3
Unexpectedly, what Iroha Isshiki’s absence brings is…
When someone tells you not to sweat the details, that’s anxiety inducing in its own way.
For the few days after that wave of consults and Isshiki’s proposal, there was a somewhat uneasy air in the clubroom.
Arriving after school, I read my book, drank tea, occasionally nibbled on some snacks with the tea, and glanced at the door periodically. That was how I’d been spending my time. And that day was more of the same.
This restless feeling was a lot like watching My First Errand. I’d always gotten such so much work dumped on me before, so I was totally on edge. Oh dear, will Isshiki be able to do it herself?
Mm, yes. That has to be it. It’s, you know—a dad thing.
If not, I’ll start to suspect that I might actually like work, and then I’ll have an identity crisis…
We’d fallen into a sort of routine: Whenever we got a request or consultation or something, it always led to an avalanche of work. But this time, things were looking a bit different.
It reminds me a bit of the extended torture that comes when you’ve been told the deadline or submission date, but you haven’t yet been told what exactly it is you’re supposed to do. And then Iroha Isshiki being the one to bring this to us was adding to the anxiety. I felt like the protagonist of a magical girl anime. Oh no! What’s gonna happen to me now?! I was sighing deeply when I heard another sigh opposite me.
When I glanced over, I saw Yukinoshita’s head rise from her paperback to look at the door.
It seemed she shared similar anxieties. Or maybe she had a crush on Isshiki? I think IroYuki could be a thing!
As I was entertaining such thoughts, a giggle came from Yuigahama. “You guys have been looking at the door a lot,” she said with a little smile. “If it’s about Iroha-chan, I don’t think you have to worry that much…”
“I’m not worried about Isshiki.”
“No one has said a word about Isshiki.”
Yukinoshita’s and my response came at almost the same time. Yukinoshita jerked her face away, too.
My mind actually was on Isshiki, and probably Yukinoshita was thinking the same thing, but it was just too embarrassing that Yuigahama could read us so easily. I couldn’t help but snap back.
But Yuigahama apparently could see through that contrarian retort, too, as she gave a teasing grin. “Ohhh, really?”
“Yes, really.” With Yuigahama examining her face, this time Yukinoshita turned her whole body away. Her cheeks and the ears peeking out from her hair were pink.
Yuigahama sighed happily. If only that had been enough to satisfy her.
Instead, Yuigahama looked over at me with her eyebrows draw together thoughtfully, head tilted. “Hmm? …But, Hikki, you’re nice to Iroha-chan.”
As soon as Yukinoshita heard that, she fixed me with a piercing look, expression stern. “Indeed. You indulge her too much. I really have to wonder about that.”
Hey? Would you stop immediately narrowing your target down to me?
“I’m really not…,” I answered, but Yuigahama and Yukinoshita were both staring at me suspiciously. Uh, why aren’t they saying anything…?
I don’t even really get why I was making excuses and protesting, No, it’s not like that, really! But I cleared my throat with a gafum gafum hekapomf and opened my mouth. “I’m just worried because she might drop everything on us out of nowhere. I don’t want to deal with her abandoned projects when it’s already too late to fix them. It’d be way more efficient for me to be involved from the start,” I said. I thought that was pretty on the mark, if I do say so myself, for something I’d come up with on the spur of the moment. In fact, that impulsivity was why I was sure it was the truth.
This is a bad habit of mine.
If you can’t let someone else handle something, it means you don’t believe in them.
A person who does that could never understand trust. And there’s much less reason for them to discover that far crueler “something” that resembles trust.
It’s presumptuous, foolish even, for such a person to be worried about another.
I remembered what I’d been told back in that café, with the cold wind blowing. Can anyone really answer that question?
Pondering this made my mouth stop moving and created a little silence. When I noticed it, I quickly added, “So what I’m worried about is my own future, more than Isshiki. I don’t wanna get stuck with more work.”
“That makes me far more concerned about your future than anything else…” Yukinoshita pressed her forehead and breathed a deep sigh.
“Well, that’s also a very Hikki-like answer, so…” Yuigahama responded with a strained smile that was part exasperation, part awkward feelings.
Well, Yukinoshita isn’t exactly kind to Isshiki. Nor am I.
If anyone is, it’s Yuigahama, at least in how she believes Isshiki will actually do what she says. She’s acknowledged Isshiki and doesn’t waste her time worrying about her or getting in her business. In that area, I’d say she’s distinctly different from me and Yukinoshita.
