Chapter 9
Lunch time the next day
In the spacious and bright restaurant of Hyotei Academy, Rie Tanaka deliberately chose a corner seat by the window with tall green plants and a semi-partition panel.
Sunlight streamed through the glass onto the dining table, creating a rare tranquil atmosphere. She had recovered, nibbling at her fruit salad, her face a look of relief at having survived and a hint of anticipation for the future.
"Kiriyama," Rie put down her fork, her big eyes behind her round glasses looking at me seriously, her voice soft but insistent, "I heard...after school yesterday, Atobe Sama...he went to your shoe closet to wait for you? He even gave you a nice Band-Aid?"
She carefully observed my expression, "Actually... I think Atobe Sama... might really be a good person, but... well, he's not very good at expressing himself."
"Or...is there some misunderstanding between you?"
I was using a spoon to dig into the golden and soft omurice with rich sauce in front of me.
This was the only solace I discovered recently at Hyotei.
Hearing Rie's words, he stopped chewing.
Good guy? Unable to express himself? Misunderstanding?
I couldn't help but roll my eyes inwardly.
She was too naive and had too high an opinion of that arrogant, childish and controlling guy.
He swallowed the food silently and put down the spoon. The metal handle made a crisp sound when it hit the porcelain plate. He sighed, his voice filled with deep helplessness and fatigue.
"Rie, I don't know why he disliked me from the beginning."
"It started on the tennis court when I misunderstood his poor tennis skills and apologized, but he only got worse."
"As for the rooftop incident..." I paused, my eyes slightly cold. "I heard he dealt with the ringleader and gave him a serious warning. So what? Isn't this his job as the student council president?"
"Does that mean I should be grateful just because he did his job?"
He picked up the spoon and unconsciously poked the golden egg skin on the plate, his tone carrying a subtle hint of self-mockery and sarcasm:
"And, you know what?" He looked up at Rie, his voice low but clear in the quiet corner, "Is there any difference between the way he handed me the Band-Aid yesterday and the way he handed me that stack of bills before?"
"He always uses his superior way to 'give' me what he thinks is 'right'."
"It's as if I owe him something just because I used his high-end Band-Aid or accepted his money, and I should be grateful and obedient to him."
"I……"
He straightened his back slightly, his eyes sharp and firm:
"I don't need his charity."
"I don't need his self-righteous 'conceit'."
"But... Kiriyama..." Tanaka Rie was stung by the coldness in my words, and she felt a little anxious and tried to calm down.
"Atobe Sama...he really did a lot for the school!"
"He sponsored a lot of new equipment, textbooks, and instruments, and also set up high-value scholarships so that ordinary people like me can also study at Hyotei with scholarships."
"The restaurant we're eating at now is so beautiful and has so many delicious dishes. It was all sponsored and renovated by the Atobe family!"
"Even your favorite omelet rice..."
She pointed at the food on my plate that was slightly deformed by the poking. "These are all added to the menu after being tasted by Atobe Sama himself! He is actually... very meticulous... He handles everything with his heart..."
boom--!
Rie's words exploded like a bomb in my mind!
I suddenly lowered my head and stared at the tempting-looking omelet rice on the plate, which had brought me countless comforts during this period.
A restaurant sponsored by the Atobe family?
The menu ordered by Keigo Atobe himself?
Even my favorite omurice...was chosen by him?
The impact of this realization is greater than that stack of bills and that box of Band-Aids combined.
I feel like a fool, a puppet being kept in the dark.
The last bit of peace and happiness she thought she had found at Hyotei—this omelet rice actually bore that man's mark from beginning to end?!
He subconsciously covered his mouth and his face turned pale instantly.
The spoon in his hand fell onto the plate with a clang, making a harsh sound.
The omelet rice in my mouth became difficult to swallow, and I couldn't decide whether to swallow it or not.
"Bang!"
A loud noise suddenly came from behind the partition next to it, and the sound was like someone hitting the table hard.
I was frightened by the sudden loud noise and turned my head sharply to look at the source of the sound.
I saw that the tall partition that was originally used to block the view and provide privacy was roughly pushed open by someone from next door. The heavy partition hit the wall with a dull loud noise.
The scene revealed behind the baffle made Tanaka Rie cover her mouth instantly and her eyes widened in horror, and the blood in my body seemed to freeze in an instant.
There were two people sitting at the next table.
It was Keigo Atobe, whose face was ashen and who exuded a destructive low pressure.
And Oshitari Yuushi was sitting opposite him, with a look of despair on his face that said "I knew it would be like this", "It's over, it's all over", and covering his face in pain.
Atobe Keigo had obviously been sitting here for a long time, and the plate in front of him was hardly touched.
At this moment, he maintained the posture of punching the table just now. The joints on the back of his hand turned white due to the force and were trembling slightly.
He stood up suddenly, his figure carrying an overwhelming sense of oppression. His eyes were no longer cold, but burning with a fire of being thoroughly hurt. Deep in that fire was a meaning that I could not see clearly.
He stared at us intently.
