Because when they were in elementary school, they were both isolated when discussing otaku things with Aki Tomoya.
That could be considered a form of school bullying.
At that time, because Eriri was isolated and viewed with strange eyes, she later severed ties with Aki Tomoya.
It was all from childhood, but such things are not easily forgotten.
He excitedly ran up to Eriri, wanting to share the things they both loved, and was then ruthlessly rejected.
For a period afterward, no matter how he tried to reach out, the response was cold indifference and the other party's deliberate avoidance.
Thinking back now, Aki Tomoya was quite impressed with himself for being able to persevere and fight alone at that time.
But if you were to say who was right and who was wrong, it's hard to say.
In any case, the fact is, from entering middle school to Toyosaki Academy, it took a significant amount of time for the two of them to establish an underground secret communication channel.
Being able to have a normal conversation or two was the final result from the end of last year's term.
And at school, Eriri had always maintained a state of having no interaction with Aki Tomoya, so no one would have thought they were childhood friends.
It's ironic now that their communication is even more frequent than before, precisely because Aki Tomoya is no longer obsessed with otaku culture.
Of course, Aki Tomoya was referring to verbal communication.
Because before last year, their method of communication could only be described as troublesome.
If the result of desperately striving all those years was this, Aki Tomoya now feels it was not worth it, but he won't blame Eriri now.
After all, not everyone is like him, able to ignore external factors and not be affected by prejudice.
He couldn't possibly use his own standards to demand things of Eriri, a young girl; she must have felt bad bearing everyone's prejudice.
"Aki Tomoya, do you think it was my fault?"
Eriri clenched her fists and asked in a small, unwilling voice.
She lowered her head, looking at her toes as if remembering the strange looks others in elementary school had given them at that time.
She was indeed not as strong as Aki Tomoya; thinking back now, Eriri could admit this point.
"What?"
Eriri's voice was a bit low, making it difficult for Aki Tomoya to hear what she was saying.
Looking at Eriri, who had her head down, Aki Tomoya noticed a slight abnormality.
"Nothing, Aki Tomoya, you must be working hard on your exam preparation, I won't bother you."
Eriri raised her head at this moment, a smile on her face, shaking her head as if she didn't care.
But her appearance right now, in Aki Tomoya's eyes, looked like she was forcing a smile no matter how he looked at it.
"Here we go again..."
Aki Tomoya frowned and subconsciously muttered in a low voice.
Should he say it was his fault for carelessly mentioning that Eriri coming to find him didn't fit her usual style at school?
If it was to be blamed on himself, Aki Tomoya could accept this responsibility.
But how many times would he have to say the same thing for Eriri to understand?
"I was just kidding, I didn't mean anything else."
Aki Tomoya explained this, feeling a bit helpless.
A casual remark, perhaps the other party took it as mockery.
Maintaining this friendship of over ten years was much more complicated than Aki Tomoya had imagined; Eriri was truly more sensitive than ever before.
"...Isn't that the truth?"
Eriri sighed in her heart.
It was indeed the truth; at school, didn't they pretend not to know each other?
Even if she believed Aki Tomoya's words were just a joke, at this moment, Eriri did feel a bit ironic.
"Eriri?"
Aki Tomoya's voice rang in her ears again, bringing Eriri back to reality.
At his gesture, Eriri noticed the librarian who had returned and was preparing to close the library.
"It's closing time, you two..."
The girl over there said weakly, her gaze wandering between Aki Tomoya and Eriri.
Although the librarian who had just returned didn't know what had happened, she felt that the atmosphere in the library was quite subtle right now.
"Sorry, we'll be quick."
Aki Tomoya replied to the librarian, and at the same time, used his eyes to remind Eriri that it was getting late.
But at this moment, Eriri, upon noticing the librarian's gaze, felt that person's gaze was particularly piercing.
This feeling wasn't much different from when she was in elementary school.
However, at that time, the people around them were indeed looking at them with prejudiced eyes, but now, that girl was at most just curious.
But even so, it was enough to show how sensitive Eriri was now.
"Excuse me."
Eriri said and stepped out of the library.
She took a deep breath, recalling how she had maintained a lady-like demeanor since stepping into this school, afraid to expose her true self under the shadow of elementary school.
For this reason, outwardly distancing herself from her childhood friend Aki Tomoya and pretending not to know each other was also a measure.
After the incident in elementary school, she chose to hide herself and didn't want to expose her relationship with Aki Tomoya, also because of the shadow left from that time in elementary school.
On one hand, she was afraid that exposing her relationship with Aki Tomoya would lead to others making connections, and on the other hand, she was still bothered by the isolation incident in elementary school and wanted to repair their relationship.
At this point, it had reached a state where she couldn't take off her mask, at least not until the end of high school, which was likely impossible.
So those words, even if they were a joke, were close to the truth.
It was no wonder Aki Tomoya had said before that communicating with each other was troublesome, the rift had never been repaired, it had always existed.
Now that the boy didn't care, it was just because of his unilateral relief, while she was still bothered by it.
Aki Tomoya frowned, looking at Eriri's retreating back, and slowly walked out at the reminder of the girl next to him.
"She hasn't changed at all from before, she's still bothered by that matter."
Aki Tomoya shook his head and sighed.
A casual remark revealed the other party's sensitive nerves at this moment; Aki Tomoya would rather not have such an unexpected gain.
He thought that after knowing each other for over ten years, if they talked it through properly, they could still be ordinary friends in the future, but this was the result...
"I would like to consider your feelings, but who will consider mine..."
Aki Tomoya pushed his bicycle out of the school gate, and in the distance at the station, Eriri had already boarded the last train and left.
The incident in elementary school was not just Eriri's shadow; for the former Aki Tomoya, it was also a huge shadow.
Like Eriri, the former Aki Tomoya couldn't say he had moved on either.
--+--
T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/DaoistRoeoNQ
If you guys wanna check it out.