Love in the Shadow of Roboko ~ My Feelings, Left Here ~
I'm Roboko. A clumsy, slightly useless side character, madly in love with the protagonist, Takeru.
At school, Takeru is always next to his childhood friend Akane. She's energetic, cheerful, and most of all, they're perfect together. Seeing them talk makes my chest ache. But it's okay. Because I'm just a side character.
Then one day, Haruto, the super-popular and ridiculously hot guy in class, confesses his feelings to me out of nowhere! 'I've been watching you for a while, Roboko. Being with y
Love in the Shadow of Roboko ~ My Feelings, Left Here ~ - To the Sea on the Rooftop, a Declaration of Graduation from Supporting Character. Friday.
The sound of Akane-chan's footsteps racing down the stairs grew fainter and fainter.
Roboko stood rooted in the entryway, listening to that sound. The light, rhythmic tap-tap-tap eventually faded into nothing more than a faint echo.
It probably didn't even take a full minute for it to vanish completely.
(*Akane-chan.*)
She pressed the handkerchief in her hand tightly against her chest. The white fabric had a small embroidered flower on it, now crumpled into a wrinkled ball. It was what Akane-chan had offered her. To me, when I was a mess of tears.
"I'm going to face my own feelings properly, too."
Her voice from just moments ago repeated in my head. That face, so full of anxiety — from the girl I'd always thought was the complete opposite of me, always cheerful and sparkling. I'd never seen her look like that before.
(*Akane-chan was struggling, too.*)
How heavy it must be, having everyone around you constantly say you "look perfect together." I'd never even imagined it could make someone lose sight of their own feelings.
Roboko drew a slow breath.
The lukewarm wind from the sea drifted through the hallway of the old Kageyama Heights apartment building. In the distance, she could hear the cry of seagulls. The sea at Minakaze was surely calm today, too.
(*I have to go.*)
(*To school. And then, to the rooftop.*)
She didn't know what awaited her.
But Akane-chan had told her. "Roboko, you need to stop hiding, too." It was time to stop shutting herself away in the shell of a side character to protect herself. After all, there was someone who had faced her so directly, so sincerely.
Roboko lifted her head.
The face reflected in the bathroom mirror was, as expected, still a little puffy. The area around her eyes was red, and her hair was a mess.
But strangely, she felt like she looked more composed than she had yesterday.
She turned the faucet and washed her face with cold water. The chill felt so good that she did it again and again. After wiping with a towel, her head felt just a little clearer.
Then, she changed into her uniform. She slipped her arms through the sleeves of her navy blazer and tied the crimson necktie. It was the same routine as always, yet today, every single motion felt strangely heavy.
(*This is a new step forward.*)
She picked up her bag and opened the front door.
The light of the outside world was just a little too bright.
*
The slope leading up to Minakaze North High School felt far longer than usual.
She passed through the residential area clinging to the hillside and walked by Kageyama Park. The swings creaked in the wind — *gii, gii*. No one was there.
She was late for school, so there were hardly any other students around. Right now, she was grateful for that.
(*What's going to happen when I walk into the classroom?*)
The incident at the gym storage shed on Friday must have already spread through the entire class. Takeru-kun had called out to her in the classroom, and then she had run away. And yesterday, at the start of the week, she'd ended up staying home from school after all.
Just imagining all the curious stares made her legs feel like they might freeze up.
But she remembered the courage Akane-chan had given her.
"If you don't tell Takeru how you feel properly, Roboko, he'll probably never figure it out."
That's right.
I can't run away.
She passed through the school gate. She changed into her indoor shoes at the entrance, then climbed the stairs in the main building. Third floor. Class 2-B was at the very end of the hallway.
Her heart began to race.
In front of the classroom, Roboko stopped just once. A deep breath. She filled her lungs with air, then slowly exhaled.
And then, she placed her hand on the sliding door.
*Rattle-rattle.*
The moment she opened the classroom door, the murmur of voices stopped dead.
A moment of silence.
The eyes of her classmates all stabbed into Roboko at once. Thirty pairs of eyes. She could see the mixture in them — curiosity, bewilderment, and a little bit of pity.
(*I knew it would be like this.*)
Roboko lowered her gaze and hurried toward her seat. The very back, by the window. The seat in the corner was her place.
On the way there —
Their eyes met.
Haebara Takeru-kun, who had been staring out the window, slowly turned his face toward her.
He seemed about to say something, his mouth starting to open. His hair was sticking up with its usual bedhead. His gentle brown eyes. But his complexion looked a little pale.
(*Takeru-kun.*)
Roboko's feet stopped on their own.
Takeru-kun tried to take a step forward — at that moment.
"Roboko."
A quiet voice came from right beside her.
She flinched and turned. Before she knew it, Kamiya Yukito-kun was standing there. His dark, nearly black indigo hair hid his left eye. His narrow, pale gray eyes gazed steadily down at her.
"After school. Can we talk for a bit?"
A voice that was almost a whisper in her ear, yet brooked no argument.
"Yukito-kun..."
Roboko faltered, the words catching in her throat.
Yukito-kun's eyes were far more serious than usual. Normally, he had a mysterious air about him, impossible to read. But now, deep within those gray eyes, she could see something like a faint heat.
"Okay?"
He said it again, as if to make sure.
Roboko could do nothing but give a small nod.
At that moment, out of the corner of her eye, she saw Takeru-kun clench his fist tightly. And then, slowly shove that fist into his pocket. Without saying a word, he turned his face back toward the window.
(*Right now, Takeru-kun is...*)
What is he thinking?