But with Yukinoshita, well… Isshiki has discovered the Yuki-no-resistance side of her, the side that instantly caves to wheedling and touchy-feely attacks…
When I considered that, I couldn’t not say it. I gave Yukinoshita a critical look. “I mean, if we’re talking about indulging her, then you’re pretty bad, too.”
“Me? I’ve always thought I was rather strict with her, though…” Yukinoshita tilted her head with a puzzled look.
But Yuigahama got what I was trying to say and folded her arms with a groan. “Hmm… I guess there’s a sort of kindness to it. I mean, you really like taking care of people, Yukinon.”
I’d expect nothing less from Gahama. Amazingahama. She gets it.
“Yeah. After all, she often takes care of you, too, Yuigahama.”
“Huh? N-no she doesn’t! I’m not depending on her! Not that much anyway!” Yuigahama loudly tried to argue back, chair scraping as she leaped to her feet, but she was cut off by a smile from Yukinoshita, who was beside her.
“Oh, so you weren’t aware of it yourself?” Yukinoshita smiled brightly at her.
“C-c’mon, I’m not totally oblivious…” Yuigahama blushed as she muttered that under her breath, then dejectedly sat back down again. At the same time, she also sat up straighter and quietly laid her hands on her lap.
Yes, self-awareness is important.
But still, the way Yukinoshita takes care of Yuigahama is slightly different from the way she takes care of Isshiki.
With Yuigahama, she just lets Yuigahama do what she wants—or more like Yukinoshita is just totally at her mercy. But with Isshiki, I get the impression Yukinoshita takes care of her in a more active way. It’s a little more distant—what struck me was how Yukinoshita herself seemed aware she was in a more or less superior position.
If Yukinoshita and Yuigahama had a relationship like a cat and puppy, then perhaps I could call Isshiki and Yukinoshita like a mother cat and kitten? Though Isshiki isn’t very catlike; at heart, she’s actually more like a ferocious and powerful stoat.
…Well, I also get the sense that Yukinoshita gets taken care of a lot, too, so there’s problems on both ends, I guess.
Ah yes, it’s lovely to see pretty girls getting along. Or to be more precise, it’s really scary when pretty girls are getting in fights… Things can get so intense, like with Miura and Kawasaki. I wouldn’t just be freaking, I’d be leaking—and I might even wind up squeaking like a Chibull alien. Or not.
Anyway, you could say Isshiki had a pretty decent relationship with the Service Club.
As I was pondering these matters, Yuigahama appeared convinced. “Well, maybe Iroha-chan really enjoys people taking care of her. It’s cute. Must be nice…” She said that last part in a murmur, flopped forward over her desk. Well, Yuigahama does have a pretty firm head on her shoulders sometimes, and I don’t get the impression she’d choose to rely on someone else. Though the two seem to come from similar places at first glance, they’re actually sort of polar opposites, aren’t they…? Maybe Yuigahama would feel envious.
But just one Isshiki is enough.
I dunno how I feel about Yuigahama becoming like Isshiki, and more than one of her would be a real handful. Like, she’s fine the way she is, I guess, and I’d say maybe it’s best for her to stay that way… Mm-hmm… I almost said all that incoherent nonsense aloud, but I managed to clear my throat with a gefum gefum kapatoon coconut and swallowed the remark.
My exceedingly unnatural throat-clearing sound made Yuigahama, still flopped over her desk, roll her head toward me.
The hairs that had escaped from her bun dropped back, her bangs swishing downward to partially cover her eyes. Her trembling, glossy lips were slightly parted, and a sigh slipped out.
Captured by her gaze from below, whatever I was planning to say immediately vanished. “Uh, I mean, the whole cuteness factor is, like, whatever, and it’s not like that’s the only thing cute about her anyway…,” I said, scratching my head in embarrassment, and I dropped my face to the page of the paperback I wasn’t even reading. That nonsensical string wasn’t even words. Shoulda kept my mouth shut…
As I was mentally beating myself up, I heard a little giggle. Looking over, I saw Yuigahama had pushed herself up, and she was smiling. “…Yeah, that’s right.”
Her answer made me strangely relieved, and what I said next came out normally. “Besides, I bet she likes this place because she’s got nice older girls who will give her attention. I mean, lately she’s been getting here even earlier than me.”
