“If you can keep up this pace, it’s not just a dream at all.”
In the staff room after school, my homeroom teacher, Tachibana-sensei, handed me my career preference form with pamphlets from several universities tucked inside.
“Yes, that’s what I’m planning to do.”
“Don’t overdo it. There’s no point if you break down—body or mind.”
“Thank you.”
Healthy in both body and mind, while maintaining a steady pace, huh. Those words are the complete opposite of the last three days.
The calm, ordinary day after the long weekend reminded me of who I really am.
That’s right. I’m Sakayori Iroha, the perfect high school girl. Excellent grades, good conduct, well-rounded in both academics and athletics.
But that “perfection” only applies within the bounds of being a “high school girl.” I’m perfect as a very ordinary, average student.
Which is why my life has no place for glowing utility poles, babies, or—let alone—aliens. I’m someone who works steadily, realistically, and earnestly toward her goals. And someday, to my mother—
“Your parents must be very proud of you.”
“Huh?”
I looked up reflexively. Tachibana-sensei’s smile—somehow reminiscent of an old goat—held no hidden meaning. He must’ve just brought up parents casually.
“I hope so.”
I replied with a flawless smile on instinct. Sakayori Iroha, the perfect high school girl, is also a master of fake smiles. But—
“…There’s still time before the deadline. Let’s think it through slowly.”
A teacher with a lifetime of experience seemed to see something beneath the surface, chewing over some unspoken thought behind his smile like a ruminating animal.
I bowed and left the staff room. Immediately, lively laughter poured in through the open windows.
“Wanna go to Tsukuyomi today?”
“Yachiyo’s got a live stream, right?”
“Let’s watch KASSEN from Black OnyX!”
When I glanced down at the shoe lockers through the window, it felt like a completely different world. Students breathing in the after-school air all looked light on their feet, as if they’d grown wings.
“…Wait, I’m an after-school student too.”
The self-mocking smile that slipped from my lips must have looked completely different from the smiles bursting across their faces.
It can’t be helped. Instead of wings, my back is weighed down by exhaustion and sleep deprivation, to the point my legs feel like they might give out.
Alright—part-time job again today. After that, the usual prep and review. I have to make up for the three days I lost.
From the stack of university pamphlets my teacher gave me, I pulled one out.
The University of Tokyo. My target school hasn’t changed for a long time. If I’m going to attend a university in Japan, this is the only one my mother would approve of.
—If you’re going to aim, you have to aim for number one. If you’re settling for second or third, you might as well just stroll across flat ground where no effort is needed.
Those were my mother’s words, from some time ago, when she scolded me.
I think it was after I won second place at a piano recital. I remember smiling from ear to ear—
As I ran up to her, my mother said that to me with a completely serious face.
—What are you laughing about?
It felt like all the effort I’d put in up until then had been rejected. The silver medal hanging around my neck suddenly felt painfully embarrassing.
All I’d wanted was for her to say just one thing: You did well.
I wonder if getting into the University of Tokyo will be able to replace a gold medal.
“I became a daughter she can be proud of. I was acknowledged. Happy ending… yeah, that’s good enough.”
Telling myself that, I felt the stiffness in my smile ease just a little. And yet—
“Alright, here we go! On your mark, set—go!”
“Wooo! Usain Bolt!”
My eyes stayed fixed on the boy’s back as he ran through the school gates at top speed.
Of course, there was no way I could have noticed the alien crouched like a ninja by the gate.
※
“Oh—Iroha’s here!”
“You finally done?”
“Huh, Roka? Mami?”
I’d thought they’d gone home, but Roka and Mami were waiting for me by the shoe lockers.
That’s right—I had them too. Friends who could draw out a carefree smile from me.
“How was your long weekend?”
“Were you busy?”
I’d been invaded by an alien, and over those three days I’d barely been able to keep in touch at all. Maybe they’d been waiting for me at Tsukuyomi. On holidays when the three of us didn’t have plans together, the two—
A lot of people tend to log in late at night. That way, during the short window before I go to bed—after finishing my part-time job, studying, and chores—we can play a little or just chat.
