Ayanokouji Kiyotaka
Upon exiting the theater, my eyes instinctively fluttered a little to adjust to the sudden change in lighting. After all, we had been in a dark room for an hour and a half.
I spotted Matsushita near the entrance, happily chatting with Kei and Satou.
"I must say; that was quite fascinating." Arisu, who was walking beside me, remarked with a smile.
"Hm, yeah. I mean, the movie was pretty good. It was decently scary and the antagonist had surprisingly good depth—"
"May I ask about what you did during the movie?"
"What did I do?"
"I'm sure you're well aware of it," she answered, letting out a subtle, playful hum. "What prompted you to do that?"
"Obligations, I guess?"
"Fufu, I'm sure you aren't one to abide by such obligations. Tell me; could there have been a particular catalyst? Perhaps... an emotion?"
"...I don't know."
"Hmm, is that so?" She spoke in an innocent tone.
Was it really an emotion? Or just a natural response of my body? In any case, I was certain that it had something to do with Arisu.
"Anyhow, what will you do regarding Matsushita-san?" she asked.
I supposed that she had also noticed her watching us during the movie. She was usually attentive to her surroundings anyway, so it wasn't all too surprising.
"Good question..." I glanced over to where Matsushita was, and saw that she was waving her friends goodbye. She was staying behind for some reason. I continued, "I can't really just go up to her. It would make things look suspicious on my end."
"I suppose that's true."
If I were to suddenly confront Matsushita about it, there was no doubt that she would try to twist my words. And I didn't have conclusive evidence, either. It was easy for her to pass it off as a mere coincidence. There was also the fact that I'd probably garner unwanted attention if I were careless.
After the movie, we left the cinema. It was a little past 5 pm as we exited, so I supposed that we'd probably catch the sunset by the time we got out of the mall.
As we headed toward the exit, I noticed a presence trailing us behind. I didn't really need to think hard to figure out who it was. Arisu, who was walking by my side, looked at me and smiled, signaling that she had also realized.
"Matsushita-san has a rather strong fixation on you, doesn't she?"
"Yeah, I guess so. I wonder why, though."
Matsushita was one of those people in our class who weren't overly capable, but didn't lag behind either. To put it simply, she was exactly like how people viewed me—an average, unassuming person. And the fact that she had suddenly taken an interest in me was pretty odd, though, I could probably make a few guesses.
"We may be able to confront her there," remarked Arisu.
I followed her line of sight, and spotted a corner nearby next to a clothing shop. She probably had the same idea. The mall was absolutely packed with people, but I had already been getting enough looks because of Arisu, so attention wasn't even a concern for me anymore. If the three of us were seen talking to each other, people would probably think it was just your casual, everyday conversation.
We had turned the corner somewhat quickly and were ready to ambush Matsushita. A little over ten seconds later, Matsushita fell into our trap.
"Wha—?" Matsushita let out a surprised yelp.
She probably wasn't expecting for the both of us to have been waiting for her. If she turned out not to be following us, then she probably wouldn't have reacted like that.
"Is there something you need from us?" asked Arisu.
"I... I don't know what you're talking about." Matsushita let out a sigh, placing her hand on her chest as if to calm her quickening heartbeat. "Well, that's what I would've said, if I hadn't been found out."
It looked like she had decided that a lame excuse like that wouldn't work on Arisu. After all, if you considered her reputation as the intelligent leader of Class A, you'd definitely think that nothing would slip past her.
But, why was she even trailing us—or more specifically, me, in the first place? I guessed that she wanted to probe me for information. What for, though?
"So, um, I've been following the both of you, actually," admitted Matsushita.
Matsushita and I hadn't really talked in and outside of class. We were somewhat distant, only considering each other as classmates. Judging from her behavior, I could see that she was quite cautious.
"Fufufu. Following us, you say? Would you mind explaining?"
"Why do you think I was following you both?"
This was a psychological attack. She seemed to be willing to try and use Arisu to draw some information from me.
"To probe for information, I suppose."
Arisu had given a vague answer, while purposefully falling into Matsushita's trap. She kept her calm demeanor, which may have seemed a little unsettling to Matsushita.
