"I thought I said, 'hopefully there'll be no crowd'..."
It's deja vu all over again. Koizumi and I found ourselves amidst yet another crowd. The only difference is that this time, instead of looking at the window, they're all looking at the bulletin board.
"What is it this time?" I say.
"They're probably looking at the ranking for last year's final exam," replies Koizumi.
"Last year's final exam?"
"It was supposed to be announced by the end of our second year, but it was delayed for whatever reason."
I remain silent while staring at her.
"... What?" she asks.
"Making sure you're not going to randomly disappear and leave me here again."
"Well, unlike last time, when you needed me specifically to introduce you to the music club, you can ask anyone here to take you to the school hall if I leave, right?"
"Are you saying that you will leave me?"
"Don't worry, there's no reason for me to leave right now."
Is she saying that she had a reason to leave me last time? I can't imagine what the reason might be.
After confirming that she isn't going anywhere, my attention is drawn back to the bulletin board. I know my name won't be there since I just enrolled this year, but I'm still curious.
The person who comes in first place is someone named Kurata Akio, with a total score of 500 out of 500. Whoa, a perfect score. That's amazing.
In second place is someone named Nishiyama Chou, with a total score of 487 out of 500....
"Ah!" I gasp upon seeing the third place.
Asahina Ayu is the name in third place with a total score of 479 out of 500.
I rub my eyes over and over again, but the name doesn't change.
Wait, wait, wait, wait, so Asahina is actually THAT smart!?
"... Fujishige-kun?" Koizumi asks after noticing my surprised look.
"Nothing, just a little shocked," I reply.
"What? Don't tell me you're surprised to see Ayu's rank? Why do you think she was accepted into this school to begin with?"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Don't you think it's a little too convenient for the school to accept a student with a disability like Ayu? They already have many other students enrolling. Accepting Ayu would cause more trouble for the school since she requires more resources to study. But Ayu manages to prove her worth by scoring higher than average students."
Now that she mentions it, I remember Asahina saying something about her being accepted to the school because of a special condition. Is this the condition she's talking about?
"So you're telling me that if Asahina didn't have good grades, the school wouldn't have accepted her?"
"Probably yes."
"Now, that's very unfair..."
"Unfortunately, this is the world we live in. People are treated unequally just because they're different." Koizumi speaks flatly as always, but her tone sounds more sympathetic this time.
Asahina is cheerful, so I never thought she had to deal with such things. This just gives me a completely different view of Asahina.
I glance at the billboard once again and notice Koizumi's name in the fifteenth rank. Fifteen is still very high, considering there are probably a thousand students in this school. Suddenly, I feel like a loser surrounded by a bunch of geniuses.
---
We arrive at the hall.
Despite already knowing what it looks like, this is the first time I see the hall with my own eyes. It's located in the middle of the school's back garden, giving this place a relaxing feel.
The door isn't closed, likely because the art club members are already inside. Koizumi and I enter the building. Even though it's not as big as the main hall, this place is still pretty wide, with enough room for a small event. There's a mini stage located at the very front. Next to it is a door that says "storage room."
In the corner of the room, there's a pile of carefully placed artwork. They seem to be the works that have been submitted by the art club members to be displayed in the exhibition.
Nanase, Asahina, Aoyama, and four other students whom I've never met before are already inside. They must be the art club members.
"So you couldn't take care of the exhibition properly and had to involve Asahina-san to get it done? That's very shameful of you, Aoyama," says one of the four students while folding her arms.
She has short black hair. Even though she's a girl, she wears a rather manly outfit and seems like a tomboy.
As she scolds him, Aoyama, who is standing next to her, can only remain quiet while looking down.
"Geez, didn't he already explain to you that he'd taken care of everything except for the location? Aren't you being too harsh for no reason?" Nanase speaks up, defending Aoyama.
"The location of the exhibition is the most important aspect. All planning for the event can only be done once we already know where it will be held and what the environment will look like. The fact that he spoke up this late regarding his inability to find a location is problematic."
"Ugh, you're such a hypocrite. You say that, but you also failed to provide Aoyama-kun the help he needed for this event," Nanase snaps back.
The tomboy girl raises one eyebrow. "Excuse me?"
"Am I wrong? As the club leader, it's your job to check with Aoyama-kun regarding the exhibition to make sure things go smoothly. The fact that you didn't make you just as guilty."
Feeling attacked, the tomboy girl glares at Nanase. "Oh? Why are you getting so heated all of a sudden, Nanase? Are you still angry that I won against you in the painting competition last year?"
"What!?"
"You two, stop it!!" Asahina shouts while jumping between them. "Fujikawa-san, I came here because I'm the one who offered to help. Aoyama-kun never asked for my involvement. So there's no reason for you to be angry at him, okay?"
Hearing her, the girl called Fujikawa pauses briefly before replying, "Whatever, I put Aoyama in charge, so do what you want."
As she walks away, Nanase sticks out her tongue behind Fujikawa's back. "Yeah, yeah, 'do what you want,' she says after scolding Aoyama for doing what he wants! Seriously, how the hell did she get chosen as the club leader?!"
"Don't say that, Nanase-san," says a boy with green eyes while patting Nanase's shoulder. "You know that deep inside she's blaming herself for why things didn't go as planned. It's just unfortunate that she chose to vent her frustration to us. You know she truly didn't mean it." He wears a friendly smile.
"Geez... Whatever." Nanase rolls her eyes.
Koizumi and I watch over their argument silently. The art club members don't seem to get along very well, huh?
Koizumi doesn't pay any attention to their conflict. She immediately makes her way towards Asahina.
While she's not facing the direction Koizumi is coming from, I can see Asahina's eyes brighten up as Koizumi approaches her. "Ririsu-chan!? Why are you here?"
"I came to help out with this exhibition you're doing."
"Eh?? But why? This is so unlike you!" Asahina sounds completely flabbergasted.
"Let's just say, a certain someone is the cause of me ending up here," she says while rolling her eyes in my direction. I look away, pretending not to notice.
Asahina tilts her head with a confused look, then her expression suddenly turns into a confident one. "Hee~ don't tell me, are you worried about me, Ririsu-chan?"
Apparently, Asahina has assumed that the "someone" Koizumi mentioned is actually her.
"I see, I see~ It seems that my charisma will always make people feel this way, huh? Too bad, too bad~" she says confidently. Her demeanor comes off as adorable.
Koizumi remains silent, seeming disinterested in saying anything. Either that or she just doesn't want to ruin Asahina's innocent belief that she's the reason Koizumi came.
"Hmm... Asahina-senpai sure is something, isn't she?" mutters a grey-haired girl wearing glasses who's standing near me.
"Huh? What do you mean?" She is probably only talking to herself, but I decide to reply to her anyway.
"From what I see, Asahina-senpai is the only person who can, like, talk casually to someone like Koizumi-senpai, without being harshly talked down to by her. She is also the only person whom Senpai couldn't ignore. Bizarre, huh?" she says.
Hearing her comment, I turn to look at Asahina and Koizumi again... This is indeed the first time I see Koizumi talking with someone without staring at a book all the time. Her attention is drawn to Asahina as she speaks. What a rare sight.
That being said, I just realized something odd. When Koizumi walked towards Asahina, she immediately called Koizumi's name. But how did she know that it was Koizumi who was approaching her? Maybe she recognized her voice? But Koizumi didn't say a single word from the time we got here until Asahina talked to her… Maybe I'm overthinking this.
While I'm lost in my own thoughts, I notice the grey-haired girl staring at me. "Uh... Who are you again?" she asks.
"I'm Fujishige Shou, from class 3-B," I answer.
"I see... So, Senpai, are you interested in the art club? If you want, I can talk to Fujikawa-senpai for you."
"Eh? No thanks, I'm not into art."
"Hm? How odd. I would assume that, since you went out of your way to come here, you're interested in joining our club?"
"No, I came to help a friend."
"Ah! Koizumi-senpai is also from class 3-B, isn't she? I suppose, she's why you came?"
"Well, partly yes..." I was actually referring to Aoyama, but technically Koizumi is also one of the reasons why I'm here.
"Oh~ Is that so?" she says with a slight smirk on her face.
I feel like she's getting the wrong idea about Koizumi and me...
That said, this girl seems to pause mid-sentence a lot when talking. I wonder if that's just a habit of hers.
