Adachi to Shimamura - Volume SS1 - Chapter 15

Fruits of the Future

STANDING OUT ON the boat’s deck, I reflected on my life and realized just how much I had enjoyed myself thus far. Frankly, I’d thought I tuned out for most of it. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that I could look back on more than a few memories—even some I couldn’t quite place—as if a seal on them had broken at last. Dozens of still images from throughout my life fluttered past my mind’s eye, all out of order. 

Weird. Isn’t there a word for times like these…? Eh, forget it. 

The harsh ocean breeze dampened my cheek with a hint of salt as the ship carved through the water, pitching and groaning. The harder I fought to keep my balance, the more I felt like I was riding a giant sea creature’s back. I held a hand to the top of my head, securing my hat firmly in place, and waited for the updraft to subside. There was something soothing in its howl.

However fast we went, I was sure the smell of the sunbaked sea would be right behind us. 

Then I heard footsteps on the stairs, and turned. “Heeey!”

“Hey,” Adachi replied. The slight stiffness in her voice was adorable and nostalgic. She walked up beside me, and together we leaned against the…uh, taffrail, I think it was called…to enjoy the view of the endless ocean.

“Been a while since our last boat ride, huh?” 

The drone of the ship must’ve drowned out my voice, because Adachi didn’t seem to catch what I said. She mouthed a silent question at me: “What?” 

I repeated myself, louder this time.

“Ah, yeah,” she nodded. “What was the last one? The, um…school trip?”

“No, that was two boats ago. Remember?” I held up my fingers as if in a peace sign.

She looked at each finger in turn, then put a hand to her chin. “Oh. Right.” Craning her neck, she peered past my hand into my eyes—intensely.

“What is it, dear?”

“It’s kind of weird that you of all people remember better than me… Er, I mean, not weird. I’m just…surprised. But not in a bad way!” 

She was hesitating over her word choices, but she didn’t need to—I understood what she was saying. Yeah, maybe it was kind of out of character for me, but it was her fault; this was simply the person I’d turned into after meeting her.

“Believe it or not, there are plenty of memories I do care about,” I replied.

The shining fruits of our labor cast light upon our silver past and golden future. If at any point I forgot something, I could simply ask Adachi to remind me of it, and vice versa. And if neither of us could remember something? Well…it’d be really funny.

She reached out to the blue ribbon on my white hat and gave it a tentative prod. “That looks good on you, by the way.”

“Thanks.” I’d bought the hat as a souvenir on another of our trips, and now I never went anywhere without it. 

At that point, a thought occurred to me, and I put the hat onto her head instead. She reached up to secure it; then a smile gradually spread across her face. She’d gotten much better at expressing her emotions over the years, and when it occurred to me that I’d had the privilege of watching her progress firsthand, the waves in my mind began to ebb and flow.

“Well, what do you know?” I said. “It looks good on you too.” Not that I could get a good look at her with the boat rocking. 

With a breathy laugh, she pulled the brim low, ensuring the wind wouldn’t whisk the hat away. Then she stepped closer, spreading her arms wide. For a moment, she froze again, as if her internal batteries had run out of energy. But then she came back to life, wrapping her arms around me in a big hug. Her added weight threatened to make my knees buckle. Nevertheless, I fought to keep us both upright, returning the embrace and taking in her scent as it mingled with the sea breeze.

“Nothing’s keeping us apart anymore…right?” she asked, as if for my blessing.

“Right,” I nodded.

Relieved, she buried her face in my shoulder. 

“We’ve come so far…and there’s still so much farther to go.”

But from here on, we’ll chart this course together.