Episode 39 – There’s No Way We Can Reconcile

….I’m not very good with people who always think that they’re right.
They who only speak for themself.
So, even if they hurt the other person, they probably won’t notice it.

My childhood friend who’s in front of me might be that type of person.
As evidence, my reunion with her started with cursing.

When I helped my step sister, my childhood friend who witnessed that situation cursed at me for using violence.

Because of that, I should’ve stopped getting involved with…….my childhood friend, but for some reason, she sits here next to me.

I don’t know if she was stubborn or stupid, but she didn’t ran away from the delinquents who surrounded me, instead she stood in front of me. On top of that, she almost got beaten.

Thanks to Genpaku and the others, she got through without any incident, but it must’ve been terrifying for her. As a proof, she lost her strength after the delinquents left.

However, she put on a brave smile and started talking about her past.

That doesn’t mean her reckless behavior was justified. If she did it poorly, she might have been beaten up, or worse.

Considering it was fortunate that Genpaku and the others were passing by.

However, there’s a high chance that she will get caught up in this kind of situation again in the near future. That’s why I have to tell her no matter what.

“When someone is in danger, there are times where strength is needed, and there are many things that words alone cannot solve.”
As my childhood friend reacted to those words, she opened her eyes and looked at me.
Then she immediately looked down and said [Yeah…] while nodding.

“If a person who doesn’t have strength confronts with only words to the other who has , they will be crushed immediately. It’s the same with everything. It’s the same with quarrel, authority, and even novels ….”
When I mentioned something about novels, she immediately dropped her head as soon as she looked at me.

That’s no wonder. To her, I’m her childhood friend and at the same time I’m an author that she admired. And I’m not saying that she didn’t know it, but she denied my actions once.
There’s no doubt that this has at least created a gap between me and my childhood friend. That’s why I have avoided her until now. However, there was something I had to say since I told her that I was her childhood friend.

“Words are always powerless. Even weak people who expressed their feelings with only mere words, won’t reach others. I just take it that someone who has nothing to do with me is only babbling something annoying.”

“That’s….”

“You can’t say no, can you? In fact, we were saved by Genpaku and the others, but if they weren’t here, I wouldn’t be able to protect you. Also, there’s a possibility that you will be tangled with dangerous situations from today onwards.”
She bites her lips as I was warning her with a serious expression, while denying her sense of justice.

“I’m not saying that I did the right thing. However, depending on the time and circumstances, there are times when it’s necessary to confront, and there are times when it’s necessary to run away. At times like that you shouldn’t confront them without listening to the other party and deny it just because you’re right. That’s just reckless.”

“….”
She’s troubled, with a complicated expression on her face.
I don’t think what I just said will change her, and I don’t expect her to change.

However, I don’t want her to be reckless from now on, so I’m going to talk to her as her childhood friend.

“So if you don’t have the strength, you should think about what you can do before confronting it. Because they will eventually become the strength to protect ourselves. At least, that’s how I lived my life.”
When I said that, she said [Eh?] and looked at my face.

“I think you already know, but I used to be weak back then. To the point that you have to protect me, Asu…. However, after my father passed away, I knew what I wanted to protect, and I learned about my weakness. That’s why I wanted to be strong and learned karate.”

“Yeah.”

“It’s the same with novels. There are times when comments that disagree with me and heartless comments fly towards me. I’ve been told a lot of harsh things, such as don’t pretend to be an author because I was a middle schooler, or a small fry writer. You have seen a lot of those comments too, right, Asu?”

“Yeah…..”

“It was shocking for me, and I was depressed. That’s why I intended to create a story so I don’t lose to those people, then I got the result. Of course there were a lot of people who didn’t approve of it, but even so, I’m not going to lose.”

“Rikkun.”
She listened to my story with red eyes.

“If that’s the case, I want you to think about what you want to protect without hurting yourself, and your opponents. Because that will become your strength…..”
I talk about idealism without concreteness.

I know what she said is nothing but an idealism, and what I did wasn’t something praiseworthy. But you don’t know what you could’ve done until the times come.

However, if you have the ability to be adaptive in a certain situation. You should be able to deal with any problem.

“……Got it. I’ll think about it.”
With a face that looks as if she’s on the verge of tears, my childhood friend accepts what I just told her. Seeing her expression reminded me of something.

“Also, I forgot to mention about suddenly cutting my hair, that’s also a form of violence, right?”

“Eh !?”
My childhood friend’s tearful expression changed completely to being dumbfounded at my words.

“Don’t you [Eh !?] me. If i didn’t like it, that would be violence, and don’t try to cut it without my consent. That room was full of violence.”

“I mean, I was sure that if I cut your hair, it would look cool on you, so I cut it for you, okay? Actually you’ve become popular now ! !”

“I was afraid to expose my eyes to people. Besides, I was told not to talk to me…”
It was funny how my childhood friend patched up her words in panic, and I made fun of her for overreacting.

Then her expression turned serious and she apologized [Im sorry…..].

When I looked at her expression, my mischievousness reached its peak.

“I don’t like people how are selfish like that〜. I hate that type of person.”
When I said that purposely, her expression turned to despair and she lowered her head.

Seeing her depressed state, I put my fist in front of my childhood friend who’s sitting next to me and flick my middle finger toward her forehead.

My childhood friend got shocked from the impact and yelled [Ouuchh〜 ! !] while holding her forehead.

“What are you doing all of a sudden ! !”
While rubbing her red forehead, my childhood friend looked at me with an expression full of grudge.

“Hahaha, now I can’t hold a grudge for my hair.”
I put my hand on her head.

Surprised by my expression, she shook her shoulders, and then she said [Mou….] and stared at me while pouting.

This might be a light punishment….to say that i’m striking a deal with her. However, this girl helped me a lot when i was a kid. So I should start our friendship from scratch again.

After all, I’m a man who accepts any kind of unpleasant words ! !

When I thought about such things, I let go of my childhood friend’s head, who’s glaring at me, and I remembered one concern and was thinking about how to deal with it.