Chapter 7 - Unexpected Guest/Are you a friend or trader?

[Present]

Hikari stood with a straight smile on her face. Meanwhile, two people were frozen and spaced out. One was Aikawa Atsuo, shocked by the fear of his secret being revealed. On the other side, Nakano Mitsuru was in shock because her worst nightmare of facing Aikawa had come true today.

"I think I should run away from this place right now. He won't even notice me, but I cannot leave Hikari behind," Mitsuru thought as she tried to take a step backward.

"Why in the world did she bring me here? Is she offering me up to him? Is she really doing that?" Her fear created delusions in her mind, but believing in her friendship, she tried to hold herself together. "Just calm down, Mitsuru, she can't do that. Let’s wait and see what happens next." Finally, she decided to stay.

Due to the intense pressure and stress of the situation, Atsuo started seeing Mikage.

"Haha... Hey boy, long time no see. I told you this girl was going to mess up your life. And for you, things are different. You're like a magnet because you attract problems yourself," Mikage said, laughing at the situation.

"Go and die already, you nasty pest," Atsuo retorted angrily, turning his head quickly. His voice was filled with such anger that Mikage could feel it.

"Okay, boy. Enjoy your time with the lovely girls. I'll come tonight to check on you. But let me warn you, keep your distance from that girl," Mikage replied before disappearing into the shadows.

"Hi, good morning!" Hikari said with a smile on her face after a few moments.

After snapping out of their daze, both Atsuo and Mitsuru came back to reality and screamed simultaneously, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"Ahh... Where am I supposed to be if not here? This is my house. I think I'm the only one who should be asking that question," Atsuo responded angrily, thinking that his peaceful day was about to be ruined and his secret exposed.

"Your house!!" Mitsuru felt completely screwed. She was speechless. "Does Hikari not know whose house this is? Or if she does, why did she bring me here?" She found herself with a lot of questions swirling in her head.

"I brought her here. Let's go inside and talk. We might bother the neighbors," Hikari interjected, offering her suggestion.

Atsuo was in a tough spot. Even though he didn't want to let them in, the fear of what Hikari might say and the potential complications with his neighbors left him with no choice. "Yes, alright, let's go inside," he replied. After all, she knew his weaknesses, so he allowed them into his house.

"Yep, let's go inside and spend the rest of the day here," Hikari said enthusiastically, holding Mitsuru’s hand as they walked into the house.

Mitsuru was confused. She had no idea what was going on or why the "monster" was obeying Hikari’s every command without hesitation.

“Please have a seat. I'll be back in ten minutes," Atsuo said. He thought the gas stove might still be on, so he excused himself to check on it. Additionally, he was starving and considered finishing his breakfast while talking with them.

He returned to the kitchen and realized he had turned off the stove before leaving. He started the stove again to boil the milk. The toast was already out of the toaster. As the milk was about to boil, he worried about what he would serve them. It felt wrong to eat alone in their presence.

He remembered the cookies he had received from Miss Moriko and decided to serve them along with the untouched bottle of juice he bought last night at a huge discount.

Once the milk boiled, he poured it into a cup and applied jam and butter to the toast. After that, he left the kitchen and headed towards the room.

Meanwhile, Mitsuru was impatiently waiting in the room with Hikari. She had many questions in her mind and wanted to ask Hikari, but she found the place inappropriate as Atsuo might overhear their conversation. She decided to wait and ask all her questions after returning home.

He opened the door, put the snack tray on the table, and offered them something to eat. He sat in front of them and started eating his breakfast.

"So tell me, what are you doing here?" he asked while taking the first bite. The room fell silent, and the crunch of toast could be heard clearly.

"Oh, it's very simple. She was hesitating to talk to you and wants to become your friend, so I brought her here so we can spend some time together and build a bond of friendship," Hikari said, picking up the glass of juice and taking a sip.

"I don't know what you're trying to pull, but I have a request: please stop messing with me. At least leave me alone on weekends. She has friends she can talk to whenever she wants. Why are you bugging me all of a sudden?" Atsuo replied harshly, clearly annoyed.

"But she's sitting right in front of you. Don't you think having one more friend would be great? Besides, there are so many rumors about you that she's scared to talk to you," Hikari replied, picking a cookie from the plate.

"Rumors? Scared of me? Yes, that's correct, and that's how I want it. If she's scared of my name, she's like everyone else in class. This is how things have been for many years, and I don't see any problems with it. You don't understand how peaceful my life was before this new seating arrangement. You guys are interfering with my privacy, and it's annoying," Atsuo said while taking a sip of milk.

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"You don't have any issues with that? People are talking trash about you. I know you're not like that," Hikari responded seriously.

"Who cares about what they say about me? Honestly, I'm happy with it because I don't have to do anything. The privacy I love comes without any effort," he replied with a smile.

