"Let's just start dating already," Ryosuke said casually as he walked beside me. It was a sudden confession, completely devoid of any preamble or romantic atmosphere.
"...Huh?"
I was so startled that my reaction was delayed.
We were on the school commute path, heading home.
We'd left the school gate, but we were still close enough that we could hear voices, even if we couldn't see any students from other grades.
I was used to Ryosuke throwing these words around, but this was the first time he'd said them directly to my face.
"What do you mean, 'let's just'? There's no way that's happening."
I finally managed to respond, but I forced myself to look straight ahead to avoid his gaze, and a stiff edge remained in my voice.
"Don't say that..."
"You're being annoying."
Even now, we weren't exactly walking home together amicably.
We happened to leave school at the same time, and Ryosuke seized the opportunity to pester me. For a moment, I wondered if he'd been lying in wait for me, but it seemed to be a genuine coincidence.
"Do you have a crush on someone?"
"Uh... well..."
No.
That would have been the simplest answer, but Kirie couldn't bring herself to be so blunt. Her indecision still lingered, and she ended up mumbling an ambiguous reply.
Mostly.
Telling Ryosuke "yes" would have made it easier to reject his confession, but Kirie couldn't bring herself to do it. Aware of her stubborn, contrary nature, she wanted to be honest within the limits she could manage. This self-contradiction paralyzed her, leaving her unable to act.
"Don't follow me."
"We're going the same way for a while, aren't we? What choice do I have?"
I didn't think I could get rid of him so easily, and sure enough, here he was. Reluctantly, I let Ryosuke's idle chatter wash over me as we walked home.
"..."
My gaze locked onto the back of a figure waiting for the light to change, and my breath caught in my throat.
There was no mistaking that familiar back.
It was Kazuki.
And next to him was Aika.
"..."
My feet suddenly stopped moving.
If I continued at this pace, I'd catch up to them. Even though it was unnatural, I found myself unable to take another step.
I could feel sweat breaking out on my skin, not just from the heat.
Kazuki was in my class, so I saw him every day, but seeing him with her still made my chest ache.
Kazuki still hasn't realized what happened.
He mistakenly believed that the bullying by his classmates was orchestrated by Kirie.
The perpetrators were from the same middle school as Kazuki and Kirie.
They were from different classes and cunning enough not to make a scene, so aside from Kazuki himself, only Kirie noticed their mistreatment.
That's why Kirie wanted to do something about it.
But she didn't think reporting it to the teachers would solve anything. If it became a big deal, Kazuki's pride might be hurt in another way, and without evidence, there was a risk the matter would be swept under the rug.
Moreover, she couldn't support him by being his confidant. There was the problem that she couldn't be honest with him, and Kazuki seemed to dislike being pitied.
For that reason, Kirie chose to confront the perpetrators directly.
When she confronted them face-to-face and called them out, the boys, though visibly displeased, promised to stop their harassment.
But later...
They spread false rumors about Kazuki.
Actually, Kirizaki Kirie asked us to harass him. She finds it annoying that you keep pestering her. We thought we were doing a good deed.
Normally, no one would believe such a shallow lie.
Yet Kazuki did.
To him, Kirie was the mastermind.
She's always been the one picking on me, but now she's using these guys to harass me? We're childhood friends—she should be on my side!
Traitor.
I wish they'd just believe in me...
I never wanted to be treated like a hero or to lord my kindness over them. I just wanted them to trust me, someone they'd known for years, over those superficial words from those guys.
But Kirie was also at fault.
She'd always been dismissive toward Kazuki, saying things like:
"You're too soft."
"Keep acting like that, and you'll never get a girlfriend."
Of course, these were just her way of showing concern, a cover for her own embarrassment. But Kazuki clearly didn't see it that way.
Her words had wounded his pride.
In the end, it's all my fault...
Blaming the perpetrators now wouldn't change anything. Kazuki probably wouldn't listen to them anyway, and his mind is probably consumed by thoughts of Aika—
Shinohara Aika.
She was completely different from Kirie.
There were no bad rumors about her.
She was quiet and well-behaved. She listened to everyone with a smile and never spoke out of turn.
Kazuki, who had been hurt by the bullying, must have somehow come into contact with her kindness and developed feelings for her. And Aika reciprocated those feelings—
"Kirizaki."
Kirie snapped back to reality at Ryosuke's voice.
"W-What?"
"That shop over there—did you know it's been renovated? It's a bakery and pastry shop. Their chocolate croissants are to die for! I often buy them for my younger sister. They have tastings, so let's go!"
