Afterword
I feel like I’ve been writing all this time without really getting who Yume is. I mean, I like people who I don’t quite get, so I’m sure that’s why I’ve written her like that. Still, Yume must have things going on in her own way, and, well, being the kind of girl she is, it’s probably all sorts of vague, and there may be more than a few parts of it that she doesn’t get either, but, you know, she has a definite core, even if she doesn’t seem to. There probably isn’t anyone who has absolutely no core. As far as I’ve observed, I don’t think there is. So Yume must have something, and we’ve seen glimpses of it before now, but I’ve started to feel like Yume wants to avert her eyes from whatever it is. By the way, I’m not the kind of person who can think, “Just what kind of person am I? I dunno,” without agonizing over it that much. I accept that, “I’ve been like this up till now, and these are the kind of things I’ve done, so this is the kind of person I am,” and don’t really doubt that. I’ve faced a variety of situations, and it’s rare that I find myself surprised by my reactions. Even if I do something strange, I accept that that’s just the kind of person I am.
Yume is the kind of girl who’s pretty tolerant of herself and others, but it seems like she was frustrated in some way with how vague she herself was. Though she had the drive to move forward without much hesitation, her sense of direction wasn’t all that sharp, so she didn’t know which way she should be going. It left her always vaguely wondering, “Is this way okay?” She wasn’t negative, but she wasn’t positive, either. She didn’t know if she was facing forwards or backwards, and maybe she didn’t even want to know. She wanted to make things clear, but, at the same time, wanted to keep them fuzzy. But it’s not like she was thinking, “I’m fine as I am. I should stay like this forever,” either. I wonder how Yume will turn out from here. That’s what I was thinking as I wrote this short story. I hope you enjoyed it.
By the way, this marks the 100th volume I’ve released where I am the sole author. My first book came out in 2004, so it must have been a long road to get here, but it doesn’t feel like it at all. I feel like I’ll keep at it like this forever until, by the time I notice it, I’ll have vanished from this world.
Now then, to my editor, Harada-san, to the illustrator, Eiri Shirai-san, to the designers of KOMEWORKS among others, to everyone involved in production and sales of this book, and finally to all of you people now holding this book, I offer my heartfelt appreciation and all of my love. Now, I lay down my pen for today.
I hope we will meet again.
Ao Jyumonji
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