Volume 6 Extra

.✧･ﾟ: * Miyagi Shiori * :･ﾟ✧

There isn't any.

There's no cider, and there's no orange juice either.

The cider ran out last night, and the orange juice was finished this morning, so naturally there isn't any left in the fridge. That's obvious enough.

If I'm going to drink anything, it'll have to be barley tea.

I stare into the refrigerator for a long moment.

It isn't what I want, and my hand simply won't reach for it.

I should've bought some on my way home from university. I'd completely forgotten.

“What should I do...” I murmur under my breath. Just then, the front door opened.

“I'm home. Miyagi, what are you doing?”

Sendai-san's cheerful voice made it hard to believe she'd just come back from her tutoring job.

“Welcome back. I'm not doing anything.”

I quietly close the refrigerator door with a soft pat.

If I told her there wasn't any cider or orange juice, Sendai-san would definitely suggest going out to buy some right away. I don't feel like leaving the house just to pick up drinks I don't urgently need. We'd probably end up at the convenience store, but I have no desire to go out.

“Ah, were you looking for cider?”

Sendai-san remembers something she really didn't need to remember.

“No,” I reply. “I'm going back to my room.”

But as though she were determined to stop me from returning to my room, Sendai-san says, “Now that I think about it, we were almost out of orange juice too,” recalling yet another thing she didn't need to remember.

“There's barley tea, so it's fine.”

I name the drink I don't particularly feel like having.

Whenever I go shopping with Sendai-san, she always wants to browse this and that, so it ends up taking twice as long as when I shop alone. Even when we went to buy an electric kettle, we didn't simply pick up what we needed and leave. The same thing happened every time we went grocery shopping. We never finished after buying only what we actually needed.

“You're right, we do still have barley tea.”

Sendai-san smiles brightly and takes a step toward me.

A sense of foreboding washes over me, and I instinctively step back.

But the refrigerator is right behind me, and my back bumps against its solid surface.

“Hey, Miyagi. Why don't we go shopping together right now?”

She looks at me with the face of someone who's just had a brilliant idea, so I reject the suggestion without hesitation.

“I'm not going. I'll buy the cider and orange juice tomorrow.”

“Oh, come on, let's go. The convenience store's close. We can pick up some pudding or cream puffs on the way back. Wouldn't that be fun?”

“It wouldn't be fun. I'll get fat.”

“We do have snacks around this time sometimes, don't we?”

She isn't wrong.

There've been times when I shared a little snack with Sendai-san after she got back from tutoring, and I'm sure there'll be more days like that.

But my answer doesn't change.

“Not today.”

“Miyagi, you're so stingy.”

Sendai-san says it with an exasperated sigh before adding, “I want to open the fridge, so move over a little.”

Since I was about to head back to my room anyway, I have no objection.

I obediently step away from the front of the refrigerator.

Just as she said she would, Sendai-san opens the fridge, and I head toward my room. But before I can even open my door, she calls out and stops me.

“Miyagi.”

“What?”

“I'm going to make some black tea now. Do you want a cup too?”

“Weren't you opening the fridge to get some barley tea?”

“I'm in the mood for black tea.”

“...I'll have some.”

When I answer quietly, Sendai-san says, “Sit down and wait,” before filling the electric kettle and setting it to boil.

“Sendai-san, what about dinner?”

“I ate before my tutoring job. What did you eat, Miyagi?”

“Cup ramen.”

“You should make yourself a proper meal.”

I watch Sendai-san's back as she prepares the tea, sounding exactly like a mother in a television drama.

I've gotten used to cooking, but there are days when it just feels like too much effort. On days like those, there's no reason not to settle for something convenient like cup ramen.

“Sendai-san, you're so noisy.”

Explaining why I ate cup ramen feels just as bothersome as making dinner in the first place, so I keep my reply brief. While I'm at it, I remind her of my plan for tomorrow.

“Like I said before, I'll buy the cider and orange juice tomorrow.”

“Got it. I'll leave the shopping to you, Miyagi.”

