Life In The Reverse World

Dense clouds rolled across the sky like clumps of gray cotton, the thicker masses so heavy they looked ready to squeeze out rain at any moment, while the thinner patches let through faint light, as if the clouds might split open at any time.

Harutaki had checked the weather forecast the night before, yet even with mental preparation, the sight still put him in a foul mood. It felt like walking into a dust-choked room, irritating and stifling, making him want nothing more than to grab a vacuum cleaner and clean everything spotless. Or rather than calling it a direct cause, it was more like adding chili oil to wasabi. His thoughts were already clogged, and this gloomy, oppressive scenery only made it worse. Anyone would struggle to stay cheerful under skies like this.

Harutaki hated overcast days.

No matter the season, spring, summer, autumn, or winter, the kind of weather he disliked most was always cloudy skies.

Summer overcast days were stuffy and humid. Autumn clouds carried a bleak chill, as if winter had arrived early. Winter clouds were dry and bitterly cold, like an ice pop just pulled from the freezer, sticking firmly to your tongue.

As for spring, its overcast days felt fickle. Just when the temperature was rising and everything was coming back to life, a sudden cold wind would blow through, like losing hot water halfway through a shower, washing away a good mood in an instant.

Because of the news he’d received from Sae last night, Harutaki walking along his route to school felt like he’d been doused with cold water on top of the lingering spring chill.

Even the row of cherry trees lining his favorite riverside path had lost most of their petals after who knew how many swings between warm and cold spring winds, leaving behind bare, unsightly branches.

Seeing this as he passed by, Harutaki couldn’t help but worry. After the most beautiful scenery was gone, would the most beautiful girl still stop here?

Still, the moment he stepped through the school gates, his gloomy mood dissipated without a trace.

High school students, students in general, were a group brimming with energy and vitality. The boys and girls walking together at the entrance wore looks of anticipation. Some were eager to share their vacation stories with close classmates, others simply wanted to see familiar friends as soon as possible.

Atmosphere was a strange thing. Even if you were in a bad mood, once you blended into it, you would naturally be swept along by the surrounding cheerfulness and forget your worries.

…

“…Sigh…”

After spending the entire morning focused on classes, the thought of the important news he had no idea how to tell Shihou resurfaced. Sitting in the cafeteria, Harutaki let out a sigh.

Even today’s special set meal, hamburger steak and tempura, had lost its appeal.

“What’s wrong? Still feeling down because last night I didn’t give you the contact info of those girls, Hoshikawa?” Miho asked with a grin as she sat beside him, having just finished mixing dressing into her salad.

“Please explain in detail about these ‘girls’. I’d like to know too,” Ren chimed in.

Meanwhile, Haruto, sitting next to Ren and across from Harutaki, clicked his tongue in displeasure.

“I’m clearly a handsome captain of a sports club right here, and yet after seeing Harutaki’s photo, those girls didn’t even ask about me. That’s just cruel.”

“Before you say that, maybe reflect a little on who it was that ran onto the stage making a fuss and performed the Mentos cola stunt,” Miho shot him an exasperated glance, then continued explaining to Harutaki.

“Haruto sprayed cola all over his face, and later it was even coming out of his nostrils. It was hilarious.”

“Please don’t bring up embarrassing things like that…”

“If you know it’s embarrassing, then don’t do it.”

Ren complained dryly at his friend. When Haruto reached out with a pitiful expression, trying to hug him for comfort, Ren immediately leaned away to refuse.

“Right now, it feels like you’re sticky.”

“Ugh… A nearly one-ninety-meter muscular guy hugging people in a student cafeteria. Please spare everyone’s eyes, Haruto.”

“Ren, Nishihara… you two are too cruel…”

With that, Haruto looked at Harutaki with hopeful eyes.

Harutaki shivered, snapping out of his low-pressure gloom, and hurriedly shook his head.

“I don’t want to hug a sweaty sports club member. Cute girls from sports clubs would be a different story, though.”

“That’s gender discrimination. I always use deodorant spray. Girls who don’t use it smell too, you know. So heartless, betraying my kind intention to comfort you.”

“Thanks, I appreciate the thought. You can gift those pecs and that one-eighty hug to Ren instead.”

“Can I refuse?”

“Refusing a gift is rude, you know~”

Haruto burst out laughing and hugged the lifeless-looking Ren beside him.

Feeling a bit better, Harutaki poked a piece of hamburger steak with his chopsticks, brought it to his mouth, and followed it up with a bite of rice.

If only good food could preserve this fleeting happiness, he thought. That was why he’d chosen such an ultra-meat-heavy set today, to relax his mood.

For many people, juicy, hearty meat wasn’t just filled with juices, but with joy. When flavors rich with meat and seasoning burst across the tongue, happiness spread with them, eventually reaching the brain through the taste buds.

Still, setting the hamburger steak aside, the help from Ren, Haruto, and Miho had truly made a difference.

After hesitating for a moment, Harutaki couldn’t hold it in any longer. Maybe one of them had relevant experience or useful advice.

