The Cute Girl That Everyone Thinks Is Perfect Really Hates Me, But I Know Her Weakness Because I Was Raised In A Lab That Creates Perfect Humans - Chapter 23_ Heartfelt Talk

“Why do you seem to have so much interest in Mizutaka-kun? From what I can tell, he doesn’t seem to be anyone special.”

“Chihiro-san, would it make more sense to you if I told you I’ve met him before? Several years ago now.”

“It doesn’t really. Karin-chan, the other girls might be unaware, but I know the type of person you really are. I don’t want you doing anything that could put our group in strife.”

“Oh? Is that a threat?”

“It’s not. You’re important to me; all of the girls are important to me. I don’t want you to hurt us, or yourself.”

“Don’t worry, I wouldn’t do anything like that~.”

“I want you to tell me who Mizutaka-kun really is. Is this related to what happened with Mikan-senpai? I don’t want you to follow in her footsteps.”

There was a moment of silence. Despite being glared at, Karin looked around with an innocent expression on her face.

“He’s just a friend of mine~. A special friend, if you will.”

Chihiro had a defeated look on her face.

“Karin-chan, why do you always look down on me? It hurts me to always see you glancing at me like that. It’s like we’re all just monkeys hanging around in your group. You don’t trust us at all.”

“That wouldn’t be my intention?”

“Please, Karin-chan, tell me. Who is Mizutaka-kun to you?”

Karin sighed.

“Alright then. Chihiro-san, as a sign of my trust, I’ll tell you.”

Karin stood up and closed the door.

…

***

I looked up at Miyazaki-san.

“You’re fine with giving the recommendation I was talking to you about, right?”

“Y-yeah, that’s fine with me. But just who is this girl?”

“She’s a pretty big fan of yours. You can talk to her in person if you’d like?”

“Ah, a fan of mine. Um, I have a think about it.”

It seems like she’s had some bad experiences with fans.

“You don’t have to. It’s just if you want to get to know her.”

She took a seat on her bed.

Aside from all the posters in her room, she also had a large bookshelf with what appeared to be hundreds of light novels. They were all neatly stacked in rows of their respective series. I didn’t have anything like that since I would always just borrow from the library. I didn’t see a need to keep my own physical copy.

“It looks like you enjoy reading.”

“Yeah, it’s one of my hobbies. I’ve got a lot of books since I always buy them on impulse, but I’ve only read like half of the ones on my shelf.”

“Ah. Is it that you don’t have much time?”

“That’s part of it. I’ve also got this weird thing where I don’t really like reading to the end, since I feel empty afterwards. It ended up developing to the point where I’d buy a whole series and just leave it there. I just feel to afraid that it’ll end so I never even start.”

She shuffled closer to me.

“I’m weird, aren’t I?”

“You are a little.”

“Hey! You were meant to deny it.”

She gestured for me to take a seat next to her on the bed.

“Come a bit closer. You don’t have to sit on the floor.”

“Alright.”

Sitting down, I clearly noticed the softness of her mattress. Compared to mine, it was like a whole different type of feeling. Her bed was also covered with pillows of different shapes and sizes, taking up almost a third of the entire space.

“My parents probably told you about how I don’t have many friends.”

“Yeah, they did tell me that earlier.”

“Ah, it’s embarrassing, but as I progressed in my career, I ended up growing further away from the friends I used to have. I used to always have work on, so I was never able to go to any parties—and now, even though I have a bit more spare time, I never get invited anymore.”

She looked down at her lap.

“It’s not easy being an actor, is it?”

“Sometimes I wish that I could go back. I wish that I could go back and say yes all the times they asked me. Everyone knows I’m famous, so no one talks to me normally anymore.”

She moved a little closer until her leg was touching mine.

“Mizutaka-kun, what was your childhood like? Was it hard being a professional football player?”

I didn’t have any proper experience with that, although when I thought back to it. Despite the fact that the Ideal Human Project seemed like a completely inhumane experiment to most people, for me, it was a place where I could at least feel some sort of security. It was the place that was most familiar to me, and it was a place where I never ran into any problems.

I guess part of it was due to how devoid of emotions I was back then. I wonder what it was that changed me the most. I know I’m still not normal, but I feel things much more than I used to.

“It wasn’t too bad. Since I had something to always work for, I always felt like I had something to do.”

“That’s good. You know, I’ve always wondered if I’d be happier if I wasn’t a celebrity. There are so many things I can’t do because of that fact. Although, some of it might just be my fault. I can’t really blame it all on that.”

“Just try your best to enjoy life. There’s only so much we can do as people.”

“You’re right. But you know, it’s so hard.”

She leaned up against my arm.

“I’m glad I’ve got someone to talk to now, at least for the time being.”

She seemed sad.

…

Suddenly, the door slammed open. Miyazaki-san jolted in surprise.

“Kaede! What did I say about keeping the door open!”

“Just leave me alone!”

“The door stays open, that’s final!”

Her mother stomped away.

It was surprising to find that Miyazaki-san had so much on her heart. Even with all her achievements, there would always be things that people struggle with.

“Mizutaka-kun… do you think I’ll be this way forever…?”