Something that Can’t Be Concealed

By late June, the rainy season was at its peak, and there

was a string of days when the weather alternated between

clear and stormy.

Droplets of rain fell steadily from a gray and gloomy sky,

and the air felt thick and dismal. Everyone was feeling

cooped up, probably because the color of the sky was even

darker than it had been before.

"…Yuck, it's so muggy!"

"Well, it is the rainy season."

It was only to be expected that the school was also filled

with a listless atmosphere. All the members of the sports

clubs were sopping wet from practicing outside, which

added to the dreariness.

Even Chitose, who loved to run around energetically

despite not being a member of any sports club, seemed to

have met her match and had collapsed limply down in her

seat, where she lay flopped across her desk. Amane hadn't

seen her so drained since last year's rainy season. Even her

hairstyle was different.

Chitose usually wore her hair down, but on that day, she

had it tied into two frizzy bunches—wild from the humidity

—with one behind each ear. Despite her efforts to control it,

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

from time to time, a stray lock would escape from the

confines of its hair band. There was no doubt that she had

struggled considerably to tie it in the first place.

"You seem to be doing just fine, Amane."

"Hmm, well, I do usually prefer a quieter atmosphere. I

could do without the humidity, though."

"Good for you. I can't stand it when it's like this. It makes

me want to run around screaming."

"The ground is in bad shape, so you'll have to wait until

the weather clears up to go wild. If you fell, you'd hurt

yourself and your clothes would get covered in mud."

"It would never come out in the wash… I'll sit tight, but

man…"

Even her voice seemed dulled by the rainy weather.

Considering Chitose was so terribly weary, Amane

wondered how Mahiru was doing. He could see her chatting

with a group of girls, wearing a gentle smile. Somehow, her

expression looked slightly more energetic than usual.

Mahiru didn't seem to notice that Amane was watching her,

and she was enjoying her conversation.

Amane was staring at Mahiru, thinking about how he was

going to spend a lot of time with her when they got home.

Makoto noticed where he was looking and asked, "What,

Fujimiya, you jealous of the girls?"

Makoto always observed his surroundings closely, so it

was no surprise that he had noticed where Amane was

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

looking, but Amane had to smile because the reason his

friend imagined was completely wrong.

"No, I'm not petty enough to be jealous of the girls. It's

just, her hair is different today, so it gives her a new look,

and I was admiring it."

Amane was too embarrassed to say what had actually

been on his mind, so he pivoted to another reason in

response, and Makoto responded in an understanding tone,

"She's got it tied up today, huh?"

Just like Chitose, Mahiru's hair was tied up. But Mahiru's

hair was longer than Chitose's and had a lot of volume, so

she had gathered it all into two braids that hung loosely

down on either side.

She didn't change her hairstyle often, so it had also been a

new look for their classmates. Amane had heard some of the

boys muttering that seeing the angel was like a breath of

fresh air in the suffocating humidity.

"You seem rather chipper, Makoto. I'm jealous, for more

than one reason," Chitose grumbled.

Trying desperately to control her hair, which didn't want

to listen to her in the humidity, Chitose looked jealously at

Makoto's smooth locks, which seemed entirely unbothered

by the damp air. She had also been bugging Amane about his

hair from the moment she'd first seen him that morning; she

seemed incredibly jealous of anyone whose hair was

unaffected by the humidity.

"I'm not exactly chipper. Just not as depressed as

everyone else. I still have trouble with practical stuff when

the rain won't let up, and I'd like the rainy season to end

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

soon. When it's this cloudy, you can't even see the stars."

"Oh right, you're in the astronomy club. I guess when it's

like this, seeing the stars is out of the question."

"I mean, we hardly ever actually go look at the stars as a

club. If we wanted to watch the stars at school, we would

have to get an adviser to accompany us, put in an application

to get access to the roof, and stay at school after hours. It's a

whole thing. As a club, we mostly do research and stuff, then

watch the stars on our own at home. But either way, it seems

like we won't be able to observe anything for a little while. It

sucks."

