Volume 14, Chapter 2
Chapter 2: Eventually, the time will come when we will become accustomed to this relationship.
It was a peaceful afternoon under the gentle rays of the sun as I engaged in my chewing time at the usual spot on campus. I absentmindedly consumed my lunch while taking in the ambient cheering voices of the tennis club.
Today was several degrees cooler than yesterday, but that didn’t make being outside any less pleasant. The mornings and evenings were expected to be chilly, but not during the daytime, removing the need for a coat. Sunbathing under the partly cloudy sky was truly a delight.
A few days’ time, and the town had pa.s.sed over the season, and now spring inched closer and closer.
I casually shoved my leftover bread from the school store into my mouth and washed it down with tea. I let out a satisfied sigh and rested my chin in my hands. As I soaked in the warmth of the sun, I shut my eyes.
I strained my ears to listen to the bouncing tennis b.a.l.l.s from the courts and the voice of the tennis club captain, Totsuka. Suddenly, a crunching step from the ground blended in with the noise. I reflexively turned to the source, and I was greeted with a bouncing peach-colored bun of hair. The owner, Yuigahama, noticed me and lifted her hand to about the level of her chest and waved.
“Ohh, what’s up?”
“Just thought I’d give you this after getting a drink, here,” she said. After she offered me a can of MAX COFFEE, she smoothed down her skirt and sat beside me. I took the warm can and juggled it, unsure of what to do with it.
“Huh, what’s this for? I can have it? How much?”
“It’s okay, since you got me something yesterday.”
“Oh, makes sense. I’ll take it, then.”
“Sure.”
To think she’d go out of her way to return the favor, she’s quite the upright girl…
I lifted the pull-tab and sipped at the warm, sugary can of MAX COFFEE. I nodded as the warmth began to envelop my body, and there, I felt a gaze. I glanced to my side, and Yuigahama was watching me, grasping her knees to her chest and her head tilted. Her gaze felt like an awfully warm, sunny spot. Finding that a little uncomfortable, I redirected my focus from her to the nutrition label of the can in my hand.
You feeling okay? I’ve been feeling strangely euphoric for a while now. Don’t tell me… was the MAX COFFEE being utilized for nefarious reasons? Like say, to transport some kind of dangerous white powder of the sort…? Who am I kidding? Of course, that’s in there! It’s a white powder that can make anyone feel euphoric, and its name was sugar!
I regained my composure through a moment of worthless thoughts. Then, Yuigahama spoke to me.
“So, when should we hold the party?”
“Ahh…” I said, trying to fill the silence, and then took a moment to think. The party was something she brought up last night and also happened to be one of the wishes she wanted granted.
The purpose of the party was to show appreciation for all the people who helped with my dummy prom proposal from the other day: Zaimokuza, the two members of the United Gamers Club, Miura, and Ebinsan.
Of course, the only problem was those three guys wouldn’t be too happy with that turnout… Either way, since Yuigahama was eager to do it, I couldn’t refuse.
Taking my silence as consent, she began tapping on her smartphone and seemed to be confirming things. “Yumiko and Hina said they’re free today, and I am, too. Think we can do it today?”
“And why aren’t you asking about my schedule?” I asked.
“Weren’t you the one who said you were free? Like tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow, or the day after that day?” Yuigahama said, and pouted.
“Yes, I did…” I could only shrug because I wasn’t expecting her to finalize my commitment in that manner. I had better watch what I say next time! I couldn’t really give a retort since I was indeed free for the day.
“Now, we just need to check if Chuuni and his friends are available…” she said, implying that I should get the confirmation from them.
“Today’s fine,” I said, answering instantly.
“Huh? Really?” she asked with surprise, tilting her head.
I nodded. “Yeah, those guys are definitely free. I’m an expert.”
“Someone’s confident…”
I had doubts the UG Club was actually busy with any substantial club activities, or whatever it was that they do, and it goes without saying that Zaimokuza was available. I could tell, since I, too, was in a club that was involved in enigmatic activities. I was an expert.
