"All right then, I'm off!"

"Look out for cars!

Be back before dinnertime!"

Today was the day of the barbecue party that was the Hinamizawa Fighters' victory celebration.

Of course, I, having prepared myself, skipped breakfast in order to stay hungry.

...Though with all the club members coming, it was pretty possible there would be a contest based on how fast or how much you could eat!

Rena was already at our usual meeting place.

Mion arrived a few minutes later.

"Great!

Let's get going!

This old man skipped breakfast and is starving to death!"

"I expected nothing less!

I, too, went without breakfast—and am now in top physical condition!!"

"Wow, you two—skipping breakfast is bad for your health.

Rena made sure to eat something."

"Yeah, yeah, you're great, Rena.

Breakfast is an important part of the day.

I'm sure you'll surpass that underdeveloped Mion, get yourself a nice sexy body, and be all over the dirty magazines!!"

"Hau, the dirty magazines~

If I get a nice body, then maybe a prince on a white horse will come for Rena too? For Rena too?"

"...Definitely not happening.

If you won't take responsibility for them, Kei-chan, then don't give Rena any silly ideas.

...She might start eating breakfast three times a day starting tomorrow."

...Yeah, I could see Rena doing that.

...Wait, who did this gluttonous princess think was going to come for her...?

"Well, anyway!

We're all nice and hungry!

Let's go and treat ourselves at the big barbecue party!!"

""Yeaaahhh!!""

The venue for said barbecue was to be the Furude Shrine grounds where Rika-chan lived.

They held events and festivals there, and barbecues too.

It was the place that held all sorts of ceremonies in Hinamizawa.

(...Come to think of it, there was supposed to be a big village festival coming up, wasn't there?

"Watanagashi" or something...)

The scenery you could see from that high up was fairly superb—and the calm atmosphere particular to shrines was something fairly difficult to find in the city.

We left our bicycles at the bottom of the shrine steps and broke into a mad dash up the stairs!

When we arrived on the shrine grounds... the Hinamizawa Fighters and their fathers had already gathered and had begun setting up for the barbecue early.

Of course, Satoko and Rika-chan were there as well.

When they noticed our arrival, they waved to us.

"Oh, so you managed not to forget about this!

Curses! If you all hadn't come, there would have been that much more meat for me.

How truly disappointing it is!"

"You underestimate us, Satoko!

Now that we've arrived, you don't think you'll be able to have even one bite of that fabulously marbled beef, do you?!

Remember when we ate our bento here?

You and I have a fatal difference in reach—I'll be overwhelming you once again!!"

"W-W-Whaaaaat?!

I-I cannot allow that to happen by any means!!"

"Cry and shout all you want—you'll just be watching us fill our mouths with beef.

Don't worry, though!

We'll give the peppers and onions to you!!"

"...I'll give Satoko lots and lots of the grilled squash too."

When Satoko heard the word "squash," her complexion changed color.

When she took my overwhelming reach into account, she knew it wasn't just a threat—it could actually happen.

"I'll go tell the coach.

I'll tell him you really love squash!

If it's for you, I bet he'll get a whole mountain of specialty squash from all over Japan!"

"Wow, good for you, Satoko!!

You'll have your pick of the squash!!

You can have squash from dawn till dusk—three meals a day!!!"

"Waaahhhhhhhhhh!!

Rena, Rena~!

Everyone's bullying me!!"

Satoko tried to leap into Rena's chest!!

Oh no... Clearly, given another second, Rena's mach punches would have us piled on the ground!!

...So just before Satoko hit Rena, I grabbed her by the nape of the neck and pulled her back...!!

A superb reaction with only seconds of foresight... at least, it was supposed to be.

...But for Rena, when I caught the leaping, crying Satoko, it looked I was keeping her to myself.

Bam bam baaammmmmm!!!

"Hau~~♪

No, no, no, Keiichi-ku~n,

this is Rena's, okay~?

I'm~taking her home~~♪"

"Wahhhh, Rena-san~!

Beat up Mion-san and Rika like that too~!!"

"Whoa, whoa... hold on there!!

Gyahhhh!!!"

Bam bam baaammmmmm!!!

"Okay!!

Now where could Rika be?!

There she is!!

Rena-san, over there!!"

"Just wait, Satoko-chan, I'll take care of her right away~!!

Then I'm bringing you straight home~!!!"

"...Meep!

Meeeeeeep!!

Satoko, you're mean!"

"Hau~~!!

Rika-chan's so kyute too!!

Hau~~~ I'm gonna take her home~!!"

"Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho!!

Rika!

It serves you right!!!"

Satoko laughed in a shrill voice at Rika-chan and Rena's unproductive game of tag while we watched them, sprawled out on the ground...

"A-Are you all right, Maebara-san?

Sonozaki-san...?"

The coach came over and lent us a hand.

"Yeah, this is just how we communicate, that's all.

Don't mind us!"

"...If the way we communicate ends up leaving bruises on my face, then I don't want any more to do with it..."

"You never learn, do you?" laughed the coach loudly.

It made us start to laugh too.

Satoko's laughter, Rika-chan's yelling, and Rena's strange voice were kind of comfortable to hear.

The adults here knew what they were doing, so the barbecue was ready in short order.

As the salad oil dripped down onto the plate with a hiss, there was a loud cheer.

When the coach brought over a big plate with all the meat on it, we all cheered again.

"Wow, this meat looks amazing!

Coach, you really did splurge on it!"

"I did make a promise.

Can you tell how much all of this weighs?

It really did cost me a lot!"

"Of course it did!

Third-rate meat wouldn't be enough of a reward for everything I did yesterday!"

"Ahahahahaha!

Yeah!

Satoko-chan's definitely the guest of honor today!"

"Yeah, Satoko was the one who hit that last home run, after all.

She might have caught the guy off guard, but the arc it flew was long and true!!"

"...Satoko is pretty athletic."

"Not bad at all—she could be one of the best of our generation!

She doesn't fall behind in physical ability even compared to me."

"Maybe Satoko-chan has a big future in the world of sports!"

"Oh-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho-ho!! Stop singing my praises—you're making me blush~!!"

"...Munch munch."

Satoko, for whom the excessive praise made her not notice the moderately grilled meat being stolen one after the other, was just far too cute...

"Maebara-saaan! T...This is heavy...!"

Tomita-kun and Okamura-kun were carrying something over to us.

It was a huge barbecue plate.

"Whoa!!

The barbecue's protagonist has arrived!"

The plate was chock full of skewers with vegetables and meat on them.

