This morning, with a cool breeze, my sister woke me up.
—Big Brother, it's today that you have your appointment with Anzu!
—Yes, I do.
My date… I'm already freaking out…
I go downstairs for breakfast and notice that my sister has made me an omurice that says, I love you, oniisan, with ketchup sauce.
I wish I could have you forever, Chizu.
She coughs, then asks me.
—Can I help you prepare, Big Brother?
Nope.
—Don't look like that! Come on, please!
—No way!
—Otherwise I'll take back the order for the figurine you made yesterday!
How does she know about that? That little… What a pain in the ass! I'm going to have to look like a 3D businessman again, it's horrible…
I give a thumbs up.
—Thank you!
She brings me a shirt and tries to remove the ears of corn that are fighting on the corner of my head.
—You should take a little better care of yourself, big brother. How can you please so many girls with all your otaku features?
Probably, because Romansuu decided so.
I chose to change. If all the young people of my age make an identity, then I must do the same.
I will face this harem and destroy it!
—Welcome to your television news, today December 24, 2016…
But before that, I'll have to buy my Christmas presents…
Chizu observes my face.
What kind of expression is that? She has a scouter and tries to analyse my power?
—Didn't you buy anything by any chance, Big Brother?
Insightful.
—Yeah, it slipped my mind…
—You have time to go this afternoon, you only have a date with Anzu tonight.
I usually make Christmas presents for my sister, but I have no idea what to get my new friends.
Do we give gifts to each other as friends, by the way? Is this one of the many steps to becoming a normal person?
More questions I can't answer.
The mall … also known as the sanctuary of normies… I feel so out of place here.
I sit on a bench and think about what I should take from them. I try to find some stores and notice a bookshop.
It's perfect for Masuko, Yamaguchi and Maeda should even like it.
I enter the store and buy the last two volumes of a nekketsu that was just released.
It will be perfect for the two idiots.
I cross the shelf to go to the novel's side.
A romance book, for our president, will do, right?
I turn one over and read the summary.
Blah, blah, blah, blah. Come on, it's going in the cash register.
—A good thing done! All that's missing is Anzu, my sister and Aneko.
It was much easier before I entered high school, seriously…
I wander around the mall and think again.
What could they like? How hard is it to give gifts?
I sweep my eyes from right to left and notice a giant stuffed panda.
That should please Chizu, I guess.
—Sensei!
This voice… Damn, not her… Send her back to the next volume, I don't have time now!
— Hi Yamazaki-kun!
If only I were Subaru Natsuki, if only…
—Hi there.
—What are you doing here, Yamazaki-kun?
—My Christmas shopping, and you?
—The famous shopping! Are you going to make it? Maeda asked me.
Don't try to sweet-talk me, you'll always be the bad guy in this story, stupid.
—Yes, yes.
—We wanted to go to the cafe, do you want to come, Yamazaki-kun?
If you had Haruka Kotoura's gift, you'd be surprised, you idiot.
—I'll finish my shopping and join you.
Wait for me forever.
—I'll go with you, sensei!
Damn it.
—You … you can stay with them if you want Yoshida-Chan.
She jumps up, grabs my arm sending shivers down to my shoulders, then confides in me.
—I want to go with you! We're friends, right!?
What a pain in the ass, seriously…
—Yeah, yeah… Come if you want, then.
We go to the store I had noticed earlier, together with Yoshida, while the boys have gone into the cafeteria.
—What do you have to buy, sensei?
—This stuffed animal.
Perfect, just the two idiots left, and I can leave this infamous place.
—What are you missing, sensei?
—Present for Anzu, and another one for Aneko.
What could these two heroines possibly like?
But of course! I am so strong in this 3D universe! Take away this easy mode admin!
—What's with your face, did you have a revolutionary revelation, sensei?
Much more than that.
—I had a perfect idea! Do you know where I can find a jewellery store?
—Further to the left, I think, sensei.
I would probably come across something attractive for the heroine of the eroge, and for the other, an accessory that sparkles even a little should fill her with joy.
We enter the female temple.
Brrr, it disgusts me to go in there, seriously…
I notice a beige barrette, in a window. The most flamboyant of those which are exposed.
