Interlude — A Fairy’s Soliloquy
“Ahh… that feels good.”
The words slipped from my mouth as I soaked in the bath, sinking into the warmth.
Today was exhausting. Honestly, it was the most tired I’d felt since becoming a high school student. And it was all because of him — Kanbara Yūma-kun.
Talking about the past made me remember things I’d rather forget.
Back in elementary school, I was a plain, gloomy girl. I loved anime and manga, wasn’t good at talking, and had zero social skills. Before I knew it, people started calling me Jimi-ko — Plain Girl. I didn’t even fight it, because deep down, I agreed with them.
That plain girl fell in love.
It was my first love — with a bright, cool, popular boy who was the center of the class. I knew from the start we were worlds apart, but feelings don’t care about logic.
Even now, just remembering it makes me mad.
My first love ended in the worst possible way. The love letter I’d worked so hard on got posted on the classroom blackboard, and my classmates giggled and whispered behind my back.
After that humiliation, I shut myself in my room, muttering dark things under my breath. Despite being plain, I had a stupidly high pride — so I swore revenge on the ones who had mocked me.
As if things weren’t bad enough, my constantly-fighting parents divorced soon after. I ended up living with my mom.
Looking back now, that transfer to a new school was the turning point of my life.
My address and even my family name changed, and I decided to start over. Fueled by resentment, I worked desperately to improve myself.
And after all that effort, I was reborn.
Before I knew it, people around me started calling me “cute.”
It was the first time anyone had ever said that to me, and it felt amazing. So I pushed even harder. Because even if I looked better, being quiet made people label you as boring.
So I expanded my conversation topics.
I memorized things I had no real interest in. Along with anime and manga, I studied current trends, trivia, and even sports that guys liked.
At some point, no one called me Jimi-ko anymore. I’d become one of the popular girls in class.
Misfortune spreads like a virus — but happiness does too.
Around the time I “graduated” from being Jimi-ko, my mother remarried. Her new husband seemed kind — and actually was. He became a gentle, dependable father to me.
After the remarriage, we moved back to my hometown — the very place where I’d once been humiliated.
And right after returning, the thought struck me: I’m going to get revenge.
I couldn’t help but laugh at myself for being so twisted. But that’s just who I am — can’t be helped.
What kind of face would he make, I wondered, when he saw the new me?
On my first day at the new school, nerves and anticipation swirled together… and then, suddenly, I was greeted with cheers. That was surprising enough — but even more surprising was the boy sitting beside me. It was him. The one who’d thrown me into hell.
“H-Hi, nice to meet you.”
“……?”
“L-Let’s get along!”
He didn’t recognize me. A different surname, a different face — and that was all it took for him not to know who I was.
Heh. So that’s all I ever was to him.
Day by day, my desire for revenge grew stronger.
It wasn’t just him. There were plenty of classmates from our old elementary school here too — but none of them realized that I was that Jimi-ko from before. Not even though only two and a half years had passed.
“Nice to meet you. Let’s get along.”
I pretended it was our first meeting.
This time, I had the upper hand. Experience — all those confessions I’d received from guys before — gave me confidence. So did my hard work and the constant compliments from others.
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“I’m the ace of the club, you know?”
“Wow, that’s amazing.”
“I’m actually kinda smart too.”
“You’re good at studying, huh.”
“I’ve got a lot of friends, too.”
“You’re so sociable. That’s cool.”
He tried so hard. Desperately, almost pathetically, trying to impress me.
And I felt a chill — a shiver of realization.
He’d fallen for me. Just a little conversation, a few smiles, and he couldn’t control himself.
Perfect. I’d make him feel what I once felt. That was the only way to settle my grudge.
A few days later, it happened.
“Please go out with me!”
He confessed.
The boy who once shone like the sun blushed bright red and bowed his head, begging me to be his girlfriend.
It felt so good. I didn’t have feelings for him anymore, but the fact that my efforts had been rewarded — that he was confessing to me — filled me with euphoria.
The sense of superiority ran through me like electricity. The same guy I’d once wanted so badly was now the one bowing his head to me. The complete reversal of positions thrilled me to no end. You have no idea, do you?
