CH 9

In the month of May during my freshman year of high school, I, Taiga Hirano, made contact with a classmate, Sasaki, a slacker.

There was only a small, one-time chat we had in a restricted area of the school.

A year went by without us getting to know each other particularly well.

I had no idea that this day would come, in the year after I welcomed my juniors, when I would learn about a new side of Sasaki.

* * *

As I tucked the information printout for the intensive math course into a clear file, I hesitated to sign up for the course.

One month had passed since the start of the school year, and students had just gotten acclimated to dormitory life when they took the test. The content of the test was for the special promotion class, but participation was nominally optional.

I wasn’t quite sure how much I should commit to. I was just thinking of going home to my parents’ house that weekend as I called them.

The plan to return home shortly after Golden Week was kinda embarrassing as it would seem like I was homesick.

However, the advice from my senior roommate made perfect sense and caused my heart to sway. He said, “If you don’t take this chance to return home, you can only do so when summer holidays arrive. By then, you would have already made your parents worry about you.” 

The application to the course was scheduled half a month in advance, so changes were still possible. However, I didn’t feel comfortable making changes to something my parents didn’t know. Even though I’m a high schooler, I understood the hassle that brought along when changing a schedule while living in a dormitory.

I was still fumbling my way around though.

The topic of discussion, in which I had no difficulty in understanding, tilts its scales towards the idea of forgoing the test at this moment. 

Well, it’s still good. I could make the decision based on my results of the mid-term exams. The deadline was at the end of this week, so I could put it on hold for now and get the opinions of everyone at the dorm.

In the meantime, the remaining number of people in the classroom were few.

“You should have picked up the phone yesterday, something big had happened.”

Ogasawara spoke in an intimidating manner. With his distinctive hair colour lined with streaks of highlight in the center, it was hard to believe that he was a first-year student. As for the piercing, I couldn’t say much as I have it as well.

“Yesterday, huh…… Had work.”

Sasaki lazily responded.

Although his hair could be somewhat classified as “adult-ish”, the number of piercings seemed painful. It’s probably rare for a student to have multiple piercings, even if it’s on the soft bones.. 

I didn’t mean to judge people by their appearance, but that guy was different. He was like a breeze. Especially so in this class, where the students were expected to be diligent in their studies. 

“Don’t lie to me, I met your sister yesterday and she said that you were sleeping in your room.”

“Was that so?”

Irresponsible. Way too irresponsible. 

Because he was dealing with Sasaki, who didn’t seem to take any offense, Ogasawara, who spoke of the sensible things, seemed like the tough and bad guy.

“Oh yeah, that CD you were talking about the other day…”

“Ah, I forgot.”

――Are you kidding me?

“…You!!”

I sat up, listening to the exchange between a lethargic Sasaki and an emotional Ogasawara without saying a word.

Then I suddenly remember. Sasaki’s grades in math were good. As I recalled, he was in the top half of the class for the midterms.

So I had a vague image that he must be a serious guy who had a flashy appearance.

――An irresponsible guy.

That was my first impression of the fellow called Sasaki Shuumei.

The second impression was different.

“Class president!”

It was the modern literature teacher who had peeked into the classroom and called out.

“I’m off today.”

Someone spoke up.

“Well, then a disciplinary committee member-”

I was the next selected one.

“Yes.”

There was no class today and nothing due this week. What was it about?

“Sasaki’s the only one who didn’t submit his worksheets from last week. I told him to pass me yesterday but it still hasn’t reached me. Can you tell him that it’s due today?”

And how did this concern the disciplinary committee?

“Eh… I understand.”

I nodded grudgingly. I wondered why I was in charge of this when it wasn’t even my duty today. But I could only suck it up.

――What a pain in the ass. Don’t get me involved.

I looked around the classroom, resisting the urge to swear. Of course, Sasaki was nowhere to be found. I think I saw him in the morning. His bag was still hanging by his desk. 

“Hey, where did Sasaki go today?”

When I asked Ogasawara whom I often see Sasaki hanging out with, he shook his head.

“Don’t know.”

“I don’t know his contact number. I didn’t bring my cell phone either.”

“Ah… Wait a minute, I’m calling. ……Sasaki, where are you? Huh? Are you awake? Hey!”

It was nice of him to save me the trouble by making the call, but I could tell by listening to Ogasawara’s response that his kindness to Sasaki was undeserved. I had no idea what’s going on though.

“What’s up?”

“He hung up. He’s probably sleeping somewhere because it’s hot today.”

For the first time, I realised that Ogasawara’s face looked as if it was filled with anger, but that wasn’t true. It was merely a strong expression. His voice wasn’t irritated.

At any rate, there was a big difference in temperament between them and myself, who was seriously pissed off.

“Where’s he!”

“Who knows,” Ogasawara tilted his head in confusion. He wasn’t joking. He truly had no idea.

“He doesn’t like the heat so he’s probably cooling off somewhere.”

He’s too much of a joke.

Of course, it’s Sasaki, not Ogasawara.

