Two outcasts who look down on each other share an innocent first kiss. - Chapter 1

 

Since childhood, I had always imagined it.

Who would be the girl I shared my first kiss with?

Would she be a graceful girl with long, flowing hair? Someone kind and cheerful, adored by everyone?

Surely, she would be the kind of girl others envied—a true beauty. My heart would pound so hard it might shatter as I nervously closed my eyes, leaning in closer to meet her lips—

—But the reality before me was nothing like that fantasy.

“W-what…? You’re not going to do it?”

Her brows furrowed in displeasure.

She always had a sharp, rebellious gaze, as if glaring at the world itself. I had heard that she was slightly nearsighted, which explained her expression. She could have just worn glasses or contacts, but she refused. Glasses, she claimed, made her look too nerdy, and contacts scared her.

And this unreasonable, stubborn girl—the one I was now holding by the waist—was Mikage Sumino.

“Are you seriously chickening out now…? This is why shut-in virgins like you—”

“Shut up, shut-in virgin. I… I just need a moment to prepare myself.”

“You’ve played this scene in your head a million times, haven’t you…? Just hurry up and get it over with.”

“I can’t do it if you keep talking.”

Brushing aside her slightly dry, unkempt black hair, I placed a hand on her cheek.

She flinched, trembling slightly as if startled, instinctively trying to pull away.

I tightened my grip around her frail, almost unhealthy waist, keeping her from escaping.

“J-just the kiss, okay…? That’s all this is.”

“I know.”

“Don’t get too excited!”

“That’s you, you perverted shut-in.”

Slowly, I leaned in.

Sumino squeezed her eyes shut.

I never thought a day like this would come.

I never imagined I would ever kiss a girl. And I definitely never imagined that girl would be Sumino.

How did it come to this?

I retraced my steps, and the answer was clear—

It all started when she screamed and yanked the curtains shut.

◆◆◆

When I was in elementary school, I had friends.

Back then, friendships were simple. If you were fast at running, had a gaming console at home, or were unbeatable in Super Smash Bros., people admired you. Social skills weren’t necessary.

I was good at Smash Bros.

I wasn’t particularly talkative, but no one could beat my Samus. One by one, the boys who prided themselves on their gaming skills came to my house, only to be utterly destroyed by my charge shots. My reputation as the reigning champion was cemented.

In middle school, I still had the lingering prestige of my past victories.

The best players from various elementary schools gathered, ready to determine the ultimate champion. But that was where I met my match—I could only manage a Top 4 finish.

It turned out I was just a frog in a well. There were far stronger players out there. I had only been beating kids who didn’t know how to deal with projectile attacks. In truth, I was just a cunning little brat who had found a cheap strategy to exploit.

That moment was the peak of my life.

As time passed, a divide formed between the athletic kids, the club members, and those who went straight home after school.

Gaming was no longer the primary means of socializing. My classmates started spending their pocket money on fast food instead of Pokémon cards.

The athletic guys hit their growth spurts, their bodies developing rapidly, while I… didn’t change at all.

Before I knew it, I was alone.

I spent my days playing FPS games on the console my parents had bought me, ignoring the incessant, irritating pings from random teammates, silently climbing the ranks.

I rarely spoke during the day.

At night, I drowned myself in gaming or listened to online streamers, so loneliness never had the chance to creep in.

By the time I graduated middle school, I had fully accepted my reality.

Sure, I envied those V-Tubers who played together, laughing and chatting effortlessly. That kind of life seemed fun.

But that required talent.

After living for fifteen years, I had finally come to terms with the truth—I simply didn’t have that talent.

So, I made my decision.

I wouldn’t try to make friends.

I wouldn’t pursue romance.

Even without those things, the world had more than enough entertainment to keep me occupied.

I wouldn’t expect some picture-perfect high school experience, the kind you see in manga.

My name is Edward Harrison.

But Edward was just a name my parents had chosen.

My life—my path—was mine to decide.

It was fine.

As long as I understood my place in the world, I was already doing better than most of my kind.

