Asagumo-san cleared her throat, reassuming control. “Tanaka-sensei does know our faces. This is true. But in the moment, on the big day, when he sees you and begins to doubt, one assumption will dominate his mind.” She looked at each of us. “‘Why would my students be here crashing my wedding?’” She held a fake business card aloft. “Normalcy bias. It’s a powerful thing, and it affects all of us. The formality of a card and the comfort of a name, in this case one Toratani Tsuguo, will supersede every warning siren going off in his head. All we need to do is be in and out before he can hear them.”
I shut up and listened. The theory had already been proven on me. Much to my distress.
Nobody objected. Asagumo-san’s forehead gleamed in approval. “Everyone understand? Good! I hope you’re ready to play dress-up!”
I did not understand as well as I’d thought.
On behalf of everyone, I raised my hand. “You mean like the suit I wore to the open house?”
“No. Absolutely not. That was an absolute misstep.” Grief befell her. Coincidentally, it befell me too. “Your role as patrons acted as a buffer against any misgivings your hosts likely had. But Tanaka-sensei will be the patron in our scenario, so anything out of the ordinary will stick out like a sore thumb.”
The president raised an eyebrow as she stowed her business card into her breast pocket. “We’re operating on a tight timeline and can afford no mistakes. This is what you mean to say?”
“Precisely. Everything must be foolproof. Leave your disguises to me. Meanwhile, let’s reiterate everybody’s roles.”
She jotted them down on the whiteboard.
COORDINATORS: Asagumo Chihaya, Yanami Anna
PHOTOGRAPHER: Houkobaru Hibari
ASSISTANT: Nukumizu Kazuhiko
So while the president and I infiltrated, the other two would hang back and offer support behind the scenes. Same lineup as the open house.
A very peculiar line drew my eye next.
SHIRATAMA RIKO: Shiratama Riko
“What… So Shiratama-san’s going as herself,” I surmised.
Asagumo-san turned around and grinned. “Right. We’ll need someone on the inside, and there’s only one person who can reasonably be there on the day of the ceremony.”
All eyes went to her. Shiratama-san’s turned to saucers. “Me?”
“Your job will be ensuring the others don’t run into any hiccups and running interference when they do.”
That made sense. We’d need all the help we could get if we wanted Shiratama-san to make it to the chapel in that wedding dress. Shiratama-san would be the perfect…
“Wait,” I said, “there can’t be two Shiratama-sans.”
“Not with that attitude.” Asagumo-san added an extra name.
SHIRATAMA RIKO: Shiratama Riko, Nukumizu Kaju
Now I was extra confused. Asagumo-san seemed to expect this and directed her attention to the club room door. She clapped. “Join us, Riko-san.”
It opened, and a girl entered. A small Tsuwabuki girl who was totally Kaju. She approached me and twirled. “How do I look, Oniisama?”
“The uniform suits you,” I said. “But, uh, how are you supposed to be Shiratama-san?”
Asagumo-san came up next to her and dropped her hand on the tiny girl’s head. “She may be a tad short for the role, but what’s lacking can always be supplemented. The right shoes and wig will do most of the work. Their builds are similar, so the rest ought to be simple.”
“I’ll do my best!” Kaju pumped her fists enthusiastically. Wasn’t my sister just the cutest?
But adorable or not, there was something I couldn’t abide.
“Time out.” I stood from my chair. “Kaju can’t be part of this.” Asagumo-san was taken aback. I continued, “This is literature club business. Yeah, Asagumo-san and the president are involved, and that warrants its own discussion, but Kaju’s not even a Tsuwabuki student. She doesn’t belong here.” She looked at me like she wanted to argue. I remained firm. “It’s literature club business. You’ve got entrance exams. You shouldn’t be doing this.”
“But—”
“Your brother is right,” the president interjected. “Leave this matter in our trustworthy hands.”
I circled around to stand in front of Kaju and patted her on the head. “You’ll be one of us next year. Isn’t that what you told me?”
She said nothing for several seconds, then with a feeble voice muttered, “I want a date.”
“A date?”
“When this is over, you have to go on a date with me.”
“You bet. Anything you want.”
She peered up at me, pouting her cheeks. “I mean it. For a whole day. From good morning to good night.”
“Hey, message received. You’re the boss.”
Something still didn’t quite seem to sit right with her, but she ultimately acquiesced. With a sullen bow, she sulked back out of the room. I was gonna have some homework when I got back. I sighed.
Asagumo-san frowned at me. “I’m sorry, Nukumizu-san. That was inconsiderate of me. I never should have involved a junior high student in this business in the first place.”
“Oh, uh, I mean, I should’ve said something sooner. You did nothing—” Wrong? I couldn’t bring myself to say it. To lie to myself like that.
The president put a hand on Asagumo-san’s shoulder with a self-derisive smile. “I’m partly to blame for not saying anything myself. You’ve certainly earned your title, Oniisama.”
“Not mine,” I said. “Kaju’s. That’s entirely Kaju’s thing.”
Yanami wiped the last few baguette crumbs off her hands. “Okay, but who’s gonna be Shiratama-chan now?”
We had a vacancy. Without Kaju, someone else would have to pick up the Phonytama-san mantle.
Asagumo-san eyed Yanami closely. “You two are awfully close in height. Similar proportions. You might be the dead ringer we need, Yanami-san.”
She stopped digging in her bag. “Say what?”
Yanami? Stand in for Shiratama-san?
“But what about her wei…build. What about her build?” I asked. “Y’know, ’cuz, uh…”
“’Cuz what, Nukumizu-kun? Say it.”
I did not.
Asagumo-san pulled out her phone, smiling in spite of the imminent danger to my health and safety. “Yanami-san, Riko-san, stand right there, please.”
“Who, me?”
“Yes, you and Riko-san. Right there, please.” Sometimes her one-track mind could be such a blessing. She snapped a picture, took out her laptop, and then turned it to us. “Your attention, everyone.”
On the screen was the picture she had just taken of them standing side by side. They definitely matched in terms of height and proportions, but something about their silhouettes just…didn’t gel. They were different genres. If they were figures in a store, they’d have been on different shelves.
Asagumo-san hit a key, and Yanami became slimmer while Shiratama-san got a little thicker. “Just a bit of computer magic to make their figures match a bit more. All she needs now is a wig and the right outfit.”
“We can edit photos all day, though. The real world’s not that pretty,” I said. “Figuratively, Yanami-san. Figuratively.”
I shouldn’t have had to cover my tracks like this. Yet…
Asagumo-san grinned, again in spite of suffering. “These edits are simulating a two-kilogram gain for Riko-san and a two-kilogram loss for Yanami-san. All they have to do is meet that estimate in time for the ceremony.”
An ominous silence permeated the room.
Yanami stopped sucking down jelly from a pack. “So what you’re saying is I shouldn’t have that second loaf.”
We all looked at each other at once and were united. The situation was dire.