CH 44

“…Sakuramiya-sensei? As expected, it’s hard for me to move when you stick to me like that.”

“Impossible… Impossible… Impossible! I can’t… I can’t! I absolutely cannot be haunted!”

Currently Sakuramiya-sensei and I are in a Haunted House

Sakuramiya-sensei was grasping my arm forcefully and clinging to me like a koala, without the intention of leaving me at all. She was also shivering occasionally when ghosts appeared here and there.

Perhaps she is not good with ghosts…?

“Come to think of it, you were also scared that day due to thunderstorms.”

“Ugh, I’m not good with scary things.”

“Well, it’s a haunted house made by humans, so don’t worry it’s not really that scary.”

Don’t you know, Segawa-kun? Ghosts are the scariest!

“It’s all a matter of course…”

In short, she is not good with these unexpected scary surprises. 

She is the exact opposite of me. I don’t get scared or excited unless it’s too big of a deal. To be honest ‘m a little envious of that trait of hers. 

I’m the kind of person who doesn’t enjoy haunted houses.

Fortunately, there were no other visitors to the haunted house, so I was sure there wouldn’t be a major problem even if she made a ruckus here. 

But we can’t stand still here forever.

“It’s fine, let’s move forward, little by little.”

“Un…..”

I could hear the faint sound of the cacophony of bass. Meanwhile, in the strange atmosphere, we walked down the dark pathway, while holding a flashlight.

“I’m sorry, Sakuramiya-sensei. I didn’t know you were not good with haunted houses.”

“Uh-well, it can’t be helped. It’s my fault for not telling you about this beforehand.”

“Certainly, you were at fault this time.”

“Muu~ But I wanted you to tell me that it’s not my fault, even if it’s a lie.”

“But don’t you like honest men?”

“At Least read the situation we are in, Segawa-kun!”

In fact, there is no denying that the timing of her confession was not good. 

Originally she confessed to me because she thought she would get dumped immediately. But… things didn’t turn out that way, and now her mind was a big mess. 

I don’t think Sakuramiya-sensei herself would have thought that things would turn out this way.

As I was slowly advancing in our steps with Sakuramiya-sensei in stride, a shadow suddenly blocked us up ahead. And gradually, the sound of footsteps grew louder every passing second.

As I illuminated the area around the figure with my flashlight, a woman dressed in white noticed us and rushed in our direction. She touched Sensei’s body slightly at the edges and immediately disappeared. Surprisingly, all that happened so fast that I couldn’t help but agree that she was indeed a professional.

“Hiiee⁉︎”

Sakuramiya-sensei screamed because of the foreign touch, but when she noticed that she was too loud. She hurriedly closed her mouth and hugged me tighter.

I was not scared at all by the woman who was playing the role of a ghost, but I was caught off guard when Sensei hugged me.

If it’s just holding hands and feeding each other, then I am very good at keeping my composure, but being hugged so intimately like this was too bad for me. The sweet, fruity scent wafted through the air, and tickled my nostrils.

The soft and squishy sensation of her skin was felt, especially around her chest.

“Sakuramiya-sensei… Calm down! Look, it’s already gone.”

“Eh, really? You are not lying right?”

I wonder if this person is actually in elementary school.

The haunted house was not really that scary, but the way she was reacting showed it otherwise. Her face was currently pale and eyes were teary.

She is older than me, but unexpectedly unreliable.

I guess this is one of the reasons why I wanted to protect and cherish her.

“Hey Sensei, I think it will be better if you let go of me now, it’s getting uncomfortable for me.”

“Ah, I’m really sorry… I was just thinking about it… Wait, are you blushing, Segawa-kun?

Who do you think is to blame?

“I’m not tough enough to keep a straight face when someone suddenly hugs me.”

“Fufu~ I finally got to see Segawa-kun’s blushing face.”

Sakuramiya-sensei laughs happily as if she found something interesting to tease me in future.

“Why do you look so triumphant? Have you looked at yourself in the mirror once, your face is beet red.”

“Well that’s natural for me.”

“If that’s the case, then you should go to the hospital as soon as possible.”