Makoto frowned in vexation, and Chitose nodded in

agreement. Mahiru seemed to have finished her

conversation and walked over with easy, elegant movements

to stand by Amane's side.

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

As Amane quietly pulled out her chair and urged her to

sit, he summarized their conversation to the curious-looking

Mahiru, "We were talking about what a pain the rainy

season is."

Mahiru deftly took her seat in front of Chitose and put on

a sympathetic smile when she heard the words rainy season.

"Well, she has a particularly difficult time with it, don't

you, Chitose?" she said. "It's hard for you to go out and enjoy

yourself, and you can't even go outside to exercise, and your

hair also gets messed up."

"I was certain that Chitose would be bursting with energy

even during the rainy season," Makoto remarked. "But if I

really think back, in middle school, too, you were always

quiet during this time of the year, weren't you? Especially in

second year. It was hard to imagine you'd be as hyper as you

are now."

"Agh, I don't wanna think about middle school!"

Chitose hated talking about things that happened back

then, when she'd been a very different person. She clapped

both hands over her ears and turned away.

Makoto shrugged and said, "I mean, you can be a little

loud, but the way you are now seems to suit you more;

honestly, I think it's better." It wasn't clear whether he was

trying to soothe her or make her angry so she would perk up

again.

"…You trying to pick a fight with me, Makoto?"

"That's not what I meant to do, but…but it's true that

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

you're loud… I mean, lively."

"Don't bother correcting yourself, I know what you

meant!"

Chitose frowned petulantly and beat her fists on her desk.

But her face seemed brighter, maybe because some of her

energy had returned. Makoto had managed to cheer her up

in his own way.

In response to Chitose's huffy fit, Amane caught Mahiru's

eye and smiled inconspicuously.

Ultimately, the rain continued through to the end of the

school day, and the sky was the same forbidding shade when

it was time to go home.

Because of that, the well-traveled road to and from school

was unusually quiet, as most students were in a hurry to get

home.

As for Amane, he drew Mahiru close to him underneath

his large umbrella, sharing it like sweethearts do, and

walked along at a pace that was comfortable for her.

He held Mahiru's bag as always, so it wouldn't get wet.

Maybe because the two of them were alone, Mahiru let out a

slightly disheartened and exhausted-sounding sigh. Amane

glanced over at her.

She noticed his stare and took her bag back from him. "…

It's so humid during the rainy season that your mood gets

somber, too, don't you think?" Mahiru mumbled, playing

absently with the ends of her hair, which were sticking out at

random angles a little more than usual. "And it's hard to do

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

your hair. Mine gives me such trouble, and it tangles easily."

"It sounds like it's more difficult than usual to set it right.

Personally, I think the way you have it today is cute, but I'm

sure it's annoying to deal with."

Amane personally considered getting to see Mahiru style

her hair in lots of different ways to be a perk, but he figured

that, from a girl's perspective, properly arranging it was a

big deal. Especially for Mahiru, who cared about her

personal appearance more than most.

The way she had her hair tied at the moment looked more

subdued and sweeter than usual, but Mahiru herself

probably did not like it all that much.

"C-cute?" After pondering the word, Mahiru's eyes darted

around bashfully, and she slapped Amane's arm with her

fingertips in an attempt to hide her embarrassment. "…

Anyway, it's hard to look after my hair in the summertime,

you know? At the height of summer, there's the problem of

sunlight causing damage, so proper care is essential. In the

winter, it's dry, and in the summer, it's humid, and UV rays

can cause harm… The way I care for it changes depending on

the season and the weather, so it's hard to keep up with."

"Being a girl sounds difficult."

"That's why I'm jealous of your hair, Amane."

Amane blinked when the topic changed to him, and

Mahiru looked up at his hair with slight envy. That morning,

it had seemed like too much work to style his hair with wax,

so all he had done was run a comb through it like he did on

the weekends.

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

"It's nice and smooth despite the humidity. As far as

grooming, it doesn't demand that much, does it?"

