CH 64

Posted on August 26, 2021by Soafp

[Sekka PoV]

“…..Yeah, thanks.……–see you later, Yuri-chan.” (Sekka)

I hung up the phone after contacting my niece.

Sweat ran down my back from the heat and I turned on the air conditioner. I sat down on the couch and sipped my barley tea.

……It’s not easy for Yuri-chan.

My niece, Yuri, is my sister’s daughter, and she seems to be having a hard time. She was on a family trip to a hot spring, but it seems that there was another disturbance.

Huh.……. He’s a troubled boy indeed.

As soon as I take my eyes off of him for a moment, he’s involved in something strange.

And by the time I find out about it, it’s usually over. This is something that I don’t like about him.

It seems that Yuri has been trying to approach Yuki in various ways, but it doesn’t seem to be bearing fruit. There is no progress. But it was difficult to make any progress in the first place, and I had never heard of a family vacation before. It seemed fortuitous that the distance between them had grown so close.

–This is the beginning. From here on out, we’re moving forward.

Things are getting better little by little. What had been inexplicably negative until now has merely become zero. It doesn’t mean anything has been built up. Don’t be naive. Nothing has started yet.

There must have been something between my sister and Yuki that only they knew about. I’m sure it’s the same for Yuri, and Yuki won’t tell anyone about it himself, and even if he did, he wouldn’t tell her.

It was difficult to know what to do now.

After all, Yuki is not attached to anyone.

He doesn’t want or need anything from anyone.

The fact that Yuki tries to do everything by himself is just the price he has to pay.

That’s why he can’t go beyond that. A future with someone else does not exist in Yuki’s daily life. Yuki has tried to move forward and failed. Each time he failed, he continued to be alone, and yet he could not break free. Although I was the one who started it all, everything from that point on was a series of unexpected events.

There was no trust or confidence in anyone, and even if there had been, it was not the same as trust or confidence in general. Even if someone he trusted, they betrayed him. Yuki wouldn’t feel anything or be hurt. He has been convinced that this is the way it is from the beginning. It’s something akin to resignation, where you only think it’s your fault.

It doesn’t matter if it’s a parent, a sibling, or even a lover.

If things continue like this, even if there is someone next to Yuki who will never betray him until the day she dies, his perception will never change. That is the rule of Yuki-chan’s world.

That’s how Yuki’s “common sense” works.

Yuki’s world has been colored by such “common sense.”

Is he just unhappy? Or is it just bad luck?I don’t know. But Yuki-chan is a gentle living being who has a different type of common sense.

I can only say that it’s a very bad and evil coincidence.

Still, I’m moving forward just because I’ve realized that the feelings I’m getting are not only hostility, but also goodwill. It’s the chance I’ve been waiting for.

“I wonder if…… Galileo felt this way?” (Sekka) 

I chuckled at the ridiculous fantasy. It’s too much of a leap.

However, Galileo, who followed the will of Copernicus and advocated the geocentric theory, did not change his belief that the earth rotates even after being put on trial by a religious court.

Common sense is such a strong thing. It is so strong that even when presented with evidence, it stubbornly refuses to admit it. Just like a philosophical debate instead of a factual dispute, sometimes people only believe what is convenient. And for Yuki, it’s not even a matter of convenience, it’s a matter of normalcy. An inexplicable and unreasonable fate.

It is extremely difficult to overturn “common sense.”

The peaceful Japanese, who no longer carry weapons after the sword hunt, cannot understand the “common sense” of the gun society.

The “common sense” that Yuki has cultivated so far is unknown to us. Perhaps it is only those who can overcome such a fate that can walk alongside him.

Nevertheless, Yuki’s surroundings have been noisy lately.

It’s as if a major shift in destiny is approaching—-.

The sound of taiko drums rang out. As the festival music played a unique melody, people passed around the stalls, some carried portable shrines, and others danced the Bon dance. People of all ages, men and women. Adults, children, and ladies. Gigue does not strike back. Masterpiece guaranteed. Everyone seems to be having fun. Everyone was full of smiles. –except me.

I moved to the edge of the room so as not to get in the way and waited in a daze at the meeting place. I checked my watch and saw that it was around 6pm. The fireworks were to start at 7:00 p.m., but the rendezvous time that Hinagi had specified was 5:30 p.m. It’s been more than half an hour now, and I haven’t seen or heard from her, which means I’ve been waiting for almost an hour, considering I arrived at 5pm.

A savory smell drifted from the stalls. I hadn’t eaten dinner. I was starving. I bought some takoyaki (octopus balls) and ate them, but I couldn’t really look around the stalls, so it was idle time.

There was no sign of Hinagi. I realize that’s enough.

…… Did she abandon me?

When I think back, there was a time when I was invited to a party by several male and female classmates, and I was the only one who was told to meet at a different place. No matter how long I waited, no one showed up. I didn’t get the call until after I got home. When I went to school the next day, they laughed and told me it was just a joke. It sucks.

