Chapter 7

The participants gathered at the starting point around the periphery

of the track. They numbered around ten girls and forty or fifty boys.

It was already dusk. A large crowd of spectators smoothly took their

places at the athletic field where the cool autumn wind blew. They clapped

their hands together in rhythm as they waited for the event to commence.

Taiga sat in a chair at the goal line, wearing a red cloak under the

illumination of the floodlights. A protective ring of members from the

student council and the acting committee surrounded her. As though to

warn everyone off from approaching the prize, they eyed the participants as

they stood unyieldingly at parade rest.

A secret feud was already beginning at the starting line. Naturally, it

wasn't like everyone would get along standing side by side. They were all

trying to get to the front to take more advantageous positions, no matter

how slight.

"Don't push!"

"Shut up, I'm in the track and field club! You slowpokes are in the

way, move outta the way!"

"Whaaat?! You've really done it now! You should be the one backing

down!"

"Hey! We're girls, so don't push, okay?!"

"Don't wanna trip and cry, then get to the end, you slow girls!"

"Girls shouldn't be entering in the first place! You're really just

getting in the way!"

"Whaaat?! That's so rude!"

"Drop dead!"

The situation was becoming extraordinarily treacherous as they

pushed with their elbows, stepped on each other, and butted shoulders.

"What the?!"

"A-are you serious… Takasu-kun's entering too?!"

At the entrance of a single boy, the crowd made a spectacle, like he

was Moses and they were the Red Sea. The crowd trembled as it parted

right in two so that the boy could easily take a spot at the starting line,

where he stood imposingly. Of course, that boy's name was Takasu Ryuuji.

His small pupils rattled, and the look in his eyes said one word—"psycho."

He licked his parched, rough lips. He looked around, dominating his

surroundings.

At just the look in his eyes, the surging crowd surrounding him

shuffled back. Normally this was a situation that would hurt his feelings,

but just this once, this was what he was aiming for. He was serious about

getting first place.

He wanted to get to Taiga's side faster than anyone else. Ryuuji had

been shocked to death, and his mind had gone blank. Now, though, he was

fixated on a singular goal. He was so angry he could die.

He wanted to take that guy who had called Taiga a princess, crumple

the guy up into a ball, and throw the ball away. He wanted to yell at the guy

with Taiga. Who needs you?! You're a failure of a king. I'm going to put

that sparkling tiara on Taiga's head with my own two hands. We don't need

your hands ever again, he wanted to yell. He would use his hands to have

Taiga's back. From here on out, whether it be for decades or even millennia,

he would lend her the strength to walk alone in her fragile state.

Then he would throw away his own idiotic self and be reborn, too. I

don't need you anymore either, he thought.

He would do anything to achieve that. If he didn't, he would never be

able to forgive the fool he had been. If he didn't, he would never be able to

bring himself to show his face to Taiga again.

"I have a few warnings! First, everyone please be careful not to hurt

yourself! We've arranged for several cushions to be at the goal!"

Kitamura was working as the starter, pointing a finger towards the

finish line. Sure enough, there were cushions distributed along the goal.

"Much appreciated!"

That came from the portly and tough-bodied members of the sumo

club. They were doing well considering the time of the year and the fact

that their pale skin was exposed to the outdoors. They slapped their sides,

dropped their waists, spread their thighs, and slowly sidled up to each other

in their bare feet. We will capture the Lucky Man with our brawn. They

spread out their arms and made everyone feel the strength of their resolve.

I wouldn't want that… said one girl. No, actually, I'd be into that,

another girl said excitedly.

I don't care either way. Whether it's the sumo club or the American

football club, I'll be the one to dive headfirst into their thick chests. As for

Ryuuji, he was thinking something that could have left him open to slight

misinterpretation.

"Well then, I'm going to explain the course, so please listen up!"

"By course, you just mean the half-circle around the track, right?"

someone said, but Kitamura, his spectacles glinting, dismissed them with a

single word, "Wrong!" With that, he signaled with his hand.

"Ooh!"

"Amazing, that must've cost a pretty penny!"

Starting at the participant's feet at the starting line, guiding lights

switched on all at once to make a line of radiant light that guided the

participants to the goal.

"It's really amazing, but…isn't this a little weird?"

"The line isn't following the track. It cuts off suddenly right before

the school building, doesn't it?"

"Well noticed!"

Kitamura's pride had no end. Huff! His nostrils flared.

"The first section along the Lucky Man race is the straightaway! Then

it continues along the back of the old school building. Then you'll once

again return to the athletic field from the side of the entryway, and it's a

straight shot to the goal! Run it using every ounce of strength you've got!"

he proclaimed with his chest puffed out.

Immediately, there was an uproar of argumentative voices, "Whaa?!"

"Hold up, hold up, you stupid student council! You expect us to run in

that tiny space that's by that fence behind the old school building?! With

this many people!"

"And isn't the side of the entryway just stairs?! That place is

ridiculously cramped, too!"

"You've just got to put in your best effort. Well then! Are you almost

ready?!"

At Kitamura's completely unconcerned voice, they all realized any

further argument would be fruitless. So basically, thought Ryuuji, what

you're saying is don't enter if you don't like it.

He glared at the course before him as he retained his position in the

middle of the noisy crowd. If you're unhappy, he thought, be my guest and

quit. I'd be fine with everyone quitting.

It wasn't actually that long of a distance. The problem was when they

would get behind the old school building. That place was practically a tiny

tunnel. He would avoid the conflict of trying to fight his way through there.

Anyway, all he had to do was be the first out, get behind the old building,

and act as a cork so no one else could get through. After that, in the

straightaway, he'd leave the rest to luck. It was just a matter of how much

of a lead he could take up until he got to that point. At least he had formerly

been part of a sports club at one point. During his third year in junior high,

he had been in the badminton club. He wasn't too slow.

Ryuuji bit his lip. He checked the position of his most formidable

enemies, the track club, whom he probably wouldn't have been able to beat

had they been running a normal race. Pressure steadily oozed from his eyes

in full force. As he stared at them, his evil eyes said, Do not get in front of

me.