"The most I do is use that shampoo from the beauty

salon."

"That's because your hair was healthy to begin with. If you

took really good care of it, it would be even smoother and

shinier."

"I don't really want that, but… Well, if I have the time, I'll

make the effort."

If it made it more enjoyable for Mahiru to touch his hair,

then he figured making time to take care of it would be

worth it. Not that he was unhappy with it as it was, and

Mahiru never seemed to have a problem with it, either, but if

he thought it might make her even happier, he was glad to

do it.

He looked at Mahiru's face and saw that she had a faint

smile—so faint that it was barely visible. The rain was

obviously affecting her, and there was less vigor in her

expression than usual.

Gazing at her pale cheeks, Amane let out a quiet sigh.

"You know, it really sucks that I can't go jogging in this

weather. I had a routine going, and now I feel like I might

revert to my old idle habits."

It wasn't a good idea to go for a long run while it was

pouring rain. The rain would cool his muscles down even if

he warmed up before running, and he wouldn't get a very

good workout.

And so for the time being, he was going to take a break

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

from running. To compensate, he planned to step up the

weight training for his legs.

"You say that, but haven't you been doing more weight

training than usual already?"

"That's because I don't want to backslide, now that my

efforts are actually starting to show."

"Hee-hee, you're so serious; what a good boy. Very

admirable."

Mahiru looked pleased and softly patted Amane on the

back. It tickled, and with the hand that wasn't holding the

umbrella and his bag, Amane got his revenge by doing the

same to Mahiru.

Afterward, he looked at the sky. The horizon was still

dark, but something about it seemed more pleasant. It was

probably because the rain wasn't as intense as it had been.

Now it seemed to be gently enveloping them.

Of course, the real reason he felt at ease was due to the

person at his side.

"Well, there are some downsides to this weather, but

walking with you in the rain like this isn't bad at all. Rainy

days have their own sort of charm. The color of the sky and

the feeling in the air is unique, and I like it. Taking a quiet

stroll on a day like this seems romantic, too."

The rainy season might be despised by girls who

especially cared about their appearance, but Amane liked it.

It was a quiet time wrapped in a gentle feeling.

He liked the overcast sky giving off a dull, calm light, the

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

gentle sound of rain that tickled his ears, and the faint

fragrance of the rain, with the hydrangeas in full, vivid

bloom as if to decorate the otherwise faded scenery.

The landscape around them wasn't simply dark and

hopeless. The rainy season, and the mood and environment,

felt comfortable to Amane.

Besides, he had Mahiru by his side.

Just by softly squeezing her hand, the world looked

brightly colored again. If he changed his attitude and

focused on Mahiru next to him, the scenery seemed more

peaceful and charming. Just by walking together, the world

looked perfectly lovely.

"The rain was what led to us meeting, so I like it. And I

think that walking through the rain like this with you is a

priceless moment."

This was their first rainy season together as a couple, and

Amane found meaning in the very act of walking side by

side. It felt more precious because he knew that this exact

moment would never come again.

"Besides—"

"Besides?"

"On rainy days, there are more bargain items left at the

supermarket. And there are fewer people out, despite the

sales, so it's easier to pick up good deals!"

As a joke, Amane added the last reason for liking the rain

with a smile. Mahiru looked taken aback, but gradually her

expression also relaxed into a gentle smile.

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

"Hee-hee, that's the sort of thing you learn by living alone

for a long time. I get it, though."

"That's fine; who cares? Some types of knowledge are just

practical to have."

"I'm not saying it's bad, hee-hee-hee."

Mahiru giggled cheerfully, before slowly settling down

and looking up at Amane with quiet eyes.

"Amane, you're someone who can live a quiet and colorful

life, aren't you? You see the beauty and fun in everything

around you."

"I'm not sure what you mean?"

"Oh, I just suddenly had the thought. It's wonderful that

you can find enjoyment in all sorts of things from all sorts of

angles," Mahiru mumbled with a hint of jealousy. She

sounded a little lonesome.

