Chapter 438 - Blue Sky and Spring Breeze
I think I did what I had to do.
I think I laid bare what needed to be said and drew out the words that needed to be heard.
I'm aware it all happened rather forcefully, but I have no regrets. Having seen it through on pure momentum, my heart now feels exceptionally clear—
...Clear, yes, but.
There is one small problem.
"—Haru, you're really something else."
"Yeah, well, I guess in the end, I'm just me..."
"The things you say and do are completely insane. What are you going to do now?"
"Well, I intend to face this with all the responsibility and sincerity I can muster, of course."
"With t-h-r-e-e p-e-o-p-l-e?"
"Y-Yes..."
"You were struggling every day with just two of them, you know."
"Well, you know, it's a chance to turn over a new leaf..."
"That attitude of yours, that 'just do it and see what happens' thing. It might be a boy thing, but please, think about the girls you're dragging into this."
"..."
"There's no way you could have an answer yet, but you forced a confession out of her anyway... That was a truly terrible thing to do. Do you understand that?"
"I-I'm sorry."
"..."
"..., ..."
"...I hate you, Haru."
"...Um, your a-c-t-i-o-n-s don't exactly match your—Gah...!?"
All this time, she'd been clinging to me like... well, exactly like a spoiled child. The young lady of the Yotsuya house, limp and relaxed against my chest, suddenly pinched the back of my hand with all her might.
This was the real world, not a virtual one. The pain, completely unfiltered by any kind of sensory dampener, shot through me, and I was stunned by its intensity.
Hey, she actually pinched me. She pinched and twisted with all her might...!
"Did you say something?"
"N...Nothing."
As soon as I admitted my fault and defeat, Sora-san, who had been glaring at me menacingly, instantly reverted to cuddle mode— ...Is this really okay?
I mean, it's not, but instinctively and emotionally, I just can't push her away...
First of all, why does she smell so good? Are we even the same species? It's not perfume, so what kind of logic allows a human body to naturally emit such a sweet scent?
And she's so warm. It's like holding a hot water bottle; it's making me sleepy.
And most of all, she's so unbelievably soft it's driving me crazy. Why is even the tip of her shoulder soft? That's mostly bone. Are girls made entirely of cartilage?
"S-Sora-san, could you let go for a second? My legs are starting to fall asleep."
"..."
"Ah, wait, sorry, that was a lie! I lied, forgive me...!"
I tried to use a convenient lie to escape her grasp—but she mercilessly and instantly grabbed the leg that was supposed to be asleep, and there was no way I could fake a pained reaction convincingly. She saw right through me.
"...If you want me to let go, you just have to say so."
Just when I thought she was going to fight me to the end, she turned out to be surprisingly understanding. Seizing the opportunity, I started to say, "Well then..."
"If you don't like having me this close, Haru, then I'll let you go."
"B—Guh...!"
I was forcibly silenced in all of three seconds.
It wasn't exactly theatrical... but it wasn't not, either. That pouting face, exposed so honestly, was a ten-hit combo that was complete overkill. Isn't that a cheap shot???
"It's fine, isn't it? We're partners, after all."
"I think this is a bit different from a partner's sense of distance..."
"It can't be helped. I'm a girl who's in love with you."
A two-pronged power play...!
"...And I don't recall returning my free pass for life."
"That was for holding hands."
"You have to be close to hold hands."
"You have an answer for everything...!"
Darn it, this was unexpected.
Based on my past impressions, I had anticipated her becoming a bit clingy, but I never imagined she would transform into such a direct power fighter.
Factoring in my inability to treat Sora carelessly, I might have just awakened what is, in a sense, the 'most troublesome opponent' for me—
Okay, stop. Hold on, stop that.
Stop rubbing the back of my hand so sensually...!
After some back and forth, I was granted a pardon, and we put a tiny bit of distance between us for safety.
With one of my hands still captured, I exchanged 'introductions' with the girl leaning against my shoulder... sharing all the little, n-o-t-h-i-n-g i-m-p-o-r-t-a-n-t things we'd never talked about before—
"—A first-year in high school... fifteen years old... You were in middle school until last year...?"
"I-Is it really that surprising...?"
Sometimes, she was surprised.
"Believing your words that you're completely over it, I'll say this without holding back... Hearing that you're a 'younger brother' makes perfect sense."
"What do you mean?"
"It just means that Haru was Haru because you're Haru."
"What does that mean???"
Sometimes, she understood.
"...Wait, you're joking, right?"
"Nope, it's true. I've got my student ID, wanna see? I'm a bona fide, currently enrolled student."
"...You didn't do anything... bad, did you? Like get in through the back door?"
"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"
And sometimes, she was suspicious—we exchanged countless words, one by one passing over the parts of ourselves we should have known all along.
And so...
"...Are you sure it's okay?"
"It's fine. We can do t-h-a-t when it becomes necessary... or rather, when you feel like you 'want me to know.'"
Now, we could even acknowledge in words that we still had secrets.
Time flew by in a flash, and the time to part was already upon us. Seeing me glance at the clock on the wall, Sora seemed to understand, and she squeezed my hand just a little tighter.
"...I think it would be fine if you stayed the night."
"It would be not-fine in a lot of ways, so I'd appreciate it if you'd let me go home."
It really would be not-fine, in so many ways—I thought, hiding the part of me that felt it might waver if she pushed just o-n-e m-o-r-e t-i-m-e, and looked at her...
"...I'll see you off."
Sora smiled gently and let go of my hand.
"—Make sure you eat dinner, okay? I heard your stomach growl earlier."
"I-It did not...!"
Oh yes, it did. I definitely heard a small, cute little rumble—I mean, sorry, sorry, I didn't hear anything. It was an auditory hallucination, forgive me...!
"Honestly...! Haru, you really are, just...!"
As Sora saw me to the door, I tried to soothe her playful pestering, letting the cool night air carry away my flushed warmth.
A small part of that heat was the sense of accomplishment from a job well done and the relief of having done what I needed to.
The vast majority of it... was from all the shots fired by the girl in front of me, who was blushing and pouting, and was just too cute for her own good.
I have a feeling things are going to be difficult from now on, but—
"...Sora."
I don't regret it, and I never will.
"Once again, I'm looking forward to what's next."
"...Yes, me too."
Her shy, but genuine smile had undoubtedly regained the same color as the one etched in my memory—the one that had been the catalyst for me to start running.
"Haru."
She called my name, her eyes on mine, and the girl reflected me in the fullness of her clear, sky-blue.
We both knew the words that would come next.
"I love you."
"...Yeah. Thank you."
I no longer feel any frustration at not being able to respond with an answer.
I don't have time to get caught up in things like that.
From now on, from this point—
"Goodnight, Sora."
"Goodnight, Haru."
—I'll never stop moving until I find my answer.
◇◆◇◆◇
I watched his retreating figure without looking back.
I watched the back of the person who had finally stolen everything from me.
The warmth feels heavy, it's hard to breathe, and the depths of my chest feel like they're melting—but even so, I love him so much it's hopeless.
As if I've been thinking of him for years and years.
As if I've been dreaming of him forever and ever.
So, someday, I definitely will.
"—You'd better be ready."
The affection—the 'preciousness'— he gave me as a partner...
"Next time, I'll definitely... make you say you love me as a girl."
...I will change it into the same 'love' I feel, the girl decided, and took a step forward.
So that the spring breeze that came to greet the sky wouldn't fly away wherever it pleased.
So that she would never, ever let go of that warm wind that had stolen her heart.
And with this, Chapter Three comes to a close. Thank you for sticking with us through the two main characters' "mental preparations."