Yukinoshita put a hand to her mouth, hmming with a thoughtful expression. “I don’t know if she likes it here or not. But…I do wish she would let us know beforehand when she comes. We run out of tea more quickly, and I also have to arrange for extra snacks. Worst of all, it means less time to relax and read.” She breathed a dramatic sigh. But despite her complaining, her relaxed expression was soft, even pleased.
You could compare her to a mean old lady who’s wildly smitten with her grandchild. Or how you complain about a cat. I bought her a bed, but instead of sleeping there, she uses the cardboard box it came from! Good grief! I could kind of imagine Yukinoshita and Isshiki’s interactions when they were alone.
Yukinoshita would act disinterested in Isshiki, and yet she’d worry about her and put out tea, taking care of her in various ways. Meanwhile, Isshiki would be smirking to herself, pleased about getting away with her crimes, even as trust was taking root in the depths of her heart. What the heck, that works; I think IroYuki could be a thing.
As Yukinoshita was sighing and complaining about Isshiki, Yuigahama was watching her with unfocused eyes. “Maybe I’ll come a little earlier, too, huh…?” she muttered, and I could hear something like envy in her tone.
Yukinoshita’s eyebrows twitched upward in an accusatory manner. “…This is a real club, you know, so coming early is the expectation.”
“Oh, yeah, but I get into talking with Yumiko, then I just wind up late, y’know?” Yuigahama laughed to avoid the issue as she combed at her bun, but there was no smile on the other girl’s face.
“…I see,” Yukinoshita replied briefly, then slowly and quietly dropped her eyes to the book in her hands.
It seemed she was sulking a little. Well, Yuigahama’s behavior could be taken as choosing Miura over Yukinoshita. What a Jellynon, huh? Another peaceful day in the clubroom.
And if I was noticing this, there was no way Yuigahama wouldn’t. She adjusted her posture and shuffled over a little with her chair, too. “But maybe I’ll actually try to come a bit earlier, huh? I really like it when the three of us are relaxing here together… I love it, actually.”
Maybe that shortened distance made it easier for her words to reach Yukinoshita. Yukinoshita let out a short sigh, then briefly examined Yuigahama’s expression. Although there wasn’t much to be gained doing that. After all, their expressions were about the same.
Their eyes matched: downturned slightly with a hint of shyness and pink cheeks.
“…I’ll pour us some more tea,” Yukinoshita said.
“Oh, really? Then I’ll put out some more snacks!” Yuigahama said as she started fishing around in her bag.
Yeah, but you’re the one eating most of those snacks… You sure snacks aren’t your true love here…? But the sarcastic remark never left my mouth.
What came out instead was a sigh that was half chuckle.
“Hikigaya,” Yukinoshita said.
I held out my Japanese-style cup. “Yeah.”
Warm steam, followed by the scent of black tea. And then the sweet aroma of cookies.
“Here, Hikki.”
“Oh, thanks.”
Yuigahama slid the plate she’d piled with snacks over to me, and I snatched one and munched on it. And then, after I took a sip of tea and complained that was a bit too hot, a relaxed sigh slid out of me. It happened to be the moment the other two sighed, too.
We automatically looked at each other.
Well.
More often than not, these are the times when visitors show up.
That prediction was proved true with a light rapping on the door. When Yukinoshita called to the visitor to come in, they responded by slowly opening the door.
“Sorry to make you guys waaait!” Iroha Isshiki said as she made her first appearance in the clubroom in a long while.
As Yukinoshita was preparing another cup of tea for the newcomer, Isshiki handed us all some printouts.
“Okay, so I made a lot of decisions on this stuff, so I’ll explain about it now.”
“Yes. Please do,” Yukinoshita answered as she offered tea in a paper cup. She added in two stick sugars while she was at it. Isshiki accepted them calmly and with thanks… Yukinoshita’s thoughtfulness is impressive, but Isshiki is also pretty amazing for having her so well trained.
“Anyway, about the schedule and the location…”
As I was busy being surprised, Isshiki began her explanation. While she talked, I read from the printout I’d received.
My eyes happened to catch on the date. “We’re not doing it on Valentine’s Day?”
Considering where the conversation about how to give Hayato Hayama chocolate had been going, I’d totally assumed the event would be on Valentine’s. But the schedule had the event a few days earlier than that.
Yukinoshita seemed to put two and two together, her eyes rising from her printout to look at me. “Valentine’s Day is also the day of entrance exams, so I’d assume we wouldn’t receive permission from the supervising teacher.”
