What If I Told Tomori-san, The Girl Who's Cold Only Towards Me, That I Knew Her Secret Account? - V1 Chapter 8.3

Events on a Snowy Day ② 3

“Kagisaka-kun, you’re different today.”

Perhaps due to my excitement, I forgot my sharp tongue and conveyed my honest thoughts.

“Is that so?”

“You’re unusually kind. It’s like going back to the day of the entrance exam.”

On that snowy day, Kagisaka-kun helped me when I was in trouble. Yes, it was that event that made me start to feel something for him——.

“The one who’s kind is Tomori.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

I tilt my head in confusion.

Kagisaka-kun, as if finally releasing something that has been pent up for a long time, opens his mouth.

“Do you remember? On the day of that exam, I said, ‘Even if I don’t pass, it doesn’t matter.’ “

“Yeah. But that was just a pretext to get me to go to the exam venue—”

“No, that was my true feelings.”

“Huh…?”

“At first, I didn’t even want to take it. I took the exam at Aisu because my family wanted me to.”

” …. “

Why is he suddenly talking about this?

I’m incredibly curious, but perhaps because of Kagisaka-kun’s unusually serious expression, I choose to listen without saying anything.

“You know, I’ve never really gotten along with my family. After graduating from middle school, I planned to leave home, move away and work to support myself.”

“Well, then, what about high school…”

“I had no plans for further education. But my family strongly opposed that and said, ‘If you pass the entrance exam for Aisu Academy, we’ll let you live on your own. We’ll pay for it.’ “

“So, they wanted to make sure you continued your education at Aisu?”

“Yeah, it was to prevent the scandal of the second son of the Kagisaka family refusing to pursue higher education. Aisu is a prestigious school, and they thought that while kicking me out of the family, I might be able to reform myself.”

It’s a naive thought, Kagisaka-kun murmured cynically.

“But then, why did Kagisaka-kun take the exam?”

After saving that retriever, he could have boycotted the exam.

Yet he showed up at the exam venue and entered the school with top grades.

“I became curious.”

“Curious?”

“At first, I had decided to submit a blank answer sheet and fail. I thought the students at Aisu Academy were no good either because I thought Aisu is filled with elite kids who were raised in a sheltered environment. Those kinds of people usually react to the name ‘Kagisaka.'”

” ….. “

“Since the day I was born, there were many people who wanted to be friends with me just because I was Kagisaka. I even had someone say, ‘I’m only being friends with you because my parents told me to ‘ “

” …..! “

“I thought the people at Aisu would be the same. I thought they would judge others based on their family backgrounds or people that only try to gain benefits from anything. But…”

“…But?”

As I ask, Kagisaka-kun falls silent for a moment and then…

“On the day of the exam, I encountered an exception.”

He reminisces with a calm and gentle expression.

“That snowy day. When I saw that panicked retriever in the middle of the intersection, I knew I had to help him.”

” ….. “

“There were many Aisu students who came to take the entrance exam around me. But everyone was ignoring that retriever. They pretended not to see it.”

“That’s because if they were late for the exam, they wouldn’t be able to enter the school, so they had no choice…”

“I can see it that way now. But at that time, I was different. Ah… As I thought, the students at Aisu are cold-hearted. They wouldn’t bother helping a troubled dog if there was no benefit. I had become distrustful of ‘elites’.”

” ….. “

“But my thinking was wrong. There was one person who rushed to the retriever even before me, a reckless idiot.”

“!? You mean…?!”

“You should be able to guess her name without me saying it, right?”

Kagisaka-kun looks straight into my eyes and continues.

“I still remember it well. In the midst of the falling snow, that idiot threw away her red umbrella and ran straight towards the intersection.”

” ….. “

“Frankly, I was surprised. If you were even slightly late for the exam, you wouldn’t be able to enter. Helping a dog doesn’t guarantee that someone will be grateful. Yet, without hesitation, they rescued the retriever. They were too kind-hearted,” I say.

” ….. “

“Then… I became interested. Maybe Aisu Academy isn’t the kind of place I thought it was. Maybe it’s not just filled with people who judge others based on their background. Maybe there are people like her, kind and innocent… or so I thought.”

” ….. “

“As a result, after finding the owner of the retriever who was nearby, I went to the exam venue. I used the name Kagisaka to cancel my ‘lateness’ and gave my all in the exam.”

” ….. “

“Do you remember? The other day after school, you said, ‘You helped me again.’ Yes, I did save you when you were almost attacked by the retriever. But at that time, who was really being saved? It was me.”

“Kagisaka-kun…”

“——Thank you. I’ve always wanted to express my gratitude. Thanks to Tomori, my distrust in people has improved a little,” Kagisaka-kun sincerely says.

Honest.

Sincerely.

Kagisaka-kun expressed words of gratitude to me, which is usually engaged in banter.

(…What should I do?)

My mind is like a washing machine in full operation, all mixed up.

I’m surprised to receive gratitude from him, who we usually just argue with.

The happiness of knowing that Kagisaka-kun has been grateful to me all this time…

In moments like this, I wonder what I should say and hesitate.

Kagisaka-kun seems a little down in the seat opposite me.

Perhaps he regrets not expressing his gratitude earlier. Or maybe…

“——Hey, this might be sudden, but…”

‘Can we hold hands?’ I muster up the courage and ask, driven by a certain possibility.

“Huh? What’s with that sudden request?”

“Well… I thought it would be better for you that way.”

Until recently, things were different, but now I have a solid reason why I want to hold his hand. So I gather all my courage.

“Do you know? When people feel stressed, their hands tend to get cold.”

“Well, let me tell you, people don’t feel stressed when they’re expressing gratitude——”

“I understand that. But I think your hand feels cold right now.”

“…tsk.”

Kagisaka-kun murmurs, ‘For someone smart, you’re also perceptive,’ and then he says firmly,

“No.”

My heart felt like it was being crushed tightly.

That means he doesn’t want to hold hands with someone like me…

“Something’s not right.”

“Huuuh? What do you mean by that?”

“Isn’t that the case? We’re always fighting, but suddenly you act so friendly——”

“Ungrateful. I thought you were trying to thank me earlier.”

“That…”

“You said something like, ‘Actually, I was the one who was really saved back then,’ in a cheesy line straight out of a shoujo manga, expressing gratitude. But you won’t listen to my request?”

“Ugh…You’re way too innocent.”

“Huh?”

‘Since I turned you down once, why don’t you just give up on someone introverted like me.’ Kagisaka-kun sighed as if he had resigned himself.

“Alright. Do as you please.”

“You have a good sense of knowing when to give up.”

While trying to conceal the tumultuous beating of my heart, I grab Kagisaka-kun’s left hand that is on the desk with my right hand.