"Well then, just in case you, you know, change your mind about the club, my name is Suzuki Hinomiya, and you can find me in class 2-A."
"Okay, nice to meet you, Suzuki-san." I probably won't look for her, but it's nice to know anyway.
"Alright then, enjoy your time!" she says before walking away.
---
"Fujishige-kun." Since Koizumi's attention has shifted toward Asahina, Aoyama quickly uses this opportunity to talk to me. "You managed to bring Koizumi-san! I'm surprised. I wasn't expecting her to actually come."
"Oh, you had no idea..." I say while recalling the one hell of an argument I had with her in order to get her here. "Speaking of which, how did things go?"
"Well, I only have a few hours to prepare things, so it might not be perfect, but I did my best."
His answer is vague, but his face seems full of confidence. Maybe there's no need for me to worry.
"Also, Aoyama-kun, you remember your promise with me, right?" I ask.
"That I shouldn't tell anyone about your involvement? Yeah, I remember."
That is my condition for helping him. I'm pretty sure Aoyama understands that.
"Speaking of which, there aren't as many people here as I initially thought," I say while looking around.
"Oh, we have way more members than this. But most of them couldn't make it here. They have their own businesses to worry about, after all. The six of us here are the only ones who are willing to help with the exhibition. Besides, this isn't even an official event. It's just something Fujikawa-san and I made."
I guess that's to be expected. You can't expect everyone to be willing to help.
"Anyway, when do you plan to hold the exhibition?" I ask.
"If we manage to get most of it done today, we will hold it at 3 PM on Sunday."
"I see, then... about the quiz, when do you want to do it?"
"About that… I think asking Koizumi-san to be present during our planning phases will be unnecessary... So, what about this: on Sunday, the art club members and I will come a bit earlier to make the final preparations for the exhibition before it begins. What if you and Koizumi-san join us by then?"
"That's not a bad idea."
But that also means I need to persuade Koizumi to come to the exhibition itself somehow... and I have to make her come earlier than the designated time… Oh boy.
"I'm sorry for being a bother, Fujishige-kun," Aoyama apologizes.
"No worries, I'm the one who decided to help you anyway."
"Oi, Hiroshi!" The boy with green eyes from earlier calls out to Aoyama. "Ito-kun has finished designing the poster. Don't you want to check it out?"
"Ah, I'm coming!" replies Aoyama while walking towards the green-eyed boy.
"Poster?" I ask while following him.
"Yeah. Originally, I planned to announce the exhibition using the school bulletin board, but Asahina-san suggested making posters about the exhibition as well and placing them on the school bulletin board. That way, we can attract other people's attention a lot more easily."
That does sound like a good idea.
"Asahina seemed very passionate about helping out, didn't she?" I ask.
"Yes! She gave me a lot of useful tips. She even told me that since most students have club activities after school, it's best to hold the exhibition during the weekend if you want more people to attend it. I hadn't even thought that far. I was originally planning on holding it after school," says Aoyama.
"Hmm..." Perhaps since Asahina usually doesn't have the chance to be a part of such an activity, she gets very excited when she finally gets to be in one?
The green-eyed boy is standing next to a desk with a drawing tablet on top of it. A boy with short, curly hair is sitting in front of the tablet, seemingly fiddling with it.
"Ito-kun's poster design is good, isn't it? What do you think, Hiroshi?"
Aoyama and I look at the tablet screen. The poster is designed with geometric shapes and muted colors. Cursive writing can be found in the middle of the poster that says: Ikuei High School Art Exhibition.
"It turned out good, but I think it looks a little too formal for an unofficial high school club exhibition," says Aoyama as he inspects the design carefully.
"Oh? Then what do you suggest?" asks the guy with curly hair called Ito, while rolling his eyes slightly.
"Maybe give it a more abstract look? And maybe some brighter colors..." Aoyama continues. It doesn't seem like he notices Ito's behavior.
Ito immediately changes the design based on Aoyama's suggestion. Despite seeming annoyed, he doesn't say anything and just goes with everything Aoyama tells him to do.
Aoyama usually appears rather meek, but when he's put in charge of something, he looks like a completely different person. Now I understand why the club leader trusts him to handle this exhibition.
"By the way, I know you said you have some of your friends to help you out with the exhibition, but who is this white-haired boy? I'd never seen him before," asks the green-eyed boy while looking at me.
"Ah, sorry, I haven't introduced him. This is Fujishige Shou-kun from class 3-B. He's a transfer student," says Aoyama.
I give a slight bow after Aoyama introduces me. "Sorry if I'm being a bother."
"Oh, no, not at all!" The green-eyed boy smiles warmly. "I'm Kamado Toru, from class 3-D. Hiroshi and I have been friends since elementary school. Any friend of Hiroshi is also a friend of mine!"
Hiroshi is Aoyama's first name. They must be very close if they call each other by their given names.
"Oh! And we also have Ito-kun over here..." Kamado says while looking at Ito, who's still fiddling with his tablet.
Kamado taps his shoulder a few times, trying to make him introduce himself. But Ito shows no sign of complying. He keeps fiddling with his tablet without batting an eye.
"Um... Please forgive his attitude, Fujishige-kun," Kamado whispers to me. "He's still in his first year and is new to the club. He doesn't get along well with people. He didn't even want to help with the exhibition at first. But since we need his skills with digital design, we convinced him to come."
"It's okay, don't worry about it," I say.
"Dang it, this won't work!!" Suddenly I hear someone shouting. The girl with grey hair whom I talked to earlier, Suzuki, seems frustrated while looking at an artwork she placed on the table in the center of the room.
"W-What won't work?" Aoyama asks while approaching her.
"The lighting in this hall, it is terrible!" she replies. "You can barely, make out the details of the art at all!"
I take a look and see what seems to be a sculpture of a Pegasus placed on the table. Even though the sculpture is gorgeous, the bad lighting makes it difficult for me to see the details. The purpose of the exhibition is to display the art, so this will be a problem.
"This sculpture is amazing. Did you make this, Suzuki-san?" I ask.
"Yep! It's sculpted with clay. It took me around, I believe, four days, just to finish it. Quite proud of how it turns out. Such a shame if the bad lighting ruins it, though."
"That said, I thought the exhibition took place on Sunday, but everyone seems to have already brought all their artworks for display?" I say while looking at the pile of artworks on the side of the room.
"Oh, that? It's because Aoyama-senpai already accepted art submissions, before we even had a concrete location for where the exhibition will be held. Those things have been cramping up our small art room, and it's bothering us! We have to bring some here, just to make some space." Suzuki shakes her head.
"S- Sorry about that…!" Aoyama stammers apologetically.
"No use apologizing now, Senpai. Let's focus on the problem at hand."
Hearing her, Aoyama's attention then shifts toward the lights. "Hmm, since the hall hasn't been used for a while, the lights are starting to get dim. Perhaps if we buy new light bulbs, it will fix the problem…" he mutters to himself.
"Wouldn't that be unnecessary for a one-time event?" Koizumi, who's been silently watching over the situation until now, suddenly speaks up.
"E-Eh?" Aoyama turns towards her, seeming surprised by her sudden suggestion.
"I believe the main hall already has portable spotlights. Instead of wasting money on new light bulbs, why not borrow those instead? I'm pretty sure the teachers won't mind."
"Oh..."
"Other than that, the way Suzuki-san positions her artwork is terrible," Koizumi adds while turning towards Suzuki.
"Huh?" Suzuki responds.
"Your sculpture is bigger than most of the other artworks. If you place it in the middle, it'll cast shadows on surrounding artworks and obscure them. Not to mention, your sculpture has a lot of small details. Put it near the window where the sunlight is. Smaller artwork with fewer details can be put in the center."
Suzuki pauses, then looks at her sculpture. "Hmm... You have a point, Senpai..."
Aoyama freezes for a second, probably not expecting Koizumi to randomly cooperate with the exhibition's preparation.
"U-Uhm, yeah! That does sound like a good idea… thanks!" Aoyama nods while writing it down in his notebook.
He's not the only one who's surprised; it takes me a while to believe what I just heard either. Not only did she actually engage with the planning process, but she also paid enough attention to comment on the art placement!
I drag her here in order for Aoyama to do his quiz. I was not expecting her to actually make an effort to help. I'm not complaining, though. Now it really seems like Koizumi actually has a purpose for coming here.
---
Since the hall hasn't been used for a while, the room is quite dusty and dirty. I've been the most useless one here so far. The least I can do is lend a hand with cleaning. I start sweeping the floor and wiping the windows.