"Huh—"
Under his insistent urging, Kirie reluctantly followed.
They turned right down an alleyway.
A shaded footpath lined with trees.
A cool breeze swept through the shadows of the street trees, bringing a slight calm to Kirie's agitated mind.
*****
"So? Wasn't it delicious?"
"It was okay."
Her curt reply was met with silence. When she checked the small pouch she was carrying, she found three of Ryosuke's recommended chocolate croissants.
Damn it, she thought. The samples had been surprisingly good. The crispy exterior gave way to a soft, fluffy interior, and the sweetness was perfectly balanced.
"Kirizaki, do you prefer café au lait or black coffee?"
"Huh?"
"Your taste buds must be dry after all that sampling. Which do you want?"
Ryosuke had stopped in front of a vending machine without her noticing.
"...Café au lait."
"Me too."
Grinning as if he'd won some small victory, Ryosuke bought two small bottles of café au lait and handed one to her.
"I didn't mean to make you pay..."
"I know, I know. You don't want to owe me anything, right?"
"..."
"Here you go, one hundred yen, please. Now, sit down and have a drink with me."
Though she didn't want to, Kirie reluctantly sat down on the bench in the shade next to Ryosuke, not wanting to fall behind her friends.
...What am I even doing?
The boy she'd been pining after for so long had misunderstood her. Her heart ached seeing him spend time with his girlfriend. And now, someone she didn't even like was the one showing her kindness—
(...)
Right.
Ryosuke was being considerate. Kirie couldn't deny that. She wasn't sure if he'd noticed her feelings for Kazuki, but her behavior earlier must have seemed strange.
So he'd insisted on taking a detour.
Even now, he's just silently standing beside her.
Kirie stole a glance at Ryosuke's profile.
If only Kazuki had Ryosuke's level of perceptiveness...
Whether it was Kirie's aggressive attitude or her deliberately dismissive behavior, Kazuki might have grasped the kindness hidden beneath it all.
Kirie took a sip of her sweet café au lait, her emotions tangled.
*****
That July day...
On her way home from school, Kirie was caught in a fierce evening downpour.
The weather forecast had repeatedly warned about heavy rain, so she'd brought an umbrella just in case. She was able to avoid the deluge by opening it.
This red umbrella was her favorite, but thinking about her complicated history with both Kazuki and Ryosuke made her feel oddly uneasy.
During that walk home, Kirie had a shocking encounter.
The victim was a younger girl.
On Kirie's way home from school, to her right, there was a staircase leading up to a residential area. Midway up the stairs, a girl in a uniform had been shoved down by what appeared to be classmates.
Kirie first noticed because of a short scream:
"Kyaa—!"
She instinctively looked up toward the sound and witnessed the scene.
In the torrential rain, a girl tumbled down several steps. When she saw Kirie, the three bullies fled, looking frightened.
Kirie was concerned about the bullies, but she ran to the girl who had been shoved.
"Are you okay?!"
The girl had long black hair and a slender frame. She hadn't been holding an umbrella and was already completely drenched.
Moreover, she had apparently been walking this far in her indoor shoes. It was easy to surmise that the mischievous students from earlier had hidden her regular shoes.
"Are you hurt?"
Kirie crouched on the stairs and helped the girl up by the shoulders.
"No, I'm fine."
Fortunately, the black-haired girl seemed unharmed, but Kirie felt a different kind of tension in her body.
The girl's features were surprisingly refined and flawless. Though still retaining a childlike innocence, her beauty was so perfect it seemed as if she had already reached her full maturity.
Fortunately, her delicate face bore not a single scratch.
Even Kirie, who had only just met the girl, felt a sense of relief. Thank goodness this masterpiece remains unblemished, she thought.
"It happens often. But thank you for your concern."
Despite the heavy raindrops pattering against the umbrella and the ground, the girl's small voice remained clear and steady. Yet there was a detached, almost indifferent quality to her tone, as if she were speaking of someone else's affairs.
"It happens all the time, you know..."
"They're pitiful, really. Bored, getting worked up over nothing, or just plain scared. Heh, they're so cute. That's why I keep them around. Wouldn't it be even worse if no one paid them any attention?"
A shiver ran down my spine. I sensed that her words weren't bravado, but genuine, and fear gripped me.
Still, Kirie couldn't just abandon a girl in this state.
"Twisting your ankle or something—"
"That's fine."
As the girl tried to stand alone, Kirie half-forced her hand under the girl's arm to help her up.
