Chapter 85 - The Magic of White Snow
(1)
A lodging facility in Rusutsu.
I've already finished bathing and am drying my hair when my smartphone rings.
Looking at the screen, it's Makoto.
He really is attentive.
I answer the phone.
"Oh, Kanna."
"Your timing is a bit bad."
"Ah, if you're busy, I can call back..."
"It's fine."
"How was today?"
"I've finally arrived in Hokkaido, ah. I ate ramen in Otaru. It was delicious."
"That sounds like a reaction Toya would have. Wait, were you with Toya?"
"No, Toya messed up again..."
We talked about Toya and Airi.
"...That's just like him. I keep telling him to learn his lesson."
"It looks like he has, a little bit."
"Seriously?"
Yes, really.
Waiting for us, who had arrived late, were two smiling couples.
Setting one couple aside, Toya and Airi... especially Airi, were definitely in a better mood than before they split up.
She had a look on her face like she had definitely gained some experience points.
"Something good must have happened. I was nervous that Airi might still be feeling sad."
"Toya is growing too, huh."
"I guess so."
"So, were you acting alone, Kanna?"
"No, I followed two guys. Everyone else was in couples."
"Two guys, you say..."
"Don't worry, one of them is a coward who doesn't have the guts to even talk to me. The other one has a girlfriend."
"I see, then it's fine."
"If you're that worried, you should have come to the same high school, right?"
"I've come to realize the pain of long-distance love far too late."
There were times when it was many times more painful for me.
But...
"That's exactly why there's joy when we finally meet, right?"
That's something Toya and Airi would absolutely never understand.
"That's true, but..."
"If you want to see me that much, shall we do a video call? You can see me fresh out of the bath right now."
"Ugh, I want to see~"
"You've been showing your perverted side quite blatantly lately. Are you letting your guard down just because it's me?"
It's been like this ever since I let him have my body once.
"That just means we've become close enough for me to show my true self..."
"They say there's etiquette even among intimates. If you keep acting so blatantly, I'll be disillusioned and go to another man."
I intended it as half-teasing, but...
"T-That's the one thing I can't have!! From now on, I'll go with the normal approach..."
It's hard to tell if he's joking or serious.
I've seen your true self.
"I'm lying. I just mean it's troublesome if you expose too much."
"I get it. I might have been getting too carried away lately. Sorry."
That's the Makoto I love.
You really aren't any different from Toya after all.
It's just that, unlike Toya, you were boosted by your looks.
At that moment, someone entered the room.
It was Ai.
"My roommate's here, so I'm hanging up."
"Your roommate... if it's Tosaka-san, then it's fine, right? Surely it's not a guy..."
"It's a girl, idiot."
Pfft.
"Ah, Kanna. Were you on the phone with your boyfriend? Sorry."
"No, we talked enough, so it's fine."
"Kanna, you're amazing. You're in your second year even though you go to different schools, right? Doesn't cheating worry you?"
"I trust him on that one thing."
"I was no good with long-distance. A cheating partner appeared almost immediately..."
It's not exactly that long-distance, though.
Well, from the perspective of people in environments like Ai or Airi, I suppose it is long-distance.
Ai looked for Airi while drying her hair with a dryer.
"Airi went to the lobby already. She said 'I have a mission!!'..."
"Mission?"
"...Well, because of that. She's probably keeping watch."
"That?"
"Yeah, I mean that being Toya's girlfriend is hard work."
"Ah, speaking of the lobby, I remembered. Watanabe-kun left a message earlier. He said 'Our group meet in the lobby after the bath'."
"What's that about?"
Once Ai finished drying her hair, she tied it up with a rubber band and stood up.
"If Airi is in the lobby too, then it's perfect. Let's go quickly."
"True."
We headed toward the lobby.
(2)
"Please let me off the hook!"
"No way~! What was that thing during the day! Besides, you ate a feast for dinner!"
It had become a bit of a spectacle.
Me, trying to enter the ramen shop. Airi, stopping me.
"Customer, you're bothering the other guests..."
"But! Come on, Toya-kun."
"Damn... there are still two days left. I am definitely eating the ramen here."
Eating ramen in Hokkaido.
That was something I swore to when I saw the school trip itinerary.
To come all this way and not eat miso butter ramen with corn is a blasphemy against ramen.
In soccer terms, it's like handing the ball over to the enemy goalkeeper.
"Ah, Airi. So it was here after all."
"Kanna, Ai-chan, what are you doing here?"
"You came to eat ramen, right! Together..."