Yuigahama, who typically had her schedule planned out, didn’t seem to understand as she sullenly pursed her lips and looked at me with narrowed eyes. “Just so you know, you’ll be the only guy there if they don’t come.”
“That sounds super scary…”
The situation they called harem was a luxury only kings could enjoy. In reality, vomiting would be the first thing on your mind if you were the only boy in a s.p.a.ce full of girls. On top of that, you’d be sweating as much as the condensation you’d find on a gla.s.s of ice tea during summer. It was all fun and games if they ignored you entirely, but if they didn’t and asked “You look pretty sweaty, you okay? Is it too hot?”, the sweat from your armpits would be the least of your worries. At that point, the Niagara Falls would be forming at your mouth. If it was a club you were familiar with, you could prepare all sorts of excuses to fool yourself into having one. But in an unknown environment, you’d be like a rental cat, and your fate would be serving time as a Jizo statue1. So, what if we were to add Zaimokuza and the two UG Club members into the mix? Wow! Now, there’s three more statues to make a total of four!
Well, there’s the saying that half a loaf was better than none, so them being present was better than not being present at all. Putting aside what Miura and the others thought of them, having them there would help with my emotional health.
“I’m going to have think about how to invite them… they’ll just refuse if I ask them normally.”
“Really?’ she said, still unconvinced.
Again, I nodded. “Absolutely. If they know someone like Miura is going, they’ll definitely refuse to go. Forcing people to party with flamboyant people for the first time is pure torture. For the whole two hours, they’ll just be staring at the clock and getting refills. Heck, the time they spend in the restroom will feel even longer. I’m an expert.”
“You’re too much of one! You’re clearly speaking from experience!” Yuigahama exclaimed in grief.
I rubbed my chin, and stated, “The problem is that they’re not direct acquaintances.”
“Oh, well, I guess that’s true…” Yuigahama mumbled, finally understanding the situation. I was well aware that Miura’s a good person, but her haughty att.i.tude would make anyone draw back in fear on their first meeting. I mean, I still do even now!
However, from the perspective of someone who was used to her, it didn’t seem like a big deal. Yuigahama clapped her hands, turned to me, and wagged her finger as she began to explain. “Oh, but hey, doesn’t Chuuni already know Yumiko and Hina? He just needs to smooth things over and…”
“The problem is that they’re not direct acquaintances…”
“Again!?”
“You kidding me? I’m not even sure if I’m an acquaintance of theirs, so Zaimokuza clearly has to be less than that. Also, there’s no way he’d able to smooth anything over.”
“Well, that’s where you come in… you can do it, Hikki.” Yuigahama made closed fits and raised them in front of her chest in encouragement and smiled innocently. I could only force a smile back.
Thanks for the encouragement, but I don’t think that’s going to happen… Why would you go out of your way to gather creatures from different habitats into a single place? I mean, are you trying to set up a Colosseum for some kind of Miulion and Zaimokuslave showdown? Did history never teach you that was just grounds for a cruel one-sided slaughter show?
Putting my thoughts aside, the decree of Emperor Gahama was absolute, so I had no choice but to obey.
“…Alright, I’ll see what I can do to invite them. Where are we holding the party?”
“Karaoke, I guess… or something,” she said, thinking as she looked up at the sky. Then, she brought her gaze back down to me for confirmation.
“All right… things might work out, then,” I said after taking a moment. I ran some ideas through my head about how I should convince them to accept my invitation. Then, I continued, “I’ll ask them after school.”
“Okay, got it,” she said, nodding.
She held her knees together again and adjusted her sitting position as she moved a few centimeters closer. The chilly wind blew past her soft hair and after holding it down with her hand, she moved it to her ear. As I watched her with a sidelong glance, I squeezed the warm can with my chilly fingertips, and carried the sugary coffee to my mouth.
I was under the impression she’d leave after finalizing the details of the party, but that didn’t seem to be the case. But, well, the weather was good today, and this spot wasn’t exclusively just for me. If she wanted to relax here for a bit, I didn’t mind one bit.
