Ten minutes later, Sakuta was in a car.
Specifically, he was in the passenger seat of a compact car that Touko was driving, having borrowed it from a car-share service.
“And here I thought Santa Claus drove a sleigh pulled by reindeer.”
They were headed north on Route 16.
“Do you have a license?” she asked.
“I’m starting driving school the day after tomorrow,” he said, eyes on oncoming traffic.
“What are you looking at?”
“Wondering what this looks like from the outside.”
“Like Mai Sakurajima’s boyfriend is having a secret tryst with another woman,” Touko said with a smirk. Clearly enjoying this.
“Possibly. If they can actually see you.”
But so far, only Sakuta and Miori could actually perceive her.
“A car driving without anyone in the driver’s seat must be pretty spooky.”
He’d definitely do a double take.
Like in a horror movie.
“This is how the world’s urban legends are born,” Touko said, like this didn’t affect her.
A driverless car on Route 16. A ghostmobile, hauling a passenger along. When he got home, he’d have to check online to see if anyone was talking about it.
“Oh yeah, is this bothering you?”
“How so?”
“Being alone with me. Aren’t you seeing anyone yourself?”
“Do I look single?”
“Not really.”
Sakuta had gone with his gut when he asked that question. The way Touko acted around him suggested she had a significant other. She wasn’t self-conscious around Sakuta the way most girls her age were around men. She carried herself in a way that spoke of experience. That applied here, too, with just the two of them in the car. None of that awkward tension as you tested the waters.
“I’m afraid you’re not quite right. I had one until spring arrived.”
“You broke up?”
“You may have noticed, but nobody can see me. My boyfriend included.”
He looked at her profile but saw no signs of emotion. Miniskirt Santa was just driving.
“How long were you together?”
“Since summer of the second year of high school.”
“So since you were back in Hokkaido?”
He knew she’d moved down here at the start of university.
“Right.”
“So before Nene Iwamizawa started calling herself Touko Kirishima.”
“……”
That, Touko didn’t answer.
Her face was emotionless.
It was probably best for him to try a different angle.
“If he’s from Hokkaido, it must have turned into a long-distance relationship after you graduated, right?”
“We both took the exams here, but he flunked them.”
Touko pulled up behind the car in front of her, at a red light.
“That sure hits close to home.”
That may well have been Sakuta’s fate.
“Two years in a row.”
Even worse.
“Where is he now?”
At the very least, they’d still been together last spring. Touko had said so herself.
“He passed on the third try and enrolled here in the spring.”
The light turned green, and she followed the other car out.
“He finally caught up with you and then couldn’t perceive you anymore?”
“Exactly.”
Her voice was calm. Her attention was on the road.
“If I were him, I’d be flirting like mad. Making up for lost time.”
“……”
Touko said nothing. Her mind seemed to be on what had gone down.
“Were you happy when he told you he’d passed?”
“Less happy than relieved. I’m the one who wanted to come down here…and he followed my lead.”
“What’s his major?”
“Statistical science.”
Same as Sakuta.
“Do I know him?”
He searched her profile. He didn’t know everyone in his major, but he did know at least one boy from Hokkaido.
“……”
She didn’t answer. But she didn’t deny it, either. And that was all the answer he needed.
“Fukuyama, huh?”
He’d meant that as a simple confirmation, but his voice broke. It was an unexpected reveal, and he was a little worked up about it. He was surprised to find himself reacting that way.
“……”
Touko didn’t point that out. Or answer him one way or the other. She just kept driving.
“Does Fukuyama know Touko Kirishima is Nene Iwamizawa?”
“He does not.”
“Why didn’t you tell him?”
“Does your girlfriend share everything about her job?”
“Well, no, not everything.”
But was it possible to go out that long without him having any clue? Could Nene have avoided letting anything slip?
As Nene Iwamizawa, she’d boasted online about her modeling work, about the beauty contest. Gathering likes and followers.
Could a girl like that have kept Touko Kirishima under wraps?
Why would she need to keep it hidden from her own boyfriend?
That seemed like a major contradiction.
“Fukuyama knows about Touko Kirishima.”
“Seems like.”
“So why can’t he see you?”
“Because he doesn’t know I’m Touko Kirishima.”
If he’d connected that name to Nene Iwamizawa, Takumi should have been able to perceive Nene. Just like he could perceive the internet singer Touko Kirishima.
Sakuta got that logic. But was that all there was to it?
“Or is it because in his mind, you’re Nene Iwamizawa?”
“So what?”
Should he say this? Honestly, Sakuta wasn’t sure.
But he felt like not saying it would get them nowhere. He had to be sure.
“Are you really Touko Kirishima?”
He kept it simple.
And the answer came quick.
“I am Touko Kirishima.”
Like it was a statement of fact.
No hesitation.
No need for hesitation.
Because it was true.
Her attitude and tone sold that.
She wasn’t lying.
And to prove her words, Touko began to sing.
The song she’d live streamed on Christmas Eve.
The one he’d been too late to see.
A beautiful voice, echoing through the gate, proving beyond all doubt that she was Touko Kirishima.
At the time, Sakuta thought so. Felt it. And yet—it didn’t clear the air. There was still a shroud over things. An unseen truth, hidden in that fog. He found himself all the more convinced of it.
The car’s navigation system said, “Arriving at your destination.”
The map on-screen showed Yokohama’s Motomachi.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Santa buys presents in Motomachi?”
Miniskirt Santa was walking in front of Sakuta, the heels of her boots clicking.
They were in a shopping area in Motomachi, Yokohama. No arcade overhead, just open skies. When the Port of Yokohama had first opened to international ships, the nearby areas—Yamashita and Yamate—had been converted into foreign residences, bringing business to Motomachi.
For that reason, many of the buildings here still showed traces of period Western architecture.
The shopping area retained that old-timey vibe, playing up the blending of cultures that took place then.
Here, you’d find ancient shops in business since Motomachi was founded right next to shops that had only just opened. The new mingling with the old. In a sense, this town had always been a cultural melting pot.
This place would be teeming on a weekend, but at noon on a weekday, crowds were sparse.
The miniskirt Santa walking around was glaringly out of place.
But of course, no one paid Touko any attention. No one noticed she was there.
The girl herself was way past caring. If she found a promising shop, she waltzed right in.
Her first choice sold casual clothing and household goods. She followed that up with a place that sold alligator-mark sportswear. Then two American fashion boutiques, followed by three menswear stores.
She looked at one thing in each place.
Men’s scarves.
Sometimes she turned Sakuta into her mannequin, testing one out, checking the color against his clothes. A smile playing around her lips, like she was a little carried away. Like she was picking out a gift for her boyfriend.
After an hour and a half of this, she went back to one of the American boutiques and purchased a bright-orange scarf.
“Buy this for me,” she said, handing it to him.
“Is that the end of Santa Claus’s demands?”
“I’ve got one more place to visit, so get a move on.”
Sakuta took the scarf from her.
“You want it gift wrapped?”
“Please,” Touko said, her back already to him.