They probably think about things like how making strict plans can feel like a burden. I do feel bad for making them worry about me, but honestly, it helps. It’s kind of pathetic, and my chest aches just a bit.
“Sorry! I was just—totally caught up in a lot of stuff…”
I brushed it off vaguely, but if they pressed me any further, what could I even say?
As I was changing my shoes, thinking that—
“Well, whatever. Let’s head home!”
“Yeah, let’s gooo.”
As if they’d sensed something off, the two of them smoothly shifted gears, took my hands, and led me out onto the sunny road home.
“So, Iroha, what are you doing about your future?”
“Music, right? Or maybe e-sports?”
With me sandwiched between them, Roka and Mami fired questions at me in turns.
“I don’t have that kind of talent. And honestly, unless I get into the University of Tokyo, my mom probably won’t approve.”
Music is impossible.
E-sports should be left to people who are actually suited for it.
Studying—I can do that if I try.
My mother supported four younger siblings while going to Kyoto University. So if I’m unburdened, shouldn’t I go at least one step further than her?
When I answered half-jokingly,
“That’s your minimum line? That’s harsh.”
“I’m being spoiled rotten compared to that.”
They laughed along with me.
The same old conversation, just like always. Roka and Mami’s smiles looked the same as ever, but the fact they’d waited for me to finish made me think maybe they had something they wanted to ask.
Even so, as if they’d agreed beforehand, they stuck to their usual pace and usual mood.
“This way, right?”
“Yeah, up those stairs. Come on, Iroha.”
Huh?
I’m being dragged toward an unfamiliar building—definitely not our usual route. What’s over there?
“Wait, you two. Didn’t we have something today?”
I mean, I do—work, studying… and also, there’s an alien at my house.
“We promised we’d check out that new café!”
“No, today’s kind of—”
Please have mercy, Mami. I can’t say it, but I spent an unbelievable amount of money over the last three days. I can’t even afford to breathe in an area this fancy.
“But we promised!”
Ah, it’s over. There’s a gourmet fire burning in Mami’s eyes. Once she’s like this, no one can stop her.
“Alright! Let’s go!”
“I beg you～～!”
The poor high school girl’s plea went unanswered, and I was escorted into a multi-purpose complex themed around ‘connecting sky, earth, and people.’
One corner housed a high-class café—stylish, sunny, and clearly out of my price range.
“Celebrating Iroha avoiding a failing grade with her notes～～”
“This is our thank-you gift! Please accept it～～”
“Th-thank you!”
Placed in front of me was the very symbol of aesthetic food: fluffy triple-layer pancakes, overflowing with cream and dreams.
I know this pattern…
This means they’re treating me!!
Honestly, I’m way too happy. How many days has it been since I last ate something this fancy? Any semblance of resistance would just be kindly shut down, so I decided to dig in—
“Thanks for the mea—”
“—Shk!”
A merciless three-pronged stabbing weapon plunged into my sparkling pancakes♡.
“…Huh?”
Gripping the silver fork was a left hand as white as snow that wouldn’t melt even under the summer sun.
“Thanks for the meal! Chomp, munch… whoa, sooo goood!”
Hey—she took a bite that big!?
The culprit, who instantly reduced my three-story fluffy pancakes to a two-story building, flashed a smile bright enough to rival a fairy-tale moon princess and said,
“Yo, Iroha!”
With a perfect wink, she sent stars flying down to earth.
W-wait, hey, wha—──!!
“Eeeh, she’s cute! Who’s this?”
“She’s wearing Iroha’s clothes. Is she your friend?”
“Y-Y-Y-YES! That’s right! Well—yes! I mean, not exactly a friend, more like—uh—”
H-how am I supposed to explain this!?
And she really is wearing my clothes!!
Isn’t there some law I can use to have her arrested for this──?!
“Do you like pancakes? Here, have some more～”
R-Roka!! Don’t spoil her!!
“Pancakes? These are pancakes? It’s totally different from Iroha’s～”
Shut up! And why are you even here!?
I told you—multiple times—to stay in the apartment!
Leaving my panicking self behind, the alien calmly gulped down the pancakes Roka gave her in one go. Then, with a smug grin, she started spouting nonsense. Her sheer audacity actually made my overheated brain start to cool down.
