After dinner, Akane relaxed in the living room until her father came home. She struck the perfect balance by calling out “Sup, bro” as if to a friend; when he smiled and started nagging her, she argued just enough to not seem like a suck-up. Then she waited for the right moment to take a shower, and after that, went back to her room.
Sitting on her bed while applying the necessary treatments to her hair and skin so that she would be liked tomorrow, she reflected on the dreamlike day she’d had, meeting a fictional character in real life.
Ai, you have the same name and appearance as a character in my favorite book, and when I called out to you, you turned out to have the same voice and expression, too. The more I talk to you, the more I’m convinced that you’re him. The fact that you smoke and work at a music venue matches him, too. I’m sure this must be weird, but I’ve decided to be brave and tell you, because I think it might really be you.
When she said something along those lines to Ai, he visibly frowned and gave his honest opinion.
“That makes no sense.” Staring back at her, he took a swig of coffee like it was a gasp for breath. “No one’s ever said that to me before. What, so I look like I’m cosplaying him right now?”
She wasn’t surprised by his lack of self-awareness. Fictional characters rarely ever realized what they were. Well, maybe they did in some books, but in the case of Girl’s March, none of the characters were permitted to break the fourth wall like that.
“No, um, that’s not what I mean. When I say appearance, I’m not just talking about your clothes or your vibe, but like…your face and stuff…”
“What? Hmmm…” Exhaling in confusion, he touched his face.
“That’s why I thought maybe you climbed out of the book somewhere.”
She knew it was nonsensical, and to convey this, she chose a hesitant voice and upturned gaze. But he denied it.
“Of course not. I’m my own person, not someone else.”
She had expected he would say that, and yet the words pierced her all the same. He let out a long, baffled or possibly annoyed sigh, then folded his arms. His sleeves bunched at the elbows, revealing the pronounced veins in his wrists.
“You’re strange in a way I never imagined, Itobayashi Akane.”
Pouting her lips, she shifted her gaze over his shoulder. “Nnngh… I knew you’d think that, which is why I lied the first time…”
“What’s it called?”
There were so many options available to him at this point—to leave, to lecture her like her dad, or any number of other things—but he was Ai, so he chose to learn more.
In order to convey that she was really just a normal girl, Akane maintained an awkward, timid energy. “It’s a book called Girl’s March by Ogusu Nanoka-san. The movie version just released yesterday.”
“The one Impatiens did the theme song for?”
“Yeah!”
Whenever she agreed enthusiastically, the other person could sometimes be tricked into thinking they’d seen her true feelings.
“Oh, is that how you got interested in them originally?”
“Partially, but also a lot of people in my class talk about them. So at first it was the theme song, but then I saw you, and…it felt like fate.” It was a yes or no question, but adding more detail after a confirmation made it harder to tell where the truth stopped and the lie began. “And I know the word ‘fate’ is only gonna make me seem shady all over again, but…”
“Well, you’re right about that.”
“Do you read at all?”
“Nope.” He shook his head matter-of-factly. “Not even once a year. So yeah, there’s no way I’m a character from a book.”
The Ai from Girl’s March didn’t read either, so ironically, this statement only further reinforced their connection.
“Who was cast to play him in the movie version, anyway?”
When Akane answered, Ai visibly frowned.
“A woman plays him?”
“Well…”
She glanced from side to side, as if concerned about eavesdroppers, then leaned forward across the table. Being the protective type, Ai followed suit. Heart racing faster than it ever did when she was with her boyfriend, she whispered:
“His gender is a plot twist.”
“Ah, one of those,” he replied, and she felt his breath against her cheek before he sat back in his chair. It smelled of cigarettes and coffee, and when she breathed it in, it lingered at the back of her throat.
“Th-that’s why I was so stunned when I first heard your voice.”
“Uh, wow. This is getting kind of scary… What’s the word for it? Synchronicity?”
“I don’t think that’s it…”
They frowned in puzzlement for a moment. But Ai must have simply mentioned it on a whim, because he promptly steered the conversation back on track. “My point is, it’s just a series of coincidences, that’s all. I’ve lived my whole life in the real world, paying my phone bill and utilities and crazy-high taxes like anybody else. I’m not some fictional character.”
She demonstrated obvious shock for a moment, then performed hastily swallowing her disappointment like a good sport. “Yeah, I mean, I figured.”
Of course, on the inside, she felt very differently.
Ai, however, read no deeper than precisely what she displayed and responded with kindness. “I’m not saying you’re stupid. I figure it’s like when you see your favorite musician in real life for the first time—like, ‘Wow, they really exist!’ Anybody would be psyched.”
She nodded eagerly, as if delighted that he understood where she was coming from.
But of course, on the inside…
“Can’t say much for the book, but maybe I could watch the movie.”
“Uhhh, the movie’s…mmm…I don’t know…”
“Oh, are you that kind of fan? Book purist?”
“It’s just…Ai is supposed to be the main character’s friend, but the way they’re marketing it with the trailer and everything, it feels like they forced romance into it.”
“Hmm. So they changed the source material to appeal to a wider demographic, I’m guessing?”
“Yeah, exactly.” Pouting her lips, Akane shook her head softly. “Well, anyway, I’m sorry if this whole thing has made you uncomfortable. But just so you know, the Ai from Girl’s March is a really great friend, and um, personally I think he’s perfect…and also you’re just really pretty, so yeah…haha…ha…”
She laughed awkwardly—just long enough that it didn’t verge on annoying. It was a careful balancing act, but she was a pro. Her aim was for him to decide that she was weird but otherwise harmless…and from there, she hoped he’d agree to see her again.
But his reaction was one she hadn’t bargained for.
“Sad to say, I’m just me, but I’ll happily take the compliment.”
“Mmm…okay…”
“Also, you can’t say I’m ‘perfect’ based solely on my looks.”
“Right…”
“But I’m totally fine with being friends with you.”
Looking back, the sound she made at that moment seemed very much like genuine surprise uninfluenced by the public eye. But she knew the fact that she had to think about it meant she was still operating under the need to be liked. That was fine, though. She had acquired a reality worth far more than the fleeting joy gained from misconception.
Akane grabbed the smartphone lying on her bed, tapped the screen, and pulled up her address book to make sure she hadn’t dreamed the whole thing, just as she’d done several times already in the time since they’d parted ways. At the top was two letters she had typed herself: Ai. Shrieking was sure to make her family concerned, so she simply hugged her phone to her chest as tightly as she could without breaking it. Apparently he didn’t use LINE because he thought read receipts were annoying. Completely in character.
In Girl’s March, it was Ai, rather than the protagonist, who first suggested they be friends. Ai was also the first to initiate trading contact info.
When Akane gave him a rough outline of the protagonist’s personality, he told her he couldn’t think of anyone in his life who fit her description. In other words, Akane had gotten to him first. Now he’d offered to be friends with her and given her his number. And when she got home and Googled his workplace, sure enough, it did indeed exist.
Based on these events, plus his appearance and personality, she could only arrive at one conclusion.
At first she had thought Ai walked out of the story to get here, but that was clearly false. What if instead, today was the start of the story? Looking at it that way, it made sense why the protagonist’s feelings and actions—even the things Akane herself had yet to experience—somehow felt like a depiction of herself. Perhaps it was all a prophecy!
In that moment at the cafe, she had vowed to find out. And so, for the first time in her life, she told another person her honest thoughts about Girl’s March. Well, some of them, at least—she wasn’t quite brave enough to reveal that she felt The Girl was exactly like her. But with Ai at her side, she dreamed of getting there someday.