Why run away?
Just wanted a place to be alone.
Why leave without saying goodbye?
Didn't want to explain the reason to them.
But won't she have to return for the group meeting later? What should she do then?
It's fine—just sincerely apologize!
Say the phone suddenly died and she accidentally got lost, pretend to be pitiful—surely there won't be any problem.
As long as you're a good girl, you get candy—Chuunibyou's Great Victory!
"Even a lie this stupid is truly hopeless."
Pushing back her rain-soaked bangs, Masuzu sighed.
Inventing excuses to leave the five of them, wandering alone until they called, refusing their calls, hiding in the restroom to play hide-and-seek—hoping they wouldn't find her, yet also hoping to be found.
When she truly wasn't found, she didn't even bother buying an umbrella and just walked straight into the forest. With no destination and no desire to do anything, she just followed her instincts, walking forward and farther away.
—Look, the one suffering from chuunibyou is actually a beautiful high school girl with a perverted body!
Hahaha, so funny!
In short, Masuzu was now in a mood where she'd die if she didn't belittle herself.
"Do I have a masochistic personality... Let me think—this is similar to which JOJO character..."
Her thoughts were too chaotic. Even her JOJO thoughts began to slow down.
Masuzu looked at a puddle on the ground and saw her own pitiful, ridiculous reflection on the water's surface. She couldn't help mocking laughter at herself.
She thought she could ignore everything and continue like two hours ago—walking around, chatting with those people, then quietly ending this field trip and returning to her daily life full of lies.
Yet, at some point, the emotions buried deep within her suddenly exploded.
Just being beside them made her whole body itch; just hearing their laughter made her nauseous and wanting to vomit—like a foreign object mixed into porridge, desperate to expel it as quickly as possible.
When she realized that the foreign object was herself, she had already been standing still among a crowd of strangers for some time. Light rain fell from beyond the awning, soaking her thin gym jacket.
"Yeah, it's all Dango-chan's fault... If she hadn't randomly cared about me, I wouldn't feel so uncomfortable."
"The snow woman is also to blame. Though she's the same Stand-type as me, why can she interact with that group as if nothing's wrong? Doesn't she feel out of place?"
"And that blonde with the double drill twin-tails... The Ordinary One... what's her name? I only know her last name is ○○... Wait, was that censored?"
She complained about many things to herself, with only the sound of rain accompanying this solo song—so tragic and pitiful.
Masuzu looked up. Without realizing it, she'd strayed far from the shopping street. Around her were only tall, dark green trees. A winding path lay ahead, as if leading to another world.
She wiped the rain from her face and smiled bitterly, "The biggest mistake is Natsukawa Masuzu. A person who only knows how to lie—what right does she have to walk and chat with friends?"
If you can't take it, just leave. Isn't that perfectly normal?
She had no reason to be scolded, nor did she expect anyone to come looking for her. After all, when the meeting time came, she'd have to obediently return. So better to do what she wanted, even if it was so childish she couldn't even bear to look at herself.
Thus, the girl continued walking.
Her once pristine white gym shoes were now muddy, splashes rising, and the wet path played an irregular melody.
The sound of rain was deafening, continuously draining her body heat. The world before her eyes blurred, and her breath seemed to turn into white mist.
Though it wasn't that cold yet.
"Then, the most outrageous one is Tenkuji Yuu."
Masuzu whispered, "He's the main culprit—the bastard, the virgin, the virgin creature."
If it weren't for that man, why would she suddenly feel so restless?
She feared the day of parting with him, feared the day she'd have to distance herself from these moments, feared the things she'd grown accustomed to would leave her. That's why she couldn't help running away—running to a place known only to the rain.
As long as she left first, it wouldn't count as a loss.
Using this reasoning as a shield, hiding in this rain so her heart could freeze again, masochistically cutting off all unnecessary emotions.
Masuzu once again realized she was lowly, boring, and hopelessly childish.
"Right, things related to love—whether real or fake—will disappear sooner or later."
She slowly stopped walking again.
Masuzu raised her hand to the overcast sky. Rainwater flowed from her palm, down her arm, and into her sleeve. The cold, slippery sensation made her shiver, and she bit her pale lips.
Though blocked by her gym jacket, her underwear was nearly soaked.
Even so, Masuzu maintained this position, letting a thin, fragile voice escape her throat:
"Affection, friendship, sex, love... Like a father leaving a mother, a mother leaving me—things this unreliable, I don't need them at all!"
Then, why did being alone feel so uncomfortable?
"...Really, it's so cold."
(Yet, when I'm with you, my body easily warms up.)
(When chatting with you, discussing JOJO with you, doing rubbing with you, being carried up the mountain by you...)
Fragments of memories surfaced. Unconsciously, the cold feeling truly vanished.
As if suddenly understanding something, Masuzu couldn't help narrowing her eyes, raising her hands to the rain, and laughing foolishly.
"Haha, so that's how it is..."
"It has nothing to do with love. It's just that I, as myself, need it."
Precisely because she needed Yuu, she had to leave him.
Afraid of being abandoned at any moment, she became restless and decided to leave on her own—then, hoping Yuu would come looking for her, hoping to meet him again in this rain.
That way, even in this life full of lies, perhaps she could obtain a truth that belonged only to her.
A truth more undeniable than shallow things like love.
"So, I need you, Yuu—"
"Sorry, whether it's a hired boyfriend or a fake boyfriend, we don't offer that kind of service."
A familiar voice came from behind.
Masuzu froze in place, then slowly turned around, seeing Yuu holding an umbrella in one hand, panting while holding his waist.
"Good grief... Why does every mission have such a similar plot? Can't you be more creative? Why torture people like this..."