"On your marks! Get set!"

Ryuuji whipped his eyes back to the front. He was unaware of the

disquieting discussion that was occurring behind him. With his butt, he

offhandedly obstructed the group that was taking professional-looking

crouching starts. Then he toed the start line as close as he could.

"Start!"

POP! The starting pistol fired.

Like a literal bullet, Ryuuji burst off into a reckless run straight ahead.

"Whoa?!"

They got him without warning. Someone had grabbed his shirt from

behind. He lost his balance. Someone swept his feet out from under him.

His ears picked up their voices:

Take out Takasu-kun first! If everyone's in, he won't know who did it!

"Y-you jerks…!"

Ryuuji collapsed onto the course. They made sure to thoroughly

trample all over his butt. As he was trying to get up, dust flew into his eyes.

"D-damn it!"

If they were going to do that, then he wouldn't stay down and take it.

"I can't lose this!"

He pawed at the ground and quickly stood up. Then he handed it out

to each coward that ran past him. Naturally, it was the eyes—he aimed for

their eyes.

"Uwah!"

"Ow ow ow ow!"

Once he had several people holding their faces and staggering, he left

them. Next, he grabbed the back of someone within his reach.

"Don't take this personally!"

"Uwawawawah!"

He pulled the person down with all of his strength. The first person

got tangled up with someone else who also tripped over. Ryuuji was unable

to hide his smile at his luck. Now he had completely joined the ranks of the

villains.

What's wrong with that? he thought. You can even brainwash people.

After all, he was Takasu, the delinquent who had been born with a villain's

face slapped on him. He'd lived through it, strong and unyielding.

"Uwah?! Takasu-kun's back from the dead!"

"I'm scaaaaared! His face is terrifying!"

"There, there, there, there!"

"Ahhhh!" Screams were even coming from the audience. Apparently,

the course lighting that illuminated them from below was having a

compounded effect that worked great for him. As Ryuuji dashed at full

speed, his determined face took on a malevolent cast. It seemed that the dim

light of dusk made the eeriness in his face emerge. Those who looked over

their shoulder at Ryuuji's face tripped over themselves. With that alone, he

made three people lose their will to compete.

"I know who you are. If I'm not mistaken, you're…"

"Uwaaaah sooorry!"

He whispered into someone's ear from behind, and though he didn't

know the person who looked at him in shock, the guy still fell over. With

that, he was up to four. But it wasn't over. Other heads were stretched out

before his eyes. As one would expect, the track and field members were

fast, and their speed was already on a different level from everyone else's.

The failed start had really hurt him; it had put him too far behind.

"Daaaaaaaammit!"

"Ahhh, it's a demon!"

After he screamed, rather than the five runners in front of him, a

junior high girl in the audience fell over. So close, Ryuuji thought. He

clicked his tongue and scrutinized the course with his scowling eyes. The

group leading the pack was already diving behind the school. One by one,

they disappeared.

No no no no, he thought. If he were to enter he wouldn't be able to

overtake anyone anymore. He also wouldn't be able to cheat. What should I

do? I don't know. At any rate, he needed to keep going while he didn't have

to worry about his placement in the race changing. He slipped around the

tight curve and approached the fence at the back of the school, which

almost looked like a pitch-black cave.

"Whoa?!"

"Tsk! I missed!"

One of Taiga's roundhouse kicks came flying at him before his eyes

—or so he thought. The attack that assailed him was slower than he

expected, and he did a Matrix-esque bend backwards right at a critical

moment. He just barely avoided whatever had suddenly lunged at his eyes.

He simply fell over backwards. As he righted himself, he realized

what it was. It was someone's hand. An arm protruded out from a gap in the

fence.

"What are you doing?!"

"Sorry, but we can't let you pass! All but the basketball club will be

buried in the darkness!"

"Ah, you idiots! He'll figure out who we are!"

He didn't know when they could have snuck into there, but on the

other side of the fence, suspicious people using towels as masks were in a

row and taking advantage of the darkness. They had been taking down

unsuspecting pageant candidates who were running through. When he

looked ahead, he could see trampled people here and there collapsed face

down.

"Y-you've got to be kidding! I'm totally telling the teachers after

this!"

"Do what you want! Either way you're never getting through! Oh,

there's another one coming!"

"Come at us! That's a Futsal guy!"

The person who had just come up behind Ryuuji fell prey to the

merciless fence phantoms.

"Waaaah!"

What's with these guys? Ryuuji thought, but he couldn't waste time in

a place like this. He could only advance forward. He once again made a

break for it.

"Ow!"

"Oh! Sorry!"

He had stepped on the butt of someone who'd collapsed, but he didn't

have the time to spare standing around. On one side was the damp concrete

of the four-story old school building and on the other was the fence bristling

with phantom people. And then if he went any slower…

"It's the delinquent Takasu! Rumor has it you're not actually as scary

as you look?!"

"Yeah, you guys are much scarier!"

One after another, the people who were accompanying him from

behind the fence stuck their arms through the steel wire and recklessly tried

to seize his clothes and his hair.

"Waaaaah!"

Below him, those who collapsed became obstacles, catching at

Ryuuji's feet. He grazed them and stumbled. Then someone screamed from

behind him. There were people in front of him who had piled into a heap

after tripping over the obstacles. This was the first block of hell—that, or it

was a human cockroach trap.

"Damn," he said, "how annoying!"

With a hop and a step, Ryuuji jumped onto the fence. He quickly

scrambled up the two-meter height with the momentum he had created and

reeled once he stood himself up on the top of it.

"Is that allowed?!"

"D-don't talk to me right now!"

People gave him dumbfounded looks from below, but it was much

scarier for the person actually doing it. Eeek! Teary eyed, he was screaming

a voiceless scream. Ryuuji intended to run through the darkness in one shot.

