Chapter 23 Mr. Pervert-san-yo!

Half an hour later, Kataomoi was back at his post, his usual stern demeanor firmly in place. The earlier emotional turmoil had been pushed to the back of his mind, replaced by the familiar routine of his job. That’s when he noticed it—a clumsy, amateurish attempt at sneaking past him to leave the university grounds.

He watched as two figures tried—and failed—to move quietly. With a sigh, he followed them from behind, his footsteps silent. When he was close enough, he cleared his throat loudly.

  “Ahem! What are you two doing? Are you trying to sneak out early? If so, then try harder, because that was embarrassing to watch.”

The figures froze, then slowly turned around. It was Shujinko and Makiko, looking like a pair of kids caught with their hands in their dad's wallet. Kataomoi crossed his arms and tapped his foot, his expression stern.

Shujinko swallowed hard. Makiko, however, quickly recovered, flashing an innocent smile.

"Oh? Us? Sneaking out? Hah! Nooo~!" She waved a dismissive hand.

  "We were just… uh… appreciating the fine craftsmanship of this university’s excellent walls!"

Shujinko nodded quickly. 

"Yeah! Wow, these walls! So, sturdy! Amazing work." 

He gave the nearest brick wall a weak pat.

Then, before they could react, Kataomoi reached out and placed a firm hand on Makiko’s shoulder.

"I think you two need to come with me for a little lecturing."

Makiko recoiled as if he had just thrown a spider at her, wrapping herself tightly around Shujinko as if protecting him from some great threat. 

“Ew! Don’t touch me! Who said you could touch me? Are you some kind of creep? Just because you’re Akarui’s brother doesn’t mean you can get all handsy with me! No sane person goes around touching others without asking for consent first!”

She was talking mile a minute, pointing accusing fingers, her voice dripping with playful outrage. Meanwhile, poor Shujinko was trapped in a death grip, his face squished against her chest as she knowingly suffocated him with her "protective" hug. 

Kataomoi blinked, taken aback by her sudden outburst. He took a small step back, holding up his hands in surrender.

  “Okay, okay, I’m sorry, alright? Don’t make it a scene."

 He shot a nervous glance around.

 "I’m just doing my job. You can’t just up and leave—there are rules, and you need to follow them. As the security guard, I can’t just let you two go as if nothing happened.”

Makiko scoffed, her tone playful but sharp. 

“Ha! ‘Job,’ he says. All you do all day is stand there ogling at young girls in short skirts, you closet pervert! I bet you’re into young girls! How about going for someone your own age, hmm? Mr. Pervert-san-yo! Go chase after our school nurse or one of the teachers or something. I mean, all you do is stand here all day—how about using that time to actually talk to someone? What are you waiting for, old man? A divine sign?!”

Kataomoi’s face turned bright red, his composure crumbling under her relentless teasing.

  “Hey, it’s not like I do nothing here! This is a responsible job! I can’t just up and leave my post without a reason to… to pick up on girls or something! I'm NOT like that! And I CAN’T just go—go flirt! That’s not how this works!”

Meanwhile, Shujinko was being crushed in Makiko’s tight hug, his face turning red as he struggled to breathe. He managed to whisper weakly, “Hey, Makiko, you’re… you’re crushing me. Could you please—”

But Makiko ignored him, her attention fully focused on Kataomoi. She hugged Shujinko even tighter, her voice rising in mock outrage as she gasped theatrically, pointing a perfectly manicured finger at Kataomoi.

"AHHHH! DON’T TELL ME YOU’RE INTO BOYS?!"

Kataomoi choked on his own words.

  "W-WHAT?!?!"

"I KNEW IT!" Makiko clung even tighter to Shujinko, crushing him beyond what was considered humanly survivable. 

"I WON’T LET YOU HAVE MY SHUJINKO! KEEP YOUR FILTHY HANDS OFF HIM! HE’S MINE!"

Shujinko’s eyes widened, and he tried to protest, but his words were muffled by Makiko’s relentless grip. 

“Makiko, I can’t… breathe…”

Kataomoi, now thoroughly flustered, waved his hands in front of him. 

“Why—How—What even is this conversation?!?! What is this nonsense? Why are you saying these things? I’m not like that!”

Makiko smiled, clearly enjoying his discomfort. She grabbed Shujinko by the wrist and started sprinting away, dragging him behind her like a party balloon on a string. As they ran, she shouted over her shoulder, “Because you’re Akarui’s brother, and it’s fun to mess with you, cherry-boy!”

Kataomoi returned to his post, his steps heavy and his shoulders slumped. The playful banter with Makiko and Shujinko should have been nothing more than a lighthearted moment, but today, it felt like a dagger to his already wounded heart. Makiko’s words echoed in his mind, each one cutting deeper than the last.

“Ew! Don’t touch me! Who said you could touch me? Are you some kind of creep?”

"All you do all day is stand there ogling at young girls in short skirts, you closet pervert!”

“How about going for someone your own age, hmm? Mr. Pervert-san-yo!”

He slumped into his chair, his usual stern posture replaced by a defeated slouch. His eyes were empty, staring into the void as the weight of her words settled over him. Makiko was young, pretty, and full of life—everything he wasn’t. And even though she had been teasing him in her usual playful way, her words had struck a nerve he hadn’t realized was so raw.

"How could I ever measure up to someone like Professor Ichiban?" he thought bitterly, his chest tightening.

"When even students see me as a creep, a pervert, less than dirt?"

He had always known he was nothing special—just a security guard, a background character in the lives of the people around him. But hearing it from someone like Makiko, someone young and vibrant, made it all the more painful. It was as if she had voiced the thoughts he had been too afraid to admit to himself.

"I’m a joke. A pathetic, lonely joke. No wonder she sees me that way. No wonder everyone does."

He sat there for hours, his mind spiraling deeper into self-loathing. The campus around him buzzed with activity—students laughing, chatting, living their lives—but he felt completely detached from it all. He was just a shadow, a ghost, invisible and insignificant.

"What’s the point?" he thought, his hands resting limply on his knees.

 "What’s the point of trying when everyone already sees me as less than nothing?"

The image of Professor Ichiban flashed in his mind, her warm smile and gentle eyes a stark contrast to the cold, empty void he felt inside. She was everything he admired, everything he wanted to be close to. But how could he ever hope to be worthy of someone like her when even a student like Makiko saw him as a joke?

"I’m just a security guard. A nobody. And that’s all I’ll ever be."

The hours passed, but Kataomoi didn’t move. He just sat there, staring into nothingness, his spirit crushed under the weight of his own insecurities. The world moved on around him, but he was stuck, trapped in a cycle of self-doubt and despair when the loud explosion shook him from his seat.