To make sure I don't damage any of the artworks they're planning to display at the exhibition, I temporarily move them all to the storage room next to the stage. It's a bit scary to move them, considering some of the artworks are made of fragile materials. And I think Aoyama would kill me if one of them breaks.
"So it's your job to be a janitor now?" says Koizumi, clearly mocking me.
Just when I thought I could have a moment of peace…
"What about you? You seemed to be getting out of character back there," I say.
"I thought you were the one who told me to fix my reputation?"
"Well, that's true…"
Honestly, I wasn't expecting her to take my words literally. I only told her that because I wanted to get her to come to the hall.
"Hm~? You want Ririsu-chan to fix her reputation?" Asahina asks, sneaking behind us to join our conversation.
"He said you were worried about me because of it," Koizumi says to Asahina.
"I was…?" Asahina muses.
Oh no…
"Hm? Fujishige-kun said that you were worried since there were a lot of negative rumors circulating about me."
"Well, it is true that I was a little worried about all the people bad-mouthing you. But I know you, Ririsu-chan, and I know that you're not the type to get hurt by such things. I also know the truth behind all those bad rumors, so I'm not bothered at all!"
Hearing what Asahina says, Koizumi glares at me.
"Care to explain?" she says.
Welp, there goes my Asahina excuse.
"Wait, you misunderstood me, Koizumi-san," I say while raising my hands.
"What do you mean?"
"I never said that Asahina-san directly told me that she is worried, did I? I said, 'Asahina-san cares for the people around her. Don't you think she will be worried about you?'"
By that logic, technically I wasn't lying.
Koizumi raises one eyebrow. "So you drag me here because of your own assumption?"
"Well, I suppose I'm indeed only using Asahina-san as an excuse."
"What do you mean?"
"You see, the truth is, I was the one who was worried." I decide to cover my lies with more lies.
It's not like I have a choice. I can't tell her about Aoyama yet, and I can't have her leave either.
"I figured that if I said, 'I want you to come because I'm worried about your reputation,' you would just stare at me and roll your eyes. That's why I decided to use Asahina's name." I then add, "Err... sorry about that, Asahina-san."
"Hm~?" Asahina responds to my apology by simply tilting her head cutely.
"What? Why would you care?" Koizumi asks me.
"Why not? We're already friends. You're also the person who wrote one of my favorite stories. So obviously I think quite highly of you. Which is why hearing all those rumors of people talking badly about you makes me sad. So I asked you to come here to hopefully be able to change people's opinion of you. Does that answer your question?"
Koizumi pauses. "…Really? All because of that story I wrote?"
It doesn't seem like Koizumi is buying any of my explanations…
"Hm… Fujishige-kun, could it be that you have a crush on Ririsu-chan?"
"What? No!"
"Really? You sound like you care about her a lot~" Asahina teases me further.
My attempt at making an excuse just ends up creating more misunderstandings. I'm sorry, Aoyama…
"Hey, Fujishige-kun." Just as I'm thinking about him, Aoyama suddenly pops up and interrupts us. "Ah, sorry, are you guys in the middle of something?" he asks.
What perfect timing! I decide to use Aoyama to escape from this painful conversation.
"Oh, don't worry about it, please continue!" I tell him, purposely turning the attention toward Aoyama.
"Well, I want to show you some of the art I'm planning to display at the exhibition. Do you want to see it?"
"Sure. That reminds me, I've never seen your drawing before."
After getting my confirmation, Aoyama walks towards the storage room and comes out with a bag. Inside the bag are two canvases. On each canvas is what appears to be a pencil drawing of a rabbit and a dog. Each drawing is covered with colored plastic that neatly wraps around the entire canvas. The rabbit drawing is covered with red plastic, and the dog is covered with blue plastic.
"Whoa, that's a drawing?? It looks like the real thing!" I gasp.
"Thanks! It took me almost three hours to finish them. I even have to skip class to do it, haha!"
Only three hours? That's very impressive!
"Hm~?" Asahina slightly tilts her head. "Fujishige-kun, what are we looking at?" she asks me.
"Ah, it's a drawing of a rabbit and a dog. The drawings seem to be on the realistic side. The rabbit is sitting curled up with its ears up, while the dog is sitting upright with its tongue sticking out. They both seem very detailed and professional. I can see each strand of fur in the drawing. Both of them seem to be wrapped in colored plastic, red and blue, to be specific."
"Oh, they're just plastic for protection so that the drawings won't get damaged. I'll take it off later," Aoyama replies.
Koizumi, who's standing next to me, is also looking at Aoyama's drawing without saying a word.
Meanwhile, Asahina furrows her eyebrows. "Red and blue…?" she asks.
Ah! That's right, I forgot that Asahina doesn't know colors.
"Well… red is… think of it as when you're eating a juicy apple," I say, trying to replicate what I did back when I met her for the first time.
"Green apples exist, though," Koizumi interrupts me.
"Well then... what about strawberries?"
"White strawberries exist."
"White strawberries aren't even strawberries. They're called pineberries!" I protest.
"Strawberries and pineberries are pretty much the same thing."
"But red is still the most common color on that fruit!"
"Then what if Ayu were to eat a white strawberry thinking that it's red since you told her it is?"
"Uh…"
"If you're going to use something to explain colors, at least do it properly," she shuts me down.
"Ugh... You've completely ruined my wholesome analogy!" I groan.
"Haha…" Suddenly, we're interrupted by Aoyama's soft laugh. "Ah, sorry. It's just that you two have a very interesting chemistry."
"Chemistry? You call that chemistry?" I ask.
"Well, you talked to each other so casually, almost like you've been friends for a long time."
I glance at Koizumi. She definitely doesn't seem to agree with him.
"Ah, the clock is ticking. I need to get back to work!" Aoyama says apologetically. He then places the drawings back in his bag and leaves to continue with the preparation.
As he walks away, I catch a glimpse of Aoyama's expression: it seems somewhat sorrowful.
I wonder if my interaction with Koizumi just now is what Aoyama wishes he could have with her. I might've made Aoyama feel bad about himself without meaning to…
---
An hour has passed.
The club has managed to finish some of the preparations for the exhibition. Aoyama and Ito have also finished designing the poster. It now looks more colorful and lively than the previous one, which is more suitable for a high school exhibition.
Portable spotlights have been borrowed from the main hall, and the display position for each artwork has been determined. It seems like they listened to Koizumi's suggestion. The displayed art now really pops under the dedicated lights, making it easier to see and appreciate.
Everything is looking good so far.
"Phew… Whoa! It's already past 5 o'clock? Perhaps this is enough for today," Kamado says while looking at his watch.
"Yeah, thank you for all the hard work today!" Aoyama adds.
It seems that they all agree that this is the time to go home.
While everyone is packing their things, I notice Koizumi is standing by the table, staring at Aoyama's other drawings.
That reminds me, the rabbit and dog drawings that Aoyama showed us earlier are just two of the artworks he plans to display at this exhibition. Koizumi is looking at one of the other drawings he brought to the hall.
Curious about what she's doing, I decide to approach her.
"What are you looking at?"
Koizumi doesn't answer me. She continues looking at the drawing.
I decide to look at it as well. It's a pencil drawing of a coastal city view, wrapped in transparent protective plastic. Just like the rabbit and dog drawings, this one also looks highly detailed and realistic. It's almost like I'm looking at an actual black-and-white photograph. Aoyama-kun is truly talented at pencil art.
"Why do you think Aoyama-kun used colored plastic for the drawings he showed us last time?" Koizumi asks me.
"Huh?"
"If his goal is just to protect the artwork, regular plastic like this one would suffice."
That's true. All the other drawings Aoyama brought, including this one, are covered with regular transparent plastic. Only the rabbit and dog drawings are covered with red and blue plastic.
"Maybe he ran out of regular plastic?" I say.
"... I guess that's a possibility," Koizumi mutters.
Speaking of Aoyama, I'd promised him that I would be the one to make sure Koizumi is still around on the day of the exhibition. Maybe I should talk to her about it now that I'm with her.
"On the day of the exhibition, which is this Sunday, Aoyama-kun said that they will come to the hall earlier than the designated time to help out one last time. I think you should come with us."
Koizumi remains silent for a while before letting out a sigh. "Fine, I'll come." An unexpected answer comes out of her mouth.
