CHAPTER 49: THE BURDEN OF NOT BEING ABLE TO STAY JUST A GOOD FRIEND ANYMORE

«Aoshi, let me pay, I insist!» Ayane pleads, trying to pull Aoshi away from the counter.

«It’s my birthday gift for you — no way I’m letting you pay!» Aoshi grumbles, feet planted firmly on the floor as he charges toward the register like a hunting dog on a scent.

«I-I know, but... now that you’ve lost your job, even a few yen could be useful for you — especially since you told me Eliss will be moving back to her place soon, and then I have no idea how you’re supposed to make it through the month!» Ayane hisses through clenched teeth, struggling to hold him back.

«T-That’s nothing you need to worry about! I’ll figure something out, you’ll see!» Aoshi replies — he’s not ready to tell Ayane he’ll soon be practically buried under a mountain of gold.

After all, Ayane still thinks Eliss is some kind of yakuza boss’s daughter who got shipped across Japan to live in the house of a total nobody — and something like that would trigger every alarm bell in her head.

«Stop being so stubborn and let me pay!» Ayane snaps, shooting Aoshi a murderous glare as she yanks him back so hard he nearly falls over — not because she’s strong, but only because Aoshi is very scrawny.

«Can you two hurry up? You’re blocking the whole line!» the cashier scolds them.

Behind them, a crowd of irritated customers waits impatiently — torches and pitchforks practically in hand.

«F-Fine, you win — just calm down now...» Aoshi grumbles, glancing back in embarrassment — both because of that humiliating two-minute showdown of "I’ll pay. No, I’ll pay!" and because he just got dragged around by a girl who, at first glance, looks more like his tiny first-year little sister than a fellow university student.

At a nearby table, two guys are watching them. One of them — Hiroshi, a tanned, gym-built guy in his thirties with bleached blond hair — watches with the same mocking expression as everyone else in the fast-food joint.

The other man, about the same age but even more muscular, has neatly groomed black hair, a trimmed beard, and a bandage wrapped around his head, partly hidden under a snapback. He studies Aoshi and Ayane with the puzzled, almost thoughtful look of someone trying to place a familiar face.

These two aren’t from Nagano... but I swear I’ve seen them somewhere before. Where have I seen them?

Then it hits him — and he clenches his fists and grits his teeth.

«Hiroshi...» he murmurs, nudging his friend with his elbow and nodding toward Aoshi and Ayane. «...keep an eye on them — let me know the second they walk out. I’ve got unfinished business with that walking toothpick,» he adds, referring to Aoshi.

Hiroshi smirks as he takes a bite of his cheeseburger.

«Oh, so that’s him? I see...»

●●●

«It’s official — this fast food place is totally overrated,» Ayane grumbles as she gets up from her seat, visibly displeased. «The fries were passable at best, but the burger was honestly inedible. I don’t get how this place is always packed! Looking back, we should’ve just crossed the street if we wanted real meat.»

«Yeah, but the meat at Cordesol Meat costs like ten times as much...» Aoshi replies, following Ayane out of the restaurant.

As they step outside, he can’t help noticing the lustful stares a few customers shoot at Ayane, not even bothering to hide it. Her slim, elegant figure stands out in the red dress hugging her hips and chest, and the high slit along her right thigh leaves her leg completely exposed.

Even with the heels, she’s still much shorter than Aoshi, which only highlights how petite she is.

«...but at least at Cordesol Meat you wouldn’t have drawn this much attention wearing that dress. Everyone had their eyes glued to you in there — and they still do...» Aoshi mutters with clear displeasure.

Walking behind her, he can’t help stealing a few glances at her small but noticeable butt, perfectly outlined by the tight dress.

«Stop acting like it bothers you when people look at me like that — I’m not Eliss,» Ayane snaps, her voice dry and tinged with irritation and sadness, leaving Aoshi completely taken aback.

«What does Eliss have to do with anything?» Aoshi mutters, quickening his pace to walk beside her.

«It’s just strange you didn’t invite her too — whenever we go out she’s glued to you like a shadow, and you always bring her along.»

