Volume 1 Short Story 2

✧･ﾟ: * Part 1 * :･ﾟ✧

Just a little. Only a tiny bit, I feel envious of Shiori.

I know exactly why.

It is because, right now, I am at cram school.

The class I was just taking has finally ended and break time has arrived, but today I still have two more classes before I can go home.

It's not that I am dissatisfied with the situation, but even though it is spring break, it does not feel like a break at all.

It's a promise, after all.

Starting from spring break, I am attending cram school.

That is the promise I made with my parents.

Since this break will end and I will become a third-year student, I also thought myself that going to cram school for entrance exam preparation would be better.

But there is also the feeling that I want to play.

Quite a lot. No, a very strong feeling.

That is why I feel envious of Shiori, who probably declared that she would not go to cram school and is enjoying her spring break to the fullest.

I wonder what she is doing today.

I picture my best friend’s face in my mind.

If Shiori were here, she would probably say something like she does not want to study at all.

While thinking that, I take my smartphone out of my bag and look at the screen.

There is a message from Shiori that simply says, "Bored."

"That is so Shiori."

Even though she is talkative enough when we meet and chat in person, her messages are brief.

In other words, I think it means that we are close enough that she does not need to worry about being polite.

I reply to Shiori with, "I’m at cram school," and then I start drawing her portrait in my notebook.

Shiori, you space out sometimes, don’t you.

There are times when it is hard to tell whether she is listening to the lesson or not, and she ends up getting scolded by the teacher.

Since she does her homework quite seriously, I think she should listen in class with the same level of seriousness.

I write the word "Focus!" above Shiori’s portrait.

Shiori and I have been in the same class for two years, from our first year onward.

We spent time together in the same classroom and played together.

Our other close friend, Ami, ended up in a different class in our second year, but including her, the three of us want to be in the same class again and spend our final year of high school together.

I draw Ami’s portrait next to Shiori’s and write the word "Energetic!" above her head to represent her.

While I am at it, I start drawing my own portrait as well, when a voice comes from diagonally in front of me, and I look up.

"Utsunomiya-san, you’re good at drawing."

"I’m not good. It’s just doodling."

I say this to Honda-san, who is looking at my notebook.

She and I attend the same high school, but we are in different classes and have different friend groups, so we do not talk much at school.

However, at cram school we get along well and talk a lot. It is a strange kind of relationship.

"You are good, though. I can’t draw things like this at all."

"I’m telling you, I’m not."

"Come on, don’t be so modest."

Honda-san says it lightly, then continues, "Hey, hey, Utsunomiya-san. Did you know that Ibaraki-san has a part-time job?"

✧･ﾟ: * Part  2 * :･ﾟ✧

"Ibaraki-san have a part-time job? Where?"

I ask back Honda-san, who is sitting diagonally in front of me with an amused look on her face.

She pauses for a breath before answering, "At a family restaurant."

"A family restaurant, huh."

"When I went there with my parents, I was shocked to see Ibaraki-san working there.

You wouldn't expect Ibaraki-san to be working at a family restaurant, right?"

"It does feel unexpected.

If Ibaraki-san were to get a job, it feels like it would be somewhere else, not a family restaurant."

"Exactly.

Or rather, doesn’t Ibaraki-san seem more like the type who would just fool around instead of working?

And then get guys to treat her."

The image I have of Ibaraki-san as someone who is cute but short-tempered and selfish layers itself over what Honda-san just said, and I almost find myself agreeing.

Ibaraki-san from the same class, Ibaraki Umina, feels that distant from me.

She is distant enough that rumors about her at cram school can easily change the way I picture her.

Even so, I am curious about what kind of part-time job she was doing.

"Was Ibaraki-san working normally?"

"Normally, how?"

"Well, like, was she doing customer service properly."

"She was extremely friendly."

Honda-san says it in a voice that does not hide her surprise.

"Huh. That really is unexpected."

I keep using the word, but "unexpected" is truly the only way to describe it.

It might be prejudice, but I do not have an image of Ibaraki-san seriously working a part-time job.

The people she usually hangs out with seem more suited to working, so I ask, "Wasn’t Sendai-san or anyone else there?"

"Doesn’t seem like it.

But if Sendai-san were there, the place would probably become really popular."

"Like people confessing to her?"

"Yeah, yeah.

Ibaraki-san is cute but flashy, so she seems hard to approach.

At a family restaurant, someone like Sendai-san would probably attract more attention, don’t you think?"

"I do not know who would get more attention, but Sendai-san does seem like she would be better at the job."

Just like Ibaraki-san, Sendai-san also feels far removed from me.

All I know about her is that people say she is easier to get along with than Ibaraki-san and that she is a people-pleaser, and that there are rumors she plays around a lot, though not as much as Ibaraki-san.

Even though we were in the same class, we never spoke, so I have no idea whether those rumors are true.

At cram school, I only hear friends gossip about them, and I think I will never be directly involved with either of them.

"Yeah, that’s true.

Either way, they both seem like they would be popular."

"Yeah."

I reply briefly and spin my mechanical pencil around my finger.

It's not that I feel no admiration for people who shine like that, but it is not as if anyone can become like them just by wanting to.

And it is not like I particularly want to get close to them either. The friends I want to be close with are already decided.

I lower my gaze to my notebook.

The portraits that Honda-san praised catch my eye, and my phone vibrates.

When I check the screen, another message from Shiori has arrived. It says, "Wanna go see a movie after you’re done?"

"A friend?"

When asked, I answer, "Yeah."

Shiori’s suggestion is tempting, but if it is after cram school ends, it would be too late.

We would watch the movie and then have to hurry home.

When we met the day before yesterday, she seemed a little down, didn’t she.

If possible, I want to talk with her properly and take our time.

After hesitating for a moment, I type back, "Is tomorrow okay?"