“Oh, that’s right, and there’s no school that day, too.” Yuigahama was following the logic, and Isshiki nodded back at her.
“Wellll, that’s part of it, but also, I’m sure some people will have plans on the day of. If we want a lot of people to participate, it’d help the most to have the event beforehand, y’know?”
“I see…” That was indeed a convincing rationale.
Since Valentine’s Day is the day of entrance exams, then I would also of course be spending the whole day chanting and praying for Komachi to pass. I mean I’d even do scapulimancy, tsujiura fortune cookies, or that kukatachi trial-by-ordeal thing… Actually, no, I’m not going to stick my hand in boiling water.
With my head all full of thoughts of Komachi, I kind of didn’t care about the event anymore.
If her entrance exams are on Valentine’s Day, then she won’t have made chocolates, huh…? And, like, if she stayed up all night to make chocolates filled with love right before entrance exams, even I might get mad enough to give her a smack and then gently embrace her…
Ahhh, my Komachi chocolate, my Koma-choco is drifting into the distance…
As I was groaning to myself, Isshiki was solemnly continuing her explanation. “Are you okay to come in for the event around five PM, Yukinoshita? Him and Yui can come a little later, though.”
“I’m fine with that,” said Yukinoshita.
“We’ll come over with Yukinon. Right, Hikki?” I heard Yuigahama’s voice in the distance.
“Yeah, sure, whatever…” If I can’t get chocolate from Komachi, then it doesn’t even matter…
My mood had gone dusty and dry, my body powdery filth ready to be blown away by the wind. I was just like an ARMS with the core knocked out of it. Well, Komachi is my core, you know. What can you do.
As I leaned against the backrest of my chair, burned out and pale, I felt Isshiki, seated diagonally opposite me, shoot me a dull, cold look. “You don’t seem to care about this very much…”
Yuigahama laughed her off. “Ah-ha-ha! Well, when Hikki gets like this, it’s basically always for the same reason. It’s okay.”
“Yes, I think I can imagine what it is. You can just leave him be, and it will be fine,” Yukinoshita said, sounding utterly exasperated.
“Huhhh, is that right…?” Isshiki replied, making sure we all knew she didn’t actually care, then continued her explanation. “The student council will arrange for all the ingredients and cooking implements, so there’s no problem there. For aprons and stuff, it’ll be, like, BYO, though.”
Yukinoshita, who had been listening with her hand on her chin, looked up. “Could you show me your list of cooking implements after this, just in case? I’d like to make sure nothing is missing.”
“Whatever you want!” While it was unclear if she understood or not, Isshiki scribbled off a note on her own paper. When she was done, she spun her pen around like a magic wand and looked over at Yuigahama. “This is who we have to call up, more or less, so, um, can I ask you to let Miura and Ebina know about this? I don’t have their numbers for whatever reason.”
“Okay, gotcha,” Yuigahama responded calmly.
But I was momentarily frozen.
O-oh…could you, uh, stop giving me these weird little glimpses at girl society…? They see each other and talk fairly often, but they never message each other? Yikes… The scary thing about girls is that you might never be able to tell you’re not friends with them during a conversation with them…
…Well, Isshiki and Miura don’t seem particularly close, so I guess that’s normal. As expected of the Queen—she hates it when anyone isn’t straightforward!
“Oh, also, that Kawa…Kawa… That kind-of-scary girl as well, I’d like to ask someone to contact her, too,” Isshiki said.
“Yeah, I’ll message Saki,” Yuigahama answered.
But I was frozen for a moment.
O-oh…so Isshiki doesn’t actually remember her name, either… Just what I’d expect from Kawa-something. But you can’t say that to her face, Irohasu! Not at the face! At the body!
Isshiki was checking over the printout again. “Guess that’s it… Ah! Oh yeah!” she said suddenly. “If there’s anyone else you want to invite, please let me know, and I’ll make adjustments on the numbers, ’kay?”
“Oh, so we can bring more people?” said Yuigahama.
“Yeah. Like Tobe wasn’t invited, but apparently he’s still coming,” Isshiki said in a highly disparaging tone with an added snort.
You’re pretty awful to Tobe, aren’t you? We’re really on the same page there.
“Oh, I guess he heard about it from Yumiko or Hayato, ah-ha-ha…” Yuigahama laughed uncomfortably.
