Thank You to s.e.kwan for Commissioning this Translation ♥
Disclaimer：I cannot guarantee the complete accuracy of this translation
片桐 連
CASE 1 Katagiri Ren
“Hey, I see something you might like.”
The two of us were walking along, side by side, down the shopping street when a shop display suddenly caught my eye. Inside was a stuffed rabbit with huge eyes and long ears that looked like something a girl would like.
“Wow, you’re right! It’s so cute.”
“Should I buy it for you?”
“I-It’s fine! I can buy it for myself next time.”
“Why next time? It might be sold out if we don’t get it now.”
“But, right now is a bit……”
“……?”
I found her cryptic reply odd, so I leaned over a little and took a peek at her face.
“……Now that I think of it, you were acting strange earlier too.”
“Eh, strange?”
“During lunch. There was something off about you while we were at the restaurant too, right? You were starving but all you ate was a salad.”
“It, it’s…”
“Yes?”
“It’s a bit hard to say……”
“Oh, are you on a diet perhaps?”
“What?”
“Are you worried about your weight? Is that why you only ate salad?”
“Ahaha… I guess you could say that.”
“Oh, so that’s what it was. You shouldn’t be so worried about it. Your weight hasn’t changed all that much.”
“Wait, why do you know how much I weigh?”
“You should know.”
“How?”
“How, you ask? …By the way it feels when I hold you up in my arms or when I touch you.”
“!!!”
Suddenly, her face turned red and she proceeded to strike me hard on the shoulder.
“Ow, ouch, that hurts! What was that for!?”
“That’s my line, Stupid Ren!”
“I’m not stupid.”
As she fumed, I grabbed her arms and pulled her tightly towards me.
“Hmph.”
She finally quieted down as I pressed her face against my chest.
“……Stupid Ren……You’re so insensitive……”
“Alright, alright, I’m sorry.”
“…………”
Maybe it was out of embarrassment, but when I squeezed her tightly, her face became even redder.
“Hey, hey, it’s not good when you react like that.”
“……Not good?”
“It makes me want to kiss you.”
“……!?”
She hurriedly pulled away and with her cheeks puffed out, she turned her back to me.
“Ah! Hey, wait!”
“Stupid, stupid! I don’t know you, Ren!”
“What, why!?”
I chased after her as she ran and managed to catch her.
And when I went to gently hold her hand, a slight smile returned to her unhappy expression.
Having returned to being a normal human being after years as a test subject, I’ve been spending all my days with her, as though to make up for the time I couldn’t spend with her before.
I think it was a sheer miracle that we were able to meet again. But now, she’s standing next to me as my girlfriend, and that fact alone makes my days so blissful that I wouldn’t mind dying right here and now.
Then one dayーー
“Hey, are you listening?”
“Uh, umm, sorry. What were you saying?”
“What do you mean, “what”? …I’ve been calling out to you this whole time.”
“S-Sorry…I just had something on my mind.”
“Something on your mind?”
“Erm… It’s not that important!”
“……”
Lately, she’s been acting a bit odd.
I could obviously tell that she’s hiding something from me. However, whenever I asked her about it, she stubbornly refused to talk.
“Haa… And here I was trying to invite you out.”
“Invite me out?”
“……On a date.”
“A date? I’ll go!”
After seeing the instant smile on her face, I patted my chest.
Thank god, it doesn’t seem like she hates me……
“Where would we be going?”
‘How about the movies? You know, there was that one movie that you said you wanted to watch before, right?”
“Yes! I want to go! When are we going?”
“Uh… Umm… How does tomorrow sound?”
“Tomorrow……”
“Does the time not work for you?”
“Yeah, that day is a little……”
Eh. Are you serious? Tomorrow’s my birthday.
Like, what? Don’t tell me she forgot about my birthday? No, no, that’s not possible……
“Umm, do you know what day it is tomorrow?”
“Uh, ahhhh!”
“Wha, what is it?”
“Sorry! I’ve got a drama to watch! I’m going home for the day!”
“Huh? If it’s a drama, you can watch it here at my house…”
“Sorry for the intrusion! I’ll call you later!”
“Ah- Hey?”
Before I could stop her, she collected her things and left in a hurry.
ーーWhat? Did I do something wrong?
The sense that she’s avoiding me unnaturally left a hazy feeling inside. I’m sure she…remembers my birthday, right?
