Free Web NovelChapter 138: To Quit
Kirisu had a lot of things to tell Hajime, starting from Ricardo’s arrest to the exposé of his myriad of crimes. With everything brought to light, Hajime also became popular overnight. His face was plastered all over the news as someone who fought against the wanted criminal just to save his girlfriend. Since it wasn’t Hajime nor Megumi who testified about what transpired, the story got slightly mixed. This was thanks to the three debt collectors who agreed to testify and pay for their crimes. They’d be facing charges of harassment, but other than that, they were fine since they didn’t partake in any shady business. Well, they’re also facing charges of willful negligence since they were essentially accessories to Ricardo’s crime.
"So that’s what happened. How long was I out?" Hajime asked. "And how’s Megumi? Is she doing all right?"
"You’ve been out for half a day. And yes, she’s doing all right, thanks to you." Kirisu responded. She didn’t dilly-dally with answering Hajime’s question so he would rest easy.
"In any case, make sure you get some rest. You’ll be very busy from here on out, Hajime." Kirisu advised before turning around. As she headed towards the door, she noticed that Megumi and her parents were walking toward Hajime’s room. She smiled. "Looks like you’ve got some important visitors."
"Ehh?" Hajime turned around before Kirisu ushered the family in. Because of the incident, he was too ashamed to face Megumi’s parents. And before he realized what he was doing, he started breathing slowly, pretending to be asleep— as if that would work when Kirisu knew that he was just pretending.
"Looks like he’s still sleeping. We should head back and let him rest." Koji spoke as Kirisu greeted the three of them. With a bow, his family greeted back before settling in in Hajime’s room. He spoke of going back to Megumi’s room but their actions spoke otherwise.
’What are they doing here?! Why aren’t they going back?!’ Hajime slightly panicked, but he still kept his breathing as slow as possible. Somehow, his hands and ribs still throb in pain, making it harder for him to not flinch every time he breathed.
"Are you going to stay here?" Kikuchi Saori asked. The reason why they went to Hajime’s room in the first place was that Megumi insisted on seeing him. Now that they’ve confirmed that Hajime wasn’t in any critical condition, they felt a little bit relieved. frёewebηovel.cѳm
Because of the literal pain in his chest, Hajime had no choice but to turn around and stop pretending that he was asleep. As his breathing returned to normal, Hajime awkwardly looked at Megumi. He didn’t know how to react after everything that’s happened.
In response, Megumi flinched and turned away from him, playing with her hair as her face turned bright red. As it turned out, the suspension bridge effect was true, and she was able to sort out her feelings due to the incident. Then again, she’d treated Hajime as a friend, even though she started liking him. That’s why right now, she had no idea how to react. There was always the choice of staying in character, but doing so would get her nowhere.
"Hajime, you’re awake. We were just talking about you." Koji extended his hand for a handshake, to which Hajime shook his hand in return. "Unfortunately, we have to leave for a moment and handle some things. Megumi will fill you in on the details of the incident. I hope you won’t be surprised."
Upon saying that, Koji and Saori stood up and bowed toward the two. They also greeted Kirisu on their way out, slowly closing the door to give Hajime and Megumi some privacy.
For a couple of minutes, Hajime and Megumi just sat there in silence, they had no idea what to say. Then again, after everything that had happened, it was hard to put everything into words. Furthermore, Megumi had affirmed that she had feelings for Hajime, but there was no way she’d tell him that. Besides, she had been a bit aggressive towards Hajime at school and he probably won’t believe her change of heart.
"Are you all right?" Hajime was the first one to ask. Even though he was in a worse state than her, he was still worried that Megumi might have suffered some injuries that he didn’t know. When he arrived at the abandoned storage as soon as he could, he knew that Megumi had been there for quite some time. No one stopped Ricardo from harming her while she was there.
With a silent nod, Megumi turned away before she asked back. "Are you o-okay?" She stammered as her mind recalled the moment when all hope was lost for her. She started tearing up but she didn’t want to show her weak side.
Hajime warmly smiled, hiding the shameful feeling in his heart since he couldn’t protect Megumi. He should’ve been able to get her out of there before the others got her— no, he should’ve been able to sense the trouble and get Megumi out of the way. But no, the moment he realized something was wrong, they were already in the middle of it.
So much for being a bodyguard.
"I’m sorry, Megumi," Hajime mumbled as he clenched his fist. "I’m not fit to stay by your side." He was referring to being a bodyguard, but Megumi thought that he was being overdramatic.
"What are you talking about? You saved me... you know..." Megumi trailed off. She had no idea why Hajime was beating himself up.
"In the first place, I was the one who got you in trouble... if it weren’t for me... I’m sorry." Hajime turned away. "I- I can’t face your parents after what happened. I’ll quit being your bodyguard... and I’m going to look for another job. I had one job, and that is to keep you safe, I didn’t follow through with my duties." freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
Megumi heaved a sigh before she stomped her foot. Mustering all her courage, she stood up and hugged Hajime. Since Hajime was on the bed, the hug caused his head to sink into Megumi’s bosom.
Hajime’s eyes widened, but he tried not to act as surprised.
"Take your time, I’ll be waiting... besides, I was going to ask you to quit being my bodyguard anyways." Megumi smiled, much to Hajime’s surprise.
