The person who likes me is a yandere.

"Ha, but it would be terrible if we really made people resent us because of this."

Judging from Tang Jing's personality, she most likely wouldn't take this kind of thing to heart, which is why I refused her. But I still feel a little uneasy.

After hearing what I said, Tohka, unusually, also adopted a posture of supporting her elbow with one hand and said.

"Qianyu had to refuse her because of me, so if anyone goesssips, I will protect you."

"Wow, that sounds so reliable... But if you actually do that, it will backfire. It will make people even more annoyed."

My answer made Tohka lower her head and think.

Furthermore, it's really embarrassing for a guy to need other girls to come to his rescue when he's being criticized. It's not that I want to look cool in this situation, but I still feel a bit resistant to it.

"To be honest, I don't think such a small thing would make anyone dislike you. Aren't you overthinking it?"

"Yeah, I don't know why, but I'm a little bothered by it."

"Could this be..." Tohka paused slightly.

"Because you have feelings for Tang Jing?"

"Aha!?"

Her question was so unexpected that all I could do was gasp in surprise.

Why did we come to this conclusion?

"Because you don't want her to hate you, right?"

"That being said, there's no need to jump straight to good intentions... Also, isn't your train of thought a bit too far?"

"is that so."

"It's obvious, okay! Don't always think that way about everything..."

Even if the other person is a stranger, no one wants to be disliked by them. Most people would think that way, right?

Walking down the street, accidentally bumping into someone, and being scolded by them—this kind of experience is indeed "unforgettable."

If you accidentally stepped on someone's foot on a crowded bus and got glared at, you'd never want to take the bus again—that's what everyone would think, right?

Chapter Twenty-Five: You're Actually This Type

If you accidentally stepped on someone's foot on a crowded bus and got glared at, you'd never want to take the bus again—that's what everyone would think, right?

It's strange to try to explain or investigate the causes and reasons for these phenomena, because they are simply obvious.

"No, only Qianyu would think that way."

"Huh? No way!?"

"I do care a bit when these kinds of things happen. But I almost forget about such trivial matters after a day."

Tohka looked at me intently with a pitying gaze.

"Huh, is it really just me? Could it be..." If what she said is true, then haven't I been making a fool of myself all along?

We had this kind of conversation until the class meeting started.

Kato Megumi kept observing the two of us with a curious look on her face.

"Huh..."

A few days later, after school, as I was about to record the disciplinary committee's work as usual, I discovered that my eraser was missing. I searched my pencil case and the floor near my desk, but still couldn't find it.

"That's really strange."

I remember being there during class. Just then, Tohka, who was working at the next table, noticed my situation.

"what happened?"

"It's nothing, I think I lost my eraser. Sorry, could I borrow yours?"

But Tohka frowned, her expression becoming quite subtle.

"...The eraser, isn't it right there?"

"Hey, where is it?"

"That thing is right there."

As Tohka said this, her finger pointed to the small eraser that came with the mechanical pencil I was holding.

"Oh, this?"

Hearing my question, which seemed to be trying to confirm something, she nodded slightly. Well, it really is an eraser.

"Why not just use this?"

"Hey, no. I like keeping the eraser on the mechanical pencil."

"..."

Before I knew it, I had revealed my petty nature.

"Don't you think this habit of yours is too subtle?"

"I don't think people who use the eraser that comes with a mechanical pencil can understand what I'm thinking. It's really sad."

"This isn't sad at all, is it?"

"Well, let's not worry about that for now. Anyway, I would be very grateful if you could lend me an eraser or something."

"……don't want."

"Huh!?"

"Why don't you just use that eraser?" Tohka replied, her tone slightly annoyed.

"Tohka, she's such a stingy person."

"I don't want to be lectured in a shallow and rambling way in strange places."

That might indeed be true. But is it really that hard to lend me an eraser...?

"Tch, stingy."

There's no other way, so I'll just have to use the eraser that comes with the mechanical pencil.

However, once I've used the eraser here, I'll feel completely unconcerned and use it without restraint until the very end.

Moreover, the eraser in this part also protects the pencil lead; if it runs out, you'll have to buy a new one. I really can't bear to waste it.

"……that"

"Hmm, what's wrong?"

"..."

After a brief silence, Tohka placed her hand under the table, put something in her hand, clenched it into a fist, and stretched it out.

Her fair and slender fist twitched slightly, as if indicating that she wanted to give me something.

I obediently opened my palm. She then tossed me the eraser she was holding.

For a fleeting moment, her delicate fingers touched my palm, and my heart fluttered.

"Thank you, thank you."

"You're welcome……"

I turned around and glanced at the eraser in my hand. Without realizing it, I began to examine it closely.

What Tohka handed me was indeed an eraser. But its shape was different from ordinary erasers.

It's not a white rectangle; well, this shape is...

"These are our local characters, right?"

"........."

Local characters – those associated with the origins of prefectures and counties.

For some reason, a yellow kitten with a piece of roof on its head—an eraser exactly like the local character—appeared.

No, it's not normal for an average high school girl to have such an item. So it's not surprising that Tohka has one. Although it's not surprising, the contrast between her usual image and her use of such cute character merchandise is quite surprising.

"........."

Tohka's face turned slightly red. Could it be that she had insisted on using this kind of merchandise before because she felt embarrassed when people saw her using it?

"that-"

Just as I was about to strike up a conversation, she started glaring at me very seriously.

"It's my freedom to choose which eraser I want to use! Qianyu has no right to criticize me."

"I... I haven't said anything yet."

"........."

Wow, this person is really impatient.

"You like this type?"

"!"

Tohka looked away for a moment, remained silent, and then nodded.

"Her hobbies are quite girly..."

"I...I'm a girl!"

Simply put, I've once again brought us closer to each other.

Chapter Twenty-Six is ​​Unpleasant

Simply put, I've once again brought us closer to each other.

For example, when talking to someone you don't know well, even if it's not your intention, you will deliberately look for parts of the other person that they don't want to be touched on.

What kind of things will make this guy angry? What kind of attitude should he maintain so as not to irritate the other person? These are the kinds of probing actions.

The reason I'm so afraid of Tohka is probably because I don't understand her "forbidden zones" at all.