The Lie and What Follows

“Good evening. This is Shin.

I planned to post twice on weekdays, but due to work on Wednesday, there is a possibility that I won’t be able to post, so I’m adding an extra post.

It’s only the second day since I started posting, but I am grateful that many people are reading my work. I reflect on my inability to fully bring out the characters’ charm due to my lack of expressive skills. Thank you for your ratings, bookmarks, and comments. It really encourages me.

I will strive to make my work better, so please continue to support me.

Thinking about what to cook for dinner, I spend my Monday afternoon after school.

There’s still no approach from the fan club. Maybe I’m missing the opportunity because I don’t step out of the classroom, or maybe there’s no fan club at all. But it’s better to be cautious.

The classroom is buzzing with anticipation for the upcoming school trip next week, and more students than usual, including those in clubs, are staying back.

Me? I’m in the go-home club, so I’ll be heading home.

I stand up from my seat and slip out of the classroom. The hallways are less crowded than usual, perhaps the same in other classrooms too. I start walking towards the exit, my mind focused on the menu for tonight. If I don’t prepare Haruka’s favorite food, I’ll definitely be scolded—physically.

If it’s Japanese style, then tempura.
If it’s Western style, then fritters.
If it’s Chinese, then fried chicken.

Yeah, let’s go with fried food.
I’ll decide based on what’s on sale at the supermarket. As I’m changing into my loafers at the exit, someone calls out from behind.

“Endo-kun!”
It’s Ninomiya-san, breathing heavily as if she ran all the way here.

“Huh? Ninomiya-san, you’re heading home too?”
I ask, although I don’t really keep track of her schedule. I’m always at the forefront of heading home as a member of the go-home club, but since she often sleeps in the HR, she probably leaves depending on when she wakes up. I always see her comfortably sleeping from behind.

It’s nice that she’s laid-back.

For Ninomiya-san to catch up with me, a go-home RTA player, must mean she has something urgent.
…Wait, could she be the vanguard of the fan club?
It would make sense considering I talked with the popular Adachi-san this morning.

“Yeah. I saw Endo-kun leaving, so I thought maybe we could go home together.”
I see. She’s trying to stall me until she can rendezvous with the main body.
But I’m not going to get caught that easily.

“Sorry, Ninomiya-san. I have to go shopping and run some errands, so I’m heading in a different direction from the station.”
Yes, if you’re given multiple reasons at once, you’ll naturally assume you’re being turned down. The clever Ninomiya-san will realize I have a reason for declining.

“Hmm. Okay, I’ll join you.”

“…No, it’s a detour. And it’s just a regular supermarket. You don’t need to.”

Why does she want to join?
Is the word ‘shopping’ that attractive? Do you need strong flour?

“I see. Let’s go then.”
Hmm. I meant to refuse, but…
Does she take it as “It’s okay even then?” I can’t find any more words to add, so I quietly proceed on my way home with Ninomiya-san beside me.

“Hey, Endo-kun.”

“What’s up?”
We arrive at the supermarket, and I buy some shrimp on sale.
Let’s make shrimp fry tonight. I also bought some super-premium ice cream for over 300 yen each.

I’ll use any means to stay in her good graces.

“During the school trip, is it okay to hang out with the people from Group 1?”
Ninomiya-san asks timidly.

“Yeah, I guess it’s okay.”
She probably wants to stick with the popular kids.
We have Imamura-san from the girls’ bus and Tamura-kun from the baseball team.
They have the handsome Kondo-kun and Adachi-san.
I understand their desire to gather. Excluding cultural and sports festivals, a school trip is a peak event.
For the sunshiny ones, it’s a perfect opportunity to increase the capacity of their memory photo folders.

And they don’t want me, an outlier, mixing in. That makes sense. If I’m in the corner of everyone’s memory photos, it’s the start of another story. Not an extra, but a fundamental mistake.

But rest assured.
My sharp mind has already calculated all this.
Feel free to gather.
…Just let me know the time and

place later, okay?

