When Nanami played with Kurosawa’s hair, it was as if that hairstyle suited Kurosawa perfectly; after all, the original form was so good that anything they held up to Kurosawa would look great.
Well, considering it was mostly short-sleeved shirts, it could be expected. The more plain the clothing, the better it showcased one’s appearance.
However, it wasn’t like they could pick out every single piece of clothing Kurosawa would wear all summer long. It would be a bit strange to buy everything.
But still, Nanami and Yuka seemed to feel a little guilty about buying for Kurosawa. No matter how much allowance the kid got, it was their idea to go shopping for clothes in the first place.
Kurosawa wouldn’t show much emotion no matter what happened, but from the perspective of the other kids nearby, it might seem like they were pressuring her to buy clothes.
Whether they sensed that atmosphere or it solidified their decision to get closer to Kurosawa, Fukuda began to join in and pick clothes as well.
If you think about it, Fukuda might actually be quite interested in this kind of thing. She had dyed her hair a bright yellow and her clothes were the flashiest among the girls.
“……”
In such a situation, Shii was watching Kurosawa’s completely unchanged expression with a somewhat troubled look.
She probably sensed something. Having been a victim of abuse herself, she might think that Kurosawa had gone through something similar.
Sota was honestly concerned about Kurosawa’s home environment.
It seemed like her parents were aware of the existence of a girl named Kurosawa Koto Ne. They appeared to have conversations at home and, from the looks of it, she received an allowance.
But at the same time, it was strange that she had no clothes to wear and didn’t even notice being bullied at school.
Even the marks from the bullying were visible with just a roll up of the sleeve.
They say there are parents who just throw money at their kids, and some people even argue that it’s a form of abuse.
Still, given that she continued attending school, it didn’t seem like her parents completely cut off interest, making it hard to express exactly how he felt.
“Is this enough?”
After about an hour of standing idly by next to Sota, Shii suddenly said this while holding a stack of clothes.
Though it was mostly thin clothes since they were summer outfits, the weight of the clothes she was holding appeared quite heavy.
“What about swimsuits?”
However, looking at Nanami, who had a satisfied expression, and Yuka, who nodded, Fukuda asked.
Seeing that the attention had turned to him, Fukuda let out a deep sigh.
“Swimsuits. They’re important. It’s a summer trip. Are you going to just wear regular clothes to swim? Or should I make you wear the school swimsuit?”
Even Sota, as a guy, thought that the school swimsuit wasn’t quite right.
“That’s… important.”
Yuka nodded as if she just realized the importance.
Then, with a questioning expression, she turned to Kurosawa.
“Kurosawa, do you have anything other than the school swimsuit?”
“……”
Kurosawa slowly shook her head.
“Then let’s pick out a swimsuit too. Don’t worry about the money.”
The three of them chose it together—actually, Sota was willing to help out too, so Nanami’s statement wasn’t a big issue.
“Sota.”
Nanami smiled brightly at Sota.
“By a happy coincidence, I need to buy a swimsuit too. Can you help me? The one I bought last year has gotten a bit smaller. Since parts of my body have grown a bit.”
“That’s the same for me.”
“……You’re still in high school and haven’t finished growing yet?”
Fukuda asked in disbelief after hearing Nanami and Yuka talk, but the two acted as if they didn’t hear him.
“Me too, me too!”
Shii raised her hand and shouted.
“I still haven’t found a swimsuit. I think I’m still growing.”
This time, Nanami and Yuka looked at Shii as if they couldn’t believe it, but Shii met their gaze quite confidently.
In the end, Sota had to tag along with the girls for quite a while with their shopping afterwards.
Even when it came time to buy swimsuits, the criteria seemed to become stricter than when they were picking clothes; it felt like almost two hours had passed.
No, perhaps it wasn’t just one person choosing clothes, but three people which made it worse.
……They each bought just one set though.
*
After several hours of shopping during which Sota didn’t buy a single item, a few days later.
[Sota, do you have time tomorrow?]
The sender of that message was Yuka.
Shii happened to be in her room, so she didn’t see it.
Sota thought it was a little strange that he had checked himself for Yuki’s reaction as he opened his phone to reply.
[Tomorrow’s pretty much clear.]
[Really? Then can you spare some time?]
[Sure, but why?]
[There’s a little something I want to talk about.]
Sota hesitated for a moment at Yuka’s words.
Could it be something regarding ‘work’ again?
