I Became The Scoundrel In The Popular Dating Sim

Reiji and Haruna exited the building, still in silence. This made him more and more anxious, because he had no idea what she was going to say.

'Maybe she wants me to stay away from her and Granny? Or maybe a simple thanks? God, why isn't she saying anything!!'

His internal thoughts were in complete chaos, especially because the situation itself was so uncomfortable. Add on the fact that she was a heroine from the game, it was a bizarre scenario to say the least.

At least when he talked to the Prez, he knew what to expect because it was obvious she was going to lecture him about 'his' behavior.

"Yagami-kun?"

"AH? Ah, yes what is it?" he snapped out of his spiraling mind and refocused on Haruna who had turned to him.

"Pfft, why are you speaking so formally all of a sudden," she chuckled with a raised eyebrow.

"Um... I have no idea. I guess I'm just confused."

"You know..... You're a really weird person?" she said while tilting her head.

"Weird? Me? In what way?"

"Well, it's no secret that you fight a lot and have a super scary, super intimidating reputation, but today you seemed like a snarky puppy," she laughed, her cutesy manner of speaking lightening the mood.

"Snar- What the fuck? Is that good or bad?" Reiji frowned while scratching his hair.

"I don't know? Because I don't know which side of you is the real you..."

Haruna's smiling face turned a little serious, her gorgeous green eyes staring straight into his bright blue ones as if she had locked onto his soul. Reiji's arm drooped back down slowly as his expression softened.

At school, Haruna was the bright, bubbly, always cheerful gyaru-type girl who was the center of the attention almost every single time. Just from a first impression standpoint, most would take her at face value and see her as regular popular high school girl with a good personality.

Well, while all of that was true, that was only a part of who she really was. How can someone who had gone through so many rough moments in her life be so bright and bubbly? 

It's not like she was pretending or faking, but more or less exaggerating her happy side to mask the insecurities, worry, and fear that she had towards her current situation and her future.

The person in front of Reiji right now was the real Haruna. A joyous, teasing girl who was incredibly smart, mentally strong, and cared a LOT about her grandmother.

So even though she could tell Reiji wasn't exactly a bad person, she needed to know more. Not only for her, but for her beloved Granny.

"The real me huh.... That's a loaded question ya know, feels like I'm in therapy," Reiji smiled.

"Then consider me your therapist," she said softly, her arms crossed on her bountiful chest.

"Haaaa... I don't know what you want me to say. If you're asking if I really beat people up, then yes I did. If you want to know why, it was because they pissed me off. If you're wondering if I'm dangerous, I definitely am for very obvious reasons. But will I hurt you or Granny? Then no, no I won't," Reiji looked up at the setting sun, answering her question by answering his own.

Even though it infuriated him to take the blame for something his predecessor did, denying it would make no sense here.

Haruna just listened quietly, her fingers tapping on her forearm as if she was calculating something. 

"...So all the rumors are true?" she finally asked.

"....Yeah for the most part, I guess. Though I don't know every single rumor going on about me."

"Even the ones that say you force yourself on women, use them, and then throw them away," she questioned with a stronger tone, a glint in her eye.

"WHAT? WHAT THE FUCK? THERE'S A RUMOR LIKE THAT? FUCK NO, I'M A VIRGIN!"

Reiji's eyes almost popped out in complete shock, staring blankly at Haruna as his voice pitched higher in bewilderment and disgust.

Haruna took a small step back at his outburst, clearly not expecting him to react that strongly. She froze for a second, looking at Reiji's face that looked like he had swallowed an entire apple which was now stuck in his throat. 

Finally, she burst out laughing.

"PFFT HAHAHAHA!" She bent over slightly and tried to cover her mouth to stop the roaring laughter, but clearly failed.

"Oh my god, you just announced that you're a virgin so confidently, I can't HAHA! Your face, Oh I wish I had a camera!" She couldn't stop giggling at Reiji, who was still frowning as if he had heard the most absurd thing in the world.

Call him old-fashioned or whatever, but he was the type of guy who couldn't see himself sleeping with someone he didn't love. So that accusation not only surprised him, but disgusted him to the core because of how serious it was.

"What's wrong with being a virgin, I'm not ashamed of it," he snapped, crossing his arms defiantly.

"Nah, there's nothing wrong with it, but the way you shouted it out.... Oh god, my stomach hurts!"