Sendai-san turns around and flashes me a bright, easygoing smile.

✧･ﾟ: * Sendai Hazuki * :･ﾟ✧

The lecture ended, and I left the university without wasting a moment.

I wasn't exactly sprinting, but I hurried to catch the train.

After getting off at my station, I walked faster than usual as I took my phone out of my bag.

『Have you finished shopping?』

I sent a message to Miyagi, who'd said she was going to buy cider and orange juice. Her reply came almost immediately: 『On my way now. Almost at the supermarket.』

I quickly typed out the one thing I needed to tell her most.

『Then wait in front of the store.』

『Why?』

『Just do it.』

『I'm almost there. I'm going to shop.』

『Wait five minutes. Just five minutes is enough.』

No reply came from Miyagi.

Probably.

The time limit was exactly five minutes, just as I'd written in my message.

If Miyagi had no intention of waiting, she would've replied with something like "No way," or "I'm not waiting," so I figured she'd stay there for five minutes.

She was definitely keeping track of the time, so once those five minutes were up, she wouldn't still be standing in front of the store. There wasn't even any guarantee she'd still be inside. She might leave without buying anything just to avoid me, or head to a different supermarket instead.

“Maybe I should run...”

I'd told Miyagi to wait for five minutes, but there was no way I could make it to the supermarket on foot in that amount of time. Honestly, I wanted to ask for a little longer, but I had a feeling that if I'd said ten minutes, she wouldn't have waited at all. That's why I'd settled on five.

I quickened my pace and broke into a light run.

The streets of the town streamed past me.

I wasn't running hard enough to call it a sprint, so I wasn't out of breath.

Five minutes.

As long as I reached the supermarket before Miyagi stopped waiting, that would be enough.

I kept my legs moving.

Faster.

Running in a skirt was a little awkward.

I should've worn denim jeans to university like Miyagi.

Still dwelling on that pointless regret, I arrived in front of the supermarket and immediately spotted her.

“...Why did you come?”

Her greeting was edged with obvious irritation.

“It's fine, isn't it? I made it. Let's shop together.”

“I'm only buying cider, orange juice, and a couple of other things.”

“Cider and orange juice are heavy, aren't they? It'll be easier if there are two of us to carry them.”

I smiled at her, but Miyagi answered in a flat, chilly voice.

“Let's buy everything quickly and go home.”

Together, we entered the supermarket, placed a basket into the cart, and began filling it with what we needed.

Vegetables and meat that could become side dishes for dinner.

Bread for breakfast.

The moment I placed the cider and orange juice into the basket, Miyagi immediately started pushing the cart toward the registers.

She really was in a hurry.

Whenever Miyagi went shopping, she'd find exactly what she came for, drop it into the basket, and head straight for the checkout.

Enjoying the experience of shopping.

There wasn't even the faintest trace of that feeling in her.

She ought to wander off the planned route once in a while and browse things that weren't on the shopping list.

“Miyagi, wait a second. I want to look over here too.”

I tugged on Miyagi's arm as she pushed the cart toward the registers as though they were the finish line.

“We already bought everything we need.”

“Come on, just for a little while.”

“That 'little while' can wait until tomorrow, when Sendai-san comes by herself.”

“It's only a little while, so today is fine, right?”

“What exactly are you planning to buy during that 'little while'?”

It seemed Miyagi had finally given up on arguing over something so pointless, because she asked the question with obvious reluctance.

I smiled wider as I looked at her.

“Ingredients for stew.”

When I answered brightly, Miyagi let out a long, weary sigh.

Even without looking closely, I could see the crease forming between her eyebrows.

“...What if I said I don't want stew?”

Her voice was low, but I answered just as cheerfully.

“Then let's eat it anyway.”

“Sendai-san, you're way too selfish.”

“I'll make it delicious for you.”

It wasn't as though I was dying to eat stew.

But the longer the destination, the better.

I gently pulled Miyagi along, leading us away from the path to the registers.