I didn't know what happened my body moved on its own, and before I realized what I was doing, my hand was holding the girl's hand, the one who had that device.
The three girls were shocked by my sudden interference, and the two stepped back. The one holding the device forcefully pulled her hand away from mine, causing the device to fall onto the ground.
She glared at me and said, "Who the hell are you? Do you even know what the hell you're doing? And how the hell did a little gutter insect like you dare touch my hand?"
Wow… gutter insect? That's quite rude for a first meeting. I don't even know this girl and she's already calling me that. I kept those thoughts in my mind. The other two were looking at me like I was some creep stalking her. Dude, I'm literally just a normal, good-hearted guy.
Anyway, this "gutter insect" wants to ask what the hell is happening here, I said.
"It's none of your damn business. Stay out of it if you don't want to ruin your life," she replied.
Well, it was too late for me to step back now. And it would be the same as losing the knight's game. I could already imagine Knight-san lecturing me if I ran away.
"I can clearly see the three of you ganging up on this girl. It's obviously bullying. If you don't want this to go to the teachers, apologize to her right now," I said.
All three of them laughed. "Us? Apologize? You must have screwed up your brain, kiddo. YOU should apologize to me for interrupting our fun."
I was shocked. She didn't even have a single hint of guilt on her face.
The girl who was being bullied stayed completely silent, not able to speak a single word. I think she was too traumatized by these three.
And their laughter… damn, that was annoying. Even a witch's laugh sounds better. I wished I could punch all three of them in the face.
Then I said, "Talking nicely won't work. I'll tell you one last time apologize to her right now. Otherwise, I'll report everything to the higher-ups. And the consequences will be so bad that even with that huge ego of yours, it'll be difficult to deal with."
They started to panic under my cold stare. They hesitated before speaking. Then they turned to the girl and asked if they were bullying her. She replied softly, hesitating, "No…"
I was shocked by her answer.
"See? We weren't bullying her," they said, lifting their chins proudly. "You got your answer." And with their heads held high, they walked toward the entrance. While leaving, they told the girl to go wash her face and come fast otherwise who would carry their luggage?
After they left, I crouched down and asked her, "Are you okay?"
She replied, "W-Why… did y-you h-help me?"
"Well, isn't it obvious? You looked like you were in trouble, so I helped," I said.
Though honestly, in my mind, I also knew I almost ignored everything at first.
"There's no need to be scared. They're gone now." I helped her stand up.
She said, "Thank you for the help, but please don't get involved with me… otherwise you'll get into trouble. And please don't tell the teachers. I beg you."
Well, she was right. If I told the teachers directly, they'd bully her even more.
"Okay, I won't tell,
Before I could finish, her phone rang. I checked mine, but it wasn't me.
She took her phone from her bag and answered, "Hello, Mom? Yes, I reached the camp with my friends. Yes, I'm enjoying it. It's so fun. Those three even gave me the window seat on the way here. Yes, Mom, I'll take care of myself. Tell Papa not to worry. Okay, Mom, I'll talk later the teachers are calling us. Love you, Mom."
When she hung up, she tried to calm herself, but her tears still wouldn't stop.
After understanding the whole situation, I realized it was more than just bullying. At that moment, I couldn't think of a single thing to comfort her with.
It's easy to handle these situations if you're some main character in a novel or drama. Reality isn't like that. This was the first time I saw a girl cry like this. She tried to stop her tears, but they kept falling.
People might think she's weak or pathetic for crying like that. But I could see it differently. She thought she wasn't bothered, but all her emotions had been bottled up inside, rising to her throat. Now she couldn't hold them back anymore.
What could I do? I was just a stranger standing in front of her. What could I say that would comfort her?
At that moment, only one memory came to my mind.
I remembered a time when my mom was crying for some reason. She tried so hard to stop her tears, but they wouldn't stop no matter what she did. Then she looked at my dad and whispered, "They won't stop…" Her voice was trembling.
My dad didn't say anything at first. He simply removed his jacket, gently covered her face with it, pulled her into his arms, and held her tightly.
Then he whispered to her,
"Let them come. Let your emotions out this time. Don't force yourself to hold everything in. Cry as much as you need. I'm right here."
That scene has been burned into my mind ever since.
So in that moment, facing this crying girl in front of me… that was the only thing I could think of.
Of course, I can't hug her. I can't hold her hand. I was just a stranger to her. But at least at the very least I could do this much.
I removed my jacket and gently covered her face, and said softly:
"It's okay… don't hold anything back. Let your emotions come out. Cry all you want. No one can see your face, so…it's fine. Just let it out."
I don't know exactly what you're going through, but I can understand the feeling of being alone. So cry all you want."
After some time when see finally calm down,
I offered her a handkerchief. She used it to wipe her tears.
I said, "It's new," meaning she didn't need to worry.
But she panicked and said, "S-Sorry, I didn't know! I'll pay for it please tell me the price!" She pulled out her purse.
I asked her to calm down. "I meant it's new, so don't worry. Please keep it."
I should be more careful with my words or she might misunderstand again.
Then I said, "We should go inside. Someone might see us here and ask too many questions." She nodded quietly. I helped her carry her luggage, and we finally passed through the entrance of the camp.
Suddenly, Aoi and Ren popped out of nowhere.
"Ito-kun! How much time did you take?" (In case you forgot, his full name is Haruto Ito.)
"Did I miss something?" I asked.
"No, there's still time. They asked us to walk around the campus. The staff is busy checking if all the dorm facilities are ready. That's why no one came outside."
Then Aoi's eyes landed on the girl beside me. Her sparkling eyes told me exactly what she was about to ask.
Before she could speak, I said, "She's not my girlfriend. I just met her outside. She felt dizzy so I helped her and walked her here."
She pouted. "I didn't even say anything yet."
"Well, I just knew what you were going to ask."
After that, I asked Fujimori-san ( Aoi Fujimori)to take the girl to the restroom because she needed to wash her face.
Aoi came close to me, looking straight into my eyes with a cold stare. I got scared instantly.
Then she said, "Just call us by our first names. Drop the honorifics. Okay?"
The only thing that came out of my mouth was, "Yes."
She smiled and took the girl to the restroom.
"She's terrifying, right?" Ren said.
"Yes," I replied, and then immediately apologized. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that"
He laughed. "Calm down. I know what she's like. When she acts like that, no one can say no to her. That's one of the qualities that made me fall for her."
I stared at his face. He asked what happened.
"You look genuinely happy and proud when you talk about her. You really love her."
His face turned bright red, and he covered it with his hands. "P-Please don't say things like that directly to my face…"
Holy shit. If you can't handle it, then don't start it, dude. You started this topic, not me. But it was fun to watch. Man love is something else.
Then I suddenly heard a voice behind me.
"Hey, you gutter insect! Where the hell is Miyu? Didn't we tell her to come carry our luggage?!"
I recognized that voice and the "gutter insect" insult. It was one of the girls from that gang.
I sighed, looked straight into her eyes, and said, "Tell your leader she's not coming back. She's not your tool or servant to obey your orders."
The girl scratched her head and replied, "Listen, kiddo, I don't know who you are or what your relationship with her is, but if you don't want to ruin her life, stop interfering. We have something on her, and if we post it online, her whole life will be ruined. So get out of our way and tell her to come back immediately."
"And what if I told you," I said with the coldest stare, "that I recorded the entire scene that happened outside?"
"Hello everyone! If you've read the chapter, please share your review. Let me know which characters you liked or disliked.
Your feedback really helps me improve future chapters, so don't forget to leave a comment!"