Episode 13: What the Eyes Follow ⑴
The muggy rainy season ended, and the cicadas began to chirp. Summer was too hot, sapping all motivation.
“Oi!”
Cicadas only live for about seven days after becoming adults. They spend most of their lives as larvae. For those few days as adults, they endure years in the dark earth, persevering.
If I keep enduring now, will I be able to spread my wings someday?
“Hey! Are you listening!?”
I hadn’t noticed Mai speaking to me and had been spacing out.
“Sorry. I was lost in thought.”
“You seem to be doing that a lot lately, eh? Anything up? I’m here if you need to talk.”
“It’s fine. Nothing’s wrong.”
Mai is so kind and thoughtful, I sometimes wonder what she sees in me to be my friend. She always looks out for me.
There’s Mai, chatting about trivial things as usual, but one thing about her has changed compared to before.
I’ve started to find her stories a little interesting.
“So, this weekend there’s a big basketball tournament at my school. You should definitely come and watch!”
“Ehh…”
“Don’t make such a blatantly disgusted face! Basketball’s fun! If you come, Hoshizora, it’ll really motivate us!”
“Well, I don’t know the rules of basketball or anything…”
Even saying that, I do feel like I want to go. Because Endo-san is in the basketball club too. If Endo-san is actually good at basketball as well, then I’d probably go beyond jealousy and start treating her like a goddess.
“Well, if I don’t have plans, I’ll think about it.”
“Really! I’m looking forward to it!”
“I haven’t decided I’m going yet, you know.”
“You cheapskate, Hoshizora!”
Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to take a break from studying and go along just for a change of pace.
Lately, Mai seems to be smiling at me more often.
“Is there something on my face?”
I ask, trying to sound annoyed.
“Nah, it’s just that Hoshizora seems to be enjoying herself more lately. Not long ago, she looked so serious I thought she might suddenly disappear, so it makes me a bit happy.”
True enough, I’d hardly been going up to the roof lately. Perhaps I’d been too busy to even have time to think about dying or such things.
As we walked down the corridor talking about this, the popular group, including Endo-san, came walking towards us. The mixed-gender group seemed cheerful and friendly. As we passed, I thought our eyes met briefly, but they quickly looked away.
“Yaa-ho!”
I looked up to see Endo-san greeting Mai.
It was only natural, given we were in the same club.
Still, realising it wasn’t directed at me left me feeling a bit complicated.
“Hoshizora, are you interested in Hina?”
“Eh…?”
“Well, you keep staring at her whenever you pass her in school or she’s nearby. You never seemed interested in anyone before, but now you’re always looking at Hina.”
I hadn’t really been conscious of it myself.
I hadn’t been conscious of it, and Mai is oddly sharp in strange ways. I resolved to be more careful about my actions.
Today after school was the day I’d arranged to study with Endo-san.
Club activities seemed to be keeping her busy, so we hadn’t managed to study together much lately. It had been a while.
Teaching Endo-san her studies was something I still continued to do.
What’s more, we kept it a secret from our school friends.
I’d asked her to keep it secret.
If people found out she was associating with someone like me, whose only redeeming quality is studying, I’d feel sorry for Endo-san. It might even strain her relationships with her current friends.
Endo-san is very conscientious; on days I teach her, she’ll buy dinner for me. I tell myself she doesn’t need to go to such trouble, but I accept her kindness, knowing she’d feel awkward if I refused something offered freely.
As planned, Endo-san came to the library.
“I haven’t been studying at all lately, and the other day I couldn’t keep up in class. Takizawa, help me.”
“It’s not because you haven’t been studying. You were just tired and asleep, weren’t you?”
“You know me so well.”
Why can she say such embarrassing things with her chest puffed out like that?
We’re in different classes, so I don’t know what Endo-san’s like at school, but occasionally when we pass each other, I can see a hint of exhaustion in her face.
She still looks a bit under the weather now.
Worried she might have a fever, my hand unconsciously reached out to her forehead.
She doesn’t seem to have a fever.
“Wh-what!?”
For some reason, Endo-san panicked and kicked the desk. She’s always so noisy in the library.
“I was just wondering if you had a fever. Anyway, let’s get started.”
“Y-yeah…”
Endo-san’s cheeks really are red. I think she’s fine since she doesn’t have a fever, but I am worried.
After concentrating for a while, Endo-san spoke up.
“I heard from Mai, but are you coming to watch the basketball match this week?”
Mai always blabbers about people’s personal details without permission. Though exasperated by her, I had no choice but to answer Endo-san’s question.
“I don’t have any plans at the moment, so since I was invited, I thought I might go.”
“Oh…”
It was an unusually curt reply for Endo-san. She furrowed her brow before starting to say something else that made no sense.
“Listen, if I score the most points for the team at this weekend’s tournament, I want a reward…”
Does Endo-san really like rewards that much? I wish she wouldn’t ask me for one.
I don’t have much to give, and I can’t do much. Besides helping with studies, I can’t really offer anything else.
“What would it be, by the way?”
I had no intention of giving her a reward, but I was curious what she might ask for.
Endo-san opened her mouth, mumbling. Her cheeks were still slightly red, as usual.
“I’d like you to come shopping with me the Saturday after the tournament.”
I thought, Oh, that’s all it is.
I’d been worried she might ask me to take her to some fancy restaurant, but this seemed manageable enough.
Well, no, it wasn’t manageable.
If the school’s most popular kid and the school’s most unpopular kid were seen walking together on a holiday, it would probably start some weird rumours.
Still, I had no reason to refuse. When I replied, “Sure,” she looked incredibly pleased and resumed her studies.
“I made some homemade cookies. If you don’t mind, would you like these as a thank you for today?”
They were cookies made by Endo-san, who could cook such delicious food. They were bound to be tasty.
“I’d be delighted to accept them.”
The pink bag contained cookies of various shapes and colours. Each had a cute shape and a delicious-looking colour.
Lately, everything Endo-san gives me seems to sparkle. Perhaps she really is a magician.
With that joke in mind, the study session ended, and I decided to head home.
“What a waste…”
I gently poked the adorable cookies she’d made with my finger.
Food disappears once eaten, and the memory of its taste fades after a while. It felt wasteful, but I couldn’t let something Endo-san gave me go to waste.
I took a bite.
Delicious… It was just a cookie, yet it tasted incredibly good. Endo-san really was skilled at baking too.
I hope I can tell her what I thought tomorrow…
Tomorrow isn’t a study day.
The next study session is next week.
I felt a pang of frustration at not being able to tell her until then.