Seishun Buta Yarou Series - Volume 13 - Chapter 2.2

2

“Your friend makes an interesting point.”

The next day, Saturday, January 7.

Before his shift at the cram school, Sakuta had filled Rio in over lunch about his conversation with Miori.

They were on the second floor of a sushi spot near Fujisawa Station’s south gate, which was behind the department store, where a bunch of restaurants were. The two of them occupied a four-top.

“She’s still calling us potential friends,” he said, swallowing a mouthful of deep-fried aji and rice.

“That sounds obnoxious.”

“She’s neck and neck with you, Futaba.”

“……”

Rio pointedly ignored this comment, taking a bite of salted kinmedai. Proximity to the water meant the seafood in the area was always fresh.

“So what’s your take on it?”

“I think your potential friend’s theory is worth bearing in mind.”

“Mm-hmm.”

That was Sakuta’s problem. He’d met a miniskirt Santa claiming to be Touko Kirishima and, until yesterday, had never once doubted that she actually was.

But suddenly a theory arose that flipped that entire premise. An off-the-cuff remark from the only other person he knew who could actually see Touko.

“But the conversation that led you to that idea—in other words, why Touko Kirishima has turned invisible in the first place—is just the two of you speculating, right?”

“The whole ‘Nene Iwamizawa was princess of our campus’ thing? Well, yeah.”

They’d just read a lot into her online presence. Taken the words model and beauty contest winner and spun a simplistic profile based on that.

They’d assumed she’d had her position stolen by Mai and found herself no longer special, with her peers laughing at her, mocking her. They’d assumed she’d lost her sense of self and disappeared—becoming an invisible girl.

“But since you’re speculating, best not to get too hung up on it. If your premise proves wrong, then so will your conclusions.”

“That’s very fair.”

He took a bite of fried shrimp. The breading made a satisfying crunch. The meat inside was juicy.

“I’m more concerned about this idea everyone’s got in their heads about Sakurajima. At my school, they’re talking like it’s a confirmed fact.”

Rio was going to a national college, specializing in the sciences. But it sounded like this rumor had traction with both STEM types and humanities majors.

“Same at ours.”

He’d even heard some high school girls discussing it on the train here:

 “It’s so cool that Mai Sakurajima is Touko Kirishima.”

 “She can do, like, everything.”

“Still, Mai should clear that up in a couple of days.”

“Coming-of-Age Day?”

“Mai’s the most famous person turning twenty this year.”

“Ah,” Rio said, nodding. “She plans to refute the rumors in front of the cameras, then?”

An accurate prediction.

“They’re bound to ask her about Touko Kirishima.”

“Naturally.”

“And she’ll post an official comment to her social media accounts, too.”

Mai had called last night from the hotel near where she was filming on location. Her manager, Ryouko, and the upper brass at her agency had heard the rumors and were concerned. Mai had solid backing.

“So that’s what her post this morning was about.”

“Mm?”

Sakuta blinked, and Rio silently pulled it up and held the phone out to him.

It showed a photo-sharing site that the Mai Sakurajima official account ran in tandem with her agency.

The post was an official photo of her taken on set for the TV show she was filming, with a quick nod that she’d have a major announcement coming on the ninth.

“Very like Mai.”

She left no stone unturned and knew exactly how to make word spread effectively.

“The problem comes if this doesn’t nip the rumor in the bud,” Rio said, eating the chawanmushi that had come with her lunch set.

Sakuta shared that concern. “Once people believe something, it’s weirdly hard to convince them it was never true.”

When their perceptions and opinions differed, people were reluctant to change their minds or were adamantly against it.

Mai and her agency staff were well aware of that and were acting accordingly. Preparing thoroughly.

“Anyone who saw the dream I had will likely believe that dream instead.”

The music festival dream.

Where Mai told the world she was Touko Kirishima.

Her singing voice had been far too convincing.

They remembered it like it was real.

