Isekai Shoukan Gossip 1 Kaede Mochizuki
Iori´s side
Today, for the first time, I found out that.
―――――Kaede is being bullied because of me.
I went to Kaede's classroom to tell her that she can go ahead without me because I have something to do.
And I saw it. Her private properties were cut into pieces, and her chair and desk are in a horrible state because someone scribbled on it.
I didn't know what happened, but in the classroom which was engulfed in silence when I entered, there was a schoolgirl who began to talk to me.
When I came to a realization and understood what the girl said, I unconsciously grasp the schoolgirl's chest while responding in an angry and loud voice
I'll rephrase and ask proper questions. It was at that time, Kaede came into the classroom while gasping.
Negative thoughts swirled into my head. I only felt sadness, I wanted to cry when Kaede saw me, but it couldn't be helped as I didn't know what to do.
However, Kaede wasn't shaken by the scene at all and opened her mouth. She didn't feel sorrow or resentment with a simple way of talking entirely.
I asked Kaede why she wasn't angry which assumed such a manner.
"How should I? I didn't know what to do.... that's why I wanted you to go back home first..." Kaede responded. I have experienced those words coming from her mouth, many times by now.
Suddenly, I saw a kerosene container carried in Kaede's hand and understood everything. All too soon tears overflowed from my eyes who understood Kaede´s strange behavior recently.
At the same time, the schoolgirls who did cruel things to Kaede, my anger about myself overflowed and didn't stop.
And I threw my anger against the near desk. I shout and kicked the desk to the school girls before I went out.
Because Kaede was going to clean her desk and chair after the girls disappeared, I wanted to help her but she insisted on cleaning it by herself, so we quarreled until we decided to compromise and cleaned up together.
While cleaning, I yield to self-hatred and my tears didn't stop falling and I just apologized to Kaede while shedding tears.
I decided to go and apologize to Kaede's mother before going home. I went to Kaede's house because I wanted to apologize to Kaede, but my heart was different.
Kaede did not blame me at all and she extra became painful because of that. Therefore――――――when I arrived at Kaede's house to blame someone, Kaede's father was also at home. Although Kaede disliked talking, I told the whole story to her parents.
When I finished speaking, I apologized first. However, my apology doesn't have calculations at all. That's why I thought that I would be blamed afterward, but against my expectations, they didn't blame me. Far from blaming me, they thanked me. To hear such words, It became more painful.
After apologizing to Kaede's parents, I returned home. Even when Kaede's mother talked with my mother, she didn't blame me, either.
And I stayed in my room and worried alone. I said to myself that I'm the bad one, however, Kaede was different.
What was bad?
What was prohibited?
What injured Kaede?
What created this situation?
How long do I need to worry, perhaps it passed one day? But an answer was given.
The bad ones――――are those schoolgirls who gave harm to me and Kaede.
Anything can be done in the case of the punishment to me and because it's I who execute it I´m also the target. But the schoolgirls are different.
How shall I do it, what kind of punishment shall I give myself, I'm the person who gave harm to gentle Kaede, so a lukewarm punishment is
impossible......
Ah, people who harmed Kaede――――I want to kill them.
Yes, I want to kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill,, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill, kill them.
Only that came to mind. However, Kaede would feel sorry If I really killed them, so I gave up on that thought.
Then what should I do? Is there a punishment besides death? How about my punishment?
Two weeks passed all too soon when I thought about such a thing earnestly. On the very same day....Kaede had come in front of my room.
The plan I thought about which I should talk with Kaede, we talked about it after I met her after two weeks.
At first, I apologized again. The cause that made Kaede unhappy is because of me, there is no mistake about that and I decided to not approach Kaede. I made a decision to tell Kaede these exact words the next time I meet her.
Kaede is gentle, she is too gentle, I had to say that I wanted to avoid her, however, Kaede wouldn't let go, she wouldn't throw me away no matter what.
Kaede denied all of my words while having a sad face. However, I shouldn't depend too much on it. Therefore I said that a thing like that time shouldn't happen again. Because the words that had been said at that time meant to hit me consecutively one after another, but what she said have hardly rung in my heart.
Kaede who heard my words declared to transfer for some reason. I have been dumbfounded to hear her words. And Kaede suggested that all schools were bad for this thing.
The school is bad, I didn't consider such a thing. Is school bad? No, the bad ones are I and those schoolgirls. However, if there is no school......If it’s not for that school then......
When I was having such a monolog, I noticed that Kaede was talking with my mother, and Kaede left my house after their talk was over.
After Kaede left, my mother told me that Kaede recommended that I should change a different school with her.
I refused to transfer. It is the same as Kaede, everything must change now. Even If I refused, my mother didn't stop talking about the recommendation and said this.
"I didn't say that it's bad for you to keep blaming yourself. But I have to say this, Kaede wanted to change to a different school with you. If you want to change schools, go with Kaede together, and if that's not enough, think of it as a way to atone for your sins."
The word atonement echoed in my head. When I wanted to blame myself, in my heart I had always thought that I can be healed by these words. So I decided to transfer.
I was thinking alone about my punishment in my room after that.
And I found a solution.
I don't care about those girls anymore, I'll change school and I won't show my face anymore. Both of us would have died, Kaede and I. Let's think for a second at that time, if I don't, something like that would happen again.
This is the punishment for me.
My punishment is―――――――
◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆◇◆
Kaede changed the school with me.
Before having to change school. I decided to refrain from associating with Kaede as much as possible.
I got tired of associating with other people in my junior high with my absence, so you could say that I refused to go to school.
Even when my parents were angry because I stayed home and my attendance fell, but the two of them didn't get angry about my results.
Anyway, I didn't talk with any other person other than Kaede, and not making a single friend at all after I finished junior high school.
Because there was a withdrawal when becoming a high school student, the topic about my absence almost disappeared.
When I became a high school student, I became―――――a loner......
Before changing school......I was considerably friendly until the last year of junior high, while I played a completely different character before changing school, it soon became my true character.
I, who was assuming that as my true character and figure were the cause of me being alone, without permission I extended my forelock to daringly cover my face. My bangs grow longer and I reek of a gloomy odor. I didn't have any chances to talk Kaede, her parents, and mine in a serious way.
Because of this and that, about the first year of high school, I became alone, I got a second attribute called community obstacle.
It became really hard to socialize with a single person except for Kaede, my days of my second year in high school became painful. Because only Kaede would talk to me, I didn't bother her, I don't want to be disliked by others and Kaede who came to see how things are every day, she was gentle everytime we made such silly and short conversation.
On the last day, before winter holidays, Kaede came to my classroom as usual after homeroom class ended.
She embraced me as always and I averted my eyes from Kaede......
I slowly back away from Kaede. And when our silly talk ends, as usual, the student council group came to meet and pick up Kaede.
And my winter holidays, which aren't also funny didn't start like last year, because I was surrounded by a mysterious light.