Chapter 22 (1/2)
Chapter 22 – Together again
My name is Sasaki Atsuko I’m thirteen I just enrolled in a local middle school the other day
And so, I spentbooks in the seat farthest in the back The girls around me that had coroups rapidly
Originally, I should have also joined a group, and be having friendly conversations right now, but…… I’ood to say, is it alright to join them, I have no clue whatsoever
During elementary school, while I spent my days puzzled like this before I noticed it I had become always alone
And so, when everyone was together I was always out of the loop, or conored because I didn’t fit in, or teased, or sometimes they would even hide my stuff
As I spent my days like this, before I realized it I became afraid of other people, and I didn’t speak very much to anyone at all
Because of that, even though I’ve come to middle school now and it’s a brand new environment…… I still can’t approach people and have a conversation
That’s why, I was only able to watch the people around ht from home by myself
Froa to novels, I loved all sorts of books
While reading a book, once I entered the story, it beca all alone
While reading, I would iine that I was the main character of the story Even I as always alone with irl in a story
So, I opened a book as usual today In order to escape from my lonely reality……
And as the days passed like this, it became a feeeks since I entered middle school
After o to the library to borrow books In the last feeeks, that’s beco my shoes at the shoe lockers, I would cut across the school courtyard where all the athletic clubs gathered and head straight for the school gate I didn’t enter any clubs I kind of want to enter one and e to go anywhere by myself
How nice, it looks so fun I was thinking that as I saw other girls chatting away in the school courtyard At that time –
“Ahh~~~~”
I heard a strange cry fro hit me with a loud thud with a tremendous impact It was such an impact that I immediately fell unconscious
“Ohh, I’m really sorry”
I woke up to soirl whose face was flooded with tears and had a runny nose in front of
“Ahh, she’s awake! She opened her eyes, sensei!”
When the girl noticed that I opened my eyes, she fleards the other side of the white curtain
I don’t understand the situation at all I wondered if I was still asleep I looked around slowly There was a white ceiling, with swaying white curtains next to me, and I was in a white bed
I don’t knohere this is, but it see is the same
Huh, I thought for sure that I was supposed to be cutting across the school courtyard……
This ti white clothes appeared in front of the confused me
“How do you feel? Is your head dizzy? Does it hurt anywhere on your body?”
The woman in the white coat askedin particular really hurts, and I think my head is fine
“……I, I’ht”
The woently when I answered her
“Is that so, I’ really happened you should go to the hospital for a checkup Your parents have also been contacted just now”
“……Eh? Hospital? Checkup?”
I had zero idea as going on and I just looked at the woman in the white coat with a confused face
“That’s right It must have happened so suddenly that you didn’t even knoas going on This is the school infirht here because you fainted”
“…………Fainted……”
Oh, so this is the infirmary, it’s the first time that I’ve been here, so I didn’t knohere I was…… That means that this woman with the white coat is probably the infirmary’s nurse But anyways, I don’t have any illnesses, and I wasn’t feeling sick or anything today Yet, why did I faint…… My confusion just increased and it was quite visible And so, the nurse gave a wry s my confusion
“Well, you fainting probably didn’t have anything to do with your condition at all Unmistakably, it was caused by this child”
As she said so, the nurse indicated to the girl that was standing next to her It’s the girl from earlier, and her face was still messy with tears and her nose was still runny
“I’m sorry!”
As she said so, she deeply lowered her head towards me
“I finally couldn’t resist the charreat in the beginning, but I got a little carried away…… And so my foot slipped and I fell…… And I landed on top of you…… I’m really sorry!”
At that tie cry fro hit irl fell on top of me
But anyways she’s not an elementary student anymore, she’s already intrees…… And what does “I finally couldn’t resist the charm of the tree as it beckoned towards me” mean……
I looked again at the teary-faced girl as desperately apologizing
And then, I noticed This girl’s uniform’s skirt…… The skirt was quite dirty with soil, and it was rather ruot dirty when she fell froirl cli a skirt She seee child……
“Uht now”
I can’t let her keep staying like this with her head bowed towards ht
“……But…”
The girl still had a troubled face and continued bowing
“I’ht now, so please don’t mind it anymore”
I was suddenly buried underneath her when she fell on irl is being so remorseful……
And… I just couldn’t bring irl who had a troubled face and was lowering her head, there was just this indescribable atmosphere around her
“Since it wasn’t on purpose or anything, please don’t mind it at all More importantly, are you injured? Are you okay?”
I said so to the girl while s
“I’m okay Thank you, Sasaki-san is so nice”
The girl who had been crying up until now finally smiled
Anyways……
“……Why do you know my name……”
Why does this girl know
“What are you talking about? Of course I know it After all, we’re in the same class!”
“……!?”
I had a blank face at hearing those words and stared intently at the girl in front of me Come to think of it, I feel like I’ve seen her before
……So that was it, she was a classmate…… In the weeks since I’ve enrolled inby myself, and I haven’t remembered most people’s names or faces
“……Sorry, I haven’t really remembered everyone’s names and faces in the class yet”
Even though you remember me, I’m really sorry that I didn’t remember you What if she’s unhappy because of that? As if to dispel rinned widely
“So that’s it Then, once again, I’m year one, class three’s –”
The girl held her hand out to me as she introduced herself When I instinctively shook her hand in return, the smile spread over her entire face
“From now on, I’ll be in your care”
The girl’s hand that I was holding onto was very warm
And so, froreat change Just like her words “froan to interact with me from the next day on for some reason, and before I realized it became my first friend
And so –
“A-chan~~, help me~~”
My friend huggedme for help in a pathetic voice
“……What is it this time?”
I listened to her as calmly as possible
“The English translation was today, but I thought it was on another day, and forgot all about it…… And before this tiotten about it the previous two tiet any ……”
I was ahed
“……I think you forget too s……”
While being shocked, I loaned ically appeared
“Be sure to return thelish class”
“A-chan-sama, thank you very much!”
After saying so, the friend that had just lowered her head tomy notes
“Sasaki-san, you see care of that monkey”
One of the girls that sat close to me and my friend in class said so with a wry smile
“……Monkey?”
“Yes, monkey That’s been her nickname since elementary school I went to the same school as her”
As she answered ave yet another wry smile
“She wouldrecess, and she would always be playing around in the nearby hborhood that ‘there’s huge monkeys in that mountain’ because of her”
“……That’s really quite so”
Indeed, if she was like that back in ele a tree at school in a skirt would be nothing to her even though she’s now in middle school
“Moreover, just like today she always forgets her hory at her, yet she’ll just forget everything the next day again…… She’ll always forget to bring it”
“……That’s really quite so”
Indeed,scolded, but the next day, she’ll be coain
It seeet at et about everything the next day However, is this actually good for the person in question…… It must be hard on everyone around her
When I said “it must be hard on everyone else” to her, her expression became a bit profound
“But, like…… There’s soether with her for some reason”
When the girl shed as she said so, I also smiled on reflex
And after that, she told ends about my friend’s elementary school days