"Um... does long hair really suit me? It's not like I care much about your opinion, but... I'm asking you."
What a complicated way to ask a simple question. Well, that's Touka. She can ask something and at the same time clarify that she doesn't care about the answer, even though she's clearly waiting for it. If she really didn't care, she wouldn't have slowed down her steps, right?
Less than an hour ago that damn alarm clock interrupted what could have been a romantic moment between us. I still hold a grudge against that thing... I'm seriously considering crushing it tonight and telling Touka it was an accident.
Thinking about it, that would be childish, but I'm considering it.
Setting that aside, it's a quiet morning. The morning sunlight spills a soft warmth over the body, filling it with energy, and a cool breeze sways the leaves of the cherry trees on both sides of the road. The trees form a long line down either side of the street, and beyond the trunks there's a grassy slope that runs down to meet the water of a clear river.
You often see couples resting there on their dates, though since it's still very early, there aren't any in sight.
In that place where the sound of the river can be heard clearly, I stop for a moment, just as Touka's soft voice reaches me from the side.
Turning my neck a little, I look at her.
Long ash-blue hair, very soft with a slight wave to it, sways behind a girl of around 170 cm. Her thick bangs partially cover the left side of her face, hiding her left eye. That feature, which would make anyone else look gloomy, looks elegant on her.
Her eyes look at me with a deep calm and serenity.
Even though Touka is a popular girl at school, most people keep their distance from her because they find her serious, severe expression terrifying. I once heard a guy say that looking at Touka made him feel like his life expectancy was getting shorter...
How should I put this? I think the world is full of people who don't know how to look.
I mean... this girl, terrifying? The same one who panicked this morning because I was about to sneeze? I find her pretty cute, and I honestly don't understand why anyone should be afraid of her.
I laugh a little at that thought, raise my hand and run my fingers through her long hair. She, the object of everyone's fear, lets herself be petted without protest.
"It was my idea in the first place, wasn't it? I'd already pictured a long-haired Touka in my head a while ago, that's why I suggested it. And even though short-haired Touka was cute too, I prefer this version. By a lot."
Faced with an answer that long and that direct, a soft blush appears on Touka's delicate face. And seeing that I intend to keep talking, she slaps my hand away.
"Enough! I get it, stop."
While avoiding my eyes, she huffs and fixes her hair.
...Look at her. Isn't she cute?
I laughed with that thought in my head, and we started walking again side by side toward school.
Pink petals fall from the cherry trees with every gust of wind, spinning in the air before touching the ground. Some land in the river and the current carries them away. Without thinking about it much, I reach out and catch one mid-flight.
I look at it for a moment before looking at her.
"Hey. What do you think about going out tonight?"
At my suggestion coming out of nowhere, Touka startles so badly she almost trips over her own feet. She recovers her composure and looks at me with narrowed eyes.
"...Going out where?"
Hey, those suspicious accusing eyes hurt a little.
Well, I earned it, I suppose.
After all, the times I say those words to her, we always end up as the three of us, meaning me, Touka and Rize, hunting supernatural beings through the night.
For me and Rize it might have been fun. At first it was for Touka too. But after a while she wants something different for a change of pace.
That's more or less what I can read through her emotional frequency and her aura.
In that case...
Without answering her accusing eyes right away, I step closer and place the pink petal in her hair, right above her ear.
She goes rigid, maybe not knowing how to react. I walk faster and turn back toward her to evaluate the result, and I nod to myself. The pink of the petal against the ash blue of her hair goes together pretty well.
"It's a date. Here, under the cherry trees. I'd like to look at the night sky from this spot... and I think it'd look better with company. So, would you like to come with me?"
"Err..."
Touka stops dead in the middle of the road.
Bringing her hand to the petal in her hair, touching it with her fingertips, she opens her eyes wide while her long lashes flutter five times. I counted them... I can't take my eyes off this cute girl anyway, so I might as well put the time to use.
Then a small, honest smile that seems to come straight from her heart forms on her face, while a blush the exact color of the petals stains her cheeks.
"...I accept. Let's have a date, Arata."
Ah.
My heart just let out a few fast, hard beats.
×××
During break...
I'm on the school roof, looking around as the wind ruffles my hair. I set the bento box down next to me.
This is Fujimi Academy. How should I describe it? It's a pretty large place, with several facilities spread across the grounds... classroom buildings connected by walkways, a gym, a pool, club rooms, and a decent-sized soccer field off to one side.
Since it's break now, there are students playing down there while the spectators along the edges make noise, shouting every time someone misses a shot.
To put it plainly, a normal, peaceful school scene.
Since my life includes moments where I'm being chased by enormous organizations, I value this kind of boredom.
Only a week has passed since the night battle against the army Amon and Mado brought with them. The CCG had been chasing me for a long time, but at least now they seem to have settled down.
I could stay here leaning on the railing until the bell rings, or lie down and look at the sky, maybe fall asleep until the school day ends.
Mm?
I notice something moving in a corner of the yard. Of course, there are plenty of people moving around, but what catches my attention is that this movement is fairly abrupt and breaks from the normal flow of the students. That can be credited to the sensitivity to surroundings and situations I've picked up.
A girl is being led by the arm by a guy with a thin, long face wearing a beanie. Dragging her like that, one could say that this leading isn't friendly.
The long-faced guy has her arm in a firm grip and walks fast, while she goes half-dragged, pulling in the opposite direction from him. That said, those tugs are weak and discreet. She doesn't want to make a scene? Though she doesn't want to go where she's being taken either.
She's a plain-looking girl with short brown hair, wearing the Fujimi Academy uniform. I know her by sight. I've seen her several times, actually.
The guy with the beanie, on the other hand, is dressed casually and clearly isn't a student here. He's taking her toward the space behind the school building.
Hah...
At least scream, woman. A stranger is taking you somewhere unknown, but there are plenty of people around who'd help you if you screamed, or at the very least the one taking you would think twice before continuing, and might even run.
This woman is pretty indecisive, with a worried and somewhat fearful expression.
I shift my gaze toward the back of the school. My vision passes through the walls, and behind the building where there are several meters of open space, I see the silhouettes of people.
Some have baseball bats resting on their shoulders, and all of them look like they're waiting for someone to beat up.
I see, I see. So the guy with the beanie is an ally of those ones back there and wants to use the girl as bait, huh?
Is there something like a manual that says "how to ambush someone, rule number one: use his girl"?
Well, I could go down and settle this. Actually, I could even do it without moving from here. But I don't plan on stepping in.
A man has to handle his own business with his own hands, and stealing that opportunity from him would be... how do I put it? An insult. Besides, I'm curious to see how much he's grown.
I take a phone out of my pocket and from my contact list I dial one person's name.
Once he answers, I speak.
"Yo. Your girl's in trouble."
"Where is she?"
A male voice comes from the other end.
"Ah, some guy is taking her behind the school right now. By the looks of him, I'd say he's one of the ones who used to bully you."
"...Shit."
Letting that word out, he hangs up on me.
Hey, what a rude generation, seriously.
Well, whatever. I would have done the same if a girl I cared about was in danger.
I settle in more comfortably against the railing, elbows resting on it and chin in one hand, looking toward the back yard.
From his classroom to the back yard is about two hundred meters. A normal student would take a while to get there even running, because there are a lot of detours to make.
But that guy isn't normal.
Let's see how long it takes him.
×××
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