Bonk.
"I won't be grouped with Toya-kun!"
Kanna looked at me with exasperation.
"I thought this would happen. When she said she had business in the lobby. She was staring intensely at Toya during check-in."
"He really does it before the words have even left his mouth, honestly~"
"What did you guys come here for?"
When I asked, Sashihara-san answered for them.
"Watanabe-kun said he had business, so we should gather."
"Watanabe-kun did?"
When I asked back, that Watanabe-kun arrived, bringing Ishihara-kun with him.
"Yo, everyone's gathered!"
We took positions on the lobby sofas.
"So, what's the business?"
Kanna asked Watanabe-kun. Then...
"Huh? Nothing at all."
He answered nonchalantly.
"Hah?"
"I mean, if we sneak into rooms from the first day, we'll be marked and it'll be a pain later, right? So I thought here would be fine."
He added that we'd probably be exhausted from skiing starting tomorrow.
"Are you saying you called us here without any actual business?"
Kanna said, looking exasperated.
"Well, yeah. If anything, maybe just today's activity report? What were you doing during free time?"
"We ate seafood bowls and ramen together, didn't we?"
"That's us, but aren't you curious about the other two couples?"
"I think it's better not to ask too intrusive of questions."
Ishihara-kun voiced his opinion hesitantly.
"Now, now, if it's that kind of talk, we can do it over ramen... Ow!"
Bonk.
"Toya-kun, be quiet! Right... we picked out music boxes, then went to see glasswork, and had tea."
Airi answered honestly.
"W-We..."
"Looked at the town scenery, looked at music boxes, ate soft-serve ice cream, and that was it."
Sashihara-san answered decisively, contrasting with Kiritani-kun's hesitant tone.
"Heh, you were sightseeing normally, surprisingly. Wait, that's not Toya's course!"
Kanna was surprised.
Right? That's why you have to let me eat ramen...
Bonk.
Airi poked me, seeing that my eyes were still drifting toward the ramen shop.
"Give it up already!"
"Geez, can't be helped. Toya, you want to eat it tomorrow at lunch?"
Oh, Kanna... you understand me.
"Kanna, don't spoil him!"
"I told you before, this thing with Toya is like a disease. Give up."
"I won't give up! Toya-kun, was that thing from the daytime a lie?"
Ugh! You're saying that now...
Since I said it myself, I can't say anything.
"What's this 'thing from the daytime'?"
Watanabe-kun chimed in.
"Hmm, well, you see..."
Airi began to tell the story happily.
Ah, she shouldn't have said it.
I blushed.
"Ahahaha, you said something like that, Toya?"
Kanna burst out laughing.
"That's Toya for you. They say a man's word is his bond. Give it up during the school trip."
Watanabe-kun started laughing too.
"I'm jealous, Airi. I want my boyfriend to say things like that to me~"
Sashihara-san, you were probably on a normal date, right?
"Weren't you on a normal date too, Ai?"
Airi asked Sashihara-san.
"That's fine, but Kiritani-kun looked bored. He even picked out his music box alone."
"I-I didn't look bored!"
Kiritani-kun hurriedly defended himself.
"I envy all of you."
Ishihara-kun muttered softly.
"Come to think of it, only Isshy is left. You don't have a girlfriend?"
Watanabe-kun said.
"I have nothing to offer..."
"It's okay. Toya-kun is similar, so I'm sure Ishihara-kun can do it too."
Isn't that way of putting it kind of harsh, Airi?
But it's also certainly true, just as Airi said.
I understand Ishihara-kun's feelings well.
But Ishihara-kun, your grades are good!
That alone is a merit if you call it one.
I noticed Airi and Kanna looking at me.
"Toya-kun, say something to him."
"This is Toya's specialty, right?"
I guess so.
"Hmm, Ishihara-kun isn't a bad person, and he's smart, so I'm sure there's someone who will appreciate you. This kind of thing usually develops from trivial things, not because someone is 'good' or 'bad' at it. I was the same. Airi was the one who chose me, even though I was a mass of inferiority. I thought we were absolutely mismatched, yet she chose me. I think it's better to become a person who can be proud of themselves rather than comparing yourself to others. That confidence is surely something a girlfriend will give you."
"Katagiri-kun is good at soccer, isn't he? He's good at basketball too. And he can study reasonably well."
"But he's not a handsome guy. Everyone's preferences are different, so don't give up hope."
"Hmm, true. Isshy, is there anyone you like?"
