Adachi to Shimamura - Volume 5 - Chapter 1.2

Bonus chapter: "Nagafuji: The Visitor - Part 1" 

It was right in front of the store that I ran into Nagafuji, herself having just walked out. 
She was carrying a large sack on her back, almost making her look like a burglar of sorts. Kinda strange, considering that it was her own house she was coming out of. 
"Ah, Hino. Wasn't expecting to meet you this soon." 
An exclamation of glee left her mouth as she lifted her arms in the air. Compared to the cheerful tone of her voice, the way in which she moved her body seemed kinda unimpressed. 
I took a hard look at both the sack as well as her reaction before stating the following: 
"You were planning on coming to stay over at our house again, weren't you?" 
"Bingo." 
"Well, rejected. Turn back." 
Giving Nagafuji's stomach a shove, the two of us returned inside. Her father was there. I found myself instinctively lowering my head as my eyes met with the man's. Ever since I was young, I'd always called him Mister Meat. Apparently, the vertical line—almost like a tiny cut—that ran across Nagafuji's left earlobe was something she'd inherited from him. 
Why did I know that? Well, it was something I'd noticed a while back as I was cleaning her ears after she'd spent the longest time pestering me to do so. 
"Come on, it's fine, isn't it?" Nagafuji asked, placing her hands on my shoulders and pushing me back. The difference in physique between us made it difficult for me to stop her. 
"No, it's not fine." 
"I miss the sweet comfort of the air conditioner." 
"Listen, okay? Not today. We have too many guests." 
That was exactly why I had come here in the first place, to be freed from all that. We continued pushing each other back for a while, until eventually, I gave up on that and circled around her. I then rushed deeper inside the house before tossing off my hat and lying down on my side, making it clear that I had no intention of going anywhere. And yet, I still was in no position to let my guard down; knowing Nagafuji, I could easily imagine her deciding to go over to my house anyway, despite me being right here. Though we had been together for years, that girl still managed to surprise me. 
I wonder, what was the sack about? Why had she decided to go with that? Was it to match the old-fashioned atmosphere of our house? 
Nagafuji continued orbiting around my head restlessly. The way she did it kinda reminded me of a cat who just kept on trying despite having been shooed away. 
Hmm... I decided to do that, brush her off with my hand, only for her to actually go and meow like a cat. I have to be honest, it sounded pretty far off. 
I was reminded more of the groan of a bullfrog. In any case, Nagafuji continued that for a while until eventually sitting down next to me. 
"Alright then. I guess not this time." 
"Why do you sound so proud of yourself?" I asked her, all the while turning the fan on using only my toes. I'd gotten pretty good at that. 
The three blades began spinning, drawing a familiar shape of refreshment in the air. How many summers had it been in a row that I found myself face to face with it? 
"Hmm, yeah. Right", Nagafuji nodded in a very exaggerated manner, having now placed the bag down. 
"What?" I asked back, confused as to what it was she was responding to. Without answering my question, she lay down herself, securing a spot in front of the fan. 
"I was just thinking, I see you pretty often during summer break, Hino." 
"Huh? Umm, yeah." 
All these years, and she'd finally figured that out? Seemed so. Then again, knowing her, it might be that she just kept forgetting. While I would never call Nagafuji an idiot or anything like that, there were certainly times like these where I found myself questioning if there was something, how to put it, wrong with her memory. 
"It's gonna be happening a lot more once the Bon Festival rolls around. For work reasons. Wait, no... Family reasons?" 
My big brothers were all coming back home, meaning that things were bound to get messy. While that by itself would've been fine and all, what made it extra annoying was the fact that they were going to be bringing their wives and—especially—children with them. Let me just tell you, there was no end to the annoyance that resulted from me being made to interact with all of them individually. Were my big sister level as high as someone like Shimamura's, I might have been able to deal with it, but unfortunately for me, I happened to be the youngest child. 
Anyway, for today, I'd left Goushirou to deal with them and myself run here. 
He was the only one of my four brothers who was still single. I wonder, if he didn't find a wife soon, were our parents just going to pick one for him? Probably. 
That was how our family was like. Personally, I didn't really care. 
I took a look behind me and saw that the kotatsu had already been cleared away. It managed to last till June, but I guess everything has to come to an end eventually. Well, next year then. Speaking of, it sure had gotten hot in the meantime. The tips of my fingers felt like they were straight-up going to burn off as I fiddled with my hair. And yet, despite how it was right now, the blistering heat of the summer would eventually be replaced by chilling cold as winter rolled around. The fact that this cycle repeated itself every single year didn't make it seem any less surreal to me. 
With each rotation, we grew older. Thoughts like those flowed through my mind as I turned my gaze up towards Nagafuji, once again orbiting around me. It was there that I noticed it; the massive shadow on my face was actually cast by her chest. 
"What's wrong? Were you looking for something but forgot what that something was?" 
That happened pretty often with her. However, in the very next instant... 

