Chapter 401: It Must Be That He Likes Mashiro
Chapter 401: It Must Be That He Likes Mashiro
The number of watching eyes gradually grew.
It was dinnertime, and the hotel lobby was always busy with guests coming and going.
“What’s happening? What’s going on?”
“Not sure. Seems like an argument?”
“Wait, isn’t that… the super popular high school girl manga artist lately? Shiina Mashiro, right?”
“Are they dating? Those two?”
All this murmuring made the lobby noisy.
More and more spectators stopped because of this sudden situation. Out of the corner of his eye, Himekoji also caught sight of the receptionist lady hesitating about whether to intervene.
He even spotted Miss Iida and Hiratsuka-sensei somewhere near the outer edge of the crowd…
Probably came to visit Mashiro?
And they had to see this…
“Shiina, come over here a moment.”
This wasn’t the right place to talk. Moving elsewhere would be better. Thinking that, Himekoji reached out to grab Mashiro’s wrist.
“Let go.”
But instead, Mashiro shoved his hand away.
Massive awkwardness.
“Everyone’s watching… so…”
“So what? I’m talking to Akito.”
She was only talking to Akito!
It had nothing to do with anyone else.
That’s what Mashiro’s eyes declared.
Then—
“Enough.”
Mashiro suddenly fixed her gaze on Himekoji and spoke.
“Huh?”
Before he could fully grasp what that meant, she followed it up with the next line.
“Akito and the like, are enough!”
The hat she’d been holding slammed hard against Himekoji.
Himekoji reeled back in shock and confusion. The hat just fell to the floor.
Meanwhile, Mashiro pressed both hands against her chest, pushed past him, and dashed into the elevator alone.
Miss Iida, seeing this from the crowd, ran forward worriedly. She picked up the hat in front of the still-stunned Himekoji and then chased after Mashiro.
On the way, she looked back as if wanting to say something to Himekoji, but in the end, nothing came out.
The one who spoke to Himekoji was Hiratsuka-sensei.
The Female Teacher, who had appeared beside him unnoticed, softly reached a hand towards Himekoji’s face. She didn’t let him dodge, gently pressing her palm against his cheek.
“S-Sensei…”
Though he knew full well the lobby crowd was watching, Himekoji couldn’t help showing this fleeting moment of vulnerability in public.
He didn’t know why he displayed this embarrassing side. It felt unlike him. Feelings were really scary.
“You really don’t understand, do you?”
Hiratsuka-sensei’s calm, gentle eyes quietly watched him.
Aah.
At the same time, a light sigh escaped inside her heart.
What she’d worried about had still happened.
By never drawing near to others, nor letting others draw near, someone gets accustomed to that way of existence. They become closed off and lonely. Their ability to interact with others inevitably becomes flawed.
Therefore, it was only natural the “date” went poorly.
When he was with Nanami, her personality could compensate for Himekoji somewhat.
But Mashiro could not.
Like Himekoji, Mashiro also lacked proper social skills.
This outcome wasn’t just due to Himekoji’s one-sided confusion and slowness. Mashiro bottling everything up, refusing to talk, was also largely to blame.
All afternoon, Himekoji asked countless times what was wrong, only for Mashiro to brush him off each time with the same “Nothing much.”
Undoubtedly, this was one of the unhealthiest ways to interact.
So, in the Female Teacher’s eyes, this was basically just a mess created by two love rookies.
In short, the problem wasn’t just Himekoji’s alone.
…
“No, I… I do understand…”
The fault was his.
The fault lay with him not responding to Mashiro.
Of course Himekoji knew that.
But would complimenting Mashiro’s clothes, praising her makeup, holding her hand, calling her name… would that be okay? Would that do it?
That still wouldn’t work…
The real reason for the problem wasn’t there at all.
“I’m going to find it!”
Himekoji suddenly declared, his fist clenched.
Then, without a hint of hesitation left, he turned and dashed out of the hotel, shoving through the watching crowd.
“Hey! W-Wait! Himekoji! Wait up!”
By the time the Female Teacher got those words out, Himekoji had vanished.
…
After being treated like that by Mashiro, Himekoji couldn’t focus his thoughts. He even missed his bus stop.
He got off two stops before Riverside Park and just started running full speed, racing under the sunset.
He must find it. He had to find Mashiro’s Sketchbook.
It was important!
Only after charging all the way to the destination did he slow down. Big beads of sweat rolled off his forehead, unstoppable. He didn’t waste time wiping them.
Where Mashiro had sketched that afternoon, Himekoji searched along the riverside. Back and forth, over and over. He almost felt ready to dig up the earth itself. But he couldn’t find it.
Maybe she left it on North Avenue.
