Stealing Spree

Catching up to Hifumi and matching her strides, the first few minutes of our walk were spent in an awkward and heavy silence…

Obviously, that was my fault. My honest trait ruined it. Reflecting on that scene earlier, I sounded forceful and a little desperate to let her know how I want to stand next to her again. Evidently, Hifumi didn’t share the same sentiment.

If I only stuck to wanting to help her carry her books, it probably wouldn’t devolve into this kind of situation. We’d be joking at this moment and I would be teasing her like last time when she heated up right away. And then, she would be smiling or laughing instead of having this unusual gloom.

Unfortunately, I made that blunder. Speaking up about what’s on my mind and what I’m feeling for her sabotaged that kind of possibility.

But do I regret it? Regrettably, I don’t. Like I said, better to come out clean now than delude myself that I was only being good to her.

I hoped that she’d be as stupidly honest as me.

But that’s not what happened, Hifumi isn’t stupid like me. She’s the kind of girl who will not easily commit to something she’s unsure of. But at the same time, once she commits to something, she’s not just going to quit halfway.

The prime example is her due diligence to keep up with being always at the top of her class or school. Even if I don’t ask her, she surely took the top spot again this past midterm exam. Moreover, the books that I am carrying at the moment have already been read by her more times than I can count, yet she’s still carrying them to refresh her mind and not forget it.

Anyone can imagine how dedicated she is to something…

When I stole her back then, she was the one who resisted me the most. But then when I finally succeeded, I remembered how she’s the one who stuck close to me most of the time.

Chii only waited for an opportunity. Hana, if I still remember correctly, she’s the one creating opportunities for us.

According to Akane, when the topic of our conversation at night went to the first three girls that I stole, while Hana was the one she’s the wariest of or in her words, ‘hated the most’ at that time, Hifumi was the one that was seen the closest to me.

I was unaware but apparently, most of our schoolmates and classmates saw us as a thing because of how I was often seen with her.

It goes to show how naïve I was back then…

Anyway, ten minutes later, we arrived in a rather bustling neighborhood. There were various establishments around like a convenience store, family restaurants, internet and manga café, and other businesses that catered to the common populace.

I haven’t been here before so it’s still a new sight.

At this point, Hifumi stopped in her steps and turned to me. Looking up to meet my gaze, the girl forced a smile and said, “Thank you, here is fine. My house is right over that street.”

She then pointed at a street where the convenience store and internet cafe were situated. That place was the most bustling and I could see people walking in and out of it.

“Are you sure? I can walk you to your gate…”

“No… I don't want you to…” Hifumi averted her gaze as though she didn’t want to complete her sentence.

If I assumed what she meant by that, she probably didn’t want to know where she’s living currently.

“I see…” I returned a smile, not letting her see that my mind came up with a reason. She’d surely be disappointed if the reason wasn’t what I assumed.

I shook my head inwardly to cast that off before handing the books to her. “I’m going then… See you later.”

“Un… See you.” Hifumi’s smile disappeared from her lips. Even if it’s forced, it’s a sight to behold.

But now that it disappeared, I somehow found my chest hurts a bit.

Well, I controlled my facial expression and didn’t show it to her.

She made a decision. Who am I to appeal to her by showing an expression I never showed her before?

When the girl started walking away from me, I watched her departing back, slightly hoping that she’d turn around and run back to me.

However, until she crossed the street and disappeared among the crowd coming into that street, she never looked behind her.

Well, there’s no way I would blame her for doing so… At least, I should be content that I accomplished what I initially wanted to do by approaching her.

Escorting her home.

Rekindling what we had before might be tricky in the end. No. Not just tricky, it might even be impossible.

Even if Hifumi also had lingering feelings for me, she wouldn’t easily dive into it knowing that my change was far from what everyone was expecting.

Furthermore, it’s only a coincidence that I found her waiting there…

Turning around to retrace my steps and go back to my original route, I found my legs heavier than normal.

What is this feeling?

I guess I felt a little lost and defeated. Yet even if I could easily turn that around by chasing after the girl, I chose not to.

It’s still her choice, after all.

Fifteen minutes later, I returned to the waiting shed where I found her. My return walk was slower and that’s due to my mind wandering off for the most part.

Since I was going to meet another one of my girls, I sat down first to clear my mind. It’s bad if I showed up looking like a wet chick, it would just worry Ririka.

While doing so, I pulled up my phone and checked on the messages of my other girls. There were the praises I received from the worried girls who urged me to take the cold medicine. Then there’s Nao who sent a video, showcasing to me another one of her crafts. Ririka, who I was going to meet, also sent a photo asking me to choose among the wigs that would fit Yue. And lastly, there’s Miho who sent me another record of her piano plays and asked me what I think of it.

Through interacting with them like that, my mood gradually returned to normal and my smile naturally crept up again as I enjoyed every moment I spent with them.

I was about to go when I received another message from someone I didn’t expect.

Yep… It was from the girl that I probably upset today… Hifumi.

It’s a simple message that says, “Ruki, thanks again. I arrived home safely and I just came out of the bath.”

Following that, she sent a sticker that depicted an animated glasses girl bowing her head with her hand joined together in apology.

“While soaking in the warm water, I reflected. I feel like I’ve been a difficult girl earlier. I should’ve said something, right? You carried my books like the old times, something I wished for to happen again and yet I just had to act like that…”

Even if her message was in text form, I could feel the concern she was trying to convey to me…

That’s why… before she could finish typing her next messages, I tapped the call button.

Five seconds later, she accepted it.

As soon as I heard the sound of her breathing on the other side, I beamed a smile and said in a clear voice, “Hey, that’s not an answer to my confession, right?”

Perhaps she didn’t expect me to say that, I heard her gasp before a loud clicking of her tongue ensued, “You’re as shameless as ever. I see. And here I am worried that I hurt you.”

Well, she did. But that’s not something I should tell her, right?

“Hifumi, who do you think I am? Someone as shameless as me had no time to be hurt… I’m actually thinking about how I can reach you again… You see, I miss you.”

“Hold up… I don’t want to hear what you’re going to say to me next.”

“Is that a no?”

“No, of course not!”

“You know that answer is confusing, right?”

“Like I care! But Ruki… I miss you too…”

As soon as her last word reached my ears, the call ended.

That girl… She intentionally ended it, running away again.

Yet, even if she did that, hearing her voice again and the words she said in response to mine, my mood was greatly lifted.

We’re not yet over …