He could only see a few centimeters ahead of him. Don't look down, don't

fall, he told himself, feeling like he was going to die.

"Hey, that's sneaky! Drag him down—ouch, ow, ow, ow!"

He was already in a daze as he mercilessly stamped on the

outstretched hands trying to seize his ankles. He also stamped out his fear.

He would get first place. That was it—that was the only thing he could

bring with him. He would get to Taiga first. From then on, that was the only

thought he carried forward with him.

On the pitch-black course below, those who had fallen over and those

who were tripping continued to arrive one after another. They bunched

together in a heap, blocking the way forward. A traffic jam was in progress

—this was his chance to win. He desperately righted himself as he teetered.

"Huh?! That's Takasu the delinquent?! Are you serious?! Are you

really willing to go this far?!"

"I am!"

"Why?!"

"I've got my reasons, leave it alone!"

He finally passed the pile of slackers who were looking up at him in

amazement. Ryuuji might have been coming out on top. He was in extreme

concentration as he ran through on top of the fence. Light from the course

was flowing in from beyond the old school building. The line of lights that

continued to the goal glittered. He kicked off the fence and landed with his

now-sure feet.

He flew out ahead of everyone else from the darkness and went

headfirst into the sudden curve ahead of him. The turn opened up, and he

soared over the stairs of the four-story building in one go.

That was when it happened.

"…!"

Aisaka Taiga stood up from her chair.

A vivid rosy color spread over her doll-like cheeks.

Only one man was reflected in her faintly teary, wide eyes.

It was the one person at the top. It was the person who was diving

towards her faster than anyone else. It was—

"Ryu…"

That's when it happened.

"Huh?! No way?! It's Takasu-kun, it's Takasu-kun, it's Takasu-kun,

ahhhh!"

"It's true it's true, he's coming in first, amaaazing! It's amazing, that's

amazing, you can do it!"

Kihara Maya and Kashii Nanako were yelling the loudest among the

cheers that broke out. They were clapping their hands and jumping. Slightly

behind them, Kawashima Ami, wearing an overcoat, muttered, "Oh?"

As she crossed her arms and an expression of amazement graced her

face, a mysteriously passionate light danced in her eyes.

Then it happened.

"Huh?!"

Several of the gathered audience members' eyes went wide as they

realized the situation. At the unbelievable development, someone mumbled

in a low voice, "Th-that's fast…"

It happened just as the audience members saw and believed Ryuuji

was the fastest one to have returned to the athletic field.

From his unguarded right, a shadow ran through the compact and

sudden curve without a sound. It overtook Ryuuji. That person went up the

stairs a step ahead of him, landing with sure feet. Then the person turned

back around for a moment from a low position, narrowed their eyes, and

whispered, "Slowpoke."

"Ku?!"

Kushieda Minori?!

Her loose hair dancing in the wind, Minori flew by Ryuuji in a cold

gust. She quickly turned back around. She seemed to soar through the air as

she lightly dashed down the straightaway at a miraculous pace fast enough

to overtake any boy running at top speed. She didn't even turn towards him.

She brushed him aside. He was being left behind. The bright line now

glittered for Minori as it led her straight to the goal.

I can't lose—Ryuuji threw gasoline on the flames of his own heart.

I definitely, absolutely can't lose. I can't lose—not to you.

Were both of your eyes actually open? Minori had asked Ryuuji.

They'd been open.

He'd seen the wrong thing.

"Damn…daaamn! Damn damn damn, daaamn it!"

He was the one who was mistaken. He doubted Minori. If he just

thought about it, he would have known. That jerk who took Taiga out to eat

every night. Hadn't Taiga gotten a pimple on her chin and gotten sick? That

jerk who had made Ryuuji go out to get her because the road was closed. It

was because he hadn't wanted to leave his car behind and take her home

himself. That jerk who gave Taiga an unreasonable amount of money. He

probably did that so she would never contact him about needing more. That

jerk who never tried to have a homemade meal with her. That was because

Taiga couldn't make anything, and he was too bothered to try. That jerk

who even apologized for scrapping his promise by sending a message to

Ryuuji. That jerk couldn't even apologize directly to Taiga. From the very

beginning, that jerk tried to avoid anything that seemed like it could

inconvenience him. That jerk, that jerk, that jerk! There had been so many

hints!

That meant Ryuuji had overlooked everything. He had only been

thinking of himself and hadn't seen even a single thing for what it was. He

should have been cursing at himself. What a fool he'd been. What a stupid

mutt. He hurt Taiga, doubted Minori, and now he was already so far behind

he couldn't even reach out to touch Minori's back. If he lost here, he would

truly finish as nothing but an idiotic jerk. He absolutely couldn't lose.

Minori, who was ahead of him, was the definition of determination.

She steadily increased her speed as she plunged down the straightaway.

Ryuuji could hear the heavy breathing of the others rising up behind him as

they drew near.

"That girl's got amazing legs on her! Damn, she's a dark horse!"

"Isn't she the head of the girls' softball club?!"

"That one's fast, she must have been hiding so she wouldn't get

trampled!"

Looking at Minori's back as she ran with an easy grace, Ryuuji and

the others desperately pursued her. The goal was already right before his

eyes; he was barely catching up with Minori because of his better stamina.

The sound of approaching feet behind him drew ever closer. He could

suddenly see someone's shadow slowly approaching from the side of the

track. Then it happened when Ryuuji was thinking he definitely couldn't

handle it, whatever it was.

"Eeep?! Waaaaaaaah?! Eeeeeeeeeeeeeek?!"

Running alone at the front, Minori cried out. The mysterious person

who approached had pulled up a hurdle they seemed to have been secretly

pulling along with them. They put it right in the middle of the course in

front of Minori's eyes. Any member of the track and field club would have

been able to jump over the obstacle, so they were likely the culprits. It

happened in the blink of an eye, so Minori had to try jumping over the

hurdle. She lost her balance. As she plunged into it, she kicked the hurdle

down and tumbled right over. A dense cloud of dust rose. Of course, Ryuuji

swerved to avoid the fallen Minori as he followed immediately after her.

