Chapter 1 (Part 1):
On my way home from work, I was sitting on a bench in a park near my office drinking a beer when a high school girl came into my sight. The girl reminded me of my girlfriend from middle school and high school.
The girl looked a lot like Yuka.
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Yuka Yamakawa was a childhood friend of mine.
We went to kindergarten, elementary school, junior high school and high school together, and in the first year of junior high school, our relationship changed from just childhood friends to lovers.
I think I was the one who confessed to her. I was so happy when she said yes. Maybe that was the peak of my life.
Sadly, our relationship came to an end when I was a freshman in high school.
Yuka's affair was the cause of that.
I had no idea that Yuka was having an affair, and went about my daily life without a care in the world. It was Mizuno, a friend of mine from junior high school, who told me the shocking truth - the cruel reality.
"Kazuma, I've been thinking a lot about whether or not to tell you about this…”
After saying that, Mizuno began to talk.
Yesterday, when Mizuno went out shopping, he found Yuka and Hiroki shopping together as if they were lovers. Hiroki is a friend of mine. We've been friends since we entered high school, so we've been together for less than half a year.
Mizuno wondered about their friendship and started to follow them. They were intimately holding hands, something that friends would never do, and went into a love hotel.
Going into a hotel is 'black' no matter how you look at it.
Yes, that's right...
Mizuno told me that he had taken a picture of them just in case. I asked him to show me. There were photos of the two of them walking happily together, holding hands, and photos of them entering a love hotel. When I was shown the evidence, I had to face reality.
"Hey, have you been to that ...hotel or something?"
"No, I've never been."
When I denied it, Mizuno looked relieved. I was subtly annoyed.
Of course, I was shocked that Yuka was having an affair with Hiroki, but what shocked me more than anything was that Yuka and Hiroki were having a physical relationship.
Even though I am a high school boy with limited knowledge, I of course know what a love hotel is. There is no law that says you have to have s* in a love hotel, but a high school boy and girl paid a lot of money, so of course, they did.
I know I shouldn't, but I can't help but imagine Yuka and Hiroki hugging each other. It automatically, half-heartedly, replayed on the screen in my mind. It was an unusually graphic image.
I felt dizzy.
"Hey, what are you going to do, Kazuma?" Mizuno asked me. “Do you want to go directly to Yamakawa and Hiroki?”
“Yes…”
Now that I know about the affair, I can't just leave it at that. Although I didn't feel comfortable, I couldn't avoid the direct hit.
In the morning, only about half of the students have arrived at the classroom. Yuka and Hiroki hadn't arrived yet either. Now that I think about it, I realize that I haven't been to school with Yuka lately. I wondered if Yuka was on her way to school with Hiroki...
The door opened and Hiroki walked in.
“Good morning!"
“"Oh, good morning.."”
My tone and Mizuno's reply were different from usual. Our voices were trembling, or rather ...trembling with disgust.
Hiroki put his bag on his seat and came over to us.
It was obvious that Mizuno and I were acting strangely, so of course, Hiroki noticed it.
"What's going on, guys?"
Hiroki was smiling cheerfully as usual.
I had no idea that Hiroki, who seems to have no hidden agenda, was having an affair with my girlfriend…
I've learned firsthand in high school that humans have a cruel duality. I knew it now.
"Hey, Kazuma."
Mizuno whispered and poked me with his elbow.
I took a deep breath and prepared myself.
...To be continued!
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Translator Corner:
Hi,
First of all, thanks for reading my translation works.
I translate my works on my smartphone so kindly wait for updates. Also, I divided the chapters into two parts for my convenience. If possible I will try to upload the full chapter when I get used to it.
Thank you!
(Guess, I’ll release the 2 parts of this chapter in a few hours or so...)