Springtime rolled around for the third and final time.
It was the day before the opening ceremony, and a big event was on the horizon for the new second- and third-years of Yamaboshi High School... but as for Taichi, he was still feeling lazy after spring break, and as such, he was running late. The assembly started at 9:30, and he wasn’t sure he was going to make it. Gasping for breath, he ran down the road.
“Excuse me, coming through — wait, what the?!”
He could hear footsteps racing after him, and he slowed his pace.
“Hey there, Taichi!”
“M-Morning, Nagase...”
“Morning! You know you’re gonna be late, right?”
“I think you mean we’re going to be late!”
“Oh crap, you’re right!”
As they joked, they soon arrived at the school gates.
“Well, it’s okay if I’m late... as long as you’re later!”
“It’s not... a competition... Nagase...!”
...But if it was a competition, then he didn’t want to lose to a girl. Together, they raced across campus.
Initially he wasn’t planning to put his full effort into it, but given Nagase’s natural athletic ability, he didn’t have a choice if he wanted to keep up. Before he knew it, they were both scrambling like mad. The scenery flew by in a blur, but they didn’t stop to look at it. They were both focused on the path ahead of them.
“Wait... Where are we going again...?”
“Weren’t we supposed to meet up outside the gym?!”
By the time they joined the crowd, they were both wheezing.
“What happened to you guys?” Kiriyama asked, frowning.
“We were having... the battle of a lifetime...” Nagase replied between breaths.
“Hah hah hah! I get it! You were just that excited to see the new class assignments!” Aoki grinned obliviously.
Indeed, today the faculty had posted class rosters for the new school year.
“You seem pretty pleased with yourself,” Taichi muttered. Then it hit him. “Oh.”
“You know it! Guess what... Me and Yui are in the same class again! Yessss! Gimme a high-five, Yui!”
“Ugh! Don’t embarrass me!”
“Aww, don’t be shy! Oh, and you’re stuck with us too, Iori-chan.”
“Wh-... SPOILERS! I wanted to see for myself, dang it!”
The three of them had all chosen the humanities course for their third year. By the sound of it, they’d managed to end up in the same class as well.
“Yaegashi-kun.”
“Eeeegh?!”
“I don’t know what sound that was, but please don’t do that again.”
“Then don’t sneak up on me and whisper in my ear!”
Unsurprisingly, it was Fujishima Maiko, her glasses glinting in the sunlight.
“It appears we’re in the same class again, which means we’ll have officially spent all three years of high school together. That’s a lot of time spent in close proximity... At this point, there’s bound to be some drama between us, don’t you think? Heehee.”
“Or we could skip the drama and just stay friends...”
“Oh, Katori-kun! I noticed you’re in the same class as us this year.”
“Hey there, Fujishima.”
Katori Jouji, the student council president, walked over to them with a charming smile on his face.
“I forget — do you know Yaegashi-kun?”
“Sure, we’ve talked,” Taichi replied, looking at Katori. Had he truly forgotten the events of the Isolation Zone, or...? Nahhh. Couldn’t be.
“I’m looking forward to the rest of the year,” Katori told him, and held out his hand. Taichi grasped it, and the two exchanged a firm handshake.
From there, it was Taichi’s turn to check the bulletin board and see the class assignments for himself.
“Misaki! This year’s going to be so much fun!”
“Heck yeah! But you’d better study, Yukina!”
Kurihara Yukina and Oosawa Misaki exchanged a fistbump. Evidently they’d been assigned to the same class.
“Yaegashi-kun! Can we trade classes...? We can’t, can we? Nnnn...” whined Nakayama Mariko as she grabbed him by the sleeve.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ishikawa-kun and I got assigned to different classes... That’s why I want to trade with you... Nnnn...”
“I wish I could help you, but I don’t think that’s allowed...”
“Now, now, Nakayama-chan, that’s enough of that. I mean, Ishikawa-kun chose the science course. Of course you two weren’t going to end up in the same class!” Setouchi Kaoru pointed out calmly.
“I know, but... don’t you understand how I feel, Kaoru-chan?!”
“Yes, yes, of course. Now let’s go. Sorry for the spectacle, Yaegashi-kun.”
