Vol 1 Chapter 2.2 (1/2)

Chapter 2 p1

The next morning, the wind blew against the row of poplar trees again. Although the sky was sunny, wondering where it could be blowing from, Haruka looked up at the clouds. Since he was looking up, changing his mind that there’s no particular reason for the wind to blow because of the clouds, he buries his neck in his jacket.

In the morning, he always went to school alone. Since Makoto had to accompany his siblings who went to kindergarten to the bus stop, he always just barely made it. And then, he heads to school in a hurry. He can’t go along with something like that.

He grimaces as the wind blows again. Though there were a lot of children who walked in a line, only the sound of the poplar trees trembling in the wind echoed with a strange voice.

Haruka didn’t like this overly wide main road leading to the school. Especially in the winter, how everyone walked in groups stretching out was unpleasant for him. Then, when he thinks about how he’s a part of it, too, he couldn’t stand it sometimes. He ends up recalling a scene he saw from a long time ago. Although it’s something from many years before, he still clearly remembers it. A freezing wind blew that time, too.

The clomping of the people clad in white kimonos using their canes was the only noise that resounded in the port. There were about 15 of them. They slowly and silently kept walking as they all had their eyes cast down. Although some of them were old people, children like him were also mixed in with them. Before he was aware of it, Haruka’s eyes followed those children. Wearing white kimonos just like the other adults, while casting their eyes down, they were holding the hand of a little girl.

Could she be crying? Lightly grasping his fist while thinking that, that child raised her face and turned towards him. When her gaze met Haruka’s, she wiped her eyes wet with tears with her left hand. Then, she firmly stared at Haruka with glaring eyes.

“Haru-chan, where are those people going?”

A young Makoto asked, trying to hide behind Haruka.

“Don’t know.”

“Then, what are they doing?”

There’s no way he could know. He looked at Makoto instead of replying. Anxiously furrowing his eight-shaped eyebrows, Makoto tightly gripped just the edge of Haruka’s clothes. As a voice that sounded like it was weeping escaped from somewhere in the line, Makoto’s grip strengthens.

“Are you scared, Makoto?”

“Dunno. Are you, Haru-chan?”

He wasn’t scared. It’s just that their ominousness of unknown nature squirmed in his chest with a chill of unease. He doesn’t know what this line is. But he was certain that it was something that frightened Makoto. Grabbing Makoto’s hand, who was holding the edge of his clothes, Haruka ran far away from that line, far away as fast he could.

“’Morning, Nanase-kun.”

Suddenly being called out to, he ended up turning around, looking surprised. The unexpectedness had completely struck him by surprise. Once he realized that it was Aki, he got a little bothered as to how his reaction came out. But he only thought that for a moment, he instantly recovered his composure.

“Hey.”

It was a blunt reply. That was usual for him, but he thought that this reply sounded particularly grouchy, even for him. In the first place, a bright greeting would’ve been appropriate. That’s the way it is. However, Aki didn’t mind that at all, she faced him with her usual, unchanging smile.

“Sorry about yesterday. I made you worry.”

Is it about what happened on the bridge? It’s the only thing that comes to mind. He doesn’t even remember being all that worried. It was just that Aki’s sunken expression that was unlike her, had stuck in the corner of his memory a little.

“What happened to the scarf?”

Either way, since it fell into the middle of the wide river, there shouldn’t be anything that could’ve been done. As soon as he said it, he thought it would’ve been better if he hadn’t.

The dark shadow in Aki’s expression from yesterday was no longer there. She smiled as pleasantly as the summer’s blue sky.

“After Nanase-kun left, it sunk right away. Because of that, I had to accept it. If it would’ve kept getting washed away, I probably would’ve kept staring at it.”

Saying that, she smiled pleasantly again. It was a smile that didn’t suit this winter sky, or this road.

“What is it, Nanase-kun? Your face is red.”

Suddenly, Aki peeks closer at Haruka’s face. Their eyes meeting directly, just by looking slightly into the distance, he cast his eyes away.

“Nothing, it’s normal.”

“Don’t you have a fever?”

As Aki’s hand reached towards his face, Haruka instinctively brushed it away. Because of that, time stopped for a moment as the two of them faced each other. Aki looked at Haruka in surprise, holding the brushed-away hand in her other one.

“Ah…. my bad.”

It was Haruka’s mistake. If he doesn’t like getting touched, it would’ve been better if he would’ve avoided it by moving his head or by lightly protecting himself with his hand. There was no need for him to brush away her hand.

“No, it’s my fault….. sorry.”

The conversation coming to a pause there, they started walking again on the road towards the school. Staying silent, looking down, while grimacing against the strong wind that blew sometimes……..

That was a perfectly appropriate state for walking on this poplar-lined road.

Homeroom’s topic was about the “Graduation Commemoration Project”. Gathering up the ideas that every cla.s.s contributes, they narrow it down further to one of them. Since all the graduating students work together to create it afterwards, various opinions on it were given even in Haruka’s cla.s.s.

Things that could be made soon, things that didn’t seem realizable at all, funny things, things that tended heavily towards preferences. By the time they gradually ran out of ideas, Aki raised her hand.