"Aaah, watch ooout!"

He jumped to the side out of the course and fell right over, much to

his chagrin. He fell face first and his cheeks felt hot as if they were burning.

Minori didn't even see him as she jumped up like a grasshopper. Ryuuji

simply turned a somersault forward and continued to run without stopping.

No matter how many times he fell, he would get up again just like she had

—though he still regretted the time he lost. One person, two people, three

people passed by, making Minori fall to fourth place with Ryuuji in fifth.

Unable to think, Ryuuji sprinted single-mindedly with all his might. He

couldn't give up yet, he couldn't stop running. But the finish line was right

there, and the leader would burst through at any moment…

Is it too late?

"Kushieda-senpaaaaaaiiii! Take thiiiiiiiiiiiiis! "

Right then, something white was flung out from among the audience.

Minori reflexively stretched out her arm and caught it. It was a softball. As

she ran, Minori looked at it, then looked at the people running in front of

her, and then at the back of their heads.

"Gooooot iiiiit!"

She took an abrupt step.

She planted both of her feet to the ground. She arched her back. She

loaded the spring in her body into her right arm, then she slung around a

blazing fastball. The white ball that she threw underhand cut through the air

like an arrow. Its trajectory briefly sunk and touched the lights of the

course, then, using its spin, it went straight for its target.

"Ow!"

"Ouch!"

It was an absurdly accurate, perfectly calculated fastball. WHACK!

First it made a sound as it struck the back of the leader's head, then it shot

out to hit the forehead of second place. The two of them suddenly collapsed

to their knees at the force of the impact. Who is she?! Ryuuji thought as he

turned towards her and it happened before his eyes.

"Nausicaa-kun, I beg of you, go on! Go on for Taiga!"

Who's Nausicaa-kun? Her words were comedic, but her voice and

eyes were serious. Minori's eyes were piercing through him and only him.

Then in the next moment, she made a sliding dive forward. She latched onto

the legs of the guy in third place.

"If-I-die-we-die-together attaaack!"

"Whaaa?! You've got to be kidding meee!"

Screaming together, the two got tangled in each other and fell. Ryuuji

understood her intentions. She was saying, You go on ahead. She meant,

You go on ahead of me.

She was saying, Get to Taiga before anyone else.

"Kushieda…"

There was a loud cheer, as though the ground were rumbling.

Screams, complaints, commotion.

"Weeeeeee maaaaaaaade iiiiiiiiiit!" There were the overjoyed people

surging onto the athletic field.

Then it happened.

Still standing up, Taiga was watching that development.

The person who should have been running straight toward the finish

line stopped, even though he almost fell when he did. He took several steps

backward on the course. Then he went to the two-person heap and pulled

the bottom person out—he pulled up the girl wearing the tracksuit.

They faced each other.

Without saying anything, they once again began to run.

Though neither of them initiated the action, they took each other's

hands. Then, just barely beating out their pursuers, they dove through the

finishing line together into first place.

Taiga slowly lowered herself back into the chair.

Her arms weren't shaking. Her legs also weren't shaking. She had her

eyes fully open as she etched the faces of the two into her eyes. In the core

of her heart, which had seemed close to being dashed to pieces, she had one

thought. It was just a single phrase—I'm fine. Her mind had gone numb

from the cheers and the applause.

"That's not fair, right?!"

"Which one won?!"

Here and there, the coarse arguments started to become rowdy. When

everything was said and done, the massive cheers that seemed to give the

crowd's blessing to what had happened were overwhelming. At the center

of everything, Taiga's expression didn't indicate she had ever stood up. She

quietly turned her eyes down once again. She continued to sit in the chair.

She continued sitting when they were placing the tiara on top of her

hair.

She continued sitting as, side by side, they picked up the tiara

together with their hands and anxiously peered into Taiga's face.

It's okay… she repeated, mentally. I have some pride, too. You don't

have to worry that much. You saw me, didn't you? I can stand up, all by

myself.

I can live by myself.

***

"We wooon! We wooon! We wooon! I did it, I did it, I did it!"

In front of the huge crackling fire, the acting committee member—no,

the director, Haruta continued to leap for joy. He must have been extremely

happy. The class exhibition, Miss Festival, the Lucky Man—class 2-C had

won them all. In the end, they had been victorious on all fronts.

To ride the high of excitement from the Lucky Man race, they just

held the award ceremony on the athletic field. Haruta boastfully hoisted a

gigantic certificate in his hands. The burning campfire at the center

illuminated the many students who stayed until the very end of the one-day

event's festivities. The closing party had started. Countless sparks glittered

and leapt into the indigo-dyed night sky.

Wearing her overcoat, Ami held a slightly beat-up trophy beside

Haruta.

"Ahhh, I'm sooo happy! Stop it, you'll make me cry…"

She wriggled as she donned her ironclad, goody-two-shoes mask. She

even had her fake tears equipped. Each and every person surrounding her

from 2-C was talking.

"Ami-chan, you did a great job~!"

"Ami-chan, don't cry~!"

"I was so moved, too~!"

"Everyone was so great~!"

"And Haruta did so great, despite the fact he's Haruta!"

There were even a few girls who were actually shedding a few tears.

Right in the middle of that deeply emotional melting pot, Haruta nodded in

triumph.

"You know, I was thinking. Don't you think MVP would go to…Yurichan?"

"Huh?!"

He pointed at the single woman (age 30) who was standing a slight

distance away from the ring of students. The unmarried woman (age 30)

jolted her shoulders. The students turned around all at once. Their eyes

sparkled with radiant purity and spontaneous realization as they exchanged

nods.

"Now that you mention it, it's true…"

"Yuri-chan proposed the pro-wrestling show to us in the first place."

"Everyone worked hard, but it was still definitely Yuri-chan who gave

us the opportunity to work hard."

"I agree. Yuri-chan is the MVP!"

"Yuri-chan, thank you!"