Feeling a little restless, I looked over to the tennis courts. The sounds of the bouncing b.a.l.l.s from earlier had stopped, and the members of the club were packing up to leave. Having just practiced, the boorish group looked filthy, but there was one conspicuous person in that group. He was like the Greek G.o.ddess of the moon, Selene, and served as the pretty and cure captain of the tennis club, Totsuka Saika. How glitterific2!
I waved at Totsuka as he wiped his sweat and readjusted his tennis bag on his back. When he noticed me, he returned my wave with a smaller one.
The way we exchanged signs to avoid standing out is just the best… For example, it’s similar to when you go to a voice actor’s live concert, and while everyone around you is busy waving their penlight sticks and calling out their chants, you take a step back and then pose like Vega with the air of a boyfriend. We might as well be dating, right? Except the person’s usually just some random stranger…
Spotting the both of us, Totsuka spoke to his fellow members, and came jogging over. Yuigahama waved in response.
“Oh, yahallo, Sai-chan!”
“Uh huh, yahallo.”
Totsuka was out of breath as he repeated after her and returned her big wave. Then, he also gave me a nice smile.
What a wonderful greeting that is… I couldn’t help but be moved by the beauty of our language… Wait, no. Is it even a part of our language? Let’s see, what language did the word “yahallo” originate from?
While I was engaged in a philosophical mental struggle, Yuigahama raised her voice in admiration.
“Busy with club? Wow, you look so slim.”
“Sl-Slim…? Hmm, I’m not really sure about that,” he said with an embarra.s.sed smile.
“Oh, trust me, Sai-chan, you’re super slim. You really need more meat on you, it’s unfair.” Yuigahama exclaimed and shook her hands with a grave expression.
“R-Really…?” Totsuka asked. Yuigahama then began poking his sides. “Oh, st-stop it…”
“See! You’re so thin! Look, Hikki, he’s so thin!”
Totsuka squirmed in hopes of escaping, but Yuigahama took on a teasing att.i.tude, and beckoned me over.
Oh? Doth I get the honor of touching, too?
I reached out with my hand. Or at least, I tried to.
“Hachiman… stop her…” Totsuka cried, begging for help. In that instant, I was locked into place. My chest was pierced by an arrow, you see… Instead, I decided to change the subject. I’ll do something about her, don’t worry!
“Totsuka, are you free tonight?” I asked. He tilted his head in surprise. Yuigahama stopped her poking, and similarly bobbed her head. I continued, “We were talking about going to karaoke, and you know how I asked you for help with the prom? That went well, so we’re thinking of celebrating…”
To see the dummy prom proposal through, I consulted with Totsuka. As a matter of fact, if it wasn’t for him being there at the time, I wouldn’t have talked about any of the circ.u.mstances and details at all. Since I hadn’t thanked him yet for his help, I wanted him to come to the party.
“Right, right! You should come, Sai-chan!” Yuigahama said, clapping her hands.
Finding it difficult to refuse, Totsuka said, “If you don’t mind me coming after club, then…”
I nodded back to his bashful smile. And then, the bell chimed to signify the end of our lunch.
“Let’s go back to cla.s.s,” said Yuigahama. She stood up, and wiped the grit off her skirt. I followed suit, and finished the remainder of my drink. I got rid of the bread packaging and can on the way to the school building, my chilled fingers in my pockets.
Our plans were now set for the day. I wasn’t feeling particularly enthused about the party initially, but now, I was kind of looking forward to it.
X X X
The spring sun began to incline and fill the tranquil hallway, echoing throughout was two people’s worth of footsteps; no more, no less.
It was after school, and Yuigahama inexplicably came along and hurried her pace to my side. I thought, “Why are you tagging along?” but ultimately kept it to myself.
“Is Chuuni at the club, too?” she asked.
“Probably,” I answered. I had asked Zaimokuza and the two members of the UG Club to create a website and social network account for my dummy prom proposal, and it was likely still under their management. I was going to inform them that their mission was over and hopefully get their agreement to come to the evening party at the same time.
