The Guy I've Always Loved (Anime Story)

Chapter 45: Trying to Forget

- Takami's POV -

Flashback

Suddenly, in front of the whole class, Mariko kissed Aki on the lips. Aki's eyes wide open and Mariko's closed. Everyone stood there in shock.

...

"Is it because we haven't kissed yet?" Kiyoshi smiled as he put his arms around me. "Don't worry, I'll make our first kiss special."

Back to the Present

I laid on my bed and thought about what happened.

Whenever I think about Aki with Mariko, my heart feels uneasy; and when I think about Kiyoshi, my heart feels happy. Then again, Kiyoshi did help me when I was about to cry in front of Aki...

I grabbed the pillow from my bed and wondered what I should do. My eyes widened. "Why am I even thinking about this? Aki is already engaged to Mariko, there's no way he would come back to me." I smiled and exited my room. Then I saw Kenta in front of me. "What's wrong?"

"Why are you like this?" Kenta asked. "Why are you letting him go?"

I formed a smile on my face. "And why are you so concerned about my love life?" 

"Because I obviously want you to choose one already! My heart can't take any more of this!" Kenta quickly ran back to his room. 

I softly chuckled. "Yes, yes. I will." 

At Tapioca

I opened the door to Tapioca and saw Sachie serving milk teas. All of a sudden, tears ran down my face. 

Sachie looked toward the door and her eyes widened. "Takami??" 

"Sachie!" I, immediately, ran toward her and hugged her waist. "I've missed you so much!" 

5 Minutes Later

"It's been a while." Sachie placed a milk tea on the booth I was sitting at. 

I tried to hold back my tears. "Yeah... a lot has happened." I grabbed the drink and took a sip. 

"Is it more guy problems?" She smirked. 

I blinked twice and looked up at her. "How did you know?" 

She chuckled. "Of course. Even though we haven't been hanging out much lately, I know what bothers you." Sachie quickly sat down and smiled. "So tell me what's wrong?" 

I sniffled. "Aki's back... and... I don't know what to do..." 

She sighed. "With all that's happened, I don't think it's the best idea to get back together with Akihiro." 

My eyes widened. "What do you mean?" 

"Look at how much has happened between you and Akihiro..." Sachie took a pause. "...and look at how much you got hurt." 

I wiped away my tears. "What happened to you, Sachie? You used to be so positive about things." 

She looked down at the table and put on a fake smile. "Sorry about that but life has been difficult for me." Sachie took a pause. "My parents got divorced." 

"I'm sorry..." I put on a smile. "...but things will get better. You just need time adjusting." 

On the Streets

Once I left Tapioca, I put my earbuds in my ears and listened to music. I headed back home until I saw Aki in front of me, holding a bag of groceries. 

"Takami?" Aki looked surprised. 

My face started to turn red and my eyes started to get teary. "I'm sorry, I gotta go." I, immediately, turned around and headed the opposite direction on where I intended to go. 

"Wait!" He quickly grabbed my arm, as my hair covered my eyes. "We need to talk." 

On the Park Swings

Aki and I sat on the swings and slowly rocked back and forth. 

"Are you feeling better?" Aki looked at me. "After you cried, I mean." 

"Yeah... I'm better..." I looked down at the floor, trying to avoid eye contact. "Oh, look at the time, I have to go home. I'll see you around." I got off the swing and Aki quickly grabbed my arm. 

His hair covered his eyes. "I'm sorry. I know that I've been making things difficult for you. After all, I came back, out of nowhere. I don't understand why you cried that day, but... just forget about me. All I want is for you to be happy, after all." 

I quickly turned around while tears ran down my face. "Do you know why I cried that day? Because I couldn't bear the fact that you were with someone else! Sachie and you are telling me to forget but I can't! Every time I try to forget, I continue to think about you! Even though we were separated... I don't think I ever stopped loving you." I yelled outside, trying to vent my emotions. 

All of a sudden, we heard a phone drop to the ground. I turned around and my eyes widened. "Kiyoshi?" 

Kiyoshi's eyes were widened and then he looked away. "Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop." His hair covered his eyes. 

I put my hands on my heart and walked toward Kiyoshi. "No, I'm sorry. We've only been dating for a short while and I broke your heart..." 

Kiyoshi, then, formed a smile. "It's no problem. I've known all along. I hope you figure out your problems so that you guys can be together." 

"Really?" Aki and I asked in unison. "You're not mad?" 

He continued to smile. "Nope."