"Huh, what is this… an anime song?"
"So funny, Renako, you actually like this kind of stuff?"
Even half an hour later, the Gyaru girls' words, laced with disdain and mockery, still echoed in Amaori Renako's ears.
"Ugh… Thinking about it again, my stomach is starting to hurt. I feel sick…"
Amaori Renako, her face pale, leaned against the wall. To change her mood, she stopped by a game store, intending to buy the newly released "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" disc to soothe her wounded heart.
But even with the highly anticipated new game about to be in her hands, this usually cheerful otaku still couldn't cheer up. Instead, the pressure she had endured earlier made her stomach feel even worse.
After her performance at karaoke, would they even talk to her tomorrow?
She had spent an entire summer meticulously trying to change her image, and it still ended up like this.
It's over… my new school life.
Accompanied by immense psychological pressure, another wave of nausea suddenly struck, making Renako instantly dizzy and lightheaded. Her feet slipped, and she was about to fall.
A gentle force timely supported her shoulder.
"Amaori-san, are you alright?"
Huh, a boy's voice?!
Amaori Renako instantly snapped awake, ignoring her discomfort, and hastily looked up.
She met Kazama Haru's deep, dark eyes directly… "Tha… thank you, Kazama-san, I feel much better now."
After being helped by Kazama Haru to sit on a nearby roadside bench and rest for about fifteen minutes, Amaori Renako's face finally regained some color.
During this time, Kazama Haru, through subtle conversation, pieced together the otaku's recent ordeal from Amaori Renako's half-truths and fragmented accounts.
To be honest, it was a bit pathetic.
"If you didn't want to go, couldn't you have just refused? Why put yourself through so much needless trouble?"
Kazama Haru sighed helplessly, bought a bottle of Pocari Sweat from a nearby vending machine, and very naturally handed it to Renako.
"But… if I refused them, I would lose the chance to be friends with them later."
Amaori Renako stared intently at the water bottle in her hand, her tone noticeably despondent.
"Sou ka? Girls really have it tough," Kazama Haru said sympathetically.
*Is that so?
However, what he didn't know was that, unlike her outwardly subtle sadness, Amaori Renako's heart was currently in turmoil.
Baka, Renako, you baka.
Did your brain fry? Why are you telling a boy you just met all this?
Isn't this indirectly admitting that you have no social skills and are just a disgusting, shut-in otaku who giggles foolishly at otome games?
Amaori Renako glanced at Kazama Haru somewhat guiltily.
Uwa.
Yabai, this guy is a super ikemen.
Amaori Renako silently evaluated him in her mind. If a person's charm could be quantified, out of 10 points, she would definitely give Kazama Haru a perfect score.
Even if he disliked her, that look of disdain would still be oishii.
*pleasant
Speaking of which, she, an introverted person, was actually sitting on the same bench as such a handsome young man.
To outsiders, would they be mistaken for being on a date?
It seems life truly is unpredictable.
Just a few hours ago, she was being toyed with by annoying Gyarus, and now, something like a romantic comedy was happening.
Amaori Renako couldn't resist stealing a few more glances at Kazama Haru. This time, Kazama Haru noticed her gaze and returned a kind smile.
Doki!
Amaori Renako's heart rate instantly soared, and she reflexively covered her mouth, barely preventing herself from screaming.
Yabai, this guy is really yabai!
Come to think of it, when facing him, she wasn't as nervous as she was with other boys, unable to look them in the eye.
It must be because he gently helped her, and definitely not some shallow reason like him being an ikemen and her being unable to look away.
Un, that's right.
Having calmed down again, Amaori Renako started to feel the atmosphere between them was a bit awkward.
Kazama Haru, as a Normie, don't you even take the initiative to move the conversation along? Tsukaenai!
*useless
But no matter how much Amaori Renako "cursed" him in her heart, Kazama Haru still showed no intention of speaking first, only taking small sips from the red can of cola in his hand.
He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the atmosphere.
To break the silence, Amaori Renako started to put pressure on herself.
Think of something, Renako! Even though your looks, intelligence, and athletic ability are average, you have an F-cup, so you can definitely resolve this awkward situation. Ganbatte!
Encouraged by such thoughts, Amaori Renako began to brazenly examine Kazama Haru.
Got it!
Staring at the black guitar case on Kazama Haru's back, Amaori Renako finally found a topic. With a hint of barely perceptible triumph, she spoke:
"Kazama-san, what you're carrying on your back, that's a guitar, right? Are you in a Band with someone?"
Seeing her finally initiating conversation, Kazama Haru breathed a sigh of relief.
To avoid saying the wrong thing and accidentally provoking Amaori Renako, who had a slight fear of men, he deliberately maintained a distant yet not too distant demeanor.
He probably thought this measured approach to meeting would make the Otaku grateful to him.
Now that she was talking to him, it must mean she was used to conversing with men like him.
Perhaps he should crack a small joke to close the distance between them?
With that thought, Kazama Haru shook his head and said, "Wrong, Amaori-san, what's inside isn't a guitar, but a bass."
Amaori Renako: (ｷ ｀ ﾟ Д ﾟ ´)!!
It's over. According to the internet, when a bassist's bass is mistaken for a guitar, they usually fly into a rage.
Next, was Kazama Haru going to unleash his fury on her?!
Seeing Amaori Renako's "plain" face instantly turn pale, Kazama Haru realized his joke might have gone too far.
"Ahaha, gomen gomen, Amaori-san, I was just kidding. It's a guitar inside."
I want to kill him!
Now it was Amaori Renako's turn to get angry. If Kazama Haru wasn't blessed with that beautiful face, she would have thrown her bag at him right now.
Although the process was dramatic, through this back and forth, their initially unfamiliar relationship had genuinely grown closer inadvertently.
Amaori Renako also noticed this.
"Ahaha, just a joke, ne."
Amaori Renako suppressed her inner complaints, forced an awkward but polite smile, and seized the opportunity to open up the conversation:
"By the way, Kazama-san, who are you in a Band with? Are there classmates from our class?"
"Un, Takamatsu-san from our class."
"Takamatsu… Ah, that gentle, kawaii girl who's like a small animal, right?"
After a brief thought, Amaori Renako matched the name Takamatsu Tomori with the quiet, solitary girl who often fiddled with stones at her desk.
What she envied was that even though Takamatsu Tomori didn't actively communicate much with others, her classmates all seemed to adore her.
She was well on her way to becoming the class mascot.