Yandere? Menhera? Bring It On, If You're Confident That I'll love You For Who You Are - Chapter 17

It was a love that never bore fruit, and perhaps that’s for the best.

“Sigh…”

My casual sigh was drowned out by the sound of the waves along the riverside. Picking up a stone about the size of my palm, I threw it toward the river, creating a sound louder than the one before. The time had already passed 10 PM, and naturally, it wasn’t appropriate for someone of my age—a young woman—to be walking alone at this hour. In fact, I had long since missed my family’s curfew. Yet strangely, within me—Saotome Hina—there was no sign of panic.

“(We really broke up, huh…)”

A short walk from my home, amidst the sound of the river waves, I was reminded of “that person” who had once saved me. It feels nostalgic now, remembering how shocked I was, to the point where my heart’s pounding reverberated throughout my body, when I heard that person had killed their own parents two months ago.

“(I really am a terrible woman, huh…)”

Looking back, my encounter with that person was nothing short of a farce. Since I was young, I’ve been approached countless times with confessions of love at first sight, being called cute, an angel, and so on. Our neighbors often referred to us as the beautiful siblings, but as a shy and introverted child, I didn’t know how to respond to the boys’ approaches and couldn’t even make proper eye contact. The situations that many girls would dream of were nothing but agony for me.

I couldn’t continue like this. I wanted to do things that normal girls do. With that in mind, for the first time, I approached someone I should call a woman.

But—

“Ha? You’re always fawned over by boys, and now you want to join our group?”

“Don’t you have enough attention already? Go away—your presence will make us stand out.”

“You live in a different world than us. Don’t take it the wrong way, but shoo, shoo.”

It was clear that many girls didn’t think well of me. The reason was obvious: jealousy, aversion, and cruelty stemming from comparison with themselves.

And that changed my fate significantly.

One lunch break, I was sitting alone at a corner of the classroom when I was surrounded by a group of girls. I was forcefully pulled from the classroom and dragged behind the school building, where I was cornered against the wall by several girls.

What followed was an outright lynching. They hit and kicked me, and no matter how much I cried out in pain and begged them to stop, they only escalated their assault.

—Why? Why do I have to suffer like this!?

For the first time in my life, I cursed my existence. If only I hadn’t been born with this face, this figure—I might’ve lived as a normal girl…

Even though I could’ve solved the problem by talking to my family, my heart was beyond saving at that point.

So, I made up my mind.

—If you’re trying to break me, I’ll break you first before you get the chance.

From then on, I started dating boys who had shown interest in me, one after another. Of course, there was no love or affection in it.

I felt like a queen, a ruler, and for the first time, I awoke to the pleasure of looking down on others.

From that day forward, I would coldly dump one boyfriend after another, quickly moving on to the next. It was a cycle of feigned gifts and manipulations, repeated over and over.

And so, my revenge began.

“Hey, girls, show me your faces!”

One of the boys I dated, a muscular guy with a buzz cut, was not exactly handsome and was quick to fight and slow to think. But that made him the perfect weapon for me.

The day after we started dating, he stormed into the classroom, his face red with anger.

His targets were the girls who had lynched me.

The memory is as fresh as if it were yesterday. The boy, enthralled by me, delivered punches and kicks that contorted the girls’ faces.

Their pitiful cries and pleas for mercy were the ultimate pleasure to me. As a result, the boy faced consequences, but I remained unscathed.

Revenge is futile?

That’s a line you’d often hear in dramas and manga. While that may be true in some cases, it’s all a matter of perspective.

My revenge allowed me to escape their curse. Who has the right to deny that truth?

Above all—because of that, I met him.

“This is Yuuya’s sister? You definitely have that sibling vibe. Nice to meet you.”

He reached out to me when my brother unusually brought a friend home. He had strikingly clear hair and blue eyes. His features were more androgynous than the boys in my class, more a pretty boy than a handsome one. My brother said he was surprisingly athletic, which was an opportunity for me—I only had pawns in my own grade.

If I could enchant him, he would be a strong ally if those girls sought revenge.

At first, it was difficult since my brother had brought him, but I actively joined their conversation that day. After a typical exchange, I indirectly confessed my feelings.

I said my ideal type was older, androgynous, and athletic…

But—

“Really? Hope you find someone good. They say girls like guys who listen to them. Does Hina’s crush play any sports?”
“Ah, he’s so clueless… This might actually hurt a bit…”

I was amazed and frustrated internally. Unlike the boys who annoyingly tried to curry favor with me, he stood his ground, showing no interest in my advances. I desperately wanted to win him over.

In the end, I couldn’t make him fall for me. That night, as I walked down the street after running an errand for my mother, I bumped into him by chance.

This was my opportunity. I grabbed his arm like before and cornered him in a deserted alley, putting pressure on the wall with one hand—a so-called “wall slam.”

“K-Kurogane-senpai! I-I like you! Please go out with me!”

I confessed while fidgeting with my other hand. He probably didn’t see me as a woman, but men are men. From my experience, there’s no gesture more attractive to them than a girl’s bashful behavior. Even though it was against my will, if I wanted to win over someone like him, I needed to perfect my coy act.

Even if it was just for my own use.

“Sorry, but I don’t have the guts to beat someone up for revenge. I’ll pass.”

With those words, he made his stance clear. I let out an awkward laugh, not knowing what else to do.

“It’s okay to run from painful realities. I understand hating the person who made you feel that way. But involving others who have nothing to do with it isn’t right.”

My mind went blank.

“I feel bad about rejecting your confession, but I can’t give you what you want. However, I can listen if you need to talk. Problems can turn into laughable stories later on. So, let it all out.”

Yes… He had seen through me from the beginning.

For the first time, someone treated me as an equal, not the false image of me that was admired in class. He was difficult to read at first glance, but he was a comforting presence.

The warmth of his hand on my head and his genuine smile made him my first true love.

“(Do you remember? That was the beginning. The start of something with Minato-senpai…)”

After that, I stopped using boys as pawns. Simply because I lost interest. I still hated those girls, but I no longer had strong feelings about it. They didn’t bother me anymore, especially after I had my revenge, but more importantly, I couldn’t take my eyes off him.

Our relationship ended quickly, but—

Even so—he saved me.

So I won’t ask for anything more.

I shouldn’t be so selfish.

I don’t have the right to.

Even if he had broken up with someone he loved…

My smartphone in my pocket began to vibrate. It was probably my parents, worried sick. I hurriedly took it out, expecting a call, but it was a message.

A single message with several attached photos.