Chapter 121: Ren joins the group.

The classroom fell completely silent, and Noah took several seconds to process the sentence.

"Since when?"

"For years."

The answer came immediately, so Noah’s eyes widened slightly.

"Years?"

"Yes."

"Before you..."

He didn’t finish the sentence. He didn’t need to, and Ren understood.

"Before you started acting weird."

Noah felt a small discomfort, because she was referring, without knowing it, to the moment Noah had arrived in this world.

That meant Ren had already felt something for the original Noah, and those feelings had continued with him.

Ren kept talking.

"At first I thought it was just a phase, since we were young and we spent almost all our time together, so I figured it would pass."

Noah stayed quiet.

"But it didn’t."

Ren smiled faintly.

"On the contrary."

She looked at her hands.

"Every year it got worse."

Noah didn’t know what to say, and Ren took a breath.

"When my family decided to present me publicly as a man, I thought it was an opportunity."

Noah frowned.

"An opportunity?"

"Yes."

"For what?"

Ren looked at him.

"To stay by your side."

Noah took a second to understand, and Ren continued.

"If you believed I was a guy, you wouldn’t look at me the way you looked at other girls."

Noah went completely still.

"I wouldn’t compete with anyone. I could be your friend, stick with you, worry about you, and stay close without you thinking I was trying something."

Ren let out a small laugh.

"At the time it seemed smart."

Noah remembered a lot of things.

The first day, Ren’s warnings about Yume, the way she got suspicious of any girl who approached Noah, the constant questions, the exaggerated concern, the reaction when Noah asked for other girls’ phone numbers, the insistence with Aria, and the jealousy she’d shown with Iris.

’So that was it.’

Noah looked at her.

"That’s why you were so protective."

Ren turned a little red.

"Partly."

"When Yume started getting closer..."

"It bothered me."

"Luna."

"Her too."

"Iris."

Ren stayed silent, and Noah raised an eyebrow.

"Ren."

"Yes, her too."

"And Aria."

Ren frowned.

"She’s different."

"Because of the engagement?"

"Because of everything."

Noah almost smiled, and Ren continued.

"Before, I could convince myself it didn’t matter."

"I was your friend."

"You thought I was a guy."

"So even if some girl showed up, I’d still have a place they couldn’t take."

Noah understood.

"Being my best friend."

Ren nodded.

"Exactly."

Then her expression changed.

"But it stopped working."

"When?"

Ren looked at him like the answer was obvious.

"When all of them appeared."

Noah didn’t need to ask, and Ren clenched her fists.

"And I kept pretending."

Noah stayed quiet.

"I thought if I just kept being your friend it would be enough, but it’s not."

Ren lifted her head.

"I don’t want to keep going like this."

Noah felt the conversation turning much more serious, and Ren stood up.

"You already know I’m a girl."

"Yes."

"You already know why I hid it."

"That too."

"And now you know this as well."

Noah held her gaze, and Ren looked nervous, more than he’d almost ever seen her, but she didn’t back down.

"I love you, Noah."

Noah felt an uncomfortable pressure in his chest, not from rejection, but because he couldn’t answer the same way, not yet.

His romantic situation was already too complicated, and adding Ren to it.

Noah lowered his gaze.

"Ren..."

"You don’t have to say it."

Noah looked at her again, and she smiled slightly.

"I don’t expect you to answer me right away."

"But..."

"Let me finish."

Noah stayed silent, so Ren continued.

"I didn’t tell you this to force you, or to make you break up with anyone, or so you’d choose me right now."

Ren breathed slowly.

"I just don’t want to keep lying."

Noah watched her.

"After hiding my identity for so long, it would be pretty ridiculous to keep hiding this."

Noah let out a small laugh.

"A little."

Ren smiled too, and the tension eased slightly, so Noah stood up from the desk.

"Ren."

"Yeah?"

"I can’t give you an answer right now."

"I know."

"And I don’t want you to take that as a yes."

"That’s fine."

"But I also don’t want to reject you without thinking it through."

Ren’s eyes widened a little, and Noah continued.

"I have too many things to sort out."

"I know that too."

"My life is pretty complicated right now."

Ren let out a laugh.

"Today I found out that three of the girls I know can transform and use magic."

"Four."

"Right."

Ren brought a hand to her face.

"Aria counts too."

Noah smiled.

"Exactly."

Ren lowered her hand.

"Then I’ll wait."

Noah frowned slightly.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"I don’t know how long..."

"It doesn’t matter."

"Ren."

"I waited years without saying anything."

She looked at him directly.

"Now at least you know why I’m waiting."

Noah didn’t answer, and Ren stepped closer.

For a moment Noah thought she was going to try to kiss him, but she didn’t. Instead she just poked him lightly in the chest with one finger.

"But don’t take too long."

Noah raised an eyebrow.

"That contradicts what you just said."

"Just a little."

"Ren."

She smiled.

"I’m trying not to be too considerate."

Noah shook his head.

For the first time since the conversation started, the usual Ren seemed to be coming back, but now Noah knew that a lot of the things he’d interpreted as simple concern from a friend had another explanation.

Noah sighed.

"You really are reckless."

Ren raised an eyebrow.

"Because of the chair?"

"Especially because of the chair."

"I protected you."

"They almost hit you with magic."

"But it didn’t happen."

"Because Iris showed up."

"Then the plan worked."

"There was no plan in that action."

"Details."

Noah sighed again, and Ren walked toward the door, but before opening it she stopped.

"Noah."

"What?"

"One thing."

"Which?"

"The magical girl stuff."

"Yeah."

"I won’t say anything."

Noah nodded.

"Thanks."

Ren put a hand on the doorknob.

"And the other thing, you don’t have to answer it today either."

"I know."

"But I’m not going to pretend I don’t feel anything anymore."

Noah stayed silent, and Ren opened the door.

"So you’re going to have to get used to it."

Noah raised an eyebrow.

"Does that mean you’re going to compete with the others?"

Ren stepped out into the hallway and, before walking away, looked at him over her shoulder.

"Maybe."

Noah’s eyes widened.

"Ren."

She smiled slightly.

"See you."

And she left.

Noah stayed alone inside the classroom.

He looked at the door and then let his shoulders drop.

"One more."

It wasn’t the most elegant way to put it, but it was hard to think of another.

Noah brought a hand to his face.

’No wonder she was jealous.’

Finally, a lot of her actions from the beginning made sense, but the problem was that understanding them didn’t make his situation any simpler.

Noah left the classroom.

He still had to explain a lot of things to Ren and Aria about the magical girls, and he also had to talk with Yume together with Luna.

Noah started walking.

At least one thing had improved: Ren was no longer hiding who she was or what she felt.

That was more than he could say about several of his other problems.