"Yuri-chan, what's wrong?"

At the sudden shower of attention, the bachelorette (30) looked

anguished as her legs wobbled. Her hair seemed desiccated in the light from

the fire. She got on one knee, suddenly tired and rubbing her temples.

"Ngh, I-I just…sort of hate how petty I was being… I hate it, I hate

being an adult…"

She couldn't even look into her students' eyes. One of them quietly

took a step toward her and lent her a hand. It was Ami.

"Teacher, keep it together. Actually, I was just wondering, what's with

all the beige? The clothes, I mean."

"I-It's because I'm thirty…"

"No waaay~! That's so funny!"

Tears flowed from the eyes of the spinster (age 30). All of her

emotions flowed together into those tears until they were the most potent

and strong tears there ever could have been. It's so funny that I'm thirty, she

thought, it's so funny, even to me. She dropped her shoulders in dejection,

and an intolerable shadow formed under her eyes.

"Teacher," said Ami, "beige doesn't really suit you. Your skin is a

little translucent, so I think a bright pastel color would suit you much better.

And you have a good figure, so you should bring out your body's shape. It's

a weapon you know, a wea-pon. There aren't any thirty year olds nowadays

who dress that plainly. You're single, so you have to be greedier about

having your fun with love and fashion. ♥"

"K-Kawashima-san…"

"I saw you the other day. You had that killer purse at the garden party

after school, right? It was new, right? It looked really great! I wish I had

one…aaah?!"

The bachelorette (age 30) hugged the overcoat-wearing angel. Thank

you, thank you, thank you… she (age 30) repeated over and over.

What a lovely scene. Deeply moved, the students of 2-C surrounding

them gave them tremendous applause. Haruta embraced the single woman's

(age 30) shoulder, and nonchalantly embraced Ami's shoulder as well.

"Yuri-chan-sensei, make sure you come to the after-party, too!"

"I-Is it okay if I go?! You wouldn't be able to get up to any trouble,

though?!"

"It's good, it's good, totally fine," he said. "We were planning on

going to a wholesome family restaurant right from the start."

"Are you sure?! I'd make the average age skyrocket."

"That's completely fine."

The fire flared two meters high beside the boisterous crowd, making

their shadows dance across the ground. All the faces of those from other

classes were lit up orange. They were enjoying themselves, looking

completely tired, laughing, chatting, gazing at the fire, sitting around on the

ground, and savoring the end of the eccentric cultural festival, each in their

own way. There were a group of girls wearing uniforms from other schools

and a mass of excited guys with them. Of course, there were other classes

that had also gathered for their own activities. Though few, there were pairs

of boys and girls sitting next to each other and creating a certain

atmosphere. It was early, but the acting committee was under a tent,

throwing a tearful celebration for their work. The student council was

sitting in a line on the desks overlooking the cultural festival's final event.

At last, it was over. The annual great celebration that occurred all in

one day was over.

"You're going to the closing party, right, Miss Cultural Festival?"

"Well, I guess if you went, there wouldn't be dinner anyway. You

may go, Mister Lucky Man."

"Ouch!"

At the edge of the ring surrounding the unmarried woman (age 30),

Ryuuji yelped and jumped backwards. The princess was aggressively

poking the prestigious wound he had gotten on his cheek.

"You got yourself hurt; how lame of you. How about I take you to the

Miyake clinic tomorrow?"

"Miyake…isn't that a vet?!"

Haaaaa ha ha, you figured it out. Taiga laughed devilishly with the

beautiful Swarovski tiara perched on top of her head. The dress and the

angel wings suited her well. No one could look at her and not find her

charming. It seemed that a person's personality and looks really were

unrelated. Either that, or they had an inverse relationship.

Ryuuji stared at Taiga and hoped it said, Who do you think I got this

injury for?

Taiga arrogantly scrutinized him and laughed with poison-laced lips.

That's right, he thought, laugh. Though Taiga knew that her father,

whom she'd waited for this whole time, had run away, and though she'd

seen the message too, on this night Taiga's laugh was even more

provocative than usual.

The moment he had shown her the message she begged to see, she

yelled "Hyaa!" …As he panicked over the cellphone she'd pretended to

vigorously throw somewhere, Taiga immediately quipped, "Just kidding,"

and laughed. She looked down at the cellphone still properly clutched in her

hands. With that, Taiga teased Ryuuji and laughed over how flustered he

was. Her whole body was bathed by the fire's brilliance, and even now, her

mini-dress fluttered elegantly.

You didn't even know how worried I was, Ryuuji tried to breathe out,

but he couldn't.

"Jeez…just how tough are you?" he said. "I was absolutely sure you

would be in hysterics."

"I didn't care what that guy did from the start. It's fine, really, it really

doesn't matter. Nothing's changed. More importantly, how could you flirt

with Minorin so boldly in front of my eyes when I was all alone? When did

you make up with her?"

"Well, about that…"

I don't think that we've made up, he thought. Minori was away from

them, chatting with someone else. He glanced at her, averted his eyes, and

scratched his head. Now that she mentioned it,

in the middle of the mayhem, he felt like they might have held hands. This

hand. The moment he tried to remember it, a shiver suddenly ran through

his body. His cheeks started burning.

Right, he thought. Didn't we hold hands?

"Oh…oh…"

"What do you mean, 'Oh'? Do you have some weird hang up for the

actress who plays that heart surgeon gal on Grey's Anatomy? You foolish

jerk. Wipe that dim-witted grin off your face. Hurry up and apologize, you

dumb, dawdling mutt! You promised, didn't you?!"

With Taiga prodding at his back, he couldn't get her with a

counterattack. Ow ow, he groaned. Then, it happened as he tried to stagger

away to escape her.

"Huh?"

"It's music."

A famous waltz began to stream out from the speakers. From the

sound of it, it'd come off a slightly stretched cassette tape. As the rhythm

ticked and the fire shone over the nighttime autumn sky, the carefree notes

danced.

