Chapter 96By the Side of the Goddess, Part 6
"Hmmm..."
Ai-chan moved in Aichi's arms. As Aichi stroked her back frantically, she buried Ai-chan's cheek into her breast, as if to make Ai-chan feel comfortable and start sleeping again. It's good, isn't it, Ai-chan...
—No, that's not it, hey...!
"You, what have you done...?"
"Aren't you too guilty...?"
Aichi, who was trying to listen seriously, asked back, her voice trembling as if she was holding back her anger. I also agree with you, Aichi. ...I feel like there's something inside me that makes me feel like an idiot for being so impatient.
Sajocchi did not notice the unenviable sight of Ai-chan and sat down on the sofa, staring awkwardly at his knees. The expression on his face seemed to show a feeling of "Why am I talking about it with them...?". Don't think you can cover it up this time, Sajocchi...!
"Um, I'm sorry, but can you make that as if you're not listening to me..."
"Impossible."
"How can that be."
After all, there is no such thing as, "It's okay for now.", after being told something outrageous. I have no choice but to ask you to say this one line by any means... ...If you make that girl prostrate herself on the floor, isn't that a big deal? Since when did you become like that, Sajocchi?!
"...Um, you see."
"Talk to us. Talk to us."
Aichi became stern. I was there, but I was completely distracted. She did not put on the "I want to help Sajocchi" look that she gave me earlier. From an outsider's point of view, there was no need to say anything more about Sajocchi, but was this a "big family affair"? I guess I couldn't help but ask him about it.
"Is this your fault, Sajocchi?"
"Ugh... ...Yeah, I think it can be considered a tragedy that I didn't consider her personality."
"Is she a quiet girl...?"
"..."
Sajocchi nodded her head. Aichi, who saw this, looked at him with a sharp gaze. I'll probably look at him with the same gaze. After all, she's a quiet girl, isn't she? I can't imagine such a girl prostrating herself on the floor to the point of giving Sajocchi a hard time. I can only assume that Sajocchi made that girl do it...
"..."
"Um..."
Aichi's eyes became even sharper.
We'll keep our mouths shut. I'm sorry, but please don't think that you can escape again this time, Sajocchi. There's no point in being afraid. Now that you've gone this far, we want you to tell us more details. If you don't tell us, it will ruin the relationship between us.
As I looked at him, Sajocchi straightened his posture and changed his expression. Sajocchi had already made up his mind that she would listen to us. I felt somewhat relieved because, in my heart, I thought that maybe he wouldn't be able to talk to us.
"...It might be a bit difficult to talk about, but—"
Sajocchi poured out his heart. The more I listened, the more I realized that this wasn't a trivial story at all. In my opinion, his explanation was very considerate of me and Aichi who had never worked part-time.
At first, I was surprised and confused. Sajocchi was talking seriously. I thought it was just another weird excuse made up by Sajocchi, and I was surprised that Sajocchi was so serious about his part-time job. However, this is a bit harsh, Sajocchi.
Let's take a look at Aichi. She's listening to Sajocchi attentively. You can tell that she's not listening with weird prejudice like me. Aichi, you already know that Sajocchi's expression is serious, huh...
That's right. Aichi and Sajocchi have known each other since middle school. No wonder they know a lot about each other's expressions that I don't.
Both Sajocchi and Aichi immediately showed what they were thinking on their faces, and they were insensitive to each other's subtleties, so I probably thought that I had noticed it from their side and that I knew them better than anyone else. I think I got a little too carried away...
When I glanced at Aichi, she looked rather sad while stroking Ai-chan's head.
"You, um, become so emotional..."
"...Yeah, that's the point..."
I've seen an emotional Sajocchi before. When Sajocchi and his Big Sis were arguing on the rooftop. At that time, it was obvious that it wasn't normal, and I only thought of Sajocchi who was upset: "How can you speak that low?". I was so shocked that I forgot about the guilt of eavesdropping and peeking into the scene, at that time, it was obvious that this was an unusual situation, so I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable...
"That's right, is this a problem...? I don't know what I should do from tomorrow on..."
"..."
"..."
Nothing came to mind. This story was easy to understand, but I couldn't tell him anything about customer service because I had never worked part-time before and I rarely had the chance to interact with such shy girls. There were no quiet girls in Volleyball Club, and I knew that even if I tried to talk to them, in the end, they would probably get annoyed.
But, since it's a problem in his part-time job, Sajocchi must force himself to communicate with that girl, right? I didn't know that was possible, I didn't think about it.
