Episode One: The Invader ―March 2034―

In the second elective classroom of the west wing, bathed in the setting sun. Standing at the lectern, I surveyed the empty room.

I shall continue teaching Japanese in high school as a teacher next year, the year after, and beyond.

　Even if a transfer order changes my school, as long as I continue teaching, I will spend my days conveying the joys and challenges of Japanese to high school students.

But Uehara-san is different.

Having graduated from the small box that is high school, Uehara-san will now encounter countless people whose backgrounds, ways of thinking, and everything else differ from her own. She will see all manner of things with her own eyes and experience things beyond imagination.

　Amidst such dizzying days, as Uehara-san grows, her feelings of liking me, our memories together – everything will fade.

…No, perhaps she’s already forgotten completely. If that’s the case, it’s fine. In fact, I think it’s better that way.

　I think Uehara-san is a very good girl, blessed with good looks too. Even before graduating high school, she must have had many men express their feelings for her.

So far, it seems no man has appeared whom she could truly love, but university offers incomparably more encounters than before. A wonderful man who likes Uehara-san, and a man who attracts Uehara-san, will surely appear.

I probably can only love women.

　But for Uehara-san… she should have the kind of happy romantic relationship everyone imagines, one that leads to the security gained through society’s legal institution of marriage.

Walking hand-in-hand through town, viewing the Christmas illuminations together in the crowds, getting excited with friends on Valentine’s Day talking about the person they like while making homemade chocolates, posting photos of herself with her boyfriend on social media, introducing him to family and friends, gushing about him, and seeking their advice.

　And then someday, marry, have children.

None of these things were possible with me, and even if she wished for them now… I couldn’t grant them.

I looked down at the seat closest to the lectern… her designated seat. I see her phantom, never to sit there again. I pursue her figure.

　…No, it’s not just about now.

I now see traces of her everywhere in my daily life.

The person I was before meeting her has vanished. Only I remain, my life and thoughts eroded, left behind in a world without her.

…Perhaps ‘invasion’ is a more fitting word than ‘erosion’.

My heart, trampled into a wasteland by a single invader, cannot easily be restored.

　Even when I strive to sever the ties, my feelings for her only grow stronger; I can no longer manage this on my own strength alone.

Unaware of my current state, struggling with the after-effects, she is surely smiling somewhere today.

And that is fine. I wish for her to forget about me, to find happiness in a world without me.

Holding onto that wish, I left alone, leaving behind Minami High School, where I had worked for three years.

　　　　　　　　　　◇

I had added yet another reason to dislike spring.

Every time the cherry blossoms scattered, I couldn’t help wishing they could reset all the pain and sorrow.

As soon as my suspension ended, I received a transfer order to a high school outside the city. Amidst the ensuing busyness, the periods without thinking about Uehara-san gradually grew longer.

I hadn’t contacted her once since graduation, nor seen her face. Perhaps it was only natural that my memories and feelings of her would fade.

A year passed, then two, then three. During that time, the circumstances of the few people who still contacted me had also changed significantly.

Hisako-san, who had moved to Kyushu, had safely given birth to a healthy baby girl.

Though struggling with an unfamiliar place and childcare, Hisako-san seemed to be enjoying it all with her characteristic positivity and vitality. Photos of her child arrive regularly, and I was struck by how much the little one resembles Hisako-san. She’ll undoubtedly grow into a beauty.

Sasaki-san, who went to university in Hokkaido, seems to be thoroughly enjoying student life. Her current boyfriend is apparently the eldest son of a farming family, and she joked, “If we get married, I might not be able to come back here!”

　Even when deciding her path, I observed that while she might seem easily swayed, she has a firm sense of self. She’ll surely make choices she won’t regret.

The school I was transferred to also had its share of problems.

Compared to Minami Ayakawa High School, the current school has a slightly worse atmosphere. Many pupils dislike studying, and I was thoroughly underappreciated. There was so much chatter during lessons that, at first, teaching was virtually impossible.

　Even so, I never cut corners. Ultimately, all I could do was strive relentlessly to convey the fascination of Japanese literature to as many students as possible.

Three months, six months, a year… It took time, but finally, it seemed the students recognised me as their ‘teacher’. The emotion I felt when every student in my homeroom class looked up and listened to me during class remains vividly etched in my memory.

　I felt a deep sense of pride in the fact that my encounters with Hisako-san, my interactions with Uehara-san, and the sheer accumulation of my efforts since becoming a teacher at twenty-two had all shaped me into who I was.

Not a single student referred to me as a new teacher anymore.

Uehara-san had become just another fond memory… or so I thought.

　—Or so I thought.

　　　　　　　　　　◇

Sitting at my desk in the staff room, pretending to prepare materials while merely tapping at the keyboard, I couldn’t concentrate at all.

An education intern was arriving at our school today.

Ever since hearing her name, my mind had been completely occupied with her. I’d spent sleepless nights, tense and unsettled.

　And finally, during morning assembly, she entered the staff room.

Her hair was slightly shorter than three years ago, her makeup understated. Even in a standard recruit suit, she looked so radiant – how was that possible?

“I’m Uehara Meisa, joining you all today as a teaching trainee. I look forward to working with you all over the next two weeks!”