“Morning,” said Nanaka with a tired smile.
“Good morning,” Kai replied.
They were meeting in the family restaurant—i.e., the usual place—and began their discussion after ordering one fountain drink each. Kai started by carefully explaining the various circumstances (and that was putting it lightly) which Eru had told him about the day before. He talked about Aina and Eru, the feud in the manga society, and the details that surrounded it.
Nanaka remained silent, with her eyes glued to a random spot on the table, as she listened attentively, soaking in his every word. Every now and again, she’d nod, tremble her shoulders, or squeeze her hands, until finally the tale was over. Slowly, she raised her head to quietly look at Kai. After a moment, her gaze drifted up toward the ceiling, and she stared off into the distance.
Nanaka returned her line of sight down to earth before muttering, “Eru, you’re so dumb... I’m so dumb.” As she scolded herself, she also pulled out her smartphone. A few taps on the screen later, she put the phone up to her ear and said, “Aina-chan?” The hardness in her voice was an unusual departure from her naturally soft tone. Then, she gave the other girl directions to the restaurant and hung up.
It took around an hour for Aina to arrive. Kai recognized her shorts from the time he’d visited her house, and she had a light jacket on to go with it. She was wearing her usual backpack. “Kept you waiting, ♪” she hummed. “Sorry I’m a little late. What’s with the sudden invite, Nanaka-chan?”
“It’s about Eru.” Nanaka’s exceedingly curt reply caused Aina’s expression to shift instantly.
“...I guess I can drop the act,” Aina said tightly. “Alright, and...?”
“Yesterday,” Kai said slowly, “Kuroba-san explained what happened... between you two.” Then he went through the same explanation he’d given to Nanaka. It was meant to be a sort of confirmation to see if there was anything wrong with his account, but Aina didn’t so much as raise a brow—he couldn’t tell what she was thinking at all.
After the story, Nanaka took the initiative to ask, “...Is it true?”
“...And if it is?” Aina replied sharply. The two girls’ glares slammed into one another wordlessly, and Kai felt as though he could hear the horrible screeching of glass rubbing upon glass.
Maintaining eye contact, Nanaka took a small breath and began to speak again. “If you—If you,” she repeated with emphasis, “—are the person who hurt my dearest, most important, best friend... I will never forgive you.”
“Why’s that?” Aina retorted. “‘It’s because we’re best friends!’ Is that what you’re saying?”
“It is.”
“I see. You know, for a ‘best friend,’ isn’t it a little late for you to show up?” Aina scoffed. “In fact, how come you just found out? And yet, you call yourself her best friend...”
Kai nearly shot to his feet. The only thing keeping him in his seat was Nanaka, who extended her hand to keep him in place as Aina twirled her hair around her finger to taunt them.
Nanaka took in a deep breath and quietly let it out. “You’re right,” she finally admitted.
“Huh? What’s this?” Aina asked in surprise. “You’re admitting it?”
“I’ve already explained why I joined the fine arts club in middle school to Kai-kun,” Nanaka told her. “Eru was getting better so much faster than me that she was blinding. I was jealous... and frustrated. So, we joined different clubs. I think... me running away back then was a mistake, after all.
“Maybe I can’t call myself her best friend anymore,” Nanaka continued. “Maybe I shouldn’t... but even then...” A single tear welled up from her eye and rolled across her cheek. Yet her blurry eyes were overflowing with more than that sorrow—they were also full of willpower. “I... I don’t want to make any more mistakes!” Nanaka burst out.
Despite being off to the side, Kai was frozen in place as the two girls went back to silently glaring daggers at one another’s throats. After a little while, the corners of Aina’s lips rose into a faint smile. “You know,” she said, “back in middle school, I really hated you, Nanaka-chan.”
✦ ✦ ✦
“Did we even talk in middle school?” Nanaka asked.
“Of course not. We were in different classes, too. It was just... a one-way grudge,” Aina said thoughtfully. “I was just frustrated that Eru chose to hang around someone who sounded like she hadn’t gotten over herself yet.”
“That’s... fair enough.” Nanaka began to hang her head but looked back up when Aina loudly clapped her hands together.
“Don’t make a face like that... I don’t think you’re that bad anymore. It’s finally my turn,” she said, rising up from her seat. “Come with me for a bit.”