"Bocchi-chan, isn't it very hard to spend so much time commuting to school every day?"
Goto Hitori, who was currently looking down, unsure of what to do and feeling uncomfortable because there were other people around, heard this.
She looked up at Tanaka Masao, then quickly lowered her head again.
"This must be what they call hitting on someone, hehe, I'm a little excited.
What should I do now? Should I respond enthusiastically, acting like a seasoned veteran at being hit on?
Or should I act cool and ignore him?"
In the end, Goto Hitori chose…
…timidity over enthusiasm and coolness.
"Although it's a bit far, it's fine. I don't have anything else to do anyway."
Hearing this, Tanaka Masao thought it was a good thing this was in Japan, where classes start at nine in the morning and end at three in the afternoon.
If she were in neighboring China, commuting four hours a day to school would be out of the question.
Even for those who live at school and only go home once a week or month, their homes wouldn't be this far away.
"Why choose a school so far from home? Wouldn't it be better to choose one closer?"
Tanaka Masao naturally knew the reason; she simply wanted to find a school where no one knew her and start a new life.
But knowing is one thing; for now, they still needed some simple topics to chat about.
"I…"
Goto Hitori heard this and chose to answer truthfully.
"I chose this school because I like it."
Tanaka Masao raised his eyebrows at this, saying nothing more, just staring intently at the somewhat guilty Goto Hitori.
Goto Hitori lowered her head, clenching her skirt, feeling the gaze from beside her. She still couldn't resist, closing her eyes and saying resignedly,
"Alright, actually, I wanted to find a place where no one knew me to start a new school life."
Tanaka Masao nodded, stating that telling the truth makes her a good child.
"I know, this is what they call a university debut, changing your image, abandoning the past, and starting a new life—it's a very common thing.
So, what was the result?"
"The result…"
Goto Hitori buried her head even deeper; if she could, she would have stuffed her head into her chest.
"It failed."
"I didn't become popular, and I didn't even make a single friend."
"Yes."
Goto Hitori's aura grew weaker and weaker, transforming from a little rabbit into a slipper slug, showing signs of regressing to a single-celled organism.
She really wanted to find a hole to… crawl into now.
Looking at the very dejected and somewhat mortified Goto Hitori, Tanaka Masao spoke to comfort her.
"It's just not having friends; that's a very normal thing."
"Very normal?"
Goto Hitori, who had been very down, couldn't help but look up at Tanaka Masao when she heard this.
"Could it be…"
Her eyes were a little expectant, as if she had found a kindred spirit.
Tanaka Masao nodded.
"That's right, I used to be all alone too, without any friends."
Hearing this, Goto Hitori's eyes lit up.
"So we're kindred spirits? Then it should be easy to get along."
Just as Goto Hitori was happy and somewhat relieved to find a kindred spirit, she heard Tanaka Masao continue,
"But I've been trying to change recently, and I've made several friends."
Goto Hitori, whose mood had just started to improve, instantly felt ashamed upon hearing this.
"So he's a successful person? I apologize for presumptuously categorizing you as a kindred spirit."
At this moment, Tanaka Masao took out his phone and asked,
"Since we've met, would you like to exchange contact information and become friends?"
Looking at the phone Tanaka Masao held out, Goto Hitori blinked.
"May I?"
"Of course, you may."
"Yes, yes."
Goto Hitori took out her own phone and said somewhat respectfully,
"Please, I must add you."
As the phone chimed, Goto Hitori's phone contacts, besides her parents and sister, now included one more person.
She held her phone, looking at the new contact within, feeling a little excited.
"So exchanging contact information and making friends is this simple? It feels so easy!
Could it be that I'm actually a social butterfly?"
The sky cleared, the rain stopped, and Goto Hitori felt like she could do it again.
"Oh, that's right."
Goto Hitori seemed to remember something and quickly rummaged through her pocket.
She took out her wallet and offered it with both hands.
"This is all the money I have on me; please accept it."
Looking at the wallet Goto Hitori offered, Tanaka Masao did not take it.
"What does this mean? Are you thanking me for saving your life just now? If so, this amount of money isn't enough."
"Ah, no, this is to thank you for being my friend. Please don't block me."
Goto Hitori was clearly a bit flustered. She didn't know how she had unknowingly accumulated so much debt, so she could only say,
"As… as for saving my life, I have no way to repay you, I can only…
…I can only give you all my dowry. Does that work?"
"Dowry, huh…"
Tanaka Masao mused.
"It doesn't feel like enough."
"Ah, not enough."
Goto Hitori shrank her head.
"Then… then what do you think I should do?"
"How about…"
Tanaka Masao looked Goto Hitori up and down, who was somewhat scared and worried, and said with an evil smile,
"Play a song for me."
"Huh?"
Goto Hitori didn't react for a moment. She had thought Tanaka Masao would ask for more money, so she didn't expect him to ask her to play a song.
"That's right."
Tanaka Masao pointed to the guitar placed beside them.
"You're carrying it, so you must know how to play, right? Play a song for me, as a thank you for my help just now. How about that?"
"Oh, that's… but…"
Asking Goto Hitori to play the guitar was no problem for her at all, and she was quite confident in her guitar skills.
But the problem was, they were on a train, and there were many people around. She really couldn't bring herself to do it in front of so many people.
She clutched her skirt, asking somewhat bashfully,
"Here?"
"Why not?"
"But with so many people watching, I… I can't…"
"How do you know you can't if you don't try? Just once, what's the big deal? What's the big deal?"
Just as the two were talking, the train arrived at Shimokitazawa Station.
A blonde girl with a ponytail and another blue-haired girl boarded the train.
The blonde girl's name was Ijichi Nijika, and the blue-haired girl's name was Yamada Ryo.
As soon as Yamada Ryo got on the train, she noticed Tanaka Masao and Goto Hitori in the corner. Seeing the two, she raised an eyebrow and nudged Ijichi Nijika beside her with her elbow.
"Hey, Nijika, look at those two."
Ijichi Nijika, somewhat puzzled, looked in the direction Yamada Ryo was pointing.
She saw a somewhat chubby boy with a lewd smile saying something to the girl next to him.
And the girl was clutching her skirt, her face flushed, looking resistant and unwilling.