Episode 4: Call Me Nana
Then, Kase Mizuki awoke after just over an hour, and by the time it had grown completely dark outside, the rain had stopped entirely.
“Thank you, Asami-san. I feel like I’ve recovered a bit of my energy thanks to you.”
Could accumulated fatigue really be so easily dispelled with just an hour’s sleep?
I did wonder that, but if it helped even a little, sacrificing these arms was worth it.
I didn’t tell Kase Mitsuki, but right now, my arms felt unbearably heavy and sluggish. My biceps, in particular, were completely shot.
Perhaps from tensing my arms so hard to make absolutely sure I didn’t drop Tasuku, my back and waist ached pitifully too.
I wanted some kind of reward for this sacrifice.
Thinking that, I calmly voiced my request.
“…Listen, instead of Asami-san, could you call me Nana? I’m not really used to being called by my surname. All my friends call me Nana.”
When I casually said this, Kase Mitsuki looked at my face, as if surprised.
What’s with that face?
Did I say something that strange?
“…If I started calling Asami-san by her first name, wouldn’t everyone be shocked?”
“Really? Maki calls me Nana too.”
“That’s because she’s Yamada-san…”
I understand her reluctance.
If we suddenly started getting along in class, everyone would be genuinely shocked, and it might threaten her peaceful life right now.
It’s not that I want to take away her precious rest time.
I still want her to sleep as much as possible between lessons, just like before, so I have no intention of disturbing her at school from now on.
“Then just when we’re alone is fine. Can I call you Mizuki?”
“Ah, yeah, of course. Actually… you knew my name?”
“How could I not know the name of the top student in the year? Ever since first year, I’ve been wondering how I could beat you. I’ve always been aware of you, Mizuki.”
The real reason I was aware of her wasn’t because she was top of the year, though.
But I’ll never tell her that, not in a million years.
“I did lose to you in the mid-term exams, though.”
Mizuki said it casually, not seeming bothered at all.
Or rather, I was slightly surprised she’d even noticed the mid-term rankings.
After all, she’d always been asleep in class and seemed utterly disinterested in rankings.
“…You can’t call this winning. It’s like I got covering fire from you, Tasuku. That’s not skill, is it?”
When I said this with a pout, Mizuki laughed brightly, ahaha.
“You’ve been trying to beat me this whole time?”
“I did think I’d like to be top of the year at least once before graduation. It was a goal.”
I thought maybe then, maybe then, you might notice me. That’s why I kept pushing myself.
“Hehe, is that so? Now you mention it, I feel a bit annoyed I lost. Suddenly I regret handing over first place.”
She said that, but she didn’t seem annoyed at all. If anything, she looked pleased.
“…Hey, never mind that. Can I come visit Tasuku again? While I keep an eye on Tasuku, you can rest, right? Win-win, isn’t it?”
“…That’s surprising. Asami-san… no, Nana, you like children, don’t you? Of course it’s fine, I’m glad you asked.”
It’s not that I like children. The one I really want to see is—
But, something like that… I could never say it.
“Right then, take care on your way home.”
“Right, see you later.”
At the front door, I put on my loafers and turned around. Mitsuki grabbed Tasuku’s small hand and waved, so I waved back at them both and left the house.
Outside, it was already dark. The wet asphalt glistened, reflecting the lights of passing cars.
Mitsuki. Mitsuki. Mitsuki.
Without saying it aloud, I murmured her name over and over in my mind.
Ever since first year, I’d been dreaming of a day like this.
In second and third years, we were in different classes, so I could only watch her from afar.
It was great when we ended up in the same class in fourth year, but Mitsuki was always asleep, and there was never any chance to get to know her.
I never imagined such luck would come my way at the very last moment.
I hummed a tune as I made my way home.
Finally having a connection with Mitsuki—I was so happy I felt like skipping all the way home.
＊＊＊
“I’m home!”
Opening the door to my house, the delicious smell wafting through the hallway made me realise straight away that tonight’s dinner was curry.
My family consists of my father, a university professor; my mother, formerly a cabin attendant for an airline and now a full-time housewife; and my brother, two years my senior, who attends the most prestigious local university where my father works.
Compared to my brother, I’m not particularly gifted academically, but I’ve never been forced to study harder or pressured about which university to attend.
When I submitted my career aspirations form, I listed only Tokyo universities, not the local one my father and brother attended, yet my parents didn’t object at all.
Life is a one-time-only journey, so live as you wish and have no regrets.
That’s my father’s teaching.
Though he remains in Japan now, in his youth, my father apparently travelled the world for research, and I grew up hearing tales of his youthful exploits.
Incidentally, I hear how my parents met: he fell for my mother at first sight when she happened to be a flight attendant on a plane he boarded, and he gave her his contact details.
I don’t wish to find a life partner by adventuring around the world like my father did, but at the very least, I want to escape this town.
After all, in a cramped provincial town with a population of just over two million, suffering from a declining birth rate and an ageing population, I doubt I’ll ever meet a girl who could love me.
The world is small. I’m scared of my parents finding out, and frankly, I have no idea how to even meet someone who likes the same sex as me…
“Welcome home, Nana. Dinner’s just ready~. Today’s meal is…”
“Curry, right? Great!”
I flung my school bag onto the sofa. My brother, who since becoming a university student had grown a proper buzz cut, bulked up, and taken on an overly intimidating look, appeared from the kitchen carrying a tray of curry.
“Nana, you were late today.”
“Ah, yeah, I was at a friend’s place.”
“If you’re going to be this late, give me a call. I’ll come pick you up in the car.”
“Nah, it’s fine. It’s close to home.”
My brother, who used to fight constantly with me during his rebellious phase, suddenly matured once he started university.
Whether it was because he’d passed twenty, I don’t know, but he’d evolved like a completely different person.
In Japan, adulthood begins at eighteen.
So once I have my birthday, I’ll join the ranks of adults too.
Well, I’m an early birthday person, so my actual birthday is still a long way off, and it doesn’t feel real at all.
I still don’t quite grasp this difference between adults and children that lies on the cusp between seventeen and eighteen.
After all, it doesn’t mean you can start smoking or drinking alcohol. I just can’t see the difference at all.
Mizuki’s birthday was in April, I believe, so she’s already an adult.
My birthday is next March, so I’m still a child.
That’s how society distinguishes us.
But I’m sure I’ll still be a child even when I turn eighteen, and I want to stay that way.
Having been raised freely and unfettered myself, I simply cannot understand why Mizuki’s parents make their eighteen-year-old daughter look after their young child.
Still, there are people who enter the workforce straight after finishing high school.
Claiming “I’m still a child!” while receiving a salary probably wouldn’t fly.
Thinking about it that way, stepping into society still feels frightening. I find myself wanting to be protected a little longer.
I wonder at what precise moment one clearly recognises oneself as having become an adult.
When you vote for the first time?
When you gain access to adult content?
When you can get a credit card?
Or perhaps when you can handle spicy curry?
Watching my older brother generously sprinkle spices into the mild curry made to suit my taste, I found myself wondering.
My brother, now twenty, is probably an adult after all.
But to me, that eighteen-year-old still doesn’t quite look like an adult.