the box 6

I slowly approached to Koharu.

Lookig over her,
I sat down in a distant,
facing each other.

"Koharu, are you okay?"

Asking her with a small voice,
I kept an eye on her.

Koharu didn't seem to be okay.

......I think her nerves was at full stretch
all the time.

Probably without noticing,
she was overwhelmed.

I think Koharu was full of joy
to meet Mutsuo-san.

On the other hand,
it may have been difficult to realize that
she become nervous.

Koharu didn't seem to be able to move
for the time being.

In my experience so far,
it was often better to leave Koharu
at such times.

I had the contact of Mutsuo-san
from Koharu in case
"Mutsuo-san got lost".

Thus, I was able to contact him and
explain the situation to Mutsuo-san.

However, if I do so, Mutsuo-san may
change the schedule on another day
and return to his own home.

Then, I thought that Koharu might be
disappointed with herself,
like as when she was in the high school.

Even if Mutsuo-san said,
"I'm going to meet Koharu-san
at another day," she still feel
sorry to see him,
to break down the promise once.

Besides, as it is, Koharu may keep
a distance from Mutsuo-san.

I think Koharu,
who was so happy to meet him,
doesn't want to be in such situation.

Moreover, if things don't go well,
that's not all.

Also, as before, even on SNS,
she might start avoiding men
thoroughly again.

I suppose she may think
it's a bad thing to try to get involved,
because she may cause some trouble.

Since she has taken a step forward,
I don't want her to repeat the same thing.

When it happens,
I don't know when she can
recover next time.

I went to the meeting place.

I didn't have any idea at this time.

I was only walking with
the feeling that I had to do something.

The meeting place is a nearby park.

It is similar to a park
where there were few playground equipment
and I played with water with my friends
when I was in the junior high school.

The park seemed unpopular,
which is similar to that park.

Upon leaving the facility,
the room in which we lived is not far
from the facility.

May be, there are simple parks
of the same type in this area.

I ran through, but I was a little late.

There is only one man in the park.

I don't know Mutsuo-san's face.

Looking at the man, my eyes met his.

The man who caught my eyes came up
and stopped in front of me.

Then he asked, "You're Miss. Saki, right?"

I answered "yes".

The man bowed his head and said,
"Nice to meet you, I'm Mutsuo."

I was saved because
he knew my face and name.

I also returned a greeting,
"Nice to meet you."

Mutsuo-san was
similar in height to me.

As a man, he is shorter.

The voice is not low for men.

His face was a little androgynous,
and his beard was faint.

He is the one whom
Koharu has been talking to me
all the time.

It felt a bit strange to me
to find him in front of me.

"What about Miss. Koharu?"

I was asked by Mutsuo-san.

"I'm sorry.
Koharu just suddenly got sick..."

I explained so.

"Eh! Is she okay?"

Mutsuo-san was surprised
and worried about her.

"I hope it'll be all right"

I murmured and he said,

"I'm fine, so please
come back home for her
as soon as possible."

I made evasive comment and
made him even more anxious.

Mutso-san said
"It's okay."

I replied
"Are you sure?……"
"I'm sorry. You came all the way today."

Mutsuo-san was concerned for us
and said

"Oh, don't worry."
with a smile.

"I feel regrettable, but there is no help."
He added with a lonely smile.

Mutsuo-san continued.

"It's my first time to come here,
so I'll hang out and
take some pictures."

He continued again.

"Please tell Miss. Koharu to
take good care of her."

After saying that,
Mutsuo-san tried to leave.

If Mutsuo-san goes home as it is,
Koharu must be useless
by herself.

Without any idea,
I managed to tell Mutsuo-san to
get his leg stopped.

"Koharu was really
looking forward to seeing you."

"Really?"

Mutsuo-san's voice looked happy.

What should I do to prevent Koharu
from avoiding Mutsuo-san?

I decided to discuss what to do
for Koharu with Mutsuo-san.

