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Reiko’s Manners

Chapter 63

Treat me to a Ko-Fi to give me more motivation!!!

*****

「I will never forgive Fuki-san. I will not forgive Father, either. I will never forgive anyone who has hurt me.」

I gazed intently at Fuki as she wept.

「Even so, I still love Fuki-san. Isn't that foolish of me? I was always yearning for Fuki-san. The cooking and Japanese sewing that Fuki-san taught me—I can do them perfectly. I was always so overjoyed whenever Fuki-san praised me. That is why I tried my hardest to learn. Fuki-san, when you heard I was injured in the landslide, you must have panicked and rushed to my side, didn't you? And then, racked by the pangs of conscience, you told Takanashi-sama the truth, didn't you? But the moment you have me right in front of you, you find yourself utterly unable to accept that I received the love from Mari-sama that was withheld from you, which makes you adopt a malicious attitude. You must have suffered so much being with me all this time, Fuki-san.」

Fuki's shoulders trembled as she continued to weep.

「Yes... Reiko-sama, you were so precious, so deeply endearing. But I could not bear the thought of Mari-sama's love being taken by you. I wanted to love you. Yet I simply could not. What on earth was I doing? To think I spent all these years living like this—just what was I doing...?!」

I placed my hand over Fuki's. Fuki's tears fell onto my hand.

「I will make myself happy. Mari-sama is no longer here. That means Fuki-san must search for happiness outside of Mari-sama. ...I will never seek Fuki-san's love ever again.」

I called Sara-chan and had her come to the hospital room to pick me up. Takanashi-sama came in along with her. He barked angrily at Fuki.

「Fuki-grandma, you went and did something terrible to Kujouin-san again, didn't you?! You damned old hag!」

「Takanashi-sama, please stop. I will not allow you to use such language toward Fuki-san. Besides, you are being far too short-sighted. If you ever try to blame Fuki-san like that again, I will not show mercy!」

「You still don't get it, do you?! You aren't loved by her at all!」

I burst out laughing.

「Takanashi-sama, even so, I used to love Fuki-san. But I will no longer seek her love. Yes, never again. Takanashi-sama, you loved your mother, didn't you? No, do you still love her? That is why you are suffering so, isn't it? Well then, why don't you simply accept that fact? Besides, you have people who love you right now. I, too, have come to have people who cherish me. The wounds we suffered in the past—scars will remain, but the pain will surely vanish. Someday, it will. I have chosen to live believing in that.」

Takanashi-sama lowered his head and clenched his fists into tight balls.

「Neither Takanashi-sama nor I will be able to forget the things of the past for as long as we live; whenever we recall them, we might feel sorrow, pain, and anger. But I hope that even those feelings can one day become a part of who we are.」

Sara-chan bent her knees, squatted down, and peered straight into my face.

「Rei-chan, you have such a wonderful look on your face. You seem somehow refreshed. Now then, everyone is waiting. Let's head back.」

I looked back at Fuki's face one last time. Fuki wore a rigid expression.

「Fuki-san, goodbye. I pray that you recover your health.」

I left the hospital room. Sou-kun and Mandarouji-sama looked at me with worried expressions.

「I am quite alright now. Thank you for waiting for me. Though I cannot forgive my father or Fuki-san, both Father and Fuki-san had their own circumstances. Therefore, I will consider my revenge from here on out. The most effective revenge possible.」

I was smiling. (The feeling of affection I held for Fuki could remain as it was—that was fine. But I would no longer seek her love. This was the conclusion I had reached. My heart ached, but it couldn't be helped. Surely, the pain would ease in time. And the feeling of attachment toward Fuki would likely fade away as well.)

Along with Sara-chan and the others, I returned to the condominium. As we entered the spacious lobby, a pair lounging on the sofa caught my eye. It was Katsuragi-sama and Shiroyama-sama. They had gaming devices in their hands and hadn't noticed our arrival.

When it came to video games, the only one I had ever played was a Game & Watch. Back when I was little, just as we were planning to dry plums at the landlady's house, it suddenly started to rain, leaving us with nothing to do, and the old man lent it to me. He even replaced the batteries for me. It had been so fun. It was a game called 'Flagman'. Apparently, the old man had been exceptionally fond of games back in the day, getting hooked on 'Space Invaders', which was famous even in 'Game Center Arashi'. He had even given me a detailed, step-by-step explanation of a technique called the 'Nagoya Attack', but since I had no opportunity to actually play 'Space Invaders', listening to it was of no use whatsoever. Still, because the old man spoke of it with such delight, I listened in silence.

「Rei-chan, you mustn't mind them. Let's just ignore them and keep going.」

Sara-chan resolved to ignore them, and Sou-kun and Mandarouji-sama headed straight for the elevator lobby without calling out to them either, but Katsuragi-sama noticed us anyway.

「Rei-chan! We've been waiting for you! Calls wouldn't go through either.」

Ah, it was Katsuragi-sama. Next to him, Shiroyama-sama also chimed in with a beaming smile.