A sharp pang struck her chest. But this wasn't the time for that. Having delivered his message, Yukito-kun returned to his own seat as if nothing had happened. The curious stares of her classmates still pierced her body.
As if fleeing, Roboko sat down at her desk.
She placed her bag on the desk and took out her pencil case and textbook. But her hands were trembling and wouldn't move properly.
(*What does he want to talk about after school?*)
(*Yukito-kun always speaks as if he can see right through me.*)
She remembered the words he'd said to her in the library on Friday night. "I truly love your quiet kindness, the kind no one notices." At the time, it was so sudden that her mind went completely blank, but now she understood. His words were always sincere.
Calculating, impossible to read. But behind that, there was surely something more.
(*After school... I'm scared.*)
But she had to go.
That was what she had decided.
*
The bell for sixth period rang out.
A wave of relief spread through the classroom. As everyone began getting ready to go home at once, Roboko slowly stood up.
(*First, to Yukito-kun.*)
She took her bag and stepped out into the hallway.
The connecting corridor leading to the special wing was bathed in the orange light of early evening. From the courtyard visible through the windows, she could hear the voices of the sports clubs.
"Roboko."
As she expected, Yukito-kun was lying in wait.
The hallway in front of the library. He stood leaning against the wall, arms crossed. The western sun streaming through the window cast a long shadow on the floor.
"You're going to the rooftop, aren't you."
Yukito-kun went straight for the heart of the matter.
"Huh... how did you know?"
"I figured out right away what Akane was planning. She called Takeru to the rooftop after school."
He let out a small breath.
"And you're still going? Even though you might get hurt again."
Roboko's chest tightened sharply.
She might get hurt again.
He was right. She might suffer so much she'd cry, just like Friday night. Takeru-kun might say again, "But, Akane is..."
"Even so."
Her voice trembled.
"Even so, I... I don't want to run away from my own feelings anymore."
She said it.
She'd said it.
Yukito-kun's eyes widened just a fraction.
He held his breath for a moment, then let it out in a soft sigh. The fearless smile he'd been wearing until now crumbled and vanished, as if with an audible sound.
"...I see."
That voice didn't have its usual calculating, cool tone.
It was a hoarse, small voice.
He slowly lifted his head and looked straight at Roboko. Through the gap in the bangs hiding his left eye, his pale gray pupils peeked out. It was the first time she'd seen his eyes so openly filled with emotion.
"I wanted to protect you. I didn't want to see you get hurt anymore."
Yukito-kun twisted the corner of his mouth slightly, self-deprecatingly.
"But you've gotten strong enough now that you don't need my calculations anymore, haven't you."
"Yukito-kun..."
Roboko couldn't say anything.
She hadn't known he felt that way. She hadn't known that behind his calculating words, such deep kindness was hidden.
"Go."
Yukito-kun gently pushed her forward.
"Takeru is waiting on the rooftop."
Roboko nodded firmly.
Then, she broke into a run.
She raced up the stairs, skipping steps. She was out of breath, a stitch forming in her side. But she couldn't afford to stop.
The final door leading to the rooftop.
There was a "No Entry" sign on it, but she didn't care anymore.
She pushed it open with both hands.
*Creeeeak...*
Along with the groan of rusty hinges, an orange sky filled her entire field of vision.
The rooftop, illuminated by the setting sun, looked as if the whole world was on fire.
And there, standing in front of the fence, was someone.
Dark brown hair, sticking up slightly with bedhead. Bathed in the orange light, it shone through with a golden glow, like a halo.
"...Roboko."
Takeru-kun turned around.
It wasn't his usual indecisive smile. His brows were slightly furrowed, his lips pressed tightly together. It was the face of a man who had made up his mind.
"Akane told me. To wait for Roboko here, and talk to you properly."
He scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed.
"I thought it wouldn't be right to leave things the way they ended in the storage shed on Friday. I, about Roboko —"
At that moment.
*BANG!!*
The door on the opposite side of the rooftop flew open with tremendous force.
"How heartwarming, you two!!"
The one who appeared was Himura Haruto-kun.
His brown hair, nearly blond, swayed, and his bright brown eyes with their distinct double eyelids shone challengingly. He strode over with large steps.
"But don't think I've given up yet!!"
Haruto-kun declared his declaration of war loudly.
"Not part of the plan... but this just got interesting."
A quiet voice came from behind.
She turned to find that Yukito-kun had come up as well, before she knew it. He leaned against the wall, smiling faintly.
"Yukito... you too, huh."
Haruto-kun said, looking displeased.
"I'm just a bystander. This time, at least."
Takeru-kun swallowed his words at the sudden interruption. His expression, so full of resolve just moments ago, had shifted to one of slight bewilderment.
"Wait, hold on. I was in the middle of something important —"
"If you've got something to say, let me hear it too. You're still hemming and hawing, aren't you?"
Haruto-kun said, provocatively.
A muscle twitched at Takeru-kun's temple.
(*That's enough.*)
(*Waiting here for someone to say something to me — I'm done with that.*)
Roboko clenched her fists tightly.
And then —
She ran.
"Huh, Roboko!?"
Takeru-kun's voice chased after her from behind. But she didn't turn around.
Running up to the fence, Roboko threw her arms wide open with all her might.
From the rooftop, she could see the entire town of Minakaze. The residential area spreading across the slopes of the Kageyama hills. The shopping district in front of the station. And beyond that, the vast sea, glittering and sparkling as it reflected the setting sun.
The old lighthouse was a faint white blur in the distance.
The sea wind blew through.
Roboko's tied-up black hair streamed behind her.
Her heart was pounding like a frantic alarm. Her throat was bone-d
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