I heard about it the day after Golden Week. It was a pleasant sunny day for a lunch break in the month of May. In front of me was Yoko who quietly uttered after placing her bento on my desk.
āShioriās princess seems to be in trouble.ā
I titled my head after hearing āShioriās Princessā, but I soon realized that she meant Sara. I have no idea what she meant. My fan favorite isnāt my princess, but I guess itās pointless to correct it.
āI heard from a friend in Tsubakigaoka, that girl you talk to. . .Sara-chan? Yeah, She stands out because she is a beautiful girl, it seems that her popularity with the boys was explosive immediately after enrolling.ā
āProbably because Sara is too cute.ā
āYou certainly are speaking high of your beloved. But to put it simply, the girls are jealous of her, and the boys are fighting amongst themselves to get her attention, and the boys who are given the cold shoulder by her are resenting it. So currently Tsubakigaoka has fallen into pandemonium all over Sara-chan. Because of that, it seems that Sara-chan has been isolated for a while. . .ā
āI havenāt heard about that!ā
I knew that Sara would definitely be popular in Tsubakigaoka, where there are many boys, if that was the case she should be pampered and life would be good. However, if what Iām hearing is correct, then life must be hell. When I met her this morning, she seemed to be the same as usual, but it must be a facade.
Iāve never heard her talk about school friends. She talks about school, but itās just about classes, and what kind of teachers she has.
āOf course, not all the girls are jealous, and there are many students that are sympathetic. The rest, wouldnāt it be mostly the unpopular girls who are jealous? There are boys who have fallen in love with her and confessed to Sara-chan. Some boyfriends have fallen in love with her despite being in a relationship, and they ended up dumping their girlfriend. It seems that there are many stories about similar things happening.ā
āBut, Sara isnāt in the wrong.ā
āFor real~ā
The one in the wrong is the boys who suddenly had a change of heart. Anyway, being the target of unrequited love is not wrong. In my opinion, Itād be those who didnāt confess in the first place.
Be that as it may, I am also well aware of the annoyances in the girlās heart. Especially when I was in junior high school or high school, I had more wicked and nasty thoughts. Youāre still immature in your humanity. Although the body changes little, your wisdom is what truly grows. In spite of children having splendid fangs and claws, they donāt know how to properly use it, so they lash out at people without considering the consequences. Itās the worst time.
āIt seems that she relaxes around Shiori, so perhaps you can get her to open up?ā
āIāll do that. Thank you.ā
I had no other friends in Tsubakigaoka, I wouldnāt have known what was happening unless I was told by her. I am frankly thankful for Yokoās connections to other schools.
However, something is strange. This side story did not appear in the game. Is it just that Sara was silent about it to Aoi, just like the plot around cooking and studying, or is it no longer necessary to bring up by the time the two become friends? It would be nice if it was the latter, but I canāt rely on that. There have been too many unexpected changes to the story.
āI wished Sara had enrolled into our school.ā
If so I could be at her side and protect her. Yoko nodded and said āTruly!ā but in her case, she just wants to have a pretty girl by her side.
My friend is still weird.
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I said Iād ask. How do I?
Iām not unsociable or unfriendly, but Iām not the type of person who actively pokes their noses into other peopleās affairs, so itās quite the hurdle.
In the first place, what do I do after hearing her story? I donāt think I can solve a problem happening in another school, especially if it involves a ton of people. I could only really āListenā.
Plus does Sara really want help?Because I donāt even know anything about it, Iām just an ordinary friend. In fact she never mentioned it. Does she not want to talk about it?
Furthermore, it was possible that itās in the game, and by the time of the game she gets to know Aoi itās already resolved, itās possible if I could fumble when I get involved, I could make it worse. This is the biggest problem.
Itās tough. If there is no action taken, as time goes on the negative thoughts will grow. But has she been hinting about it? Was she asking for help in her recent words and actions? She didnāt look sad. No matter how much I recall, she was always smiling.
What if we do talk? This isnāt a topic to have on the morning train ride. If I want to delve into it, should it be on our weekend tutor. Should we even talk about it in the first place? ā ā ā Ahh iām so conflicted.
If I do take any form of action, it probably wonāt change anything.
If anything it may bother her.
She may dislike people sticking their nose in othersā problems without asking.
It could make things worse.
It may. Maybe. . Maybe. . . .
So many possibilities, it is about to break my heart.
But I also know something. When times are tough, there is warmth when people are by your side. The comfort in being cared for is irreplaceable. When you canāt stand alone, the people around you become your biggest saviors.
I canāt do anything about her situation. Iām just a helpless highschool girl.
Despite that, what is the point of only watching while you know that a loved one is having a hard time? Having the privilege of looking over somebody is nice. And to be given the blessing to, and give something back.
Even if itās for my ego, I want to tell her that there are people around her that care. What to do after that? Sara should decide.
((Is it okay to see you sometime after school))
The reply to the message I sent came after dreading for 5 minutes.
((Yeah, I want to see you!))
How many times has she shot me through the heart, those simple words carry a tremendous destructive power.
There is no value for an otaku that canāt protect their favorite character! Even Otakuās have their pride!