"Whoa, that was quick!"
I was expecting to go back and forth with her again just to convince her to come.
"Even if I said no, you'll stay persistent in persuading me anyway, just like last time."
Actually, she's correct.
"I'd rather not be in another argument with you, so let's just get this over with," she continues.
"…You kinda sound like you don't want to do it."
"That's because I indeed don't want to do it."
I guess that makes sense.
"I still don't understand why you even want me to come here in the first place."
"I already explained that it's because I was worried about you, right? You just choose not to believe me," I respond.
"I still find your excuse to be a stretch."
"But it wasn't an excuse. I was serious! But at this point, can anything I say change your mind?"
I don't think I can possibly say anything to make Koizumi believe me without revealing the plan Aoyama and I had prepared.
"What's next? You're going to ask me to come help you guys during the six days of exhibition planning?" she asks.
"Nah, that wouldn't be necessary. Even I didn't plan to be present for the entire six days."
The day when the exhibition will be held is also when Aoyama's quiz will take place, which means she only needs to come that day.
"Very well then," she says dismissively and walks away.
It would've been better if Koizumi were doing this of her own free will instead of looking like she's being forced, but this is the best I can do to convince her for now.
From here, the rest is all up to Aoyama. Whether or not he'll be able to pull it off exactly as I told him is anyone's guess. I'm interested in seeing how this plays out.
Soon after that, the art club members agree to leave all the artworks that will be displayed at the exhibition in the storage room. The key to the room is then handed to Fujikawa, the leader of the club. That way, they can make sure the submitted artworks are safe.
Before parting ways, everyone starts waving to each other. Koizumi, however, immediately walks home without even looking back, not even saying a single "bye" or "see you later". At this point, this is to be expected of her.
I stay behind for a little while and only start walking home after they've finished saying goodbye to each other.
As I walk, I notice that Aoyama is carrying the same bag as the one he used to carry his drawings earlier. It looks like something is still in the bag, which is odd considering that all the artworks are supposed to be left in the storage room, but no one else seems to notice.
After that, I leave school and go home.
---
Today is Sunday, the day of the art exhibition.
For the past few days, Asahina and the others have been helping the club hang posters and spread invitations to the exhibition. I've also received one. The exact time of the exhibition is 3:30 PM.
Though the members of the club, along with Asahina, are supposed to come a few hours early to prepare and display the artwork, I decide to join them and come early as well. That said, Koizumi also promised to come early today. I wonder if she keeps her promise.
I make it to school somewhere around 2 PM. As I peek inside the hall, it seems that almost everyone is already here. To my surprise, Koizumi is also here, sitting in the corner while reading as usual. This time she is reading And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie. Does she ever read any books that aren't mystery-related or Western-published?
I decide to use this opportunity to tease her. "So you keep your word after all."
"What do you mean by that?"
"To be honest, I half expected you to never show up."
She glares at me in response.
"I was just joking." I raise my hands.
"I always keep my word. If I wasn't planning to come, I'd straight up say that I'm not coming."
Really? She didn't keep her word when she said she'd introduce me to the person in the music club, though.
"Alright, is everyone already here?" Kamado asks while looking around the room.
"Nope, Nanase-senpai is not here yet," Ito responds while still fiddling with his tablet.
As if summoned by Ito's comment, Nanase suddenly comes running through the hall door. She crouches slightly while panting.
"S-Sorry I'm late! I got caught up in a little something on my way here," she says between breaths. I can see sweat running down her forehead. She must've been running to get here.
"Mizu-chan? You sound exhausted. Are you okay?" Asahina asks.
"Y-Yeah! I'm fine, just tired from sprinting," Nanase replies.
She seems to be carrying a bag. Since the zippers aren't closed all the way, I can see a piece of money peeking out of the bag, and there seems to be more inside. But before I get to see more, Nanase quickly closes her bag and puts it aside.
"Now that everyone's here, we need to quickly finish the remaining preparation before the exhibition begins. Should we start by adjusting the lights?" says Kamado.
"Wait!" Suddenly, Aoyama stops him. "Before that, shouldn't we check the artwork inside the storage room first? We haven't really checked their condition for the past six days, have we?"
"Eh? But we kept them all in the storage room, and we made sure it was locked, so it's not like anything bad could happen to them, right?"
"That's true, but we put a lot of effort into each one of them. At the very least, I want to make sure they're in perfect condition." Aoyama then looks at Fujikawa, the one who's holding the key to the storage room.
Noticing his signal, she walks towards Aoyama and hands him the key.
After receiving the key, Aoyama immediately enters the storage room. I expect him to just let the other members go in and check the artwork together.
But instead, he walks in, comes back out with a few art pieces in his hand to show they're still in good condition, goes back inside, and returns with another. He repeats this, over and over, until he's shown every single piece stored in that room.
At the very end, he emerges with his own rabbit drawing, then goes back in and comes back out with the dog one. Just like the other day, both are still wrapped in red and blue plastic.
"Well, they all look exactly the same as when we left them there." Suzuki shrugs.
"Yeah, you're right, maybe I just worry too much," Aoyama says while closing the storage room door and locking it. "Alright then, let's start adjusting the lights as you suggested, Toru."
And just like that, the day proceeds as usual.
---
Everyone is busy preparing for the exhibition that's about to start in more than an hour.
Today, Koizumi has become increasingly involved with the preparations. Instead of just giving suggestions, she's now actively holding equipment and attempting to help prepare and assemble it alongside Asahina and Nanase.
She still doesn't talk much and remains visibly flat, but the fact that she's doing something aside from reading in the corner of the room is a huge improvement. Koizumi no longer looks out of place here. She looks like she truly belongs. I wonder if she's just trying not to stand out in a new environment? Or does she simply think, "I'm already here anyway, so why not?"
Though this also makes me realize: Koizumi is more than capable of socializing if she wants to. She easily blends into social activities without any problems. Which means this whole time, her isolation is a choice, not something she's struggling with.
"Hey, Fujishige-kun." While paying attention to Koizumi, I'm suddenly approached by Kamado. "Thank you for everything. I really appreciate it."
"Huh? Wait, I don't think I've done anything worth thanking for," I say.
"I'm aware that Hiroshi likes Koizumi-san. The reason why she's here is because of you, right?"
Oh? He suddenly brings up Aoyama.
"Did Aoyama-kun tell you that?"
"Told me that Koizumi-san might show up? Yes, but he didn't say that you are the one who brought her here."
So Aoyama doesn't break his promise with me.
"So you just figured out that it was me yourself?" I ask.
"It's not that hard to figure it out. You're the only one I've seen talking to her since we started planning the exhibition the other day."
That's true.
"Hiroshi has been having trouble getting along with Koizumi-san, so I'm glad that someone is willing to help." He smiles, sounding grateful.
"I see..." Since I'm currently talking to the person who has known Aoyama for a long time, I decide to ask more. "If it's okay with you, can you tell me why Aoyama-kun likes Koizumi-san to begin with?"
The two of them have nothing in common, and Koizumi has a personality that I can only describe as unpleasant. So why would Aoyama be attracted to her?
"Well, let's just say Koizumi-san was there to help him at the time he needed someone the most," Kamado replies.
"Eh? Now I'm curious. Can you tell me the details?"
Kamado stops talking for a while, seeming to be recalling the incident. "It was during the first year of high school. I was placed in a different class from Hiroshi and was unaware of what had happened until a classmate told me about it."
He then looks down, seeming regretful. "At that time, during swimming class, a girl in the same class as Hiroshi named Sato suddenly claimed that her underwear had been stolen."
"H-Her underwear?!" I stammer.
"She was very upset and blamed the boys for stealing it. She asked for the boys' belongings to be checked. It ended with the underwear found inside Hiroshi's bag."
Oh… I quickly realize where this is going.
"He didn't do it, though, did he?" I ask.
"Of course not! Hiroshi is not that type of person. He would never do such a thing."
I've only known Aoyama for a couple of days, but he doesn't seem like the perverted type. He's always calm and respectful. I can't imagine him doing something as extreme as stealing a girl's underwear.
"It was quite a mess. Even the teachers were involved. Hiroshi kept repeating that he didn't do it, but, as if purposely adding fuel to the fire, Sato addressed the rest of the class: 'If you think Aoyama didn't do it, raise your hand.'"
"…Let me guess, no one raised their hand?" I ask.
