Life In The Reverse World

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After school that afternoon, Sae brought Harutaki some bad news.

Because he was the infamous scumbag Hoshikawa, even with Sae’s guarantee, the swimming club coach had still refused his request to borrow a lane. The reason was that she was worried he would corrupt all the girls in the swimming club. Sae herself had even been sternly warned.

“‘The big competition is in two months, so make sure you take proper precautions.’ That old woman actually said that…” Sae shrugged helplessly and continued complaining. “…Do I look like the kind of girl who’d get involved with Harutaki? Sigh, I guess it’s just because Sae-chan here is too charming~”

“I also think it’s ridiculous. That coach actually believes I’d make a move on Sae. Completely unreasonable.”

Harutaki nodded in agreement, only to be elbowed by Sae moments later, forcing him to collapse onto the desk and suck in cold air to ease the pain.

He, Izumi, Sae, Minako, and Shihou went together to DUMBO DONUTS near the school. Since they got out early and went straight there, the shop was not crowded, and they easily took five seats by the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Harutaki sat at the innermost seat. To his right was Sae. Izumi sat in the middle, with Shihou to her left and Minako to her right.

Although Sae had failed to secure a swimming lane, Harutaki felt that his regular daily training was going well enough lately, so he did not dwell on it. Using Shihou’s recovery as an excuse, he invited everyone to DUMBO to celebrate with donuts.

“Um… Izumi, do you want to try my raspberry donut?”

After taking a couple of bites of her jam-covered donut, Chouko suddenly spaced out, as if she had remembered something. Coming back to herself, she asked her friend beside her.

Before leaving Tokyo and parting with everyone, she wanted to experience as many ordinary things as possible, just like a normal girl would with her friends.

During breaks at school, she had already tried exchanging makeup tips with everyone. Now, she wanted to gather her courage and savor what little happiness she had left.

That thought reminded Chouko of a movie she had once seen: The Bucket List.

She felt guilty toward the friends who had befriended her with sincere hearts.

She felt guilty toward Harutaki for his care and affection.

She might not be able to say she had a clear conscience, but she did not regret any of the choices she had made.

If she could do it all over again, she would still choose the same.

“Ah… um… I’ve been curious about raspberry flavor too…”

Izumi swallowed her hot milk and stared blankly at the donut being offered. After hesitating for a moment, she decided to take a bite, leaving a third missing chunk in the raspberry donut.

“Chouko, you try my orange one too…”

As she spoke, she brought her own donut to Chouko’s mouth.

Watching their stiff interaction, Harutaki could not help letting out a soft sigh and cutting into their conversation.

“Hey, you two.”

He reached out and snatched Izumi’s donut, taking a big bite right where she had bitten before. The four girls froze in shock. Gradually, Izumi’s cheeks turned a cute shade of red, as if she had smeared raspberry jam on her face while eating.

Chewing and swallowing without much care, he placed the donut back onto Izumi’s plate and said with a satisfied smile, “It’s really good. Sharing tasty food with good friends is the most normal thing in the world, right? Don’t make it so awkward, like you’re about to kiss.”

After a brief silence, what Harutaki received was not thanks, but a flurry of punches from a beautiful girl.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

Izumi pounded his back as if giving him a massage, each hit producing a dull sound.

“You idiot… isn’t that an indirect kiss?! You damn filthy pervert, lecherous dog… how is anyone supposed to eat a donut after a dog’s been chewing on it…”

“Just tear off the part I bit and give it to me. I don’t mind.”

“You jerk! You’re the one who bit it, of course you don’t mind!”

Under the amused gazes of several shop staff, Izumi finally returned to her seat, blushing furiously. She carefully tore off the bitten portion along the edge, then pinched it between her thumb and index finger and held it out to Harutaki with an expression of utter disgust, as if she were throwing away trash.

“Here, eat it…”

“Ah—”

“Stupid dog…”

When Harutaki merely opened his mouth and did nothing else, she clicked her tongue and directly stuffed the small piece of donut into his mouth.