The grilled, burning hot meat juices made a 'shhsh' noise as they drizzled off.

...Gulp!

You need a lot of heat for cooking something on a metal skewer, so they had grilled the whole plate at once.

"Yep, can't have a barbecue without some of these!"

"You can say that again!

I'll help out, so let's get it over there.

Up we go!"

"Wow!!

Look, look!

It's amazing!!"

Everyone greeted us with a cheer.

Each person received a skewer with vegetables and big pieces of meat on it.

They also received paper cups filled to the brim with juice.

In my right hand were pounds of piping hot barbecue.

In left was a cup of juice that I could chug down!

If this didn't make you want to dance, you weren't a man!

"Ahhhh, I can't hold back any longer!!

I'm gobbling it down!!

Gobble gobble!!"

"Not just yet, Kei-chan.

We've got a little ceremony first."

"Can I have your attention, everyone~?"

The coach, with a cup of beer in his hand, mounted the nearby beer cooler.

This was supposed to be a victory celebration, after all.

We needed an opening statement.

...Damn—I hope it ends soon!

For every second this goes on for, a little more of the food's freshness goes away!!

Nwohh?! ...Satoko stomped down onto the back of my foot!

"My word!

Men your age are so greedy.

Can you not wait a little more elegantly?"

"...Is everything I'm thinking really showing on my face...?"

"Okay, is everyone listening?

We won a huge game yesterday.

It had become a hard battle after that amazing pitcher came in,

but thanks to equally-reliable saviors on our side, we scored a beautiful turnaround victory."

Clap clap clap!

Both my hands were full, so the adults and older brothers gave us a round of applause.

"This is to celebrate that victory.

As promised, I got a ton of delicious meat for everyone.

Eat as much as you want and use that energy on our next game!"

Then, after a few words of thanks to the fathers and brothers who helped with the barbecue, he led us in a toast.

""""Cheeeeeeeers!!!""""

They say that when toasting, you would normally down the contents of your cup.

But we were young!

At the toast, all of us immediately began to dig into our skewers!

After that... it got really lively, with everyone congratulating one another for things they did during the game.

Like how someone made a great catch, or how awesome someone looked when stealing a base.

Of course, they congratulated me too, the savior who appeared to fight against the Koshien pitcher.

"Well, even what I did was all thanks to Satoko."

"Satoko did have a plan.

But you're the only one who could have won over Kameda like you did, Kei-chan.

You did more than enough to deserve praise!"

"By the way, Keiichi-kun, you went to eat cake with Kameda-kun after that, didn't you?

You looked like you were best friends."

"The seeds of friendship sprouting between male rivals—something like that? Ahahahaha!"

"...That's sort of...

well, it's...

ufufufufufufufu, hau~~~...☆"

...I violently brushed through Rena's hair as she turned red in the face for some reason at the mention of friendship between males, dispersing her pleasant-seeming ideas...

Now then, where's the hero—or rather, the heroine, Satoko?

...Oh, there she is.

Satoko was with Rika-chan, in the middle of bragging her heart out about the home run yesterday.

And her teammates spared no compliment for her—since even though he was going easy on her, the fact that she hit a throw from a Koshien pitcher was something else.

Satoko was more loquacious than usual—it seems she was in a great mood.

She was flying so high that I thought for a moment about getting a word in to tease her...

But she was the leading actress today, so I decided not to bully her at all.

As I watched Satoko, going at things as lively as usual under the sun, it struck me that it didn't quite line up with the pleasant time I'd spent with her.

But both of those were the real Satoko.

I didn't care which it was—her smiling happily, or making a big, lively fuss like this.

Just as long as she would keep smiling like this forever.

"...She looks like she's having fun.

Quite a lot of it."

The coach had approached me from behind before I realized it.

As he gazed at Satoko from afar, like I had been doing, he addressed me.

...So I could tell he was talking about her.

"Doesn't it just cleanse your soul to see Satoko-chan smiling?"

He smiled, refreshed, searching for confirmation.

I felt a little embarrassed to admit it, so against my better judgment, I played it off.

"R-Really?

...I don't think her smile could cleanse so much as a plate."

"Hu-hu-hu-hu.

I'm sure Satoko-chan would be mad if she heard that,

but that part of her is very cute too."

...Leaving her cuteness aside, I could understand him thinking Satoko getting angry for being teased would be funny.

"Umm... Mr. Iria, was it?"

"It's Irie.

Everyone else calls me Coach, though.

I'd be very happy if you called me Coach as well, Maebara-san."

As he said that, Coach Irie smiled, blushing a little.

"Coach... You seem to like Satoko a lot."

I didn't have any real basis for saying that—it was just what I felt to be true.

"Yes.

I do like her.

I love her, in fact.

When she gets older, I'm thinking of asking her to marry me."

"Uh... Whaaaaaaaat?!?!"

This guy... really says some insane stuff, doesn't he?!

...After being astonished by this, I hurried to put my mind back in order.

I'd heard that this Coach guy was the kind of person who said crazy things out of nowhere.

According to Mion, if I took everything he said seriously, I physically wouldn't be able to take it.

If I was able to ignore that part of him, he seemed like he'd be a really funny guy...

"Hm?

Um, Maebara-san.

Did that surprise you?

Could it be... you're going after Satoko-chan yourself?

That would bother me, then.

I've been going after her for decades now, you know."

"Coach, Satoko hasn't even been alive for much more than a decade..."

"Hm? Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha."

Coach gave a dry grin and laughed.

Was this how I should be doing it?

I must somehow master the art of responding to this Coach guy...

After that, I received many words of praise for my actions—almost too many.

As that conversation was happening...

Leaving aside the controversial statements this Coach person would spout suddenly, I learned he was very composed, and not a bad guy by any stretch.

"I think Satoko deserves more praise for that crazy home run she got.

...I honestly didn't think she had it in her."

"Satoko-chan's older brother was more the quiet bookworm type.

She probably inherited the exact opposite skill set."

...Her brother?

Right, he meant Satoshi.

The one who left Satoko... and ran away from home—Satoko's Nii-nii.

Satoshi Houjou.

"Do you not know about him?

Satoko-chan's older brother, I mean.

His name is Satoshi Houjou-kun,

and he played with the Hinamizawa Fighters too.

I wanted him to play a lot more......

but then he transferred."

"Huh...

I see..."

...So he 'transferred.'

...Yeah, maybe that was... a little more considerate than saying he ran away.

Now that he mentioned it, I think it was Rena...