"But I think the only reason everything I see seems to be

so vivid is because you're by my side, Mahiru. Really, you

taught me to see things I had never seen before. And I hope

you keep teaching me, too."

When Amane turned to look directly into Mahiru's

caramel-colored eyes, he could see them waver for a

moment and begin to fill with tears. But they weren't tears of

sadness, and slowly an expression of joy appeared on her

face.

"…I've also learned all sorts of things from you, Amane.

And I'm looking forward to more from now on, too."

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

"That's good to hear."

He had gotten Mahiru to promise to stay by his side,

whether she realized it or not. He hoped he could keep her to

himself for a long time.

Amane had no intention of giving up his spot beside her,

no matter the cost.

Still holding Mahiru's hand, he smiled, then peered into

her eyes again. She was wearing the most relaxed expression

he had seen on her all day.

"…Well then, let's hurry up and think of something you

can do to enjoy yourself on a rainy day once we get home."

"Like what?"

"How about we buy some small side dishes at the

supermarket, then watch a drama or one of the DVDs I have

at home, or listen to some music and take it easy? On a day

like this, it's best not to work too hard—and to spend time

relaxing. I could tell you weren't feeling too well today,

physically and mentally."

When he stared intently into her caramel-colored eyes, he

could see that he had hit the mark. She flinched, and her

eyes started darting around.

Actually, he had thought something was off when they

had walked to school together that morning and was

convinced once they'd reached the classroom. Mahiru was

not feeling well.

Her usual smile was lacking some of its luster, and

although it was hard to tell because of the dark, dismal,

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

rainy atmosphere, her complexion was worse than usual as

well. Moreover, her motions had been just a bit more

deliberate, as if she was trying to move as little as possible.

Whether it had to do with the weather or a feminine issue,

it was a private matter, and he couldn't ask. But it was

obvious that she was feeling lethargic, and she seemed like

she was struggling. Amane wanted to make sure she took it

easy for the rest of the day.

When he looked at Mahiru anxiously, she seemed to have

resigned herself and leaned her head against Amane's arm

as they walked.

"…That perceptiveness of yours is both good and bad. I

can't hide anything."

"It's because you're bad at hiding stuff. When you're not

feeling well, your movements and behavior change a little

bit."

"For example?"

"If I tell you, you'll try to hide it, so I'm not saying."

Amane could tell when Mahiru was smiling, or walking, or

even moving her hands differently, but if he told her that,

she would deliberately try not to do it, so he wasn't going to

say anything.

Mahiru looked dissatisfied, but there was no way Amane

was going to give in, so he turned down her request and

rubbed her hand that he was holding. Her hand felt a little

colder than usual, which he figured was due to the rainy

weather.

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

"You ought to rely on me a little bit more, okay? Here,

let's go into that grocery store. We'll get side dishes and…

Well, if there's anything you want me to make, I'll make it."

"…Rice balls."

He realized she was really having a hard time when she

obediently answered without putting up any resistance. He

thought with slight remorse that he should've taken better

care of her.

But Mahiru didn't seem like she was in danger of

collapsing, and at school, the last thing she wanted to do was

seem like she was struggling. Amane was probably reading

too much into things, but still, he thought it was probably

best to stay close to her side.

Amane adjusted his grip on Mahiru's hand as she leaned

on him limply, and he smiled down at her. She had stopped

trying to keep up appearances and was wearing a listless

expression.

"I can make something a little more elaborate than that,

you know? You can ask me to make whatever you want."

"I'd like to have the rice balls that you make."

Amane had been sure she was holding back because he

wasn't a very good cook, but apparently Mahiru really was

happy with his rice balls. She looked up at him with

somewhat frail eyes.

"Is that okay?"

"Sure thing. If you want them, I'll make them. I'll make

the best ones I can!" Amane smiled playfully.

『fb.com/JNovelCodex』

Mahiru also smiled happily. "I'm expecting them to be

good, okay?" She seemed to be feeling more at ease, so

Amane, maintaining a gentle expression, headed for the

supermarket with Mahiru in tow.