“Izumi…”

Sae opened her mouth, hesitated for a moment, but still could not hold back.

“…Why are you so skilled at this?”

“W-What do you mean s-skilled…”

She knew exactly what Sae was asking, but like an ostrich burying its head in the sand, she tried to dodge the question, hoping that playing dumb would let her slip by.

Unfortunately, even though Sae tended to think in straight lines, she was not stupid enough to be fooled that easily.

“Obviously feeding him! Don’t tell me you and Harutaki already—”

“It’s just feeding a dog!”

Izumi put on her usual bold, forceful smile and cut Sae off mid-sentence.

“It’s not like I’ve never kept a dog before. What’s there to be skilled or not skilled about when it comes to feeding one?”

If it had been a stranger, that kind of bluff might actually have worked. But everyone present was a friend who knew her personality well.

As a result, aside from the momentarily confused Sae, Harutaki, Minako, and Chouko all burst out laughing.

“W-What are you laughing at…! Hoshikawa, you’re not allowed to laugh!”

“…!”

Stared down by those rose-red eyes, Harutaki instantly shut his mouth.

To avoid further provoking the about-to-explode Izumi, he did his best to keep a straight face and turned to look at the other two girls, who were covering their mouths and giggling.

“Eh? It’s just feeding Harutaki. What’s there to be embarrassed about?”

Sae was not fooled by Izumi’s explanation. She was simply puzzled by her friend’s awkward behavior.

“Even though I haven’t done it before, trying it out today seems fine…” She tore off a large piece of her own donut, brought it to Harutaki’s mouth, and imitated Izumi. “…Here, Harutaki, be good and open up—”

“…!”

However, just a moment ago Sae had looked perfectly relaxed. The instant she actually had to put the donut into Harutaki’s mouth, she suddenly grew nervous.

Everyone knows that when people get nervous, they tend to mess up. The usually sunny, straightforward girl put in too much force without realizing it and ended up jabbing the donut straight into Harutaki’s throat.

Harutaki, who had been fully prepared to continue enjoying a beautiful girl’s “service,” instantly widened his eyes.

“Mmm—mm—cough, cough…!”

I’m going to die…

After pulling the donut back out and coughing a few times while covering his mouth, the way Harutaki looked at Sae was completely different.

And his so-called good bro was still laughing!

Even an apologetic smile felt terrifying at that moment.

Who understands this kind of pain, seriously. It was too scary.

Still, when he caught sight of Izumi, Chouko, and Minako all laughing so hard they could barely stand upright, he thought that “taking a walk past the gates of death” was not entirely a bad thing.

At the very least, that stiff, heavy atmosphere from before was never going to come back.

“Chouko, do you still want some? The orange-flavored one.”

“Mm… but Izumi, take it slow. I don’t want to end up like Hoshikawa~”

“Pfft…”

Izumi’s shoulders trembled as she covered her mouth, then she handed her donut over to Chouko.

Chomp.

She did not mind at all that Chouko had bitten it.

Just like Harutaki said earlier, girls sharing tasty food with each other was a perfectly normal, everyday thing, wasn’t it?

And besides…

After returning to her apartment last night from Chouko’s place, Izumi had immediately launched into a full-on cleaning spree.

Compared to Chouko, she might actually be the less tidy one.

Just in case… she thought, if Harutaki ever suddenly visited her place someday, she absolutely could not let him think she was inferior to Chouko.

“Izumi, have another bite of my raspberry one.”

“Go easy, okay? Pff… I don’t want to end up like Hoshikawa either~”

“Hehe… I’ll be careful~”

It tasted unbelievably good, as if it were worlds apart from the donuts she had eaten before.

So this was the joy of sharing food with close friends?

Yes, but also not entirely…

Chouko knew very well the role Harutaki played in all of this. Without him, she and Izumi might both have been too timid, letting things turn awkward.

