Episode One Hundred and Fourteen
“Wh-what—”
“Can I come in, at least?”
Without waiting for a reply, I entered the room and closed the door behind her.
It was a sparsely furnished room, I thought. Perhaps it was too large for a child’s bedroom.
The desk and chair seemed height-adjustable, but they didn’t match Ibaras current height.
“Sorry about this sudden visit. But I thought we wouldn’t get anywhere chatting online - Whoa!”
Suddenly, she threw herself into my arms.
I nearly bit my tongue, cutting off my words.
Running my fingers through her silky hair, I caught the scent of citrus lemon.
“…Did you miss me?”
Instead of an answer, I heard a small sniffle.
Her face buried in my shoulder, she hugged me tight. Painfully tight.
The face pressed against me moved from side to side.
“I didn’t.”
“You didn’t?”
“Because it’s only been a week. I was the one who walked out on you. I can’t say something like that…… that I was lonely……”
Muttering excuses, she rubbed up against me like a kitten.
Her words were stubborn, but her actions were honest.
“But I was lonely.”
“…Shigure-san, that’s unfair.”
“What is?”
“The way you can just casually say things like that.”
“I’m an adult, after all.”
The grip in her arms eased just a little.
I patted her back twice with my palm, and her arms slowly dropped.
I touched the area beneath Ibara’s eyes.
Tracing the dark circles with the pad of my thumb.
Poor thing. You’ve made these again.
“May I ask why you left without a word?”
“…That…”
She visibly hesitated. Didn’t want to say, did she?
Very well then.
“Well, I think I have a rough idea.”
“Huh”
“You were threatened over my company, weren’t you?”
The color drained from Ibara’s face in an instant.
“H-how did you know⁉︎”
“Ah, so it really was that.”
“Huh?”
“Sorry, I was just fishing. I had my suspicions, but…”
Her perfectly shaped lips opened and closed rapidly.
Well, what else could I do? If I didn’t bait her, she wouldn’t tell me the truth.
Ibara grumbled, “Ugh, ugh.”
“Shigure-san, that’s unfair!”
“I’m an adult, after all.”
I couldn’t help but laugh.
Ibara’s protest – “Why are you laughing?” – was adorable.
“You could have told me everything, you know.”
“But—”
Her dark-eyed gaze wavered uncertainly.
“I don’t want to cause you any more trouble, Shigure-san.”
“Shinomori Ibara is a woman burdened by three misfortunes, right? Adding a fourth or fifth now doesn’t make much difference.”
“It does make a difference.”
Lowering her long lashes, Ibara continued.
“I think it might…… I think it might matter……”
She really is adorable, I thought.
The way her heart works — lonely, yet not wanting to be a burden to me, not wanting to be seen as too much, so she runs off alone — it’s heartbreaking in the most tender way.
My princess, as strong and fragile as glasswork.
“Does this mean you believe me a little now?”
“…Mm.”
She finally lifted her face.
But her expression remained clouded.
“…Thank you for coming. But you really must go back soon. If Natori-san saw you here, Shigure-san’s company…”
“Would be ruined?”
“It’s not a threat. It really might happen.”
“That would be a problem.”
I owe Forma Design a great deal. There were death march periods, but I learnt so much there. I have respected seniors and a junior I’m fond of. Regardless of the circumstances, I can’t cause trouble for them.
Therefore.
“Then, shall we just elope together?”
“E——?”
Ibara froze.
“Eloping, you mean——?”
“Quit my job and live together in the same house.”
“That’s impossible, obviously.”
“It’s possible.”
Ibara’s tired eyes widened as far as they could go.
As if revealing a closely guarded secret, I continued.
“I’ve been thinking of going independent.”
“…What?”
“Quitting Forma Design and becoming a freelance designer. Even the mighty Shirahodo couldn’t possibly interfere with every single freelance job, right?”
This was why I’d come all this way.
Not a reckless impulse born of desperation, not an unthinking escape from reality — but a choice that exists within a reachable reality.
“I’ve got a portfolio now, so I reckon I can manage. No more commuting means we could move to the suburbs, and then we could live in a bigger place.”
“…Wait.”
“Not like this semi-cohabitation, but properly, together, just the two of us.”
“No, wait.”
“You don’t want to be with me forever?”
“Of course. It’s not that. It’s just——”
Ibara’s pale throat trembled as she continued.
“But suddenly… like that… you don’t have to force it. It’s just a pipe dream anyway, right?”
“I mean it perfectly seriously, actually.”
“You can’t just quit your current company easily, can you?”
“About half of us are going independent. I was planning to do the same. We’ve got projects on the go, so it’ll be summer at the earliest.”
“Will you actually get work?”
“At first, I won’t be fully freelance. I plan to work at Forma a few days a week. As a contract employee. Of course, if it causes trouble, it can’t be helped.”
“Finding a place to live won’t be easy either.”
“There might be a vacancy in one of Aki-san’s properties. It’s a detached house, not too far from your preferred school either.”
“No, no. Don’t say any more. I don’t want to hear it…”
Like a child throwing a tantrum, she covered her ears and shook her head.
“Why?”
“Because it’s scary.”
Tears glistened in Ibara’s eyes.
The light streaming through the window reflected off the clear droplets, making them sparkle.
“If I hear that, I won’t be able to go back…”
“…Ibara.”
“Really? You’re not lying? Not some future or dream or hypothetical scenario, but that you’ll be with me forever? That’s what you mean?”
“Ibara, you said it.”
“Me?”
“You said we’d live together.”
The ideal future Ibara had once told me about.
Ever since hearing that, I’d been thinking about it little by little.
About how to reconcile reality and dreams.
We couldn’t live together forever in that cramped room. There were issues with the lease too.
If we were to rent a bigger house, the suburbs would be best. I wasn’t dissatisfied with my current job, but I didn’t particularly aspire to management either.
I wanted to keep doing design work, even if it was on a smaller scale.
And so, my answer was this.
It wasn’t some hastily cobbled together answer. Just moving things forward a little.
Saying I wasn’t anxious would be a lie.
“You’re not going to suddenly say you’ve changed your mind, are you?”
“I promise.”
“You won’t try it and then say it was impossible?”
“I’m sure I won’t.”
“…Can I believe you?”
“You can.”
The next instant, Ibara came flying at me like a bullet.
Staggering from the second charge of the day, I somehow managed to brace my legs to catch her.
“Shigure-san.”
“Yes.”
“I love you.”
“…Yes.”
“I love, love, love, love… I love you so much it’s confusing. It’s scary how much.”
“Yes.”
The feel of her silky hair and the scent of citrus lemon. The warmth of her soft body.
Even though we’d only been apart for a moment, it felt impossibly nostalgic and comforting.