda I got, too.

“By the way, if you’re going to …… run, just tell me you’re going to run! You surprised me because it came out of nowhere!”

Fujibayashi took a breath and complained about what had just happened.

“I told you. I was going to run.”
“It was too last minute.”

Fujibayashi’s mouth was agitated as I replied in a firm and resolute manner, though not in retaliation for what I had said earlier.

“Well, but thanks for helping me out..”
“You’re welcome,” Fujibayashi said. Is there any way to get picked on a little less? You were a student at that high school before.”
“Before ……? Did I ever get picked on in front of Arase?”
“………… No.”

Was that an unsuccessful attempt?

“Oh, the day we first met? Well, if that one had gone on like that, I might have gotten tangled up. He’s a student at East High.”
“Yeah, that’s it.”
“It’s not that I want to get involved either. Maybe it’s because I’m dressed like this, but that’s the kind of thing that attracts people like that.”
“Maybe you should try wearing your hair darker. Maybe it would look good on you.”
“No, I don’t want to. What does that mean? Does it mean I don’t look good now?”
“I didn’t say that. I think it looks good on you now, but it’s still too flashy.”
“Well……”

Fujibayashi fiddled with her fingers as she curled her own hair.

“But you know what? Arase is pretty daring, isn’t he? To hold my hand. I was a little nervous.”
“No, no, that was …….”
“Hahaha, what are you in a panic? you were holding it firmly. Like this.”
“Wait!?”

Fujibayashi took my left hand and intertwined our fingers.
This is what is known as a “lover’s knot”. But I didn’t hold her hand like that.

“What’s wrong? Your face is all red.”

Fujibayashi smiled mischievously in front of me.

“Come to think of it, you kissed …… (indirectly) just now, too.”
“……!”

The more she whispers in my ear, the more heat lights up my face.
I know. I know that Fujibayashi is just teasing me. I know, but …….

“Give me a break.”

To which I replied, turning my face away.

“Really, Arase is so naive, isn’t he? I knew it.”
“Stop treating people like toys.”
“No.”

It seemed to be useless.
I let out a sigh of resignation.

“Hey, are you going to skip the class again?”
“I’m sure I’ll be late, but I’ll pass on skipping class.”
“Oh, that’s so boring.”
“I mean, did you do okay on that test the other day? You said it was pretty dangerous.”
“Hehe, it was fine! Thanks to her, Yuri chi, really! Thanks to her hard work, I avoided a red mark in all my subjects!”
“That’s great”

…… Sosuke. She’s probably better than you.

“I mean, you guys seem to be getting along pretty well.”
“Well, yeah. I’m going on an outing with her next time. Of course, with Nanamin, too!”

She even gave them strange nicknames. Yuri chi and Nanamin?
At first, I thought she was a bit more aggressive toward strangers, but she’s come full circle.

“That’s why I’ve been thinking that going to school isn’t so bad these days.”
“You were saying you were going to skip school just now though?”
“…… mu, shut up.”

Then, while listening to Fujibayashi’s recent story, Fujibayashi muttered as if she had found something.

“Ah. Huh …….”

Fujibayashi’s gaze was directed at a flashy blonde-colored girl. She was wearing our school uniform. She was at the station, arm in arm with a male student from the high school – Higashi High School – where Fujibayashi had been picked up earlier.

…… Nn, that one. Somewhere …….
Yes, I remember now. One of the kids who was trying to harass Mitani-san yesterday.

“Do you know her?”
“Uh, a little before. She was harassing a girl in the first grade. I stopped her, or something.”
“Tell me more about that.”
“Eh? okay. ……”

Fujibayashi then told me what happened when she witnessed the incident.
Apparently, Fujibayashi had encountered the same situation as I had. As far as I could tell, the other party was Mitani-san.

Apparently, she was being harassed by the trio on a regular basis.

“I remember now. She seems to be a pretty nice girl. She’s always wanted to do whatever she wants around here.”
“You seem to know a lot.”
“‘Well, I’m a pretty nice girl, too! It’s just that I’ve met her a couple of times in that kind of setting.”

I knew she was rich. I’m curious what a place like that is.
I mean, I’ve always had the image of a rather nice girl who is more of a neat and tidy young lady, but aren’t both Fujibayashi and that girl contrary to that image?

“But still, skipping school to go on dates and being unserious~”

What kind of a mouth does that sound like?

“Let’s skip school and go on a date too, shall we?”
“What kind of talk is that?”
“Eeeh~, it’s fine! Cheapskate~”
“I’m feeling better now. I’m going back to school.”
“…., okay okay.”

I returned to school with Fujibayashi, who looked a little dissatisfied with me.