Soon, the main bell rang and the fourth period began. Yet Sasaki still didn’t show up.

He hadn’t been to class since morning. What’s the point of him coming to school? I mean, did he really come……?

I finished my lunch without bothering to hide my irritation.

The ordered bento lunches at school weren’t enough on days with physical education.

I’m somewhat at a loss, having spent much less time than usual cleaning up the mess. Deciding to use my lunch break to search for Sasaki, I scavenged for a place where he could skip class.

It could be a bench in the courtyard, or a cultural club room along an obscure corridor. I climbed the stairs, peeking at whatever came to mind. 

Surprisingly, there were quite a few rooms that were not supervised. In every place I could think of, there was always someone eating lunch there. In a flash, I was in a bind. Was that guy playing hide-and-seek with me?

All that remained was the rooftop; Or so I would like to say, but as a school rule, students were not allowed to enter.

The only exception was the astronomy club’s observation sessions, but even that was a story that happened only a few times throughout the year. Ever since I entered the school, it had not been held yet.

――It’s locked, right……?

I looked up curiously at the stairs to the rooftop, although it was a baseless assumption. 

――Didn’t he say that he didn’t like the heat……

Ruminating over Ogasawara’s words, this staircase leading to the rooftop now seemed like a good place to hole up.

Moving the paper that marked, “No Trespassing” aside, I stepped out slowly. I reached the end of the staircase. Ensuring that my footsteps were as light as possible, I turned around only to find a figure ahead of me.

Haaa….. A sigh slipped out of my mouth.

“Bingo.”

The door to the rooftop was tightly locked and the well-lit windows were far away. Sasaki was at the top of the stairs.

He sat leaning against a cool wall along a dimly lit corner, and seemed to be listening to music.

“Ah.”

His eyes caught sight of mine absentmindedly.

The expression on his face, as if to say, ” You found me,” seemed somehow out of place with the dusty location. The dull reaction seemed to have come from someone who looked apathetic and just didn’t care much about school life.

“What the hell are you doing here?”

His butt must be sore from all the sitting, but I didn’t think he had been there all morning.

Sasaki tilted his head as he removed his headphones.

“Um, Hirano, what’s up?”

――He remembered my name. 

Well it wasn’t unexpected. This blonde hair was pretty easy on the memory.

“Yeah. The modern literature work is due today. You’re the only one left.”

On second thought, I should have just asked Ogasawara to message him for me.

Although I was tasked to remind him, I wasn’t asked to collect it. However, I was definitely concerned about Sasaki’s irresponsible behaviour. This must have somewhat influenced me.

“Oh, I haven’t done it.”

“Did you bring it?”

There wasn’t a modern literature class on today’s timetable.

Thus I had no expectations, but Sasaki surprisingly nodded.

“I think I left it under my desk.”

What a blessing in disguise. The content taught didn’t follow the textbook, so as long as one had the worksheets, one could get by.

“Then you can go back now and do it after school. If you don’t know, I’ll help you.”

“……You’re a committee member or something, Hirano?”

For a moment I thought he was being sarcastic, but that didn’t seem to be the case.

“Disciplinary committee member. Oh right, you’re not allowed in here, you know?”

“But it’s cooling in here.”

A wave of never-before-felt exhaustion poured over me.

No malice intended, but no motivation. This was the typical attitude of a trash. I was starting to get annoyed.

“If you want to cool off, go to the infirmary. It’s cooler there.”

“Aren’t there upperclassmen in that place? It doesn’t seem to be comfortable there.”

This was a surprising show of wimp. It was hard to believe that Sasaki would care about such a thing.

“You’re a punk, what are you talking about?”

At my retort, Sasaki turned his head to the side in a huff.

“…… I ain’t much of a punk anymore. Besides, I don’t like to fight.”

His sulky profile was somewhat childish, despite his brusque demeanor.

This guy didn’t fit in here.

“…… Hey, why did you choose this school? This school places a lot of attention on grades. If you keep slacking off, you’ll never catch up.”

It was fine to have a forte in something. As long as you had deposited the basic academy grades, you wouldn’t be shaken off in a few months.

However, it was tough to be good in a specific subject. It was good enough to be ‘not bad’ at it.

In particular, the special advanced class, which Sasaki and I belong to, has held regular lectures and supplementary classes for the university entrance examinations since freshman year. It was a semi-mandatory participation where it was up to the participant’s choice to sign up.

If one continued to skip classes several times a week like Sasaki, it would be difficult for one to catch up even with make-up classes.

I was informed of this as soon as I entered school, but this guy probably didn’t hear about it.

“Hm…… I was told that if you can enter a good school, you can go as far as you can. Why did Hirano choose this school?”

Sasaki said with a hint of self-mockery.

In short, Sasaki probably entered this school in response to the expectations of his parents and teachers. If that made you think you should be ashamed of your lack of autonomy, you had too little self-esteem.

