Harem of Side Characters [Rewrite]

Shiho Manabe - Ending the Cycle

"What the heck...there's no reception down here." Karuizawa complains as she checks her phone. "Why would Hirata want to meet me in this place?"

"That's because he's not the one who wanted to meet you." A cold voice replies as Karuizawa tenses.

"Y-you!?" Karuizawa exclaims as Manabe walks in the boiler room. Karuizawa's eyes immediately scan the area, most likely trying to see if there's someone hiding in the shadows or finding an escape route. Manabe notices this, of course.

"It's just me. My friends aren't around here. I just came here alone to...talk." At that statement, Karuizawa gains a bit more confidence.

"And why should I waste my time listening to you? I don't have time for this." Karuizawa scoffs as she attempts to walk by.

"...We're not done here."

"Agh!" Manabe grabs Karuizawa's ponytail and pulls, slamming Karuizawa into the wall. Manabe was much stronger than Karuizawa, if Manabe didn't let Karuizawa leave, then she wouldn't be able to.

"You talk with that big attitude, not giving a flying fuck about what you do to others. And when the trouble that you caused comes to bite you in the ass? You just hide behind other people, pushing your problems onto them. And on top of that, you can't even stand up for yourself. What a fucking disgusting person you are."

"W-what...?"

"You heard me. You're disgusting."

"S-stop it... I didn't do anything wrong..."

"Really? You didn't do anything wrong? Fucking unreal." Manabe's glare gets even sharper as she corners Karuizawa even more. "You think I don't know why you do this shit? I'm not that stupid. It's obvious from the way you act that you've been bullied in the past." Karuizawa flinches. Her secret had been exposed.

"...But you know what?" Manabe continues. "I don't give a shit about that. Was Rika the one to bully you in the past?"

"..."

"Or was it Saki? Was it anyone who you bullied in this school?"

"..."

"...ANSWER ME!"

"NO! I'M SORRY!" Karuizawa cries. Manabe shakes her head at that response.

"No...You're not sorry. If you really were sorry, you wouldn't have kept bullying them over and over again for months." Manabe states.

"I...I..."

"...'I bullied them, but I only did it to protect myself, so it's okay! I bullied them, but it wasn't that bad, so it's okay! I bullied them, but I've gone through worse, so it's okay!'...What a fucking shitty mentality. Absolutely disgusting." Manabe scoffs.

"All the shit you do now? It has nothing to do with the past. So stop being a prissy little crybaby and take responsibility. No more bullshit excuses." Manabe pauses, then lets out a slight laugh. "Though I guess that should go for me too."

"...H-huh...?"

"...I'm not doing this for Rika, or Saki, or anyone else. I'm doing this for myself. I've just wanted to punch your stupid, condescending face for so long." Manabe cracks her knuckles. "I will never forgive you. I will never forget the shit that you've done. And I don't feel sorry in the slightest for doing this." She raises her fist.

"S-somebody! Please! Hel-" Manabe's other hand shoves Karuizawa against the metal wall, holding her in place so she can't escape.

"That's right. Beg for help. You don't have the courage to do fuck else, have you? And you're supposed to be the leader of the Class D girls, huh?" Manabe shakes her head. "Nah...You're just a weak little bitch who likes to run her mouth."

Manabe's grip loosens, and Karuizawa drops to the ground.

"...I want to hit you... I really, really do... But I won't." Manabe steps back, lowering her fist. "You're not worth it."

With that final declaration, Manabe shoves her hands in her skirt pockets and walks out of the boiler room leaving a crying Karuizawa on the ground.

...

...

The door to the boiler room opens.

"...Karuizawa."

—————

I sigh as I sluggishly walk back to my room. With the whole thing with Karuizawa dealt with, I think I'm overdue for a nice long nap.

That is until my phone suddenly rings. Looking at the caller ID, my eyes widen.

This person would never willingly call me... So the only logical explanation must be that something has happened to her, and she is in grave danger. Slowly moving my finger to the accept call button, I prepare for the worst.

"...I don't know who you are, or what you want. If you're looking for ransom, I can tell you that I don't have any money. But what I do have...are a very particular set of skills. Skills I have aquired over a very long period of time. Skills... that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my favorite tsundere go-" I get cut off.

"The fuck? It's me, asshole. And stop calling me a fucking tsundere! The dere part implies that I actually like you which I clearly do not." Manabe's snappy voice comes from the other side of the line.

"...Oh. Sorry, I must be really tired. It's been a long day, I wasn't expecting a call." I mumble.

"Whatever. It's not like I wanted to call you or anything." There it is! The token tsundere line, boss! We got her! "...I just felt like I needed to."

"I see. What could it possibly be that would make you call me this late at night?" I ask.

"The fuck you mean late? You going to sleep already, you little puss?" Glancing at the clock, I realize that it's only about 9 pm.

"...No."

"You're not fooling me with that bullshit answer. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that I thought about what you said yesterday..." Manabe pauses for a moment. "And yeah, you're right. The past doesn't define me, I'm... gonna try to move on. That's that, and this is this after all."

"That's that, and this is this?"

"Someone...very important to me taught me that phrase. I didn't really understand what she meant by it, but I think it's similar to what you told me. So...thanks, I guess." Since I can't see Manabe right now, I'm just going to imagine that she's doing the thing tsunderes do while they say thank you. Pout with a little blush while looking away.

"I'm glad you're taking it to heart. Did something happen?"

"You could say that...shit happened, yeah. Nothing you need to know. Well, I'm gonna end the call and go back to my room, don't want you thinking I'm starting to like you."

"You're not?"

"I will still punch you in the face if you annoy me." Manabe warns.

"I got it, I got it...Good night, Manabe. And congratulations on your character development." I say half-jokingly, expecting another snappy response. However, I didn't get the response I was expecting.

"...Heh. Thanks, man. Appreciate that." Manabe says before hanging up.

Instead of fueling the flames, I helped Manabe end her cycle of hate.

...I wonder what this means for our relationship going forward.