Watanabe-kun asked Ishihara-kun.
"Someone like that would be too good for me."
"Isshy, thinking so pessimistically is what irritates girls. Have more confidence in yourself."
Kanna told Ishihara-kun.
"Alright! My goal for the school trip is decided!"
Watanabe-kun slapped his own leg.
"Isshy, first, find someone you like! That's the first stage! Whether you date or not comes after that."
"True. What's your type? For example, among these three, who would it be?"
Kanna said, putting her arms around the shoulders of Airi and Sashihara-san, who were on either side of her.
"Is it okay to say, even though all three have boyfriends?"
"We're just asking about preferences, so don't worry about it, right? Toya, Eita."
"I don't mind."
"I-If you actually fall in love, I'll blow you away!"
Kiritani-kun and I agreed.
"In that case... I think I like people who are kind and devoted, like Tosaka-san."
"That's rude, I'm kind and devoted too!"
Sashihara-san protested.
If we start saying things like that, Kanna won't stay quiet either.
"Isn't there anything more specific? I'm devoted too."
She didn't say she was kind.
"Hmm, someone who seems like I could feel at peace being with them... a cheerful and gentle person, I guess."
The two of them still didn't seem satisfied.
"Well, you've only seen the surface of the three of them, right? If you'd seen deep inside, that would mean you liked them, so it wouldn't be a problem, right?"
Watanabe-kun followed up.
You're a capable person.
I've thought that since our first year.
"You guys were still in a place like this? At least sneak into the girls' rooms or do something more youthful."
Mickey arrived.
"Well, that's it for tonight. See you tomorrow."
When Watanabe-kun said that, we dispersed.
Now then, I'll have some ramen...
Grab!
My arm was seized.
"Let's get some good rest, okay?"
Airi smiled brightly.
Just one bowl, please let me eat...
(3)
"Hey, Katagiri-kun?"
He asked while Ishihara-kun was sleeping.
"What is it?"
"Um... what state is it when you fall in love with someone?"
Why is he asking me that?
"Hmm, I guess it's similar to when I first ate delicious ramen at a local shop."
"Eh?"
"You want to go eat there again. You only have interest in that shop, and you don't even care about other shops. You're just obsessed with that one shop."
"...Sorry, I don't understand what you mean."
"Toya, can you only express things with food?"
Watanabe-kun answered instead.
"A huge shock runs through you, and after that, it's just as Toya said. You think about that person all the time, they're the only thing on your mind, and just being with them makes your heart race. You have absolutely no interest in other girls."
"I understand the part about not being interested in other girls. It's just... I've never fallen in love with someone."
"Isn't that because your complex about yourself is making you feel that way?"
"No, I'm just completely uninterested."
"Isshy, there are no girls here. Let's talk honestly."
"I really am uninterested... I think things like 'she's beautiful' or 'she's a kind person,' but I have absolutely no desire to date."
"Ho ho, who did you think that about?"
"Eguchi-san or Miyasako-san..."
"Isshy, you're quite the looker-preferrer, aren't you?"
Kiritani-kun joined the conversation.
"Ai said those two don't have boyfriends. It's your chance."
"It's rude to do that when I don't even like them that much."
"You can just come to like them after you start dating. There are things you can't know until you try dating, right?"
That's a fair point.
Until I started dating Airi, I didn't think she was such an aggressive girl.
She's a busy girl who is selfish, sulks quickly, cries, and laughs.
But I think I can handle that now.
I just hope I don't make her cry or make her sad.
I inevitably end up weighing her against food.
I wonder what Airi thinks about that?
"Toya, hey."
I wonder if she'll lose patience with me?
Come to think of it, they say the slopes are crowded with handsome guys.
If I look away for a moment, will she be taken?
...Is this the time to be thinking about ramen?
"Toya!!"
Ah, I was zoned out.
"What's up?"
"For now, I've decided to set up Eguchi and Isshy. You cooperate too."
Watanabe-kun's sudden announcement.
Had the conversation gone that far?
"D-Do I have that kind of leeway?"
"What, you heartless bastard."
"No, I'm worried about Airi."
"Is something wrong? Tosaka-san?"
"It's not that something is wrong, but other handsome guys are here, right? I'm worried she'll be taken while I'm not looking at the slopes."
"You're making a fool of Tosaka-san with that. Trust her more. From anyone's perspective, Tosaka-san only looks at you. It's been that way since the start of school, right?"
"That's true, but..."
"Besides, I don't think you're as inferior as you think you are."