“Hmm. So it’s okay?
I thought Endo-kun wouldn’t like it.”
Hmm. She must mean roaming alone. Actually, I love it.

“Hmm. Got it. I’ll let them know Endo-kun is okay with it. Imamura-san and the others want to stick together too.”
…Wait, am I misunderstanding something?
Gathering everyone… Is that some kind of ninja technique where one body shares its experiences with others? That doesn’t work, you know?

“In the morning, Imamura-san and the others said you’d definitely refuse, so they asked me to persuade you. But I’m glad, I wanted to go with Endo-kun too.”
Hmm. There seems to be a clear discrepancy between Ninomiya-san’s perception and mine.
But other than honestly saying I’d prefer to go alone, I can’t think of a good excuse.

“…Endo-kun, do you want to go with everyone?”
I can’t say no to that answer.

“Well, yeah…”

“Hmm.”
Feeling her probing gaze, Ninomiya-san distances herself from me.

“Well, it’s okay. If you don’t want to, just say so. I’ll fully support you to go alone.”

“Uh? Oh, okay.”

“See you later!”
Ninomiya-san waves and walks away.
She must have been asked to merge with the popular kids’ group.
I understand why they would ask me, an outlier, to accept. But does going with two people mean just the two of us?
No good. I lack the reading comprehension to understand the meaning of girls’ words. It seems I don’t even have enough Japanese skills.

What I do understand is that the school trip’s group activities will involve a gathering of all the popular kids.
…I really want to take a break.

—

19:00

“I’m home.”

After preparing most of the dinner, I’m watching TV when Haruka comes home.
She doesn’t seem in a bad mood as she appears in the living room.

“Welcome back.”
I greet her as usual.
I had received a message that she would be home soon, so I had already finished frying and was just about to serve the food.

“Huh? Is that shrimp fry?”

Peering at the dishes I’m arranging in the kitchen, Haruka asks me cheerfully.

“Yeah. Shrimp was cheap today, so I thought I’d make shrimp fry.”

“That’s nice.”

“Oh, and I also bought some ice cream. Let’s eat it later.”

“That’s great! Thanks!”
Haruka taps my shoulder lightly and goes to her room to change.
Good. It seems the morning’s issue has faded quite a bit.
Now, as long as I don’t say anything to agitate her (about Adachi-san)…

“Oh, by the way. Let me hear about it later?”
Seems like I can’t avoid it.

After dinner.
Haruka finishes her bath, sits next to me on the sofa, and looks at me, signaling me to start talking. She listens solemnly until I get to the part about running away from Adachi-san, then she puts her hand on mine, getting uncomfortably close.

“That’s about it. Really pathetic, right?”
Just stating the facts, nothing much happened.
I just couldn’t talk to Adachi-san and fled to the bathroom.

Haruka grips my hand, which she had been simply covering, as if holding it.

“You know, Tooru, you always laugh when you talk about unpleasant things, right?”
Is that so?
Haruka has been around me for a long time, so she’s probably not wrong, but I’ve never really noticed it myself.
I don’t have any friends who point it out to me either…
But I always don’t want to worry Haruka, so maybe it’s natural for me to act that way.

“But, you know, when you talk about that awful woman, you’re not laughing at all, did you know?”

“…Yeah.”
I’m certainly not laughing. The lingering feelings in my heart are proof enough.

“I really wanted to support the person Tooru liked, but I hate seeing you suffer like this. I’m being selfish, but I don’t want you to talk to that woman.”

Her grip tightens.

“If Tooru won’t be happy, there’s no need to get close.”

“Yeah, that’s right.”
I’m not sure why my words are slurred.
To avoid dwelling on that, Haruka leans her body against my shoulder.
I thought she would be angry, but she’s really just worried. I’m just a pathetic and inadequate brother.

“Thanks.”
Haruka nods, her face still resting on my shoulder.

After some time, Haruka finally lifts her head.
Her eyes gleam mysteriously, and she says,

“Let’s sleep together then.”

“I’m not sleeping.”