Chapter 3: Trapped by Bonds

When Hoshino saved me that day, I planned to get out of there right away.

Grrrr!

That is, if my stomach hadn’t been so loud about its complaints.

No, even then, it wasn’t a big deal.

Hoshino, realizing I was hungry, kindly offered me food.
But out of politeness, I took just one bite, thanked her, and bolted out of her place.

After that, I just plopped down somewhere in the desert.

That one bite of food made me want to go home even more, so I didn’t hesitate.

The problem was—

“…”

“Uhe, sleeping out there is dangerous, you know?”

My connection with her wasn’t over yet.

I got saved by her again, and from then on, it was just the same thing over and over.

I’d lie down in the desert to die, Hoshino would save me, I’d lie down again, and she’d save me again.

I wanted to scream, “I’m trying to die, so stop interfering!” but I held it in.
If she knew I was trying to die, who knows how she’d react?
She might even stop me from dying altogether.

But thanks to that—or maybe because of it—we started building a bond.

When I said I didn’t have a name, she gave me the name Sora.
She even suggested I become her little sister and take the Takanotsume surname.
…Well, honestly, it wasn’t exactly a proper bond, but it was something that built up without me realizing.

But even that was reaching its limit.

“…Damn it, just leave me alone already…”

No matter how much of a bond we were building, I still wanted to die.
After not just one or two but constant failures, I couldn’t stay sane.
And in the end, I made a choice I shouldn’t have.

I tried to kill myself in Hoshino’s house.

“No, it was just a prank! Seriously, just a joke!”

“Uhe~ I can’t trust the words of someone who’s done this countless times.”

‘Damn it, that excuse doesn’t work anymore…’

Despite my excuses, Hoshino just hoisted me up and headed toward the confinement room.

“Shiroko! Nonomi! Serika! Ayane! Help! The prez is kidnapping me!”

I called out to my classmates and juniors, who I couldn’t see but were probably watching nearby.

“Nope, you brought this on yourself.”

“Bad kids who think bad thoughts get a smack!”

My classmates, who’d seen me try to off myself before, seemed to guess the situation.
Far from helping, they gave me the same terrifying looks as Hoshino.

“Haha…”

Ayane just gave a bitter smile and watched.

My last hope, Serika—

“Serika! You, at least!”

“Ah, I’ve got to go to my part-time job. Sorry, senpai.”

She vanished in a flash, citing her job.

Damn it! Don’t I have a single ally here?

“Upsy-daisy~!”

“Urk!”

Unable to stop Hoshino, I was thrown onto the fluffy mattress in the confinement room (aka Hoshino’s bedroom).

“W-Wait, Hoshino-san! Just a second! Please, hear me out…”

“Takanotsume Sora.”

“…Hic!”

I tried to make one last desperate plea, but Hoshino’s voice calling my name scared me into hiccups instead.

“You’re ready for the consequences, right?”

“Hic! N-No… Hic!”

In the end—

“Scolding a disobedient little sister is part of being a big sister, right, Sora-chan?”

“Eeek!!!”

I got thoroughly chewed out. For hours.

Honestly, it felt so unfair, but I couldn’t deny it was my own doing.

And as always afterward—

Hug!

“Uhe~”

“H-Hoshino-san! Ease up! Ease up a bit…”

“Nope~ This is your punishment.”

Under the guise of punishment, I became Hoshino’s personal stuffed toy.

According to her, the way I fit perfectly in her arms feels great…

‘…Wait, doesn’t that mean she’s saying I’m smaller than her?’

“…Sora-chan…”

“…Ha, she’s completely passed out.”

I had a lot to say, but the culprit herself fell fast asleep soon enough.
Her grip didn’t loosen one bit, though.

“…Didn’t even get a single lead.”

Honestly, this might’ve been my last chance.

It’s been a year since I came here. Which means—

“The Teacher’s about to show up soon.”

The Teacher, someone who’d do anything for their students, would definitely try to stop me if they knew I was trying to die.
So this was practically my last shot. Not that I’m giving up.

The Teacher’s arrival means it’ll be harder to die, but it also means more opportunities to die.

In the original story, the Teacher ran into life-threatening situations wherever they went.
If you figure at least one near-death experience per school, it’s not completely impossible.

“So… I absolutely…”

‘Ugh, damn it. I’m getting sleepy too…’

“Absolutely…”

Even as I nodded off, I renewed my resolve to die.

“I’m going home…”

And with that, I fell asleep alongside Hoshino.

…

“Prez! Senpai! Wake up!”

“Damn it…”

Even though I’d only slept for about an hour—

‘If I can’t die, at least let me sleep…’