Chapter 186 - Overflowing Light
(1)
"Good morning, Airi. It's time."
"Hoe..."
Airi looks at the clock.
"There's still thirty minutes until breakfast. What's wrong?"
"Airi, you take a long time to get ready, right? I thought it was about time."
Saying that, I kiss Airi.
"Ehehe~. Thank you."
Airi has a gown thrown over her, wearing only underwear underneath. She is sitting on the bed in a split-legged position, her hands halfway out of the slightly long sleeves of the gown as she scratches her head.
I praise myself in private for being able to maintain my composure in a situation like this.
Airi gets out of bed and heads toward the bathroom.
When she comes out, she begins to change.
During that time, I sit in a chair and leisurely watch TV.
It is rare for me to watch TV at such an hour.
"I'm finished changing~"
Airi is wearing a one-piece dress with a cardigan thrown over it and a pochette slung across her shoulder.
Perhaps she is still sleepy, as she is rubbing her eyes.
That gesture is incredibly cute.
I am seized by the urge to push her down, but here, I shall calmly prioritize my appetite.
When I say, "Well, shall we go to breakfast?" Airi nods "Yeah" and leaves the room.
After finishing breakfast, we return to the room, and I kill time watching TV until Airi finishes her makeup.
When Airi calls out, "I'm done~," I also take my luggage and leave the room.
While Airi handles the checkout procedures, I sit in a chair and wait for her.
When Airi returns, we leave the hotel and depart from the theme park.
Upon arriving at the parking lot, we load the luggage and set off. The highway is already somewhat congested.
Still, I check the navigation to see if it's only for a short while.
"What are we doing once we arrive~?"
When Airi asks, I answer as if it were obvious, "Probably lunch."
"Today is a day for the two of us, right? That's what you said, right?"
"That's right."
"Then, I have a proposal?"
"What?"
"Let's let Mr. Car take a break today, okay?"
"But without a car, getting around is inconvenient, isn't it?"
"You just don't get it~" Airi laughs.
"Streetcars are running. I thought I'd like to try riding one~. Besides, even if we move by car, we probably won't be able to move because of the traffic jams."
What Airi says makes sense. Parking lots everywhere will likely be full.
"Then, let's let the car rest today."
"Yeah."
Since we cannot use the hotel parking lot, we park in a nearby parking area.
After having lunch in Chinatown, we go to a sightseeing spot I had mentioned before.
Has it been six years since then? The scenery of the sightseeing spot hasn't changed. If it looks different, perhaps it is we who have changed.
Back then, I was with my parents. Now, it is a trip for just the two of us.
Things I thought were boring back then, I can enjoy now.
I feel like I can understand now the reason why lovers gather here.
"Uuu..."
Airi is worrying about something. What happened? I didn't do anything, did I?
"What's wrong?"
"I said Mr. Car is resting today, but I'm wondering what to do."
"?"
"I want to go see the night view~"
She really is a girl who worries about completely trivial things.
"I'll let him rest properly once we get home, so it's okay."
"Really? You can't take him up the mountain, okay?"
"I get it. So, where do you want to go?"
"Hmm, let's see~"
It's not that far from here.
"Shall we go after eating dinner?"
"Yeah."
"The night view is great, but let's enjoy the daytime scenery too, okay? It's beautiful."
"It really is~"
After that, we walk around looking at shops while heading down the slope.
I remembered a city-strolling date we had in Kobe.
I help Airi choose souvenirs.
"As expected, for Nagasaki, I wonder if it should be castella~?"
"If it's castella, I heard there's a better place to buy it than here."
"Then, let's go there?"
"Tomorrow is fine, right? More importantly, don't you want to see the Cathedral and things like that?"
"Ah, I'll go, I'll go... but..."
"?"
"It's rare for Toya-kun to recommend places like that!"
"I want to make good memories with Airi too, you know."
"Yay♪"
If you frolic that much, you'll bump into people, Airi.
(2)
Departing from the morning, I drove the car heading steadily east.
Avoiding the sightseeing spots, I took a detour and drove along the coast.
Along the way, I stopped at roadside stations to replenish water. It would be a waste of money if I bought it at a convenience store every single time.
Around the time I cleared the sightseeing areas, I entered the Nagasaki Highway.
There are many cars, but not that many.
Occasionally, cars with bad manners force their way in, but I don't let it bother me.
Passing through Saga, I enter Fukuoka.
Here, there was a mistake.
I got caught in a traffic jam around Dazaifu.
Dazaifu, which is also the connection point between the Fukuoka Expressway and the Kyushu Expressway, is exceptionally crowded.
I want to get through to Kitakyushu within today.
Eating bread I bought at a convenience store, I move through the traffic jam that doesn't seem to progress at all.
It doesn't progress, but it's moving little by little.
I can't go back.
It'll be what it'll be.
The traffic jam clears up past a certain intersection.
I drive smoothly.
The Fukuoka Expressway IC comes into view; if I were in a hurry, I should take it.
I deliberately drive on the national highway.
By the time I enter Kitakyushu, the sun had set.