With that in mind, he brought up the problem troubling him.

“What do you think? If you know some news that’s very likely bad news, is it better to tell the person involved, or keep it from them?”

“Tell them, obviously! Friends should be honest with each other!”

“Ohhh, I don’t know why, but that got me fired up.”

What kind of hot-blooded youth manga character was this?

Considering Haruto’s personality and his role as basketball club captain, Harutaki felt an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.

“Harutaki, are you worried that telling them might cause psychological pressure?” Ren asked.

“As expected of Ren!”

Ren smiled sheepishly, then continued.

“Personally, I think the prolonged discomfort of knowing early and the panic of the sky falling down when it happens suddenly aren’t that different.”

No difference?

Prompted by Ren’s words, Harutaki had a realization. If Shihou were suddenly confronted by her family showing up, the shock might be no less than if she’d had time to prepare mentally. And knowing earlier would at least allow her to prepare. Even if he himself still had no idea how to deal with it.

“I get it! It’s like a surprise test you’re told about one day in advance,” Miho said with a smug smile.

“According to that… Moddy Law or whatever, surprise tests always cover stuff you didn’t study. If you know a day early but don’t have time to review, you’re under huge pressure and anxiety the whole time. If you don’t know, you can relax right up until the teacher walks in with the papers. But really, knowing in advance is better. At least you can cram overnight and try a bit harder to score more points.”

What was with that law whose name sounded way too much like the Indian prime minister?

“Nishihara, you probably mean Murphy’s Law…” Ren corrected her.

Even if Miho’s answer was a bit questionable, it aligned with Harutaki’s own thoughts. After considering Ren’s and Miho’s opinions, he decided he would tell Shihou the news in person after school.

Realizing the benefit of having more people around, he followed up with another question.

“Um… have you ever had conflicts with your parents?”

“Conflicts with parents? Why would you fight with them?”

“I think I’m a pretty low-maintenance, well-behaved kid.”

“Huh? Hoshikawa, did you have a fight with your parents?”

Haruto was as thick-headed as ever. Ren, a top-tier normie, was clearly the wrong person to ask. And Miho had completely misunderstood the question.

After thinking for a moment, Harutaki rephrased it, trying not to reveal too much.

“If someone disobeyed their parents, acted on their own, and almost got seriously hurt, and then hid it from them… what do you think would happen when the parents find out?”

“They’d pull out a belt and whip their butt!”

That’s just domestic violence.

“I hope I never have to testify against you in family court, Haruto,” Harutaki joked.

“If I were the parent, I’d probably use the chance to properly educate the child, make them understand that elders’ experience isn’t nonsense,” Ren said.

Ren would make a good parent someday.

“Look at Ren’s model answer. If I were a girl, I’d confess right now.”

Harutaki nodded in agreement. That was indeed the choice many good parents would make.

He couldn’t help but speculate that when Shihou had been allowed to come to Tokyo back then, her great-grandmother and mother might have had similar thoughts.

After all, with adults’ means and resources, compromise rarely came from a child’s crying or tantrums. It was far more likely the result of indulgent affection.

“Hoshikawa, are you worried about getting scolded by your parents? Are Mr. and Mrs. Hoshikawa really strict?”

Why are you still focusing on me, Nishihara?

“I told you, it’s not me…”

“I get it, I get it. You have a friend, right~”

“…Then, as the child who messed up, how should they usually handle this situation?”

Rephrasing again, Harutaki hoped for more useful answers.

“Do a dogeza! Of course, dogeza!”

Great. Haruto is out first again.

“Apologize sincerely to your parents and show that you’ve seriously reflected. That will probably earn their forgiveness,” Ren said.

Please save Haruto.

“Apologize and then act cute. That works!”

Does it?

Hearing Miho’s answer, Harutaki couldn’t help but imagine Shihou acting cute.

Oh no. His heart was flooring the accelerator again.

He didn’t know if it would work on Shihou’s great-grandmother or mother, but on him, it was devastatingly effective.

Before Harutaki could say anything, Ren voiced his objection, clearly thinking seriously about the matter.

“‘Acting cute’ usually only works on parents who dote on their children. For other types of parents, it can look like avoiding responsibility or showing no real remorse. It comes off as frivolous and insincere. Not only does it fail to earn forgiveness, it can even make things worse.”

“Huh? But whenever I act cute with my parents, my allowance goes up,” Miho said.

“That’s because your parents dote on you, Nishihara. That’s a special condition,” Ren replied, then gave an example. “Say Haruto was your child, and he accidentally snapped your lipstick, then grabbed your arm and acted cute…”

“Stop! I get it! Don’t use Haruto as an example. If you keep going, I’m going to lose my appetite!”

Miho made an X with her hands and cut him off, complaining as she did.

Harutaki imagined the scene and immediately felt a chill.

“Now that Nishihara mentioned it, I’m grossed out myself,” Haruto muttered weakly.

In the end, to finish their lunch before losing their appetites completely, the four of them turned their attention back to the food in front of them and ate in silence.

…