Chapter 171

It was the week after our exams, and the results were in. The teachers handed out our papers with stern faces. Apparently, the averages were low in every subject. “Those tests were hard, right?” I asked Hina after classes. I figured she probably knew better than anyone else. “A bit, but not that difficult.” Well, shoot. I guess this isn’t even hard mode for a star student like her. I’d beaten the average, but I only reached Hina’s goal of eighty points in a single subject. She gave me the okay despite this, however, and it looked like I’d be free from her lessons for a while. As far as I was concerned, I’d passed with flying colors. Incidentally, Himeji kept her scores secret. I couldn’t even manage to get a peek; she put up an iron defense. That couldn’t be good news. Yet she wasn’t bummed out at all. Apparently, she’d accepted her fate. Good luck in make-up classes hell. We gathered for an especially long homeroom; Waka’s face was just as dark as it had been during class, and she spent the time discussing the following year’s entrance exams and how busy the third-years were at the moment. “I’d been letting it slide since our class did so well in the school festival and had a higher average than the other classes, but I think it’s time. We’re doing a seat change.” Those happy with their current seats booed in objection, while those who were unhappy clapped in joy. “Miss, I don’t think seats have anything to do with test scores,” Hina pointed out, objecting indirectly. “You’re not focusing during class.” I felt like changing seats wasn’t a surefire way to fix that, but it seemed Waka had made up her mind. “We’re drawing lots. Line up.” Waka turned to the blackboard and assigned numbers to each seat. “Ryou.” Hina gave me a sad look. “That’s what you get for flirting in class.” Himeji stuck out her tongue. Hina leaned over her desk and shot back, “We do not flirt in class!” “Yeah, sure. I see you guys poking each other all the time.” “That doesn’t count as flirting, does it, Ryou?” “You’re just numb to it because you’ve gone so much further. You’re such a horndog, Hina.” “Hngh…” Hina turned beet red. “Changing seats has nothing to do with flirting,” I said. “And I got pretty good grades, unlike a certain someone whose scores were abysmal.” “You don’t know that,” Himeji countered. “Show me, then.” “Sorry, it’s my turn.” Himeji stood up and walked to the teacher’s desk to draw her lot. Next, it was my turn, then Hina’s. I looked at my number, then checked the blackboard. I was moving two seats to the left. “We’re drifting apart…” Hina frowned as she looked at my number. “I’m gonna be lonely.” “Yeah.” I reached out to pat her head, then remembered we were at school and stopped myself. “Don’t be dramatic, you’re still in the same classroom.” Himeji heaved a heavy sigh. After the move, Himeji ended up to my right, with Torigoe in front of me. Deguchi was to her right. “We’re neighbors again,” said Himeji. “Yeah.” “Nice. I’m with Takamori and Himeji.” Torigoe was downplaying it, but she seemed pretty happy. Meanwhile, Hina was far away in a corner, all alone. She watched us with sad, puppy-dog eyes. On our way home, she continued complaining. “What a ridiculous excuse. There’s no way grades are going to improve just because we changed seats.” I agreed. “Waka probably just wants to keep us on edge so we don’t slack off before entrance exams.” “I guess.” Hina puffed out her cheeks. I poked one of them. “Stop it!” she said, but she clearly wasn’t bothered. She giggled as if I’d tickled her. It was freezing outside, so we held hands to keep warm. “The back of my hand is cold,” Hina said, then stuffed both our hands in my pocket. She was right. I already felt warmer. But it would be embarrassing if anyone saw us. “Any plans for tomorrow?” I asked. “I have a shoot.” “Oh, the one you were talking about?” “Yeah. The schedule was pretty tight, and they decided to move it up,” she said apologetically. It was Christmas Eve tomorrow. I’d thought for sure she would have the day open. But it was only natural for her to prioritize her job. It might be just a web ad for a local company, but she was finally getting to act in a commercial. “No worries,” I said. “Do your best.” “Yeah, thanks! Look forward to it!” “When is it going up?” “They said it’ll be in January.” “Wow, only next month? And you’re shooting tomorrow?” After working for Mr. Matsuda, I’d realized how early production began for projects like that. Most of them started at least half a year in advance. “Big companies have to start things way ahead of time, but my agency and the company I’m shooting for are pretty tiny, so we can get everything done a lot quicker.” That made sense. A local ad would have a much smaller budget than the kind of ads that ran all over the country. Still, what a shame. We had our last day of school tomorrow, and I’d wanted to go on a date in the evening and give her my present. I guess I’ll go to work, too, then. I saw Hina home, looked around to make sure no one