"He can smile?" Mitsuru thought out loud after seeing him smile. Realizing what she had done, she quickly covered her mouth with both hands, still wondering, "How can Hikari be so comfortable talking to him?"

"Yes, of course, I can smile. You shouldn't take every rumor seriously. But who cares as long as I get what I want? I'm okay with these rumors. And as for friends, I don't want any. If you need more friends, there are three more girls sitting around me. You can try to make friends with them," Atsuo replied while taking a huge bite of toast.

"Why don't you want friends?" Hikari asked, smiling.

"It's very hard to understand the human heart, and even harder to identify real friends. This is why I don't want any friends or family. Now, if you're done with your interrogation, you can leave." Although he was fully pissed off by the conversation, Atsuo tried to remain calm as he replied.

"Hey, Hikari, he seems a bit angry now. I think we should take our leave," Mitsuru interrupted, trying to stand up and leave the house.

"Hey, wait. Don't leave me alone. Just wait a little longer," Hikari said, grabbing her hand to stop her from leaving.

"She’s right. I think instead of pissing me off, you should follow her advice and leave now. It's Sunday, after all. Let me have some relaxation, and you both should have fun too." Atsuo tried to control himself, knowing he could push both of them out of the house if he wanted to.

"We want to have some fun with you, which is why we came here," Hikari replied with a smile.

"I know you're having a lot of fun pissing me off, but if you leave now, you can take the rest of the cookies I have in the kitchen," Atsuo said, trying to bribe her, knowing Hikari's weakness.

"Are you sure?" she asked, drooling.

"Yep."

"In that case, I'll leave immediately—once you hand me the cookies and become friends with Mitsuru," she replied sarcastically.

Hearing her words, Atsuo's happiness melted away like ice cream in the sun. He screamed in anger, "Stop that crap already! And stop acting nice! I don’t know what ulterior motive you girls have behind this friendship stuff, but just give up and leave me alone."

"You talk about friendship and friends, so tell me, Hikari Ogawa, what is your definition of friendship?

Who do you call a friend?

Can you trust them blindly?

To me, friends are nothing more than traders who want to take something from another person in the name of friendship. They drain that person until there's nothing left and then leave them once they have nothing more to offer.

Now, if you have your answer, leave me alone."

After hearing all this, she replied politely, "I think you don't yet know the real meaning of friendship. Friends are more precious than any treasure in the world. They are the ones you can trust with your life, even with your eyes closed. They may tease you, fight with you, and even stop talking to you at times, but they will never betray you."

"So this is your definition of friendship. It is good and pure, but you haven't seen the real world yet. All these ideals will blow up in one shot." After screaming, his anger subsided, and he responded to her calmly.

Even in this situation, she picked up another cookie and, while taking a bite, replied, "I don’t think there will be any difference between them."

"Whatever, finish the snacks and leave my home. I have so many things to do," he replied with an irritated expression.

He never thought the girl was so stubborn. Despite all his attempts, she replied, "I am not leaving now. Let's wait a little longer."

Even though the girl was stubborn, he matched her stubbornness. He countered her with a question, "Tell me, Ogawa! In my life, there's no place for friends, but you want to be friends with me. So tell me... What do you want from me in return?"

She stopped in the middle of eating. She tried to answer his question but didn't have an answer. After thinking for a while, she decided to leave for now.

"Hey Mitsuru, I think we should go back home now. I don't have your answer now, but I will reply to you soon." They both thanked him for his hospitality and left the house.

Mitsuru had so many questions in her mind that she wanted to ask after reaching home, but she couldn't control herself and asked them while they were on their way home.

"Would you mind telling me how you know him?"

"Yes, I met him once before he came back to school."

"How do you know his home?"

"The day I met him, I helped him carry some stuff. Since he wasn't aware of me as his classmate, he didn't hesitate to take my help."

"Oh... that's all? Are you not hiding anything from me?"

"No, when I helped him, I found him very kind. When you told me about all the rumors, I thought someone should help him."

"Yes, I can say he’s not as bad as the rumors suggest, but I was scared to death when I was in his house. Please never do that again. For a moment, I thought you were handing me over to him as a sacrificial offering."

"A sacrificial offering? Haha! Your thoughts are hilarious. But I can say your perspective should change for sure."

"Yes, now I don't have to hide, even if we cross paths in public."

They reached home and, as it was the last day of the weekend, they enjoyed themselves and ate a lot until night. After saying goodnight to each other, they went to sleep. Even though Hikari lay with her eyes closed, she was thinking about what happened today and contemplating the answer.

"He asked a difficult question. I have to think of the answer soon. He's in pain and doesn't want to ask for help, which is why he tried to commit suicide. I have to find the right answer before that idiot makes any mistakes again," she thought to herself.

After thinking about it for some time, she fell asleep without realizing it.