I think she said Satoshi transferred too.

I didn't know the details of him having run away from home at the time, so I didn't pay much attention to it, but...

............

"Only her brother transferred?

...That's sort of unusual."

...Everyone having fun was far away... and their cheerful voices distant.

The chorus of the cicadas separated us from them, giving me a sense of distance.

At first, I thought my own voice was too soft for even me to hear...

but for a really long time, Coach didn't respond to my words...

so at this point, I began to wonder if I had said something I shouldn't have.

Just when I began to feel impatient, Coach finally spoke.

"...Something unfortunate happened.

A few things, actually."

After informing me that what he was about to say was a secret, Coach began to talk, a little at a time.

"...It's been three years already.

Right around this time of year, I think.

Satoko-chan's parents were in an accident."

"...An accident?"

"Yes.

...At a public park they visited while on vacation, they fell from a viewing platform."

It was supposed to just be a little time away from the house with the family.

They went for a walk on a path through a nature park after it had rained.

...There was a little viewing platform that looked like it had a good view.

...That was the stage on which the tragedy was set.

The metal fixtures in the viewing platform fence had deteriorated from time...

and with all the rain they had just gotten... they might have loosened somewhat.

Right before Satoko's eyes...

both the fence......

and her parents fell.

There was a river some tens of meters below...

The water level was high due to the rain,

and apparently very muddy.

"...And... her parents......?"

Coach gave a thin but melancholic smile and touched his paper cup to his lips.

...Without saying anything... I knew how unfortunate that accident was, and how Satoko's parents had left on an eternal vacation...

"...Umm...

Then Satoko is............

well."

I was so focused on being careful with my words... that I lost what I was going to say.

A single word—orphaned.

I knew how little consideration it showed and how much it would hurt Satoko without having to say it aloud.

Come to think of it...

Satoko lived with Rika-chan...

At least, that's what I thought I heard from others.

...Wait... Rika-chan, her father died from illness too... and her mother soon after...

...I felt like I heard she was living by herself...

"Yes.

She's living with Furude-san right now.

...They've probably lived many discouraging days without any parents, but they've gotten along by helping each other."

".................."

"Going on living without the protection of parents... is very difficult for kids that age, I think.

Maebara-san, you can probably understand that as well."

...I've only survived because I rely on my parents, so the only reply I could give was to nod...

"Furude-san is particularly beloved by the older people in the village.

As long as she's here, she won't want for much."

"Come to think of it, you're right.

Rika-chan kind of seems like the village mascot sometimes.

...I don't think she'd have a hard time living here."

Rika-chan could go "meep" just once and get two or three croquettes from a vendor, after all.

I felt like if she asked for help, everyone in the village would.

"But that only applies to Furude-san in particular.

...Satoko-chan doesn't have it the same way."

Rika being so spoiled was just an exception.

...Upon thinking about it normally... living on your own as a child should be fraught with difficulty.

It wasn't, then, very difficult to imagine how much suffering Satoko had to go through just to live.

It wasn't very difficult to imagine.

...Was I really...

thinking that?

...No, I was only thinking the words...

I couldn't imagine it in the slightest.

How was I supposed to imagine it when I saw that annoying smile of hers?

...There was no way I could.

...I found out she was living apart from her brother, and I just kind of... vaguely thought that it was rather unfortunate.

I mean... Satoko was smiling so energetically every single day.

...Was I thinking that her smiling...

meant she wasn't hurt?

...That she didn't feel lonely?

When she found out my parents were coming home the other night, Satoko said,

"A family sitting around the dinner table is the most fun way to enjoy a meal of all."

Those words... held a lot more weight now.

"I've seriously considered adopting her."

"...Huh... Adoption...?"

"It's a secret."

After warning me, Coach put his index finger to his lips.

"I've lived a really steady life all these years.

...I have money, and a good reputation.

But marriage is the one thing I never got around to.

......By law, obviously a single individual can't adopt a child.

So I... can't make Satoko-chan my adopted daughter.

...Ha-ha-ha-ha—what a shame.

Didn't take long for my plan to get her to call me Papa to hit a setback."

This guy spouts some crazy stuff...

At first, I was only half-listening.

...But... midway through, I realized how rude that was.

This "Coach" person...

seriously only wished for this one girl, Satoko, to be happy.

That was neither crazy nor was it nonsense.

...He just wanted her to be happy...

those were his true feelings.

"Satoko-chan's current lifestyle is probably not a very happy one.

...But, you know...

I want to make it easier for her, even if it's only a little.

Hahahaha—of course, I can't do much for her but share my leftover food and do errands that she's not strong enough to do..."

"......You're wrong. Satoko's happy."

"Huh?"

Coach showed surprise at my having declared that.

"...There are so many people all around her that really want her to be happy.

She can't possibly feel otherwise."

I spoke with a serious expression, quietly... but firmly, all the same.

It was my approval of his feelings... and my gratitude as Satoko's Nii-nii.

"...Thank you.

Still, keep this a secret from Satoko-chan, okay?

If she knew I wanted to adopt her, she'd probably get mad and call me a pervert for wanting her to call me papa.

...Ha-ha-ha-ha."

...I wonder.

Satoko may have been somewhat childish, but she was still able to empathize with people.

She'd call him that.

I knew it.

As if my feelings had gotten across, Coach grinned, satisfied, and returned his gaze to the hustle and bustle before us.

Her parents, and her older brother.

...She lost her family, had no relatives... and was huddled up with Rika-chan, who was in the same situation.

Satoko Houjou.

...It wouldn't be odd for her to look at her life with despair, but she didn't seem to feel that way—she lived energetically with a smile.

"...I want her to keep smiling forever."

It was a naive wish... and yet it was one that he couldn't help hoping for.

...So... the words that I spoke were the same.

"What a coincidence.

I think the same way."

"Oh... You too, Maebara-kun?

Then that makes us friends.

...Let's make a promise."

"A promise...?"

"It's a very simple one."

The Coach said this, giving me a grin.

"That we will never, ever... make her cry."

It was short and to the point.

"...Uh, yeah.

I promise too."

Coach nodded happily.

We exchanged no more words after that.

...We just sat there comfortably, gazing at Satoko and everyone else having a good time.

She'd certainly lost family, but there were people watching over her.

How reassuring must that have been?

"...Just hypothetically...

If you did adopt Satoko... what would you do?"

"Hmm, that's a tough one..."

Coach gave a wry, happy smile, then exaggeratedly tilted his head in contemplation.

"Well, first, I would get her to call me Master, and make her into a lovely kind-hearted maid."