She was mostly unharmed, but naturally, there was a scrape on her knee.
Seeing the small, white knee cap stained with red blood strangely reassured me. That's how unreal her presence had felt.
"Is your home nearby? Can you call your family?"
"No. This is nothing."
It wasn't quite the same as bravery. It wasn't even a matter of having a strong core. She was so calm, it was as if nothing had happened at all.
On the way home, I tripped over a protruding tile and almost fell—
That's all she seemed to think had happened. In reality, she had fallen, and there was even a perpetrator.
"Are those kids classmates of yours?"
"Yes. They're friends from my class."
"Friends..."
After what they'd done—after suffering such a brutal act that could have cost her her life—she could call them "friends" so casually.
"Well then. Thank you for your kindness."
"Huh?"
Leaving the flustered Kirie behind, the girl walked off alone.
"Wait a minute! At least take an umbrella!" Kirie hurried after her, offering the umbrella.
"Hmm? I'm already this wet. It won't make a difference."
"It's not about that..."
"Does your older sister live this way too?"
"The direction's the same."
It was a white lie.
In truth, turning at the next corner would have taken Kirie straight home.
"Let me at least walk you there. Those kids from earlier might bother you again."
"Heh heh. You're so kind-hearted."
"..."
Despite her cold, almost inhuman beauty, her smile added a sudden charm, creating a mysterious allure.
She was shorter than Kirie, and her shoulders, which Kirie could reach by touching her arm, were very slender.
"Your older sister's uniform... Are you a second-year?"
The girl identified Kirie's school and grade just by looking at her uniform and ribbon tie.
"I'm taking the entrance exams this year," she said.
"Is that your dream school?"
"Yes. I might get to be a junior at Mirai in the future. I'm really looking forward to it."
Once she started talking, she turned out to be surprisingly friendly. There was no sign of her shutting others out, and she was quite good at acting cute.
She seemed like someone who would be liked by both men and women—though the degree of affection would probably vary.
With her bewitching beauty, tinged with a fleeting fragility, any man would likely fall for her if she leaned in close like this.
Maybe that's it. Maybe jealousy over her was the cause of that earlier incident.
I considered that possibility, but I stopped myself from speculating further. It was pointless.
"Senior?"
"Huh? Oh, no. It's nothing."
Lost in thought after prying too much, I must have started walking absentmindedly.
"May I ask your name?"
"Mine?"
"Yes. It's to boost my motivation for the entrance exams. Knowing a wonderful senior like you makes me even more determined to get in."
I couldn't tell how serious she was, but her smile seemed genuine.
The umbrella-sharing walk had somehow become comforting for Kirie. It felt strangely natural, walking like this with her.
"Ah, sorry. I should have introduced myself first. I'm Marin."
"Kirie. Kirizaki Kirie."
"Kirizaki—"
Suddenly, the dark-eyed girl's eyes widened in surprise.
"What's wrong?"
"No, it's nothing. I just thought the name sounded familiar. It was probably just my imagination."
"Really?"
Before we knew it, we had reached her home.
"Here we are. Thank you so much."
"Don't mention it. I was just helping out."
Inside, I was a little conflicted.
Should I report this to her school? she wondered. Marin didn't seem bothered by it, but she couldn't shake the feeling that this was a problem that couldn't be ignored.
On the other hand, Marin might have her own reasons for what she was doing. Was it really any of Kirie's business to stick her nose in?
"Kirie-san."
While Kirie was lost in thought, the girl—Marin—spoke first.
"If you don't mind, would you like to come inside for a bit? It's my fault you got wet."
"This? It's nothing."
My left shoulder was soaked, but it was summer. I probably wouldn't catch a cold even if I went home like this. The uniform could just be dried.
Compared to that rainy day in the past, this was nothing.
"I just wanted to talk to you a little longer, Kirie-san. Right?"
Marin's slender, cool fingers took my left hand.
"Huh? Oh, um... But my family..."
What if my daughter comes home drenched in her gym shoes, bringing an older student I don't know? I might cause even more confusion for my worried family.
No...
Would it be better if I stayed to explain what happened to Marin?
Various thoughts flashed through my mind.
"It's fine. No one's around at this time. Let's go."
"Huh? Wait a minute—"
Despite her mature demeanor, there was a childlike stubbornness to her—something about her reminded Kirie of him, though they weren't alike.
...At that moment.
If Kirie had scrutinized that intuition more closely. If she had paid just a little more attention to the Shito nameplate on the door—
Her fate might have been different.