Stars | Ishigami Senku (DISCONTINUED)

Chapter Fourteen

"I'm sorry."

"Eh?" Senku stops in the middle of the street, turning to you with a raised eyebrow.

The sky's orange hue melted away with the sun a long time ago, the moon and stars replacing them.

Your companion waited for you to say something. The light made Senku's impatient expression apparent, and he was making it even more clear by crossing his arms and huffing.

"What is it? Speak up," he says, looking around the rather silent neighborhood. You and Senku always go through there when going home. The route when riding a vehicle would be different but faster. You miss the times when you used to ride a car with the Ishigamis, or when you and your parents drove to a place for fun rather than for moving to a different house.

You miss your childhood in particular.

You almost forgot about Senku. You nervously look up and made eye contact with him, before fixing your gaze to the side.

You weren't entirely sure why you had apologized suddenly. The whole walk was silent after you both left school, and it was an awkward silence that you could have tolerated. Your habit of apologizing when it wasn't necessary was showing again. Or was it necessary this time? You didn't know.

"For..." Your voice grows distant, several memories surfacing in your mind.

Actually, now that you thought about it, you had a lot to apologize for. You've been annoying Senku for your whole life and even forced yourself to go past his boundaries. There were several moments where you were sure Senku felt discomfort when you suddenly embraced him or held his hand without context.

He occasionally scolds you and slaps your head to discipline you, and you always find yourself thinking if he hated you, but stuck around for old time's sake. Maybe he didn't want to end your friendship because his father and your parents were close.

"For..." You try again, now looking up and properly facing Senku. There was a good distance between you two, but close enough that he could hear you. You force a smile when you realized something.

For as long as you can remember, you've been following Senku wherever he went. You supported him, helped him even. He was always walking ahead of you, and you trailed from behind in content.

Something tells you it's always been like that since the beginning. You can never recall a moment in your life where you stood by his side as an equal, and you certainly haven't excelled in anything that could possibly impress Senku. You were always the one marveling at the things he did and achieved.

Yuzuriha was in the Crafts Club and Taiju's stamina and strength were befitting of an athlete. Compared to them, you had nothing to boast about. Nothing to impress them.

You wonder if you were just inserted in this world without purpose. Just a sudden figment of a god's imagination. Just a random form with its roles changeable to a creator's will. But just when you finally had a role, a reason to exist, they suddenly lose all interest and aspirations and abandoned your character halfway through.

Maybe, in an alternate universe, you didn't even exist. Maybe Senku, Yuzuriha, and Taiju would be the main protagonists of a series.

How depressing. But it seemed fun. You could just be a nameless spectator watching their grand adventures.

Well, that thought wasn't as reassuring as you made it to be. You feel cold now.

A small thud followed by a distinct zipping sound distracts you from your mind. Then, your vision became temporarily dark. It took you a while to notice that Senku threw his jacket at you. Why he carried it in the first place, you didn't know.