"...Huh...

......what?!?!"

How does this guy always pick the craziest time to say the craziest things?!

"U-Umm, Maebara-kun?

I, well... I haven't said anything yet...?"

"W-W-W-What are you talking about?!

I heard it loud and clear!"

"Oh, that's right.

I clearly said I would make Satoko into my own personal pretty maid."

"Ahhh, that sounds nice...

Satoko-chan... all pretty...♪"

"Oh, 'pretty' and 'purity' are really hard to differentiate, right?

Be careful with mixing refined Japanese words and English together."

"I get it.

Honestly, the intricacies of the language know no bounds."

"That's right.

Kei-chan, you do understand.

...Then, with that, it's time for...~"

My hand shot out and grabbed Shion, smiling, waving, and about to leave, by the nape of her neck!

"Hey, wait right there.

Don't just show up out of nowhere and start saying crazy stuff!!"

"Speaking of saying crazy stuff, I thought the Satoko love talk you were having with the coach was pretty crazy too.

I can perform a reenactment of the adoption bit, want to see?"

"N-Nwahhhhhhhhh!!

You've been hiding ever since then?!"

"Kei-chan, you can't even beat my sister—you're a hundred years too early to challenge me.

Ku-ku-ku-ku!"

This was Shion Sonozaki.

The younger of the Sonozaki twins.

...Though she hadn't a scrap of the reserved quality you'd expect from a little sister.

She was a villain no better than her older sister Mion.

We met the other day in town and I dug myself into a hole when I mistook her for Mion.

Unlike Mion, Shion said she was living in Okinomiya, so I thought we'd never see each other again... but to think we actually would!

My frankly displeased expression didn't change a bit, either.

This must be what people mean when they say something is like water off a duck's back.

"Shion-san, you came!

I was disappointed because I thought you wouldn't make it."

"Well, I couldn't think of anything else to do, really.

I figured I'd come and tease you all a little."

"...Coach, why did you need to call Shion to our victory celebration?

How did she contribute to our team's win—"

"Ahahahaha!

Well, you see.

I'm actually the manager for the Hinamizawa Fighters."

"The manager?!

No way—then why weren't you at the game yesterday?!"

"That's because I'm like a ghost manager.

Teh-heh☆"

She seemed to think I'd forgive her if she stuck her tongue out and smiled.

She wasn't sorry at all!

"The match wasn't nearly as pretty without you there.

I won't tell you to come to practices, but couldn't you at least come to games to root for us like you used to...?"

"Hmm.

I'll think about it.

Maybe I will if Kei-chan joins the Hinamizawa Fighters?

I can't get into a cheering mood when there's no good-looking guy on the team."

"Hm...... huh?"

Did... did Shion just smoothly say something absurd...?

"S-S-S-S-S-S-Shioooooon!!!

You little... Where did you come from?!?"

Suddenly Mion came running over, latched onto my shoulders, and pulled me towards her.

"Ahhhh!

It's Mii-chan's little sister!!

Hello, Shii-chan~!"

"Hello, Rena-san.

I'm honored you remembered my name—we only met once!"

"Oh, not at all.

Thanks for remembering Rena's name too!"

"Cut the stupid greetings!!

You're not allowed to solicit Kei-chan!!

He's the hope of our club!!

Don't pull him out and put him in baseball like he's some kind of plant!!!"

Mion gave a low growl as she grappled my arm.

...She looked like a little girl desperately clinging to her toy.

"Ahahahahahahaha.

Yep, Keiichi-kun is the star rookie of our club.

We could never trade him away!"

Rena's smile hid a nonchalant bloodthirst.

She was blocking Shion's way, ready to unleash an ultimate attack if she got within two meters of me...!

...Ahhh...

I felt like... this was gonna turn into a bloody battle...

"Hmmm, ah-hahahahaha!

That's too bad.

We'll leave the negotiations for another time."

"You don't have the right to negotiate!!

Coach, why did you call Shion here too?!

She's a ghost member! She's been slacking off for the last year!!!"

"Ha-ha-ha-ha.

I just thought it would be even more fun if Shion-chan was here.

...Yep.

It definitely worked."

...That was what he planned for all along.

Mission accomplished.

"Hey!

Kei-chan, come over here!

We're all playing a game!!

With strings attached, of course!!"

"Shii-chan, how about you?

The rules are simple and it'll be fun!"

"Hmm, should I?

I'll just win if I join in, after all.

I don't want to ruin my sister's presidential image."

Mion, now irritated, turned around with a glare...

"......Mgghhhhhhh..."

"What is it, my sister?

Should I join in to make this a battle of the siblings?

For your sake, I don't think we should—but if you want to?"

"B-Bleehhhhh!!

I won't let you play, Shion!!

We're leaving you out!

Bleh!!"

Whoa... Mion just avoided a direct confrontation.

...It seemed like the twins were completely incompatible with each other...

"You won't let her play?

I was looking forward to seeing you two face off."

"I hate Shion!!

I'm bad against her!!"

An angry Mion dragged me away.

...Sliiiiiide.

"Do your best!

I'll be rooting for you!!

Go for it, Kei-chan! Yay~!"

Shion waved her hand at us, reveling in the bliss of teasing Mion.

All right!

Club activities had begun... which meant I needed to clear my mind!!

What was today's battle?!

Today's punishment game?!

I'd take anything on!!

"Okay, Keiichi-san!!

You should prepare yourself!

We're... going all-out today!!!"

"Great, bring it on!!

Satoko or not, I'll crush you all mercilessly!!"

"Ahahahahahaha!

Rena will profit from your battle and fish herself up a win~!!"

"...Then I'll get all the manta rays first and ride them to victory."

"Hau!

Rika-chan is flat like a manta ray~~~☆

I-I-I-I-I-I wanna take you home~~!!"

"Okay, everyone!

We have a lot of people today, so let's play something easy and simple!

Today's game is...!"

Everyone who lost the game dropped out and had to help clean up after the barbecue.

"Wah-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

Ahhh-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!"

Shion laughed more uproariously than anyone I'd ever heard when she saw my loser face.

...Okay, okay, was my getting bombed out of the game really that funny...?

"Man, oh, man... Kei-chan's face~!

He was like,

how can you still call yourselves human?!

Ahh-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!"

"Daaamn iiit... I had it all worked out when I bought up the scissors...!!

If only... if only Satoko and Rika-chan hadn't betrayed me...!!"

It was going great while we had maintained a united front...

but Satoko had been quicker to betray me than I her—she was just a tiny bit better than me!!