If you were able to make the effort to follow the recommended direction, that’s good enough. The regular course of study in high school was the stage before paths diverge, so you could make your own choices as much as you want from now on.

“For me… I wanted to do something and this school made it easier to achieve it.”

“…… You have a lot of considerations. That’s pretty nice.”

I stared at him, feeling irresistibly saddened by his soft, envious expression.

It was too early to give up, skipping efforts in a rambling manner, in a place where you were one step out of step with everyone else.

It’s still May. May of my freshman year of high school. I couldn’t bear to see my classmates dropping out before my eyes.

“You’re going to have to find it too.”

“Huh?”

I pause for a breath so as not to raise my voice.

“If you can choose a good school, you should find a reason to come to school on time, or something you want to do. No, you should put in some effort to try to find it…..?”

An unfamiliar sermon was inconclusive.

Sasaki gave a small smile.

“…… I hope I can find it. That reminds me, Hirano looks more like a delinquent than I do.”

I was offended by the outrageous comment.

――Wasn’t that a bit much for someone who’s been so accommodating?

“HAH? You’re the one missing class.”

“Bleaching your hair is too much of a violation of school rules.”

Fine, that was true. I never outgrew my uniform, and even on the days we didn’t have a spot check, I adhered to the rule of wearing the appropriate inner-shirt color.

“What’s with that logic?”

“I’m showing that I’m willing to abide by school rules when necessary, and changing my hair doesn’t have anything to do with my grades.”

“……I see.”

Sasaki gently placed his hands behind me and stretched out wide.

I suppose he was ready to get up. He just didn’t have that motivation to push himself.

Not that I know much.

“The sun has already risen quite a bit at this time of the day, so there should no longer be any direct sunlight on your seat. …… Since you’ve come all the way to school, you might as well decide on a target and work as hard as you can.”

After my urging, Sasaki stood on his feet sluggishly.

As I watched him dust off his uniform, a thought to remind the committee to clean this place regularly had surfaced in mind.

I didn’t think that it was a good idea to have a visibly desolated area within the school compound.

“…… Hmmm… Well, let’s just go back and finish that piece of work. Hirano, I’m counting on you.”

Funny how he wasn’t the least bit embarrassed to demand so proudly.

“I can teach you, but are you sure you have the worksheet? If you don’t have it, you can go to the teacher’s office during lunch break and ask for one.”

“Yes, yes.”

I almost laughed at the familiar notion in Sasaki’s voice.

“Just one ‘yes’ is enough. That said, hurry up a little. You only have about five minutes left.” 

“Yes~” Sasaki dragged out his words as we walked next to each other.

“And give me your number later.”

I muttered quickly as we descended from the steps.

“Huh? To Hirano?”

The reaction could be said to be unexpected.

“I need to be able to contact you.”

Feeling strangely embarrassed, I tried my best to fix my eyes on the road in front.

It’s not comfortable for the receiving end to be taken care of by their fellow peers, but I couldn’t help it because I care about them. It’s more convenient to ask for the number in case I need to get in touch with them again.

――Sasaki Shuumei.

First impression was irresponsible.

Second impression was troublesome.

“That’s right. If you don’t like the heat, close the curtains when you come in the morning.”

If you close even only the ones attached to the windows facing your seat, it should block the sunlight from reaching your seat and the temperature difference could be felt.

“Mmm…”

A half hearted response.

He was a guy that would need a hell of time before he could find out what he wanted to do, or what he enjoyed doing.

On the way to the classroom, we chatted leisurely. I learnt that his family owned a bakery and he had been helping with the early morning preparation since third grade of junior high school.

No wonder I always saw him eating bread for lunch.

“Are you helping around the house in the morning? What’s the point if you sleep through your classes?”

Running a bakery was probably a very busy job, especially in the early morning. In my opinion, if you’re pushing yourself too hard, going too out of the way and end up sacrificing yourself, you should probably cease doing that.

At the very least, there were other ways to do it, such as scheduling your help for weekends when it didn’t affect the school day.

“Nah, it’s surprisingly fun.”

Sasaki spoke calmly.

What the hell. Didn’t he have something important to him then?

I know that’s not enough.

“If you don’t want to be forced to quit helping out, at least go to class so you don’t get into trouble.”

“I’ve already watched pretty closely,” Sasaki’s eyes were downcast as he mumbled.

The amount of tardiness was particularly damaging. Even on days when he didn’t skip class and arrived just on time, he was basically a target for teachers who took the first period.

“I’ll try.”

A curt reply. A languid and sloppy attitude.

At that time, I still didn’t feel any enthusiasm or rather, positivity, from Sasaki. I thought that he merely took my nagging as passing words.

I didn’t have the right to interfere in any way.

Neither did I particularly talk to him once I finished submitting the worksheet.

The days passed without any further contact with Sasaki beyond being classmates. Thereafter, the class was promoted one level up.

Sasaki’s change was more visible after a little over a year of knowing him.

July of sophomore year.

Through an unexpected incident, he underwent a change. The object of his interest changed, even his expressions changed.