Chapter 55

In an alley behind some building...

The place was gloomy and isolated from the sunlight leaving only the cool breeze of summer to reach it .

In the middle of that alley, a man wearing full black and a full mask, despite the hot weather, was holding his stomach and muttering something while sitting on his knees .

"That violent woman!! Next time I will surely kill her...!"

The man was bleeding from his abdomen and looked completely worn out .

He forced his body to stand and leaned on a wall next to him . Dragging himself all the way, he walked through the gloomy alley .

(Where... am I?)

Walking his way into an unknown place, the man saw a light .

He immediately halted and his eyes froze at the place where the light was coming from .

(How is this possible?! So many humans!)

Witnessing the enormous amount of people in front of him, the man widening his eyes behind the mask .

He kept watching the humans in front of him, who were wearing various clothes, and he eventually started trembling as he let a wicked smile reach his face .

(How lucky . Looks like the heavens haven't abandoned me yet . )

Finishing his villainous laugh, the man turned around and walked his way back in the gloomy alley .

(I need to rest my body for now . I need to find a new vessel . )

The man, [hatred god]Germa, gradually merged into his gloomy surroundings and disappeared .

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A week after I caught sight of Akuya .

Today again, I was standing and waiting for the green lights after shopping .

There weren't many people around for some reason .

I wiped my forehead in the hot weather and looked around .

From that day on, I had become afraid of passing by the place I saw him, but fortunately, I didn't meet with Akuya a second time .

I forced my mom to go shopping instead of me since then, though it looked like I was just overreacting .

(It's just my imagination, yeah...)

It was probably someone else .

After passing a week without bumping into him again, I started to feel relieved . There was no way I'd meet him in this place, after all .

I did my best to believe in that .

Following the green light, I quickly crossed the road .

Despite the feeling of being relieved, I was still uneasy .

I wanted to leave this place as soon as possible .

The moment I decided to directly go back home...

"Huh, Sayaka-chan?"

My legs stopped moving after I heard a familiar voice .

At that point, I despised my legs for stopping on their own .

If I had ignored the call and kept walking, things might have turned out for the better .

He might've let me go .

I regretted halting my steps at his call .

"It's you Sayaka-chan? Right?"

Despite not turning around, the person who was calling me seemed to have gotten excited .

I already knew who that person was, but I didn't turn around .

I moved to this town mainly because I didn't want to meet him . Why do I have to see him again?

Not wanting to face reality, I remained stiff .

"What's wrong? Did you perhaps forget about me?"

His voice seemed kinda lonely when I didn't turn around .

I didn't forget him .

I couldn't forget, despite trying .

I endured the urge to scream as I struggled to remain quiet .

How could he dare talk me casually after all that he did to me?

I was about to burst out in anger, but I knew that nothing would happen if I kept standing like this .

I resolved my intentions then turned and looked him directly in the eyes .

"Ah, It's really you, Sayaka-chan! I thought it wasn't you for a while . "

"... Akuya...kun . "

I muttered the name of the person who was about to leap from joy in front of me .

"Hm- as usual, you've got a lovely voice . It feels as if my heart is getting purified . "

How did he manage to hear my low voice?

I felt disgusted by his ability to hear my voice no matter how low it was .

"Why... are you here?"

I asked him with a trembling voice .

Honestly, I wanted to run away as soon as possible .

But I endured my fear and shivering body and feigned composure .

Because he would cling to me if I didn't .

"Actually, my family moved after that time and I spent my days feeling lonely without you . I didn't expect I'd meet you in such a place! We're really fated to be together after all!"

Making the same gloomy expression, Akuya talked with exaggerated gestures and a broken tone .

How shameless . I would bet that he was just acting .

That was the type of guy he was .

The mad type that would throw away his friends and even his family if it meant he could reach what he wanted .

Realizing that I was facing this crazy person, my knees begin to tremble again .

"What's wrong? Why are you trembling?"

Realizing that fact immediately, he made a wicked smile and approached me .

"I see, you're deeply moved to meet me, right? Don't worry, I'm the same too . I won't be leaving you this time around . We will be always together . So just relax and come hug me . C'mon . "

Not being able endure my fear because of Akuya, who spread his arms while approaching, I dropped my shopping bag with teary eyes .

(Again, am I going to have to go through that hell again...)

Every step he made towards me, made me recall that incident .

I wanted to turn around and escape, but almost as if someone had tied up my legs, they wouldn't move at all .

"No... No..."

"You don't have to be afraid . I won't leave you alone anymore . "

When the distance between us had shortened to a few inches, Akuya reached his hands to my face .

Not having a means to resist, all I could do was close my eyes and prepare myself .

(...Hm? Nothing is happening...?)

A few seconds had passed and I still couldn't feel his hand .

Realizing that something was strange, I slowly opened my eyes .

"I'm sorry customer, but touching is prohibited"

Before me was Kamiya, gripping Akuya's hand and stopping him from touching me .

"Kamiya... kun..."

It was him after all, my beloved person .

—————————————————————————————

Bonus

What if

What if the people passing by noticed the man who was hiding in the dark alley .

"Kukuku..."

"Hey look, someone dressing like a weirdo is looking at us and laughing . "

"That's creepy . Should we call the police?"

"Hey you, don't you feel ashamed from wearing those weird clothes?"

"EH, wait a minute, how dare you nonchalantly speak to a god?!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know . For now, come with us . "

"Eh? No, wait... what? Ah, AAAAAH—"