Prologue: In the Classroom After School

We kissed.

It was the second kiss of my life.

We were both adults, neither of us in a relationship. There shouldn’t have been any problem, but the fact we were in a deserted classroom at the high school where we worked made it feel wrong.

　…No, setting aside whether it was a problem. Was kissing even appropriate when we weren’t dating? Wasn’t that ethically questionable?

Should I take responsibility? As I pondered this, she peered at my face from close range and smiled.

“You look rather preoccupied. Thinking about taking responsibility? It’s fine. I did it knowing that.”

　Flirted with by that refined, beautiful face, I couldn’t help but avert my eyes.

This is the story of roughly 4000 days in the life of me – someone who grew into adulthood while still harbouring a twisted mix of first love and heartbreak.

And at the same time – for her too, it’s a tale of romance that’s never purely sweet.

So for now, I close my eyes and surrender myself to this sweet embrace.

Because when I open them, the world will have changed.