I stop by Moji.
I hesitate over whether to go through the Kanmon Tunnel.
For now, I decided to go through.
After passing through and landing on Honshu, I make a U-turn and return to Kyushu.
I'll come further than this some other time.
At a restaurant, I have a proper meal for the first time in a while.
I park the car at the port and make it the place for tonight's outdoor sleep.
The lights of the factories are vivid and beautiful.
A few cars belonging to dangerous-looking people are parked here, but long-distance trucks are also parked.
I post photos to the message group again.
Responses come back immediately.
"It's beautiful."
"Where are you now?"
"Are you coming back tomorrow? Everyone is worried."
"Is Takemoto-kun okay?"
I'm okay.
I'll be back tomorrow.
Sending that, I fell asleep.
(3)
Slam!
"What the hell were you thinking!? What were you planning to do if something happened!"
The customer in front of me shouted as soon as he took a counter seat.
"Calm down, Kanna."
Another customer soothes Otonashi-san.
The anger is probably about the incident from last night.
Since then, I've been lectured plenty by everyone.
However, since Akira-chan insisted on going, there was nothing that could be done.
"Do you not trust me?"
When told that, there is no way to argue back.
I didn't think he would come using forceful means, though.
Still, it seems she had taken countermeasures in her own way.
"But I think you should have stopped her even by force,"
the other customer, Tada-kun, says.
"When she tells me 'trust me,' it can't be helped, right?"
"You could have handled it by following her, couldn't you?"
"Akira-chan has a bodyguard, so she's fine."
"What are you doing not becoming the bodyguard yourself!?"
Otonashi-san's voice echoes loudly.
"I think we should all calm down~. ...If we're agitated, it'll be exactly what the opponent wants,"
Sakura-san says, and Otonashi-san sits back down in his chair.
Clink clink.
The person at the center of the storm appears.
"The usual, please."
Saying that, Akira-chan sits in her designated seat... the seat to the left of Otonashi-san.
She probably doesn't give a damn that they were arguing about her until now.
"Ah—my head is still spinning..."
"Are you okay, Akira-chan?"
"I came here because I'm not okay. I thought I'd feel better if I drank some tea."
"If you haven't eaten anything, shall I make you something, young lady?"
When the master says that, Akira-chan replies, "It's not a hangover or anything, so I'm fine."
"Akira! What were you thinking? To accept that guy's invitation... what would you have done if something happened?"
"I took precautions. I anticipated that he would invite me to a hotel. And that he might try something."
"That's not the point! The best plan is to not be alone with him!? You should have known from my case that it wouldn't be strange for him to use any means possible."
"It's not interesting to just be on the receiving end, so I just thought I'd show him a bit of a painful experience. In the end, he's the one who had the painful experience, so it's fine, right?"
While Akira-chan and Otonashi-san are arguing, the door bell rings, clink clink.
"There are a lot of people here today."
"I thought you wouldn't come today, Nishimatsu,"
Akira-chan was the one who responded to Nishimatsu-kun's greeting.
"Where should I sit?... This spot is open. May I excuse myself, Kanzaki-san?"
Nishimatsu-kun speaks to Sakura-san as he sits.
"After exposing your unsightly side to everyone, now you've changed your target to me~. You really need to stop making a fool of people!"
Sakura-san provokes him with a cute voice.
"The usual, please."
Nishimatsu-kun pretends to be calm, though his eyebrow twitches.
"Unfortunately, I am currently recruiting a boyfriend~. ...But you are absolutely out of the question!"
"Hahaha, does being that beautiful make one overconfident? I'm beaten. If I recall, you were the idol of the Private University?"
"I'll take that as a compliment~"
"How about it? Since we're in the same situation, let's get along."
"Stop misunderstanding things, you idiot~."
"Misunderstanding?"
"I may have been overconfident at times~. But right now, I'm in a position where the Watanabe Group is looking for a boyfriend for me~"
"Then, aren't I right here?"
"I'd rather die than have you~"
Though her tone is leisurely, Sakura-san's words are full of blatant hostility.
Despite that, Sakura-san, having thought of something, said something outrageous.
"That's right, why don't you play a game with me too~?"
"A game?"
Nishimatsu-kun frowns.
"It's a simple and clear game~. In the current game, I'm excluded, right~? So I thought I'd widen the scope~"
"And? The rules?"
"It's simple. If I fall for you, you win~. If I find another boyfriend first, you lose~"
"...You have that much confidence in yourself?"
"Sakura... wait..."
Otonashi-san tries to stop Sakura-san, but Sakura-san shakes her head.
"But if we leave it like this, it's pitiful for him, isn't it~? With the current rules, he's probably guaranteed to lose~... I'm not so stupid that I'd fall for someone knowing that falling for them means I lose."
"It's not a game with those rules. You could just grab some guy on the street and say 'this is my boyfriend' and the game would be decided."
"You're surprisingly clever~. ...You can use your head more than I thought?"
She really is a person who provokes. Was she like this when we met?
