After I Kept Telling the Angel Who Transferred to the Seat Next to Me "I Like You" and "You’re Cute" Every Day, I Realized Our Relationship Was Too Close. When I Tried to Be More Reserved and Put Some Distance Between Us, the Angel Started Closing the Gap Herself — Part 2

Lost in thought, I changed my shoes and entered the school building with Hina-chan. As we walked through the hallways, we were greeted by several classmates.

"Hey, you two seem close, even in the morning!"

"Haha…!! Of course! After all, we’re—"

"Please stop. It’s just a coincidence."

Or:

"Good morning, Mitsuya-kun, Sonoda-san! You two really look good together! Like, seriously!"

"We’re not dating! How many times do I have to say that?!"

"Ahaha, sorry, sorry. Don’t get all pouty and cute on me!"

Yeah, stuff like that happens a lot.

The day Hina-chan transferred here, my sudden confession became the talk of the school. And, of course, so did the fact that she’s rejected me over and over for more than six months now.

Even so, my relentless pursuit of her has led to the impression that we’re always together. Though, to be honest, it’s mostly just me sticking to her like glue.

By now, my constant declarations of love for Hina-chan have become an everyday spectacle for everyone around us.

To them, it’s just, "Ah, there they go again."

"Haa… This is why I didn’t want to walk to school together," Hina-chan muttered, pouting as she opened the classroom door.

Inside, our classmates greeted her immediately. Well, of course—they all adore her. She’s like a little idol in our class. Not quite at idol level, but her small, animal-like cuteness makes her the type you just want to dote on.

"Oh, Hina-chan, you’re with Mitsuya-kun again today~!"

"Not again—just today. Please don’t make it sound like we’re always together."

Hina-chan corrected her classmate with an annoyed look. The girl brushed it off with a lighthearted apology.

"Oh, by the way, can you help me with the homework? I got stuck on a part."

Hina-chan was soon surrounded by classmates, helping them with their studies.

She’s well-known for being smart and great at teaching, so everyone relies on her.

Hah, as expected of Hina-chan.

From a distance, I watched her explaining things with a smug expression, as if her brilliance was my own accomplishment.

Lunchtime

"Hina-chan, your cheeks are so soft and smell so nice~!"

"Ah! W-Wait, Akane-chan, don’t hug me like that! M-Mana-chan!!"

"Come on, Hina-chan. Akane-chan, don’t squish her cheeks too much, okay?"

Hina-chan spent lunch laughing and chatting with her close girlfriends. She kept protesting with a cheerful "Geez~," but her radiant smile betrayed how happy she was.

Watching her angelic smile, I let out a sigh.

Ah, Hina-chan is so cute today, too.

But… she never shows me a smile like that.

Actually, forget smiling—she treats me pretty roughly most of the time.

Still… even her rough treatment is cute.

"Haa… Hina-chan… Ugh… I love you so much…"

"There he goes again… with his usual stuff."

"With a long sigh, Kishi Yuki, my childhood friend since elementary school, shook his head."

"You still haven’t given up, huh…? Didn’t she totally reject your invitation to go on a date yesterday?"

"Hah? I’ve been inviting her on dates every single day, actually."

Well, except for weekends and holidays. Oh, and yeah—she turned me down today too.

"Seriously…? So, uh, has she ever said yes?"

"Not once."

"Uh… oh…"

"Haa… What does Hina-chan even think of me…?"

"Think of you? Uh… maybe, like, a creepy weirdo?"

"Ugh!! I just want to get closer to Hina-chan!! What should I do?! How do I make it happen?!"

"Listen to this guy, acting like he didn’t hear the part about being a creep…" Kishi rolled his eyes and handed me his phone. "Take a look at this."

On his phone was a video—was it of a cat?

"Ahhh!! Tama-chan, you’re soooo cute!!! Chu chu chu!! Love you, love you, loooove you!!!"

"Nya…"

In the video, a girl was cuddling her cat, Tama, rubbing her cheek against its face and smothering it with kisses. The girl looked overjoyed, but the cat… it clearly wasn’t enjoying itself. In fact, it was pushing back with its front paws, resisting as much as it could.

"What do you think?" Kishi asked.

"What do I think…? Well, her love for the cat definitely comes through, but this isn’t okay, right? The cat clearly hates it. I mean, if you’re so focused on your own feelings that you ignore how the other party feels, that’s no good. In fact, it’s probably making the cat dislike her even more."

"From an outsider’s perspective, you’re just like that girl."

"Eh… EHHHHHHHHHHHH?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?"

The shock hit me like a hammer to the chest.

"Wh-what…? No way…?!"

"Accept it. This is your reality," Kishi said mercilessly, twisting the knife further.

"Ugh… Hina-chan!!"

Before I could even think, my legs were moving. My heart, my body—they were drawn to Hina-chan, as if by instinct.

"Huh? What is it, Tomoki-kun…?"

She gave me a wary look as I rushed toward her.

"H-Hina-chan… what do you… think of me?"

"Eh… um… at best, I’d say… a total stranger?"

"At best?!"

That was the answer she came up with after thinking about it?!

"To be blunt… you’re like a creepy stalker, maybe?"

"GYAAAAHHHHHH!!!"

"A-anyway… what… what would I need to do… to level up from creepy stalker to just… a classmate?" I asked, tears threatening to spill.

"Well… maybe start by keeping quiet and just breathing in the air around you?"

"H-Hina-chan…"

For some reason, seeing my pathetic state made her hesitate. She faltered, then sighed, and actually seemed to consider my question seriously.

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