Part 1
"H-hi mom, hi dad"
I awkwardly greet my parents with Liliana closely attached to my arm. In the room, standing right next to them, are also Azazel, Sun Wukong, Maou Leviathan, the Gremory group and the three members of the Kanto faction.
I glance around trying to find the others, but neither the Sitri peerage or the Kyuubi and her daughter are here.
Mom gives me a long look, arms folded in front of her chest as her green eyes come to rest in the connection of Liliana's arms with mine
"Huh... I knew there was something fishy here"
Dad also looks at me, his face with an expression of pure resignation
"She did risk her life for him, I'm not exactly surprised"
I wide my eyes and put my free arm up
"T-this is not what you're thinking okay?!"
Almost as if waiting for my embarassed response as a cue, Liliana lets go off my arm and promptly presents herself to my parents
"Hello, Lady Tatsumaki, Kageyama-dono, my name is Liliana Caim. It's a pleasure and an honor to finally be formally introduced to you. I am a great admirer"
Switching gears entirely, Liliana gracefully bows towards my parents, I always thought that part of her charm lied with this ability to switch her behaviour on a dime, but it's still a little scary how fast she can adapt it.
Mom raises a hand and waves it around
"It's fine, do away with the formalities. You helped me save my son so you're at least fine in my book."
Dad gives an awkward smile as he approaches Liliana with an extended hand
"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, I think I speak for both of us when I say we are very thankful for what you did"
When he says that mom crosses her arms again before blurting
"H-hey! Don't go putting words in my mouth!"
She says, but Liliana seems to pay little mind to it, her eyes almost glowing as she reaches out and shakes dad's hand
"N-not a problem at all! There's no need to thank me! Of course I'd come to help Tatseyo!"
She says and mom looks troubled for a moment
"W-well, I guess it is a good thing to see you are doing well now too, wouldn't want to feel like we owned you anything!"
I scratch the back of my head and glance at Liliana, fortunately she doesn't seem to be bothered by mother's eternal tsunderism and just giggles to herself
"Thank you Lady Tatsumaki, it means a lot to me as well."
She gives another graceful bow, this time more subtle and brief
"Well, with formalities out of the way I think we have some things to discuss don't we?"
Azazel steps into our little conversation and Liliana's expression turns serious in a matter of moments
"Ah, of course, you are right Azazel"
She then gestures at her jewelry
"I guess you want me to explain... all of that?"
Azazel has a troubled expression as he tilts his head
"That would be a good start, being honest we are awfully curious about what you did back there. Kyuubi-hime, Wukong-dono and Lady Tatsumaki tried to ask me about it since I've know you longer than any of us but I truly couldn't give then an answer..."
Rossweisse nods, agreeing with Azazel
"We had no idea you were an esper, Liliana"
Xenovia tilts her head listening to this
"I mean, she did saved our lives so is it that big of an issue?"
This girl is so simple minded, I swear...
"I think the issue isn't that, but that they hid it from us."
Issei explains and Xenovia's mouth takes an 'o' shape
"Ah, is that it?"
However, Kiba shakes his head
"That's not all there is... because Liliana and Tatseyo both showed powers that could easily tip the scales of power in the factions this has become an urgent topic"
Kiba finally says a sensitive response and they both look surprised back to him
"Ah, yes, there was that too!" - Xenovia states
Azazel sighs and scratches his goatee
"I guess what I'm trying to say is that I... we want to know why you'd kept this as a secret for so long."
Liliana closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, I keep looking at her to check if she's feeling well but there doesn't seem to be any sign that she might break down like she did in the bedroom a few minutes ago.
"As I have told Tatseyo and my peerage, the reason I haven't told anyone about this power is because untill meeting the one we now know as the {Crimson King} I also had no idea as to why I had this power in the first place and, quite frankly, for most of my life I have been scared of it."
Azazel places a hand on his chin
"I see, well that explains why you didn't told us, but I'll be honest Liliana, I still have no idea what your power even was back then. What the hell even is that [skill] of yours?"