And so, my first month of high school passed.

Aside from a minor, unexpected complication before school started, everything was going according to plan.

I sat quietly in the corner of the classroom, watching as my classmates formed their own social groups.

Those who successfully found a circle to belong to were probably relieved—thankful that they weren’t ending up like me.

But that was fine. This was a position I had willingly accepted.

I was managing well enough on my own.

The biggest relief was finding a partner for gym class.

During pair exercises, there had been another guy left without a partner—just like me. He was the one who approached me first.

His name was Henry Blackwell. We weren’t close enough to be called friends, but his reserved personality made him feel familiar.

It seemed like he also struggled with making friends. Our conversations never flowed naturally, but I knew he was one of us.

I figured we would be grouped together for most school events moving forward.

Even if we didn’t talk during breaks, just knowing there was another loner in class gave me some comfort—

“Oi, Henry! So, what happened after yesterday?”

“After what?”

“Come on, you know what I mean. Alice White! You totally have a shot with her!”

“Don’t mess with me. We just watched a movie together, that’s all.”

“That’s what we call a date, you idiot!”

Lying face-down on my desk, half-asleep, I overheard their conversation—

And a cold sweat ran down my back.

Alice White… that Alice White?

The brightest girl in our class, with stunningly elegant black hair that you’d rarely see outside of movies. Rumor had it that her parents were either famous actors or wealthy CEOs.

And Henry… he went on a movie date with that ultra-beautiful girl?

He was just an ordinary-looking guy, nothing particularly striking about him. How?

I never had a crush on Alice White, yet I felt an inexplicable wave of shock.

Henry—who I had assumed was just like me—had gone on a date.

And not just with anyone… but with Alice White.

It suddenly felt like he had been pulled far away from me, leaving me behind.

No, it’s fine.

I had given up from the start. I had no intention of ever getting into a relationship.

…But the ability to simply go to the movies with a girl—that was something I undeniably lacked.

Carrying this silent disappointment, I made it through the rest of my morning classes.

As soon as the teacher left the room, I promptly pulled my lunchbox from my backpack.

Some people seem to believe that eating alone is sad or embarrassing, but I didn’t see it that way.

Meal time is for eating. That’s its purpose. So logically, eating in silence is the most natural way to do it.

And so, without an ounce of shame, I enjoyed the homemade lunch my mother had packed for me.

Today’s meal was white rice with salted kelp.

The kelp absorbed just the right amount of moisture from the rice, making it even tastier.

Feeling slightly pleased, I glanced up just in time to see a girl quietly slipping out of the classroom.

There was no mistaking that petite figure.

I was the shortest among the boys, but among the girls, she was the smallest.

She was probably a good twenty centimeters shorter than me—putting her in the mid-140 cm range. Her shoulder-length hair was a tangled mess, so unkempt that it was obvious she never ran a comb through it—the complete opposite of Alice White’s flawless, flowing black locks.

She was always anxious, like a small, frightened animal, yet her sharp glare made her seem perpetually defiant.

And most importantly—she had no friends.

She always fled the classroom during lunch, likely with no partner in gym class either.

The other outcast of our class—Mikage Sumino.

“……………………”

Watching the door she had just disappeared through, I silently chewed on my salted kelp rice.

For God’s sake, at least don’t eat in the bathroom. Your parents packed that meal for you.

Not to be rude, but… at least I was better off than her.

Golden Week Arrives

Before I knew it, a month of high school had flown by, and Golden Week had begun.

I had a feeling that, for freshmen, whether they had successfully made friends or not drastically changed how they spent this break.

As for me, this year, next year, and the year after that, my plans would remain the same—gaming, watching streams, and living at my own pace. Far better than forcing myself to go out just to maintain social ties.

But this year was slightly different.

Because of one thing that had been delayed since before school started—our move to a new house.

“Wow… so many rooms!”

As the moving crew bustled around with boxes, my father stood in the middle of the hallway, marveling at the obvious.

“So this is… a house! What incredible space! You’re telling me we can stomp on the floor, bang on the walls, and no one will complain?!”

