Utapri Short Stories

Bad Liar - Part 1

Lies are sometimes said to protect people, but there is nothing more dangerous than a well-intentioned lie. Syo and Haruka found this out in the worst possible way. A little lie that seemed small and simple to prevent the other person from worrying, became a lie of gigantic proportions that ended their friendship when they were younger.

Now, 7 years later, the two have met again and Syo is not sure how to start a conversation with her. He invented that lie so long ago... He was always a terrible liar and bitterly regretted not telling the truth right away. Haruka was working on the same project as him. She was going to compose the music for his commercial... But despite being there right in front of her, she didn't seem to recognize him.

Haruka had noticed that the blond boy had been staring at her for a long time and it made her feel a little uncomfortable, but she didn't want to go and talk to him. He reminded her of an old friend she stopped up talking to after he did something terrible by lying to her. Her suspicions were confirmed when his name was called up to film the commercial. He was really Syo Kurusu.

Syo tried to talk to her after recording his scene for the first time. They would need to make some adjustments in the arrangement of the commercial's music and also in the costumes. The actors were given a 30-minute break, but Haruka was too busy with the work that was given to her, so he just left her alone. He wasn't even sure how to start that conversation after so many years... What should he say? Apologize right away? Pretend that nothing happened?

Haruka tried to avoid the boy during the whole session, talking only as much about the commercial as needed, even if that was not the way she liked to work. She preferred to get to know the people for whom she would compose her songs better. But her heart was still badly bruised from the wounds of the past. She didn't want that to happen again. It took a long time to get the pieces of her heart fixed.

Syo had noticed that she didn't want to talk to him, so he simply let her talk about professional matters only. They managed to correct some problems, but they would only have to continue filming the next day. Everyone was dismissed and Haruka grabbed her bag, hurriedly leaving before he could go after her. The young woman went to a restaurant because she was hungry and had no desire to cook that night.

Syo ended up following her without realizing it and sat at the table behind hers, watching her as she placed her order and ate alone, with a look lost in thought. He wanted to know what she was thinking about. He ordered his own food and ended up trying to ignore the insistent voice inside his head asking him to speak to her again. Haruka left the restaurant first, walking alone through the cold, moonless night.

As she walked, distracted by her own thoughts, she didn't realize she was being followed by a suspicious man. The man followed her until she passed an alley and he pushed her in that direction, pulling on her purse and trying to rip the necklace off her neck. "No!! Let me go!! Stop it!! HELP!" Haruka cried out in despair and at that moment the bandit lost his patience, raising his fists to hit her.

But just as the bandit was about to hit her, someone grabbed and twisted his arm while shouting angrily. "Don't even think about it, you filthy thug!" And as he was caught off guard, the man who held his arm managed to surrender him and make him return the girl's purse. However, when Syo turned to ask if she was okay, the man managed to get rid of him with a hit in the stomach and ran off until he was out of sight.

Haruka ran up to him and asked if he was okay, worried about the hit that had taken him and that left him breathless. "Kurusu-san? Are you alright? Please say you are okay!" She hasn't realized how much she has been worried about him since he started facing the bad guy. "What was that idea of ​​fighting a bandit? What if he was armed with a gun?" Her voice was shaky because of everything that had happened.

"I am fine. It was nothing." Syo shook his head, ignoring the slight pangs of pain he still felt and picked up her bag on the ground, returning it. "You need to be more careful when you're walking alone at night." He said simply and looked away. Haruka let out a deep breath and smiled at him. "Thank you for saving me." She said taking the bag back and checking if her belongings were still there.

"Do you want me to... accompany you back home?" Syo heard his own voice ask before he could even scold himself. He knew that she probably wouldn't accept it and that even if she did, just the fact that he saved her now didn't mean that she was ready to forgive the big lie he told in the past. Still, he hoped she could forgive him even though he was afraid to bring it up.

...

~ Official Art of the Anime, edited by me.