Liliana sighs, she glances at her peerage members, they all give slight nods as if to either encourage her or saying they'll agree with whatever she does
She shifts her gaze towards me and I find myself lost
"I can't say I'm not curious as well, but if you aren't ready to tell us then I don't mind waiting"
As I say this I hear a loud interjection that makes me recoil and regret my words almost immediately
"Ehhhhh? What are you even talking about?! This girl jumps in the middle of the fray, stands up to a god and you're saying it's fine to keep it a a secret from us?"
My mother clicks her heels on the floor and points at Liliana
"Listen here, young devil girl, while I am grateful that you saved our son and helped us put whatever that thing was back where it came from, I still don't trust you completely. Also, Tatseyo!"
She then shifts her fierce gaze towards me and I feel my body tremble for a moment
"Don't think I've forgotten that you kept this entire thing a secret from me and your father, lying to us this whole time and even pulling Ayumu with you two, you're on thin ice young man, so don't try to keep secrets from us now!"
I gulp, while she's not wrong I still feel Liliana shouldn't be blamed for it
"M-mom! Liliana had nothing to do with that, okay? It was my idea!"
"Tatseyo, it's fine..."
Liliana calls out to me and I look in her direction
She has a nervous look on her face but seems assertive at the same time
"Lady Tatsumaki is right, besides... I think an explanation is long overdue"
Liliana reaches to the bracelet in her arm and starts to speak
"When I was a child and my ESP started to manifest I didn't had any other espers around me so I couldn't understand what was going on, untill a member of my father's peerage, a magic user who had fought with espers before, explained it to me. At first my father was silent about it, I thought it had been a surprise for him as well and that was why he started growing distant, but even my father's [Bishop] had never seen a skill like mine before..."
She sighs with a pained expression
"When it first showed up it was subtle, I managed to avoid almost by a miracle some accidents that should have clearly hurt me or at least cause me pain... only for someone next to me suffer a similar mishap seconds later, then a lucky fluke in dodging or blocking attacks during training turned into several lucky flukes with me barely needing to pay attention at all to what I was doing, but somehow wounding my opponent way harder than I expected. And it scalated into opponents defeating themselves with their own attacks or failing to use their powers in a manner that should be impossible for them to fail."
"Like when the [Crimson King] should have definitely hit you but somehow failed? And when his teleportation got him to the wrong place in the wrong position?"
Issei interrupted and Liliana nodded
"Exactly, eventually it scalated to a point where things like 'luck' or 'unluck' could no longer explain it, I could get away from ridiculous ammounts of peril, but someone somehow would end up afflicted later."
She paused and played with her bracelet for a moment
"The ability to live a carefree, rose tinted life, at the cost of pushing misfortune and pain into others."
Her expression is filled with sorrow
"This is the power of my skill, this is [La vie en rose]"
When she reveals the name of her skill I turn my gaze towards Galard, the old man is looking at the floor with a grim expression
I see... so that's what he meant...
Everyone else in the room looks at Liliana with confused expressions, I myself must be sporting a similar face.
"W-what are you talking? You mean you can push any pain dealt to you into someone else?!"
My mother exclaims, but Liliana shakes her head
"I wish it was that simple. I think it'll be easier if I use a pratical example. Take the fight with the [Crimson King]..."
She raises a finger
"Remember when he tried to hold me in place with his telekinesis and moments later I used my own power to bypass his defenses and wound him myself?"
She nods along
"Yeah, yeah, what does that mean?"
"Well, think of my power as an old time scale"
Liliana puts her hands in a cuping position and places them side by side, imitating a scale with them
"This is the misfortune I was supposed to receive"
She motions with her left hand
"And this is the misfortune I can dish out using my [skill]"
She wiggles her right hand
"Whenever my skill shields me from an unfortunate event, a [karma debt] is created that must be repayed, eventually this [karma debt] will cause the same amount of misfortune that the event would have caused to me onto someone else at random... unless I intervene first"
I blink for a few moments, trying to process this information
"W-wait a second, so when he failed to contain you and then you demolished him it was you balancing out this [Karma debt]?"