Urgh~!!

"I warned you about trusting Houjou!"

Tomita-kun and Okamura-kun were unanimously wearing "I told you so" faces.

...Incidentally, those two were victims of Satoko's traps pretty early on as well.

"...Damn...

I was trying to do well enough to make up for you two..."

And once again... for the showdown, it didn't matter.

Maybe this meant I still couldn't match up to the other members yet...

"You were going to have the lowest-ranked member of the club play a punishment game, weren't you?"

Shion remarked, as though forcing me to recall something I'd tried to forget, even for a moment.

"Um...

.........i-is that right...?"

"Come to think of it, Maebara-san, when you came up with the punishment game with the president, you looked really heated up... What on earth did you decide on?"

"Mgh......... ugh..."

"Earlier, Mion told me to get an Angel Mort uniform ready.

Does that have anything to do with it?

She told me to get the biggest size I could find."

Tomita-kun and Okamura-kun... were giving me these complex, indescribable looks mixing empathy, pity, and the desire to see something scary, all at once...

"W-wahahahahahahaha!!

Wahhh-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!"

All I could do now was laugh.

Strangely enough, the more I laughed, the more I felt like it was actually funny...

Ugahhhhhhh!!!

I looooooost!!

"Oh my...

Maebara-san, what's the matter?

You're smiling, crying, and howling."

"It's okay—he's just pretending not to like it.

He can't hide his excitement at the opportunity to gain valuable experience using the punishment game as an excuse.

Right?☆"

"W-Whooaaaarrgghhh!!

What do you mean valuable experieeennceeeeeee!!!"

I held my head in my hands in agony...

My state of mind could be summed up with a three letter word.

It was...

*sob*...

Coach gently put his hands on my shoulders.

...Was he comforting me...?

"Maebara-san.

In times where you must accept hardship...

just imagine that you're a maid on the receiving end of some strict "disciplining."

...See? Doesn't the hopeless situation seem kind of fun now...?☆

Yeeeah, it's nice, isn't it...♪"

Red in the face and indulging in his imagination, still holding my shoulders, Coach said

"Oh, Master~♪" and started twirling around like a ballerina...

...I had to wonder what kind of word associations he had going on in his head.

...At the very least, it was much different than what was in mine.

The first thing that comes into mind when I think of "disciplining" certainly isn't "maids"...

"...Tomita-kun.

Okamura-kun.

...Your coach is pretty funny.

I'm surprised he can even be a coach."

Tomita-kun and Okamura-kun exchanged glances and answered with dry smiles.

Then they added that he was a really nice person most of the time—which is something you'd normally say about a person like that.

The coach's questionable revolutions slowed to a stop, and then his expression returned to a clear, calm one, almost making what just happened seem like an illusion.

...H-He can switch gears way too fast...

"Then let us start cleaning up.

Maebara-san, you seem quite strong.

Could you bring the plates over to the wash basins and clean them?"

"Right, on it!"

I hoisted the dirty barbecue plates, each with slimy oil clinging to it, and looked for the wash basins.

...Argh, these... these are heavy!

Where're the wash basins?

...Over there?!

Figuring I should make it there before my arms gave out, I headed towards it at a trot.

A lot of the adults who had been helping out were using the wash basins, so I gave up and looked for a different set.

I asked them, and they told me there were more right by the assembly hall, too, so I decided to head that way.

Rather than multiple basins, there was just one faucet there.

I initially thought it would be too small to wash plates as big as these, but it would probably still be faster than waiting for a faucet to open up back there.

I turned the faucet and water much nicer-looking than it gushed forth.

I put a plate under the faucet and scrubbed it with my hand to try and rub it clean.

...It didn't go very well.

"Here you go.

A sponge and dish soap.

You can't wash them with just water."

It was Shion.

...She threw a brand-new sponge and a container filled with cleaner to me.

"Oh, thanks."

"You should've just put them by the basins and left it to the grown-ups.

You're always doing the right thing."

...I got the feeling that wasn't quite a compliment.

I answered her with a forced smile.

"...I was surprised to learn you're the manager for the Hinamizawa Fighters.

I thought you didn't do stuff like that because it's too much of a bother."

"Yes.

It is quite a bother.

That's why I've stopped showing up entirely."

"Didn't Coach say he wanted you to come back?

You should pay a visit once in a while."

"Ahahahaha. If I feel like it, I guess."

Shion made it sound like the end of world could happen before she "felt like it."

...Whoops.

I couldn't keep washing the dishes while preoccupied with conversation, so I decided to take my task seriously.

Shion neither offered to help nor got in my way—she just quietly watched the water flowing from the faucet...

"Oh, right, I heard something.

You were the star player in yesterday's game, weren't you?"

"Satoko hit the home run, so I think she was the real star player.

I didn't know she had those kind of reflexes.

It surprised me."

"She's totally different from Satoshi-kun.

There's not much doubt that all the athletic ability in the family went to her."

Shion smiled as she spoke, her eyes looking at something far away, betraying her reminiscence.

"...Satoshi-kun?"

"Satoko Houjou's older brother.

You know, Satoshi Houjou-kun?

...Oh, right.

You just moved here this year, didn't you, Kei-chan?

...You wouldn't have ever met him."

I was a little surprised that Shion knew about Satoshi.

"Never met him... but I know a little.

After their parents passed away...

he transferred to a different school, right?"

I avoided saying that he ran away from home, and used the slightly more vague words that everyone else did.

"......Transferred?

...Who said anything like that?"

I hadn't yet realized that Shion's tone had changed slightly.

"Well, I mean...

Who was it, then...?

Yeah, I heard it from someone.

That he transferred."

"...Who?

You said that because you asked someone, right?"

"Who did I ask...? I don't really remember.

...Even so, he transferred, so that's it, right?

Not like there's a problem with it."

"There is one.

Does that mean there's a record of his transfer?

To another school?

And that someone saw it?

Or heard about it?"

Around that time... I not only noticed how awfully caught up on this Shion was...

but also how startlingly dangerous her eyes had begun to look...

".........Shion...?

What's up... You look really serious..."

With that, Shion seemed to realize the expression she was making.

...She took a deep breath, pretended to fix her hair, and went back to her composed expression from before.

"I'm sorry.

But, Kei-chan.

You don't know much about Satoshi-kun, so please don't say that he transferred, or anything like that.

I'm serious.

...Please."

...I realized I must have said something I shouldn't have.