«Well, Eliss is working. Even if she wanted to, she couldn’t come anyway — ever since Mr. Tobita let me go, she’s been working even harder than before. And there’s no way he’d give her Sunday evening off — it’s one of the busiest times of the week.»

«Right. Her job. I guess that’s the only reason she’s not here tonight — otherwise she’d be breathing down my neck as usual,» Ayane hisses through clenched teeth, clearly annoyed.

«W-Why are you suddenly talking about her like that — like she actually bothers you? I thought you two were friends...» Aoshi murmurs, visibly disheartened.

«I’m not mad at her, you idiot — I’m mad at you! You always say you don’t care about her, that you can’t wait for her to move back to her place. But that’s not what it looks like at all. Back at the water park, when she walked off with that creep, anyone could tell from a mile away how on edge you were. And don’t give me that bullshit excuse that you were just worried about her — I’m not stupid. It’s easy to tell the difference between someone who’s worried and someone who’s jealous. And you were damn jealous, Aoshi! Why? Tell me why you get so jealous about Eliss!» Ayane bursts out, her eyes wet as she stares straight into his.

«W-Well, um...» Aoshi hesitates. He drops his gaze, lets out a deep sigh — but nothing else comes out.

«You don’t need to answer — I don’t need to hear it from you,» Ayane whispers, turning her back to him. «It’s obvious — you’re in love with her. It’s clear as day. I just...»

Her voice breaks. Tears spill down her small, flushed cheeks. «...I just don’t understand why you keep lying to me, why you keep saying you don’t feel anything for her — that it’s all in my head!»

She spins around suddenly, facing him again, and Aoshi freezes — horrified — at the sight of her face: streaked with tears, her ruined makeup running down her skin like black lines cutting across her features. She sniffles, her breath shaky, her eyes redder than her elegant dress.

«A-Ayane... w-why are you like this right now? I don’t get it...» Aoshi stammers, crushed by her pain, feeling something heavy and merciless pressing down on his chest.

«No — WHY are you like this?!» Ayane explodes. «Stop messing with me and just say you love her — go on, SAY IT!»

«N-No, you can’t force me to say things I don’t feel! And like I already told you, Eliss has nothing to do with this right now! We went out just the two of us to celebrate your birthday, so why are you spouting nonsense and getting worked up over what you just said?!» Aoshi snaps, his nerves fraying under the pressure of her sudden emotional shift. «I-I’ve told you a hundred times — I don’t feel anything for Eliss. A-And even if I did... I don’t understand why that would upset you so much!»

Ayane takes a deep breath — her chest rising and then falling all at once, trying to regain even a shred of calm, and the courage she desperately needs. Her whole body trembles from head to toe at the thought of what she’s about to say.

I... I can’t keep going like this. At this point it’s obvious Aoshi doesn’t feel anything for me — he’s totally hung up on Eliss... but I don’t care! I’ve carried this weight inside me for so long, too long, and if I don’t let it out now, I know I never will. I can’t keep pretending he’s "just a really good friend". I can’t keep acting like it’s nothing when I see other girls entering his life — or pretend I’m happy about it — when all I’ve ever wanted is to be that one special girl who’ll always be part of his life. And if saying this ruins our friendship forever, then so be it — because I can’t keep being the "good friend" he thinks I am, the one I’ve always forced myself to be!

«You ask why I’m so upset...» Ayane whispers in a barely audible whisper, her gaze dropping again. She clenches her fists — even her toes curl inside her red high heels. Her heart pounds in her chest like a jackhammer.

«B-Because I... I...»

Ayane lifts her head again, her eyes locking onto Aoshi’s. «Because I lov—»

«Well, well... isn’t it a small world?»

A split second before Ayane can finish her sentence, a threatening voice echoes from behind Aoshi, and a heavy hand clamps down on his shoulder.

On instinct, Aoshi darts forward, shrugging the hand off and spinning around.

It takes him a moment to recognize the black-haired guy with the beard and the bandage wrapped around his head beneath a snapback — standing beside a tall, muscular blond man.

But when it clicks, terror flashes across his face.

Ayane mirrors that same terror, instinctively stumbling back.

It’s Kaito — the guy Aoshi injured at the water park that day while saving Eliss.