Liliana nods when I question her
"It took me a long time before I realized that I could channel my power offensively to repay the debt directly, before that, it was random, most of the time it would be someone in my proximity, but sometimes it could affect people miles away, the worst was that I didn't realized that untill many people had been hurt already"
"So, allow me to interject, when your power targeted the one who inherited the spirit of Heracles it was not by your hand, but because you were unable to wound the {Crimson King}?"
Sun Wukong asks and Liliana looks at him surprised
"You got it... yes, despite how powerful my [skill] is, it's not by any means all knowing, if I fail to deliver the attack in a timely manner, it'll hurt someone else, at random."
She looks down with a regretful look
There is a moment of silence, palpable tension hangs in the air
I believe the reason is obvious, if Liliana's power truly works as she says, then she's likely the most powerful creature I have ever encountered.
"That is still absurdly powerful... and dangerous"
I hear Serafall uttering
"I believe I'm starting to understand why the head of the Caim family hid your talents for so long"
"T-that's really powerful, Liliana!" - Irina remarks
"I can barely understand how it works but it does sound incredible" - Xenovia follows right after
"No wonder you hid that from others, a power like that would have been a lot to deal with..."
Kiba states and Issei nods along.
Liliana narrows her eyes, a mix of anger and sadness staining her face
"Yes... I always felt my father was somehow scared of me"
Mom and dad are looking at Liliana with bewildered stares, mom looking more annoyed than confused
"So why don't you beat someone up to rack up some credit and then get ready to take a beating right afterwards?"
My mother's words manage to get a chuckle out of the somber Liliana
"I know, right? In theory I should be able to do that, but I found out that there's no such thing as a "Karma Credit", it doesn't matter how hard I beat someone, the moment my [skill] defends me, none of that counts."
Listening to her explanation mother places a hand beneath her chin
"Uhhh, that's a real double edged sword. But I guess it's a good thing, you'd be invincible otherwise"
Father nods along
"It sure is, I am glad it fell upon someone with a kind heart, God only knows what someone with no regards for harming innocent people would do with it."
"It's because of this that I need to ask from all of you to keep a secret about the both of us"
The ones present seem surprised for a moment as they turn to look at me
"Of course, you aren't the only one who showed us a tremendously dangerous power after all..."
Sun Wukong-san says as he takes a huff from his pipe, I look down in nervousness
"I think you all understad what my [skill] does, pretty straightforward after all..."
I try to joke with a forced laughter and watch mom and dad look at me with concerned frowns on their faces
"Son, we don't care about that, it's got nothing to do with who you are."
Mom tells me, I just nod along
"I-I know mom, just... please don't tell anyone, alright?"
They look at each other and nod
"Of course, don't worry, me and your mom won't tell anyone"
I then look at the other members present, it won't mean much if they don't agree as well.
Azazel and Serafall have worried expressions on their faces
"That is a... complicated matter. On one hand keeping this a secret could get us in serious trouble" - Azazel says
"But on the other, letting others know about your powers would paint a huge target on your backs..."
Serafall complements his phrase and places a finger on her chin
"Well, I for one am in favor of keeping Tatseyo-kun and Liliana-tan's skills a secret from the others. However, Liliana Caim..."
She finishes, the cute look on her face turning dead serious
"I will have to inform the other Maous about this and I must apologize, Liliana, but a visit to the head of the Caim House about this will be inevitable"
Liliana closes her eyes and nods with a bitter expression
"I expected as much, it's not like I won't be visiting him myself after this..."
The youkais from Kanto look at each other, their expressions not nearly as nervous as the others
"Honestly, we have no problem keeping your secrets nyan~"
Magari states
"Indeed, the Kanto faction currently owes Tatseyo and Ayumu a great debt, you can trust us to keep your secret"
"Absolutely, by the way, where is she?"
The ferret and dog youkai answer, I feel relieved listening to their decisive answers
"Ah, Ayumu wasn't feeling too well so she went back to the hotel"
They all nod
"I see, it's quite understandable after all that happened"
And then our eyes lay on Sun Wukong, who was listening to us while huffing on his pipe, he takes one last huff before cackling
"Ah, what is this old monkey here to do?"