His gaze was like a red-hot iron, burning me so much that I could hardly breathe.
He heard it.
He heard it all.
Hearing me say he was "giving alms".
Hearing me call him "self-righteously concerned".
Hear me say "no".
He even...heard Rie's words in defense, which inadvertently revealed his hidden thoughts.
"Hehe... hehe..." Atobe Keigo suddenly laughed softly. The laughter was hoarse and broken, with a heart-pounding self-mockery and icy anger.
He slowly lowered his hands from the table, walked around the partition step by step, and came to our table.
Every step was like stepping on solidified air, making a heavy echo.
Yuushi Oshitari quickly stood up and followed, wanting to hold him back, but he didn't dare, so he could only stand anxiously by the side.
Rie Tanaka was so scared that she huddled beside me, trembling.
Atobe finally stopped in front of me, looking down at my face and the omelet rice in front of me that was stabbed all over.
His eyes swept across the plate of rice, then back to my face. The corners of his mouth curled up in an arc of extreme irony, yet also filled with deep pain. His gorgeous voice was now hoarse like sandpaper rubbing against it:
"Alms?"
"Self-righteous concern?"
"unnecessary?"
"Very good... Kiriyamagakure... You said it very well!"
He suddenly leaned over, his hands on the table in front of me, completely covering me in his shadow.
"Do you think I appreciate your gratitude?! Huh?!" Although he lowered his voice, his anger and hurt were as real as his substance.
"Sponsor a restaurant? Order a menu? Haha..."
He sneered, his eyes as sharp as a knife, as if he wanted to cut me open completely:
"I never made these to make an ungrateful woman like you feel good! And certainly not to make you feel grateful to me!"
"Hyotei is my kingdom! Making it better is my responsibility and interest! That's all!"
"As for you..."
His gaze was like an icy blade, scraping across my face inch by inch, finally settling on my almond-shaped eyes, which were filled with shock and stubbornness. Word by word, with incomparable clarity and a cruel and resolute tone of utter rage, he declared:
"Who do you think you are?"
"Are you worthy enough to ask me to do something specially for you?!"
"You don't deserve it!"
"Bang!" After saying the last word, Atobe Keigo suddenly stood up straight, as if looking at me for one more second would be a defilement.
He gave me one last deep look filled with complex pain and fury, turned around, and with a murderous rage that almost burned everything and an unconcealable embarrassment, he pushed away Yuushi Ozaki who was trying to catch up with him, and rushed out of the restaurant without looking back.
That back view was filled with the meaning of completely wounded pride and fleeing in desperation.
Oshitari Yuushi watched his minister walk away resolutely, then looked back at Kiriyama Gakuin, who was frozen in her seat with a grim expression, and Tanaka Rie, who was frightened and on the verge of tears. He wiped his face in pain and sighed helplessly:
"Kiriyama-san... ah..."
The restaurant was dead silent, and everyone was stunned by this sudden and explosive scene.
I still sat there stiffly, with the cold, hideous omelet rice in front of me.
Keigo Atobe's words "You don't deserve it!" pierced through my brain like a devil's voice, echoing in my ears over and over again.
The cold lingering sound stung my eardrums and sent waves of unfamiliar, sharp pain through my heart.
The omelet rice that once brought comfort now exuded a disgusting smell.
The entire Hyotei Academy seemed to be shrouded in the cold and humiliating shadow left by that man.
calm?
It had already been torn to pieces.
All that was left was a mess and the words engraved in my bones: "You don't deserve it."
The restaurant suddenly became silent, as if even the air had frozen.
All the glances I received—curious, inquisitive, gloating, sympathetic—stung me like needles. The suppressed whispers, like countless buzzing flies, burrowed into my ears and made my head hum.
He said...you don't deserve it?
Why does he do that?
Why does he keep breaking into my life, humiliating me, making things difficult for me, and then denying me so easily in his condescending way?
A huge feeling, mixed with the intense humiliation of being watched by so many people, made my face hot, and the confused and sour feeling in my heart was like a raging tsunami, instantly breaking through the dam called "calmness" and "indifference" that I had forcefully built!
I always thought that I was strong enough, calm enough, and that I could use my hard shell to resist all the malice in this campus.
But at this moment, facing this naked and complete denial from the Ice Emperor in front of everyone, that bit of stubbornness was crushed to pieces.
My throat was blocked. The omelet rice that I had just forced down was like a piece of red-hot charcoal, burning my esophagus and bringing waves of nausea.
I subconsciously covered my mouth, trying to suppress the surging sourness, but I felt a soreness in my nose and my vision blurred instantly.
Can’t cry…
Absolutely don't cry!
I can't show weakness in front of him! I can't let him get away with it!
I bit my lower lip so hard I could taste blood, trying to suppress the tears that surged in my eyes with the pain. However, my emotions were like a flood that burst through a dam, completely out of control.
Without warning, a drop of scalding liquid landed heavily on the edge of the cold plate in front of him, creating a tiny splash and spreading a small dark spot on the solidified sauce.