"—Yeah! That's the problem! It's 100:0 my fault! I have this kind of problem too. Do you understand, Ashida?"
"Wow!? U-Um... yeah! That's bad, Sajocchi!"
"It's very bad, isn't it? Just kill me... ...Gosh, I want to die..."
"Sa-Sajocchi, cheer up!"
As Sajocchi fell off the sofa, he forced himself to make the atmosphere change to normal. This was the atmosphere I knew well. I can't think of any solutions. All I can say is that we should try our best to match Sajocchi's tension. I don't mean that, I just want to help him in some way...
At the very least, I don't think this is entirely Sajocchi's fault. But perhaps it's too difficult for me to involve myself in finding a solution for him...
"—You're not the only one to blame for this."
Sajocchi and I, the two of us, both looked at Aichi. Aichi put her hand on her forehead and looked at Sajocchi with a worried look. It seemed like she was trying to get the words out after a moment of thought as if she wanted to say that she wouldn't let it become someone else's problem.
"...Heh?"
"Yeah, I don't know what to say, but from what I heard, if that girl could communicate like a normal person, it wouldn't have happened in the first place. As her senpai at the part-time job, I'm sure that you're starting to feel uncomfortable with her, right?"
"Yeah... that's right..."
"I didn't expect that you would take my side," Sajocchi replied with a face that seemed to say something like that. He made an apologetic expression and quickly returned his body, which had almost fallen off the sofa, to its original position, then straightened his posture again. The surprised look in his eyes was still the same.
"You must have your reasons..."
"..."
This time, Aichi turned her face away from Sajocchi, as if trying to trick him. She didn't seem to have a sad face, but instead an embarrassed face, at least from my perspective. Eh, wait a minute.
"Aichi. Are you encouraging Sajocchi?"
"What...!? How can you say that?"
"From what I've heard, it's just my objective opinion."
She didn't say "Which is worse", but she said, "You're not the only one to blame, so cheer up"? It's hard to say that. I didn't realize until I saw her face. For a moment I wondered why she felt embarrassed..., it took me about 3 seconds to realize it. I didn't expect to see Aichi's tsundere nature at this moment...
"...I see."
"Th-That's right."
Sajocchi looked at Aichi with a dreamy face, as if he was falling in love with her again. Oh, no, are you going to flirting with her again this time? If I hadn't checked, you probably wouldn't have noticed, right? You should thank me, Sajocchi, or rather Aichi. More than that...
I think Sajocchi is feeling a bit better already. It's hard to understand, but Aichi is encouraging him well. I want to do something too... ...Hmm, but in the end he made that girl prostrate on the floor... ...That's another story...
Oh, but come to think of it, I don't think a "part-time job" has anything to do with this. I think this can also be applied to club activities. Like when you join a club activity, but you get frustrated and make unacceptable complaints? So, if you scold her, she will prostrate herself on the floor, right?
"...Eh?"
Come to think of it, it felt strange. In a normal situation, she would probably stop coming because she felt annoyed, or because she was unfaithful, or because they felt awkward, right? In a worst-case scenario, the two of them would just stop, right?
"Eh, what?"
"Why won't she quit?"
"Eh?"
"Though it would be easier for her if she quit."
That's what Sajocchi was saying in his explanation, that he would be happier that way. Sure, there's a comfortable place at the end of the exit, but the girl said "I don't want to stop!", didn't she? Isn't there a reason? There must be one or two reasons why that shy girl won't stop, to the point where she has to prostrate herself on the floor.
When I looked over at Sajocchi, he had his hands on his head, as if he was in trouble. It seemed that he was so upset that she had to prostrate herself on the floor, that he hadn't had time to ask her the reason in detail.
"It's possible, but... I would also feel incompatible with that girl just like Sajocchi. But, if I understand it, it would make sense for you to be curious about the reason, right?"
"I-I'm sure of it..., but what should I do?"
"If Sajocchi is broken..., it will be the end of everything..., so I guess we have no choice but to listen to him."
"Ugh..."
Oh, I feel like it's already giving him a hard time... However, I think it would be difficult for Sajocchi to continue being that girl's senpai without understanding her at all. Come to think of it, when I was in middle school, I was always involved in my kouhai's personal life...
"—In that case, I'm gonna use it."
"...Eh?"
"Hoeh?"
Aichi suddenly said that. But what do you mean? What are you gonna use?
"Punishment" for Wataru... ...I'm gonna use it for that."
Eh, wait a second, Aichi?
TL: Reeze27
ED: Reeze27
PR: Reeze27
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