“Why are you saying mean things like that right away!”

“It’s a man’s nature to want to be mean to the girl you like. So, give it up.”

“…Tsu, it’s unfair to suddenly fall in love like that.”

“Then, do you want to continue further?”

“Yes, I won’t show my embarrassing side anymore!”

Even though we were in a haunted house, we were standing at the same place for a while and  were having a conversation.

Then a shadow crept up behind us. I thought it was another trick, but when I turned around, there was a woman dressed in white. It was the same person who had come to scare us earlier.

She scratched her neck hesitantly and muttered quietly.

“…Um, it would be helpful if you proceed further.”

“We’re sorry!”

The employee who was playing the role of the ghost warned us, so Sakuramiya-sensei and I bowed in unison.

Both of us broke in a cold sweat, and so we moved forward.

As a result, Sakuramiya-sensei seemed much calmer compared to when she was at the beginning, perhaps because she was confronted by the ghost in person and her fear eased up.

She did not stick close to me. However, she was still holding my left hand tightly, as if she still felt a remnant of fear.

“Oh, yeah, are your legs okay now?”

“It’s better now, but it still hurts a little.”

She seemed to have sprained her leg, but with me as a support, she was able to walk without any problems.

“Well, I’m glad to hear that.”

“Well, after the haunted house, I am going back home.”

“I see. And… I’m sorry.”

“It’s not a problem Segawa-kun, you don’t have to apologize.”

I wanted to spend more time with her alone in the amusement park, but it wasn’t right to do that when I came here with Shinozuka-san. So I can’t stay with her for long.

It would have been more convenient for me if she had gone back to her house.

Walking hand in hand with her, we came across many things that made us feel fearful one after another, such as objects that looked like graves and a creepy well.

Every time, Sakuramiya-sensei was freaking out, so it was fun to see the mature her getting flustered like that.

However, after the white-clad woman who appeared at the beginning of this journey, no other employees approached us. So the atmosphere was rather comfortable when both of us were alone like this.

I had a thought that this haunted house was made while keeping in mind about small kids, because it wasn’t really scary. I wonder if they did this to attract customers.

“Whoa!”

“Wahh! Hey, I was surprised. Don’t scare me like that Segawa-kun.”

“Hehe, I thought it would be better to scare you when you are this defenseless.”

That’s vicious! You’ll have to discontinue that right now!”

Sakuramiya-sensei pouted in dissatisfaction. Glancing around I noticed a source of light that was faintly visible.

Yes, it was the exit. And when I thought it would end like this, I felt sad.

But, the ending of this trip to the haunted house was inevitable, so I shrugged my shoulders and passed through the wall which had several marks of red hands imprinted on it.

“I’m glad it all ended well.”

“Yeah and I was so scared because Segawa-kun was so mean to me.”

“I couldn’t resist teasing you, Sensei.”

“Argh! You can’t shift your responsibilities to others like that.”

Soon, we left the haunted house after I returned the flashlight to the employee. I had been in a dark place, albeit for a little while, and so my eyes were not accustomed to the bright scenery.

As I rubbed my eyes, which were blurry as if I had just woken up from sleep, I spotted three familiar silhouettes in front of me.

By the time I realized who they were, it was already too late.

“Yoo-hoo, Minato. There you are, I’ve been looking for you.”

It was a girl with a ponytail who approached me as if she knew in advance that I was in the haunted house.

“Shinozuka-san…”

“Oh, have you forgotten about it already? Call me Mizuna.”

“Mi-Mizuna-san…”

“Haha, drop the formalities Minato.”

In a cheerful tone, she asked a question that made my heart stop for a moment.

“Why are you with Sakuramiya-sensei? And why are you holding hands?”

Although we had left the haunted house, we were still holding hands with our fingers interlocked. The decisive moment was witnessed and she pointed it out to me.

I hurriedly let go of her hand, but it was too late.

“What should I do, Segawa-kun…”

Sakuramiya-sensei quietly whispered in a voice that only I could hear.

But it was the same for me.

What should I do…. Someone please tell me a solution to get out of this situation!