"Move! Out of the way!" 
"Whoa!" 
...Nagafuji came sliding in and crammed herself between me and the fan, like knocking me down. Was this a ramming attack? Or perhaps a body slam? I wasn't quite sure; the angle made it hard to tell. Whatever the case, her forehead was left gliding across the tatami. 
"Make way for Lord Nagafuji!" 
"That's quite the thing to say with your forehead bright red." 
With that done, she proceeded to sit down. 
Flap, flap. That was the sound her limbs made as she tossed them about, bringing to mind the image of a fish stuck on land. Well, not that fish had limbs. 
"Move already." 
"I'm bored. Let's do something." 
"Yeah, no kidding you're bored." 
"Also, I hit my chest when I did that, and now it hurts." 
"Come on..." 
She only had herself to blame for that. 
"In any case, what could we even do? It's too hot for anything." 
Simply talking with her was tough this time of the year. And yet, it hadn't always been like that; I distinctively remembered how back in the day, we used to cling to each other even during summer. Thinking about it now made my face turn slightly reddish. Brushing those thoughts away, I quickly averted my gaze. There, on top of the table, I noticed something. It was a flier. I reached for it and picked it up. 
"Hmm? What's this?" 
The piece of paper was advertising a fireworks display, a common type of event during the season. Nearby restaurants were going to be having food carts there, and it was for that reason this flyer had been sent to Nagafuji's house. As for our family though, I honestly couldn't recall something like this ever being found in the mailbox. We met with relatives all the time, to the point where just the thought made me nauseous, but never with our neighbours. 
The one time I'd told my parents that I wanted to see fireworks, they'd taken me to a festival of a totally different scope somewhere super far away. It had been nice, yes, and while the fireworks were very pretty, I couldn't help but feel like something was missing. 
Oh, but don't get me wrong. It was hardly a bad memory; on our way back, I'd been given shaved ice with adzuki beans to eat. 
"Hmm... Tonight..." 
We used to visit this particular festival every single year back when we were little. Not anymore, though; the line-up of sellers was always the same, and over time, I ended up growing bored of the whole thing. 
As for the fireworks, you could see those through the window of Nagafuji's room. 
"Festival, huh? Wanna go?" 
I decided to ask her just in case. Done acting like she was hurt, Nagafuji now lay on her back, her eyes moving along the ceiling. 
"Let's go once it cools down." 
"Sure." 
I put the flyer back on the table. Like I'd said earlier, the view from here was just as good. 
"Oh, that reminds me", Nagafuji stated hastily before leaping up. I gave her a quick glance, and after she was done staggering around, asked her the following: 
"What now?" 
"If I can't stay over at your place, then I have to make a dinner reservation." 
Mom, I could hear her yell as she ran off into the kitchen. "I'll have some too", I yelled after her. 
With Nagafuji out of the way, there was no longer anything blocking the air coming from the fan. 
I watched as the piece of paper from earlier flapped up and down in its breeze. 
For a second time, I picked it up and glanced at it. 
"Hmm... Well, whatever. Nagafuji's room is way better anyway." 
There were no bugs here to bite me. No ocean of people to get stuck in. 
Most importantly, I'd actually get to be with Nagafuji instead of having to spend the entire night looking for her after she got lost.