The school festival was going to end soon. The gymnasium was featuring things like the drama club’s play and a volunteer band performance, and members of the festival planning committee were beginning preparations for the closing ceremony since the day’s scheduled activities were largely over.
Kana, Ryu, and I were in a corner of the gymnasium as it began to quiet down.
“I have to hand it to you, Momo. I didn’t think you’d drag Ryu here too,” Kana said with a mocking tone.
Ryu gave a sarcastic smile. “Well, if the one and only Momo’s gonna ask me to come, how could I refuse?”
“Give me a break,” I said with a grimace. By the way, Orihara-san wasn’t here with us. She told me to enjoy my reunion, and she was considerate enough to excuse herself.
“He he. No, I’m serious. If anyone aside from you had invited me...I probably wouldn’t have come, Momo. I didn’t want to refuse because you were the one to ask.”
“Hmm? What does that mean?”
“Good question. I don’t really know how to say it...but I had this feeling that it would work out because it was your idea. I figured I’d be able to laugh and have a good time with Ura and Kana again.”
“...I don’t get it.”
“I get what Ryu is trying to say,” Kana said knowingly. “She means that you’re special to the three of us, Momo.”
“You’re seriously overestimating me.” Well, whatever. It seems like everything worked out in the end.
“I kind of can’t believe that I’m able to talk to you two like this again. And Ura too,” Ryu said with a melancholy expression. “Ura seems to have found someone he likes, and Momo straight-up has a girlfriend. I swear, you take your eye off them for one second, and boys just grow right up,” she said jokingly.
Then, she looked at Kana. “How about you, Kana?”
“Me? Well, I actually have a girlfriend.”
“No, that’s not what I meant. You’re you, so I figured you’d have a girlfriend...”
“Oh...” Her question was worded strangely, but Kana nodded as if he’d figured it all out.
“Yeah... I’m okay now. I’ve finally gotten over it.” He spoke matter-of-factly through a thin smile. “My sister’s wedding took place during summer break. I was able to say congratulations to her and her husband there.”
“...I see.” Ryu smiled sadly at Kana, who seemed like he was somewhat relieved. Most people would probably think that something like telling their sister congratulations at her wedding was normal. However, to anyone who knew what Kana was burdened with, it would have been painful to hear him say that.
Kana and his older sister weren’t blood related. She was actually his stepsister from his parent’s remarriage when he was in elementary school.
The thing was...Kana had always had feelings for her; he had fallen in love with a family member of the opposite sex. The only ones who knew about this were Ura, Ryu, and I. When the love triangle had reached its peak, Kana opened up to us with tears in his eyes. He couldn’t go out with Ryu because he was in love with someone else—his stepsister. His stepsister didn’t know about his feelings for her because Kana had kept them a secret this whole time, and the reason that Kana had started dating so casually since middle school was probably to rid himself of his feelings for his sister.
In spite of all that, his stepsister got married this summer and moved out of the house. I couldn’t even imagine the impact that had on Kana’s heart or how he dealt with it. However, from the relieved look on his face, it seemed like there wasn’t much need to be concerned.
“At the camp...Orihara-san told me something. She said, ‘You don’t need to rush and force yourself to try to become an adult right now. The days where you’ll have to start pretending to be an adult will come soon enough, whether you like it or not.’” Kana looked at me, gave a thin smile, and said, “I wonder if it’s thanks to that? My heart feels a lot lighter now, and it’s strange. I was struggling when I was trying to force myself to forget my feelings and overcome them, but when I tried simply accepting the situation for what it was, it was so much easier. I feel like I was able to face a version of myself that I didn’t even know about...”
Kana’s voice was calm as he spoke, but it was clear he was kicking himself a bit. “I always thought it was wrong that I was in love with my sister, but...I decided I’d acknowledge those feelings without forcing myself to deny them. I was able to realize that if I’m in love with her, I should accept that I’m in love with her...and then, having done so, I should give up and feel heartbroken.”
It seemed that Orihara-san’s words sincerely touched his wounded, melancholy heart. The rest of us...probably weren’t able to do that. However, I think that because Orihara-san is an adult, her words carried weight and moved Kana’s heart. Thanks to her, Kana was able to be heartbroken and move on. I think Kana was able to use his sister’s wedding as a catalyst to come to terms with the secret love that smoldered inside of him.
“...I think I can finally move on now too. I think I can finally graduate from this unhealthy habit of continuously dating girls who I don’t even like in order to mask my feelings for my sister...”
“I see. I’m glad to hear that. Well, now you can finally have a serious relationship with me.”
“Yes, that’s right. Now I can finally have a serious relationship with Uta-chan, and—wait, what?!” Kana raised his voice in astonishment, and Ryu and I did the same a second after him. His girlfriend, Uomi Uta, was standing there matter-of-factly. Like always, she was aloof and had her usual emotionless expression. “U-Uta-chan...?”
“Yoo-hoo.”
“Why are you here...?”
“I saw you walking with some strange woman, and I decided that, as your girlfriend, I couldn’t ignore it. I followed you, and I’ve been eavesdropping on your conversation since I got here.”
“Eavesdropping...? Hold on... For how long?”
“From the beginning. I heard pretty much everything about you falling in love with your stepsister and going through women you didn’t like...”
“...” In an instant, Kana’s face turned pale and filled with anxiety and frustration. However, Uomi Uta’s expression didn’t change.
“Well...I kind of figured as much,” she declared.
“...What?”
“I kind of figured as much.”
“No, I heard you the first time... What do you mean by that?”
“I knew from the outset that there was someone else you loved, Haruka-kun.”
“...”
“The stepsister thing was a bit of a surprise, but I guess it isn’t too much of a shock.”
“You said you knew from the beginning... Then, why? Why are you with me...?”
“It didn’t matter to me if you had someone you loved. What was important was that I loved you, Haruka-kun. Besides, I had a feeling that, somehow, things would turn out okay. Even if our relationship was just for show, I thought that eventually you would fall in love with me.”
“That’s...quite confident of you.”
“It wasn’t confidence. I just believed. I believed in you, Haruka-kun. Isn’t that what dating is all about?”
“...It might just be.” The frustration and shock faded from his face, and all that remained was a smile. He was all smiles, and he couldn’t help it. “Well, there’s no beating you, Uta-chan. I feel like you can see through everything about me.”
“I can. After all,” Uomi said with a slight smile on the corner of her lips, “you’re easy to read, Haruka-kun.”
“...That’s the first time I’ve been told that. Girls have always told me they can’t tell what I’m thinking.”
“Hmm. Is that so? Well, those girls must have been blind.”
“You’re right. No one beats you, Uta-chan.” With the kind of natural smile that comes from the bottom of one’s heart, Kana hugged Uomi from the front. He embraced and squeezed her tightly, even though we were, of course, still surrounded by a bunch of people.
“Haruka-kun...”
“What?”
“Even I’m a little embarrassed to be caught off guard like this in public...”
“Well, I guess I got you this time. This is probably the first time I’ve made you feel embarrassed since we started dating.”
“Oh well, looks like you win.” Even though she was surprised at first, Uomi also eventually worked her hands behind Kana’s back. Gently, intensely, they affirmed each other’s existence. They did so while completely ignoring everything around them, including us.