“If only the real one would show herself.”

That was the best solution.

But not an option they had.

“She can’t if she’s invisible. You’ll have to fix that first.”

Rio was right.

“I’m doing what I can on that front.”

He had a pseudo-date booked with her. Given what he knew about her, if he did his part of the bargain, she’d likely do hers.

“But, Futaba…”

“What?” she asked, setting her tea back down.

“If Nene Iwamizawa isn’t Touko Kirishima, what do I do then?”

They wanted the real Touko to deny these weird rumors, but if she was fake—that would ruin those plans.

“Cross that bridge when you come to it. Or just have her become Touko Kirishima.”

A bold plan, even from Rio.

“That’s the sort of scheme you come up with, Azusagawa,” she added when he looked baffled.

“Yeah, if it clears the air around Mai—I totally would try that.”

He still wasn’t sure what was going on with Nene Iwamizawa, but he also didn’t really know her well enough to get involved otherwise.

Once Sakuta and Rio finished their tasty meals, they settled the tab and left the shop. It was two PM.

Both had lessons to teach, so they headed toward the station’s northern exit.

“I dreamed I was dating Kunimi,” Rio said out of nowhere.

“Huh?” Sakuta blinked at her.

“We were eating together. Pretty sure it was a date.”

Rio didn’t look at him. She sounded calm.

“Legit?” he asked.

A silent nod. Eyes dead ahead.

“But that’s not possible,” she added. “Kunimi would never agree to it.”

Sadly, Sakuta agreed. Not that there was anything wrong with Rio herself, but because that was just Yuuma’s character.

“He’s totally in love with that mad-dog girlfriend of his.”

Even if Saki Kamisato and Yuuma’s relationship soured and they broke up, spring was far too soon for Yuuma to see anyone else.

Rio likely wouldn’t agree to it, either. It was a bit late for that.

If quite a bit more time passed, maybe things would work out, but Sakuta couldn’t imagine them getting together in the next year or two, at the least.

“So I don’t think these dreams are the future.”

Sakuta couldn’t read any nuance from Rio’s profile. On the surface, it looked like she had no strong feelings about this. But when she woke up from the dream, it must have rattled her.

But right now, she seemed like her usual self. To his eyes anyway.

“I’ll take your word for it, Futaba.”

“……”

She glanced at him. Not expecting him to accept that so easily.

The world at large believed those dreams were prophetic. Sakuta himself had found his dream coming true. Rio knew that—which was why she was surprised. Wondering why he’d been so ready to believe her.

Her eyes were clearly asking for an explanation.

“Akagi said the same thing. Those dreams don’t show the future, but a glimpse at the other potential world.”

Ikumi had said as much on the phone, on December 25 of last year, right after the trip to Hakone. He’d been pretty shocked when she told him her theory but, at the same time, felt it explained a lot.

More than anything, if she was right—that explained why he had a cell phone.

For the simple reason that when Sakuta had visited that other world…the other Sakuta had owned one.

“She spent more than six months in another possible world, so she should know.”

“Still, that doesn’t really change much. Even if the dreams are really showing us another world, that doesn’t mean the same thing won’t happen in this one.”

“Yeah. Whether they show the future or another world, we won’t know what’s going to happen until it happens.”

“They just give us headaches.”

Left them flailing about.

“Indeed,” Rio said, a hint of sadness in her voice. It was obvious she was feeling that one.

That told him the dream had definitely rattled her—but she’d come to terms with it in her own way.

“I learned one thing from this mess with Kasai,” she muttered.

“Mm?”

“Not being able to reciprocate is stifling. Did I make Kunimi feel this way?”

A faint smile played around her lips. It sent Sakuta off into memories of that summer.

Their second year of high school.

The three of them had gone to see the fireworks.

Watching those colorful blooms, Rio had smiled. Just like she was now.

Two and a half years later, those were distant memories. Time flowed ever onward.