Reborn as the Man Who Takes Away the Protagonist’s Beloved Childhood Friend

For me, my childhood friend is…

Since childhood, I had a childhood friend.

His name was Shu Sasaki, a boy who always followed behind me. Our mothers were close, so it didn’t take long for us to become friends.

“Ayana-chan! Let’s play together!”

“Okay.”

Back then, I found the trailing Shu-kun cute and felt like a protective older sister to him. I didn’t mind looking after Shu-kun, and I didn’t particularly mind that my otherwise uneventful days were filled in this way. …until it didn’t last.

One day, I made plans to play with friends I had become close to at school. As I was about to leave after getting ready to meet them, my mother said to me,

“Where are you going? No, you can’t. You’re supposed to go play at Shu-kun’s house.”

“…Huh? But I promised to play with my friends.”

“Do it another time. Since he’s your ‘childhood friend,’ cherish Shu-kun.”

“…But…”

“Understood?”

“…Yes.”

I had to cancel my plans with my friends and head to Shu-kun’s house. Luckily, my friends understood, saying it couldn’t be helped if I had something to do, but I felt full of remorse. And it was around this time that I began to question the concept of having a childhood friend.

Every day was spent heading to Shu-kun’s house, spending time with him and his sister, then returning home. On school days, I would wake him up in the morning and walk to school side by side. Upon deeper reflection, I realized this wasn’t my choice but something my mother instructed me to do.

“Ayana-chan, I’m grateful you’re here. Will you be Shu’s bride?”

“Let’s do that, Ayana-nee! Shu’s bride!”

“Hey, don’t say weird things, you two!!”

The family’s harmonious scene played out before me, with my mother joining in to discuss the future. I observed it all with a detached feeling.

I grew weary of my mother constantly mentioning Shu and praising me for caring for him. The once cute Shu now felt annoying. His mother and sister would praise me for looking after him in ways I couldn’t quite understand… all of it began to feel repulsive to me.

Being expected to always be by his side just because we were childhood friends, the current situation where it was taken for granted that I would be next to him made me wonder – what am I to you?

“…What does it mean to have a childhood friend?”

Childhood friends refer to those who have been together since childhood.

I was always placed next to Shu, scolded if I expressed dislike, and even slapped if I said anything negative… Hey, tell me.

What am I? Am I just a symbol meant to adorn Shu’s existence, something to be there beside him…?

Eventually, I started pasting on a mask-like smile.

“I enjoy being with Ayana-chan!”

“Is that so? Me too.”

“Hey, hey, Ayana-nee. Play with me too!”

“Sure. What should we do?”

“Ayana-chan, have you started learning to cook? That’s amazing.”

“Thank you.”

Though it was my way of life, trying to view things objectively like an outsider allowed me to become indifferent. If I simply nodded along, nothing would be said. Only I knew if my words were sincere, which is why by wearing this mask, my world was protected.

Even as a child, I sometimes longed for things like shoujo manga. The sweet and sour romance between childhood friends, the heart-fluttering moments, the occasional hardships leading to a happy ending for the couple. My friends would excitedly tell me at school, but I never felt anything about it.

Maybe it’s just me, but the image of a man and a woman who serve each other for the sake of their childhood friend seemed to me like inanimate objects carrying out predetermined actions without any will.

In popular manga and novels, the romantic relationships between childhood friends, the act of selflessly serving the loved one of the opposite s*x, seem to attract attention.

From my perspective, I felt nothing, and sometimes I would even think twisted thoughts like, were you brainwashed to fall for your childhood friend from a young age?

“What does it mean to have a childhood friend?”

That was an ongoing question in my life.

But if I were to say one thing… the phrase ‘childhood friend’ was, to me –

– a curse in itself.

Once the school day ended, I found myself immersed in a world bound by childhood friends. It was a sudden moment when light shone into that world. It was you… Towa-kun appeared before me.

“What are you doing alone? Your eyes look red…”

It was when I first rebelled against my mother and ran away to a place far from Shu-kun’s house. Although I say I ran away, I didn’t go that far, as I was a bit scared to be too distant and wanted to be in a position where I could return quickly.

When I was alone in the empty park, looking down, Towa-kun, a elementary school student back then, approached me. Watching Towa-kun rolling the soccer ball with his foot and speaking to me like that, I didn’t run away… I told him everything that had happened.

Maybe it could have been anyone. I just wanted someone to listen, and Towa-kun happened to be the one who appeared at that time… that’s all I thought at the time.

“…It’s a bit complicated.”

Towa-kun said, crossing his arms. Indeed, he was still an elementary school student back then. It must have been quite harsh to involve someone in such troubles. Seeing me looking down again, Towa-kun hurriedly looked around, searching for something. Then, he noticed the soccer ball at his feet, and…

“Hey. Take a look at this.”