...But I wasn't immediately sure of what I should apologize for... so I just said one safe word for now:

Sorry.

"...I just sort of heard he'd transferred, and believed it.

...Was it actually something else?"

...It was, of course.

...Preceded by his parents, he had left his sister and "run away."

But I'd wanted to try and avoid using the words "run away"... so I pretended not to know.

Upon seeing my flustered reply, Shion realized she was intimidating me, and lowered her voice.

"Ah, I'm sorry...

I'm not blaming you for anything, Kei-chan.

I was being a little harsh.

I apologize."

"......I didn't really mind."

That was a fib.

...I was actually a little scared, even.

...Was there something wrong with saying he ran away?

Was there some sort of misunderstanding in saying that he transferred?

But before I could ask her, she turned on her heel to leave.

"Hey, Shion..."

"Right, good luck with those.

Looks like your plate is last.

That's the last one you need to wash."

Her final remark reminded me of the dishes I had so easily forgotten about.

...So immersed in conversation were we that it got pretty late.

I turned the faucet again to get the water flowing faster.

...Wssshhhhh!

I violently scrubbed the plate.

When I turned back around, Shion was no longer there.

By the time I'd finished washing the plates, most of the other things had been cleaned up.

The air had cooled off before I'd realized it—and as the heat that had stuck with us all day dispersed, a nice breeze started to blow.

"Okay everyone, can I have your attention?"

Coach got everyone together to make his closing remarks.

...And with that, another fun day drew to its close.

In the end, Mion ended the game with a magnificent victory.

Satoko and Rika-chan, who had labored so hard to betray me, had fallen into a huge trap afterwards, leaving them frustrated about more than a few things.

"People who betray others will one day be betrayed themselves.

Never been more true, huh?"

"Mgahhhh!!

You're not the one I want to hear that from, Keiichi-san!!"

"Ahahahahaha!

Rena didn't fall for anyone's tricks.

That's how I got second! Second!"

"...Rena doesn't buy into lies very easily.

She has a sharp wit."

I'm surprised.

She seems like she would fall for the first lie to come her way.

"Funny you should say that, Kei-chan.

You desired to prey upon others, and right away you became the prey instead!

Make sure you don't fall for those dumb schemes that promise higher returns the more friends you rope in, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah...

I'll try harder.

...*sob*."

Even good friends will lay traps mercilessly and betray everyone in sight once they get into a serious enough game!

...But despite that, once it's all over, they can feel refreshed and laugh together.

...It reminded me of how we were all such great friends.

"Anyways, I'm looking forward to Keiichi-san's punishment game!

However, can you really implement such a thing?

I would think the store manager would have a thing or two to say about it, no?"

"Hmm, I wonder.

Maybe Keiichi-kun will be reaaally kyute.

Kyute!

I kind of want to see~☆ Hau!"

"...I am on the edge of my seat.

I will trip him up and make him wipe the floor."

"Ah, that would be great! Ku-ku-ku!"

"Ugahhhhh!!!

Why couldn't I win now of all times?!

Whenever I think 'I'll definitely win today' and that 'I'll make someone else play the punishment game', I lose!!

Is it not enough?!

Do I not believe hard enough in victory?!

Uwooohhhhh...!!"

"Oh-ho-ho-ho!

The wailing of the loser tastes like sweet honey!"

"...How sad, how sad."

Pat pat.

"This is how you get stronger, Keiichi-kun.

It's like I'm looking at Mii-chan from last year."

Mii-chan last year?

What—did she always lose and moan about it in the past?

How very interesting—I didn't know our undefeated president, Mion, was once like that...

"N-No need to talk about that!"

Mion hastily covered Rena's mouth.

Everyone watching burst out laughing.

Finally, Rika-chan pulled on Satoko's sleeve.

"...Okay.

We should be going soon."

"Oh... Yes, we must go shopping for dinner, mustn't we?"

I wanted to keep talking like this forever...

but it was getting late.

We split up with Satoko and Rika-chan and decided to get on our way home.

"All right, bye!

See you tomorrow at school!"

Everyone waved to each other and split up for the short time between now and tomorrow.

"Okay... let's go!"

We began walking down the tall staircase leading from the shrine grounds...

As the sun started to set, the afternoon's heat began to disappear as though it were never there.

Just listening to the chorus of the higurashi was enough to make me forget about how hot it had been today.

"Come to think of it, it's still June, huh?

We didn't have a rainy season at all this year—like, all of a sudden it's just summer, you know?"

Now that I thought about it, she was right.

It was June—the season of long rain, of hydrangeas and snails.

I haven't seen a real rainy season since transferring here.

"According to the weather forecast, it's supposed to get more rainy during the first part of the week.

They were warning people about heavy showers.

I hope it doesn't run into Watanagashi."

"That's right.

The rainy season's supposed to be rainy!

Rena likes all the rain in the rainy season."

"What? So much rain just makes me depressed!

Hey, Kei-chan!"

"Huh? ...Ah!"

I was a little spaced out, so I was late in answering Mion.

I was thinking back to my conversation with her sister.

When I said that Satoshi transferred... Shion clearly got angry.

...She was mad at me for saying something so careless.

I mean... It may have been a vague way of skirting around the fact that he ran away from home...

but I don't think it was so bad that Shion would need to feel mad about it.

...I wasn't really...

satisfied with it.

I felt like a child, completely ignorant of what he was being scolded for.

So my thoughts spilled out of my mouth in a very direct fashion.

"Satoko had a brother, right?

...Named Satoshi, I think?"

".........What?"

As soon as I said the name 'Satoshi,' Rena and Mion both lost their relaxed, comfortable mood and made strange expressions.

...Should I have avoided talking about this?

That's what they made me think.

...But I've already said it, so that's that.

...And I'd be lying if I said I wasn't interested.

"What happened to Satoshi again?

...Did he move away?"

That was such a transparent way of putting it... but in my desire to know everything, I feigned ignorance.

"...Umm.......... hmm..."

Mion turned around and looked to Rena for assistance.

Rena looked between us, then quietly and softly spoke.

"......Wait, did we not tell you?

...He 'transferred out.'"

When I said those words to Shion, she got upset.

...So I answered her with the same words Shion had given me.

"...Transferred... Who told you something like that?"

"...Huh?"

I had only intended to borrow Shion's words, but I said it exactly the same way she had—right down to the thorns in my voice.

...When I realized what I had done, I immediately tried to soften my remark.

"If he really transferred, there would be records of it at school and stuff, right?

But there's... is there actually anything like that?"