“Just because you get to be in the same class with Shiroyama-kun doesn’t mean—”
“Th-That has nothing to do with anything!”
Apparently Nakayama and Setouchi were in the same class together... in which case, Setouchi was going to have her hands full.
“Even though we’ll be apart, we’ll always be friends!”
“Yeah!”
“Damn right!”
“...What’s going on here?”
“Oh, hey, Yaegashi. We’re pretending to have a dramatic farewell. Wanna join?” asked Watase Shingo.
“Get in here!” Miyagami shouted.
“Let’s do it!” Sone chimed in.
“For the record, Miyagami and Sone are in one class while you and me are in another, so I feel like it’s pretty evenly balanced.”
“We’re in the same class?”
“Oh, have you not seen the list yet? Go check it!”
“That’s just what I was on my way to do.”
“Well, hurry it up!”
“Hurry up!”
Goaded on by Miyagami and Sone, Taichi approached the bulletin board.
“Oh, and fun fact: Fujishima-san is in our class, too,” Watase whispered. “I’m planning to finally make a move on her this year, so... I’d appreciate some backup.”
His expression was unusually serious, and Taichi felt compelled to hold up his end of their agreement... even if Watase didn’t remember it.
“Hey, Uwa! Are you excited to be in the same class as Enjouji-san?! Because I can’t wait for you two to end up together!”
“Will you keep your voice down, Kimura?!”
Taichi couldn’t see the second-years, but he could hear them shouting excitedly. Note to self: ask about that later.
Then, at last, he made it to the bulletin board.
“Let’s see... What letter are we this time...?”
If the students were listed in alphabetical order by surname, then he knew he was going to be at the bottom. Sure enough, there he was: Yaegashi Taichi, right below Watase Shingo, listed under Class 3-E.
He worked his way up the list of names, some of which he recognized, and wondered what sort of vibe his third-year class would have. And as he approached the top half of the list, he saw it...
“Taichi!”
A sweet, passionate, gleeful-yet-bashful voice called out to him a short distance away as his eyes landed on her name: Inaba Himeko.
He turned. She was smiling; her eyes were shining with love and excitement. So he ran to her and called her name right back.
“Himeko!”
□■□■□
A lot has happened in our lives thus far, and there’s still a lot more to come. «Heartseed» and its kin are still out there, probably wreaking havoc in some other part of the world.
Each day is eventful in its own right. From a global perspective, those events are insignificant... but if enough of them add up, they can change the world.
What we experienced was truly unique. And we can’t pretend it didn’t play a role in getting us to where we are today. But to be honest, I think we still could have made it here on our own if we played our cards right. After all, regardless of what inspired us, this path is still ultimately the product of mundane human actions. Nothing special about that.
Does it take a supernatural phenomenon to summon a little courage? To break out of your shell? To change your perspective? No. Anyone can do those things. And that’s all it really is, when it comes down to it.
There are limits to what a single human being can accomplish... but at the same time, we’ve learned that we don’t need to be anything more than what we are. So I’m going to spend today living my life, just the same as I always have. If I spend each day interacting with people — which, given how life generally works, will probably be the case — those moments will build connections. And as those connections get stronger, they’ll evolve into unbreakable bonds.
Every connection, be it weak or strong, leads to another connection, and another, and another until slowly but surely, the whole world is unified by a single invisible thread. With all the war and conflict that happens around the globe, you may find it hard to believe that that thread exists, but it does. I know this because I’ve witnessed firsthand the power of human connections. And that power can change the world... at least, a small world, anyway.
But if you have a little faith, I’m confident it could change something bigger, too.
Tomorrow’s world will be a wonderful place created by wonderful people — which means we have to start building it today. Our heart-to-heart connections will lead us to something better and brighter than what came before.
Will we meet «Heartseed» again once we get there? Ideally, I hope not. I’m still not sure if my memories are 100% accurate. But that’s okay. What we’ve built can never truly be erased.
«They» may not be human, but I want to believe that we can reach an understanding with them if we try. And if our world allows for connections with non-human entities, then connecting with fellow humans will be a piece of cake!
Just have a little faith... and keep working toward tomorrow.