Translator: Pingas
“Well, I’m going this way.”
I said that to Nanamura in front of the family restaurant I work in. My mind still feels a bit fluffy and hazy, probably because we had a great time talking about light novels a while ago.
“I see. Well, see you around.”
Nanamura nodded slightly and rode his bike away, disappearing into the night illuminated by streetlights and car taillights, leaving me with a fuzzy feeling in my heart. For some reason, I couldn't take my eyes off his back, even though it was pointless, and I had no reason to keep watching.
He stopped and turned around at a traffic light. At that moment, I realized I had been staring at Nanamura the entire time.
This is so embarrassing, …even my ears flared up.
“Ah, …I guess I’ll head back too.”
I deliberately said that out loud to give myself an excuse to walk away.
I walked in the opposite direction from Nanamura and passed by a small park. The leaves of the trees rustled quietly in the night breeze.
My cheeks still felt slightly warm, and the cool night air felt pleasant. I’m glad it’s the season for refreshing night breezes.
A lot of things happened today. Sakado-san and her friends caught me with my light novel, Nanamura saved me, he and Hanamitsuji-san from Class F came to the family restaurant, and then we talked about light novels and stuff together.
I’m still feeling a bit dizzy.
I sat on a bench in the park to slow down my train of thought before going home. The cool sensation was transmitted to my thighs, and I closed my knees tightly.
I think the first time I talked to Nanamura was around two weeks after school started in April.
He was reading a romance novel alone in the corner of the noisy classroom. I couldn't help but stare at it since I was also interested in that.
He seemed to have noticed me. “Disgusting.” I said that to hide my embarrassment. I hadn't told my friends that I like light novels, so I didn't want to be thought of as someone who might be interested in the one Nanamura was reading.
Honestly, I felt awful for a few days because of that. Nanamura didn’t even do anything wrong.
Despite being the one who got dissed, Nanamura had an indifferent attitude about it and didn't seem to be particularly bothered by it. During break time, he would either disappear somewhere or read light novels without a care for his surroundings.
My impression of Nanamura changed as I watched him.
At first, I thought of Nanamura as one of those gloomy otakus. Well, that might not be entirely wrong, but he’s way more than that.
It seems that Nanamura has a more mature mindset than me. He’s honest with what he likes and has the strength to not care about what others think of him.
I can't live like that. I always worry about what other people think, and, despite my clumsiness, I always try to hide my hobby from my friends.
It hurts sometimes, and there are days when I feel like I want to confess everything.
But it's still scary to talk about my hobby with my current friends because they aren’t into light novels, and I'm afraid to tell them about it.
I thought it was a punishment for keeping my hobby a secret when Sakado-san discovered my love for light novels.
Punishment for myself, who kept secrets from everyone, said cruel things to Nanamura, and yet couldn't change anything about the current situation.
But then I saw a glimmer of hope.
“A-Ah! That light novel is mine!”
My cheeks flared up when I recalled those words.
I stood up from the bench and stretched out with a deep breath. I pretended not to notice my smirking cheeks, cooled by the night breeze.
*
I, Hodaka Nanamura, collapsed onto my bed when I got home and recalled my conversation with Hoshigasaki, causing me to squirm with embarrassment.
Uwahhhhh! Why did I even say, ‘we can just come here again’!?” I totally overreacted to someone I had a decent conversation with for the first time. …Ah, did I mess up when I said 'sleep is important' as well…?
It's common for people who don't usually talk to others to have a self-reflection session after talking to someone, alright?
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