Mion and Rena... Their eyes grew wide—they were at a loss for words.

...I started to feel like I was doing something really bad.

......I thought they were only hiding the fact that Satoko's older brother ran away out of consideration for her.

"...I'm not trying to blame you for anything, okay?

I just... wanted to ask what happened to Satoshi, that's all..."

I wasn't trying to blame them.

The fact that I had to remind them... even looked like I was tormenting them with an impossible question.

...No, maybe I was actually bullying them.

Maybe I had lashed out of them in retaliation for Shion getting mad at me...

...This whole day had been so much fun, but now...

...Why did I go and say something that made all of that meaningless...?

I couldn't help but regret my own careless curiosity...

That's enough—let's drop it now...

As I was about to say that, Mion spoke up.

"Umm...

well...

it's not like we were hiding it, or lying.

I hope you understand, that's not what we were trying to do..."

Mion's tone conveyed her genuine awkwardness.

...They sounded like the excuses of a child who'd been presented with evidence of her own mischief.

"...Satoshi,

well...

...He didn't transfer schools."

...Mion said, resigning herself.

...But I felt bad for pushing her to say that.

So...

it's okay, Mion.

Let's stop talking about Satoshi.

Sorry for teasing you...

I wanted to apologize.

......But right before that—

"He won't come back."

"...What?"

Unlike Mion's stammered reply, Rena was extremely clear and resolute.

"...He won't come back... What?"

"He won't come back home, ever since that day."

He won't come back... That was a very strange way of putting it.

Normally you would say that he "hadn't" come back "yet."

...At least, I thought you'd only say it like Rena did if he wasn't capable of coming back.

You wouldn't say it like that when talking about someone who ran away from home...

"...What do you mean, he won't come back?

Where did Satoshi go?"

"Don't know."

"..."

Rena's word choice felt very cold to me.

...It was so cold that I couldn't muster a response right away.

"...Well... she's right.

...After that day, Satoshi hasn't returned home."

Mion noticed the deadlock between us and hurriedly followed up on what Rena had said.

"Well, that is... Everyone in the village searched for him, and we even got the police to help us look.

...And, well... they started thinking that maybe he ran away."

"...They started thinking he maybe ran away?"

When running away from home... I thought you were supposed to leave a note or something.

So when Satoshi ran away...

he would probably have left some kind of a letter apologizing to Satoko—that was just kind of what I figured.

...But... from the way Mion was talking... it seemed a little different than just... running away from home.

"...The police did an investigation.

Umm... Satoshi had been earning money at a part-time job, and had some put aside...

And they learned that on the day he vanished, he withdrew it all.

...And then, at Nagoya Station or something, they spotted someone who looked a lot like Satoshi..."

He withdrew all his savings to fund his escape from home... was that it?

...It seemed consistent enough to me...

But before I could say anything—

"I think that's a lie.

Satoshi-kun didn't run away,"

declared Rena shortly.

"...Hey, wait.

...So if he didn't transfer schools,

or move away,

and he didn't run away from home...

Then what on earth..."

"...Stop it, Rena."

Mion whispered to her.

Rena, however, continued without interruption.

And...

then she said this.

"Because it was Oyashiro-sama's curse."

"......Huh?

A... a curse?"

It took some time before I understood what Rena meant by that.

Mion clicked her tongue and shook her head a little.

"Satoshi talked to me before he disappeared.

...He said someone was watching him.

Stalking him.

They even followed him home.

He told me that when he went to bed, they were standing there at his bedside, looking down at him."

"...Stop it, Rena."

"It's a portent of Oyashiro-sama's curse—there's no doubt.

I think, somewhere deep down, Satoshi-kun was probably thinking about abandoning Hinamizawa and running away.

...And Oyashiro-sama wouldn't allow that."

"...I said, stop it..."

"Oyashiro-sama is the guardian deity of Hinamizawa.

He would never allow anyone to abandon Hinamizawa and run away.

I apologized for it!

But Satoshi-kun probably didn't.

It must have been!

It must have been Oyashiro-sama's curse!!"

"...Oyashiro-sama's... curse...?"

I hadn't intended to repeat it.

...But the words came out of my mouth anyway.

...Oyashiro-sama's... curse.

"The police may have said he ran away, but I don't believe it! I won't believe it, not ever!

It's just a lie told by the self-important people in the village who don't want to admit it was the curse!

And whether or not you believe in Oyashiro-sama's curse, it's—"

Wham!

...Mion struck Rena in the head.

And not in a joking way, either.

"I told you to give it a rest, didn't I?!

I try to be nice, but you're pushing me to my limits!!"

Pushing her to her limits... Actually, there was plenty of displeasure and anger in Mion's face at that moment.

...For a few moments after being hit, Rena looked astonished.

...Perhaps the voices of the higurashi calmed her frantic mind—because after a little while, she regained her original calm expression...

We arrived at the place we always split up with Mion.

...No one said a word until we got there.

...The voices of the higurashi just tortured our ears with their buzzing.

"..............."

We'd always split up with Mion here, leaving just Rena and me.

"Hey, Kei-chan.

Didn't I promise to lend you some manga?

Want to come over real quick?"

...Huh?

She promised that?

However, I quickly realized it was a convenient way of saying she wanted to talk to me alone.

"...Oh, I see.

...Okay, then Rena will go home."

Maybe she realized it—maybe she didn't.

...Thankfully, Rena quickly said she'd go home before us.

"Bye, Rena.

See you tomorrow."

"Yep.

See you tomorrow!

Keiichi-kun, don't be too much of a bother, now.

It's already evening."

"I'm just going to borrow a few books.

...See ya."

Considering the fun day we had... it was a very insipid, lonely parting.

"Hey... Don't worry too much about before."

After a little while, Mion finally spoke.

...Quite some time had passed since splitting up with Rena.

"No, I'm not, really...

......I think it was my fault anyway."

"...We weren't... trying to hide anything about Satoshi.

...It's just... one of those things that we shouldn't mention, you know?"

At this point, I understood exactly what she meant by that.

...Judging by our odd interactions with Rena, I understood so well it hurt—that I shouldn't ever talk about it again.

Actually... if that's the case, then with Shion, too...

.........No, this is a bigger problem.

...Talking about it in the first place had been indiscreet.

...I shouldn't have been interested in it at all.

But that's why I really had to think about it.

...About why everyone got so irritated...

(Idiot! Stop this, Keiichi Maebara!!)

...By the time I'd tried to warn myself, I had accidentally spoken already.

"I won't ask ever again.

