Tomoe realized that the person standing behind her was none other than the man who had caused her pain and suffering—the same man responsible for her older brother's imprisonment, ruining his life.
"Did you miss me, Tomoe? We've been apart for too long. I've really missed you," he said with a grin.
Tomoe got up from the bench and slowly turned around. When she saw his face, she staggered backward in disbelief. Out of fear, she stammered, "N-no... it can't be... Why now, of all times, did you have to come out of the hospital, Jirou?" Her voice became shaky, and it was hard for her to breathe. All the memories of her experience with Jirou flooded her mind at once. She started shivering in fear as tears ran down her face.
"That's it? That's all you have to say to me after we've been apart for so long, Tomoe? After what your big brother Hiroki did to me, you didn't even visit me in the hospital—not even once. Do you know how that makes me feel? You're horrible, Tomoe," Jirou said, his face growing agitated as he inched closer to her.
"Stay away, please. Don't come any closer, I beg you," Tomoe pleaded as the past kept replaying in her head, rendering her frozen in place.
"And who's going to stop me? Your older brother? Oh, that's right, he's no longer here to help you because he's behind bars. There's no one to save you now. But you know, my father is a judge, and my mother owns a huge law firm. I can easily put in a word, and you'll be able to see your brother again—this time, not behind glass on a telephone.
"All you have to do is just do as I say when I say it. Isn't that simple? Or don't you love your brother? He sacrificed his high school career for you, and you're hesitating at a chance to set him free? I'm disappointed," Jirou sneered, reaching out to touch her.
"No, please don't touch me! Stay away from me! Someone, anyone, please save me!" Tomoe screamed, squeezing her eyes shut.
Before Jirou could lay a hand on her, Tetsuo stepped in and grabbed his wrist.
"What the hell? Who are you?" Jirou demanded.
"What do you think you're doing to Tomoe?" Tetsuo asked coldly.
Jirou let out a horrendous laugh. "Oh, I see. You're the guy she's dating now, huh?"
Tomoe, recognizing Tetsuo's voice, opened her eyes and clung to him. She gripped him tightly, tears overflowing from her eyes. Feeling Tomoe trembling, Tetsuo turned his attention back to Jirou.
"Can't you see she's uncomfortable with you being around? Have some dignity and leave her alone," Tetsuo said firmly.
"It's no fun if the princess has a knight protecting her, so I would have left her alone anyway," Jirou smirked as he slapped Tetsuo's hand off his wrist. "Tetsuo Kawaguchi, Class 1T. That makes you a first-year and a member of the basketball team, huh? You don't know who you're messing with, so I advise you to mind your own business. Be careful with what you're doing—it could cost you dearly. You wouldn't want the basketball team to be banned or suspended, would you?" Jirou threatened before walking away.
"He's gone now, Tomoe... but who was that guy?" Tetsuo asked as he tried to turn around.
Tomoe gripped him tighter from behind. "Don't turn around! Please, let me stay like this for a while," she pleaded, her tears still flowing.
Tetsuo sighed as he listened to her quiet sobs, standing still until she calmed down.
After the date, Tetsuo went home. "I'm home, Usagi," he said, taking off his shoes.
"Welcome home, big brother! I've been waiting," Usagi greeted him with a smile.
"You shouldn't have been staying up so late. It's way past your bedtime, and school is tomorrow," Tetsuo said, tapping her on the head.
"I know, but I couldn't fall asleep without knowing you were here. So... here you go!"
Tetsuo handed her the cheesecake he had bought.
"Wow! My favorite! Thank you, Tetsuo!" Usagi beamed.
"Well, I'm going to sleep. Don't eat it all at once," Tetsuo said as he turned to leave.
"But wait! You didn't tell me how the date went!"
"The date went well at the start. I took her to places she'd like, and she was smiling every step of the way. Her eyes were shining bright throughout the day. But everything went downhill at the end when someone she knew made her uncomfortable—to the point where she cried."
"That's horrible. Do you know what happened between them?"
"I'm not sure myself. But one thing's for sure—he's the reason behind her eyes," Tetsuo replied.
The next day, in Class 2O, the students were engaged in an active lesson. Tomoe was physically present but mentally absent. She couldn't concentrate in class, her mind fixated on her encounter with Jirou and the fact that he would now be at the school. She recalled the good and horrible memories she had with him and what happened to her brother after he took drastic measures to protect her.
Lost in thought, she found it difficult to breathe and began sweating.
Liam, who sat behind her, noticed her distress and gently touched her shoulder out of concern.
The moment she felt his hand, a memory of Jirou forcing himself onto her surfaced. In an instant, she screamed, "Leave me alone!" Her voice disrupted the entire class as she jumped out of her seat.
"Are you okay, Tomoe? You look pale," Hayato asked.
"I was wondering the same thing. You don't look so good. You've seemed off since this morning. What happened?" Liam asked.
"I'm so sorry," Tomoe said guiltily as she grabbed her things and left the classroom.
"Something feels off... I wonder what," Hayato muttered to himself.
To clear her mind, Tomoe decided to go to the library and read her books in her usual section. But upon arrival, she noticed a pile of books torn up on the floor. After further inspection, she realized they were all hers.
Her heart sank. She stooped down, trying to piece the shredded pages back together. Tears rolled down her face as she looked at the ruined books she once cherished.
"Who could have done something like this?" she whispered to herself, devastated.
A familiar voice suddenly caught her attention.
Jirou was chatting with his classmates, catching up on everything he had missed.
Feeling her gaze, Jirou turned to look at her and smirked before resuming his conversation.
Tomoe's body shook with rage. Knowing exactly who was responsible for vandalizing her books, she grabbed a torn book and hurled it at Jirou, hitting him square in the head and knocking him to the ground.
She grabbed more books and threw them at him relentlessly. "How could you do this to me?! I hate you! I hate you! I should have listened to my brother's warnings!" she screamed, tears streaming down her face.
The second-year boys quickly grabbed her, restraining her from attacking Jirou further, while the second-year girls rushed to check on him.
"Let me go!" she yelled, struggling to break free.
"Are you okay, Jirou?" one of the girls asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. This is nothing compared to what her brother did to me," Jirou said.
"Wait... so she's that girl?" another girl whispered. "She has some nerve, pulling something like this—especially since you just got out of the hospital."
"She rejected him, then got her brother to hurt him. Now she's trying to harm him herself? How horrible," one of the girls sneered.
"She even tore her own books just to blame him so she'd have an excuse to attack him. How pitiful."
"No! I didn't tear them up—he did!" Tomoe shouted. "He's trying to play the victim, but you don't know how much he's put me through!"
Jirou sighed. "Tomoe, we've both been through a lot. I know you must feel confused and hurt about your brother being in jail. I already forgave him for what he did to me, and if I could, I'd do anything to set him free. I forgive you, too, so let's put this behind us and start over—just like last year," he said, smiling as he extended his hand.
Tomoe stared at Jirou in fear, then stomped on one of the boys' toes and bolted out of the library.