Being accused of doing something you didn't do must've felt awful. It definitely left a scar within Aoyama.
Kamado then shakes his head. "In the silence after Sato's remark, there was only one person among them who raised their hand."
Only one person, huh?
"Was that person Koizumi?" I ask.
"Yes." Kamado smiles. "Koizumi-san was placed in the same class as Hiroshi at that time, and she was the only one who defended him. I heard she even got into an argument with Sato in order to defend Hiroshi. One thing led to another, and I guess she eventually found out that Hiroshi had been at the library prior to swimming class. She asked the teacher to check the security camera, and Hiroshi was spotted in the library just a few minutes before swimming class started."
If Aoyama was in the library just minutes before swimming class started, then there's no way he would have had the chance to steal the underwear.
"Apparently Hiroshi was researching materials for a school project in the library. Thanks to that, Hiroshi was cleared of any wrongdoing. Though I don't know what happened with the whole underwear-theft ordeal after that."
"So Aoyama-kun began to like Koizumi-san since then?"
"Probably so. When everyone abandoned him, Koizumi-san was the only one who stood up for him. I think it's reasonable for Hiroshi to develop feelings for her."
"Hmm..."
Even someone as cold and uncaring as Koizumi can take the initiative to stand up for someone. Perhaps she is not as cold-hearted as everyone thought. I doubt Koizumi herself realizes how much her actions affected Aoyama that day.
---
With only an hour left for the exhibition, the club members all seem very busy. They run back and forth to make sure everything is perfect.
"Ah, the food has arrived!" Nanase exclaims after she reads the message on her phone.
The art club has ordered packaged food so that the guests can enjoy snacks during the exhibition.
"Let me go get it!" Aoyama rushes to the door to greet the delivery guy in front of the hall.
Meanwhile, Fujikawa, who's handling the background props, is rummaging through the supplies for the exhibition. While she's doing that, she suddenly stands up and looks towards Koizumi.
"Hey you, the one with long hair," she calls out.
Koizumi turns around.
"We ran out of rope here. But I'm pretty sure we have more in the storage room. Can you go get it?" says Fujikawa.
The reason why Fujikawa specifically asks Koizumi to do this is probably that she just happens to be sitting right next to the storage room.
Without saying anything, Koizumi starts heading towards the storage room door.
But before she can enter, Aoyama suddenly stops her.
"W-Wait, Koizumi-san!" he shouts. "Don't go in there!"
"…Why?" Koizumi tilts her head.
"L-Let me— Uhm..." Aoyama cuts himself off.
It sounds like he's about to say, "Let me be the one to get it instead," but he can't do that because he's in the middle of dealing with the delivery guy.
He begins looking around in a panic before he spots me.
"Ah! Fujishige-kun, can you please help us get the rope from the storage room?" he says.
"Huh? Uh, sure."
Aoyama passes the request given to Koizumi to me instead. I decide to go along with them and go towards the storage room.
Not understanding the meaning behind Aoyama's behavior, Koizumi simply sits back down as I enter the room.
The rope is just on the shelf. I take it with me before noticing the stack of red and blue plastics next to it. It looks similar to the one I saw wrapping Aoyama's rabbit and dog drawing.
"So Aoyama has plenty of these," I mutter to myself.
Speaking of drawings, they still haven't taken the artworks out of the storage room, so I can see all of them inside, including Aoyama's drawing.
As I walk out of the room, I notice the boy with curly hair, Ito, looking at me as if he's paying attention to my actions.
"Is there anything wrong?" I ask him.
"No, nothing," he says and continues fiddling with his tablet.
I then walk towards Fujikawa and hand her the rope.
---
It is now 2:50 PM, with less than an hour left before the exhibition begins.
I peek outside the hall. A few people are starting to show up. People who saw the posters or received an invitation have arrived to see the exhibition.
"Guys, quick! It's already 3 PM! Let's start displaying the artworks! Even though the posters said 3:30 PM, there will still be people who come early!" says Kamado.
"Everyone, please take your artworks from the storage room and start displaying them in the same position we'd agreed on the other day!" Fujikawa commands.
Following her order, the art club members begin entering the storage room one by one and come out with different art pieces in their hands. They then carefully display them on the table.
After a few minutes, the tables are all decorated with artworks, neatly arranged from corner to corner, with portable spotlights placed nearby to give them proper lighting. A piece of paper explaining the details of the artwork, along with the artist's name, can be found next to each artwork.
"Whoa, this looks amazing...!" Nanase claps her hands.
Everyone seems satisfied. The hall now looks like an actual art exhibition despite this place having seemed empty not long ago.
Amidst the excitement, however, Asahina approaches Nanase with a slightly concerned look.
"Mizu-chan, are you okay?"
"Huh? I'm fine. What's with that random question?"
"Well... Your voice sounded a bit off today. Just to make sure, there isn't anything bad happening, is there?" Asahina speaks with her eyes wide, looking genuinely worried.
"What? Literally nothing happened, really!"
"Is that so? That's good..." Asahina sighs, relieved.
I listen to their conversation from afar. Does Nanase's voice sound off? I keep listening to her as she talks, and I can't hear any difference in her voice at all. I know that Asahina probably has sharper hearing, but what could she possibly have noticed about Nanase's voice?
Just as I'm looking away from her, I see Kamado and Suzuki are staring at the table on the other side of the room. They both look visibly confused and upset, like something is terribly wrong.
Curious about what they're doing, I approach them.
"Is everything okay?" I ask.
"Senpai, among all the drawings, that Aoyama-senpai brought to the exhibition, there were two drawings of animals, right?" Suzuki says.
"Huh? Yeah, the rabbit and the dog drawings."
"But the only drawing here is the rabbit one... Where did the dog drawing go?"
"... Eh?"
I immediately look towards the table. I see the rabbit drawing, with the red plastic still on it, displayed on the side of the table. But the dog drawing is nowhere to be found.
"Wait, what?" The commotion begins to reach the other members as well. Everyone starts looking around the table and even re-checking the storage room.
But alas, nothing is found. The dog drawing is gone.
"What? No way! It was still there when I checked the storage room earlier!" says Aoyama.
Nanase nods repeatedly, supporting Aoyama's words. "Yeah! We all saw Aoyama-kun holding the rabbit and dog drawings when he was checking the storage room!"
I recall the incident again. Aoyama stops Kamado from starting too soon and offers to check the artwork's safety first. Back then, we all saw Aoyama emerge from the storage room with the dog and rabbit drawings separately.
"Wait, wait. Hiroshi, just now when we were bringing the artworks out of the storage room to be displayed, was the dog drawing still there?" Kamado asks Aoyama.
"Eh? I'm not sure. I was too busy paying attention to the placement of the other artworks that I didn't pay attention to my own. But I don't think I've seen the dog drawing since we took it out of the storage room earlier," Aoyama replies.
"Doesn't that mean that the drawing was stolen after you checked the storage room?"
"Huh? But how??" Nanase yells. "After Aoyama-kun checked the storage room, not a single person left or went inside the hall. I mean, let's be real. If someone were to walk through the front door, everyone would definitely notice, right?"
Everyone goes silent after hearing Nanase's reasonable statement. The hall isn't that big, and the sound of someone opening the door would definitely attract attention. There isn't any window inside the storage room either, so it's not like there's a way for anyone to enter it without going through the front door.
"But, wait, the storage room is locked, right? So it's not like, anyone can get inside, except for, well, Fujikawa-senpai..." says Suzuki while slowly turning her eyes towards Fujikawa, who's supposedly holding the key to the storage room.
"Hey now, are you dumb?" Fujikawa replies in an annoyed tone. "Until I stepped into this hall today, I hadn't even touched the storage room door once. When I came here, I immediately gave the key to Aoyama because he said he wanted to check the artworks' safety. After that, I continued to prepare for the exhibition with everyone else. You saw that with your own eyes!"
"But, what about before that? Before we gathered in this hall. No one could gain access to the storage room, except for you, right?"
Fujikawa facepalms. "Suzuki... If I had stolen the drawing before everyone gathered here, how come the drawing was still there when Aoyama checked the storage room?"
"Oh...!" Suzuki gasps.
"W-Wait a minute, this is very weird..." Kamado says. It seems that he just realized how unusual the situation is. "Looking at the situation, it's impossible for anyone to steal the drawing!"
Everyone goes silent while looking at each other.