So could you tell me honestly?

...What on earth...

happened to Satoshi?

...He ran away, right?"

"....................."

For a long time, Mion remained silent... but finally, unable to endure it any longer, she began to speak timidly...

"Have you ever heard about... Oyashiro-sama's curse?"

"...Just a little bit."

...I got the gist of it.

I only overheard someone in class talking about it, though.

Oyashiro-sama was the name of the deity protecting Hinamizawa, that they worship at the shrine we had the barbecue at today.

...And a few years ago, when they started talking about flooding Hinamizawa as part of the dam project...

One of the people worked on site died or something, and people blamed it on Oyashiro-sama's curse.

...That's how it was.

"Satoshi's dead parents...

They were proponents of the dam project."

"Huh... Wasn't everyone in the village against it?

Why would they support the project if they lived here...?"

The dam project, that would flood the entirety of Hinamizawa.

...I'd heard the village all got together to fight the terrible project... but it was a little hard to believe there were villagers who were supporting it.

"...Well... there was a lot of stuff going on.

But not everyone agreed to stand up to the dam proposal.

...Satoshi's parents were basically the leaders of those who were all for it."

"Leaders of the ones for it... Satoko and Satoshi's parents?"

"Yeah.

...The government had gathered a lot of compensation money to exchange for the construction of the dam.

There were plenty of people who agreed with the proposal because they wanted the money."

"............"

Aside from a few households, Hinamizawa was, in general, not very affluent.

And not because they were proud to inherit the land of their ancestors.

It wouldn't be strange if some people wanted enough money to start a new life.

...But even in that case, they would have had to hesitate to say so, given the situation.

It just happened to be Satoko and Satoshi's parents... who understood that and stood up to be their representative.

By that standard, you might say Satoko and Satoshi's parents were very heroic.

...They volunteered to be hated, all to help those without much money who didn't have a voice.

"And then.

...Their parents had bad luck.

...They died in an accident on the day of the festival honoring Oyashiro-sama.

...So people started to think that maybe it had been Oyashiro-sama's curse..."

...I thought back to what Coach told me today.

...They went to a nature park on a family outing... and fell from a cliff...

"...So... people thought even Satoshi running away from home was because of Oyashiro-sama's curse...?"

".........Well... yeah.

...Basically."

It was a bit of an evasive reply, but I felt it was wrong to ask any further, so I didn't press her for details.

"...I don't think I need to explain this, but...

for Satoko, her parents' accident and Satoshi running away...

and all the business about Oyashiro-sama's curse...

None of it's a very happy story, you know?"

...Yeah, of course I knew.

...I could only nod silently.

"That's why... we're not mentioning anything about Satoko's family.

...Even if someone asks about Satoshi, we just lie and said he transferred schools.

...You can understand why, right?"

...They wanted to protect Satoko's happiness—her smile.

...As someone who thought that way once, even for a short time...

I really did regret having been imprudent enough to broach the topic to begin with...

"............Yeah.

I get it.

I'm sorry I asked something so careless."

When she heard that, Mion smiled, seeming a little relieved.

With that understanding, thinking that I should get going, I began to make my way home.

...I could really have stopped by Mion's house, but it was already late.

I'd stop by again the next time I had the chance.

"Bye then, Mion.

Sorry about today.

...See you tomorrow."

"Yeah.

Good-bye."

We waved to each other.

...Then, suddenly remembering something, Mion called out to me.

"Kei-chan!

...One more thing...

...Not only around Satoko, could you keep quiet about Satoshi with Rena, too?"

"............Huh?"

"...I think you realized earlier, but...

For some reason, when it comes to Oyashiro-sama's curse... she gets extremely serious.

...Ever since she transferred here."

".................."

Yeah, judging by how Rena was acting earlier... it was clearly no laughing matter to her.

...Mion had interrupted the conversation for us...

But if Mion hadn't been here... what might have happened...?

"...Why would Rena... be so serious about it?"

Not only Rena, either—but Shion too.

"...I don't know.

Rena is—oh, this is a secret, okay?

If you tell anyone, we're not friends anymore."

Mion emphasized this as her expression clouded even further.

"I won't tell...

What's this about Rena?"

"...She says she's been a victim of Oyashiro-sama's curse before."

"......Huh...?"

"I... well, it may sound mean, but I think it might be a bad case of a persecution complex, or some kind of wrong assumption.

But she says so herself, so I believe her.

...If I poke fun at it, she gets pretty upset.

...Rena jokes around all the time...

but she's really scary when she's mad."

"...I get it.

Don't talk about it in front of Rena, right?

About Satoshi."

"Yeah.

...If possible, I think we shouldn't talk about this ever again.

For her sake.

...And for Satoko's."

For everyone else's, too.

...And if I must say, for your own sake too, Kei-chan.

...With her silence, Mion made sure I knew that.

"......Yeah.

...Okay.

I got it."

"Thanks."

Saying only that, she waved her hand, and began walking away.

...I watched her go, a little dazed, and then started walking myself.

......Satoko's older brother, Satoshi.

Had he run away from home?

...Or had he been a victim of the curse and disappeared forever?

......Whichever the case, none of this was anything I should have asked about...

...The cooling air forced me into self-reflection.

......I wanted Satoko to smile...

Yet, my curiosity easily defeated me, and I frivolously tried to step into the dark side of things in a joking way...

...I'm shameful.

I wanted today to be exactly like yesterday.

I wanted tomorrow to be just as fun as today, too.

...So why did I go and do something like that...

We were having a blast at the baseball game yesterday.

And today we had a blast at the big barbecue party, too.

It was a lot of fun.

...But then I went...

...I went and almost nullified all of those fun times.

...I would have to be more careful starting tomorrow.

I would put all this unpleasant stuff behind me forever.

...Like hell I'm gonna let my enjoyable life end because of how careless I was today...

But the more I thought that I'd be more careful starting tomorrow...

The more I couldn't get rid of the ominous thought that I had already put an end to those enjoyable days with what I'd just done.

.....................

...............Hey, wait.

...Calm down, Keiichi Maebara.

...The gears of destiny are freaking gigantic, aren't they?

What happened just now was trivial.

...It doesn't make any sense to think my life will be totally different starting tomorrow.

...But even though I understood it logically...

the mist in my heart wasn't going to fade... until tomorrow turned out to be as fun as today.

"...I'm acting weird.

...I'm thinking a little too much... about that conversation..."

I wished tomorrow would come already.

I wanted it to make me understand how absurd my insignificant doubts really were.

...The night was long.