Parsed with an automated reader. The content accuracy is not guranteed.
If heâs your friend, then you
must know, Ichikawa said relieved. \n\nâSketchy
person?â\n\nâThat guy whoâs always wearing a fox (?) mask.
When he was questioned by the police around that side path, he ran
away as fast as he could.â\n\nâOf course he would run away
when questioned by the police.â\n\nShimura laughed
loudly at Kusamakuraâs episode that was unknown to him.\n\nâAlways
wearing a fox mask.\n\nIt must have been the same mask he picked
up for him that day. He didnât think he always wore it. Tatsumi
couldnât see. So just what was he trying to hide from him? It was new
to him, but if he said that, he had a feeling they would tell him even
more, so he held it back. \n\n\n\nOnce he got home, Tatsumi
collapsed into his bed. It had been a somewhat hectic day. Perhaps
using the opportunity made by going to lunch with the other women,
suddenly other coworkers started to talk to him. âRepresentativeâ
didnât seem to be a complete exaggeration. It wasnât just the two who
invited him to lunch, when he returned to the office, all his other
coworkers came to his aid. His loneliness up until yesterday seemed
like a lie. Everyone helping him out like it was natural, left
Tatsumi bewildered. However, the most surprising was Yamauchi. After
work today, she called him to the conference room. Being alone in a
locked room with her was honestly terrifying. A man and woman alone
together would of course invite misunderstandings, but since she
locked him in, Tatsumi couldnât move. First thing she opened her
mouth to say to the visibly apprehensive Tatsumi was, sorry.
Since her voice was rather low, she must have been bowing her head
deeply, it sounded muffled. \n\nâSorry, for always bullying
you. \n\nYamauchi said in a trembling, but firm voice. Knowing
she really did mean him harm, as expected, pained his chest. On the
other hand, having his doubts confirmed was also fulfilling. Even so,
what he didnât understand was why she bullied him. \n\nâYou
embarrassed meâŚ..no, I felt like you embarrassed me, and
wouldnât be satisfied with just a few words. \n\nEmbarrassed, she
must have meant when she grabbed his white cane. In the end, it
wasnât settled with just a few words. He could tell from behavior
towards him that she was letting out her resentment toward him daily
because of it. However, perhaps noticing Tatsumi coming to his own
conclusions, Yamauchi told him he was wrong in a bitter voice. \n\nâI
liked you.\n\nâEh!?\n\nTatsumi was unable to catch this
ball flying at him from an unexpected direction. Yamauchi sighed
heavily at his cruel and flustered reaction at her words that were
somewhat like a confession of love.\n\nâAt first, I just
couldnât forgive you for embarrassing me.\n\nâSorry about
that.\n\nâStop apologizing. Iâm the one at fault for pretending
to feel offendedâŚâŚbut, you never got angry towards my cold
behavior, so that was a little funny in itself. I thought it was bold,
butâŚâŚsince we never had any men like that here before, it was
refreshing. It was too late to be nice to you though, so I thought of
you as a man who needed my help,and it gave me a superiority complex
and a need for control, and it annoyed me that you wouldnât ever ask
for my help. \n\nâWhen Shimura-san spoke to me, I finally came
to my decision. I wasnât sure when I would quit, so she did me a
favorâŚ..well, thatâs not for me to say.