Perfect, it will be great for Anzu.
In the next aisle, I spotted an ochre bracelet.
Is it attractive?
I go to the checkout, then we go out of the store.
Damn, I finally finished this shitty ordeal.
Yoshida interrupts my walk and asks me.
—Can we sit on the bench for a while, sensei?
Oh shit, is she still here?
—If you like.
A bench … you're right to be freaked out by it, Kisaragi Amatsuyu.
She's sitting next to me.
Damn it, I can't think of anything to offer this ex-tsundere.
—What's that face, sensei?
What am I doing? The stores are about to close… Damn, I'm in trouble…
—Sensei!
—Sorry, I was in my thoughts. Actually… I don't have a present for you, Yoshida.
—A present for me? But you already gave it to me, sensei!
What's she talking about? I know better than you what I'm doing, don't I?
—Don't I?
—Thank you for spending time with me today, sensei.
What is she talking about? I'm less interested in her story than Yukki's.
My tummy is screaming.
—I'm going to buy some onigiri, wait for me here, sensei.
She knows how to be nice from time to time.
—Here you go.
—Thank you, Yoshida.
A real treat.
She brought her face close to mine, her lips reached my cheek and she licked me.
—You had a grain of rice on your cheekbone, especiallyosan.
A real treat.
—Yoshida?
—I'm sorry,' she says repeatedly, 'it's a work habit!
Using her hands, she tried to hide her cheekbones, which became visibly flushed.
—It wasn't unpleasant.
I let my guard down.
—Sensei?
—Yes?
—I've been thinking about this lately. I think I've fallen in love with you for many reasons.
Wha… What is she talking about?
—You were the one who helped me realise my dream and you were the one who saved me on the bus.
—Your dream?
—To evolve, thanks to you I can be much freer than before, and I am eternally grateful for that.
—So much the better, Yoshida-Chan.
She blushes, lowers her head, and admits to me with a delicate voice.
—You know, it's kind of weird. It's like you've come into my life and turned my life upside down, turned my personality upside down, and made it all so much more beautiful. I think the only thing that bothers me about this whole thing is that everyone is hanging around you. I like them girls, but… I don't know. Do you ever get that feeling that your heart just rips out when you see the person you like with another? I get that a lot lately, and believe me, it hurts, a lot.
Tears begin to flow down her face, she dries them by caressing her cheeks, then sighs, before continuing.
—The worst thing about it is that I have a vision of life quite different from the others. I assume that everything has an end, and that this end can happen at any time, that my life can be destroyed by an accident, an illness, anything. And if my life was reduced to nothing tomorrow, then I would have intense regrets for not having been able to open my heart to you. But now it's settled, now you know that I love you more than anyone else, and if you still don't get it, I'll shove it down your throat until you've got me in your head every second. I'll prove to you that you can trust someone like me. You can be sure of that, sensei.
I'm confused, I'm lost, I'm really pissed, but I'm sure of one thing, I've never heard anything so beautiful.
Damn, this girl has so many different personalities, it's nonsense, but at the same time… She cracks me up…
Our cheeks are flushed under a soft silence. The darkness starts to fall, only a few street lamps still light up the mall.
Damn it, I'm going to be late!
—Yoshida!
—Yes, sensei?
—You have to tell the boys that I'm having a party tonight at my house. Take this,' I said as I handed him my gifts, 'bring them to my shrine, my little sister will welcome you!
—A party with my sensei! I am so happy!
I run to the amusement park, through the bus stops, the harbour and the shopping street.
Why I have the endurance of Fuutarou Uesugi… Seriously, what an ordeal.
—Here it is!
Nobody? I arrived in time!
My phone vibrates.
Anzu's father is here in five minutes.
Five minutes, that's three hundred seconds, that's the time to read a chapter of manga, it's super short!
I have no time to stress.
I try to fix my hair, to put my shirt straight, I lean against the fence, and think.
What should I do? Tell her I know her secret. Wait for her to tell me? Fucking 3D universe… Why am I asking myself so many questions?
I had time to stress out.
— Kinari!? What are you doing here!?
She closes the car door.