Come to think of it, Ryuuji thought, smiling slightly. When he did

that, it pulled on the wound on his face, which smarted. Didn't the Lucky

Man have the right to do that? Didn't he have the right to—

"I'll go and apologize to Kushieda. But before that—"

Taiga's eyes were shining brightly. They burned and sparkled as they

reflected the fire like burning gems. It's not a gala but—

He licked his lips, which were unable to say the unfamiliar words. Ryuuji

stretched out his hand towards Taiga. Isn't it fine to do things like this every

once in a while?

"May I—"

But.

"Mi-no-riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin!"

Completely ignoring Ryuuji's words, Taiga entirely interrupted him

and called out to her close friend with the loudest voice she could muster.

Her voice echoed like a howl. Minori turned around reflexively.

"What what what?! What's wrong, what's wrong?!"

Minori ran to Taiga. Minori stroked Taiga's throat, rubbed Taiga's

forehead, and worked her way from Taiga's hair to neck with such a force

she seemed about to groom Taiga.

"Minorin Minorin Minoriiin! I love love love love looove you!"

"Okay okay okay okay okay, I got it, I got it, I got it! Aaah, Taiga

you're so cuuute! The tiara really suits you! You're a princess, the best in

the world, you're so cute, cute, cute!"

"I'm super happy because you put the tiara on me."

"It wasn't just me, Takasu-kun came in first place, too, didn't he?"

"I don't know about that. I didn't see anything. I didn't hear

anything."

As always, Taiga transformed into an animal. With all her strength,

she clung to Minori, whose face was covered in bandages. She sniffed

Minori's neck, rubbed her face against her, and relaxed as though at ease.

What are you doing? Ryuuji could only laugh.

"Fwa ha ha," said Minori, "I'm ticklish!"

Before he knew it, she was laughing, too. She looked into Ryuuji's

eyes. Noticing his gaze, she shrugged her shoulders a bit, but did so gently.

Taiga, who'd been relaxing, suddenly craned her neck. She struggled

a bit and slipped out from Minori's arms. She stood herself up imposingly

and glared at the target of her scowl.

"Um, Kawashima-san. Would you dance with me?"

"No, no, dance with me."

"I've always admired you. I fell completely in love with your queenly

performance."

As the waltz had started to play, boys had surrounded Ami. The boys

were from every class and every grade. Even some guys from other schools

joined in to shower her with passionate words of affection. The object of

worship, Ami, knitted her eyebrows and seemed troubled as she slowly

looked at the many hands presented to her. However, in actuality, she

seemed to happily be appraising them.

"U-uhh…what should I dooo~?! This is too difficult, I've never done

anything like this before~!"

She bashfully hemmed and hawed with her ironclad good-girl mask

in place. The campfire was so piping hot no one could get near it, but the

scene felt vaguely cold—especially to anyone who knew Ami's true nature.

"If it's that difficult for you, I'll be your partner, Dimhuahua!"

"Huuh?!"

Taiga hopped on the scene like a sprightly cat. Then she clung to Ami

and gnawed on her.

"N-no, wait, Aisaka-san! Get off, hey, that actually hurts…I said it

hurts!"

"Come. Look, I said I'd dance with you!"

"That huuurts, you spoiled brat!"

Taiga continued to cling to Ami's shoulders until Ami's true dark

nature came through. She shook Taiga off and chased her away…or so it

seemed.

"HEAVE HO!"

"GAH!"

Taiga did a lariat takedown. It was exactly as though she were

continuing on with the pro-wrestling show. As she took Ami down from

behind and pinned her to the ground, the people surrounding them started

shouting. "Count it, count it!" "ONE! TWO!"

The cute dress and angel wings were meaningless when you stuck

them on a ferocious tiger.

Ryuuji didn't know whether to stop them or leave them be. Just

thinking about it was depressing. Ami would definitely be fine. She was

pretty sturdy, after all. As Ryuuji watched in exasperation, someone lightly

tapped his shoulder.

"Sorry about that, Takasu-kun."

He realized Minori was standing right next to him.

The outline of her profile was tinged by the color of the flames. She

watched Ami and Taiga, who were still fooling around with each other.

Ryuuji hesitated for a bit, then lowered his head.

"I'm the one who should apologize. I was the one who didn't get it. I

said some horrible things to you. Sorry. I'm really sorry."

Minori's eyes went round as though she were surprised. She shook

her head back and forth.

"That's not true! That's not true at all, Takasu-kun."

She closed her eyes and murmured softly, as though she had to

squeeze out her words.

"There were things I purposefully didn't tell you, Takasu-kun. I didn't

tell you and then acted like I was better than you. I knew everything and

still blamed you for it. There were things I should have explained that I

didn't. That wasn't fair of me."

She broke herself off at that point. The waltz continued to play, but no

one was dancing. All the students were sitting on the ground, standing and

facing each other, and shielding their eyes from the glaring fire. Annoyed

and breathing heavily, Taiga had been left all alone after Ami had gotten

away. A bespectacled boy was approaching her, unnoticed.

"Hey, Aisaka. I'm not the Lucky Man, but do you think I still have

the right to ask you to dance?"

Taiga's eyes opened wide from shock. Right at that moment, an

especially loud crackle came from the campfire. The fire shook. It

shimmered on the surface of her misty, blinking eyes.

"Isn't it…the student council who makes those rules?"

Kitamura laughed a little. Without hesitation, he offered his hand

straight to Taiga, who was moving stiffly and awkwardly.

"You're the one who gets to decide, Aisaka."

Taiga stared at his hand.

"Is it a yes or a no? Aisaka Taiga, would you dance with me?"

Ryuuji watched the situation from slightly far off. Taiga's face was

illuminated by the fire so he couldn't see the color of her face. He still knew

she must have definitely been turning bright red. He knew her heart must

have been pounding so hard it would be audible.

Someone pointed at Taiga and Kitamura and yelled in surprise.