"Who's spreading that ridiculous rumor anyway? I'm just bad tempered, not a fucking monster!!"

"Don't worry, I don't think it's a widespread rumor, I just heard it from someone I know. I didn't really believe it myself, they didn't look very confident while saying it, plus you didn't seem like the type. It's not like you'd need to force women with that face anyway," she reassured with a grin.

"Oho? Did you just call me handsome?" Reiji smirked back and leaned forward, wanting to get some payback.

"Hmm? Did you not know?"

But Haruna, an expert gyaru skilled at the art of teasing, stepped forward as well so that their faces were only inches apart.

Reiji's face turned red and he took a couple of steps backwards with a cough.

"A-anyway, that rumor isn't true! I'm not gonna sleep with someone I don't love!" he whispered.

As he said that, the orange glow from the setting sun reflected off his piercing blue eyes, and the light breeze ruffled his hair gently.

Haruna blanked out a little as she gazed at Reiji's magnetic appearance in a daze, her heart starting to beat a little faster. Reiji's shirt, unbuttoned at the top, swayed with the wind and revealed a hint of his well-built chest, causing her to hiccup involuntarily.

"Haruna? What's wrong?" 

She quickly forced herself out of her state and saw his concerned expression, which made her smile.

"Nothing, I was just thinking about what you said. Anyway, I've been meaning to ask but why have you been calling me Haruna this whole time? This is the first time we've met, right?" she quickly changed the topic.

"Eh? Oh shit, I did do that, didn't I?" Reiji smacked his forehead exasperatedly.

He was so used to calling the characters by their first names because of the game, that he hadn't even realized that it might be considered rude now that it was a reality.

"Oh no, I'm not angry! I don't mind at all! I was just confused."

"It's just a bad habit I picked up, I'll try to watch myself Yuzuki-san," Reiji replied apologetically.

But for some reason, this earned him an angry glare from Haruna, who pouted with a deep frown.

"I literally just said I don't mind! Call me Haruna from now on!" She commanded.

"O-Ok, Haruna. I'll call you Haruna, happy?" Reiji backed down quickly, trying to calm down the worked up girl who got mad out of nowhere.

"Hmph, good," she grinned, a satisfied look on her face. Reiji wasn't sure of it was the orange sun playing tricks, but seemed to be blushing a little.

"Geez, you and your grandmother are really similar, getting pissed off so quickly," he chuckled.

"Right? I learned it from her!"

"....Don't say that so proudly," he sighed.

"Anyway, you call me Haruna from now on, and I'll call you Reiji-tan!" her smile widened even further.

Reiji's lips started quivering, as an incredibly happy feeling washed over him. Adding 'tan' to the first name was Haruna's little quirk, and though she used it on anyone even a little close to her, it was still a good feeling.

Though he had initially decided to avoid the main cast to minimize problems, he couldn't help but enjoy this moment. Being able to chat so personally with one of your favorite characters was... amazing.

"Sure, why not.... Anyways, I should get going," Reiji said after glancing at his watch.

Haruna's face turned serious once again as soon as those words left his mouth.

"Reiji-tan...Let me apologize once again for attacking you with an umbrella," she bowed down, her golden locks falling off her shoulder the lower she got.

"I-It's fine, it didn't really hurt. Honestly..... it was kinda funny," Reiji quickly made her stand and comforted her with a smile.

"...I guess so. But also...Thank you. Thank you for helping Granny, she means the world to me. If something happened to her I...." Haruna's watered a little, the emotions that she had held back spilling over at this moment.

As she was looking at the ground with wet eyes, she felt a hand pat her gently on the head.

"It's ok.... I did it because I wanted to, and she'll be fine. She's a strong woman after all, my back still hurts from her slap."

Haruna looked up slowly and met Reiji's warm eyes, her heart starting to beat faster again. She wiped the tears from her eyes and gave him the widest smile she could muster, which seemed to brighten up the darkening sky.

Now it was Reiji's turn to have his heart start racing, as he turned around to walk off as fast as he could.

"A-Anyways, you don't have to thank me, just get her wheelbarrow fixed as soon as you can!" He stammered without looking back, speedwalking away from the building.

As he got to the end of the road, he heard Haruna's shout which made him stop.

"Reiji-tan!"

He turned around to see the breathtaking girl give him a wave.

"See you later!"

"....Yeah. See ya."

He left the Yuzuki household with a blissful look on his face, a perfect end to a hectic day.