“Huh?”

Saying so, Towa-kun started juggling the ball.

I knew about controlling the ball with your feet or body to prevent it from hitting the ground, as I’ve seen it on TV. But I had only seen it on TV occasionally, never up close like this.

“Alright. Here we go! Up! There!”

“…Wow!!”

I didn’t really understand soccer, but I knew it was impressive. And Towa-kun’s desperate efforts to cheer me up seemed very bright to me.

Some might say it’s not a big deal compared to what high schoolers or adults do. But I truly thought it was amazing, and when Towa-kun struck a pose and finished, I couldn’t help but applaud.

“Amazing, amazing!”

“hehehe, thanks!!”

Looking back, it was the first time I had talked so much with a boy other than Shu-kun. It felt very refreshing, like a whole new world had opened up, filling my heart with freshness.

“I have somewhere to go now, wanna come with me?”

“Yeah!”

I immediately nodded at his suggestion. At that moment, I wasn’t thinking about Shu-kun or my mother anymore.

Towa-kun took me around to various places, but the most memorable was when we went to the game center.

“Hey, mister, you’re in the way!”

“Oh, sorry…!”

“Hey Towa, is this your girlfriend?”

The man who appeared seemed to be acquainted with Towa-kun, and the two of them chatted amicably, with a warmth reminiscent of a father and son.

“She’s not my girlfriend… Well, she’s a girl, so does that make her a girlfriend?”

“Oh, really? Is that how it works?”

“hehehe.”

Back then, I didn’t understand English yet, but the atmosphere was funny, and I couldn’t help but laugh. And there, I realized something. It had been a while since I had genuinely laughed.

“You’re being called stupid by the man!”

“Don’t want to be called stupid by Towa, huh?”

“My mom called me stupid too!”

“Akemi, you’re terrible!”

“hehehe… hahahaha!”

The exchange I had never seen before was really enjoyable. When I laughed, not only Towa-kun but also the man scratched his head, blushing, which was also amusing.

Normally… or rather, elementary school kids wouldn’t come to such places often, and if they did, especially as a girl, there might be some resistance. But led by Towa-kun, I think we spent about an hour there. I played to my heart’s content.

With an unusually refreshed heart, but when I thought about it calmly, I realized I needed to head back soon. Towa-kun seemed to sense that too, as he said he would walk me home and held my hand as we walked along the way.

“…It’s warm.”

Feeling the warmth of his large hand, the touch of a boy’s hand made me a little nervous.

And on the way, Towa took out a key holder and turned to me. It seemed to be a prize he won in a game while I wasn’t looking. A key holder with an ugly teddy bear attached to it.

“Here. A gift. You can throw it away if you don’t want it.”

“I wouldn’t do that!”

I thanked Towa by holding the key holder he gave me close to my chest. His embarrassed face was cute, and I remember feeling puzzled about the sensation I had at that time, with my heart pounding at his shy expression.

As we approached the house, everyone seemed flustered in front of it. I was afraid of getting scolded even more than usual. With that fear on my back, Towa stood in front of our mothers.

“Sorry. I ended up dragging her around. Being with Aya-chan is fun, so I couldn’t help it.”

Originally, it was my fault for running away from home, but it seemed like our mothers thought even the fact that I disappeared from home was Towa’s fault, as their gazes turned sternly towards him all at once.

I wanted to say it wasn’t true, but Towa reassured me and faced our mothers, protecting me. It seemed like our mothers didn’t feel like yelling at kids from another family, so the matter ended there. However, when we got home, I was annoyingly told not to play with him anymore.

“…Towa was cool, huh? Hey, Kumakichi.”

When I was shielded by him, Towa looked really cool.

While stroking the ugly teddy bear’s head that Towa had given me, I whispered softly. Shu-kun and Kotone-chan said something too, but as always, my heart didn’t cool down. On the contrary, my heart was filled with thoughts like when would I see him again.

Whether those feelings reached him or not, we were able to meet again the next day.

“Huh, Aya-chan?”

“Towa-kun!?”

The world was small.

Because we were in the same elementary school.

Chase them… chase them…

Make them suffer… make them suffer…

And finally, take away what’s most precious to them… then, there’s nothing but despair, right?

I’ll never forget the words you uttered.

I’ll never forget the tears he shed.

So, I will take everything away from you.

“What’s this?”

The man who received the fan disc tilted his head as he tried to play it immediately.

After installing the game and double-clicking to start it, the above text appeared and disappeared like an opening movie.

Now, the title screen was a bit lonely but played a fantastical tune, with Aya wearing a black hood shown on the screen.

“This is quite a different start from the previous one.”

The previous one had loud music and random heroines reading the title, but this time, their voices were not recorded.

The man regained his focus and chose to start from the beginning to begin the game.