Her eyes meet mine.
Why is she crying?
She steps over a fence, stretches her arms towards me and hugs me.
—What are you doing here, you idiot! Nobody told me!
Her minty scent wafts to my nostrils, a smell I couldn't forget. I take out the hairpin I had put in my purse and put it in her locks.
—Merry Christmas, Sakai.
What charisma you have, you would almost surpass Ayanokôji Kiyotaka's, says Kinari otaku.
She removes her hair clip and admires him. Her eyes became dazzling. She tries to hide her crimson cheeks with her scarf then asks me.
—How long have you known, Kinari?
—For a week… Your father came home and told me everything.
—I knew it from the first day! When I got to school, I looked everywhere for you. And finally, there you were, right behind me. I was afraid to tell you the whole truth, I didn't know how you would take it, sorry! I was so scared, my heart was beating so fast, I wanted to tell you everything, absolutely everything, but my body refused to act…
So it's really Sakai…
—I promised you a date for Christmas, so here it is!
I grab his hand, and declare.
—The director of the amusement park gave us two hours to do what we want!
His eyes sparkle as much as his scarf.
—That's great Kinari!
We go to the UFO Catchers. Anzu inserts a coin into the booth and manages to get a stuffed animal.
What a fingering! How many years did she train to have such a talent?
She bows her head, offers it to me, then blows me away.
—Merry Christmas, Kinari.
—Thank you, Kinari.
A one-armed man? Why not?
—It looks like you, I think,' she giggles.
Does this thing look like me?
She grabs my sleeve, and gets ready to run.
—Forget it, idiot. Follow me!
I love this Christmas.
The girl hides my view with her fingers, and asks me.
— Don't look, Kinari!
I'm not going to be able to do much here, silly.
—Watch your step!
Where exactly is she taking me?
She takes her hands away.
—The Ferris wheel!
I sweep my gaze across the horizon and admire the landscape illuminated by the few streetlights in the amusement park.
—Do you like it?
—Yeah!
She waddles in her seat, strokes her hair, looks me straight in the eyes, then confesses to me.
—There, it's certain. I am close to realising my entire dream. This girl that you saw ten years ago is me! It's me and only me.
She gets up, leans against the edge of a window, looks up at the moon and shouts with phenomenal power.
—I missed you so much, Kinari!
Her cheeks turn red, then she continues.
—I thought about you every second of my life after I left, every minute I imagined all the things we could have done together, every hour I imagined all the amazing adventures we could have had. But all my motivation quickly turned into an ordeal. Every day, every week, every month, and every year that went by, my heart would close up, and I would just remember all those moments we had together.
Her tears begin to roll down her crimson cheekbones, and she adds in an almost broken voice.
—I was cuddling the stuffed animal you gave me, looking at the pictures I had of you. Ten years, huh. That's a long time, it's really too long, and I've managed to go all this time without putting you out of my mind once, because I knew deep down that if we got together my heart would start beating fast again.
She jumps into my arms, hugs me, presses my chest against her, and finishes.
—Now that I have you by my side, I never want to leave, I never want to be separated from you again, listen to me carefully, I'm going to anchor it in your skull so hard that my words will resonate throughout your body.
She looks me straight in the eyes, blushes, kisses my forehead, and confesses.
—I love you Kinari.
Her soft lips… I… I don't know what to do…
She strokes her hair again, and whispers in the corner of my ear.
—I don't want an answer, because I know you, and I know you're still looking for yourself, so when you have the answer, come and see me. I will wait for you, Kinari.
My life has become a journey, a dream in which I would like to stay forever.
Scouter: Equipment used by saiyen to measure the power of an opponent. (Dragon Ball Z)
Subaru Natsuki: Main character with the ability to die and reincarnate in the past. (Re: Zero Restart in Another World)
Haruka Kotoura: Main character who can read thoughts. (Koutoura-san)
Kisaragi Amatsuyu: Character who hates benches. (Oresuki)
Yukki: Character with a story to sleep. (Mirai Nikki)
Fuutarou Uesugi: Main character who is easily exhausted. (The Quintessial Quintuplets)
UFO Catchers: Catchers machine.