A Pretty Girl Has Her First Kiss Stolen By an Equally Handsome Classmate - Episode 2.26

“I’m sorry.”

Tears streamed down Mizuhara’s face as Wakamatsu reached out his arms toward her.

“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

He sat up and peered into her face, but the tears just kept falling. She trembled as she kept apologizing to someone, whispering, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” Unable to bear seeing her like that, Wakamatsu grabbed a nearby jacket and wrapped her in his arms.

“Are you hurt? Did something bad happen?”

“…I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Wakamatsu.”

“It’s okay, Mizuhara. You’re okay, alright?”

In the dim light, Wakamatsu couldn’t clearly see her expression. He reached for the remote control, but Mizuhara stopped him.

“Don’t turn it on.”

Obediently, he lowered his arm and placed his hand back on her back. Holding her close, he gently stroked her back to calm her down.

“I told you before, I’ll be here when things are hard.”

“…Why are you always so kind?”

“Eh? Well…”

Wakamatsu took a deep breath before speaking.

“Because you’re special to me.”

At those words, Mizuhara flinched slightly in his arms. She pressed her face against his shoulder, her nose brushing against his neck.

“In August last year, my sister went missing.”

The sudden confession made Wakamatsu tense up. His heart pounded unpleasantly.

Only the sound of the air conditioner filled the room.

“…Is that the thing you were talking about before?”

“…Yeah.”

“I see… So that’s what happened.”

He moved the hand on her back, gently patting her to comfort her.

Now he understood why the calendar in her room was still stuck on August.

“At first, I didn’t even know what to think.”

“I searched everywhere, asked my relatives, and went to the police.”

“But the second semester was about to start, and I just didn’t have enough time…”

Her voice faltered. She was slowly putting painful memories into words. Wakamatsu continued stroking her back, waiting patiently.

“I went to school at first.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“But pretending to be normal became exhausting…”

Mizuhara let out a bitter laugh.

“…No, that’s not it. I couldn’t forgive them.”

“I couldn’t forgive my classmates for acting like everything was fine.”

“Why was I the only one suffering like this…?”

Tears spilled from her eyes again.

“Yeah… I get that.”

“Eventually, I couldn’t even get out of bed in the morning. I stopped going to school.”

“…I see.”

Wakamatsu felt ashamed of himself.

“Mizuhara-san, you seem fine, so why don’t you come to school?”

“Just because someone looks okay doesn’t mean they’re not struggling inside.”

The words she had said back then were true.

“I started reading all sorts of sad novels.”

“I thought if I followed how the characters overcame their struggles, maybe I could fix myself too.”

“But I couldn’t… Reality isn’t that easy.”

He remembered the first time they talked about books, on their first date.

“Day after day, I kept waiting for a letter from my sister.”

“I would go outside, hoping to find her.”

“I kept waiting for her to find me first and call out to me…”

The first time he visited her apartment, she had been checking the mail.

At the café, she preferred sitting by the window and staring outside.

At the drugstore, when he had spoken to her, she had looked disappointed.

“You’ve been suffering all this time, haven’t you, Mizuhara?”

“…I know I need to stop.”

“Stop?”

“But… it feels comfortable like this… I…”

Mizuhara trembled slightly in his arms. Wakamatsu gently rubbed her back, comforting her.

The small clock he had chosen for her desk was the only thing in the room that kept moving forward.

“……”

Mizuhara suddenly pushed him away and stepped out of his arms. She wiped away her tears with her sleeve and lowered her gaze. Wakamatsu didn’t know what to do—he could only wait.

“…Hey, Wakamatsu.”

She slowly lifted her face.

“Hm?”

“Let’s go see the ocean one last time.”

She sat up from the bed and put on a thin hoodie.

When she turned on the light, her face was illuminated.

Something about Mizuhara Shizuku looked different from before.