I glance at Koizumi to see what she's doing. She's standing completely still while silently watching the situation. However, I can tell from her expression that she's just as confused as everyone else.
In the middle of the confusion, suddenly someone speaks up: "Isn't it easier to assume that whoever stole the drawing is someone who went inside the storage room after Aoyama-senpai checked the art pieces' safety?"
The person who spoke up just now is none other than the boy with curly hair, Ito.
"Huh? But throughout our time here, no one entered the storage room except for Aoyama-kun, right?" asks Nanase.
"Actually, there is one other person besides Aoyama-senpai," says Ito while slowly raising his finger and pointing it at me.
Everyone immediately turns their eyes in my direction.
Oh no... I don't like where this is going.
"Ah, that's right! Fujishige-senpai went inside the storage room, to get the rope earlier!" Suzuki supports him.
"Huh? W-Wait a minute!" Realizing that I'm taking the blame, Aoyama quickly interrupts. "Isn't it a little too early to jump to conclusions? I don't think Fujishige-kun is the one who did it."
"Don't be too soft, Aoyama-senpai. Looking at the circumstances, no one other than Fujishige-senpai has the opportunity to steal it," Ito responds.
"But I was the one who asked Fujishige-kun to enter the storage room to begin with!"
"What if Fujishige-senpai wasn't planning on taking the drawing from the beginning? What if he only decided to take it after you asked him to enter the room?"
"Uh-Uhm..." Aoyama stammers.
"That's too far, Ito-kun," Kamado says, also trying to defend me. "Why would Fujishige-kun want to steal something as simple as a drawing?"
"Why not? Not all thieves steal something because they want it; some steal simply for the thrill of it. What makes you think Fujishige-senpai isn't one of those people?"
Everyone looks in my direction after hearing what Ito says.
"Is that true, Fujishige? Were you the one who took the drawing?" Fujikawa asks. It's clear that she's starting to doubt me.
"No. I really didn't do anything," I reply.
"Pfft—Keep denying. It won't get you anywhere," Ito sneers at me.
If I continue to talk further, I'll just add fuel to the fire, so I decide to shut up.
"Now that I think of it... Fujishige-senpai is a new student. So none of us would know, what kind of person he is yet..." Suzuki mutters, seeming convinced that I'm the culprit.
"Uhm... guys, the truth is—" Before Aoyama finishes talking, someone else speaks up.
"Anu~ sorry Ito-kun, but I think your statement just now has a lot of loopholes," says Asahina while wearing a thin smile, interrupting the commotion.
"Huh!?" Ito seems visibly upset that Asahina is defending me.
But Asahina keeps talking. "First of all, let's say that Fujishige-kun indeed took the drawing out of the storage room. The question is, did you see him carrying any drawing at all when he walked out of the room?"
"Well..." Ito trails.
"Since I don't have the ability to see, I won't be able to tell, will I? But I imagine that Aoyama-kun's drawing, which is drawn on a canvas, is definitely too big to even fit inside someone's pocket. If Fujishige-kun were to bring a bag or something to hide the drawing, that would definitely look suspicious, right?"
Everyone looks at each other, realizing that Asahina makes a good point.
"Not to mention, I haven't once heard the sound of the front door being opened throughout our time here, aside from when the food delivery came. Meaning that if Fujishige-kun did steal the drawing, he wouldn't have had the chance to take the drawing out of the hall. But we'd searched the entire hall just now and found nothing, right? So where could Fujishige-kun possibly hide the drawing if he had stolen it?"
Ito falls into silence, unable to refute Asahina's statements. Everyone also goes quiet, realizing how impossible it is even for me to steal the drawing.
"Instead of putting the blame on Fujishige-kun, why don't we ask him if the drawing is still there when he enters the storage room?" says Kamado.
"I'm not sure. I wasn't paying attention to the artworks back then. I simply went inside, took the rope, and immediately went back out," I answer.
Unable to get any useful information out of me, everyone continues to discuss the drawing's disappearance. But needless to say, the conversation leads nowhere.
---
It is now 3:15 PM. The crowd in front of the hall slowly grows larger and larger. At this point, the art club members are thinking of opening the exhibition without the missing drawing.
In the midst of the confusion, I notice Koizumi is standing next to the table where the artworks are displayed. She seems to be staring at Aoyama's remaining drawing, the rabbit drawing, as if she's thoroughly observing it.
I decide to approach her. "What are you doing?"
"What do you think I'm doing?"
If I knew, I wouldn't have asked.
"Did you already know who took the drawing?" I ask straightforwardly.
"It was Aoyama-kun," she answers immediately without any hesitation.
"Whoa, that was a quick answer!" I gasp. "But wait, what makes you think Aoyama did it? Why would Aoyama steal his own drawing?"
"Tell me, Fujishige-kun, why did everyone immediately assume that the drawing was stolen?"
"Eh? Well, because it's the only logical explanation given the circumstances...?"
"How so? Looking at the circumstances, it's impossible for anyone to have had the chance to steal the drawing."
That's true. Looking at the sequence of events: Aoyama showing that the drawing is still there → Everyone works together preparing the exhibition, no one noticed anyone entering the hall during this → Everyone begins displaying the artworks → Kamado and Suzuki notice the drawing is gone. There is no opportunity for anyone to take the drawing.
"Have you ever considered that the drawing was never stolen to begin with?" says Koizumi.
"If it wasn't stolen, then what happened to it?"
"Unfortunately, I haven't figured it out yet."
"In that case, why did you think Aoyama-kun was the one who did it?"
"Because I don't believe that the drawing was stolen. Since Aoyama-kun is the owner of the drawing, he is the only person capable of setting this up logically."
"What do you mean by 'setting this up'?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Koizumi remarks. "Whatever this is, it's definitely nothing more than a silly prank, and Aoyama is clearly the one behind it. To begin with, there's no reason for anyone to go out of their way to steal a drawing made by a high schooler, and the current circumstances make no sense either. The only explanation is that this is a prank. And since Aoyama is the owner of that drawing, he's the only one who can pull it off."
Wow, how impressive. She'd figured out that this is something set up by Aoyama so quickly.
But even so, it doesn't seem like she has managed to figure out how Aoyama made the drawing disappear. Perhaps she lacks the knowledge required to figure out the trick.
Maybe I should try poking her with a stick.
"Have you ever heard of a superimposition drawing?" I say.
"A what?"
"A superimposition drawing is when someone draws two different drawings on top of each other to create an overlaying effect," I explain.
Koizumi looks at me with confusion. "... Okay? What's wrong with that?"
"Nothing. It just came to my mind just now."
Right after I say that, suddenly... "!" Koizumi remains silent, but her expression suggests she has just discovered something.
"Is there anything wrong?" I ask.
"No, nothing."
Despite saying that, Koizumi looks at the rabbit drawing and then stares at me with a suspicious look.
Before I get to say anything, though, she suddenly walks away, leaving me behind.
---
It's 3:30 PM, and the dog drawing is nowhere to be found. Since it's already time, everyone decides to simply start the exhibition without it. Besides, it's just one of the many drawings Aoyama submits for the exhibition. So in the end, it doesn't really matter too much.
The art club opens the exhibition on time. The day proceeds as intended after that. People from all across the years come by. Neither of us says anything about the drawing, so none of the visitors know about the problem happening behind the scenes.
Everyone seems to be having a fun time. So it's safe to say that this incident doesn't cause any unnecessary harm. Sure, it causes a bit of an argument between the club members before the exhibition begins, but that's pretty much it.
In the middle of the exhibition, however, I notice Koizumi entering the storage room and walking out while holding two sheets of red and blue plastic. She probably took them from the stacks of plastic I saw on the shelf the last time I entered the storage room. Along with them, she also takes red and blue colored pencils.
She then rips a piece of paper from her notebook and uses the colored pencil to start sketching something on the paper.
After that, she approaches Aoyama and says something to him before walking out of the hall, with Aoyama following her from behind.
Now, what are they doing, I wonder.
Curiosity gets the best of me. After making sure no one sees me, I follow them out of the hall.
The two of them stop right next to the hall building, in an area overshadowed by trees and bushes, a place where people don't seem to visit very often. I hide behind a nearby tree and listen to their conversation.
"S-So, what do you want to talk about, Koizumi-san?"
I can tell Aoyama is trying to act cool, but he's obviously nervous to finally be speaking face-to-face alone with his crush.
"I want to ask you about the drawing that went missing earlier," says Koizumi. "What do you think happened?"
