Sleeping Beauty and the Kind Witch. Part 2
Turning around, Shigure-san was there, as if by magic.
Sometimes I genuinely wonder if she might actually be a witch.
I know she’s come to pick up Shizuku.
But.
“Ibara.”
“No, no way!”
“Eh?”
I spun on my heel, pressing down hard with her toes.
Kicking off the tarmac, I bolted off in the opposite direction.
“Hey, Ibara⁉︎”
“Forget what just happened! Forget it!”
I shouted it out, then ran.
Shigure-san chased after me, but she was nowhere near as fast.
Old habits die hard. I’ve got decent stamina.
I’ll shake her off for now, then figure out what face to make when we meet.
Or so I thought.
“Whoa!”
“Waaah!”
A girl appeared from around the corner. Trying to dodge her, I lost my balance.
Just as I thought I was going to fall, the girl grabbed my arm and steadied me. She pulled me up,
“What on earth are you doing?”
She looked utterly exasperated.
“Shizuku…”
The person I’d nearly collided with was, of all people, Shizuku.
This was the worst possible outcome.
Turning around, I saw Shigure-san running towards us from the end of the path. What on earth was I going to do?
While I desperately tried to think of how to cover it up, Shizuku casually said,
“Had a lovers’ quarrel with my big sis or something?”
“No, it’s not a quarrel, it’s more like, Eh⁉︎”
I couldn’t help but stare at Shizuku’s face.
A lovers’ quarrel? Why?
Could it be… she knows?
“It’s my big sis, right? The older person you’re seeing?”
“Wh-what are you talking about?”
“No need to play dumb. Well, we can talk details another time.”
Shizuku pulled me to my feet and spun me around a full 180 degrees.
“I don’t know what’s going on, but anyway—”
She nudged my back.
“Go talk to her properly.”
Pushed forward, I stepped out.
Right in front of me stood Shigure-san.
“──Shigure-san”
“…Haa, ha… haa…”
“Shigure-san, listen—”
“I-Ibara, I’m sorry—”
“Eh?”
“Could you… just wait a moment… I need to catch my breath…”
She took a deep breath in and out with a puff.
“Big sis. I’ve got things to do, so I’m heading home first.”
“Ah, right… Shizuku, are you feeling alright…?”
Shizuku gave a disbelieving look to Shigure, who was still catching her breath.
“Far better than you just now. Bye.”
And with that, she simply walked off.
I took Shigure’s still-shaky hand and guided her towards a quieter alleyway.
Near the park. Leaves thick on the branches that jutted out far, rustling softly in the breeze.
Shigure-san, finally catching her breath, let out a long, drawn-out sigh.
“Ibara, you’re quick on your feet, aren’t you?”
“If anything, Shigure-san, you’re the slow one, aren’t you?”
“Well, that’s true…”
In the slightly awkward silence that followed, I bowed my head.
“I’m sorry. Shizuku found out. About me and Shigure-san.”
“Ah, so she did? Hmm, well, it couldn’t be helped. I was planning to tell her eventually.”
What’s that, so light-hearted.
No, wait. She’s acting light-hearted. To spare my feelings.
She’s putting on a nonchalant face so I won’t feel responsible and get downhearted.
I like that about her, but just this once, it felt different.
“Why aren’t you angry?”
“Angry?”
“You said you wanted to keep it a secret. I’m the one who messed up.”
My eyes burn hot, my voice trembles.
I knew I was talking nonsense.
But I couldn’t stop.
“Get angry at me. I don’t want you to treat me kindly like you do everyone else. If you do… I won’t be able to tell…”
“Ibara.”
“If you’re only going to be kind, then don’t be kind. Don’t treat me the same as everyone else. I don’t want to be the same.”
Because I…
“I want to be special.”
I wouldn’t say I want to be cherished more than Shizuku, Haru, or Yomi-san, her dearest friends.
I just want to be special.
No matter how sweet and smooth it tastes, I hate off-the-shelf things.
I don’t care if it’s sour or bitter, I want something special just for me.
After saying what I needed to say and exhaling, the back of my nose stung.
The torrential impulse passed, and the core of my head grew cold.
Oh dear, I’ve done it.
There’s no running away to cover it up this second time.