The girl you’re confessing to right now — is that Jimi-ko you all mocked and laughed at.
Just imagining telling him the truth made me tremble with excitement.
But then I hesitated. If I told him the truth now, everything would end. The rumor would spread, my secret would be exposed to the entire school.
Was I really ready to throw away this new life?
I asked myself that.
And I realized… I was actually enjoying it. Being doted on by guys, receiving their attention — it felt so fun. Watching them blush and stammer as they confessed to me was endlessly amusing.
“Sorry. I’d rather stay friends.”
I rejected him — keeping my secret safe. Not for short-lived pleasure, but for long-term satisfaction.
Besides, there were still others I hadn’t settled things with. Plenty of boys who’d mocked me. Girls who’d joined in the laughter.
If I could make the most popular guy — the ikemen — fall for me, I’d be getting revenge on the girls too. I’d make every boy they liked fall for me, then toss them away like garbage.
Isn’t that cruel?
Yeah, it is. I know that. I just don’t care. I’m a rotten woman. A plain, ugly one — inside and out.
And the more I insulted myself, the better I felt.
Because if guys confessed to someone as “worthless” as me, that made them even lower. And if girls couldn’t even win against me, they were far, far beneath me.
So I kept going.
With a sweet smile I’d say, “Sorry,”
but inside I’d sneer, Serves you right.
And I didn’t stop.
The serious class rep, the delinquent wannabe, the stoic boy who claimed he wasn’t into romance, the anime-loving otaku who said 3D girls didn’t interest him, even guys who already had girlfriends—
I made them fall for me, and then I turned them down.
Of course, I didn’t stop in high school either.
One day, while basking in the pleasure of my little game, I was chosen as a “Princess.” I’d heard rumors about Himegasaki Academy, but never imagined I’d be selected.
A plain, ugly Jimi-ko — as a Princess.
“Ahahaha! Seriously, everyone’s standards must be broken!”
That day, I laughed myself silly in my room.
No one knew better than me how unfit I was for that title.
Princess or not, I didn’t care. I just wanted to keep having fun.
And my next target was Kanbara Yūma-kun.
Honestly, I thought it’d be a piece of cake. He wasn’t remarkable in any way. His face wasn’t handsome or ugly, his height was average, his grades were average too.
I had no idea about his athletic ability since gym was separated by gender, but no one ever mentioned him — so probably average there too.
The ultimate background character.
Guys like that were often otaku.
Sure enough, when I started talking to him, he perked up at anime talk. He clearly had a complex about girls, especially the type who’d teased him before. His face was slightly better than I expected, but that was it.
And yet — things didn’t go as planned. He didn’t flinch at my light touches. No matter how much I praised him, he acted uninterested.
Fine. I’d make my move during our walk home — my final event to seal the deal.
Or so I thought… until the incident happened.
“Isn’t playing the game of making the guy next to you fall for you more fun than swings?”
Those words froze me.
It was over. He’d heard me. My muttering, my secret — everything. If he told anyone, it was done. My carefully-built life would collapse, and I’d fall back into that dark, miserable existence.
But something was off. Kanbara-kun wasn’t angry, nor was he threatening me.
From the way he said it, I could tell — he wanted to reform me. He was probably disgusted by my behavior, but deep down, he wished I’d change.
“……Cheeky.”
Seriously, how dare he. A background character, lecturing me? Not only did he not fall for me, he had the nerve to preach?
For the first time in ages, I felt frustration — real, seething frustration.
Alright then, Kanbara-kun. I’ll make you fall for me. I’ll make you bow your head and say, “Please go out with me,” with that pathetic look on your face. That’s the only way to erase this humiliation.
He’s not the popular type. No rivals, no distractions. I’ll take my time. A long campaign — until I win.
“I’ll make sure you confess to me with that pathetic face, Kanbara-kun.”
An unexpected, formidable opponent — and somehow, that thrilled me.
“Well… maybe if you confess to me all flustered and desperate, I might just go out with you.”
I didn’t know what would happen after that. But as I stepped out of the bath, drying my hair, I couldn’t help but smile. The reflection in the mirror looked a little different from the girl I’d seen that morning — just a little brighter, a little more alive.
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