“Apparently, yes!?” my mother replied, hopping up and down excitedly.

“Look at this! I can jump around like this, and it’s totally fine! Because there’s no one below us!”

“Well, unless there’s a hidden basement family living down there, that would be a surprise.”

“Hahaha! Parasite, parasite!”

My mother, despite being a grown woman, was bouncing around like an overexcited middle schooler. Given her petite stature, she could have easily passed for one. No doubt I had inherited my short height from her.

Keeping my distance from my overly energetic parents, I sighed.

I could kind of understand their excitement.

They had spent their entire lives in apartments, and now they finally owned their dream home.

Originally, we were supposed to move at the end of March, just in time for my sister’s and my school year to start fresh. But due to some complications with the real estate, the move had been pushed back by a month. It made sense that their excitement had been building up.

Still… they were being way too enthusiastic.

As their teenage son, I really didn’t want to be associated with these people right now.

This was exactly why they had blindly named me Edward, without ever considering the possibility that their child might turn out to be an introvert.

“…I’m going to check out the upstairs rooms.”

As I mumbled that, my father beamed at me.

“Yes! Go on, explore to your heart’s content! This house is ours! Hahaha!”

“Talk it over with Kanata and pick your rooms, okay?” my mother called after me.

I waved them off and headed for the stairs, only to hear footsteps following me.

Turning, I saw my younger sister, Kanata, looking up at me.

“Brother. Can I pick my room first?”

“Sure. I don’t really care.”

“Alright.”

Nodding, she briskly climbed the stairs ahead of me.

Kanata was three years younger than me and had just started middle school this year.

Her unusual name apparently came from some ancient term for the star Sirius. Because our parents had chosen Edward for me, they ended up forcing a celestial theme onto her as well.

Honestly, the “ta” in Kanata felt unnecessary to me, so I usually just called her Kana. She seemed to prefer it, even making her friends call her that.

That being said… she wasn’t particularly attached to me.

She had grown into a quiet, reserved type, not at all like a typical youngest sibling. Whether that was a good or bad thing, I wasn’t sure.

Still, today, she seemed unusually excited.

For all her usual maturity, the thought of finally having her own room must have been thrilling.

And, well… I felt the same way.

Up until now, I had to share a room with Kana. Gaming had to be done quietly. Watching certain things required sneaking off to the bathroom.

But starting today, I had complete freedom.

More than starting high school, this felt like the true beginning of a new chapter in my life.

Following Kana up the stairs, I saw two doors—one directly in front and one to the right.

Without hesitation, she walked straight to the right-side door and turned back to face me.

“I’ll take this room.”

“You’re not even going to check inside?”

“I noticed from outside—your room’s window is right up against the neighbor’s house. Hardly any sunlight gets in.”

She pointed at the door facing the stairs.

…Seriously? Don’t property laws cover basic sunlight access?

“Alright. I’ll go let the movers know.”

With that, she gracefully walked past me, heading back downstairs.

That sneaky little… she planned this from the start.

Not that I cared. As long as there was electricity, a room was a room.

I turned toward my new door, twisted the handle, and stepped inside.

It was an empty square of wooden flooring.

Probably around five or six tatami mats in size, though it felt larger with no furniture.

But as I stood there, I couldn’t ignore the unsettling fact that my window was entirely blocked by the neighboring house.

Curious, I stepped closer, grabbing the curtain.

Just how close was it? Was there at least enough space for air to circulate?

With that thought, I pulled the curtain open—

And instead of a wall, I found a window.

And beyond that window—

A girl.

Messy hair.

Sharp, defiant eyes.

A tiny, familiar figure.

Mikage Sumino.

Right in the middle of pulling off her shirt.

“…Huh?”

For a moment, I thought I was hallucinating.

Then she met my gaze—

And let out the ugliest, most guttural scream I’d ever heard.

“—HAAAHH!??!?”

“…My deepest apologies,” I murmured smoothly.

Then, with the composure of a saint, I calmly shut the curtain.