Glasses from the student council is asking out the Palmtop Tiger! Don't

even think about it, that's reckless. Phew-eew! Someone even whistled in

amusement. However, Kitamura didn't flinch. He didn't move an inch as he

simply kept his hand outstretched and waited for Taiga's answer.

"D-don't you…have to do stuff for the student council?"

"It's okay. I want to dance with a friend on a night like this."

A soft smile spread across Taiga's lips. Her large eyes quietly fixed

on Kitamura's face. They wavered. They teared up. They shook. She closed

her eyes and opened them again, no longer minding those surrounding her.

"Kitamura-kun," Taiga said her sweetheart's name. "Thank you.

Thank you. Really."

At those words, Kitamura's eyes seemed to laugh behind his glasses.

He narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Why are you thanking me? That's weird. You don't need to thank

your friends."

"You think so?"

"Don't you? Well, will you give me an answer?"

"Ha ha. How does dancing work?"

"You take each other's hands, look into each other's eyes, and spin

until you've had enough. I think."

Taiga laughed. Seeming embarrassed, she looked up at the sky. Then

she put out her hand and took Kitamura's. Oh, look who's getting close, it's

getting steamy, someone recklessly jeered. It might have been because of

the excitement from the cultural festival, but some people were going along

with the mood and applauding.

She didn't care about that.

She didn't care as she smiled.

I'm fine by myself, she thought.

But thank you, thank you so much for asking me and offering your

hand to me. She didn't show anyone, even Kitamura, what she was saying

in her heart as she elegantly swayed in her dress. They started dancing

around and around.

"Just about a year ago, Taiga's father came by," Minori said.

Ryuuji stood beside the people watching the scene from around the

fire.

"I knew that Taiga was living alone, so I was really happy about it.

Like, 'Taiga's going to live with her dad, this is so great.' …But the day

they were picking out a condo, he suddenly went off overseas for 'work.'

Taiga waited at the meeting place for a long time, and in the end, the realtor

was the one who told her. He said her dad never signed the contract. He also

stopped the condo sale. It must have been fun to prepare for it, and like, to

make the plans, right? Taiga was excited about it, too. But…he never

actually intended to do it."

"…I see."

If he had asked, he would have understood.

He would have understood why Taiga never wanted to talk to her dad

over the phone and why she kneed him in the crotch when he appeared.

Ryuuji had shaken Taiga's resolve. He had surprised her by carelessly

showing her his own wounds. He didn't even listen to what Taiga had to

say.

"So whenever that guy—"

Possibly taking into mind Ryuuji's sinking mood, Minori started

calling Taiga's father "that guy." She said it roughly, as though she were

trying to tell him, It's not your fault, Ryuuji, it's that guy's fault.

"Whenever that guy gets in a fight with his second wife, it seems like

he's just like, I'll go live with Taiga! But, in the end, he makes up with her

and Taiga is the one he casts aside. When that happened, I got mad and

called that guy at his work. And do you know what he said? 'The

relationship between a parent and child never disappears no matter what

happens, but the relationship between a man and woman can. So the

relationship you have to maintain is the one between the man and the

woman.' He's the worst."

"Isn't he just using Taiga for his own thrills? That's…"

"Yeah. That's really what he's doing."

Minori faltered slightly. The pillar of fire that reached up into the

night sky reflected in her eyes.

"So, that time…when we got into that argument, I should have just

talked to you, Takasu-kun. But…but…I didn't want to tell you."

Something in her eyes looked lonely, but he knew it was probably

best not to tell her that.

"Taiga didn't tell me anything. You were the only one who knew.

When I thought about that… I don't know, it might have been because I

was stubborn. It might have been because I didn't want to lose… It's like I

didn't want to share what Taiga and I went through together with you… It

was like I felt like I had an advantage over you. You didn't know the truth,

and you were getting everything wrong. And it was like I definitely

understood Taiga better than you. That's what it was like. I got it all wrong,

didn't I? In the end, I just made Taiga sad again."

"But you weren't the one who made her sad. I wonder why Taiga

didn't tell you about what was happening this time, in the first place?"

"It's because if she told me, I'd get mad about her dad. I think she

must have known that. In the end, even after what happened, Taiga didn't

want other people to think badly of her dad. So, since what happened a year

ago, Taiga hasn't told me anything about what's happened with her home

life."

"…I see."

The question he held on to for so long was finally answered.

Ryuuji always wondered why Minori hadn't helped Taiga. Taiga was

beyond repair when it came to household chores, but Minori was so good at

everything.

So Taiga had been rejecting help from Minori.

If she'd given an SOS signal that she were in trouble, Minori would

have hated Taiga's father all the more for it. No matter how much she

badmouthed her father, she didn't want other people to do the same. She

didn't want others to hate him. That might have been true, and it was

probably true even now. She might have wanted to put a lid on it and not

say anything more than I don't care.

Minori raised her hands slightly and shrugged her shoulders.

"Taiga's precious to me. So, it's really hard for me when there are

things Taiga won't tell me about… I get jealous, even when it's you."

A long waltz was going in the background, and he could hear a slight

amount of self-hatred in her voice. How could he console her in a time like

this? As Ryuuji stewed in his troubles, Minori said, "Maybe I'm a lesbian?"

"Uhh…"

As Minori raised her face, she looked strangely sincere. She suddenly

looked into Ryuuji's eyes. He didn't know whether it was a joke or the

truth. Her eyes simply glittered beautifully and softly.

Anyway, Ryuuji could only say one thing.

"I-I think it'd be nice…if you weren't, though."

Minori laughed for him, just a little.

"…Right," was all she said.

Before he realized it, they were even closer than the time in the

summer when they had been looking at the ocean. If Ryuuji stretched his

arms, he probably could have fit Minori's shoulders right into them.

But, but—

"Oh. I'm talking like normal."

"Hm? What?"

Minori's words were always spontaneous and just a little ambiguous.