But Tobe’s coming, too, huh? Well, if Tobe was coming to an event with all these girls, that’d make it less stressful for Hayama to join in. Tobe’s a surprisingly considerate guy, so maybe he heard about it somewhere and decided to come right over. Tobe’s obnoxious, but he’s a good guy…
After considering this point, snippets of the discussion popped up in my mind again.
Tobe, boys, girls, Hayama… We can invite other people?
So then, that means…, I thought, carefully putting the pieces in their places. Whereupon, they gradually began to coalesce into a singular image.
In other words…
…that meant…
…………Doesn’t that mean I can invite Totsuka, too?
“Okay, leave contacting people to me!” I cried out the moment I arrived at that conclusion.
Isshiki’s shoulders jumped in surprise, and then her head slowly turned toward me with an expression of disgust. “You’re awfully enthusiastic all of a sudden…”
“Ah-ha-ha.” Yuigahama laughed her off. “Well, when Hikki gets like this, it’s basically always for the same reason. It’s okay.”
“Yes, I think I can imagine what it is. You can just leave him be, and it will be fine,” Yukinoshita said, sounding utterly exasperated.
“Huhhh, is that right…?” Isshiki replied, making sure we all knew she didn’t actually care.
Oh, good, these two catch on so quickly. Wait—they’ve just given up on me, haven’t they…?
“Yukinoshitaaa, I want to ask about the menu—I was thinking it’d be a good idea to decide on a few candidates. If we don’t, then we won’t be able to order the ingredients.” Isshiki was just ignoring me now and moving on with the discussion as she pulled some booklets on baking and making chocolates out of her bag and dropped them on the table. Yukinoshita nodded, picked up one of the booklets, and started flipping through it.
“You have lots here, but what would be best…? French chocolate cake, German Sacher torte, chocolate truffles…though I wouldn’t mind picking the safe option and going with cookies. Obviously, we can’t do pure chocolates, and we’ll have to make it easy enough for beginners…” Hmming as she considered, Yukinoshita flipped another page. Well, under the category of “chocolate-based sweets,” there are lots of different kinds.
I’m fairly uninformed in that arena, so it’d be best for me to avoid butting in unnecessarily. I’m so uninformed, you could say a Sacher torte was a Sachatel and I’d believe you.
But at times like these, there are some people in the world who will speak without fear, their own level of knowledge be damned. And Yuigahama is one of those people.
Yuigahama’s hand shot straight up, and without waiting to be called on, she declared enthusiastically, “Ohhh, yeah! Or like chocolate fondue! This is like a choco-pa! It’ll be fun!”
“Cho…copa…? Huh, what…?” This must have been the first Yukinoshita had ever heard the term, as she was tilting her head with a dubious expression.
Well, guessing based off remarks Yuigahama has made before, this “choco-pa” thing had to be an abbreviation for a “chocolate party,” or a party where you have chocolate fondue. I’ve just about got my level two in the Gahamanese Proficiency Exam. I could get a high score on the YUEIC.
Yukinoshita still had a question mark hovering over her head, but Isshiki seemed impressed. “Wellll, if we’re all hanging out together, then maybe yeah, huhhh? Maybe that could be an option.”
Is it an option…? But man. With your tako-pa or nabe-pa or curry-pa and turning everything into a party, you’re seriously jooshy polly yey party people every day…
“But this is supposed to be a cooking event, so…” Though she seemed to struggle against some internal resistance, Isshiki made a little X with her fingers. Yuigahama’s head hung as she whined.
Yukinoshita, who’d been watching their exchange, nodded. “So it would be best to teach the basics after all… Something simple with visual appeal…” Skimming over the cookbooks, Yukinoshita’s eyes paused on a certain section, a page with an ad. A line saying something about a “new product” leaped out at me.
“They have these things all together as a kit, so you don’t need to measure the ingredients. It seems simple,” said Yukinoshita.
“Ohhh, I bet even I could handle that,” Yuigahama said.
Instantly, my voice choked in my throat. Hey, wait, what? What are you talking about…?
“…”
“Don’t go all quiet!” Yuigahama’s pained wail broke the moment of silence.
Once the echoes had faded, Yukinoshita gently stroked Yuigahama’s shoulder and spoke as kindly as possible. “Yuigahama, for this, would it be possible to put your efforts into the wrapping instead?”
“Stop being all considerate!” I could hear the lamentations in Yuigahama’s heart.