"Exactly, if Toya does it, he can do anything, right?"
Kiritani-kun said the same thing.
"It was the same during the soccer match, right? You were surrounded by girls from Joushina. Did Airi-san panic then? She was composed, right? You just have to do the same."
Watanabe-kun's words are always persuasive.
"I get it... So, specifically, what are we doing?"
We discussed it for a while after that.
But who could have predicted that this discussion would be useless...
(4)
The ski training began the next day.
Ski wear and other equipment were rentals from the facility.
The instructor for our group was a woman.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Asami Iida."
She was a beautiful woman.
First, how to stop and how to fall.
Apparently, falling the wrong way can lead to injury.
After that, how to turn.
This would be done after actually going up the slopes.
We also heard about how to ride the lift.
We took a two-person lift.
I was with Airi.
"So high, so high~" Airi frolicked.
Whenever the lift stopped...
"I'm scared~" Airi clung to me.
That's scarier, Airi.
When we reached the top, we chose the beginner course.
We practiced while stopping every now and then.
Airi and I got used to it quickly.
Airi said, "Because I saw it on TV~"
As for me, I thought it was similar to skating.
Both of us easily managed everything from the bogen to the stem turn.
Halfway through, Airi must have been getting excited.
"I want to ski the advanced course~" she started saying.
"If it's Tosaka-san, you'll be fine. But there are many people, so please be careful," Iida-san said, and Airi started skiing with a "Yeees~".
As I watched Airi, an accident occurred.
While trying to avoid a snowboarder sitting on the course, Airi lost her posture and fell.
"Airi!!"
Just as I thought.
"That was the boarder's fault. Sitting in a place like that... but I can't stay here complaining. Everyone is skiing the beginner route. I'll..."
Well, it can't be helped. Why does it always turn out like this?
Without listening to Iida-san, she acted before thinking.
I skied down the steep advanced course alone.
Then, when I reached the boarder and Airi, I turned and stopped.
"Airi, are you okay?"
"Toya-kun... I'm okay. But these people..."
Did they start a fight with her?
"...Do you have some business with my Airi?"
When I asked, glaring at the men through my goggles.
"Tch, she's got a boyfriend."
"If you're the boyfriend, take proper care of her."
After spitting those words out, the snowboarders left.
"Are you guys okay? Also, Katagiri-kun, you can actually do it!"
"My body just moved unconsciously."
"Toya-kun can do anything~. I saw it too~"
Airi frolicked.
"What happened?"
"They said 'Since you're a beginner, shall we teach you? By the way, where are you from? You're cute. How old are you?' so, in short, she was being hit on."
"And?"
"Eh?"
"And what did you say to them!"
Airi flinched.
I didn't intend to say it that strongly.
However, she soon took off her goggles and was angry.
"Toya-kun, you don't trust me!? I turned them down properly! I told them I have a boyfriend! Jeez... if you're that worried, don't just look at food, look at me properly."
"I came because I was looking, right?"
"I know, I saw you skiing in parallel! Amazing, amazing!! Let's ski the rest together, okay? Is that alright, Iida-san?"
"That's fine. I didn't think a child who just learned the bogen would nail a parallel turn. You two can ski as you like."
Airi put on her goggles and carefully stood up.
"Is your leg okay?"
"Yeah."
"I'll follow from behind..."
"Ehh, the boy should ski first here. Otherwise, I can't cling to you and say 'Kyaa~ I can't stop~'."
What a reckless girl.
Then, Airi and I drew beautiful spures and reached the bottom.
"You... you really can do anything."
Kanna was surprised.
"Because it's Toya-kun~"
Airi gave a reason that wasn't a reason.
"Tosaka-san, were you okay!?"
Watanabe-kun was worried about Airi.
"It was a bit bad, but I'm fine~ Toya-kun rescued me~"
Don't say "rescued me~".
"Honestly, this is what happens when she gets a bit too excited. I'm getting my ramen approved today!"
That's not a reason, is it? Is it no good? Will I make her angry again?
"Uugh... just once."
I finally conquered Airi!
Yes! Just wait for me, ramen shop!
"But ramen eaten in a place like this is predictable. It's probably no different from a local ramen shop..."
That's something only you can say because you ate ramen in Otaru, Watanabe-kun.
Being able to eat ramen on the spot... how happy that makes me.
Miso butter ramen, extra bean sprouts, firm noodles♪.
I chanted it like a spell.
I was probably the only one who didn't notice.
That at that moment, a small love was being born in Ishihara-kun's heart.