Her pale gold eyes quietly glanced to the left. Seeing Harutaki being lightly patted on the back by Sae while she apologized, Chouko smiled happily.

“Hey, my cantaloupe flavor isn’t popular at all~”

Minako complained in mock grievance, then brought her donut up to her friend’s mouth as well.

To be honest, she did not understand.

Why was Izumi, who used to be domineering and dismissive of most people, acting like this now?

Why were Izumi and Chouko, two girls who clearly did not get along before, now so close, even looking closer than she herself was to Izumi?

Back then, just to get closer to Izumi, just to be able to stay by her side, Minako had watched every word and every action she took. She had lived on edge every day, terrified of making a mistake that might anger Izumi or make her dislike her.

Chomp.

After taking a bite of Minako’s cantaloupe donut, Izumi said nonchalantly,

“If you’re going to blame someone, blame that idiot Hoshikawa. He’s the one who drew all the attention. If you wanted to share, you could’ve just said so. Your cantaloupe flavor’s pretty good too, Minako. It’s refreshing and not too heavy.”

“Chouko, you try it too.”

Minako passed the donut to Chouko, who took a small bite and nodded in praise.

“It really is just like Izumi said. It’s great~”

“I want some too!”

Sae hopped off her tall stool and ran over to Minako. After Minako handed it over with a helpless look, Sae took a huge bite.

“Like I thought, Minako’s cantaloupe is the best!”

Hearing that, Minako felt something was off.

“Yeah, yeah, Sanada-san’s cantaloupe(Honeydew) really is amazing…” Having recovered, Harutaki slung an arm around Sae’s shoulders again and grinned as he chimed in. “…Didn’t expect you to be so knowledgeable too, Sae~”

“Hah, Hoshikawa-kun, you’re getting bolder and bolder.”

That was when she finally realized what felt wrong about Sae’s words—

What did she mean by “your cantaloupe is amazing”?

This guy was seriously making dirty jokes right in front of four girls, and… Izumi and Chouko did not even seem the least bit offended?

Minako wanted to tell the three of them not to be fooled by a scumbag’s sweet talk, but the words would not come out. She knew that once she said them, it would force Izumi, Sae, and Chouko to choose between her and Hoshikawa.

Since when had it become like this?

Now, she could not even be sure she had a one-hundred-percent chance of winning that comparison.

But still…

“You could’ve just said you wanted to share,” huh?

Minako felt lost. She had completely forgotten how long it had been since she last took off her mask. She no longer knew how to treat someone sincerely.

“Lewd dog. You’re the worst.”

After Minako pointed it out, Izumi shot Harutaki a vicious glare.

Cantaloupe, cantaloupe…

And it was Minako again—

She ground her teeth inwardly. Did Harutaki really like big boobs that much?!

“If your true nature comes out, no girls will want to get close to you anymore, Hoshikawa~”

Chouko teased him with a bright smile, though a hint of loneliness crept into her heart.

Thinking back to Harutaki’s restraint last night, and the way he had teased her lightly that morning, she felt deeply guilty.

She was the one who had stirred up his desire, only to be unable to satisfy it.

He was the one who had always taken care of her, respecting her every whim and feeling…

How unfair, she thought. Wouldn’t that mean that after returning to Kyoto, she would end up thinking about Harutaki day and night?

“It’s fine. Even if no girls want to get close, there’s still Sae, right?”

The moment he finished speaking, the overconfident Harutaki was rewarded with another elbow from Sae.

The tan-skinned, fit girl narrowed her sea-blue eyes slightly, poking the collapsed Harutaki with a smile that did not reach her eyes.

“Oh? So Harutaki knows a guy with the same name as Sae-chan? Why don’t you introduce him to me—slowly—okay?~”

…

In the days that followed, Chouko began acting strangely—

At least, that was how it looked to Harutaki.

Every day after school, Chouko would proactively invite everyone out to play.

First Starbucks, then Pierre Hermé Paris. Later on, without even officially dating him, she let him experience what it felt like to be a boyfriend.

