CH 47

The two-week winter vacation came to an end in a flash.

Tomorrow would mark the beginning of the first day of school, and thinking that the third semester would also begin along with it, the speed of time was such a wonder.

Every year, Asahi’s winter vacation was usually spent relaxing at his parents’ house, but this time, he was busy with various things.

This was the case for Christmas’ Eve, New Year’s Day, and Hatsumode.

He was busy and very tired, but it was definitely a satisfying time in general.

Looking back on those happy memories, he always saw Fuyuka next to him.

“In the end, you came here every day during winter break.”

“Thanks to you, I am able to cook properly.”

“…Well, yeah.”

“What’s with that pause…”

“Nah, I don’t mean anything bad by it. I really think you’re making good progress.”

“…I thought you were going to say something mean to me again.”

“I’m not a devil, you know?”

Fuyuka had shown remarkable growth in the past month or so, and had already reached the level where she was able to cook for herself.

It might be difficult to cook elaborate meals, but it should be easy to prepare simple dishes and side dishes.

She also seemed to be diligently practicing privately at home, and he wondered whether behind the scenes Touko was involved or not.

She was also actively interacting with her newly added contact address, the lovebirds, Hinami and Chiaki.

Recently, Fuyuka could be seen touching her cell phone a lot, smiling and enjoying the interaction through the screen.

Even now, sitting on the edge of the sofa, Fuyuka was typing in flicks whilst unaccustomed.

However, her facial expression was not the same as usual, the smile seemed more like a bitter smile.

“It seems that Aiba-san has finally finished half of her homework.”

“Yeah, she said she still has a long way to go and Chiaki said he was going to be up all night today.”

“That sounds terrible… Ah, how about showing our homework―”

“You can’t.”

“Of course…”

Students like Chiaki and Hinami, the type who put off doing their homework, were probably frantically running their pens through their notebooks right now.

Fuyuka was trying to display kindness for such a stupid idiots, but they reap what they sow.

Besides, those two usually didn’t study at all – even though they were quite clever.

In contrast, the type of students like Asahi and Fuyuka, who systematically complete their homework, spend their time not feeling rushed.

Today in particular was a relaxing day.

At this time, they were supposed to work on their homework together at Fuyuka’s suggestion, but as a result of too much progress before the Hatsumode, they decided to enjoy their free time.

That was why, for the past few days, Asahi and Fuyuka had been sharing the same space for a while, even after the meal and cleaning up.

“Oh yeah, you still call Hinami and Chiaki by their last name.”

“It’s… still hard for me to call them by their first name out of the blue.”

“Isn’t that fine? That’s not gonna change the fact that you’re friends.”

When Asahi followed up, Fuyuka gave a small nod.

Someday, she would be able to build a relationship without relying on what they call each other anymore.

It was a very big step for Fuyuka.

“In my own way, I’ll do my best in the new semester.”

Her eyes were so enthusiastic, sparkling with a powerful glow.

Perhaps Hinami and Chiaki were good stimuli.

Nervousness and anxiety were apparent, but more than that, hope and expectation seemed to be high.

In this way, Fuyuka could take her time and approach others in her own way.

A girl named Himuro Fuyuka, who had broken out of the shell of the “Ice Lady,” was sure to be surrounded by many people.

As he imagined the scene, Asahi felt his heart falter a little.

It was definitely a good thing to have more students getting to know the inner workings of the “Ice Lady”, something that only he had known before, however.

Asahi wondered why he felt such a thing.

“What do you say, we go back to calling each other by last name?”

“Eh…”

“I don’t mind if we keep it as is, but if you call, only me by my first name…”

“I-it’s fine as it is!”

“Well then… you can continue as before.”

Asahi was not sure if she was embarrassed to change the way they called each other back after all this time, but Fuyuka’s words were unusually strong and she insisted with a biting tone.

Apparently, calling each other by first name would continue.

Asahi didn’t know how much Fuyuka was willing to deepen her relationship with others after the new semester started, but it would probably be a privilege only for him for a while.

“Asahi-kun… I’ll do my best.”

“Mhm, I got your back.”

In response to Fuyuka’s smiling expression of determination, Asahi’s voice was as plain as ever, just like his mother.

On the other hand, Asahi’s mind secretly wavered as he pretended to be calm.　　

He should have gotten used to being called with the name by now, but.

A special feeling, different from that time, swirled quietly within him.

“Unusual, she forgot something.”

After seeing Fuyuka off to the door, Asahi found a familiar cell phone left on the living room table.

Not so long ago, it was rare for her to even bring her phone, so maybe she forgot to bring it back with her because of that.

The fact that Fuyuka seemed to be well-balanced but lacking in some areas was a new aspect of her that Asahi had learned recently.

It was advisable to return it to the owner as soon as possible since it was a valuable item.

With a sigh, Asahi reached for the latest model of smartphone.

And then, it must have responded to the fact that it was lifted. The sleep mode was automatically released and the standby screen was displayed.

“This is…”

It was probably a photo of Fuyuka’s childhood that caught Asahi’s eye.

She was much smaller in height and had a much younger expression, but still there was the resemblance.

Her appearance on the photo was filled with a brightness that was completely unimaginable from the current Fuyuka, let alone the “Ice Lady”.

And there were two other adults in the picture besides Fuyuka.

One of them he had never met before, but Asahi could instantly determine that she was Fuyuka’s mother.

She has long, lightly pigmented black hair and a face as neat as an ice sculpture.

She smiled modestly and looked like a beautiful mature woman.

When Fuyuka got older and grew up, she would probably look like her.

And then the other person.

This was a man who was a complete stranger to Asahi.

He was tall and slender and looked good in a suit.

His expression was expressionless compared to the small Fuyuka and the big Fuyuka.

‘Is this a family photo of the Himuro family?’

For that matter, the man seemed to be out of place somewhat.

It wasn’t the man’s expression or appearance that made Asahi think so, but the fact that he didn’t resemble Fuyuka at all.

It was as if they were strangers.

As Asahi was pondering, the intercom rang for the second time today.

Asahi knew what to expect, so he went to the door and found Fuyuka standing there looking embarrassed, as expected.

“Here.”

“Oh, thank you very much. I totally forgot about…”

“It’s a good thing it was my house. Just make sure you don’t forget it outside.”

“Yes, I will do so… I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Yeah, see you tomorrow.”

After a short conversation with a few small words, Asahi closed the door again.

At that time, Fuyuka’s hair swept by the night wind looked very much like the adult woman he had seen on the cell phone’s standby screen.

And the way she smiled and said, “See you tomorrow,” still had a shadow of her childhood in it.

However, the tall man was still the only one that he could not catch a glimpse of.

When Fuyuka used to talk about her family, she always had a dark expression with a hint of worry.

Asahi was slowly approaching the past, hidden in her heart and the reason why she became the “Ice Lady”.