「Kujouin Reiko, I'm sorry about yesterday. I reflected on myself. Kaoru told me how.」

「That's right, Michael deeply reflected! He will never repeat the same mistake twice!」

The usual pair. Sara-chan shot them a cold glare.

「We have no business with two pea-brained idiots like you! Hurry up and go home!」

「Well, I don't have any business with the scary Hongo sister, either!」

「What did you just say?!」

(This is the lobby. It will cause a nuisance to those around us.)

「Sara-chan, this will disturb everyone here, so let's have them come into the room for a moment.」

「...I suppose we have no choice.」

In the end, every single member from yesterday gathered in my room. Sara-chan and I sat on the sofa, while Sou-kun and Mandarouji-sama took the chairs at the table. Katsuragi-sama and Shiroyama-sama sat down on the cushions. It happened to be right around the time the helper usually arrived, but I had them prepare only some tea and sent them home early for the day. Sara-chan said she would help me with my bath. Though 'helping' only meant that after taking off my clothes, she would help me put on a waterproof cast cover so the cast wouldn't get wet; I could wash my hair and body all by myself. However, since I couldn't dry myself off properly afterward, I would slip on a bathrobe and step out of the bathroom. At first, wearing nothing but a bathrobe over bare skin felt terribly unsettling, but I had gotten used to it quite a bit. Back when I used to live in Hanaoka Town, I would dry the moisture off my body with a hand towel before stepping out of the washing area. (Ah, how I truly long to soak in a bathtub soon.)

「Sara-chan, I leave it in your capable hands.」

「Ufufu, leave it to me! Oh, that's right—since it's a special occasion, I wonder if I might stay over tonight?」

「I would be so happy, but I don't have a spare futon...」

When I said that, Sara-chan pulled out her smartphone and made a call. She explained she had arranged for a change of clothes, a futon, and various other things to be brought over from the Hongo residence.

「There are no problems now!」

「Sara-chan, this is a genuine sleepover party! When I stayed over at the Hongo residence before, it was in the guest room. Ufufu, and thankfully tomorrow is a day off, too!」

Sara-chan and I got all excited together. Sara-chan seemed even more thrilled than I was. She probably had never slept side-by-side on futons with anyone before. As for me, I used to sleep right alongside Fuki on our futons in the living room.

「Sara, cut it out already. Say, Rei-chan, is it alright if I ask what happened today?」

「Sou-kun, I'm sorry. And Mandarouji-sama, too. Even though you were both so worried, I didn't tell you anything. It's going to be a long story—are you alright on time? Aren't you hungry?」

As I said that, Sou-kun used his smartphone to order some light snacks for delivery. Mandarouji-sama, who had been sitting across from me with the table in between, walked over to my side.

「Rei-chan, you've sorted out your feelings, haven't you? I'm relieved.」

He said it in such a terribly gentle voice. (Mandarouji-sama is a kind person. I should pray that Mandarouji-sama's forbidden love works out. Still, I simply cannot condone adultery. If she is a married woman, I must persuade him to give her up. Even if he ends up hating me for it, I will persuade him.)

「Rei-chan?! The person I love is not a married woman, you know?」

「Oh, my apologies. It seems my inner thoughts slipped out. But I am so relieved to hear she is not a married woman. I will root for you, Mandarouji-sama!」

(Thank goodness. She wasn't a married woman.) Next to me, Sara-chan was laughing.

「That is too funny! Ufufufufufu, ahahahahaha!」

She must have found something amusing. We were at an age where even a fallen chopstick could send us into fits of laughter. Whenever the word 'Execution!!' appeared in 'Gaki Deka', which was loaded onto the tablet device I had borrowed from Mandarouji-sama, I would roll around laughing every single time. (I couldn't even explain to myself why it was so funny. I think that manga is truly something else.)

While Sara-chan continued to laugh, Sou-kun began cross-examining Katsuragi-sama and Shiroyama-sama.

「Are you two genuinely reflecting on yesterday? Especially Shiroyama-san.」

「I am. I'm calling off the engagement properly.」

「Shiroyama-san, you don't get it at all, do you? Do you seriously think you can break off an engagement just like that?」

「That's right, Michael. You should just marry your fiancée who's in Vienna. Didn't I tell you yesterday?」

「I don't want to marry Bianca. I told my mother that this morning.」

「The only girl who would ever marry you is that, what's-her-name, Bianca! Michael, you're an idiot. An idiot who's good for nothing except playing the piano. That girl is the only one who's willing to accept you!」

「No, Kujouin Reiko will accept me. Kujouin Reiko's piano belongs to me.」

「No she won't, Rei-chan won't accept you! Besides, Michael, you are still in a state of being engaged. So even if there were a chance—no, even a one-in-a-billion chance—that Rei-chan accepted you, you wouldn't be able to propose to her. Understood?」

Just as Sou-kun let out a sigh, the light snacks we had ordered for delivery arrived.

*****

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