I'm in Love with the Gorilla Sitting Next to Me - Volume 1 Chapter 6.10

Secrets are meant to be revealed 10

“Saiki-kun, do you like me?”

——She dropped a tremendous bombshell.

“That… Why would you ask that…?”

My heart started pounding wildly, and I felt like I was running out of air, but all I could manage to say was that. It was too sudden, and more than anything, I didn’t understand her intention.

Gossan looked away for a moment and then fixed her gaze back on me, saying,

“Maybe just a little—I had a slight thought that you might. Yanagiya-san even once mentioned that it might be the case. But for me, I was negative about it because there’s no reason to like such a boring big woman like me…”

“…But now?”

“But when I reconsidered your behavior today, I thought it might be worth considering. Even someone with as little experience in love as me noticed many things that caught my attention.”

“…”

I don’t know how to respond to this. I was trying to hide it, but I’m not good at this kind of thing. And if Yassan noticed, that means there might be quite a few people in the class who are aware. Ugh, how embarrassing…!

“So, you’re confirming whether I like you or not?”

Suppressing the urge to roll around in agony, I clenched my right hand so hard I lost feeling in it and asked Gossan.

It was a question to buy time to calm down, but an unexpected answer came.

“No. That’s not the main issue. It’s more like a preliminary confirmation.”

“Preliminary confirmation? For what?”

Already confused, I parroted Gossan’s mysterious words, and she replied,

“Your true feelings aren’t for me but for the person you were about to kiss on the rooftop, right?”

The words she spoke in a calm tone shattered all the turmoil and confusion within me.

…I see, that’s why.

I have many questions, but everything clicked at once.

“You were the one who came to the rooftop that time, Gossan…”

“Yes. I saw Saiki-kun heading towards the old school building from the classroom while I was cleaning, so I thought I’d give you my contact information in case you stayed late for club activities. When I peeked into the clubroom and saw you weren’t there, I thought maybe it was the rooftop. I had been there before.”

With that, Gossan let out a sigh and looked at me with a downcast gaze.

“I didn’t intend to run away… but I honestly didn’t know what to say or do because it was so sudden, so I ended up just going to my club activities.”

“…Well, I guess I can understand that.”

Just witnessing a classmate’s near-kiss scene is shocking enough, but my partner was Tora-senpai. Gossan must have seen her as a man.

“I was planning to tell you after the fireworks that I had seen it. Until then, I wanted to act as usual as much as possible, and depending on Saiki-kun’s behavior, I was ready to talk about it sooner…”

“So why did you bring it up earlier?”

“Perhaps it’s because Saiki-kun seemed to be getting carried away, to the point where even I could tell? When I dared to ask for such an expensive beef skewer, you didn’t refuse strongly and accepted it, and after that, you kept looking at me with such sparkling eyes… No matter how strange Saiki-kun usually is, I know that’s not a normal reaction to someone.”

“I was like that, huh… and that’s how I’m evaluated on a daily basis…”

The shock was twofold. I didn’t realize I was being tested.

“Having encountered such a scene on the rooftop, I tried to reconsider that Saiki-kun liking me was just a misunderstanding, but it seemed like you did like me… That’s why I wanted to clear things up first.”

“You mean whether I like Gossan or not?”

“Including that, I want to understand what Saiki-kun’s intentions are. I’m not accusing you of two-timing since you haven’t confessed to me, but I don’t want to be used as a cover for secretly dating someone of the same sex. I’ll hit you, but not hard enough to draw blood.”

“That’s terrifyingly specific… But I see what you mean…”

If it were just about my feelings for Gossan being exposed, I could have faced a straightforward rejection. Well, not that it would be okay, but it would be simple.

However, Gossan had witnessed the almost-kiss scene between me and Tora-senpai. That’s the tricky part.

Tora-senpai, being kind, said, ‘If it comes to it, you can even talk about the curse’, but… realistically, who would believe in such a curse?

If I want to leave any possibility open with Gossan, I should vaguely muddy the waters about what happened with Tora-senpai and just say that Gossan is the only one I like, keeping the curse a secret, of course.

Even if I don’t do that, I should at least explain with sincerity. Otherwise, it might cause trouble for Tora-senpai and hurt Gossan. Nobody, including me, would be happy.

…I know that, but it’s complicated…

“Gossan, can I ask you one thing before I answer?”

“What is it? If it takes too long, the fireworks will start——”

“Please, don’t tell anyone about the person I was with on the rooftop.”

“…I never intended to tell anyone in the first place. Do you want me to promise?”

She extended her right hand with her pinky finger raised, looking somewhat annoyed.

Making a pinky promise at our age, what’s that about?

“No, just saying that is enough for me. I trusted you wouldn’t tell anyone, but I still wanted to confirm it first. You might get angry and leave in the middle of the conversation.”

“I think the problem is that you have a story that could make someone angry… Well, fine.”

She quickly calmed her anger, probably because she recognized it had to do with homosexuality. Discrimination and prejudice are everywhere, so she might be being considerate.

Gossan can be quite assertive, but I think this side of her is really great.

That’s why I——

“I think I like you, Gossan. There are parts I’m not confident about, and I had no intention of confessing or dating, so I was planning to keep quiet for a while.”

“Does that have to do with the person on the rooftop?”

“It’s related, but it’s not the main reason. The problem is with me.”

——Somewhere in my head, a part of me is pleading not to say it.

The chances of being believed are slim, and I don’t feel any affection from Gossan, so it would be wiser to be quietly rejected.

“——I’m cursed.”