Even so, we are living in the present

Chapter 39 – Motive and True Intention

Several hours have passed since Kyosuke’s surgery.

Although the two were cuddling together, oblivious to the passage of time, eventually they had to be subjected to a cognitive interview when the police showed up.

However, it all ended promptly as Yuka admitted her guilt and even confessed to the motive for her crime.

Despite the cognitive interview, the victims, Kyosuke and Yuu, were only asked about their situation.

When they were asked for their future plans, they told the authorities that they hoped for the appropriate measures to be implemented.

A trial is a hassle…

That was the thought that Kyosuke had to arrive at last.

If Yuu had been wounded, he would voluntarily go to trial and do whatever required to confront the perpetrator and make them recognize the gravity of their crime, but when it comes to himself, it is another story. He wanted to return home soon and enjoy the time together with Yuu. Nor did he particularly mind that he was stabbed.

“… Kyosuke, it would be better for her to be convicted.”

“That’s true, of course I agree too. The trial is inevitable.”

For dinner, he had a bento that Yuu purchased for him from the hospital store.

While having the meal ready, Kyosuke gazed out the window into the darkness and recalled what was heard during the cognitive interview about Yuka’s motive.

Everything originated after it was decided that Yuu would be in charge of broadcasting for the sports festival.

Things were still going well until the conversation that occurred in the cafeteria.

After school, when she switched places with Yuu in the broadcast room, the misunderstanding of “Ayana chose Sonohara instead of herself” was the trigger that created her jealousy.

Thereafter, she wrote the contents of the letter on a white piece of paper with the sender’s name as “Rindo Ayana,” put it in a white envelope, and left it in Yuu’s shoe cupboard.

The reason she failed to perceive Kyosuke, who supposedly crossed their paths near the entrance to the school at an inopportune timing, was because Ayana was all she had in her mind already.

And so the next day, her lateness was for real.

It was also true that she couldn’t catch the train on time. Yet, what was more unexpected to her than anything else was that Ayana was also waiting in the broadcast room after school that day, accompanied by Yuu. Yuka had misinterpreted that “Ayana chose Sonohara over me,” thus adding fuel to the spark of her jealousy.

And the subsequent day.

Although the reason for her absence was not clarified, it was presumably to monitor the way back home of Yuu like a stalker the day before, and to execute it, she took a day off from school and came with a resolved will to ambush him.

Afterwards, there arose the stabbing incident as an example.

The sequence of events was as described.

In other words, “Yuka likes Ayana, and without her being aware of her feelings, Yuu began to come to the broadcast room. Therefore, she felt that she was no longer needed, developed a sense of frustration and jealousy, and on the spur of the moment, she brought out a knife and committed the crime.”

After stabbing Kyosuke and not moving a muscle or saying a word, it was because once realizing that she indeed had stabbed him, her entire figure lost its color and she could no longer stay sane as if her body and throat had gone rigid and she was immobile.

“I truly didn’t have any intention of stabbing him.”

“I was trying to intimidate him only.”

“My body was moving on its own accord.”

Such statements were apparently made.

However, regardless of the reason, there can be no forgiveness.

Injuring people for selfish reasons, letting one’s emotions get the better of one’s mind, is absolutely unpardonable.

─​───────

In a different place, this was the Nitta police station.

In a downcast and melancholic atmosphere, Yuka was answering the police officer’s questions. Having admitted to all the charges, she simply nodded her head and exhibited a willingness to comply with whatever decision would be passed on her in the future. Upon exiting the interrogation room, Ayana, who was visiting the police station, spotted her just then and scurried over to her.

“Yuka!!”

“… Ayana.”

Yuka looked down, helpless to confront the person who approached her with her soft blonde hair swaying faintly.

“The police called me a while ago! That you stabbed Ichinose… and the reason was because you like me…”

Her tone faded wanly toward the end of her sentence.

“…”

She remained downcast and neither uttered a word nor reacted. Against such a person, Ayana arched her eyebrows in fury.

“Why didn’t you tell me? Unless you tell me directly, I won’t have a clue!”

When she asked in an accusatory tone, Yuka kept her mouth shut for a while and then complained in a voice just barely audible to the other party.

“Ayana, you don’t understand…”

“Ha?”

Her brusque answer reached Ayana’s ears, and she answered again doubtfully, as if to express her unconvincing response.

“For Ayana, who is so popular and gets along with everyone so easily, you wouldn’t… understand how I feel about not being able to express that I like you…”

Although this was a vulnerable plea for sympathy, the content of the plea was unsavory.

“… So what about it?”

At the indignant tone in her voice, Yuka looked up and cast a fearful glance at her.

“Eh?”

Trying to figure out the intent of her words, Ayana glared piercingly at her wondering eyes.

“So what, you think it’s acceptable to stab people!?”

Her loud, enraged voice reverberated off the walls.

“…”

The other party, powerless to retort, lowered her head again and fell silent. With a brief sigh at Yuka’s sight, she calmly spoke up once more, as if to admonish the other party.

“… If you want the other person to understand how you feel, it is imperative that you properly convey your feelings to them, otherwise they will not understand. It doesn’t matter if it’s your voice, letters, or anything else, if you don’t put it into words, it won’t get through to them.”

With these words, Ayana turned on her heel.

“… Ayana…”

“…”

Even though she was being called as if to cling to her, there was no looking back.

She felt that it was impossible for her to have any understanding of her feelings.

Until now, they were supposed to have lived joyously as childhood friends, yet neither of them had the slightest awareness that the other was regarding them with a differing sentiment.

Yuka, that girl, I wonder what was she jealous of… was it because I am a popular person or was it because I might be taken away…

Though the truth lies in the latter.

A tragedy wrought by a one-way love story.

Once the feeling of love transforms into abhorrence, the true nature of human beings will be revealed.

Nevertheless, the words that would lead her to that answer were subsequently never heard from Yuka’s mouth.