Then, the second drop, the third drop... like pearls with broken strings, they rolled uncontrollably from under the drooping eyelashes, hitting the tablecloth and leaving dark dots.
She didn't even make a sob, but her body trembled slightly. She lowered her head, stared at the plate, and let the hot tears slide silently down her pale cheeks.
That forbearing, broken posture makes people feel more heartbroken than any wailing.
Why……
Why do you have to target me like this...
What did I do wrong...
This man... is so inexplicable... so unreasonable...
The huge grievance and confusion, like a cold tide, completely drowned me.
At this moment, Keigo Atobe, who rushed out of the restaurant and was walking towards the student union room with a violent and violent attitude, also had a destructive storm surging in his heart!
"You don't deserve it!"
The moment those three words left his mouth, he felt a twisted, vindictive pleasure. It was as if he had finally lashed out at the frustration, anger, and humiliation of being ignored that had been pent up for days. But what followed was a cold panic and self-loathing that grew like poison ivy.
He saw it!
He saw it clearly!
The moment he said that, shock and hurt instantly shattered in those almond-shaped eyes that were always calm or cold and contemptuous.
That look was like a red-hot blunt knife, stabbing into his heart.
And her face turned pale as paper in an instant, and the way she covered her mouth, trying hard to hold back her sobs...
Damn it!
Atobe Keigo slammed his fist into the cold wall of the corridor!
The sharp pain in his knuckles was nothing compared to the torment he was feeling inside! He strode into the student union room and slammed the door shut with a thud, shaking the room.
He paced restlessly in the luxurious space like a trapped animal, his expensive leather shoes clattering heavily on the polished floor. He replayed the scenes in the restaurant over and over in his mind—her stubborn eyes, her self-deprecating poking at the omurice, her instantly grimace when she heard, "He ordered the omurice," and… finally, the silent tears that rolled down her cheeks.
"She asked for it!" He growled into the air, trying to convince himself, but his voice trembled slightly. "It was her! She was the first to deny everything! She was the one who took my... concern... as charity! It was her..."
However, the echo of "You don't deserve it" kept ringing in his ears like a spell, along with the broken image of her crying with her head down, like the sharpest file, repeatedly scraping his nerves and conscience.
He rushed to the desk, grabbed an innocent document, and tried to tear it up in anger. The paper groaned under the weight in his hands.
Just then—
"Ding Dong."
The screen of his phone, which was placed on the table, suddenly lit up. It was a message from Oshitari.
Atobe cursed irritably and wanted to ignore it, but for some unknown reason, he still grabbed the phone and swiped the screen with anger that had nowhere to vent.
There are no text in Yuushi Oshizuka's message.
There is only one picture.
A photo...just taken, with extremely clear details.
In the photo, it is exactly that location in the corner of the restaurant.
Wu Shanyin lowered her head, and a few strands of her long black hair hung messily on her cheeks, covering part of her face.
But one could still clearly see her pale face, her tightly pursed, slightly trembling, bloodless lips, and the tears that rolled silently down from under her drooping eyelashes, like pearls from a broken string, one after another.
A crystal teardrop was hanging on the edge of her small chin, about to fall.
The sunlight shining through the window onto her did not bring any warmth, but instead clearly revealed the fragility, grievance, and silent sense of brokenness that surrounded her.
She was like a white camellia flower, knocked off a branch in a storm and about to wither: beautiful yet breathtakingly fragile, a devastating contrast to her usual cold, aloof, stubborn, and tough demeanor.
This photo, like the most precise arrow, with a tremendous force, fiercely penetrated all of Atobe's angry armor, and like the coldest cold current, instantly froze all his violence.
“…”
Atobe froze in place, as if under a spell. The light from his phone screen illuminated his face, filled with shock and bewilderment.
He stared at the teardrop hanging on her chin in the photo, as if he could hear the sound of it breaking when it fell. That silent cry was more lethal than any accusation.
What did he just do?!
He yelled "You don't deserve it" to a girl who... he had forced her to cry in public?!
He, Atobe Keigo... When did he become like this? !
An overwhelming, cold regret instantly overwhelmed him like a tsunami.
That feeling was a hundred times, a thousand times, worse than being taken advantage of in the student union room, being ignored in the library, or being refused money and Band-Aids at the school gate combined!
The fingers holding the phone were white and trembling from the excessive force. In his other hand, the crumpled document slipped silently to the ground.
He looked at the picture of Kiriyama Yin, who was crying silently and looked so fragile that she seemed to be broken at the slightest touch. Then he recalled the cruel words he had just said, roaring like a wild beast...
Atobe Keigo's throat felt like it was being tightly gripped by an invisible hand, making it impossible for him to utter a single sound. A sharp pain, unlike anything he had ever experienced before, gripped his heart fiercely, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
Yuushi Ozuki stood outside the student union room, listening to the deathly silence inside. He pushed his glasses, and his eyes behind the lenses were complicated and tired.
You should have received the photo...
Atobe...
This time, you really messed up.
This job... is truly inhumane! It's like ice and fire!
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