Seeing hope like a lifeline again, he desperately started running once more.
He crossed the intersection and rushed through the traffic lights, with the sound of car horns overlapping one after another.
The crowd on North Avenue was much sparser compared to daytime, which was good news for Himekoji, who was running while looking around all over for the Sketchbook.
He carefully searched every place he had visited with Mashiro, doing it step by step in order.
He dashed into each shop he had been to, asking the shopkeepers about the Sketchbook.
The shopkeepers were confused at first when they saw the flustered and sweat-stained Himekoji, wondering who he was. But they seemed to remember Mashiro; once Himekoji mentioned her, they recalled instantly.
“Oh, you mean that super cute high school girl?”
This wasn’t surprising at all; rather, it was to be expected.
Mashiro had always been the kind of girl who left a strong impression.
“Sorry, but we haven’t seen any Sketchbook.”
He ran from one end of North Avenue all the way to the other. Beyond that was the music box shop he and Mashiro had last visited before leaving.
The shops beyond that, he had not been to in the afternoon.
“Huff, huff, huff…”
Himekoji let out tired gasps, his throat dry.
But his speed didn’t slow down at all.
Why? Why run so desperately?
Why? Why feel so conflicted and troubled?
Why? Why feel so restless and anxious about gains and losses…
All of this was because of Mashiro!
From the day they met, Himekoji’s life became not ordinary because Mashiro had barged in.
He was stunned when Mashiro casually accepted his invitation to live together. After moving in, he was amazed by the disaster of a mess in her room. And when he finally learned Mashiro was a fool at life who couldn’t even change her own underwear, he was totally blown away.
After that, he was forced to take on the responsibility of caring for Mashiro’s daily needs.
Every day, he had to prepare clothes for her to wear, wash whatever needed washing, and after her bath, help blow-dry her hair. To keep her from getting lost, they went to and from school together every day. For food she disliked, she made Himekoji eat it instead…
Days like this went on.
Gradually, he got to know Mashiro more and more, becoming more familiar with her.
She really liked Baumkuchen. When eating fried shrimp, she always peeled off the shell. For pineapple bread, she only ate the crust. She slept under the desk. Every day, she would bury herself in drawing manga until she fell asleep.
Even though she was talented, she still worked very hard. Once she set a goal, she headed straight toward it.
Having made a decision, she never hesitated a bit. Seeing Mashiro try so hard made Himekoji’s heart ache sometimes, but he couldn’t bring himself to warn her against it.
Apart from drawing, she was clueless about everything else. She often ate things in stores without asking, acting all indifferent. Himekoji always had to clean up her mess.
Personality-wise, she was competitive, stubborn, and strange. She usually only said simple things like “yes,” “oh,” or “ah.” Finding out her true feelings was hard and tricky.
When faced with something puzzling, she tilted her head slightly. That Mashiro was silly-cute and adorable.
When talking to Himekoji, she called him by name, like “Akito…” or something like that. Her voice was soft and gentle, pleasant to the ears.
Not just that, not just that…
And also—sometimes, she put on an innocent face when she knew she got caught, which was fun. Her drawing was the best Himekoji had ever seen. Though talented, she never acted proud. Her hard-working attitude was awesome. For someone so amazing, it was weird she couldn’t do anything alone; she needed Himekoji by her side.
Looking back now, every day with Mashiro was full of color. Caring for her was tough at times, but when she did careless things like touch him without thinking, Himekoji’s heart would go “thump thump.”
It was rare, but she also blushed with shyness sometimes. That bashful look, Himekoji never tired of seeing.
Even a little glance felt like he’d be sucked into her almost see-through eyes.
Her fine yet strong voice always felt soothing to hear.
Plus, she didn’t mind Himekoji the “Pervert” at all. In fact, she even said “like” to him.
Mashiro.
It was Mashiro…
Exactly because it was Mashiro.
That’s why he ran so desperately. That’s why he felt so conflicted and troubled. That’s why he was so restless and anxious!
Once he thought of Mashiro, it never ended. That strange feeling swelled up inside him as he ran.
Only with all this stuff could Mashiro be called Mashiro.
Only with all this stuff had Himekoji and Mashiro shared their days so far.
Only with all this stuff did Mashiro hold deep in Himekoji’s heart.
That cuteness made Himekoji’s heart race. That fine voice made Himekoji thrilled. Those straight words from Mashiro always made his head spin and lose control.
At some point, so much “Mashiro” stuff piled up in Himekoji’s heart.
He just hadn’t realized it, or hadn’t faced it properly.
Until now, until now…
He finally understood.
He liked Mashiro.
He must, for sure, like Mashiro too.
…
…