Summary
One day during break, Ai and her friends head outside to feed Kotaro, a small, stray dog that's become the class pet after Ai found him one rainy day. Initially she worries he got loose after realizing he isn't where they keep him, but once the other girls spot him peeing on Ai's shoe- her concern turns to frustration and she picks him up. Suddenly, Kotaro starts barking and the girls spot their creepy classmate, Kurosawa, walking down the path nearby. While Ai's friends panic at the sight of her -recalling the rumor that she curses people- a chipper Ai approaches her and offers to let her pet Kotaro. Kurosawa turns back and takes off, with her friends expressing relief before remarking on Ai's kindness. However, Ai is left wondering if Kurosawa is actually as bad as everyone thinks, noticing how happy Kotaro looks.
It's then two males cross paths with the girls. One of them is appalled by the stench of urine and accuses a flustered Ai of peeing herself, but the other male quickly tells him off, stating that it was the dog. As they walk by, Ai is momentarily captivated by her upperclassman until she notices how aggravated Kotaro looks.
With that, Ai resumes work building a dog house for her curious class pet. She's spent a long time working on it and is nearly finished, but once again he has gone missing. As she begins to worry she notices him in the distance with a strange doll in his mouth- being chased by Kurosawa!
As Ai recalls what her friends said earlier, Kurosawa snatches the doll away from Kotaro and prepares to leave until Ai spots a bag of dog treats she has in hand. She suggests that she stays there with her in order to give some to Kotaro, and Kurosawa silently agrees. Together the girls sit down and play with Kotaro, and as Ai looks to find him peeing on her -yet again- she observes Kurosawa and mentally comes to the decision that she isn't scary at all. But her focus is diverted after she takes notice of a small bruise on Kotaro's side. She assumes it was his own recklessness and chastises him for getting into things carelessly, but she makes note to grab bandaging for him later. She asks Kurosawa if she knows anything about the injury, but in response she stands up while uttering how "blissfully ignorant" Ai is before leaving.
Confused, Ai attempts to figure out what she meant as she picks up Kotaro and crawls into the recently finished dog house. She remarks upon the approaching winter season, and as they observe the scenery she happily brings up how they will grow up together and graduate in spring.
Her happiness is short-lived however, when the following day Ai arrives to school with milk, bandages, and steamed buns for Kotaro. She finds a group of students and teaching staff chattering among each other wondering what could have happened as they observe the destroyed dog house. Ai questions what happened and one of the male staff members try to block the sight from her, but she manages to look around him and shocked by the sight she drops her bag; Kotaro's lifeless, battered corpse.
Shocked to the point of silence, Ai remains outside with it as everyone heads inside. Weeping for her beloved class pet, Ai soon hears a group of guys approaching and silences herself, hiding by the nearby wall when she recognizes Sakahara. She curiously overhears them when one friend brings up how harsh he treated the dog, leashing it up and tying it to his bike while he rode very long rides. Sakahara bluntly tells his friend that they shouldn't speak about the dog any longer because of how weak it was, and Ai is shaken when he suddenly smiles, claiming that it had been good for stress relief. As Ai recalls the various injuries she saw the prior day and realizes that her senpai had been the cause, she is distraught and remembers Kurosawa's words, now aware that up until now, she was the only person capable of seeing him for the cruel person he actually was.
Enraged by the revelation, Ai approaches Kurosawa. She then mentions the doll she saw the prior day before coldly asking to use it.
The following day, Ai and Kurosawa prepare a grave for Kotaro when Ai's friends approach, bringing up that Sakahara had been in an accident. His clothing somehow snagged onto a passing bus or truck and he was dragged for miles; his body was so mutilated by the time the driver stopped, nobody could look very long without feeling sick. As they remark on the incident, they are unaware of the exchanged glances between Ai and Kurosawa. Ai stands up with a smile then and prepares to leave with her friends, relieving to know that her class pet has been properly avenged.
Tropes:
- Beauty Is Bad: This was the first story in this series using this trope. Sakahara-senpai is good-looking and treats Ai kindly. It was also said that he never makes a fuss and always does his work. But out of public eye he is revealed to be unpleasant person and has no problems discussing it around his friends.
- Bishie Sparkle: Ai gains this while bringing Kotaro up to Kurosawa- who is startled and abruptly turns away to leave.
- Clothing Damage: Sakahara's clothing was snagged on a passing vehicle, which was what caused him to be dragged. Considering his body was mangled by the time the bus stopped, one can assume his clothing suffered as well.
- Evil-Detecting Dog: Kotaro is very friendly around Kurosawa, but hostile around Sakahara. Initially Ai did not understand what this meant.
- Karmic Death: Sakahara abused Kotaro by tying a rope on his neck and dragging him around while he rode his bike. At the end of the story, his clothing snagged a passing vehicle and he was dragged for miles.
- Misunderstood Loner with a Heart of Gold: One who plays with a Voodoo Doll said to curse people but is genuinely very friendly if given a chance.