"Well, I wasn't too sure myself, but I don't want to put the blame on my friends. So I'd like to think that an outsider might've been the one who took it."
"Why did you assume that the drawing was taken?"
"Eh?"
"No matter how you look at it, it is impossible for anyone to take the drawing, don't you agree? The drawing was still there when you checked the storage room earlier. And no one other than the people helping with the exhibition was inside the hall. Judging from how big the drawing was, you can't take it out of the storage room without dragging everyone's attention. There's no other entrance to the storage room other than the front door, so no one can sneak inside without being spotted by everyone," Koizumi explains.
"But if it wasn't taken, then what happened?"
"What about this: a member of the art club felt like they wanted to prank the others. So to do that, he created an illusion to make everyone think that there were two drawings, the rabbit and the dog, when in reality there had only been one drawing all along."
Both Aoyama and I are surprised by her explanation.
"Huh? 'Create an illusion'? What are you talking about? You could clearly see that the dog drawing was still there when I checked the storage room earlier. Are you saying that the drawing I held in my hands back then was just an 'illusion'?" asks Aoyama.
"Of course, the drawing you were holding back then was a real thing."
"Then..."
"Before that, there's something else I'd like to point out. Back then, you didn't show the dog and rabbit drawing side by side, did you?"
"Eh?"
Earlier, when Aoyama went to check the storage room, he chose to show us all the artwork group by group by bringing it to the door for us to see. He did the same when showing us the rabbit and dog drawings by bringing them to the door separately.
In other words, Aoyama has never shown us the drawings side by side since we arrived in the hall today.
"Instead of letting the others enter the storage room to check the art together, you chose the most complicated way possible. Why is that?"
"Well, I suppose I was too caught up in the moment that I didn't think of that," Aoyama reasons.
"That's a lie, isn't it?" Koizumi shoots back.
"How am I lying?"
"The true reason why you chose such a complicated way to check the art was that you don't want the others to enter the storage room, isn't that right? Because if they did enter it, everyone would notice that the dog drawing was already gone."
"If the dog drawing was already gone like you said, then what was the drawing I showed everyone back then? I clearly held the dog drawing in my hand, did I not? Why does it matter whether or not I showed it side by side with the rabbit drawing?"
"It does matter, because not showing them side by side means that there indeed is only one drawing at that time. We were simply tricked into thinking there were two of them."
"How?"
Koizumi then shows Aoyama the paper she ripped from her notebook earlier. On that paper is a cute, simple doodle of a rabbit. This is what I saw Koizumi sketching earlier. And just like the one in Aoyama's drawing, Koizumi also covers her doodle with red plastic.
"Eh? This is... Are you trying to replicate my drawing?" Aoyama asks while looking at her doodle.
"I just want to demonstrate what I believe is how the two-drawing illusion was created with this simple sketch of mine. At first glance, this seems to be just a doodle of a rabbit and nothing else. But what happens if you take away this red plastic that you've kept on your drawing this whole time?" Koizumi says while removing the red plastic from her doodle.
What's behind that plastic is a doodle of a rabbit drawn with a blue-colored pencil and a doodle of a dog drawn with a red-colored pencil superimposed on the rabbit drawing.
To put it simply: there are two drawings on top of each other on the same paper.
"So if we were to construct the event from the beginning, it would go a little bit like this: When we were planning the exhibition six days ago, the prankster proudly showed off his dog and rabbit drawings on two different canvases. He pretended that each canvas had different drawings on it, even though both of them had the dog and rabbit drawings in different colors. While doing so, he indirectly made everyone remember that he had two drawings on two separate canvases. He then pretended to place his drawings in the storage room among the other art when, in reality, he brought one of the drawings home with him, leaving only one in the storage room."
The rabbit drawing is blue, and the dog one is red. If you cover the drawing with blue plastic, the color of the rabbit drawing will blend with the color of the plastic, making the dog the only visible drawing. On the other hand, if you cover the drawing with red plastic, the color of the dog drawing will blend with the plastic, making the rabbit the only visible drawing.
Turns out, both canvases that day had the same drawing. It is the colored plastic that tricks us into thinking they were two different drawings.
Koizumi then continues, "After that, on the day of the exhibition, which is today, he claimed that he wanted to check the artworks' safety when all he wanted to do was to show everyone that the drawing was still there. He did that by simply switching the colored plastic sheets on the drawing when he was inside the storage room. That also explains why he couldn't show his drawings side by side."
By simply switching the color of the plastic, he created the illusion that there were two drawings when there was only one. And considering the situation, this made the drawing's "disappearance" seem impossible, making this a perfect mini crime quiz for Koizumi to solve.
"Everything I said just now. There's only one person who's able to do all of it. And that person is you, Aoyama-kun, the owner of the drawing itself," Koizumi concludes.
After hearing Koizumi's explanation, Aoyama can no longer play dumb. He laughs and claps his hands. "Haha, you win, Koizumi-san. You're correct. Everything you said is correct. I indeed was the one who set everything up," Aoyama confesses.
Of course, everything that Koizumi said just now is something that I told Aoyama to do for the quiz.
This quiz requires two days to set up. On the first day, Aoyama needs to establish to Koizumi that he has two drawings by actually bringing two identical superimposition drawings wrapped in different-colored plastic to give the illusion that they are separate drawings. Then, at the end of the first day, Aoyama must sneakily bring one of the drawings back home.
On the second day, Aoyama needs to create the illusion that both drawings are still present by swapping the plastic colors and showing the drawing to Koizumi. That way, she would think that the drawing is still there on the second day.
Lastly, by the time the club members go to display the artwork, it'll be revealed to us that one of the drawings is gone, making this feel like a case of petty theft when in reality it's just an illusion created by different plastic colors.
Surprisingly, Aoyama followed my instructions perfectly. I'm quite impressed. There were plenty of ways this could go wrong, such as the color of the drawing not blending with the plastic properly, someone walking into the storage room while Aoyama was switching the colored plastic, or the drawings overlapping too heavily and ruining the illusion.
I was not expecting him to be able to pull it off this well.
"May I ask, when did you figure out that it was me?" Aoyama asks Koizumi.
"Pretty much from the beginning," she replies, "I've been suspecting you ever since I noticed something odd you did back when I first came here to help with the exhibition."
"Hm? What odd thing?"
"Back then, I noticed you were bringing a bag home with you. It's the same bag you put your drawings in. I was wondering why you were still carrying it even though all the artwork was left in the storage room. But now I understand. That was when you brought one of your drawings home, leaving only one drawing in the storage room."
It appears I wasn't the only one noticing Aoyama's bag that day.
"Whoa, I'm amazed, Koizumi-san. Did you manage to figure everything out just because of my bag?"
"That's not the only thing. Earlier, when Fujikawa-senpai asked me to get the rope from the storage room, you stopped me and sent Fujishige instead. That's because you didn't want me to see that there was only the rabbit drawing inside the storage room, right?"
"Yeah, that is also correct!" says Aoyama in amazement. "You are very good when it comes to solving things! I'm genuinely speechless!"
"But I don't quite understand. Why do all of this? Was it really just for a prank?" Koizumi asks.
"Ah… well, uhm, I actually prepared that as a quiz for you," he says hesitantly.
"For me? Why?" Koizumi raises an eyebrow, confused.
"Uh- uhm..." Aoyama falls into a quick silence, struggling to continue.
The setup is done. Right now, Koizumi's attention is completely focused on Aoyama. She's not staring at her book, she's not dismissing him or talking rudely, and they're both alone. My plan to make Koizumi the one to approach Aoyama had worked!
Aoyama, this is your chance! Tell her how you feel!! I cheer for him inside my head.
"S-Say, Koizumi-san, do you think that solving that stupid prank I made just now is... at least a little entertaining for you...?"
"Huh?" Koizumi seems quite puzzled by Aoyama's question, but then she glances up. "Well, I suppose it is quite fun."
Hearing Koizumi's answer makes Aoyama happy.
"That's good! That's pretty much the only reason why I'm doing it." Aoyama sighs in relief.
"… I don't get it," Koizumi replies bluntly.
Stop with the vagueness. Just get to the point!
"Well, you see..." Aoyama looks down for a while before looking back at Koizumi. "…Do you… remember what happened in our first year? You stood up for me when the entire class accused me of stealing Sato-san's… uhm, belongings."