was watching, and gave her a kiss at the door. She beamed, and I waited until she was inside before I headed home. “Just so you know, I’m free tomorrow,” said a certain middle-school gyaru the moment she saw her brother walk in the door. Today had been her last day of school. She peeked at me while browsing her phone. “Well, I’m not.” I’d asked Mr. Matsuda if there was any work to do on my way home, and he’d said yes. “Oh, so you can’t go out with your adorable little sister now that you have a girlfriend?” Mana booed. “I’m not that enamored with you.” “You say that, but you were so lonely without me that you came all the way to the station to pick me up.” She must’ve been over the moon. Mana had been bringing up the incident constantly. “You just want a present.” “That’s not true at all!” I could see right through her. “Come on, Mana. Who do you take your Bubby for?” “Hmm? What’re you on about?” “Of course I bought you a present.” “Whaaa?! No cap?!” Mana jumped off the couch, her eyes sparkling. You might act like a grown-up in the weirdest ways, but you’re still just a kid. “Bubby, you gotta make that sorta thing a surprise! It’s a day early!” Despite this comment, she was overjoyed. “No complaining.” “I wub you, Bubby!” “You love presents.” Now the question was whether my choice would please the chief of the fashion police. I prepared myself for the worst-case scenario—that she’d throw it right back in my face. “So? What is it?” she asked. “First, calm down.” I went up to my room to get the present, and she followed behind, skipping. It was in my closet—a box wrapped in green paper with a red ribbon. “Here you go.” “For real?! You really got me one!” She’d given me advice about Hina’s present, and she did a lot for me on a daily basis. She deserved a little something in return. Mana grabbed the present and wrapped her arms around me. Mana, your chest… “Thank you, Bubby!” She let me go and opened the box. “Wow! Gloves! Daring today, aren’t we? LMAO!” I’d bought them at her favorite gyaru shop. I was hoping that she wouldn’t hate them, at least, and it seemed I’d succeeded. Mana was the type to come right out and say, “Ew, this sucks,” and she hadn’t. She seemed to like the design. They were black with fur around the wrists. Low-key enough to wear them to school, and, most importantly, you could use a phone with them on. “You can use your phone with them, and even take them to school.” “Hey, you’re even starting to think about the little details. You’ve grown up, Bubby.” She patted my head. “Hey, I’m your big brother. It should be me patting your head.” Mana ignored my retort and put on the gloves before skipping downstairs. “I’ll get a present for you tomorrow.” “Nah, it’s fine.” “It’s not fine! I want to get you something!” …Adorable little rascal. “Nothing too expensive, okay?” I called down after her. Whether she heard me or not was another matter. I was sitting in class on the last day of school before winter break. Looking around, I noticed that few girls wore gloves to school and began to worry about the adequacy of my present. If Mana didn’t want it, she would’ve said so. I probably shouldn’t dwell on it. After class, Hina waved good-bye to me, Torigoe, and Himeji and hurried out the door. I explained why to the others, and they nodded. “I wonder how that low-budget, local ad will turn out…” Himeji smirked. You’re hoping to make fun of her, aren’t you? Can’t you just let her be? “What are your plans for today, Ryou?” she asked. “Work.” “…I’ll go with you, then. You’re headed to the agency, right?” “Don’t you have anything better to do?” “Actually, I have my own reasons to go there,” she said, refusing to look me in the eye. She was probably lying. Himeji headed out into the hall, ready to go. “Torigoe, are you gonna hang out with Shinohara?” I asked. “Don’t mind me.” “Ryou! Come on, already!” Himeji popped her head around the doorframe. “W-wait, Takamori. Take this!” Torigoe took out a palm-sized box from her bag, beautifully wrapped in Christmas colors. “A present? For me?” “Y-yeah.” For a moment, I was dumbstruck. “Th-thanks. I wasn’t expecting this.” Torigoe waved dismissively, her hand moving at the speed of light. “I-i-i-if you don’t want it, just throw it away!” “I’m not throwing it away.” “I-I-I’m giving one to Mii, too, okay!” “Sorry I didn’t get you anything.” “It’s fine. I’m just doing this because I want to. Ahh! I d-d-don’t mean anything weird by it, okay?!” Her face was completely flushed. She kept running her mouth and urging me to put the gift away. I tucked it into my bag just as Himeji peeked inside again. “Ryooou! I’m waiting! It’s cold out here!” “Shut up, nobody told you to wait outside.” I shouldered my bag and said good-bye to Torigoe before leaving the classroom. “Were you talking about something with Shizuka?” asked Himeji. “Just about winter break,” I lied. “I have a few auditions.” No one asked. “So I’m meeting with Mr. Matsuda today about that,” she added. “Is that so.” Apparently, she really did have something