He says with a legitimate troubled expression
"A power that can even negate the Phoenix's immortality and in theory could even kill a god, huh... Hiding this from the Budhas and the Heavenly Emperor could land me in a lot of trouble if they find out..."
I tense up, thinking for a moment that our agreement will be broken by the monkey king, I watch mom's expression twist and imagine she'll fly off the handle and attack him in a moment's notice
However, the tension is quickly broken as a smirk comes across the old monkey's wrinkled face
"Good think they already expect mischief from me kekekekeke"
A sigh of relieve escapes my lips when he finishes saying this and I notice Liliana's shoulders are slightly less stiff, guess we don't have to worry about becoming targets for half of the supernatural world for now.
"One thing out of the way, I believe both the Kyuubi and her daughter will agree as well, any issues on your part?"
He asks Rias' group, but they all agree with each other, of course, they have no reason to tell on us.
Azazel looks satisfied, but then his expression changes and he ponders for a moment
"I believe I'm just stating the obvious here, but neither of you should be using these [skills] of yours in public unless it's absolutely necessary"
Both me and Liliana glance at Azazel
"You don't have to worry about me, whatever that curse was I don't think I can use without the... {Crimson King}... not that I have exactly tried it though..."
I say, looking away from them at the last part
"We know, Azazel, you are stating the obvious"
Liliana says, sounding slightly offended
"What do you think I've been doing my whole life?"
Azazel chuckles and puts his hands up
"Sorry, just had to say it. Anyway, the trip will be coming to an end soon, you guys should rest up and get your bearings"
He then looks at me, a knowing glint in his eyes as he leans in and whispers
"Hey, Tatseyo... are you going to the Kyuubi, you know, before we leave?"
I sigh, the weight of what he's implying pressing down on me.
"Yes, I... think I will..."
Part 2
After Liliana decided that I would be going to the underworld with her peerage in order to talk with her father about what had happened she told me to warn Ayumu as well
"But why did Ayumu leave after all? Was she injured?"
I shake my head, actually unsure of how to answer
"No, not injured but... I don't really know all that well myself, in the desperation of everything that happened I thought she was just overwhelmed you know? I didn't exactly wanted to push her after all that so I thought she just wanted to go back to the hotel and rest"
Liliana nods with a solemn expression
"Uhhh, I understand, still it's a little sad that she isn't here"
I nod along with her and sigh
"She also looked very sad, I know that there are a thousand reasons why she could be feeling that way but her face was just... so miserable, I didn't want her to leave, but she didn't really gave me a choice"
I say feeling a pang of guilt, Liliana furrows her eyebrows
"No choice? What you mean?"
I scratch my head
"Well, in her own words, she just told me 'You need to be with Liliana right now, don't worry about me, I'm going back to the hotel, tell me when she wakes up'. And that was about it, I insisted she stayed but she told me she'd only get in the way and that I needed to be there for you."
I reply, Liliana looks even more confused
"Now that I'm saying this outloud it feels strange how she emphasized that I needed to be by your side"
Liliana puts a finger on her chin
"That is really weird, she's usually so jealous of her little Tachan~"
She makes a teasing voice and pokes me on the side
"H-hey!"
She giggles at my reaction and I breath out in relieve, it's good to see Liliana back to her usual self again
"Did anything happen during the battle?"
I shrug
"I'm the wrong person to ask that since I spent most of it possessed out of my mind. But according to the little report that I got from Issei and my parents it seems that things went pretty smoothly untill... you know. But even after that Ayumu barely had any involvement, they said she didn't even joined the fight"
Liliana widens her eyes and places a hand in front of her mouth
"Oh... maybe this is it!"
She raises a finger
"She's feeling guilty over not being able to help you!"
