"Don't you dare flirt with someone else's boyfriend!"
I was suddenly pushed over by a girl whose name I didn't even know. I wasn't flirting with her or anything, and I had absolutely no idea who her boyfriend was.
"I didn't do anything..."
I tried to explain myself while feeling a dull pain in my shoulder.
"Don't lie to me!!"
...Here we go again, I thought, fed up with this familiar occurrence that had been happening to me at a certain rate since I was young. Because I was a child actor in my childhood and because of this face I inherited from my mother, I've been subjected to harassment and insidious bullying since I was little. Most of it was from girls, and I was categorized as a girl that other girls disliked.
They didn't like her, she was getting too big for her britches, she was spoiled because she was a child actress and had a big ego, she was flirting with other people's boyfriends...the list of things they said about her behind her back was endless. But from the day after her parents' infidelity scandal was reported on the news...it was nothing like before.
Like adding gasoline to an already burning fire, the gossip and bullying increased exponentially. Like father, like son, I wonder how they can even come to school, serves them right, hilarious...
"Hey, Great Buddha? Let's have an affair too, shall we?"
Even boys, instigated by girls, throw similar words at her. The bullying subsides when Miko is around, but it's impossible to be with her all the time... When she's alone, she's subjected to merciless and malicious words.
Saying "I've been told that for ages, so I'm used to it..." is just a way of putting on a brave face. No matter how much time passes, no matter if it's said by someone I don't even know...it's not like I don't feel anything...
It's tough, it's painful... I'm not strong enough to face bullying alone. Being alone is scary...
"Say something!"
"...!" *squeeze*
And again... just like always, I had no choice but to endure until the other person was satisfied... That's when they arrived.
"Shut up, you idiot."
When I looked up from my bowed head at the sound of the voice, I saw a boy standing there, shielding me from view.
"I-Ishigami...kun?"
While working with Miko on the disciplinary committee, I'd seen him secretly playing a handheld game console several times and had to warn him. Come to think of it... I hadn't seen him doing that recently. Rumor has it that, despite being a third-year student about to retire, he'd rejoined the track and field club. I don't know why, but maybe that's why I haven't seen him breaking any rules lately...
"What?! Who's the idiot?! It's none of your business!!"
...That's right, it has nothing to do with Ishigami.
"I only heard part of the story, but I did get a listen."
"Huh?!... Ha! Eavesdropping is so gross!!"
"Well... I won't deny that."
He's not denying it...
"Seriously, if you have a complaint, tell it to your boyfriend. The Buddha has nothing to do with it. You're completely ignoring the fact that you're not attractive enough to keep him, and yet you have the nerve to spout such nonsense. That's totally misplaced resentment, don't you have any morals? Besides, isn't your boyfriend just saying whatever comes to mind because he doesn't want a high-maintenance woman like you?"
What happened next was incredible. He continued to speak rapidly, but everything he said was true... The girl, speechless, left crying and screaming, tears welling up in her eyes.
...This was an inevitable outcome. This man, Ishigami Yu, is one of the few who can make Fujiwara Chika taste bitter defeat. According to her...
A domestic violence perpetrator who attacks with logical arguments
They are narrow-minded and quick to nitpick.
The muzzle of abusive language is always aimed at me.
The wounds he inflicts heal unusually slowly.
Fujiwara Chika, who is so oblivious to the hostile and hateful gaze of Shinomiya Kaguya, has a history of being made to say such things and cry multiple times. No ordinary middle school girl could possibly endure it.
"I-Ishigami...kun."
"Ishigami is fine, I call him Daibutsu without any honorifics anyway."
"Ishigami, are you sure it's okay to say something like that?"
"No problem."
Ishigami answered, shaking his head as if nothing was wrong.
"But what if the teacher finds out...?"
"What are you going to say when you tell them?"
"...picture?"
"So you're saying I was spitefully using violence and verbal abuse against a girl who hadn't done anything wrong, and an unrelated male student stopped me? If you're going to rat me out, you also have an obligation to explain what you were doing... There's nothing she can do."
"Oh, I see, that's right. Yeah... Hey, Ishigami?"
"yeah?"
"...Why did you help me? I didn't think Ishigami was the type to do something that would draw attention to himself... Besides, I'm not exactly known for good things, right? Like my parents' scandal and all sorts of other things..."
"...It's true I don't like standing out. But I don't want to be the kind of person who would turn a blind eye to a situation like that."
"I see, Ishigami is strong... completely different from me."
"...I've heard rumors about the Great Buddha too. But I'd rather believe what I saw with my own eyes than hear about my parents' scandals or malicious rumors spread by others."
"Ishigami..."
"The Great Buddha is the Great Buddha. I think I know that you're not the person the rumors say you are..."
I was watching you closely too.
Suddenly...the words the Great Buddha had said to me crossed my mind.
"...I was looking at the Great Buddha properly."
"...!?"
People can sometimes be truly comforted by the small actions of others.
Or perhaps... it's a thoughtful gesture.
Or perhaps... it was a casual remark made by the boy in front of me.
"...Ishigami."
"yeah?"
"...thank you."
"Oh, you're welcome."
Ishigami is acting way too much like the main character (´･ω･`)