to do at the agency. We took the train, and I headed into the director’s office as usual. Mr. Matsuda raised an eyebrow when he saw Himeji come in behind me. “Aika, what are you doing here?” “I stopped by to talk about my auditions.” “What? We already did that. There’s nothing else to discuss.” “…” So she was lying. Mr. Matsuda looked at me, then back at Himeji. He narrowed his eyes, a look of pity on his face. “Aika… You wanted to spend Christmas Eve with Ry, didn’t you? Poor girl…” “N-n-n-nooo, I didn’t!!” The whole room shook from the sheer volume of her voice. This was why they paid her the big bucks at musicals. I sat down at my desk and unwrapped Torigoe’s present inside my bag. It was a mug-sized thermos—the sort of thing that kept your drinks hot for a long time. I could put coffee in it while I worked. Perfect for my desk job. Excellent choice, Torigoe. Practical and inexpensive… You could tell how much thought had gone into it. I could already feel my productivity rising. Thanks for the thermos! It’ll get a lot of use at my job. I texted Torigoe my thanks, and she replied with a picture of an alien, saying You’re welcome. Mr. Matsuda and I began working right away, and Himeji had nothing to do and no one to talk to, so she quickly headed home. Once she was gone, Mr. Matsuda started talking about her. Apparently, the auditions she had were for new idols. “Wasn’t she already an idol?” I asked. “You don’t have to be a total newbie. And after seeing her in the play, I’m sure of it. She’s meant to be seen live onstage.” The rehearsals had fixed her wooden acting, but her forte was still singing and dancing. After a while, Mr. Matsuda stood up. “I’m going to head out to a meeting, then go straight home from there. You can take off whenever you find a good stopping point.” “Okay. Thank you.” “I love your editing work and flexibility, so don’t leave us, okay?” He blew me a kiss and waved as he left. I had a boss who appreciated my work and gave me good pay. How could I leave? Maybe I should join the agency. Entrance exams sound hard. And I have no clear idea what I’d like to study in university. Mr. Matsuda’s offer had started to sound pretty good. “Wait a second. He’s got me dancing in the palm of his hand, doesn’t he?” I’d promised Hina we would go to the same university. Does she still remember? Once I wrapped up work and left the agency, I gave Hina a call. She was nearby, so we decided to meet up and go back home together. “I had to do a little dance like this.” Hina showed me the choreography she’d practiced for the ad. “That’s so weird.” “Right?! I thought the same, but everyone was so serious about it. I was like, What the heck am I doing? and almost started laughing in the middle of the shoot.” She giggled at the memory. “Maybe it’ll make a big impression.” “You think? I can only see Ai’s cackling in my future.” Hina shook her head sadly. Then she clapped her hands together apologetically. “Sorry I couldn’t make time for us to spend Christmas Eve together.” “It’s fine, don’t apologize. I want to support you, and you can’t miss an opportunity like this.” “Yeah. Thanks. I’ll keep doing my best.” “Just don’t overwork yourself, okay?” “Noted!” she replied. We got off at our station, and when we reached the place in the road where we usually split up, Hina pulled me toward her house. “Our Christmas starts now.” She was skipping so merrily, you could practically see musical notes popping up in her wake. We had no plans for tomorrow, and Hina’s house was empty. Her family was away, visiting friends or out on a trip. She had the place all to herself. We arrived at her room, and she took out the fried chicken and snacks we’d bought on our way back. We made a toast with some juice from her fridge and started on the chicken. The TV was on, but we weren’t really watching it. Hina’s room was pretty big, but she clung to my side, refusing to let me go. I decided to leave the serious topics, like university, for later. It was finally a good time to give her my present. “For you,” I said. “A present?! What is it?!” She giggled like a little kid, and I told her to go ahead and open it. The wrapping paper rustled as she tore it off and lifted the lid to reveal a silver necklace. “Wow! This is so elegant, like the type you’d see in pro costumes!” Let’s goooo!! Thank you, Manaaa!! “I know you don’t really wear necklaces, but I thought this one was simple enough that you could pair it with just about anything.” Or that was what Mana said anyway. “You’re right…! It’s not too gaudy, but it adds a little something… Thank you, Ryou!” She hugged me tight. She kept holding me as I took the necklace and fastened it around her neck. She finally let go and went to look in the mirror. She held up the necklace, and tears filled her eyes. “I’m so happy…,” she murmured. “You’re welcome.” “I have something for you, too.” She wiped her tears and smiled bashfully, then walked over to her desk and grabbed a big bundle wrapped in red and green. “Here’s your present.”