Did she think I was ridiculous? Did she think I was a troublesome child? Did she dislike me?
Raising my face cautiously, Shigure-san wore a solemn expression.
“…Um.”
My shoulders jerked as if struck.
“You want me to prioritise you over Runa and Shizuku, is that it?”
I should just say yes, but being the troublesome person I am, I shake my head instead.
That’s not it. I want you to cherish your sister and your friends too. I want you to stay kind to everyone. To me too, of course.
I love gentle Shigure-san.
But I want her to make me feel special.
What the right answer is, what I want her to do — I don’t know either.
“I think you might be misunderstanding something…… I’m not quite as much of a softhearted person as you think, you know.”
“That’s not true.”
“Aren’t you giving me too much credit? I’m pretty careless with Shizuku sometimes…… But, I see. So that’s what you were thinking.”
Shigure-san’s slender fingers touched my bangs.
She began gently smoothing out the shape — dishevelled and wild from running and crying.
“You are special.”
Shigure-san said.
“Only Ibara is my special one.”
“…Then prove it.”
The evening glow deepened, and the world was dyed a shade of vermilion.
Night was drawing close.
“Prove it……”
Shigure-san was at a loss.
That’s fair, I thought.
What do I even want her to do — that’s how it feels.
Sorry for saying something so difficult.
I love Shigure-san, I love her, so why does it hurt this much.
Tears spilled out one by one, tracing softly down my cheeks.
The sound of a car approached from somewhere far off, then drifted away again.
Through my blurred vision, Shigure-san looked somehow awkward.
“Um. Well, Ibara. I’m terribly sorry to bring this up now, but—”
“…………Yeah.”
“Would it be alright if I just… hugged you for a moment?”
“……Eh?”
“No, it’s just… you know… you look so downcast, Ibara, and it’s incredibly cute… I suppose even someone my age can get a little fluttery sometimes…”
Even in the twilight, Shigure-san’s face was flushed crimson.
And then, those eyes.
Deep within the gaze fixed on me, a smouldering heat flickered.
“So… no?”
“It’s not that… but. This is right by the school route.”
“Mm.”
“People might see us, so not now.”
“I’m sorry.”
Ignoring my reply, Shigure-san’s arms wrapped around my back.
With gentle strength, she drew me close.
Over her shoulder, I saw the back of a woman walking her dog.
The sound of cars passing on the road a little way off.
The cawing of crows.
The siren calling children home, echoing from some park.
“I love you.”
Shigure-san’s voice drowned out everything else.
“I love you, you cute little pain in the neck.”
The sound of my heartbeat and Shigure-san’s voice.
It felt as though the whole world had vanished, leaving only those two sounds.
Her fingertips brushed the back of my ear.
Shigure-san was staring intently at me from point-blank range.
Her wavering eyes, filled with confusion, conveyed her inner conflict.
Reason and affection were stretched taut, balanced like a tightrope walk.
And then, I understood.
──She wants to kiss me. Shigure-san too.
The moment I realised that, my chest tightened painfully.
I want to. Me too.
If we keep looking at each other like this, maybe she’ll make the first move.
I thought about playing that little game, but in the end, I couldn’t hold back.
I gave her a light kiss, just a touch, filled with the feeling of ‘It’s alright’.
Did that get the message across properly?
Seeing Shigure-san’s eyes up close, they were feverish, earnest, wavering.
And yet, they weren’t gentle at all.
“Shigure-san—”
As if to silence my words, lips pressed against mine.
The sweet scent, the smooth feel of skin.
Something warm and soft entered me, then withdrew immediately, like touching something hot.
“I don’t know how to prove it,”
Shigure-san’s voice tickled my ear.
“The only reason I do things like this, the only reason I want to do them, is because of you, Ibara.”
“…Yeah.”
“You’re special. Only you are special.”
“Yeah.”
“So, I think there will be times like this when I can’t be gentle. Sorry about that, even though I’m older.”
“…Yeah.”
“Even so, will you stay with me?”
“I will.”
Behind my eyelids, that expression from earlier was etched.
That was the answer, the proof.
The unkind side of Shigure-san, who is kind to everyone.
The heat and light deep within her eyes. That single-minded gaze. Those raw emotions.
All of it was a secret only I knew, my own special thing.