CHAPTER 420: CHAPTER 415: NIGHT TALK

The Black Hearted Lolita, who also came back empty-handed, turned and returned to her room. A perfectly good opportunity to win Little Bai’s favor was just missed like that. Such a pity.

Should I have come earlier after all? Damn it! And I was worried that Little Bai wouldn’t be able to sleep!

A certain slacker girl: Today, I’m definitely going to take down this arrogant boss using Shirakawa’s character account!

The outside night fell silent once more. Inside the room, Miss Tachibana Tomoku was holding onto her quilt, trying hard to pretend to be asleep.

It seemed a long time had passed when the girl trembled slightly and turned her head to look at the bedding on the floor beside her bed, wanting to check if someone had fallen asleep. Unexpectedly, she met Shirakawa Sawahei’s waiting gaze.

Little Invisible quickly turned her head, her cheeks flushed, and pulled on the little quilt with both hands. Shirakawa Sawahei sighed, saying helplessly, "Tachibana? Staying up so late isn’t quite what you’d call a good child."

"S-Sorry!"

"I’m not looking for an apology... do you find it strange that I’m sleeping here?"

"No! Not at all!" Miss Tachibana hurriedly replied, while adding a note in her heart.

The strange one should be me...

"So, are you having trouble sleeping?"

"M-Maybe."

"I see." Shirakawa Sawahei nodded lightly, "So, you can’t sleep well in a new bed."

"Sorry..."

"..."

The girl’s pitiful tone was like that of a frightened kitten afraid of being abandoned. Shirakawa Sawahei sighed, and not just his gaze but his body turned toward her as well.

"No need to apologize to me, Tachibana. We’re friends, aren’t we? Only strangers need to apologize frequently. Friends only need to apologize when it’s truly necessary."

"S-Sorr... " Miss Tachibana realized her mistake, covered her small mouth with both hands, and turned to the side, her deer-like pure eyes glittering in the night.

Shirakawa Sawahei was slightly dazed by that sparkle, and glanced at the window.

Is tonight’s moonlight still too bright?

"Are you still unable to sleep?"

"Yeah..."

"Then let’s count sheep."

"Okay."

"Do you prefer to count in your mind, or out loud?"

Miss Tachibana blinked and thought for a moment, then replied, "In my mind..."

Though she hadn’t experienced many occasions where she needed to count sheep to fall asleep. But here, it seemed really hard to easily fall asleep.

Not counting the time before at the Hot Spring Villa, it was her first time being so close to Shirakawa Sawahei with both of them fully conscious. The sound of breathing echoed in the room, and Miss Tachibana quietly counted sheep for a while, her breathing suddenly becoming lighter.

"Shirakawa."

The girl opened her eyes, her tone carrying a hint of trouble.

"I still can’t sleep."

"Alright then, it’s just as well I can’t sleep either." Shirakawa Sawahei changed his position, "Let’s chat then."

"Eh?"

"Nothing to talk about?"

"N-No... It’s just that I’ve never really started a conversation in such a formal manner."

Shirakawa Sawahei was silent for a while, then chuckled softly, "That’s because Tachibana was too aloof, wasn’t it? In my first year of high school, I thought Tachibana disliked me."

"No! How could that be... I, I actually..."

"Alright, alright... don’t sit up, just joking..." Shirakawa Sawahei quickly said, "It’s precisely because I knew that, we slowly became friends, didn’t we?"

"Yeah... Shirakawa?"

"Hmm?"

Tachibana bit her lower lip, summoning the courage to ask, "Shirakawa, what did you think of me before?"

"Before?"

"In our first year."

"Hmm... Beautiful, obedient, cute... and... curious?"

Tachibana: face-red Steam Girl.jpg

"Curious?"

"Of course curious, Tachibana was so cute, she should have been more popular. Did it start from middle school?"

"I... I’m pretty ordinary..." Tachibana’s face was thoroughly red, fortunately covered by the moonlight so that Shirakawa Sawahei couldn’t tell. She whispered, "I’m actually... a bother, right?"

"A bother?"

"In many ways."

"A friend is the kind of being that doesn’t find it strange when mutually bothered, right?" Shirakawa Sawahei said, "Tsukimi and the others never thought you were a bother, didn’t you know that?"

Does that include boyfriends?

This idea popped up instantly, coloring Little Invisible’s already red cheeks with another layer.

Boyfriends and such... That’s too greedy! With someone like me...

"Yeah... But... sometimes I still feel useless." The girl’s voice became slightly downcast, "I’ve never really done anything to help everyone, yet I’ve always troubled everyone to tolerate me. I hate myself for that."

"No." Shirakawa Sawahei solemnly countered, "Tsukimi always says she feels healed seeing Tachibana, remember? Besides, your presence has helped Ise Yu a lot."

For example, as material for manga characters.

"Then... what about you, Shirakawa?"

"Did I... have I ever helped Shirakawa?"

"Yes."

"Really?"

"Really."

The girl’s mouth curled into a sweet smile, replying softly, "That’s good."

Shirakawa Sawahei: "..."

He had known long ago that Little Invisible Study Girl was adorable, but showing such a smile is just too much, isn’t it?

Cheating! This is a cheat code that drains health points, Tachibana!

So... cute.

"Ahem... Tachibana, you still haven’t answered my question." Shirakawa Sawahei cleared his throat, shifting the topic, "Why, being so pretty, do you always keep such a low profile?"

"I, I’m not pretty at all... Like Hayakawa or Asano... they’re the ones who should be called pretty."

Shirakawa Sawahei thought Little Arrogant was indeed pretty, but she’s not here... As for Little Lolita...

Let her grow a few more years before comparing with you.

"Were you always like this before, hiding from people’s sight as a Little Invisible? Or should I say a mushroom-type girl?"

The girl’s gaze dimmed immediately, falling silent for a while before she spoke softly, "During elementary school years, because of my parents’ jobs, I often changed schools and places to study. Sometimes, just after making friends, I’d have to say goodbye the next day."

"There were no close people, and I couldn’t tell my grievances to my parents because they were often absent at that time. Familiar uncles and aunts would attend the parent-teacher meetings instead..."

"Later on, even those uncles and aunts stopped appearing."

"Back then, I secretly made an escape plan to run away one night, to rebel against my parents a bit... But the next day when I saw the breakfast my mom prepared for me, I gave up on the plan and obediently went to school with my backpack."

"Isn’t that quite childish?" Tachibana spoke softly, "Because I had to be good, had to listen, couldn’t let my parents worry, couldn’t have a bad heart. Couldn’t trouble others. So, I gave up on running away."

"The most willful thing I did was pester my mom to buy me a cat. I treated her as my friend and gave her a name, but like my earlier friends, after not much time, due to a hurried farewell, she was left behind at my former home."

"I imagine she must have felt really sad, being easily purchased by me and yet turning into a stray cat with no name tag shortly after."

"Later, Mom asked someone to search, but they couldn’t find her. Since then, I haven’t kept pets anymore."

"Growing flowers is better than keeping pets, because when flowers wither, there are still seeds, and they will be the same flowers next year."