“Um, it’s something I’ve been thinking about for a while now, but the only flowers that bloom at this school are cherry blossoms, right? That cherry blossom tree has a lot of blossoms on it when spring comes, but since it looks a little lonely…….”

It’s the large cherry blossom tree that stands between the school building and the pool. In this area, another splendid tree like that isn’t to be found. With an overwhelming presence that no kind of person can get close to, the trees, the gra.s.s, the flowers, stay far away from it, like they were overpowered.

“And so I’ve been thinking, what if we planted a flowerbed around that cherry blossom? When spring comes, I think it’d surely be lovely if the tree and the multicolored flowers could get along and bloom together.”

Haruka felt a faint opposition. The cherry blossom has to stay taller, bigger, more dignified than anyone else and with an air of calm about it. He didn’t even want to imagine its figure surrounded by flashy flowers.

“I agree with planting a flowerbed, too.”

The one who backed Aki’s idea by saying that, was Makoto.

“I think it would be good to plant flowers that would bloom around the time we graduate.”

You can’t say that the majority rule vote is always fair. Unrelated to the strength of feelings, every person is given the right to one vote of equal value. If that’s the case, bringing attention to the strength of those feelings like Aki and Makoto, it’s fine if they’re seeking understanding, but Haruka couldn’t do that. Pus.h.i.+ng his feelings onto others is what Haruka was the worst at doing.

But it’s always like that, Aki’s idea is generally supported. And then, they decided on the flowerbed with an overwhelming majority this time, too.

“Haru, are you okay?”

After homeroom, Makoto came to talk to him with a worried look on his face.

“What is it?”

“Your face is red. Don’t you have a fever?”

Aki told him the same thing in the morning, too. He put the palm of his hand on the back of his neck to try and see. He felt a little feverish.

“Not really, I’m fine.”

It’s not something to make others worry over. When he thought that Makoto’s worried expression for a sick patient was unpleasant, Rin came around, calling out in his out of place voice.

“Well who would’ve thought. That Tachibana was a romanticist who loves flowers.”

Folding his arms, he decides to his own convenience to make fun of Makoto.

“Anyways, Matusoka-kun’s idea surprised me. Launching an artificial satellite. Isn’t that even more romanticist?”

“It wasn’t launching one, but putting a message on an artificial satellite. About our dreams and friends.”

“Hmm, Matsuoka-kun is a romanticist as I thought.”

“Well, that may be true. But hey, it sure surprised me that Nanase-kun agreed to my idea. Actually, I was a little bit happy.”

Rin’s voice and Makoto’s voice both hurt his ears. Yelling at them for being noisy is too annoying and troublesome, too.

—— This might be a bit bad.

When he thought that, Rin noticed Haruka’s condition. Thought it would’ve been fine if he hadn’t.

“Huh? Nanase-kun, feeling ill?”

He wasn’t asking Haruka. He was asking Makoto.

“About that, I’m thinking that he might have a fever——“

Saying that, Makoto peeks closer at Haruka’s face.

“I told you I don’t have a fever!”

Suppressing something was troublesome. The people near them turn around upon hearing Haruka’s harsh voice. An unpleasant silence flowed in.

“….. My bad”

It’s the same words he said to Aki in the morning. Standing up from his seat, Haruka walked towards the cla.s.sroom’s door. He wanted to be freed from everything in that place for even just a little bit of time. Feeling Makoto’s anxious glance on his back, Haruka left the cla.s.sroom.

As he tries getting on the bicycle he left at the foot of the stone steps, Haruka’s feet suddenly stop. It’s the bicycle he rides to go to the swimming club every day.

—— I wonder if he’s going to run today, too.

A thought about Rin floats across a corner of his head. It’s about 2 kilometers to Iwatobi SC from here. It’s still shorter than the distance that Rin runs.

Haruka had barely done any athletic training. He didn’t have much interest in training his body. To swim, in other words, to feel the water. That’s what swimming meant to Haruka. He never once thought of swimming for the sake of winning against someone. So that’s why he didn’t bother with his time either and didn’t feel the need to train his body.

It’s just that with there being a guy who swims faster than himself, if it means that he feels the water more than himself, it’s also a fact that there’s a little ill feeling left in his chest. He doesn’t know how Rin feels the water. But he’s a guy who swims faster than him at 50m, who’s in front of him until the 70m mark at 100m. He’s running today, too——. That was plenty enough of a reason for Haruka to run as well.

He has a fever. It’s something he knew without needing Makoto and Aki to tell him. However, until now, if it was just a little cold or fever, he cured it with swimming. He doesn’t understand the reason. When he’s in the water, it heals him. If it’s just a cold, after he swam, he unbelievably got better.

So he had no intention from the start to take a break today, either. But, if he goes, he’ll meet Rin. He’ll see Rin running. While he pa.s.ses by Rin on his bicycle, he’ll look away. Then, he’ll feel irritated at himself that he didn’t run.

Just once, he looked up at the stairs leading to Makoto’s house. Makoto isn’t coming yet. Leaving his bicycle behind, he began running the 2 km distance in a light gait.

The wind blew on Mutsukibas.h.i.+ today, too. The wind hitting his cheeks, he unintentionally looks up at Myoujinyama. Changing his mind that there’s no particular reason for the wind to be blowing from the mountain, turning forward again, he keeps running.