I frown and tilt my head
"Uhhmm, are you sure? I mean, what could she even do? We're talking about a god here, I would get it if she was just sad, but you should have seem her Liliana, Ayumu looked just... miserable. I hadn't seem her like that since... years ago" - I say, reminding myself of the last time Ayumu had looked that terrible
Liliana hums to herself for a moment
"Did anything happened between you two during the trip?"
She asks with a mischievous smile, this girl!
"W-what?"
I feel my face heat up as I'm reminded of my little confesion before the battle and Liliana giggles at my answer, or rather, at the lack of one
"I knew it!" - She snaps her fingers
"A girl doesn't act like that for no reason!"
She then gets closer to me, an impish expression on her face
"And then? Tell me more, tell me more!"
She almost sings while teasing me for answers
"What happened~?"
I scratch the back of my head
"W-well, before the battle started... right before we left the hotel, I was thinking things over and realized I may have not been taking Ayumu's feelings in question well enough..."
Liliana nods, staring directly at me
"And then? And then?!"
I gulp down and close my eyes, ready for what was going to come next
"I met her in the rooftops of the hotel and I kinda... confessed to her"
The words leave my lips in a struggle as I was preparing myself mentally for what was to come
And as expected
"Ahhhhh, it's sooooooo cuuuute!"
Liliana almost squeals when I admit it
"In the sunset just the two of you, that's so romantic! I didn't took you for a lady killer, Tatseyo!"
She says latching into my arm, hey! I just said I confessed to another girl!
"Though that's good to know~"
She looks at me with an impish expression
"Y-you're sending me some real mixed signals here"
Liliana furrows her eyerbrowns in confusion
"Uh? Why is that? I'm really happy right now! I know how much she likes you! What did she said when you confessed?! I bet she was redder than her hair!"
Liliana laughs and I can't help but smile despite how embarassed I am
"She actually was but... then she said she was going to answer me after the battle was done..."
Suddenly Liliana's laughing stops and her smile drops
"Eh? Just like that, really?"
I nod, feeling a little somber
"Yes, that's why I think it's so strange that she suddenly didn't want to be with us after the fight... I think something happened there, something she's not telling me..."
Liliana looks pensative for a moment before closing her eyes and turning to me
"Well, you should ask her then."
I sigh and scratch my neck
"Ah, I know, it's just how we left things off, it's so awkward..."
She then pokes my side, ouch!
"No excuses! You said it yourself, you gotta start taking Ayumu's feelings more seriously, Tatseyo!"
"I guess you are right..."
We then finally get to the hotel after walking for a while
"Ah, I guess I have no escape now"
Me and Liliana chuckle a little
"You are damn right, mister. And don't forget to tell me what happened!"
She lets go off my arm and we wave at each other as she walks away
As Liliana's figure starts to shrink in the distance I find myself staring untill she's out of sight, a strange feeling building inside of me
I love Ayumu, I have no doubts about it.
Then why...
Why do I feel like I wanted Liliana's reaction to be different?
Why did I expected her to... not like it?
Part 3
I gently knock on the door to Ayumu's room, the other students told me they saw her heading there half heartedly greeting them as she went along
"Ayumu? Are you alright?"
Silence... I knock at the door again just as I hear the sound of the lock
The door slowly opens up to reveal Ayumu standing there in her pajamas
"Ah... hi Tachan, is Liliana alright?"
I nod
"Yeah, she's as energetic as ever again..."
"That's good, I'm glad she's fine"
There's an awkward silence, of the kind we hadn't between us in years
Ok, something is definitely wrong
"Mind if I come in?"
Ayumu hesitates for a moment before scooting to the side
"Alright..."
I walk in, at least her room looks in order
"Something you wanted to talk about?"
She asks and I take a seat on one of the chairs close to the nighstand
"Yeah, I wanted to talk about you"
She frowns
"Me?"
"Yes! Why are you treating me like this?"
"Like what?"
I point at her
"This! Ever since I came back to myself after that fight you act like you are trying to push me away, you didn't want to stay by Liliana's side, you didn't pick up my calls or texts, it's like I did something bad..."
I furrow my eyebrows and ask
"Did... I? Do something bad? While I was possessed?"
