novelraw Chapter 94
Chapter 94
Chapter 94
August 20.
Today is a very important day. An incredibly important day. An important enough to die for day.
Above all, today! I'm going to the summer festival date with Tsukinami-san!
(I'll do my best! I ran tons of simulations. I cleared the romance sim game in an all-nighter. No problems whatsoever! I can do this!)
I run a comb through my hair in front of the mirror in the bathroom. I have to make sure there's absolutely no bedhead.
A message arrives on my phone. It's from Tsukinami-san.
"Let's meet at 16:00 in front of the stone steps of Kofuku-ji Temple (omega) I was so excited I couldn't sleep last night ( ˘ω˘ )zzz..."
"Ahaha... looks like you were sleeping after all."
I haven't actually slept in real life. But I don't feel tired at all.
I'm anxious and tense, but more than that, I'm excited. I wonder what kind of mood I'll be in twelve hours from now.
Will I be feeling down, thinking "I messed up"? Or will I be satisfied, thinking "That was fun"?
(Short sleeves and shorts are fine... or should I dress cuter? But if I wore a skirt or, even worse, a yukata, people would just laugh at me.)
Yeah. I'll keep it simple with short sleeves and shorts.
"Before I leave, I'll take care of my breath, spray the perfume I borrowed from Azusa-chan all over... and then..."
I check off each of the 71 items on the checklist I prepared yesterday.
After clearing every single item, I leave my apartment.
(There's still two hours until we meet, but you never know what might happen on the way! Better to leave early than be late.)
I want to arrive early and mentally prepare myself.
When I step outside, a humid heat hits my face. It feels more like summer than dry air. People say they hate the humid heat, but I don't hate it that much. Somehow it suits my skin.
The stone steps in front of the temple. I sit on the third step of what must be over a hundred stone steps.
I fiddle with my phone but can't calm down, and if I look at the scenery I'll make eye contact with strangers, so I stare at the ants working hard to carry food at my feet.
"Huh? Big sis?"
I hear a familiar voice.
It's Azusa-chan in casual clothes. That would have been fine on its own, but there was someone I didn't know next to her.
"Whoa, um... that...!"
"Oh. So you're her big sis. Hello. I'm Azusa's friend, Kongou Hibari."
"I'm also the vice president of the student council."
A long-haired girl wearing a hat. Beautiful blonde hair... she has a model-like figure, and even though she's a middle schooler she's a cool beauty. She politely bows to someone like me, very courteous.
"Ah, um, ah, I'm her big sis Rei... th-thank you for taking care of my little sister."
"We're the ones who should be thanking you. What are you doing here, big sis?"
"Um, I'm waiting for someone..."
I don't know why, but this girl... keeps looking at me like she's sizing me up...
"...Hey Azusa. Don't you have two big sisters?"
"There are only two sisters in the old family."
"I see... well, the image I heard about was different."
Did I disappoint her... yeah, of course. With such a perfect little sister, having a weird big sister like me must be strange...
"—Hey Azusa! What are you doing over there!"
A very loud voice came from the top of the stone steps.
Why? It's a voice I feel like I've heard somewhere before.
"Tch. Nika's so energetic even in this heat."
"Let's go up. See you later, big sis."
"Excuse us."
"Y-yeah. Bye bye, both of you..."
I couldn't speak well... I feel bad for Azusa-chan.
No, that's not what matters now. Switch gears, me!
(Twenty minutes until the promised time. This is bad... calm down. My heart hurts... deep breaths, deep breaths...)
The atmosphere shifts slightly.
This is one of the paths leading to the festival street. There's a fair amount of foot traffic, which luckily let me notice her approach early.
Both men and women let out voices of confusion and joy mixed together. The moon hasn't even risen yet, but that person alone seemed to shine as if under moonlight.
Naturally, people parted the way, letting her through to me.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Rei."
"Tsukinami... san."
Her long silver hair is tied up in a ponytail. Usually hidden by her hair, her smooth white nape gives off an elegant allure.
Her cold yet deep blue eyes capture me and won't let go. Like the deep sea's azure. Simply sinking deeper and deeper.
Not in uniform, not in casual clothes, but in a yukata. A white yukata with camellia patterns. Even I, who know nothing about yukata, can tell it's high quality. A normal high schooler would be overwhelmed by the yukata's charm, but Tsukinami-san matches it perfectly.
Shuka Heigetsu.
The word beauty must have been created just to describe this person.
"Why aren't you wearing a yukata?"
Tilting her head, Tsukinami-san asks.
"Eh. Well, normally... wouldn't people come in casual clothes?"
I thought if we were wearing yukata, we'd decide that beforehand. If we hadn't specifically arranged it, I figured everyone would come in casual clothes...
"...Is that so. I thought you wear yukata to festivals."
We both probably don't have experience going to festivals with friends, so we don't know whose understanding is wrong.
"Aren't you going to wear a yukata?"
"N-now? I don't have a yukata at home, and it wouldn't suit me anyway..."
"...What's with that beauty! So pretty, maybe I should ask her out..."
I hear whispering voices.
"...Don't do it. You and her are like the moon and a snapping turtle."
"...Ah! Don't mess with me! The snapping turtle is that girl with the long bangs, isn't it?"
"...Hey, that kid... don't you feel kinda sorry for her?"
"...This is like a public execution. Walking next to such a beauty, nobody could do it... especially not with such a plain kid..."
Haha... a dry laugh escapes.
That's right. I knew this would happen, didn't I?
In the game world I can't catch up at all, and in reality it's even worse—the distance between Tsukinami-san and me is vast. I knew this.
"...What should I do? If I hit on her, that guy next to her will come too..."
"...Well well, just handle it somehow..."
My body trembles.
(I'm such an idiot... I should've just declined. I'm not the kind of person who can walk next to Tsukinami-san...)
What a miserable woman.
No. Crying is the one thing I mustn't do...
"We still have time."
"Eh?"
Tsukinami-san grabs my right hand.
"Come to my house."
"Wh-why!?"
"I'll have you change into a yukata."
"Eh, what!?"
Tsukinami-san lets go of my hand for a moment, contacts someone on her phone, then holds my hand again.
"T-Tsukinami-san. I appreciate the sentiment, but... i-it's useless."
This is bad. No good. My voice is trembling...
"Even if I... wear a yukata, I could never match Tsukinami-san..."
"Shut up."
Tsukinami-san grabs my cheeks and stretches them left and right.
"F-fuwawahamihan!?"
"You're the woman who can walk next to me. I'll prove it."
Tsukinami-san slightly relaxes her cheeks,
"—Believe in me."