"… Yeah, I remember."
"I-I might sound rude saying this, but back then I always thought you were just a cold, uncaring person who saw herself as better than anyone else. But that incident completely changed my mind about you. I realized that you are a kind person at heart and that you cared for the people around you... That's why... that's why..."
It takes him a while to gain the courage, but he takes a deep breath and looks directly at Koizumi.
"I really fell for you back then!"
After saying the words that required a lot of courage to say, Aoyama immediately shrinks back out of embarrassment.
Koizumi remains silent for a while, seeming surprised. She probably wasn't expecting to hear that from Aoyama.
Seeing Aoyama's embarrassed expression as he lowers his head, Koizumi suddenly gives an unexpected reaction.
"Kuft—" She smiles, a warm, gentle smile. She covers her mouth and lets out a soft chuckle. Her laughter isn't one of mockery, but of genuine happiness at Aoyama's confession.
(Image)
Both Aoyama and I can't believe what we are seeing. I rub my eyes a few times to make sure that I'm not hallucinating.
Since the first day I met Koizumi, I'd never once seen her laugh or even smile. She always has an expressionless look and speaks in a monotone voice. Even if she does express emotion, it's usually either annoyance, irritation, or disgust. This is the first genuine emotion I've seen her express.
"I see. If that's the case, then I apologize, Aoyama-kun, but I can't answer your feelings now. Is it okay if you give me some time?" Koizumi says while still wearing a warm smile.
"Eh? Ah... Y- yeah!" Still surprised, Aoyama can only nod with a flustered look. But at the same time, he looks genuinely happy.
She didn't say "yes," but she didn't say "no" either. Aoyama still has a chance.
All this actually went very well. My plan to use the quiz to get Aoyama and Koizumi together worked out smoothly. In fact, it worked better than what I'd expected.
This might not seem like much, but this is a good start to their relationship. At least now Koizumi is aware of Aoyama's feelings for her. And from this point on, Aoyama should have more confidence in talking to Koizumi. I'm very proud of this progress. I start setting off fireworks as a celebration inside my head.
After that, the two of them stay to chat for a bit longer before deciding to part ways.
Before they do, however, Koizumi suddenly speaks up. "One more thing, Aoyama-kun."
"Yeah?"
"About the superimposition trick you used, where did you get that idea from?"
"Oh… I-I came up with it myself!" Aoyama stammers. "I got the idea after seeing the colored plastic I just so happen to have in my home."
"Hmm… Did you tell Fujishige-kun about the trick?"
Wait, what? Why did she suddenly ask that?
"Eh? Umm... no?"
"… I see."
"Did I do something wrong...?" Aoyama asks.
"No, I was just curious. That's all," she answers, assuring him that there's nothing to worry about.
With that, their conversation ends.
---
After Aoyama returns to the hall, I expect Koizumi to follow him in. But instead, she stays behind and suddenly looks towards the tree I currently use to hide myself. Her expression has returned to its usual emotionless self.
"Now then, to you who's behind the tree, can you come out now?"
Eek! It appears that she already knows I'm here.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop," I say as I walk out of my hiding spot. "How did you know I was here?"
"How did I know? I can literally see your white hair flickering through the branches. It's like you weren't even trying to hide."
She's half right about that.
"Today I learned a very surprising fact about you," I say.
"Oh? What's that?"
"It's that you can smile."
She then glares at me with an annoyed look. "And… why do you care so much about that?"
"How can I not? Since the first day we met, you never showed an ounce of genuine emotion! I genuinely thought that there was something wrong with you," I blurt out.
"Instead of that nonsense, Fujishige-kun..." She looks at me with a serious look in her eyes. "What are you hiding?"
"Huh?"
"I'm asking, what are you hiding?" she repeats.
The way she talks makes me feel like I'm being interrogated.
"What do you mean?" I ask her.
"You already knew from the very beginning that Aoyama-kun was the culprit, didn't you? You also knew how the drawing disappeared."
"Wait, wait, what are you talking about?"
"I lacked knowledge about art and especially knew nothing about things like a superimposition drawing. Which is why, even though I knew that Aoyama was the culprit, I wouldn't have been able to figure out the trick he used to hide the drawing. However, you indirectly told me the answer by telling me what a superimposition drawing is, thus letting me figure out the trick. The only reason why you brought up the superimposition drawing to begin with was to give me a hint, right?"
"I brought it up simply because the red and blue plastic in Aoyama-kun's drawing reminded me of it. It has nothing to do with me figuring out Aoyama's trick."
"Hmm... Is that so?" She eyes me in suspicion.
"Why would I lie about something as unimportant as this? And besides, even if I did figure out Aoyama's trick, why does it matter? This conversation has no reason to continue."
Hearing my firm statement, Koizumi falls silent, but she still seems unconvinced. She then reaches into her pocket and pulls out her phone.
"Hand over your phone," she says.
"Huh?" I'm puzzled by her random request.
"I once promised you that I would introduce you to the music club, right? I didn't get to do it. So to make it up to you, I'll give you her number instead."
"Oh... You should've just said that from the beginning," I say, and hand her my phone.
After I hand it to her, I see her type someone's phone number and save it before returning the phone to me.
I look at my phone. The person who is Koizumi's acquaintance in the music club is a girl named Nishiyama Chou... Huh? That name sounds familiar.
"'Nishiyama Chou'—isn't that the name of the student who ranked second on the bulletin board?" I ask.
"I'm impressed that you managed to remember a name you read only once."
"I guess her name just sticks with me since she is the person who ranked second in school," I rationalize.
"You haven't decided whether or not you want to join the music club, have you, Fujishige-kun?" she asks, changing the topic once again.
"Huh? Well, yeah... I haven't decided yet."
"Then, will you consider joining the mystery club?"
"... Say again?"
"I'm asking you if you're willing to join the mystery club," she repeats.
"… Is that your attempt at inviting me into the club?" I ask, just to be sure.
"Yes," she says without hesitation.
Wait, huh? How? Why? What? What's with that out-of-the-blue invitation??
I tilt my head, flabbergasted.
"So what is your answer?" she asks, completely ignoring my confused look.
"Why are you suddenly asking me to join that club?"
"That doesn't matter right now. What matters is whether or not you want to join it."
She's just doing whatever she wants at this point.
"If I wasn't mistaken, the mystery club's main objective is to investigate the serial killer, Red Rose, isn't that right?" I ask.
"So Ayu told you about that too, huh?"
"She also said that you're the one who brought the Red Rose topic to the club to begin with." I decide to push the questions further. "Wasn't your reason for investigating Red Rose to write that novel of yours? But you said you're not writing anymore, so you no longer have a reason to investigate the Red Rose case. But looking at Ayu's enthusiasm when learning of the Hamasaki murder, it seems like the investigation is still going. So I reckon you have other reasons?"
"I'm aware that I'm in no position to force you. If you don't want to join, then I won't be doing anything about it. But I hope that you'll at least consider it."
Oi, don't just casually dodge my questions like that! For some reason, Koizumi doesn't seem to want to answer any of my concerns...
"What is the benefit to you if I join the club?" I ask.
"Let's just say, you caught my interest. I want to see what more you're capable of as a member of the mystery club."
"What I'm capable of? I don't think I follow..."
"Either way, you can take as much time to think as you want. Tell me whatever your answer is by the time you're ready." Again, she's ignoring my question.
Without warning, she starts walking away.
"Wait, where are you going?" I ask.
"Back to the hall."
"But you haven't even— I still don't understand!"
"That's none of my concern," she replies without even looking at me.
Eventually, she enters the hall, leaving me here alone and confused.
The mystery club... I have received the opportunity to join it. Well, I have established myself as someone interested in mystery and crime-related things. So it won't look too out of place if I suddenly join this club.
Other than that, Asahina is in the club, and I'm on good terms with her, so it'll be natural if I'm in the same club as she is... But still, it's not like I recognize any of the other members aside from Koizumi and Asahina. And wouldn't it be weird for an ordinary high schooler like me to get involved in a club where they investigate a serial killer?
Not to mention, now that I have this Nishiyama Chou person's phone number, I can just text her, introduce myself, and ask to join the music club. If Koizumi wants me to join the mystery club, why would she give me Nishiyama's phone number to begin with? Perhaps this is her way of saying, "I'm not forcing you. Make your own decision."
Anyway, she did say that I can have as much time to think as I want, so I won't rush it for now...