The closer we got to the special building, the quieter the hustle and bustle of after school activities became, which stopped at the corner that led to the UG Club. I flung the door open, and Zaimokuza trotted over to welcome us.
“Hm, Hachiman. Finally come, have you? Yahallo!” he exclaimed, flapping his trench coat. Sagami’s brother and Hatano pushed their gla.s.ses up as they poked their head out from behind and greeted us.
“Oh, yahallo there.”
“h.e.l.lo, and yahallo.”
“Yes, quite the wonderful greetings you have there!” I thought. I wanted to exclaim out loud, but a rather upsetting sigh came creeping up on me from behind.
“…”
I turned around and… uh oh, Gahamsan looks so scary… She was clearly in a bad mood, as she gave me a half-closed glare.
“Hikki, make them stop.” She lowered her voice and pulled on my sleeve. She wasn’t this upset when Totsuka said it… Obviously! Totsuka’s a cutie, that’s why! These guys were not.
I motioned her towards a seat with my hands while trying to placate her. After she reluctantly took her seat, I sat on a nearby chair as well.
“Right, so I’ve got something to tell you guys today,” I said. The three turned to me. “I’m happy to report that we will be going through with the planning of the prom partly because of your cooperation. We worked together only for a short amount of time, but great work to all involved. You guys helped me a lot, so thanks.”
I bowed my head, and Yuigahama did the same.
“And so, as of today, all managerial affairs in regards to the dummy prom will now end.”
Sagami’s brother and Hatano showed surprise when they saw my bow and then breathed out with a smile.
“I see.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“Indeed, and so, the curtain closes on another case! Or so Yos.h.i.teru thought…” Zaimokuza mumbled and made a distant look.
Ignoring him, I coughed, and made a straight face. “Therefore, effective immediately, this executive committee is now dissolved. Going forward, usage of the ‘yahallo’ greeting is now banned.”
A period of silence befell the room and following a few dead moments later, Sagami’s brother and Hatano’s gla.s.ses slid down their noses.
“Ehh…?”
“N-No way…”
“Why are you guys so disappointed…?” Yuigahama looked at them apathetically and sighed in irritation.
The “yahallo” ban was in effect, and that resulted in plunging everyone’s excitement. I decided to take advantage of the situation. When you’re trying to deceive someone, the best time to strike is when they’re agitated or vulnerable!
“Now that’s all settled, let’s go to karaoke,” I said, casually sounding like I was calling my mom. The two UG members looked at me with gloomy eyes.
“…With who?”
“With your friends?”
“Hachiman doesn’t have any.”
“Speak for yourself…”
Still showing signs of life, Zaimokuza interjected unnecessarily. I gave him an immediate retort, but he returned it with a dauntless laugh, “Muhaha, totally.”
“Chuuni, you’re not friends with those two, huh?”
Yuigahama worded her question, as if in surprise, but her voice had a clear lack of interest. The two UG members made an aghast expression.
“Eh?”
“Ehh…”
“Why the surprise…? Does it hurt to be told you weren’t his friends? Shouldn’t that actually make you happy?” I thought, puzzled. I looked at them, and both of them mumbled “those” and “two…” in succession and in shock; it looked like what hurt them was actually not being remembered by Yuigahama. As if linked to their emotional state, their gla.s.ses slid down even more.
Hmm, I get that. Considering how Princess Gahama was acting recently, they probably thought they were somehow getting along… But she’s never actually called me by my full name, so I’m just waiting for verification that she doesn’t actually remember it.
“All right, all right, but let’s go to karaoke after this.” I told them in a hurry, hoping to get their consent before they regained the ability to make rational decisions.
However, Sagami’s brother and Hatano frowned, finding my invitation questionable. Hatano pushed up his gla.s.ses that hung at his ears like CHEMISTRY Kawabata’s sungla.s.ses3. “Wait, after this? You’re pretty shady to be inviting us so suddenly like that…”
In similar fashion, Sagami’s brother recovered from his shock. He brushed his bangs up like Raven4, and pushed his gla.s.ses up higher and higher, looking high in spirits.
