C33

Chapter 33: The Revealed Fact

Saturday.

The mother had contacted the school the previous day, expressing her wish to speak with the homeroom teacher regarding Reo.

And so, at the appointed time, the parents boarded the car and headed to the school.

There was no conversation inside the car. The father kept his hands firmly on the steering wheel in silence, while the mother gazed out the front passenger window.

At their feet rested a bag containing the medical certificate received at the psychosomatic clinic yesterday.

As they watched the passing townscape, the school gates eventually came into view. The father slowly eased up on the accelerator and quietly drove into the school grounds.

On a Saturday, the school building carried far less human presence than on weekdays.

When the parents informed the reception desk of their arrival, a single male teacher soon came out to the entryway.

"Hello. I'm Yamaoka, Tachibana-kun's homeroom teacher."

"I'm Tachibana's father. Thank you for taking the time out of your day."

The father bowed his head.

Beside him, the mother quietly bowed as well.

"Thank you as well. Now then, right this way."

Guided by Yamaoka, the three walked inside the school building.

Reaching a guest reception space before long, Yamaoka invited the two to a chair and seated himself in the chair opposite them.

Facing each other across the table, Yamaoka looked at their faces before opening his mouth.

"Once again, I understand you are here today to speak regarding Tachibana-kun."

The father nodded quietly.

"Yes. We have a matter regarding our son we would like to consult with you about."

There was no emotional ring to his voice. It was simply quiet—so quiet it felt excessive, and that stillness only served to accentuate the heaviness of the room.

Yamaoka nodded slightly, lending an ear to the father's words.

After steadying his breath just once, the father began to speak slowly.

"Ever since returning home from school this Monday, our son has looked as though he simply couldn't shake off his exhaustion."

Yamaoka's expression changed ever so slightly.

"Even so, he was eating his meals, and whenever we spoke to him, he would reply. We wondered if something might have happened at school, but he never brought anything up himself."

The father cut his words off there once.

"Being a child of adolescent age, I figured it wasn't right to pry into everything just because we're his parents... so we decided to watch over him for a while."

The mother said nothing, sitting quietly beside him.

"However, come Thursday morning, his condition was clearly wrong."

The father's voice remained calm as ever.

"His complexion was poor, dark circles were deeply etched beneath his eyes, and he could barely keep his footing."

For the first time, Yamaoka's expression grew stern.

"We took him to the hospital that very day. They introduced us to a psychosomatic clinic."

The father paused once.

"And yesterday, he had his examination."

It was a quiet voice.

◇

For a while, no one opened their mouths.

Eventually, the mother steadied her breath once and slowly raised her face.

"Yesterday, we heard about our son from the doctor at the psychosomatic clinic."

Yamaoka directed his gaze toward the mother.

"It seems our son was subjected to a fake confession by a classmate at school."

"......A fake confession, you say?"

Confusion surfaced in Yamaoka's expression.

"Yes."

The mother nodded quietly.

"After being confessed to, it seems they ended up dating... but that confession itself was a lie from the beginning."

Yamaoka did not reply immediately.

"However, even we do not fully grasp what happened at that time."

"......Do you know who did it?"

The mother shook her head quietly.

"No. The doctor told us to prioritize our son's condition over detailed circumstances for now..."

Yamaoka dropped his gaze once.

"I see..."

The mother looked straight at Yamaoka.

"However, we have heard that multiple students were involved."

Yamaoka's expression shifted slightly.

"Multiple students..."

"Yes."

The mother nodded quietly.

"Therefore, we would like you to confirm... what happened at school."

Her voice was mild.

Even so, those words carried a faint hardness.

"Why our son was subjected to something like that—we still understand nothing of it."

Yamaoka listened in silence.

"However... whatever the reason may be, if something occurred severe enough to prevent our son from attending school, we wish for it to be properly verified."

The mother's voice remained quiet to the very end.

Yamaoka nodded slowly.

"......Understood."

From the bag resting at his feet, the father took out a single document and placed it quietly on top of the table.

"This is the medical certificate issued during yesterday's examination."

Yamaoka dropped his gaze to the document once.

"......May I take a look?"

"Yes."

Yamaoka picked up the medical certificate and quietly read through the contents recorded within.

The findings noted that triggered by an interpersonal event occurring within the school environment, psychological burdens had escalated, accompanied by symptoms such as insomnia and fatigue.

It also stated that the patient was currently in a state making it difficult to continue school life, and required resting at home for the foreseeable future.

Furthermore, it touched upon the fact that the event took place in a setting with numerous classmates present as a factor contributing to the psychological burden.

Yamaoka's gaze stopped at that description.