Ayumu shakes her head, her expression darkens and I can see her eyes starting to moist.
"N-no, Tachan, you didn't do anything to me, everyone... protected me while the fight happened"
I sigh in relieve, at least that wasn't what happened, but she still hasn't given me any answers.
"Then what is it? What happened?"
Ayumu raises her head towards me, the sad look on her face replaced with anger, she frowns while tears start to stream down her tanned skin
"Didn't you hear me?! Everyone protected me while the fight happened! I didn't do anything, I..."
Her shoulders slump as she closes her eyes and sobs
"I couldn't... do anything"
More and more tears start to stream down her face, the sound of Ayumu's sobs tearing into my heart
"Ayumu you... everything turned out fine, you didn't do anything wrong. See? No one thinks you did anything wron-"
I approach her to try and comfort her, but Ayumu steps back, away from me
"I did! I think I did something wrong! Don't you get it?"
She keeps wipping away her tears but it's no use as they just keep coming like a faucet
"No, Ayumu, I don't! Tell me, what's the problem?"
She shakes her head and tries to give a sarcastic laugh through her tears
"You're so kind to me, Tachan... even when I'm useless like this... and that... it's not right."
"Not... right?"
Ayumu chokes while trying to hold back her tears and look straight at me
"All my life... ever since I met you, I was trying to be as good as you are, as strong as you are, to be able to stand at your side. But I can't do that... and when I finally realized it I said to myself that it didn't matter, as long as I can be by your side, as long as he has my back I will have his. And I thought that was enough..."
Her words catch me off guard
"Of course it's enough, Ayumu! You're my best friend I want to have you by my side forev-"
"Stop!"
She raises her hand
"It's not... it's not alright... because when you were in that state, when you were completely out of yourself, completely helpless, the moment you needed my help the most... I couldn't do anything..."
Despite her efforts the tears start strolling down again
"I tried! But I was so scared and didn't know what to do! My power just wouldn't come off, I don't know if it was because I was scared of hurting you or if I was scared of that... thing!"
She pauses to wipe her tears as I stare bewildered at Ayumu
So in the end Liliana was right... that is the reason why she is acting like this...
"But it doesn't matter, the fact is... I was wrong. I'm not even good enough to help you when you need me the most"
The crushing realization of what her words make my body feel like it's made out of lead
"Ayumu... you're wrong, I don't need you to be useful all the time, even mom and dad couldn't do it all by themselves"
"At least they fought! Don't you get it?! I. Couldn't. Do. Anything!"
She emphasizes and then, after a brief pause, she utters.
"But... Liliana could..."
The statement leaves her mouth in meek manner, almost an unwilling confession
I frown
"Is this about Liliana?"
She nods furiously
"Of course it is... I can't deny it Tachan, not anymore... she is better for you. Better than I... can ever be for you"
"W-what? Ayumu, you can't be serious, I've know you for ten years, I know Liliana for less than half of one! You're the person I love Ayumu!"
She steps back, shaking her head as if to deny everything I said.
"P-please, don't say that again, it's hard enough to let go off these feelings as it is, if you keep saying that..."
I shake my head, trying to get closer to her
"I don't want to let you go, Ayumu! I love you! I've loved for a long time but I was too stupid to say it..."
Ayumu starts to chuckle through her tears
"I wanted to hear this for so long, I wished it had been in a different situation, I always thought the worst thing would be someone taking you away from me. But I just found out that... realizing that there is someone better for you is worse..."
I shake my head in disbelieve, unable to accept what she's saying
"Ayumu, stop talking about me and Liliana like this! You don't even know if she likes me!"
She shakes her head
"It's true that I can't tell if she's as in love with you as I am, but... I know Liliana likes you, more than as a friend, it might not be love yet, but I know it can... no, I know it will grow to be. Because..."
A sad smile is draw across her face
"Liliana looks at you the same way I do..."