“He’s definitely a little crazy…”
“Only a little, you say?” Zaimokuza joined in and began insulting my character with the other two in a huddle.
Unable to stay quiet any longer, Yuigahama added, “Um, it’s kind of like a party. Do you guys have any plans later? I heard you guys were free today…” She gave me a piercing look, clearly saying, “They’re obviously not free…” Then, she hit me with her knee under the table asking what to do next.
I brought my shoulders together in shame, looking as thin as a northern white-faced ow before its predator… I started thinking about the excuses I could give her. Then, I glanced to see the two UG members polishing their gla.s.ses.
“Uhh… if it’s already been planned, I guess I’ll have to go.”
“Hm, well, it’s not like I can’t find some free time or anything, you know?”
They averted their gaze with slightly flushed cheeks and put back on their gla.s.ses. Their tone was a little curt, sounding like a caller in p.u.b.erty who grew overexcited on a live voice actor radio show.
“For real? Yay,” Yuigahama said, smiling. The two cleared their throats and politely mumbled in agreement.
“Hey, boys! Aren’t you, like, acting totally different with Yui here?” I thought, looking to voice my complaints. But it wasn’t hard for me to imagine doing the same if I were in their position, and the thought made me squirm.
“Karaoke? Then, karaoke we shall, and that necessitates shiny things,” Zaimokuza said somberly, and the other two nodded. Yuigahama, however, was just one beat slower in understanding.
“Shiny things… Oh, like shiny fish.”
“No.”
Why did you look so convinced there? Acting like you know what’s going is a little weird, don’t you think? If someone decided to wave around horse mackerel and gizzard shad at a concert, they’d be a nuisance. What kind of ritual was that, anyway?5 The staff would instantly eject them from the venue for that.
Sagami’s brother and Hatano, of course, didn’t need an explanation on what they were.
“I don’t have my penla sticks with me today.”
“Guess I’ll buy some lume sticks from Daiso.”
That exchanged finally caused Yuigahama to tilt her head in confusion. Yep, this girl needs help with foreign words!
“Penla? Lume?”
“They’re referring to penlight and cyalume glowsticks.”
By the way, for some reason, voice actor otakus abbreviated penlights as PENLa while idol otakus abbreviated cyalume as CYA (according to my research).
People were inclined to think, “Why would you ever bring small light objects just for karaoke?” but I’ve heard about people competing with them. People would gather in a large party room and start going into a frenzy like they would at a live concert.
It’s not particularly strange that otakus were compatible with karaoke. If you browsed the play history on a SmartDAM tablet, you’d come across primarily Showa ballads and anime theme songs. Karaoke was definitely a pastime for otakus and old people alike, and for times you needed to spice things up with close friends, it was one of the best places to go.
Now, our problem today was that one group of attendees didn’t even register the other as acquaintances, let alone their names… Since the three of them were frolicking over what they were going to do, I didn’t have it in me to say anything. If I did, there’s no way they would come.
Before the cat got out of the bag, I decided to take my leave. I gave Yuigahama a suggestive look and got up.
“We’ll let you guys know when we find a place.”
“See you later!” Yuigahama said. She got up, and we were about to take our leave until a third of the gla.s.s lenses stopped us.
“Oh, one question. Should we delete this site?”
I turned around, and Sagami’s brother was pointing the computer screen at me. The screen displayed the official site of the dummy prom. Since the dummy prom was merely a throw-away concept to realize Yukinos.h.i.ta and her group’s prom, the site had served its purpose. There was no longer a reason to continue maintaining it. As a matter of fact, deleting it before it could cause any unnecessary confusion would be ideal.
Everything written there, and everything that wasn’t written on there, was all over. That’s why, all of it should be deleted. No, all of it needs to be deleted as soon as possible.
“Well, there’s no rush, so delete it when you have time.”
