Chapter 144

Fushimi seemed to have caught a cold; she called me on the phone and coughed into my ear. “Sorry, Ryou. You’ll have to go to school alone today…” That sounds nice. Maybe I’ll skip school, too. “Do not skip school.” Did you just read my mind? I’d paused for a moment, but now I reluctantly resumed putting on my uniform. She listed off today’s notices that I had to give to our classmates, as class rep. “All right. I’ll just ask the teacher if I get stuck.” “Please do. I might not be able to text you back right away.” “Take care,” I said, and hung up. Himeji had already said she wouldn’t be going to school due to practice for her play. …Am I the only one who wants to skip school when he hears someone else isn’t going? After Fushimi’s warning, however, I resigned myself to another day of classes. Once I got to school, Torigoe came over, curious about the empty seats to either side of me. “Where’s Hiina?” “Oh, she got sick and is taking the day off.” “I see.” “Himeji’s also absent because of rehearsals. It sounds great. If only I had a reason to skip school.” “They’re not playing hooky.” She giggled. “I know.” “So it’s just the two of us today.” Yeah, with both of the others absent… She sat down on Fushimi’s seat. “You seem so close when I sit here.” She propped her head on her hands and stared at me. We chatted until the teacher arrived. We had electives first period, and Torigoe asked if I’d brought everything I needed. Who do you think I am? Incidentally, in our school’s case, all our electives were fine arts. You submitted a list with music, drawing, and calligraphy in order of preference and were assigned to one of them. I was in calligraphy with Torigoe. Soon, homeroom ended, and Torigoe and I moved classrooms for calligraphy. I sat down wherever, and Torigoe, who usually went off by herself, sat down beside me. “…” “…” Say something. I sneaked a peek at her and noticed she was restlessly opening and closing her calligraphy bag. “T-Takamori…” Her faltering voice reminded me of the other day, when she’d said, “Doesn’t that mean that…you…like me?” “Wh-what?” “Your calligraphy is pretty good.” I’d been prepared for her to say something else, and her comment almost came as a letdown. I sighed, though I wasn’t entirely sure why. “I had some classes back in grade school.” “Oh, really?” “Yeah, just a bit.” “By the way, you’ve been friends with Hiina and Himeji since you were little, right? Was Hiina ever mean to you?” “Mean?” That sure came out of nowhere. I furrowed my brow at the question and hummed in thought for a bit. “Mean… Mean…? Like how?” “Hmm… Like, say, you peeped on her in the bath, and she slapped you in the face. Typical childhood friend stuff, you know.” How in the world is that typical? “No. Nothing of the sort that I can think of.” I had a pretty bad memory, so those last few words were carrying a lot of weight. Why’s she asking me this anyway? “I see. Then maybe we’re wrong…” Just then, the teacher arrived. Calligraphy class was quite simple; they’d assign us something to write, and we’d turn it in. That was it. So far, no one had ever been yelled at. I quietly ground my inkstone. At some point I glanced over and noticed that Torigoe’s motions seemed surprisingly smooth and natural. “It’s like you were born for this.” “Huh? What?” “Just saying, the Japanese aesthetic suits you.” “Y-you think?” Her cheeks flushed, and she ground her ink faster and faster. I began to worry she might start a fire. “You’re paying way too much attention to me, Takamori.” “Not really. I just happened to notice, since you’re sitting next to me today.” I continued to grind my own inkstone. “C-c-could it be that you l-li-li-like me?” I figured she meant it as a joke, but she stammered too hard to nail the timing. “Please don’t bring that up. I mean, I do like you, in a way.” “Wha…?” She widened her eyes and blinked a few times in shock. She was turning to look at me to confirm what I’d said when her hand slipped, and she flipped her entire inkwell, inkstone and all. “Ah-wah!” While she panicked, I mopped up the ink on the desk with a sheet of paper, trying to keep the damage to a minimum. “Th-thanks, Takamori.” Everyone was looking at us now, and Torigoe seemed to shrink in on herself. “You’re wel…” I noticed her face and uniform were stained, too. “You should go wash your face.” “Do you mean that metaphorically, as in I should go think about my actions?” “How in the world did you get that out of what I said? No. Your face and uniform are dirty.” “Oh,” she said, as reality dawned on her. “Oh no.” It was only first period. We had a long day ahead. We got the teacher’s permission, and I accompanied her to the bathroom, stopping outside. I heard water running, and she soon came out with her face washed and a handkerchief in hand. “You look fine now. Himeji would probably be losing her mind about makeup, but you don’t seem to—” “Actually…I do…put on a little.” Wow. Evidently, admitting this embarrassed her, and she fidgeted awkwardly. “Just the natural stuff, you know.” O-oh. So, like, the sort of makeup that makes it look like you don’t use any. “Just enough so the teachers don’t notice.” In that case, there’s no way I’d notice. “I guess you’re a girl, after all.” “…What did you think I was?” she demanded. I raised both hands in surrender. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. Of course I knew you were a girl… I just meant, like, hey, you have girly interests, too…” “Anyway, remember that porn manga in your room?” “You’re gonna give me whiplash switching topics like that.” How could I ever forget? “So you’re interested in sex but not romance?” “I didn’t say I wasn’t interested.” “So you don’t deny the first half…” She nodded pensively. “What’s with all the questions today?” “Maybe it’s just a difference between the way boys and girls think, but I just see those two things as inextricably linked. Maybe you don’t.” Apparently, Torigoe had something on her mind. “What about your uniform? You gonna change the top?” “…Oh right. I don’t know…” “Maybe you could borrow a jacket from someone?” I said without thinking. She clammed up. Had I said something odd? “We don’t have PE today,” I continued, “but maybe one of the girls keeps their tracksuit here…” “I…” You? “I don’t know any girls I could ask…” “Sorry.” Right. Fushimi and Himeji were absent. If Deguchi were out, I wouldn’t have a friend to ask something like that of, either. “I could lend you mine…but it’ll be baggy…” “I’ll take it.” Really? It’s huge, though. I figured she might change her mind once she tried it on. I went to pick it up from my locker and came back. “Here you go.” Torigoe held it up. She tried holding the sleeves and stretching out her arms, but even with her limbs fully extended, it hung, covering her body. At our school, boys and girls wore the same tracksuit. The only difference was size. “Huge, right?” I said. “It’s fine.” Seriously? “Oh, by the way. It’s clean. I haven’t worn it.” “? Then why is it here?” “I always forget it, so I just keep it here.” I could borrow one when that happened if I had friends in other classes, but alas… This was my only option. “Thanks,” she said before going into the bathroom again and coming right back out. The jacket was super baggy, of course… But oddly, it didn’t look strange. I wasn’t knowledgeable about women’s fashion, but it looked like an oversized hoodie or something like that. “Do I look weird?” she asked. “Actually, you look pretty good.” “I’m glad.” She smiled. Then she sniffed her shoulder. “It smells like you.” “Hold on a minute! I don’t stink, okay? At the very least, say it smells like my detergent.” “You’re blushing. You really don’t want me sniffing you?” “What does it matter what I smell like? Don’t be weird.” She covered her mouth and laughed out loud at my panic. “It’s not that weird for a girl to wear a boy’s jacket. I’ve seen girls wearing their boyfriends’ jackets when they’re in different classes.” True. “But…wouldn’t me lending you mine put us in the same situation?” Instantly, she was red in the face. “W-well… N-no? No. No, no.” “People are gonna get ideas.” “L-let them think whatever they want.” “Are you serious?” Torigoe spoke so softly, I could barely hear her. “I…don’t mind.” She grabbed her collar tightly to make sure I couldn’t change my mind and hurried back to class. I’m not gonna try and peel it off you, you know. As I walked behind her, I could tell she was red all the way up to her ears. “I-I’m wearing your jacket, you know?” she said. “Due to extenuating circumstances. Because I know how it feels to have no friends.” “It smells like you.” “No, it doesn’t. I haven’t even worn it. It smells like my detergent, if anything.” What do I even smell like? Torigoe walked quickly, like she was running away. The exchange went in circles time and again as she kept sniffing my jacket. Somehow, she looked like she was having fun. After school, I dropped by Fushimi’s house. Her grandma answered the door and let me know that her fever had come down. I was only there to give her the printouts from class, but after hearing she was doing better, I decided to pay her a visit. “Fushimiii? Are you up?” “R-Ryou?!” I heard a shriek, followed by clattering sounds from inside her room. “I just brought the printouts. I’ll leave them here.” “Wait, wait! I’ll let you in, just give me a minute!” I gave her five minutes. Finally, she allowed me to enter. “You sound health—…” Her voice and the racket that followed didn’t sound like the noises of a sick person, and yet, when I opened the door, she was in bed. “…Are you okay?” “I don’t think so.” She looked at me uneasily and coughed. All that noise had been her tidying up. If you’re sick, just rest, don’t worry about stuff like that. I pulled the chair from her desk and sat down beside her bed. “There’s math homework. I’ll leave it on the desk.” “…Okay.” She peeked out from under the sheets and answered weakly. “How’s Shii doing?” “She’s got library duty. Said she’d be here later. You think you can go to school tomorrow?” “I…don’t think so.” She looked up at me and shook her head. “I’m so cold…I might die.” She rolled over dramatically, showing me her back. “You’re not gonna die. Should I bring you a heater?” I saw her hair rustle. I guessed she was shaking her head. “Come here…under the covers,” she said. “Hmm?” I’d heard her, but I needed confirmation to know she was being serious. She lifted the sheets and made space for me. “Are you for real?” “Yes. It’ll warm me up.” I thought of Mana; she was always like this when she caught a cold. I wasn’t sure my getting in would really warm her up that much. I scratched my head awkwardly for a moment, and then steeled myself and did as she asked. “Fine… Just for a little while, okay?” “Yes!” She sounded oddly energetic, but I figured it was all right to spoil people when they weren’t feeling well. I got in bed, still in my uniform. The spot where she’d just been lying was warm, and it smelled of her. I tried hard to push away all my indecent thoughts. “Ryou?” “What?” “Nothing.” She giggled before sighing. You’re already in perfect health, aren’t you? “Pat me,” she said. “…” I complied and patted her head, caressing her silky hair. “Good girl.” “Hee-hee… Hee-hee. Next…” You think I’ll just say yes to anything you want? “Nothing weird, okay?” “Nothing weird. I promise.” While she was thinking, I found a book by her pillow. She must have passed the time reading after she started feeling better. “What were you reading?”