The Special 'Little Friend'

"So, Kotomi, you're heading to the train station? No wonder! Normally after school, you're always walking home with Megumi," Yui Yuigahama said with a smile.

"If I didn't have to suddenly go to Chiyoda District, I'd still be walking home with Megumi right now, and then we'd stop by the Dango Cake Shop to buy some cake."

"Aww, that's such a shame! My family's cake shop just lost two big customers without realizing it," Yui joked with a mock sigh.

Kotomi and Megumi had practically become regulars at the Dango Cake Shop, showing up either together or alone every few days to buy cake.

While Kotomi's frequent visits did help support the business, the truth was that she kept coming back because the cakes were simply delicious. If it were just to support the shop out of obligation, she might have stopped after a visit or two.

As they walked side by side, they chatted and laughed.

"Yuka actually wanted to stay home today, but my mom and I weren't comfortable leaving her alone. So, we sent her to daycare for the day," Yui explained.

"I didn't even know there was a daycare like that in Chiba City."

"This one's a night-time daycare, actually. It's really popular with parents who both have to work."

Most daycares operate from 6 AM to 7 PM, giving parents a couple of hours after work to pick up their children. But there are special night-time daycares, like this one in Chiba City.

It opens at 6 AM and stays open until midnight.

For parents who sometimes need to work late or both have jobs that require overtime, a night-time daycare is a lifesaver.

Of course, if possible, what parent wouldn't want to be home with their child? But the reality of income and work is something they have to face.

"This is the place," Yui said, stopping in front of the building.

The night-time daycare was still a fair distance from the train station, about a twenty-minute walk.

The building itself was a semi-circular three-story structure. If you looked at it from the sky, you would see that it resembled a crescent moon.

Since there was still plenty of time before her meeting, Izumi Kotomi decided to join Yui in picking up Yui's younger sister, Yuka Yuigahama, from the daycare. They entered the daycare and climbed to the third floor, where Yuka's classroom was located. Pushing open the door decorated with sunflower stickers, they found a female teacher, around 35 years old, seated on the floor, reading a picture book to six little kids sitting in chairs.

When the teacher heard the door open, she glanced up and smiled upon seeing Yui. Setting aside the storybook, she called to Yuka, who was sitting among the children, "Yuka, your sister's here to pick you up!"

Yuka Yuigahama's face lit up. "Sister! And Kotomi-nee is here too!" she shouted with delight, immediately running toward the door.

Feeling touched by Yuka's excitement, Yui spread her arms to catch her, expecting her little sister to jump into her embrace. But Yuka dashed straight past her and into Kotomi's arms instead.

"Penguin-sister! I missed you!" Yuka exclaimed, snuggling into Kotomi's arms.

Izumi Kotomi chuckled softly as she hoisted Yuka up, letting the little girl nuzzle affectionately against her cheek. Yui, meanwhile, looked on, half-annoyed, half-amused.

"Yuka!" Yui scolded gently, tapping her younger sister on the head. "Don't trouble Kotomi like that!"

Yui had felt so moved when she saw Yuka running toward her, only to be upstaged when Yuka darted to Kotomi instead.

But as Yui watched her little sister cuddling Kotomi, a fleeting thought crossed her mind. Being hugged by Kotomi must be so comforting.

Yui's eyes wandered, unconsciously observing Kotomi's figure before she quickly swallowed back her thoughts. It wasn't a competition, after all.

Of course, who wouldn't want a hug like that?

Embarrassed by the realization, Yui shook her head and turned to Kotomi with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Kotomi. Yuka can be a bit… impulsive sometimes."

Kotomi waved off the apology with a smile. "No problem at all."

After all, when she was little, Kotomi had also yearned to be hugged by an older sister figure, just like Yuka did now.

Once Yuka had been properly settled, Yui and Kotomi thanked the teacher for taking care of her during the day.

"It's no trouble," the teacher replied kindly. "Yuka is a very bright and well-behaved child. We all love having her here."

As they exchanged pleasantries, Kotomi's attention was drawn to another figure in the room.

A teenage girl with warm tea-brown hair sat off to the side, surrounded by children. Her soft features were serene, but what stood out most was that her eyes appeared to be closed—or at least, not open in the usual sense. The girl was dressed for cooler weather, despite it still being summer, in a white long-sleeve shirt under a beige sweater.

What was particularly striking was the girl's calm, poised manner as she read aloud from a picture book to the children gathered around her. Even with her eyes seemingly shut, she appeared to know exactly what she was doing.

Intrigued, Kotomi leaned closer to the teacher and whispered, "Excuse me, who is that girl?"

The teacher followed Kotomi's gaze and smiled softly. "Ah, you've noticed her. That's Kasumi Naoka, one of our more 'unique' students. She'll be turning 19 on the 22nd of this month."

Kotomi blinked in surprise. "Nineteen?"

"Yes," the teacher nodded. "She's blind, and has been since she was very young. Despite that, she completed her education up to high school, though she doesn't plan to attend university. She lives with her sister, but because her sister works in Tokyo, Kasumi spends the day with us when no one is available to look after her."

The teacher's smile deepened as she added, "She doesn't really need much looking after, though. In fact, she often helps us around here, taking care of the younger children. You could almost say she's like an honorary teacher."

Kasumi continued to read to the children, her voice steady and warm. She seemed completely at peace, as though her blindness hadn't diminished her spirit in the slightest.

The teacher went on to explain, "Our daycare typically only cares for younger children, so taking in a 19-year-old is very unusual for us. But..." She chuckled softly. "Let's just say her sister, Miss Ryugawa, made sure it was worth our while."