“Introduce her already, Iroha. Keeping such a cute friend all to yourself is unfair.”
“No, she’s not really a friend, she’s more like—uh—well—”
I pretended to hesitate to buy time and shot a desperate go home now glare at her.
“I’m from the moon!”
What is this alien saying? Whatever went through her head, she’d just delivered the worst self-introduction imaginable.
“…Huh?”
“The moon…?”
“T-Tsuki! Tsukiji! She’s from Tsukiji! My cousin from Tsukiji!”
Okay, yeah, that was a stretch. I nervously looked at Mami’s face—
“Wow! Tell me about good sushi places～?”
Yes. It worked.
As expected of Tachikawa’s number-one gourmet girl.
What about Roka?
“She’s cute—what’s your name?”
Saved. She was completely captivated by the alien’s looks.
As expected of Tachikawa’s number-one beauty girl.
“My name? Umm, my name is—uh…”
Suddenly, the fairy tale I’d seen yesterday flashed through my mind.
That princess was—
“Kaguya!”
Princess Kaguya.
“Kaguya～～ so cute!”
“Ooo, that totally fits!”
Right!? Kaguya!
While Roka and Mami got excited, I once again loaded my glare with messages and blasted the provisional Princess Kaguya at full power—
“Kaguya? Kaguya… Kaguya… Ohhh. Kaguya, huh～!”
And there she was—Kaguya, unexpectedly delighted.
A name is the first gift you receive in life.
A phrase I’d seen somewhere drifted through my mind.
“Sorry, we’ve gotta go! Thanks for everything! The food was great! I’ll make it up to you later!”
That was it—I’d hit my limit. I shoved the remaining first and second floors of my pancakes—miraculously spared from Kaguya’s attack—into my mouth in two bites, grabbed the still-blushing Kaguya, and bolted out of the café like the wind.
“Man, that building was nice and cool～ Can’t we have that at your place, Iroha?”
Kaguya kept chatting cheerfully even after we left. I led her to a quiet corner away from people, then exploded.
“Are you insane!? Why are you here!? Why did you leave the house!? I told you to stay in the room! What was that ‘I’m from the moon’ thing!? What if people figure you out!? Why are you wearing my clothes!? How did you even know where I was!?”
I let everything spill out. Every single one was, from my perspective, a completely reasonable question or complaint—
“Because it was boring.”
Kaguya answered with just that one sentence.
Like a five-year-old sulking after having their toy taken away.
…Are you serious? This alien.
Boring? Of all things—boring?
She broke her promise, went outside, risked being exposed as an alien, showed up in public, and even said she was from the moon—
All because she was bored?
“Ehehehe.”
Apparently, yes.
And in the two seconds I stayed silent, her mood seemed to flip—now she was grinning sheepishly.
…Wait.
Is she trying to laugh it off?
“You know, if you live like that, you’re going to self-destruct. Sometimes you need to learn to endure things—”
…
I got off to a smooth start, but then I couldn’t continue the sentence.
Because—those were the exact words my mom used to say to me. Ugh… I’m really saying the same thing…
“Hey, how do you use this?”
She seized the opening in my hesitation and thrust something out at me—a contact-lens-type PC device, commonly known as—
“That’s a SmartCon. You brought mine with you?”
“Nope. I bought it using your laptop.”
……Huh?
“Yay♪”
This is not a “yay.” There is absolutely no situation where this is a “yay.” I whipped out my smartphone and, half-mad, checked my online shopping history.
‘Wallet balance: ¥452
Change from yesterday: −¥124,400’
……
Wait. Is this real? N-no way… That’s impossible…
“…I saved that with my life, you know… I gave up food, cool air, warmth, fun—
I even stopped spending on my fave—and saved it with my life…
With. My. LIFE!!”
Emotionally, I wanted to burst into tears and run off, but sadly I didn’t even have the stamina for that. All I could do was scream—my strongest possible protest right now.
“Oh, it’s fine! If you just rewrite the data of the bank or something, you could increase the wallet number! For Kaguya it’d be a piece of cake—wanna try?”
She seems flustered by my abnormal reaction, but her sense of ethics is nonexistent!
No comments:
Post a Comment