And what spilled out of my mouth were words that contradicted those thoughts entirely. Even if we chose not to delete it now, it would eventually disappear into the sea of electronics, no longer maintained by any one. But, if I were to delete it on my own terms, it felt like those painful days I had never happened. That made me hesitate.
I couldn’t help but smile bitterly to my lingering thoughts, letting out a sigh in mockery of myself. I wasn’t sure how Sagami’s brother and Hatano interpreted that sigh of mine, but after exchanging looks, they gave their acknowledgment.
I nodded with a word of appreciation and turned my back. And in doing so, I turned my eyes away from the monitor—from the sight of the girls standing before the evening sea.
X X X
We walked down the silent after-school hallway. The campus was quiet, many students having either gone to their clubs or gone home for the day.
After leaving the UG Club, Yuigahama and I made our way to the student council and pa.s.sed by the entrance of the school building while discussing where to go for karaoke. As we got closer, the door opened, and a beige bob cut came hopping out; it was the student council president Isshiki Iroha. Shuffling out of the room from behind her was the remaining members. Upon catching sight of the long black hair swaying in that group, Yuigahama ran towards it.
“Oh, it’s Yukinon.”
The person she approached with a wave was Yukinos.h.i.ta. Though perplexed, she accepted the jumping embrace from Yuigahama.
“You know the thing from yesterday? I’ll have a lot of time during spring break.”
“That’s good. I’ll have ample enough time to spare in the later half of break,” Yukinos.h.i.ta answered, slowly pushing away Yuigahama who was close enough for their cheeks to touch.
I was able to infer from a distance that they were discussing their plans over spring break, but I couldn’t get myself to mingle in out of awkwardness. If I were to stop, I would get a moment long enough for needless thoughts to fill my head. I mulled over what would be the best way to act natural, but slowly continued my pace, understanding that stopping in place wasn’t in my best interest.
Noticing me, Isshiki quickly faced me. “Oh, senpai, you were here, too?”
“Yeah. Looks like you’re working hard,” I said. Yukinos.h.i.ta acknowledged me with a look from the corner of her eye, and our eyes met. She quickly averted her gaze, however. I slid my sight to the side in the moment she blinked. As a result, Isshiki, who was positioned diagonally from me, was the only one who spoke to me.
“Things are going well, I take it?” I asked, and Isshiki made a puzzled look, blinking several times.
“It’s hard to say… right?” Isshiki answered. She smiled and redirected the conversation to Yukinos.h.i.ta.
“Y-Yes, I suppose so.” She whispered, surprised from the sudden question, and closed her eyes in thought. “As of now, there aren’t any major problems to be concerned with, though that isn’t to say the particulars of our planning are as optimal as they could be.”
Yuigahama and I exchanged glances after hearing her roundabout answer, our silence asking, “So, that means…?”
“We’re getting by, I think,” Isshiki said, filling in the silence. She wore a wry smile and shrugged.
I see, I see. It was absurdly difficult to understand what she said, but simply put, progress was normal, I thought, feeling convinced. Yuigahama, however, wasn’t and shook Yukinos.h.i.ta’s arm.
“Yukinon, your explanation’s a mess! It’s bad!”
“I-I’m sorry. I wasn’t quite sure how to word it because we’re not exactly proceeding along well enough to say we’re on track…” Yukinos.h.i.ta said, turning red. She dropped her gaze in embarra.s.sment, accelerating the fiddling of her front bangs, and her face could hardly be seen.
“You’re too honest! But I guess that’s pretty typical of you, Yukinon,” Yuigahama said, smiling.
She then strengthened her grip on Yukinos.h.i.ta’s arm. Yukinos.h.i.ta whispered, “Too close…” but ultimately let her have her way.
i-0083_01
The distance between the two appeared like it had always been, like it had been to this day, or perhaps more closer than ever before. I felt relieved in seeing that.
“Looks like everything’s going smoothly, then,” I said, quietly.
“We’re doing okay right now, at least. We’re still a little unsure, though,” Isshiki said, looking at Yukinos.h.i.ta for agreement.