After that, I continued to ignore them as if they didn’t exist, and now I can’t remember their faces or names. I didn’t mean to, I really didn’t. I don’t know why they suddenly changed their attitude later, laying out silly excuses, but I can’t hear the voices of those who don’t exist. It was a complete afterthought, and it is still a festival today.

It was a very boring episode, but I’m sure that Hinagi was not like that.

However, what I know is the Hinagi of the past, not the Hinagi of the present. People change. It could be said that I am the only one who does not change. I’m not sure what the real reason for this is, even though we’ve been estranged for a while now and have recently started talking again due to various reasons.

“Kokonoe?” (???)

I was stopped. The person who called out to me was not Hinagi Suzurikawa. In the first place, it was not even a woman.

“……who?” (Yuki)

“Don’t forget who I am! We’re in the same class!” (Takahashi)

“I’m kidding. Kondo.” (Yuki) 

“Who the hell is that? It’s Takahashi!　Kazunari Takahashi. It’s been about 4 months already.……” (Takahashi) 

“Well, well. You’re Kazunari Takahashi, right? I remember you.” (Yuki) 

“Really……?” (Takahashi) 

“You’re Kazunari Takahashi, the guy who plays on the badminton team. I know you.” (Yuki) 

“I’m on the soccer team.……” (Takahashi) 

“You’re Kazunari Takahashi, you’re active in the soccer team. I know.” (Yuki) 

“You’re just gathering information by making me tell you first.……” (Takahashi) 

What a light-hearted guy, but unlike me, Kazunari Takahashi was not alone in the rear. A pair of men and women.

Uhm…… who?

“Are you a sugar daddy?” (Yuki) 

“Why! It’d be bad if it was. This is my sister, Tachibana. Come on, say hi.” (Takahashi) 

“……Hello” (Tachibana)

She grabbed a bit of Takahashi’s hem and quickly hid behind it to see the boy looking at her. She was wearing a yukata, which suited her well, but it certainly didn’t look like a date. If it were a date, I’d be pissed off from all sides.

“Takahashi, is my brother.……” (Tachibana) 

“Tachibana is in the second grade. My mother was busy. Since it’s a festival, I brought her along.” (Takahashi) 

“Oh, I see. Then I’ll give you some candy.” (Yuki)

I took out a candy from my pocket and handed it to Tachibana-chan as a sign of my closeness. She took it without hesitation. She seemed a little shy, but she was a good, honest girl.

“Well, why are you here, Kokonoe?” (Takahashi) 

“I thought we were supposed to meet up, but apparently not.” (Yuki) 

“What? There were a lot of people from our class here. I saw Sakurai and the others taking Shakado around earlier.” (Takahashi) 

“Elizabeth? I just hope the shady Shakado doesn’t melt away.” (Yuki) 

“Every time I think about it, who is Elizabeth…..?” (Takahashi) 

“Here, Tachibana-chan, pull here. It’s a universal flag.” (Yuki) 

“Wow! That’s awesome!” (Tachibana) 

“What is that?” (Takahashi) 

When Tachibana-chan pulled the string coming out of my pocket, the World Flag came out smoothly. I had bought it out of curiosity at the general store I stopped at on the way here, but it was a useless item, but it unexpectedly turned out to be useful. Tachibana-chan’s eyes were sparkling. I’m confident that it will be popular with children.

“Are the Takahashi Brothers leaving already?” (Yuki) 

“Don’t talk about them like we’re the red brother and the green brother. We’re at the top of the apartment building, so we can watch the fireworks from our balcony. Is Kokonoe on a date with someone or something? Sorry. We got in the way, didn’t we?” (Takahashi) 

“No, I’m leaving too.” (Yuki) 

“Is that so? Oh, by the way, I saw Suzurikawa just now, but she was with some boy.…… No, isn’t that the case only for Sazurikawa?” (Takahashi) 

“—It seems I was mistaken.” (Yuki) 

“Wh? What hap—” (Takahashi) 

“I’m hungry, so I’ll just go home. See you later, Tachibana-chan.” (Yuki) 

It’s a waste of time to stay in this place forever. The fireworks were about to start, but I didn’t feel like watching them alone. I’ll just go to some stalls and go home.

If I ruminate on Kazunari Takahashi’s words, the answer will come to me naturally.

Haha, I see. She sent it to the wrong person, didn’t she?

The contact from Hinagi was not addressed to me from the beginning, was it?

It’s more likely that she misdirected it with the intention of inviting someone else. I’m also not sure why she didn’t correct me when I replied back, but maybe she didn’t realize it was from me.

I don’t think it’s possible, no matter how many times I’ve seen it, but if Hinagi isn’t here and she’s still going around the summer festival with someone else, then the fact that she’s there in front of me, no matter how unnatural, is the answer. Now that I think about it, there have been many times in the past when Hinagi has sent me messages that I didn’t understand.

I should have realized it earlier.

–There was no way that Hinagi, who had swatted my hand away that day, would have invited me to the summer festival.