And then the night before my birthday……
In the end, I never heard back from her.
What is happening? ……Normally you’d keep your plans open on the day of your boyfriend’s birthday, right? She couldn’t have forgotten, could she…?
“Ugh, dammit.”
I couldn’t take it anymore, so I called her myself.
“Hi, hello?”
“Oh, it’s me.”
“Ren? For you to call at this hour, is something the matter?”
“……”
Let’s not dance around it, let’s say it clearly. It’s simpler and better that way.
“It’s my birthday tomorrow…… Why don’t we go out somewhere?”
“Ehh…”
Hey, hey, hey, what’s with the “Ehh”?
Normally, if it’s your boyfriend’s birthday……
“Sorry…… Tomorrow, I, uh, have plans……”
“Hah…?”
“Sorr, sorry!”
She hung up the phone before I could say a thing.
“What? WHAT???”
When I saw the words “call ended”, I couldn’t help but shout. What could possibly be more important than your boyfriend’s birthday?
“Damn it all…”
I threw the phone onto the floor and slumped onto the bed.
――The next day.
“I don’t have the motivation to do anything…”
I hadn’t changed my clothes and was still in the same state I was when I woke up, laying in bed all morning.
I finally regained a normal body……
I finally got to be her boyfriend……
And yet, why? Prioritizing other things over me? Are those plans more important than me?
Since yesterday, I’ve been in a whirlwind of sadness and anger, and my mind is a mess.
It’s the day of my birthday, and yet…….
And that was whenーーthe sound of the intercom echoed inside the quiet house.
“Who the hell is at my door this early in the morning?”
Mail? Some kind of solicitation?
If it’s Kurashima, I’ll send him flying. I’d feel a lot more refreshed that way.
As I opened the front door with that silly thought in mind, suddenly, I heard a large cracker sound.
“……What?”
I stood dumbfounded as colorful confetti fluttered around me. Right in front of me was the person I had been hoping to meet.
“Ren! Happy birthday!”
Behind her were so many gift boxes that it made me wonder where they had come from. And in her hands was a bouquet so massive she could barely hold it with both arms.
“Wha, what is this……?”
“Hehe, I wanted to surprise you. Sorry for not saying anything.”
“Not saying anything…”
“These are all presents for your birthday, Ren!”
I see… So this was the reason why she was acting strangely.
The reason why she was lost in her thoughts and the reason why she ran away when I questioned her… It was all for the sake of this plan.
Then I guess, the reason why she didn’t buy that stuffed rabbit was so she could prepare me presents?
So everything up until now, was for me…?
The moment I came to that realization, I felt a twinge in the back of my nose.
“Ren…?”
“It’s, it’s nothing.”
I hugged her to hide that fact and pulled her inside the house, closing the front door behind me.
“R-Ren…”
She was caught off guard, turned bright red, and tried to resist, but it didn’t matter. Right now I was just so, so happy… I just wanted to feel her warmth.
“Ah……”
“I’m sorry, you must still be angry, right?”
“I’m not angry. I’m obviously happy… Thank you.”
“Haha. That’s good to hear.”
“However…”
I loosened the hug a little and looked her in the eye.
“I… Just by having you by my side is like receiving a present every day.”
“Ren…”
“I was seriously lonely!”
“I’m sorry……”
Forgetting that this was still the front door, I stole her lips.
“Re…n”
“Haa…”
Once our lips met, I couldn’t bear to part from them. I sought after her feverishly.
“Ah, haa… R-Ren, wait.”
“……Why?”
“We’re still by the front door.”
“Then it should be fine if we’re on the bed, right?”
“Ehh!?”
“‘Cause I can’t stop. …Hey, take responsibility for this.”
“Uh, RenーーKyah!”
I took off her shoes, held her in my arms, carried her quickly to my room, and lowered her onto my bed.
“Wait, we’re seriously going onto the bed?”
“You said it would be fine if we’re on the bed.”
“I-I didn’t say thatーー”
“Nhh……”
I cornered her against the wall and kissed her again and again. At first, her face was red with anger, but as her body relaxed, her eyes were already dazed.
“H, haa…”
“Hey.”
“……?”
“It’s my birthday, so… I’m allowed to be a little selfish today, right?”
She looked like she wanted to say something, but before she could blurt anything out, I smirked and robbed her of her lips.
Criy's Forgotten Memories 