"Then, I'll give you a handicap~. Even if I get a boyfriend, if you can tear that relationship apart, I lose~. ...If that's still not interesting, if I break up with that boyfriend, I'll accept that as my loss too~"
"Sakura! You're going too far!!"
Otonashi-san shouts. But she pays him no mind.
"It's okay, Otonashi-senpai. The Watanabe Group is good at that kind of thing, right?"
"What happens when I win?"
"That means I was won over by you, so the Watanabe Group can just take the loss~"
"You can't decide that on your own, Sakura-san, can you?"
"That's true~"
Sakura-san operates her smartphone.
She contacts Watanabe-kun through the Watanabe Group's group message. It seems everyone is opposed, but Watanabe-kun apparently gave his consent. Katagiri-kun...?
He settled it with a single "Ridiculous."
"It's decided!"
Saying that, Sakura-san stands up.
"Well then~ I'm going home today~. See ya~"
Saying that, she left the shop.
"I'll be heading home too... well then, everyone, until next time."
Saying that, Nishimatsu-kun also left.
"What the hell is she thinking, that Sakura!"
"She's probably just enjoying it as a game,"
Akira-chan answered Otonashi-san's question.
While saying that, Akira-chan seems to be operating her smartphone.
"Watanabe-kun. Why did you permit it?"
"If we refused, Nishimatsu would get cocky, wouldn't he?"
"You should just let him get cocky, he's pathetic."
"Giving him this much of a handicap... if he loses, it'll be quite a humiliation."
"Did you not consider Sakura's physical safety?"
"You've realized that Sakura isn't an idiot, right? It's a rigged race."
"A single moment of laxity can lead to a catastrophe, can't it?"
"I believe that Sakura has changed too."
"T-that's how it is,"
Akira-chan said with a sigh.
"The Watanabe Group looks down on women too much. I want them to handle them more cautiously,"
Otonashi-san speaks.
"They trust them. Everyone trusts their partner."
"Trust and treating someone carelessly are completely different things,"
Otonashi-san says to Tada-kun.
"Everyone cherishes them. Precisely because they cherish them. Yoshiyuki probably acted impulsively because of that, right?"
I couldn't say that I was half-desperate.
"Sakura will be fine. She said it herself, 'stop making a fool of people'... The match was decided from the start."
Forceful means will no longer work.
That's what Akira-chan said.
However, Sakura-chan is single.
Deep down, somewhere, I was worried.
"If you're going to worry about another woman, worry about me,"
Akira-chan says.
It was the beautiful season of persimmon leaves.
(4)
"It's beautiful~"
We had come to Mount Inasa.
If we take the ropeway to the top of the mountain, we can enjoy a layered night view.
We savor the fantastical world enveloped in light.
When we were eating dinner, Toya-kun and I were both surprised.
By the Watanabe Group's chat log.
Toya-kun dismissed it as "ridiculous," but isn't he worried?
"Sakura-san knows about Nishimatsu-kun and hates him, right? It's not even a contest."
"But, there's also the incident with Shimizu-san."
"She probably anticipated what kind of things he'd do, right? And it didn't become a legal case."
"What would Toya-kun do if I said I was going to go play with Nishimatsu-kun?"
"I'd stop you with all my might. I'd absolutely never let you be alone with him. I mean, you don't actually feel like doing that, right?"
I answered with a smile.
"The ropeway is about to end, so shall we go down?"
After savoring the night view, we left Mount Inasa.
When we returned to the hotel, Toya-kun began eating the food he had bought.
I was taking a shower.
When I came out of the bathroom, Toya-kun went in to take his turn.
I told him, "Please go first," but he said, "I'll go after I eat this," so I went in first.
While Toya-kun was showering, I watched TV while drying my hair.
When Toya-kun came out of the bathroom, I jumped on him.
Toya-kun caught me, and from his expression, I could even see a sense of composure.
I know.
That's what I could see from Toya-kun's expression.
It's okay, you know?
I got into bed with Toya-kun, and we watched TV while drinking juice.
The two of us watched TV, chatted, and laughed together.
We spent our time like that.
Toya-kun was the one who started moving.
He pulled me close and pressed for a kiss.
I accept it. ...But, you know.
"Toya-kun, you should rest properly today too. Driving tomorrow will be hard."
"Is it okay?"
Toya-kun looks a little disappointed.
"Weren't we going to enjoy ourselves together tonight?"
Toya-kun asks.
"I am enjoying myself. I'm enjoying this time right now."
When I say that to Toya-kun, he seems satisfied.
It's rare for the two of us to watch late-night programs.
Suddenly, Toya-kun's responses vanished.
I wonder what happened?
When I look at Toya-kun... he was asleep.
He was tired, wasn't he.
I turn off the TV and dim the lights.
Then, I cling to the sleeping Toya-kun. I thought Toya-kun might wake up, but he must have been extremely sleepy, as there was no sign of him waking at all.
I also fall asleep.
Tomorrow, we return to our hometown.
I felt lonely, but we can just go somewhere again next year.
Not even waiting for next year, maybe in the summer.
Where shall we go next?
With such anticipation in my heart, I too entered the world of dreams.