"It's fine, it's fine. I-I'm good. I'm good. I-I-I'm goo…"

Ack! Ack! Suddenly she started coughing. He tried to hit her back, but

she bent back, as though she were suddenly in a panic at the indication of

what he was doing. She leapt up to her feet as though she'd gotten an

electric shock. She shook and twisted and finally, even though she hadn't

been tickled, she unexpectedly yelled, "Eep!" Then she laughed out loud.

"Ahyaaaaaa hya hya hya hyaah!"

"That's not normal! You're not normal at all!"

While jumping in place, Minori started to laugh loudly to herself. He

thought she would run, but she kept jumping, bumping her knees into

Ryuuji. Just what could have been happening in Minori's head and soul?

"Someone tell me!" He wailed as though praying to the heavens.

Several seconds later, it happened.

"Got it! I've captured a Takasu and Minori! Gotta catch 'em all!"

"What?!"

"Uwah!"

In the moments they were frozen in place, Ryuuji had been

dropkicked into the dark. Suddenly, from behind him, Kitamura and Taiga,

who should have been romantically dancing, appeared. The two of them

violently shook Ryuuji and Minori, who were caught up right in their arms.

"Waaah, you scared me! What're you doing?!"

"Ha ha ha! It's the last event of the festival, everyone should be

dancing!"

Kitamura and Taiga, who had loosened their grips, grabbed Ryuuji

and Minori and forced them into a four-person ring. Kitamura pulled the

ring and took them next to the fire, where many others could see them.

"Ahya hya, this is embarrassing! This isn't dancing!"

Minori, however, was happily smiling as Ryuuji whispered something

close to a curse into Taiga's ear.

"B-b-but we finally had a good thing going between us! Why'd you

bother us?!"

"I just came to make good memories. Actually, I finally, finally,

fiiiiiiiiinally thought I'd be able to dance with just Kitamura-kun!" Taiga's

hand had a strong, terrifying grip over Ryuuji's fingers.

"Ow ow ow ow…"

Ryuuji yelped in a low voice. No, really. He was just glad Taiga was

happy. Look, even her fingers that were intertwined with his were

overflowing with power… They were destroying Ryuuji's fist with a grand

strength that said, I won't let you be happy unless I am, too.

"Owwww…be reasonable! You'll actually break them!"

"If your fingers break from something as small as this, they'd be

better off broken from the start!"

They wouldn't, he thought. On the other hand, Kitamura and Minori's

absurd excitement and energy were leaving the fierce pair completely in the

dust.

"Okaay! I'm going to capture Ami!"

"Greaaat! Just you wait, Ahmin!"

With the eyes of hunters, they went to get their pitiful prey. Ami was

completely unaware in front of the loud snapping and crackling campfire

that was strong enough to burn up towards the sky.

"You really are beautiful, Kawashima-san."

"Do you really not have a boyfriend? That couldn't be true?"

"Everyone definitely must just think you're out of their league."

"Whaat~? No way, that's not true at all~! I'm really not popular at

all!"

"Again with that? You're so oblivious."

"There, there's that obliviousness! But that's the nice part about you."

"No way?! Am I oblivious?! Nooo, why?! Seriously, I wonder why

everyone says I'm oblivious?!"

I'm so pleased! her face practically screamed. She was happily

spreading her charm around. She was with boys from another class. The

boys she had lined up were all more or less handsome and looked five

hundred times more intelligent than Haruta.

Kitamura, Minori, Ryuuji, and Taiga sneakily approached behind

Ami. They were close to bringing up the ring they had made with their

arms.

"I really have no idea. I wonder why everyone tells me that. It's such

a mystery why everyone tells me 'Ami-chan, you're so oblivious.'"

Oh ho ho! she laughed.

They got her right when she was in a good mood.

"Great! We caught Ahmin! Gotta catch 'em all!"

"AHHHHH?! Wh-what is this?!"

The four of them had her securely captured. They ditched the

surprised boys and pulled Ami in front of the fire where they had her

surrounded.

"Hee hee hee, Ahmin," said Minori, "weren't you having so much fun

just now?!"

"Did you forget about us?" said Kitamura. "Huh?"

"I was just caught like this, too…" said Ryuuji.

"What were you doing giving that weird laugh?!" said Taiga.

Ami didn't know when to give up. She struggled and tried to escape

from the four-person ring that tightened around her.

"No no nooo! I definitely don't want this! On a nice night like this, I

don't want to be hanging around all of you!"

However, her struggle was futile, fruitless, completely and utterly in

vain. Minori and Ryuuji firmly grabbed each of her hands and forcibly

made her a part of the ring's structure. Even when she tried to crouch down,

they pulled her back up.

"See, just give up! We're childhood friends, aren't we?!"

"Nooo~! This isn't a joke, you exhibitionist~!"

"Dimhuahua, you're the one who's an exhibitionist! Where in the

world did you get that perverted getup for the Miss Festival pageant?!"

"Whaaat?! I did it so everyone would get excited for you! You're so

ungrateful, you bratty tiger!"

"Whoa, beauties even have soft hands~!"

"Nooo~! Minori-chan's touching the parts between my fingers~!"

"Give up, give up! Be obedient and play with your friends!"

"Ahhh~! Takasu-kun, your hands are all sweaty~!"

"Ahh…that's just how they are!"

Like that, the five of them went around and around in front of the

campfire. They laughed loudly, made a huge commotion, got angry, yelled,

but they definitely were smiling. As they warmed themselves, the people

around them laughed.

"They're like kids," someone remarked.

This night was special.

So, just for that night, anyone who had secret longings tabled them so

that the emotions of that special night could always, always exist in

perpetual motion. The moment would dance forever.

After that, they went to the after-party. They even followed through

on their promise to bring Yuri along and didn't leave a single person in the

class behind when they went to the family restaurant. Then, as they spun

around and around, everyone formed a ring, and they were all in high spirits

as they laughed loudly and talked to no end.

It was because they believed that if they laughed, despite the pain that

ran through them, they would definitely—probably—actually—eventually

—be fine as long as they got through that difficult night.