After agreeing to attend the CM Doujin Exhibition on August 12th for Izumi Hashima's first exhibition as a doujin creator, the two of them talked a lot more.
Finally, due to Izumi Hashima's arrangements, she had to leave first. She also needed to prepare well for this exhibition.
It was just the right time for Aki Tomoya to go back.
He wasn't very prepared for this reunion, meeting a junior from the past after the first semester's graduation ceremony.
However, Aki Tomoya accepted her sincerity.
His summer vacation schedule is tight, but it's not like he doesn't even have a single day off.
There's nothing wrong with relaxing well on that day, and then a few days later, it will be the Summer Festival. When the time comes, shout "Tamaya" again, and the summer vacation will almost be over.
Time still passes quite quickly. For example, Izumi Hashima, the junior who was still a primary school student in his memory, has grown quite significantly after becoming a high school student.
It's already remarkable for a junior high school student to have developed like that.
Riding his bicycle on the way home, Aki Tomoya saw someone standing in the middle of the road, not afraid of death.
"Is that person an idiot?"
Because of the person standing in the middle of the road, Aki Tomoya had to slow down.
Standing in the middle of the road like that, he could only say that he truly hadn't died before.
It was a boy, dressed fashionably, with a handsome face, standing on the road in a cool pose, with a confident smile on his lips.
There were no cameras around, and it didn't seem like he was recording anything either.
"Showing off on the main road, either he's going through chuunibyou, or he's tired of living..."
Aki Tomoya shook his head, praying in his heart that a car wouldn't come at this moment and send this cool young man to heaven.
Slowing down and Bypass that boy, Aki Tomoya had eyes and didn't want to hit this young man who wasn't afraid of death.
"He's like this at such a young age, sigh..."
As he passed the boy, Aki Tomoya couldn't help but sigh.
There are many ways to show off, but showing off on the main road, Aki Tomoya can only say that he's young and not afraid of death.
Ignoring that person, Aki Tomoya slowly rode towards home.
"Wait a minute!!!"
The boy the same age as Aki Tomoya chased after him, somewhat collapsing.
Hearing the shout from behind, Aki Tomoya stopped his bicycle in confusion, then turned back and asked, "I didn't run over your foot, did I? If you want to extort me, I'll call the police."
Along the way, he hadn't even run over a single pebble. Seeing this person showing off on the main road, he had even gone around him.
After the person caught up, Aki Tomoya's first thought was that this guy was problematic, possibly a scammer.
Maintaining vigilance towards strangers, Aki Tomoya looked at the boy his age with suspicious eyes.
"Hey, hey, hey, you can't pretend you don't know me, can you?"
The boy's mouth twitched, his face slightly awkward. He had been waiting here all day. No matter what, it had only been a few years since they last met, so the other person couldn't have forgotten him, right?
However, in fact, Aki Tomoya didn't remember who this guy was at first.
"It would be problematic if I knew a suspicious person like you!"
Aki Tomoya frowned, still treating the other party as a suspicious person.
He carefully sized up the boy in front of him, suddenly feeling that the other party looked somewhat familiar, and at the same time, for some reason, felt an indescribable dislike.
And the boy, upon hearing this hurtful remark, took half a step back as if struck.
"Hashima Iori, I'm Hashima Iori!"
Hashima Iori shouted his name loudly.
He looked at Aki Tomoya, pretending to be heartbroken. If he had eye drops, his performance would have been even more spectacular.
"Oh, Hashima Iori."
Aki Tomoya remembered. Looking carefully, this person seemed to be his best friend from middle school.
Moreover, he had met this guy's sister before.
But why was this person here, standing in the middle of the road looking cool? He must have a death wish.
"So cold!"
Hashima Iori had black lines hanging over his head.
He had originally thought that after a long separation, a fated confrontation would unfold, but Aki Tomoya's cold reaction left him somewhat disappointed.
This reunion was quite different from the dramatic development he had expected.
Speaking of which, he still remembered seeing a declaration of retiring from the otaku world on his middle school best friend's homepage a few months ago.
That Aki Tomoya, choosing to retire from the otaku world, was something Hashima Iori could never imagine.
The end of the world, alien invasion?
These things were not enough to describe Hashima Iori's feelings.
"So, you're standing in the middle of the road? Do you have a death wish?"
Aki Tomoya reminded him. He wasn't as carefree as Hashima Iori. After stopping, he immediately moved to the side of the road.
Looking at Hashima Iori's posture now, this guy must have specifically waited for him here.
Choosing the closing ceremony to find him, this brother and sister visiting one after another also left Aki Tomoya with mixed feelings.
His junior, Izumi Hashima, came to find him about exhibiting at Summer CM, and this middle school best friend probably wasn't looking for him for such a simple reason.
"Don't say that, I've been waiting for you since noon, and I'm not blind, you were just too slow!"
Hashima Iori shook his head and laughed, a hint of curiosity in his eyes.
He carefully examined Aki Tomoya, observing how much his middle school best friend had changed.
The suggestive declaration of retiring from the otaku world posted on his homepage, followed by him successively selling off his precious items.
Among those who took over the items, Hashima Iori was also one.
Thanks to Aki Tomoya, what he originally didn't have, he now had, but after getting it, he wasn't happy at all, always feeling that something was missing.
"So, when did you move back from Nagoya?"
Aki Tomoya asked Hashima Iori after putting away his bicycle.
He had actually known about Hashima Iori moving back from Nagoya a few months ago.
That time, this guy pretended to be a stranger to take over his precious items, but he didn't cover his tracks completely, and Aki Tomoya noticed the clues.
"It's been a while now. After not seeing you for a few years, your change can only be described as like a different person. Has this been recent, or did you start getting interested in further education after entering high school?"
Hashima Iori shrugged. He had also been back in Tokyo for some time.
He just hadn't had time to contact the people he knew in Tokyo. He felt that choosing the closing ceremony was just right this time.
"Is there anything wrong with the path of further education?"
Aki Tomoya replied expressionlessly.
Hashima Iori smiled at this point and slowly took out a business card from his pocket.
"Nothing wrong, but I should reintroduce myself. 『rouge.en.rouge』, I did it."
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