The Shadow Manipulator

Chapter 18: Upperclassmen

Wait a minute?! Yume! Stop burying your head on my shoulder! I might drop my lunch! I thought as I tried to shake her off, but to no avail.

Aki-san, grabbing the opportunity, got the bento box I was holding and ate the lunch for herself while giving me a cheery smile. All this time, Yume was crying on my shoulders while hugging me tighter and tighter.

How did I get into this predicament?! I told myself.

Well, first off, I saved Yume from the locker incident all thanks to Master Ryu. And after bringing her here, I ate my lunch with Aki-san and suddenly, Yume threw herself at me and cried. Phew. I sighed as I tried to recall what happened.

"Thanks for the food, Hikari." Aki-san cheerfully said. "I will repay your kindness as soon as possible." She sincerely smiled.

"It's fine!" I told her. I still have another one. I said to myself.

"You should probably stay like that and let her cry herself out. She must have been scared being locked there, you know." Aki-san advised. "And while you're at it. Why don't you pat her back a little, so you can comfort her or something."

"Will that work?" I curiously asked.

"Of course it does! Unless you want to stay there until she falls asleep after crying her heart out. If you comfort her, she will stop crying sooner than crying herself out and taking a nap on your shoulder." Aki-san whispered to me.

Now that Aki-san said it, patting her back is the best course of action to take. Otherwise, I'll stay stiff for hours while she takes a nap on my shoulders, not counting the time when she'll cry herself out and fall asleep. I reasoned to myself as I stared at her hair. (Well, that's the only thing I could see from my position.)

Instead of patting her back, I began stroking her hair just like what my mom does when I cry. I don't know but I think stroking her hair must be more comforting than patting her back. In any case, Aki-san smiled at me as she continue to eat the bento that Yuki gave me. Hehe, just enjoy yourself, Aki-san. I won't share the bento that Mitsumi gave me. I said to myself.

There, there. I said to myself as I stroked her hair. Please, stop crying already! My shoulders are dripping wet!"

To my relief, she slowly recovered from her trauma, I think. In any case, her crying has lowered down a little bit. (She's still hugging me though.)

"I'm so sorry, Hikari." She murmured while sniffling.

"No, it's fine! Just cry it all out. You're probably scared." I told her. "Are you okay now?"

"No, it's not that." She murmured. "I'm so sorry for being a burden."

If I didn't enhance my hearing, I wouldn't have been able to hear what she just said. Burden? What does she mean by that? I asked myself.

"Um, Yume, may I ask you a question? Why were you locked in your locker? Did someone lock you there?" I asked, although I knew that some upperclassmen locked her there. I just wanted the school nurse to hear it from her.

"I'm really sorry, Hikari! They were badmouthing you in the locker and I told them to stop. They got angry at me and locked me in my locker, telling me that they would let me go after school." Yume explained. "Everybody's just going with the flow, you know; like being friends with Sekai and all that, and at the same time, bad-mouthing you, I couldn't  help it, and I ended up being a burden. I'm really sorry!"

Wait?! I can't breathe!

"Oh, so that's what happened." Aki-san said after hearing Yume's explanation. "Aren't you glad, Hikari. It seems like not everyone hates you after all."