“We’ plan on finishing on time.”
“Basically, what she said.”
“Hmm, well, don’t work too hard.”
“You’re kidding, of course, we’re going to work hard. If we don’t, we’re not going to make it on time. We totally could use some extra helping hands if I had to be honest,” said Isshiki. She looked again at Yukinos.h.i.ta who then placed her hand to her mouth, taking a moment to think. What followed was a torrent of words.
“Today and tomorrow will be critical junctures for us, so we’ll see an increase in our workload, but it’s not an amount we can’t handle with our current staff, and it’s thanks to your hard work, Isshiki-san.”
Upon finishing, she directed a smile to Isshiki, who groaned with flushed cheeks.
“Well, today doesn’t seem like a good day, but if you need help tomorrow, just let me know.”
“Really!?”
“Isshiki-san, tomorrow will be primarily technical rehearsal, so we don’t expect there to be any more work beyond that. I don’t believe there’s a reason why would we need more personnel.”
“Oh, okay…” Yukinos.h.i.ta and I had our gazes concentrated on Isshiki. Looking stumped, she raised her hand. “Um, I’m not your interpreter, you know…”
“My bad, I’m not too confident with my j.a.panese, so I don’t think I’ll be able to talk to another j.a.panese person.”
“I don’t think language is your problem here! It’s your communication skills! Using another language definitely isn’t going to change anything…” Yuigahama declared.
Rude… I’ll have you know I’m quite skilled with body language. I was confident I could tell everyone in the world that “I want to go home” with a forced smile and excessive sweating.
And so, with a forced smile and excessive sweating, I sighed. Isshiki dropped her shoulders in resignation.
“Well, I suppose there’s nothing we can do, then… Yukino-senpai also sucks at communication, anyway,” she said.
Yukinos.h.i.ta’s brow twitched. “Isshiki-san? You’re mistaken. Are you aware that it’s disrespectful to speak directly to an individual that’s above your social standing?”
“Eh? Scary…”
Yukinos.h.i.ta flicked the hair at her shoulder with the back of her hand and flashed a smile at Isshiki who drew back in fear.
But, well, I guess that kind of culture exists, too! I see, I see. Modern day society still did have a disparity between social cla.s.ses, after all. As it turns out, you could pretty much get away with anything if you were an upper-cla.s.s citizen with a service medal. That was convincing to me, at least.
Then, the secretary, who was a few steps away, timidly spoke up. “Um, it’s almost time for us to move to the gym…”
“Oh, my apologies,” Yukinos.h.i.ta said. She then gently left Yuigahama’s hold. “We need to get going, so see you later…”
“Okay.”
Yuigahama waved her hand, and Yukinos.h.i.ta nodded. She then gestured to Isshiki and the others to proceed. As they were about to leave, Isshiki trotted over. She placed her hand on my shoulder to lift herself up and moved to my ear.
“Please help us on the day of the event, though I’ll welcome your help at any time.”
“If I have nothing to do, maybe…”
“Of course you won’t have anything to do. Gosh, just be honest with yourself and say you want to help. You’re such a pain,” said Isshiki. Her sweet breaths floated around my ears, and I bent backwards to avoid them. She then puffed her cheeks. Grumbling, she chased after Yukinos.h.i.ta and the others. After seeing them off, we turned back to head to the school entrance.
“I’m glad everything’s going well.”
“Yeah.”
She stated cheerfully, and I answered.
Then, I questioned myself. Will things really go that well? And will I truly be able to conduct myself as well as I should?
I started walking, and the distance between us grew farther and farther. The places we were aiming for were already on separate paths.
Our relationship was merely a temporary byproduct of the special circ.u.mstances we were put in. Now that those were gone, it was only a given that Yukinos.h.i.ta and I would grow farther apart.
Just like how we grew accustomed to that time, and that room, this relationship of ours would eventually stop feeling out of place. And just like how we grew accustomed to the hollow sh.e.l.l of what used to be our friendly relationship, the growing distance between us, too, was something we would eventually become accustomed to.