Before My Memories With You Melt Away in Tears - Episode 57

During lunch break, Ayaka left the classroom with Fujino and Shuri. Due to the rain that had started during the fourth period, they couldn’t head to the courtyard.

“How about we eat lunch in an empty classroom?”

At Shuri’s suggestion, Ayaka paused for a moment. The closest empty classroom was the one where she had talked with Kyoya and Hanami yesterday.

But she didn’t know if other classrooms would be available. It might be better to just head to that room than to wander around aimlessly and come back there anyway.

Even though it was an empty classroom, it might be difficult to avoid that room forever from now on.

“Yeah… that sounds good,” she said.

“Better idea!”

Before Ayaka could finish, Fujino raised her voice cheerfully.

“Let’s go somewhere better!”

Ayaka tilted her head in confusion, but followed Fujino as she walked off with a playful “this way, this way.”

They went up to the third floor, and as they walked down the hallway, Fujino suddenly stopped.

“What’s wrong?”

“Uh, maybe… we should take a different route?”

“Huh? Why?”

Ayaka didn’t understand Fujino’s words, but when she glanced over her shoulder, she saw someone walking toward them from the opposite direction.

It was Kyoya.

“…”

Ayaka fought to keep her gaze steady, but her heart sank. Fujino’s earlier strange behavior had been to avoid running into Kyoya.

“It’s fine, really,” Ayaka said with a wry smile, raising her head.

Kyoya slowly approached them. Ayaka’s heart beat faster, but she forced herself to keep looking ahead, not turning away.

As Kyoya passed by, he glanced briefly at Ayaka and her friends. But his gaze quickly turned cold, as though wondering what a first-year was doing there, and then he just looked ahead again.

A faint scent of Kyoya reached Ayaka, and her chest tightened with the pain. It was almost as if her heart would break. She felt as though she could cry.

“Ah…”

Fujino and Shuri immediately reached out to hold Ayaka’s hands, one on each side, as if to say, It’s okay.

After Kyoya passed by, Ayaka couldn’t just stand there, so she gently squeezed their hands in return.

“Let’s go,” Ayaka said.

Fujino nodded, and they started walking again.

“Sorry, I made it awkward.”

“No, it’s fine! Come on, if we don’t hurry, we’ll miss lunch!”

With that, Fujino led them to—

“The art room?”

Ayaka asked in surprise, and Fujino nodded brightly, almost exaggeratedly.

“Yep! The other day, I happened to be here during lunch, and the air conditioning was on! It was so cool!”

“But… is it okay to just go in?”

“Eh, the door’s unlocked, so I’m sure it’s fine! It’s kind of like an empty classroom.”

Though Ayaka felt a bit unsure, there was no rule saying they couldn’t eat there. If anyone told them to leave, they’d apologize, so she followed Fujino and Shuri into the art room.

They sat at a table meant for six. It was a bit strange since Ayaka never came to the art room outside of class.

After placing her lunchbox on the table, she let out a sigh. Fujino sat next to her, and Shuri sat across from them.

The atmosphere felt a little tense, and Ayaka pressed her hands together in an apologetic gesture.

“Sorry about earlier.”

“No, I’m sorry… I didn’t expect to run into him at that moment.”

Fujino lowered her shoulders with a downcast expression. It was rare for Fujino to look this upset, and it made Ayaka even more anxious.

“It’s not your fault! It was like an accident, so don’t worry about it!”

Fujino hugged Ayaka tightly, and as she patted her back, Ayaka noticed Shuri across from them, furrowing her brows.

“Shuri?”

“…He didn’t have to give you that cold glare just because you broke up, right?”

Shuri seemed upset about Kyoya’s behavior.

To Kyoya, who had no memory of their relationship, Ayaka was just a stranger. Given that, his cold attitude made sense. But for Fujino and Shuri, who didn’t know that, it probably looked like he was ignoring his ex-girlfriend.

“…But it’s my fault,” Ayaka replied softly.

She couldn’t explain everything, but she wanted them to understand that Kyoya wasn’t the one at fault.

“I suddenly brought up the breakup, so it’s partly my fault. Please, don’t think badly of Kyoya-kun.”

“Maybe… But, are you really okay with it? Are you really sure it’s fine that you broke up?”

Ayaka gave a firm nod.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Despite her certainty, Shuri pressed further.

“But you still like him, don’t you?!”

“Shuri…”

The kindness in Shuri’s voice made Ayaka want to cry, but if she cried now, it would seem like she still had feelings for Kyoya. So, she fought to hold back her tears.

“I still like him, yes… But, I want Kyoya-kun to be happy, even if it means we’re not together. As long as he’s smiling, I’m okay.”

“Ayaka…”

Shuri stood up and, like Fujino before her, wrapped her arms around Ayaka in a tight hug.

“If you’re hurting, you can talk to me anytime. Just don’t keep it to yourself, okay?”

“…Yeah, thank you.”

The warmth and kindness from her friends flooded Ayaka’s heart, and the tears she had been holding back finally began to fall down her cheeks. They weren’t cold tears, like the ones from yesterday. These were warm tears.