That's why I thought
I needed to speak with him
in a calm place.

"Please let me treat you to apologize
for Koharu's disappearance"

I invited Mutsuo-san.

But he said,

"Please don't mind. It's okay."

It didn't work.

I've never invited a man
to have some coffee together,
so I don't know how to do it.

Next time, I frankly told him.

"I'd like to talk about Koharu,
so why don't we enter some cafe?"

Mutsuo-san became slightly anxious,
but he listened to me, and say "Yes",
saying "You don't have to treat me."

I replied, "OK."

With my guidance,
I went to a cafe in front of
the station with Mutsuo-san.

I don't know how much Koharu tells
Mutsuo-san about her phobia.

Maybe she explained it to him only a little
in order not to be disliked.

If so, I have no excuse for Koharu,
but I have decided to reveal
what is necessary to promote the story.

I was walking while
thinking about such things.

I'm not dexterous.

Thus, at the same time I was thinking,
I couldn't even be aware of Mutsuo-san.

I had no conversation with him
until I got to the cafe.

After entering the cafe
and ordering drinks,
I immediately began talking about
Koharu to Mutuso-san.

SNS is the only tool
which Koharu can take a contact
with a man.

Even on that SNS, Koharu was scared
since she was invited by a boy
when she was in the high school.

And she blamed herself for that and
started avoiding men on SNS.

It had been going on
for several years.

And this time, I don't want her to
meet such happening again...

Mutsuo-san listened to
my story seriously and muttered

"That happened..."

Koharu didn't seem to
tell Mutsuo-san about this.

"Please tell me anything I can do."

Mutsuo-san said so.

"Thank you"

I bowed my head.

"But I don't know what is
the best choice," I said.

I honestly said that
I was confused now.

"Okay, let's think together"

"Please"

It was a word from my heart.

It was nice to ask Mutsuo-san for help.

My feelings of "what should I do"
was eased.

"I'm sorry"

Mutsuo-san suddenly apologized.

"What is it?"
I replied, and he said

"At first, when I heard that
Koharu-san was feeling ill,
I wondered if that was the excuse."

"For what?"
I was surprised and asked him.

"I wonder if Koharu-san really
didn't want to see me..."

Through his comment,
I wasn't expecting that kind of thing.

Besides, he said

"I was also worried when Saki-san said,
"I have a story about Koharu-san."

"Why?"
I asked him again.

Then he said,

"I thought that you don't want me
to be involved with Koharu-san anymore..."

Certainly, Mutsuo-san showed
an anxious look.

Furthermore, Mutsuo-san continued.

"I didn't know that Koharu-san has such
heavy symptoms and she would stop
taking a contact with men..."

He said it with downcast eyes.

I nodded without saying anything.

"But I was thinking too much
about myself."

"That's not true."
I pacified him.

Then, we kept speaking each other

"I've always wanted to
see Koharu-san..."

"Really"

"But I gave up meeting Koharu-san."

"Why?"

"Koharu-san had revealed to me
that she had male phobia..."

"……Oh"

Through such conversations,
I found that Mutsuo-san wanted to
invite Koharu until now,
but he couldn't do it.

Mutsuo-san and I kept speaking.

"...I wasn't really thinking
about what to do, but
I want to say this with my true heart..."

"Yes"

"Why don't you tell her that
I always want her to count on me
anytime and call me?"

Mutsuo-san suggested that.

But it wasn't enough.

"In that case, Koharu may
hesitate to speak and end the
relationship without speaking..."

"Is that so……"

"So, if Koharu-san doesn't contact me,
why not invite her from my side?"

He made suggestions
based on Koharu's character.

But that wasn't still enough.

"She feels sorry and might not
open the message application.
Koharu is such a girl."

Mutsuo-san muttered, "I see...".

"Maybe she feels sorry to keep
contact with you"

"I didn't know how she
thinks things deeply..."