"And why do you think that was the case?"
"Hmm, I'm not sure. Would you mind enlightening me?"
Matsushita probably hoped for Arisu to mention that it had something to do with me, which would have solidified her suspicions. Instead, Arisu had turned the question on her.
"It's nothing, really—"
"Is that so? Of course, there must be a good reason as to why you're stalking us." Arisu smiled at Matsushita, while her words dripped with sarcasm. "Do tell; why the sudden interest in our relationship?"
"Um..."
Arisu had created a trap of her own and had successfully backed Matsushita into a corner, forcing her to spill the beans.
"Well... during the Event Selection Exam..." began Matsushita, before turning her attention to me. "Ayanokouji-kun, you were the commander, right?"
I responded with a nod. With that one question, I understood why Matsushita went out of her way to contact us.
"Sakayanagi-san was the commander for the exam as well, meaning that you guys happened to go head-to-head with each other. I've heard how good she is at chess, and yet, you were able to hold your own against her. On top of that, now both of you are together, out in the open," she added.
Any average chess player wouldn't be able to last that long against Arisu. To be honest, even I considered her to be a difficult opponent. And I suppose the fact that we were both hanging out together after our battle was too much of a coincidence to pass off.
"And during the movie..." Matsushita trailed off, realizing her blunder.
"You were observing us?" asked Arisu. "Was there a particular reason as to why your attention was on us, rather than the movie itself?"
"I— nevermind..."
Arisu simply responded with a smile. She had successfully cut off any room for Matsushita to probe into our relationship.
"Okay listen, I just want to know what Ayanokouji-kun's true abilities are. I thought that maybe you have seen his true abilities firsthand, which is why the both of you seem close."
Matsushita had probably realized that if she wanted any more information, she needed to be frank with her words. Basically, she was no longer able to use any indirect methods to get information out of us.
"Hmm, how should I phrase this?" Arisu pondered, placing a finger right below her lips. "Ayanokouji-kun and I have known each other for a long time. I suppose you could call us childhood friends."
"Huh...?"
Matsushita's gaze constantly shifted between Arisu and me. She probably wasn't expecting that answer, because she let out a confused remark.
===
In the end, Matsushita had no choice but to accept Arisu's answer. Of course, she probably wasn't one-hundred percent sure that it was actually true, but she had absolutely no evidence to prove otherwise. Thankfully, she had also agreed to not tell anyone about what she saw today.
Right now, Arisu and I had just stepped out of the mall. It was about to hit 5:30 pm, meaning that the sun had already started to set into the horizon. The soft rustle of leaves provided a soothing soundtrack to the atmosphere, while students that were engaged in lively chatter wandered about.
"It's a rather beautiful sight, is it not?"
"Yeah."
I felt a sense of fulfillment. I genuinely enjoyed my time with her today.
My relationship with Arisu first started off as a simple curiosity. But now, I felt as though it was going to play a bigger role in my life.
More than anything, I wanted to feel defeat. Growing up, my environment instilled in me a particular outlook—that emotions were useless. I needed to succeed, no matter the cost.
In this world, defeat was a rare sensation, making it a prize to be sought after. Countless times, I had deluded myself into changing through human relationships. So, I had given up on it...
...Until I had met Arisu.
To face an opponent who could break me down was the ultimate goal. In order to achieve said goal, I had spent a great amount of my time engineering each class in my grade, so that one day, they would be capable of burying me.
The contradiction within me prickled like a thorn. I fully understood that even as a mindless machine, I longed for something more. I believed that I was not just a hollow object, but a person with hidden vulnerabilities.
So, I craved that defeat. I wanted someone to deconstruct the many layers that defined me, and expose the raw core underneath. I wanted someone to break this facade and reveal the truth of my existence.
I...
I was sure. Although slow and subtle, I was definitely changing.
I silently hoped that Arisu would be the one to destroy this contradiction—to undo the works of my past. That would ultimately mean my father's defeat, while also proving my hypothesis correct.
.
.
.
...Or, maybe I was deluding myself once again.
Even so, I was willing to run toward that ray of hope, even if it were as thin as a needle.
===
Author's Note
i dont like delu