Eri couldn't see it?
Was it because Akane Koizumi had cast some kind of spell?
Hayashi Shuichi stared at the spot where the girl's figure had vanished into the clouds, a mountain of questions rising in his mind.
"Let's go," Eri said with a playful huff. "Even if you're a great actor, I'm not going to believe that there's actually someone in this world who can fly on a broomstick."
"...I don't want to believe it either," Shuichi muttered under his breath.
Over the next few days, following their mutual agreement, Shuichi and Akane kept their distance, doing their best to avoid any unnecessary contact.
Time slipped quickly into June. The plum rain season arrived, and Beika became a cycle of gray skies and intermittent downpours.
On a rare Saturday morning, the weather finally cleared up.
Reiko woke up early. Like a little cat, she crept toward her brother's bedroom on tiptoes, moving with exaggerated stealth as if she were on a secret mission.
The moment she pushed the door open, she heard Shuichi's voice, still thick with sleep. "You're up early. What are you sneaking in here for?"
"Onii-chan, you're awake?"
Reiko poked her head in. Seeing that Shuichi had already opened his eyes, a flash of disappointment crossed her face. She was clearly annoyed that her "surprise attack" had failed.
Shuichi grunted in response and sat up, stretching his limbs.
"Onii-chan, let's go home today, okay?" Reiko scurried over to the bedside, grabbing his arm and shaking it rhythmically. "Mom has the day off today. If we go back together, she'll be so happy..."
"About that..." Shuichi gave her an apologetic smile. "I promised to go to the Haido Library with Eri today."
The little girl pouted, her expression turning sour. "Can't you just not go?"
"I gave Eri my word last night," Shuichi said, spreading his hands. "I can't exactly go back on it now, can I?"
"Then I'll just go back by myself," Reiko muttered, lowering her head. Her long eyelashes fluttered sadly, her voice dripping with melancholy. "Mom hasn't seen Onii-chan in so long. She definitely misses you. She's probably waiting at the door right now, hoping you'll walk through..."
"...Tomorrow."
Shuichi knew his little cousin was likely putting on an act, but seeing her look so dejected made his heart melt instantly.
"I'll go back with you tomorrow, okay?"
"It's a promise!"
Reiko's head snapped up, a radiant smile blooming on her face. Before Shuichi could even react, she lunged forward and planted a loud, wet kiss on his cheek.
"I'm going to call Mom right now and tell her the good news!"
"Wait a second," Shuichi said, reaching out to catch her. "Auntie works so hard. It's rare for her to get some rest. Let her sleep in; don't disturb her yet."
"Hee-hee, Mom actually has to work today," Reiko giggled mischievously. "Truth is, I heard everything last night when Eri-姐姐 asked you to go to Haido with her."
"So you said all that on purpose just to make me feel guilty so I'd agree to your request?" Shuichi laughed, pinching his sister's chubby, rosy cheeks. "You're spending all your brainpower trying to manipulate me."
"Well, it's because Onii-chan is getting busier and busier!" Reiko huffed. "If I didn't say it now, tomorrow you'd probably be busy with Eri-姐姐, or Yukiko-姐姐, or Midori-姐姐..."
"Alright, alright, I'm not that busy!"
Shuichi laughed and picked her up, spinning her around in the air. "Tomorrow is all yours. I'll spend the whole day with you, deal?"
In Haido, even though it was barely past ten in the morning, the heat had already become stifling.
"It's so hot. Honestly, I'd rather it rain. At least then it would be cool. Right now, it feels like we're walking inside a giant steamer," Shuichi complained, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"I came here to borrow books. Rain would make things very difficult," Eri remarked, glancing at her childhood friend. She looked cool and elegant in a white sundress, holding a small, delicate parasol.
"If someone had caught those drug traffickers sooner, they wouldn't have burned down the Beika Library. Then I wouldn't have to travel all this way just to find what I need."
"I wonder when the Beika Library will be repaired," Shuichi sighed with regret.
"Not for a long time," Eri said with a helpless sigh. "I passed by the other day. They haven't even finished clearing the debris. Between that and the reconstruction, it'll be at least two or three years."
As they spoke, they reached the entrance of the Haido Library.
"You go on in," Shuichi said, nodding toward a nearby convenience store. "I'm going to grab some water."
"I'll be in the—" Eri started, but Shuichi cut her off with a grin.
"The legal section. I know. Go ahead."
Eri had wanted to specify which floor, but Shuichi was already jogging toward the store. She shook her head with a smile and walked into the library alone.
After buying two bottles of water, Shuichi stepped out of the convenience store and immediately twisted off a cap, taking a long, deep gulp. Then, he splashed a bit of the cold water onto his forehead. The chill was instantaneous and refreshing.
"Much better..." he exhaled.
Just as he was cooling down, he heard the sounds of a childish argument nearby.
Turning around, he saw a group of five boys, roughly seven or eight years old, surrounding another boy of the same age. The group was shouting jeers and insults.
"Look at Furuya's hair! It's yellow! He's a total freak!"
"Foreigner's brat!"
"Go back to wherever you came from!"
"Move," the blonde boy muttered, clenching his small fists and fighting back his anger. "I don't want to fight you."
"This is Japan! Why should we move? You're the freak who should be leaving!"
"Get lost! You don't belong here!"
"I heard even his own mother didn't want him!"
"You can say whatever you want about me, but don't you dare talk about my mother!"
The pale blonde boy couldn't take it anymore. With a roar of fury and heartbreak, he lunged at the chubby boy who was laughing the loudest.
However, before he could even get close, a tall, lanky boy stepped out and gave him a violent shove.
The blonde boy stumbled back, losing his balance, and fell hard onto the pavement. His knees skidded across the rough ground, and blood immediately began to seep through the scrapes.
"You still have the nerve to talk back?"
The lanky boy looked down at him with pure disdain. The other children closed in, their voices overlapping in a chorus of mockery.
The blonde boy stubbornly pushed himself up, his face streaked with dust and tears. He glared at them with fierce defiance. "I'm... I'm not a freak..."
"Hmph! If we say you are, you are!" the chubby boy shouted. "If you aren't a freak, why do you look different from us?"
"I told you last time—every time I see you, I'm going to beat you up!" The lanky boy brandished his fist. "Looks like you need another lesson!"
(End of Chapter)
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