"Yes, and she try not to get involved
in you anymore."

"I see..."

I told him how she may think.

"I was able to get along
with Mutso-san, but because of myself,
I had something like today and
make him feel annoying,
which seems miserable,,, "

Mutsuo-san listens to my story carefully.

"If I may cause such trouble
for the future...
I would better not meet him again".

After telling Koharu's feeling,

"Foo"

Mutsuo-san breathed from the corner of
his mouth as if he were leaking.

Then, he made a third suggestion.

"Why don't we decide
when we will meet next time today
and ask you to tell Saki-san about it?"

I was thinking "what would
Koharu do in that case?"

"Is she going to be scared?"
Mutso-san worried about
Koharu 's feeling.

"……I think it's good idea!"
I finally could accept his idea.

Mutsuo-san's facial expression
relaxed a little.

"She might not be scared."
I added.

Furthermore, his facial expression
was loosened.

"...Oh, but even if the plan goes on,
Koharu may have seizure like today,
and she may not be able to come..."

Mutsuo-san's facial expression was
getting the tension again.

It made me feel sorry, and
I said,

"……Sorry for that"

But Mutsuo-san replied with a smile.

"No."

And then, he said,

"If that happens,
let's work together again."

"That's right.
Nothing is always absolutely OK."

A smile naturally appeared on me.

"Do Mutsuo-san like Koharu?"
I asked him.

"Yes?"
He looked surprised.

Actually, Mutsuo-san was confused.

It seems that the question was
unexpected.

"That means... as a woman."

I added more.

This is to find out
what I want to hear.

Mutsuo-san's face turned red.

"……Yes"

Mutsuo-san admitted with
his facial expression,
indicating a little shy.

"You may regard me as a flippant guy,
but I like her even if I've never meet her."

"Not at all."
I denyied his negative idea, and
I continued the conversion.

"Is it okay to say it to Koharu...
that you like her?"

"What!?"

"It's difficult to say...but"

I wondered what to say
so as not to wrinkle
between my eyebrows.

"If Koharu find out that
Mutsuo-san likes her,
I feel she can dilute her feeling
to become sorry"

"That is, you want to tell her that
I'd like to be actively involved with
Koharu-san?"

"Yes"

"Doesn't she think it's clingy?"

"It's okay. I will also do my best effort
so that it does not become clingy."

"Understood"

Mutsuo-san thought about it a little
and agreed with me.

It was a bit forcible, but we decided
what to do about Koharu
in the future.

I sucked up ice-melted grapefruit juice
with a slight bitterness using a straw.

"Saki-san is thinking of Koharu-san.

Mutsuo-san said.

In addition, "Koharu-san often talks
about Saki-san, to me" he told.

I don't put my real name on SNS.

When I was modeling, I used
the name given by Koharu.

Mutsuo-san knew my real name
because Koharu was talking about me.

Mutsuo-san continued.

"Koharu-san says,
"Saki always helps me."

"No such thing"

I'm not humble.

"I am the one who is always helped
by Koharu"

In fact, in terms of life,
I have only been helped by Koharu.

However, in the case of Koharu,
I'm doing a kind of follow-up for
her phobia, so she may feel that
she is only helped by me.

Although, I had never met Mutsuo-san,
he knew my face because
I am a model of Koharu's clothes.

If you are connected to Koharu on SNS,
you will see my face
even if you don't want to see it.

There was a reason why
I didn't know Mutsuo-san's face.

And even far from me,
Koharu has never seen
Mutsuo-san's face.

For a meeting,
Koharu asked Mutsuo-san to send us
a picture of his face.

However, Mutsuo-san said,
"I'm embarrassed,"
and he denied our request.

Koharu didn't want it to be persistent,
so she didn't ask him any more.

The meeting will be held at
an unpopular place,
so she thought she could manage it
without knowing his face.

In the story, Mutsuo-san told me
the true reason that why he didn't
send us his picture.