Standing in trendy clothing stores, being dragged around by Chouko and Izumi to try on outfits, one girl holding each of his hands—those experiences left his heart racing even when he lay in bed at night.

Even in a pitch-dark room filled with silence, the images of shopping with the girls that evening would surface the moment he closed his eyes.

Chouko and Izumi would each pick outfits for Harutaki based on their own tastes. Most of the time, they would huddle together to exchange opinions and ideas.

Sae, who normally had zero interest in clothes or fashion, was unusually excited during this period. She often put together bizarre, even slightly “creepy” outfits, and after Harutaki came out of the fitting room wearing them, she was always the first to roast and laugh at his appearance.

Minako, meanwhile, would step in at just the right times to joke with Harutaki and mediate between Chouko and Izumi, offering reasonable suggestions to both sides.

Even when Chouko and Izumi occasionally argued, sometimes Chouko would back down, sometimes Izumi would—

Though in the end, the result was usually the same: both outfits would be bought and stuffed into Harutaki’s hands.

At first, Harutaki clung to a man’s pride and insisted on paying. But as the bills grew increasingly “terrifying,” he finally realized that in front of those two young rich ladies, his little stash of a few million yen was probably not that plentiful after all.

In truth, what kept him tossing and turning at night was not the so-called “harem” treatment, but this life that felt almost too perfect, too ideal.

Chouko and Izumi were far too restrained.

At first it had been manageable, but as the atmosphere gradually changed, he found it harder and harder to accept.

The overly harmonious mood. The overly selfless intimacy.

That deliberate sense of unreality made him feel as though he were living in The Truman Show, and he himself was Truman.

Harutaki did not know how long this life could last. All he could do was try his best to play his role well in this Truman-like world, so that Chouko’s guilt and longing, and Izumi’s feelings and sympathy, could be satisfied to the greatest extent possible.

But the stage that left him utterly exhausted finally drew its curtain one week after Chouko recovered.

Friday.

The weather was as bright and radiant as the name “Kin-yōbi” itself. Yet on such a warm, comfortable day, Chouko disappeared once again.

Class 2–3 was as lively and harmonious as ever, as if no one had noticed the disappearance of “Shihou Chouko.” Everyone went about their own business, chatting and laughing within their own circles. The empty seat that used to be surrounded by girls chatting nonstop was treated as if it had always been that way—

Even though Chouko had only ever taken leave once.

Only Ren specifically came to ask Harutaki about her, gently inquiring whether there was anything he needed help with.

However, unlike her previous absence due to illness, this time no matter how many messages he sent, the chat bubbles on LINE always showed “Unread.”

No reply to emails.

No response from the private Twitter alt account known only to him and Chouko.

No answer to phone calls.

Even when he went to Izumi to ask about “things only girls would know,” what he got was her deliberate avoidance.

He understood that Izumi must know something, but he did not press further.

After all… he let out a bitter chuckle in his heart. When the heavenly beings came to escort Princess Kaguya back to the Moon Palace, even the Emperor himself was powerless.

But an emperor was an emperor.

He was Harutaki.

“Asama-sensei, sorry to bother you. May I take a little of your time to ask for your guidance?”

Right after Japanese class ended, Harutaki rushed over and grabbed Asama-sensei, who had been deliberately ignoring him. When the scruffy, lazy-looking man stopped and turned around, Harutaki bowed deeply and asked for his help.

“You’re a pain. So now you remember how to use polite speech, huh?”

“When a student has a problem, it’s only natural to seek out a teacher.”

“Tch… same place as usual.”

Though he clicked his tongue in annoyance, Asama-sensei still clenched his left hand and gestured upward with his thumb.

As expected, Harutaki thought. This unreliable-looking middle-aged man always turned out to be unexpectedly dependable when it really mattered.

Whether it had been the timely advice and help deleting posts back when he was getting back at Izumi, or the special errand of delivering handouts and homework just a week ago.