He pondered whether Yuka had ever called him out secretly for something like that, but it seemed there was never an opportunity like that before.
So Sota concluded that this request was indeed about Yuka’s ‘work.’
Especially since the meeting place Yuka gave in return seemed close to her house.
[Got it. I’ll be waiting.]
Yuka replied like that to Sota.
There were no expressions in the email. Especially, Yuka tended to write her emails in a business-like tone.
If only an emoticon had come along, it would have helped him understand the situation just a little better.
But surely there couldn’t be anything too significant, right?
After all, it wasn’t a phone call, but a text.
Sota put his phone down next to him as he heard Shii’s footsteps coming down the stairs and contemplated like that.
*
And the next day, when he went to meet Yuka, Sota was taken by surprise.
Yuka, who was waiting at the rendezvous point, was wearing a yukata.
“……Yuka?”
“……Follow me.”
Was she planning on sneaking into somewhere? There were a lot of people around. Judging by the atmosphere, it seemed like they were having a festival nearby.
Yuka’s nape was glowing white ahead of him.
“Uh, Yuka? This is…”
“We’re having a festival at the shrine.”
Yuka said stiffly in response to Sota’s words.
Is it because the weather was a bit hotter? Her cheeks were slightly red.
“I need to observe it from an outsider’s perspective. You know, like food stalls. Even if I’m wandering around alone, it’s pretty obvious people will recognize me.”
Wouldn’t Sota, standing next to Yuka, get recognized too? After all, Yuka’s grandfather and father had met Sota several times and knew him well, and the stall owners could easily remember that Sota was Yuka’s friend.
“Er… okay.”
Nonetheless, Yuka’s atmosphere was a bit intense, making it hard to refuse her words. Caught up in her somewhat disgruntled yet excited mood, Sota answered like that.
Besides, coming this far and not enjoying the festival right in front of him would be a waste.
“Alright.”
Strangely, Yuka murmured as if she was talking to herself and pulled on Sota’s sleeve.
At that festive event, just as Sota had expected, the stall owners completely misinterpreted the relationship between him and Yuka.
More than half of the people they met thought Sota was Yuka’s boyfriend, and even those who acknowledged that it wasn’t so had a somewhat mischievous look in their eyes, as if they were saying, “Good luck.”
Each time Sota tried to deny those people’s words, for some reason, Yuka poked him in the waist with her finger and gave him light jabs in the side. By the time they were catching goldfish, he couldn’t bring himself to deny it anymore, and the stall owner said, “If you’re Yuka’s boyfriend, you deserve at least a goldfish for free!” and handed him a bag containing two goldfish.
……Didn’t he say one?
Unable to refuse, he accepted it.
According to Yuka, she had few friends of her age, but she seemed to have a good relationship with the neighbors they frequently saw around.
Finally, after enjoying the fireworks together, the two of them parted ways.
Wait, wasn’t this just enjoying the festival?
“How was the festival?”
Before they parted, Yuka, who came to see him off, asked.
Yuka stood there with her hands in her pockets, looking somewhat demure, and frankly, she was beautiful. It was a completely different atmosphere than usual.
He didn’t think one was better than the other.
“……It was fun.”
“Good to hear then.”
Yuka nodded as she said that.
“I can do the same next year. And the year after that, and the year after that.”
“Uh… every year?”
“Yeah, every year.”
Yuka said, looking at Sota.
“I was hoping you could help me out a bit. What do you think?”
“I… I’m okay with that.”
“Great then.”
Yuka said that, and came right up close to Sota.
Then she looked up at Sota’s face quietly. For some reason, she looked a little angry.
But looking at that face, Sota felt strangely less scared than—
“……Well, take care. Thanks for today.”
“Uh, yeah.”
As Sota responded blankly to Yuka’s words, she smiled slightly.
Then she quickly turned around, walking away without looking back, heading down the alley.
“……”
Sota stood there, holding a bag with two goldfish, staring at her blankly, unable to comprehend the situation.
When he got back home, Shii looked at the goldfish with an incredulous expression, and only then did Sota realize he had no way to explain the presence of the goldfish.
*
The very next day, he received another email.
[Sota. Is next week good for you?]
The sender was Nanami.
[I need to change the schedule a bit. Is it okay to go to the festival before the trip?]
“……”
It was a standard email with nothing different than usual, so why did he feel a chill run down his spine?
Sota felt that way about it, but couldn’t understand why.
