T/N: The long awaited flash back chapter
Title: A Broken Heart and a Promise
One day after school, Yamashita Yuuto was called out by Watanabe Asahi. They had come to a small park near their houses where they used to play together a lot in the past.
“I love you. Please go out with me!”
She was shorter than she was now, though she was still not as bright as she is now. Even so, Asahi, who still had the same little animal-like cuteness, confessed to Yuuto.
“….I see, thank you. I like Asahi too.”
“Yuuto! So…”
“But sorry, Asahi. I can’t go out with you right now.”
However, Yuuto’s answer was a cruel one that betrayed Asahi’s expectations.
“…Eh?”
Hearing that, Asahi was momentarily speechless. However, her face gradually looked down.
“Gusu ~tsu”
“Hey, Asahi.”
“Sorry Yuuto. It’s usually annoying when a gloomy girl like me confesses to you… but it’s not a good idea to say something like this after being dumped. If it’s not annoying, I hope you’ll continue to be good friends with me as a childhood friend.”
With that, Asahi started to cry.
Yuuto was tormented with guilt for making his precious childhood friend cry. He desperately tried to quiet Asahi by talking to her and patting her head.
“Tsuu… thanks, Yuuto.”
The two of them were currently sat side by side on a bench in the park. Asahi, who managed to regain her composure thanks to Yuuto’s desperate care, said this to Yuuto.
“No, don’t worry about it. I mean, it’s my fault that you cried, so this is normal.”
Asahi turned over again when she heard those words.
“Ah, that’s right. I was rejected by Yuuto. To be confessed to by someone you don’t like and then have them cry in front of you, it’s just annoying, isn’t it……I’m really sorry.”
“….I’m sorry, Asahi.”
Yuuto gently entwined his hands with Asahi’s small body. As it was, he hugged Asahi tightly.
“Eh, Yuuto?”
Asahi didn’t seem to understand the significance of that action. But that’s not surprising.
Being dumped by someone you love, but the person who dumped you comforted you. Now she was hugged tightly by that person.
Asahi felt sadness at being rejected by the man she loved and the joy of being hugged by him. Asahi was a mixture of opposite emotions; sadness at being rejected by the person she loves and joy at being hugged by that person. Her brain couldn’t keep up with the events and for a moment her thoughts stopped and she didn’t know what to say.
Then, Yuuto, who was still holding Asahi in his embrace, began to speak slowly.
“Asahi, let me correct you on one thing. It’s true that I rejected your confession, but I don’t hate you. Like I said before, I like you too.”
“I see. But if you rejected me, that means you don’t like me as a girl, right?”
“That’s not true. I like you, both as a childhood friend and as a girl.”
“I don’t know what you mean. Then why did you reject me? Yuuto rejected me. It hurt.”
“….Could it be that you’re… are you worried about my mother?”
“…Yeah.”
Yuuto said with a slightly twisted expression.
“I’d be lying if I said you didn’t have to worry about it. You’re not the only one responsible for what happened. And it’s not good to keep worrying about the past. Otherwise, you’ll start looking backwards, and you won’t be able to move forward.”
“…Well, yeah. I’m sorry Asahi, I know it must be hard to be rejected, but I hope you understand.”
“I really do. It’s okay. I love you, Yuuto. Whenever you’re in trouble, I’ll help you out.”
“You’re so sweet. I’m the biggest asshole in the world right now, dumping this nice girl.”
“Hmmph. If that’s what you think, then I can forgive you for dumping me earlier.”
Asahi smiled a little bit and said something like that, as if she was happy to be called a nice girl by Yuuto.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t do that right now… Hey Asahi, can I say something terrible right now?”
Asahi pretended to think in silence for a few moments. And then,
“Okay. I really don’t want to hear it, but I don’t want to say no and have you hate me for it.”
“Thank you, Asahi.”
“Never mind. So, what does Yuuto want to say to me?”
When Asahi asked him that, Yuuto took a breath.
“I know I’m being absurdly selfish. But if you allow it, until I confess to you again, will you stay with me as my childhood friend? I can’t go out with you right now, but I love you too, and to be honest, I’d like to go out with you right now. But I can’t do that. So, once I’ve sorted out my feelings and I’m ready to face Asahi and her parents, I’ll tell you how I feel about you. Until then, I want Asahi to wait for me as a childhood friend like you have been until now.”
Yuuto looked straight into Asahi’s eyes. Then Asahi looked down for a moment.
“You’re really being selfish, aren’t you? You rejected me, and now you’re telling me to wait until you tell me how you feel about me. If it weren’t me, it wouldn’t be surprising if you were slapped in the face.”
“I really am. But if it makes Asahi feel better, slap me as much as you want.”
“I won’t do that. If it’s Yuuto’s suggestion, it’s fine. I want to go out with you if I can. So, I’ll wait until the day that you confess your love to me. I’ll wait for you.”
“Thank you Asahi, and sorry about that. I’m sorry for being such a pathetic childhood friend.”
“Don’t make me wait too long. I’m not a very patient person. If you take too long, I might have to do something.”
“Yeah, okay. I’ll do my best to confess as soon as I can.”
With that said, Yuuto and Asahi remained in each other’s embrace. They exchanged a promise.
“…It’s a little late to be having these kinds of dreams.”
On Saturday morning, the first day of Golden Week, Yuuto got up from his bed.
“It’s been more than five years since we made that promise. She’s matured into a much more cheerful person, and I’m still as gloomy as I am back then.”
Despite the fact that it was the first day of the long-awaited Golden Week, Yuuto sighed heavily by himself.
T/N: I don’t think I’ve seen a single ‘Yuuto said.” this entire chapter. I’m proud of you, Author-san.
Airus 
Arrgh.. the flashback is so vague that didnt really explain anything…
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