Uh, wrapping is important, though. Like, a blue ribbon around your chest will accentuate it in a way that’s sure to get everyone talking about you! Your popularity will explode!
As I was pondering this, Isshiki breathed a little sigh. “Agh, I don’t think a kit will change how it tastes, and you won’t be able to tell at a glance… Anyway, this is for an event, so let’s steer away from kits.”
“Well, the kits would be more expensive,” Yukinoshita agreed.
“Yes. Well, I do plan to charge a participation fee to cover costs, just in case, but you can never be too cheap.”
“…Huh? You’re charging for this?” My feelings showed clearly in my voice. It was probably showing on my face, too, since Isshiki seemed a bit weirded out.
“Why so shocked…? It’s a few hundred yen… And, like, you guys don’t have to pay. Since you’ll be helping out.”
“Then that’s okay…,” I said.
“Yes,” said Yukinoshita. “If you’re charging, we may have more leeway in the budget than I thought… For now, could you let me see what the budget is? I’ll come up with some candidates based on your numbers, and I’ll write you up a rough estimate for the cost of ingredients.”
“Yes, please do,” Isshiki said, pulling a printout from a plastic folder. It looked like a trial balance sheet for the event.
Yukinoshita checked over it, then began reconsidering menu options.
All the requests we’d gotten had some fairly strenuous conditions. It was no wonder she was having trouble.
We needed something you could give to your friends but also wouldn’t be embarrassing to give your crush, something that would also be a generally useful recipe and fun for a kid to make.
And then the most unreasonable ask was the one Yukinoshita had been muttering all this time, like someone in a delirium. “Something even Yuigahama can make… Something even Yuigahama can make…”
“That’s so mean, Yukinon!”
Though Yukinoshita seemed a bit distracted by Yuigahama’s wailing, she continued flipping through the cookbooks with Yuigahama basically clinging to her the whole time.
Yukinoshita pulled some options, noting down the necessary ingredients and the amounts. Yuigahama remained latched on to her, peering in from the side to watch. Then she broke into a happy grin.
Curious about the giggling beside her, Yukinoshita shot the other girl a grumpy look. “…What?”
“…Oh, nothing!” Yuigahama hurriedly waved her hands to cover her reaction, then lowered them and said quietly, “…I just thought…this feels kinda nostalgic.” She seemed awkward as she looked at Yukinoshita.
“…It does,” Yukinoshita replied briefly. But the gaze she returned to Yuigahama lasted far longer than those words.
Eventually, Yuigahama gave a shy laugh and shifted her chair closer so that both of them were lined up in front of me.
Then Yuigahama asked me quietly, searchingly, “…Right?”
The angle of her head as she looked at me from that distance seemed so innocent, I found myself cracking a smile. “I guess.” My reply was also brief as I looked away.
It hadn’t even been a year since then, but already that day felt so nostalgic—nothing had begun in that room, and yet the change had definitely happened.
“Thanks, Iroha-chan,” said Yuigahama.
“Huh? Oh, yeah, it’s nothing… Y-you’re welcome?” The sudden thanks seemed to confuse Isshiki, as her head flip-flopped.
Yuigahama giggled. Then, once her laughter settled, she let out a satisfied breath. “The year is almost over, but I’m glad we’ll be able to do something fun at the end…”
“Well, this year’s only just started,” I said.
“The correct term is this fiscal year,” Yukinoshita added, which made Yuigahama a little sulky.
As for Isshiki, she was a little bewildered. “Whoa, you two are so anal about this…”
But despite this exchange, the matter was resolved enough for Isshiki. She swept her gaze over us and let out a long sigh before standing up. “Right, then. Thank you very much for the tea. Well, I’ll leave it to you.”
“Oh, yeah. We’ll be counting on you at the event!” Yuigahama replied.
“Well then, I’ll see you again soon. I’ll submit the estimate,” Yukinoshita said, and Isshiki bowed and left the clubroom.
Once the three of us were alone again, I could feel that earlier nostalgia more keenly.
I was probably feeling that way because a lot of things had changed. Because somewhere along the line, an identity had been lost. Because I understood that I would never have the same thing again.
That’s why it was nostalgic.
If something has indeed been set into motion, it’s sure to eventually stop. Everything that begins will eventually end.
Yukinoshita looked at Yuigahama’s pure smile as if it was something precious, even though the two of them were just having an ordinary, trivial conversation.
That was all it was, but strangely, it felt like something was caught in my chest.