I can only stare at her in disbelieve as she pleads to me one more time
"So please, Tachan... hear the friend who has know you for ten years, Liliana is better for you than I could ever be"
My hand immediately goes to my eyes as I start to notice tears strolling down my face as well
"Ayumu, I... there's nothing between me and Liliana, I don't even know if I really like her..."
Ayumu gives a half hearted laugh
"You don't? Then let's do this..."
Ayumu takes a few solid stomps in my direction, the first time she tries to approach me in this situation, the decisiveness in her steps betraying her mess of a face.
She lands in front of me, standing only a few inches away while staring at me with her teary eyes.
"Tell me, looking straight at my face, that you feel nothing for Liliana. Tell me that there's not a single place in your heart where you wish to be with her."
I freeze, caught in Ayumu's glare, her eyes not wavering, I wonder if they are even blinking at this point.
So that's all? All she needs is an affirmation that I feel nothing for Liliana?
Well, that's easy.
"I... I don't... feel"
It's what I think, but while looking straight at Ayumu's eyes, I find the words struggling to leave my mouth and a cold feeling in the pit of my stomach
I can't say it
I can't... lie to Ayumu.
Ayumu smiles at me, not a pained smile or a sad smile like before, but a genuine smile that shines even through her tears.
"Thank you... Tachan, I'm glad you aren't trying to lie to me"
She steps back, finally looking away from me
"Ayumu, this... isn't what I want..."
I try to make sense of it, but Ayumu shakes her head
"I know, that's why it hurts so much. I've wanted you for all this time and now you finally want me as well, but I have to do what's best for you... as your friend. And someone like me will only be holding you back"
She walks to the door, opens it and motions for me to leave
"Tachan, please... listen to me"
I shake my head
"No, I won't Ayumu, I can't let you just leave my life like this!"
I walk up to her, trying to make her seem reason, but Ayumu looks at me
"And I won't, Tachan, I will always be there when you call me, but I just realized that I can't be reliable when you need me. You found someone, a girl that's actually worthy to be by your side. Someone who can have your back in a way I can't... and I don't think I ever will."
She reaches out a hand, likely trying to reach for my shoulder, but stops midway, almost as if she's scared of touching me
"You need Liliana, not me."
Once again, she motions to the door
"Please... leave, I'll be ready for the next time the group needs me, but please..."
She looks at me with a pleading look and I cannot argue anymore, feeling like I've exhausted every argument I had along with my mind and body.
I walk out of the door and take a last glance at Ayumu
Taking one last look at her red hair I say
"I love you, Ayumu"
Unexpectedly, the door stops for a moment, I expect Ayumu to reply something
But she closes it without making another sound.
I take a deep breath and walk towards my room, I see some students along the way, but I don't even acknowledge them, feeling utterly drained.
I lay down on the bed of my dormitory and stare at the ceiling, glad that I don't share my room with anyone as I'm free to let the tears flow without having to explain what happened.
"What do I even do?"
Lots of memories and possibilites about what should I do start to stream to my head
But one thing stands out from the things Ayumu said to me.
I take my phone out and click in one of the names on my contact list
And I hear a chirpy voice on the other side
"Hey, Tatseyo! I wasn't expecting you calling so soon! What happened Romeo? How are things with Ayumu?"
I sob quickly before managing to bring the words out
"Liliana, I need to talk to you"
Likely noticing the obvious sadness in my voice, Liliana's tone shifts completely
"Tatseyo? What happened?"
I choke on my tears before answering
"I need to see you, by ourselves, it's about Ayumu"
Afterword: Hello there! Sorry that this chapter took a little longer than I expected, hope it was worthy it though, I'm finally gonna put a ribbon on this damn love triangle I created so I can get a move on with the other girls of the harem as well as what happened with Saiki.
And I do realize my release schedule for this fanfic has become much slower and the answer is that it's not only because of college but because I'm also writting my own original stories that I plan to post on other websites. Since they are original I hope I can make a job or at least a side gig as being a writer is a big dream of mine. I hope you can understand and please cheer for me, see you in the next chapter!
Once again, if you wish to support me, please do so, any ammount is welcome: donate .com (slash) 9AQbKw4bv1jdago3cc