Long golden hair, sparkling like sunlight, and those ocean-blue eyes—
"You're…"
Before I could finish, she leaped forward, wrapping her arms around me tightly.
"I missed you!"
"Alicia?!"
I was stunned by the arrival of Alicia. Of course, it's not just me, but everyone is also stunned by her action. I had this thought that people were thinking, 'Who is that guy? Why did he get a hug from this beautiful girl?'
"H-Hey, Himeya!" Hiro raised his voice, not because he was angry, but because he was surprised and trying not to make a scene.
Alicia then released her hug from me.
"How have you been?" she said.
…
"Himeya?" she called me again.
Yes, this is not a dream…
"Am I dreaming?" I said unconsciously.
"Pfft… Himeya, you're funny as always," she said.
"Uwah!" Suddenly, I was pulled by Hiro.
"Let's go to our class, dude. You're making a scene."
"G-go ahead, I need to catch my breath."
"…Alright, don't make any other scene."
"Relax, I won't," I said.
I turned my gaze to Alicia, who was looking at me with a smile on her face.
Ah… This girl…
Some memories from my childhood in this world once again surfaced in my mind.
FLASHBACK
Back then, Alicia and I were friends, really close friends. She was a Canadian who had to transfer to Japan because of her father's job. She didn't have any friends until I was playing around the park with Haruka and Kei.
"Hey…" ???
I turned around to find a girl about my age, her hair was blonde, and she had the same eye color as mine.
"What's wrong?" I said.
"I'm lost. Can you help me find my home?" the girl said in full English.
A normal boy would be confused by her language, but not me. I was in my 20s when I died and then reincarnated into this world. I had knowledge about English from my previous life.
"Where is your home?" I asked in full English.
The girl was surprised to hear me speak English. Then, she began to cry.
"Thank God… you can speak English… I was afraid that I was completely lost…" she said while crying.
I don't remember what happened back then, but I managed to stop her from crying.
PRESENT
I grabbed Alicia's hand and walked to the rooftop.
At the rooftop, Alicia was looking at me as usual with her smile, but this time there was confusion on her face.
"Himeya, what's wrong?"
"You're back…?"
"Yes, I'm back," she said with a warm smile.
"How? I thought you'd never return here…"
"About that… actually…"
"Hmm?"
"I got permission from my dad. He said that I can finish high school here, but I'll still go back to Canada afterward."
…
So, that's what happened, huh…?
"Well, anyway, I'm glad you're back, Alicia. Hehe."
"Me too. Fhuhu. How's Haruka-san? And Kei-san?" she asked.
When she asked about Haru-nee, all I could think of was Touka… and then, there was a hesitant feeling inside me. What is this feeling?
"Haru-nee is doing just fine as always. She's in Shinjuku now."
"Shinjuku? That's a long way from home…"
"Hehe, but guess what? Kei is studying at the same school as us now." I laughed as I said it.
"Wait, really?"
"Yeah, surprising, right?" I smirked.
"Yeah, I never thought we'd be at the same school."
"We sure do, hehe."
…
Alicia then walked to the fence of the school, resting her hand on it as she looked at the sea.
"Himeya…" she called me.
I walked to her and also rested my hand beside hers.
"Yes?"
"Do you remember her?"
"Her…?"
Is this another flashback story? Aren't there too many flashbacks in one chapter???
Wait, what am I saying…
"Sumire, Kawasaki Sumire-san."
…
That's…
Yeah…
"Sumire…" I remember her now…
How could I forget her…
While we were talking, the door to the rooftop opened. It was Yuka, and with her was a girl with red hair and cyan-colored eyes. She's the girl I bumped into when I first entered this school…
She is Sumire…?
"Su-."
"Sumire-san!" Alicia called.
The girl called Sumire was surprised.
"Alicia…-san…?" the girl said.
Yuka, who was with her, looked surprised and a bit confused about what was going on.
Alicia then walked to the girl.
"How are you doing?" Alicia asked.
"I'm fine. How… how are you doing? And how can you be here?"
"I got permission from my dad, hehe," Alicia said.
The girl, talking to Alicia, then looked at me. I noticed a disappointed feeling on her face, but there was also a smile there.
Sumire then walked to me and said, "Nice to meet you. I'm Sumire, Kawasaki Sumire. Thank you for taking care of my older sister."
…Older sister?!
I looked at Yuka, who had a face like she didn't want to interrupt.
"Nice to meet you too… my name is Shin Himeya. Your sister has been a big help to me," I said.
…
Just as the atmosphere grew more comfortable, Yuka cleared her throat.
"Alright, that's enough catching up for now. We should all get back to our own classrooms before we get in trouble," she said firmly.
I felt a wave of embarrassment, realizing we had lost track of time.
"Y-yeah, you're right. Let's go," I said, rubbing the back of my neck awkwardly.
As we all began to head back, I couldn't help but steal one last glance at Alicia. This reunion felt like the beginning of something new, something that could change everything.