A few minutes later.
Goto Hitori, who had fainted from extreme nervousness, gradually regained consciousness.
She felt herself lying on something rather hard, which was a bit uncomfortable.
However, her head was resting on something warm and soft, which she liked very much, and she instinctively rubbed her head against it.
Tanaka Masao looked down at Goto Hitori, who was lying on his lap and rubbing her head against him, and said,
"You're awake."
Still a bit groggy, Goto Hitori heard the deep voice, opened her eyes, and looked up.
A face with a triple chin, large nostrils, a fat head, big ears, and a warm (perverted) and (lewd) smile appeared before her.
In just a moment, Goto Hitori fainted again.
Looking at the girl who had just opened her eyes and fainted again, Tanaka Masao scratched his head, somewhat puzzled.
Why did she faint again? Suddenly, his eyes lit up, as if he had thought of something.
"I know this situation. Fainting suddenly must be due to low blood sugar.
I should have thought of it earlier. Otherwise, a normal person wouldn't faint so easily for no reason."
Tanaka Masao began to search his body, preparing to put some candy in Goto Hitori's mouth.
...
In her unconscious state, Goto Hitori felt something hard being put into her mouth. She tried to resist but couldn't.
"So sweet."
That hard thing was a candy. Feeling the sweetness emanating from the candy, Goto Hitori showed a blissful expression.
"I love it.
What kind of candy is this? It has a milky aroma. It was hard when I first put it in my mouth, but it softened after holding it for a while. I love this texture."
Goto Hitori stuck out her tongue and licked the corner of her mouth, licking back the saliva that was about to drip out.
Seeing Goto Hitori's reaction, Tanaka Masao's face showed a relieved smile.
Sure enough, she had fainted due to low blood sugar.
He gently shook Goto Hitori and called out softly,
"Hey, wake up."
Hearing the call, Goto Hitori opened her eyes again, and the same big, fat face came into view.
She gasped, but whether it was because she had developed resistance after being startled once, or because the candy in her mouth comforted her, this time Goto Hitori did not faint directly.
However, she was still visibly nervous and scared, instinctively wanting to escape and find a quiet, dark, deserted corner to hide and relax.
But when Goto Hitori saw her surroundings clearly, she almost went crazy.
As time passed, quite a few people had gradually boarded the train.
Goto Hitori, resting on Tanaka Masao's lap and lying on a row of seats, naturally attracted a lot of attention.
Almost everyone was observing the two of them.
Tanaka Masao himself was not socially anxious, and having been with Yukinoshita Yukino for so long, he had long been accustomed to being watched by others.
Goto Hitori, however, couldn't handle it. When she realized so many people were staring at her, she immediately broke down and instinctively looked for a place to hide.
Goto Hitori, who was originally lying flat on Tanaka Masao's lap, turned inward and hid herself.
"Wuwuwu, don't see me, don't see me."
"Hiss~"
Tanaka Masao couldn't help but gasp.
Goto Hitori hugged her head, trembling and breathing rapidly, immersed in her own world, completely unaware of Tanaka Masao's abnormality.
The other people on the train saw this scene and all raised their eyebrows, revealing a knowing smile.
Everyone understood.
Seeing that the train was about to stop at the next station, Tanaka Masao took the guitar placed beside him and put it on his back.
Then he picked up Goto Hitori, who was lying on his lap, and rushed off the train as if fleeing.
Watching Tanaka Masao rush off the train with Goto Hitori in his arms, the other passengers on the train all showed knowing smiles.
"He couldn't hold back, he's going to take care of it anywhere he can find.
Youth is great."
On the other side, Tanaka Masao carried Goto Hitori to a secluded, deserted corner, gasping for breath.
He put down Goto Hitori and the guitar on his back, then finally breathed a sigh of relief and adjusted his jammed 'trajectory'.
"Phew, much better."
Having resolved the crisis, Tanaka Masao finally had time to look at Goto Hitori, who was lying on the ground, hugging her head and trembling non-stop.
The series of emergencies at first had left Tanaka Masao no extra time to think.
But now, looking at the amorphous blob on the ground, he finally remembered who she was.
Pink long hair, pink tracksuit, carrying a guitar, and capable of twisting and deforming—it's you, Goto Hitori, also known as Bocchi-chan.
Why is she called Bocchi-chan? Because in Japanese, the pronunciation of 'Hitori' is similar to 'Bocchi', which means 'loneliness'.
Tanaka Masao was a bit troubled by this girl who was extremely socially anxious.
It would be easy to manipulate her. He could even make Goto Hitori bear him several children, like the Ox Warrior in those manga given by the system.
But Tanaka Masao was still a man with a conscience, so he planned to heal the cute girl in front of him with gentleness and love.
Tanaka Masao extended his foot and kicked Goto Hitori's butt, saying,
"There's no one else here. Get up quickly."
Is this what you call gentleness?
Goto Hitori, who was originally immersed in her own world, escaping reality, heard this and slowly released her hands from her head, opening her eyes to survey her surroundings.
"Ah, it's my favorite dark, deserted corner. It would be even better if the person in front of me wasn't here."
Although there was a stranger present, Goto Hitori was still very scared and nervous.
But perhaps because she had just dealt with so many people at once, her tolerance had increased, allowing her to barely cope with Tanaka Masao alone.
"Hehe, I didn't run away or faint when facing a stranger. I've really grown a lot, haven't I?"
Actually, given their current positions, Goto Hitori couldn't run away even if she wanted to, because this place was very secluded, and the only exit was behind Tanaka Masao. She was essentially trapped in this dark corner.
Goto Hitori's emotions had stabilized before the meeting, and Tanaka Masao spoke.
"My name is Tanaka Masao. What's yours?"
"Go...Gotou...Hitori..."
Goto Hitori stammered out her name, appearing meek on the surface, but in reality, her heart was blooming with joy.
"Yay, I successfully said my name! So amazing! Is this the legendary self-introduction?"
Tanaka Masao nodded. Sure enough, his guess was correct. The person in front of him was Goto Hitori, the protagonist of "Bocchi the Rock!".
"Goto Hitori, huh? Then I'll call you Hitori Bocchi from now on."
"Huh?"