For a while, Yamaoka couldn't tear his eyes away from the medical certificate.

The words he had heard from the mother moments ago overlapped in his head.

Multiple students were involved.

And—it was carried out in the presence of numerous classmates.

"......In front of his classmates, you say."

Yamaoka murmured low.

The mother nodded quietly.

"Yes."

Yamaoka dropped his eyes to the medical certificate once more, then quietly returned the document to the table.

"......Understood."

Yamaoka's voice was lower than before.

"On Monday, I will hear accounts from the students in the class."

"Please do."

The mother replied shortly.

Yamaoka gave a small nod.

Then, slowly standing up, Yamaoka bowed deeply before the parents.

"......I am truly sorry."

It was a quiet voice.

"As his homeroom teacher, I failed to notice that Tachibana-kun was suffering to this extent."

Keeping his head bowed, he continued.

"I had not even grasped what happened at school. I consider it deeply regrettable that the result of this was pushing Tachibana-kun into such a state."

For a while, he did not break that posture.

"As his homeroom teacher, I should have noticed sooner."

There was nothing contrived in Yamaoka's expression.

"I am truly sorry."

Yamaoka remained bowed deeply, not moving for some time.

Eventually, the father spoke quietly.

"......Please raise your head."

Yamaoka lifted his face.

"That is enough. Please, have a seat."

"......Yes."

Yamaoka nodded slightly and returned to his seat.

After a moment, he opened his mouth quietly.

"Regarding matters moving forward..."

Yamaoka looked at the parents.

"For now, you may prioritize Tachibana-kun's physical condition above all else. I believe there is no need to forcefully encourage him to attend school."

The father nodded quietly.

"As for lessons during that period, the school will handle them as best as possible. We will organize and hand over textbooks and assignments for the days he is absent."

"......Understood."

"Also, when his condition recovers and he becomes able to return to school, there is no need to suddenly resume life just as before."

Yamaoka paused briefly to choose his words.

"While observing his personal state, the school will also consider ways for him to return in a form that puts no undue strain on him."

The mother listened to Yamaoka in silence.

"Regarding his academics, we will follow up as much as possible so he falls behind as little as possible."

Yamaoka continued quietly.

"Therefore, for now, please prioritize ensuring Tachibana-kun can rest securely."

The father nodded quietly.

"Understood."

It was a short reply.

The mother nodded slightly as well.

"......Please take care of him."

No further words were exchanged.

After a short while, the father slowly stood up, and the mother stood up following after him.

"Thank you for taking the time today."

The father bowed quietly.

"Thank you as well."

Yamaoka stood up, seeing the two off.

The mother bowed to Yamaoka just once, then started walking following the father.

The three exited the reception space.

From a short distance away, Yamaoka quietly watched the backs of the two walking down the corridor.

Before long, their figures vanished beyond the entryway.

Silence returned once more to the abandoned school building.

Amidst that quietness, Yamaoka remained unable to move from the spot for a while.

◇

Even after the parents' figures were gone, Yamaoka stood in that spot for a while.

The contents of the medical certificate shown to him earlier wouldn't leave his head.

An event that occurred in the presence of numerous classmates.

Every time he recalled those words, the depths of his chest grew heavy.

"......So that's what happened."

He muttered softly.

Recently, the students' demeanor had been somewhat unsettled; conversations that would normally be exchanged naturally had decreased, and several people had shown jittery behavior minding their surroundings.

He never imagined that something severe enough to prevent Tachibana from coming to school had taken place.

"......I failed to notice."

Imbuing his words with regret, Yamaoka lowered his eyes.

Could he not have noticed sooner as their homeroom teacher?

Over the past few days, on the school's attendance management app, the reason for Tachibana's absence had been entered in the remarks column as "feeling unwell."

However, yesterday's absence notification bore content different from before.

Because of that, Yamaoka had tried calling Tachibana's house, but couldn't get through, and after a short while received a message from Tachibana's mother asking to visit the school the following day to speak.

If he had reached out sooner, would something have changed?

He couldn't help but think that.

Yet, sitting around regretting it now wouldn't change a thing.

This matter could not be handled solely on the judgment of himself as the homeroom teacher.

Yamaoka took out his smartphone.

He would share what he heard today from Tachibana's parents with the head of the grade, and discuss future responses.

And on Monday, he would hear accounts from the students in the class.

What happened in the classroom on that day.

He had no choice but to verify it one step at a time from there.

Yamaoka let out a quiet breath.

This time around, he couldn't afford to overlook anything.

(Note: Because Mr. Yamaoka is in charge of Saturday classes for the advanced course, he is on duty on Saturdays as well.)