Mutsuo-san doesn't want to
be taken photo.

He said that he couldn't laugh well,
and his face looked angry.

"If I send such a picture of myself
and make Koharu-san feel scared,
I may not be able to meet her..."

That's what he thought.

Mutsuo-san may have a
moderate personality.

Confident people are said
to be looked attractive.

But that's just an impression.

Mutsuo-san takes great pictures.

I think he also has a good looks.

I thought that if he had a
confident personality,
he would be very popular.

Maybe he's already popular,
but he become more popular.

However, I thought that Mutsuo-san
would be better than a confident person
in the fear of Koharu.

In addition, through his looks or
what he says on SNS or how he talks,
I feel Mustuo-san is a person
who seems to be trustworthy.

If Mutsuo-san is a person like my father
who abandoned my mother,
I don't want him to get involved with Koharu.

I don't want Koharu to experience
the same suffering as my mother.

I want him to be able to meet Koharu
just because he seems trustful.

Since Mutsuo-san is moderate,
I told him how much Koharu was
looking forward to seeing him.

Maybe I'll be get angry with
what I told him by Koharu.

While I was talking to Mutsuo-san,
I expected Koharu, who may have
been recovered, to contact me.

Maybe we can join now.

However, I didn't get in touch
with her that day.

I saw Mutsuo-san off the ticket gate
at the station, and I came back to my room.

Koharu seems to be staying in her room.

She was looking forward to meeting
Mutsuo-san, and she couldn't do it,
which makes her feel shocked.

Rather, I thought that
the word"fun" isn't correct.

For Koharu, meeting Mutsuo-san
may have been a hope.

As for Koharu, I left her alone.

After all, that day,
she didn't leave the room.

The next morning
I went to work without seeing Koharu.

When I returned from work at night,
Koharu was waiting for me
and cooking dinner.

Koharu welcomed me
with a cheerful voice,
"Welcome back."

I found that she was
behaving patiently.

She was trying to do her best
not to worry about yesterday.

Actually, I thought that
she still feels depressed.

At such times, Koharu will overdo it.

But this time it goes well.

Because of that, I can talk to Koharu.

But I was suffering.

I'm just trying to touch what Koharu is
trying not to worry about.

However, I can't help but talking
about what I told with Mutso-san.

"Mutsuo-san wanted to see Koharu."

Having said that,
I cut out the story about yesterday.

I could see that
the expression of Koharu was stiff.

Next, I told that Mutsuo-san
didn't care that
Koharu couldn't come yesterday.

Furthermore, Mutsuo-san wants to
meet Koharu very much, so he has
decided the day when he will meet
next time.

"But it might bother him again..."
With a dark look, Koharu tweeted.

I replied her soon and said
"Mutsuo-san said it's okay."

Koharu was listening to my talk
with her face down.

I kept speaking.

"Even if there is something like yesterday,
he said he doesn't worry at all."

Koharu listened to me silently.

"By the way, I'm pretty sure that..."
I put a small prelude.

"Mutsuo-san, I think
he likes you Koharu."

Koharu got upset and asked,
"How do you know that?"

It was a small tearful voice.

"When I told him that Koharu was
looking forward to seeing Mutsuo-san,
he looked extremely happy."

Koharu went down even deeper.

I looked into her face from below.

Koharu turned away.

Koharu covered her face
with both hands.

However, I could see Koharu's cheeks
rising from the side of her hands
covering her face.

I grabbed Koharu's wrists and
opened her hands covering her face.

Koharu closed her eyes and
pretended to be expressionless,
but ,with her eyes closed,
her face was grinning.

In the outer corners of the eyes,
the tears that have just been seen.

She is not only a crying girl
but a laughing girl.

She is a busy girl who often
changes her expression.

Koharu had already liked Mutsuo-san.

Koharu was so cute that
I wanted to kiss her,
and it left an strong impression.

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