When you get into the bath in wintertime, you just can’t avoid the tendency to soak for a good long while.
Maybe it was all the full-speed pedaling along the miserably dreary, long road at night, but I couldn’t help but sink in all the way as I let out a deep, deep sigh. I got out just before my head started to swim, then shoved my legs straight into the kotatsu so I didn’t catch a chill and flopped down there.
The things I’d been avoiding thinking about were showing up on my face, and it felt like the ground was shifting under my feet.
And that made me roll around restlessly and kick a soft ball of fur. The family cat, Kamakura, wriggled his way out from inside the kotatsu. He shot me a withering look, then started to groom himself with his tongue. Eventually, he seemed to notice something, and his ears perked up, turning to the door. At just about the same moment, there was a click as the front door opened.
Komachi was home. I heard the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs, and then the living room door opened. “I’m hooome!”
“Hey, welcome back.”
Komachi dropped her bag and was moving to take off her coat when Kamakura rubbed against her legs, pestering her with a request to pick him up. “Hey, no! You’ll get fur on my uniform.”
Komachi smoothly avoided the cat, so I picked up Kamakura instead. Here, here, I’ll give you attention. You can’t be bothering Komachi when she’s tired.
Whether he understood my thoughts or not, Kamakura began flailing in my grasp. Geez, get a clue, cat…
Hey, you, Mr. Kamakura, don’t you think this reaction is a bit excessive? Why’re you pressing your paws into my face, huh…?
With the cat shoving at my face, I looked over at Komachi to see her standing on one leg as she tugged off her knee socks.
Though the heat was on, the floor had to be chilly. I gave her a mom look. Don’t let yourself get too cold, all right?
She must have noticed my expression, as she tilted her head with a question in her eyes. “Oh, Komachi’s gonna go fill up the bath.”
“Oh. Got it. But I had one just now, so there’s already water.”
“Yeah. So Komachi’s gonna go fill the bath.”
“Uh, like I said. I just had one, so it’s already full.”
“Yeah, so.” Komachi repeated the same thing again with a deadpan expression.
…Hey? What’s that supposed to mean? I gave her an accusatory look.
Komachi waved her hands. “No, no, no, there’s no way I could go in water you already used. I mean, you’ve kinda flavored the broth. No way, no way.”
“Can you not talk about me like I’m tonkotsu ramen?”
Will the day eventually come when Wakame-chan talks to Katsuo like this…? The Isono family bathwater would probably taste really good.
Wait, has she been refilling the tub after I bathe all this time? Are you truly so hard on your brother? Though when I bathe after Komachi, I always savor the Komachi broth… Okay, yeah, I see her point.
When she was little, we called her the smart, cute Komaachika, but these days, I suppose even Komachi-chan has one foot firmly in puberty now, huh…?
As I was shedding an emotional tear at how big my little sister’s gotten, something sparkly shone in the corners of Komachi’s eyes—Awww, does she feel the same?!—and then it was followed up by an exhausted-sounding yawn.
“Then Komachi’s gonna go have a bath,” she said.
“Yeah, take it easy. Go to bed after.”
“Yeah, yeah,” she replied, yawning through the words. She seemed pretty tired.
Well, I guess it wasn’t long until her actual exams.
All I could do for her was to not bathe before her from this day on, and to pray. The most I could do otherwise would be to warm her futon and her shoes. Oh no, she’s gonna hate me again! But if this were the Sengoku era, I’d be a success!
This is no time for Valentine’s, huh…?
It’d be best not to tell Komachi about the cooking event. No point in causing her unnecessary worry or regret. She’d have her hands full with entrance exams. Once those were over, it’d be a good idea to give her a big show of appreciation.
Meaning right now, I had to avoid causing her trouble, worry, or concern as much as possible!
I couldn’t get in the way when she was working so hard on her own.
Doing your best with your own strength, of your own will, is the first step to success. By standing up and walking on your own two feet, you gain an understanding of what it means to walk with another person.
Komachi’s growing further and further away from her big brother and becoming an adult, huh? It’s a complicated feeling. Lonely, but also lonely…but still a little lonely, too.
I was so lonely, I buried my face in the stomach fur of the cat in my arms.
Aghhhh… How much longer will I get chocolate from Komachi, I wonder… I wish I could get chocolate from Komachi my whole life.
Who cares about guy chocolate or gay chocolate? I want K-chocolate.
…Can I have…some Komachoco?
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