It is not unusual to find a Miyagi that doesnât talk much. Originally, Miyagi did not talk that much with me. Thinking about it, Miyagi, who does not talk much, should be called Miyagi back to business as usual.
Itâs not much fun, but itâs not an option.
Her mood is not something I can control.
I accepted Miyagi, who had become unfriendly again, with such thoughts, but soon it was Golden Week and that was the last time I saw her.
Two days after the holiday.
I have not seen Miyagi until today.
We never passed each other in the hallway.
This is what happens when you are in different classes.
I donât really miss it.
I have no trouble finding people to talk to, and I have made new friends.
I have no major complaints about school life. Iâm doing moderately well and enjoying it in its own way. Sometimes I hear people say that they are all sides in the new class, but that is inconsequential.
ãIâm going next door for a moment.ã
In a noisy classroom at recess, Umina, sitting diagonally in front of me, suddenly declares.
ãWhatâs wrong?ã
ãI forgot a textbook.ã
When Umina said,ãI guess I should skip class,ãMariko quickly tried to stop her.
ãYou shouldnât do that. You know, they said if you skipped class again, youâd get a letter of reflection or something.ã
ãHmmm, I could at least write a reflection. Well, this time, Iâll borrow it next door.ã
Leaving behind a voice that sounds unmotivated, Umina leaves the classroom.
She is hardly a serious person, and has continued her bad behavior of skipping classes since her sophomore year. She has been called out several times before, but even after three years, she has not learned her lesson.
Mariko, who was in the same class in the second year, also skipped classes last year to keep up with Umina, but changed her mind in the third year when the obstacle of a career path became more visible.
A close-knit group is troublesome at times like this.
If one person does something wrong, his or her friends do something wrong too.
Thatâs how they see it.
In fact, Mariko has a history of skipping classes. She seems to want a recommendation because of this, and she is on the side of stopping Umina because she is concerned about her internal score.
Iâm not too worried about the internal score now.
I feel that it is already too late.
Well, it is better than doing nothing.
I pull out my textbooks and notebooks from my desk.
I donât enjoy class, but I donât intend to skip it. I also need to make an effort to maintain a good image of being different from my peers.
ãAh, a notebook. Lend it to me later. I need a copy.ã
As I nod to Marikoâs words, I hear a light voice behind me.
ãIâve borrowed it.ã
Umina shows a textbook in one hand and takes a seat.
ãThere.ã
I canât help but to speak up.
It was a modern literature textbook for the next class, and it wasnât a funny one.
However, there is a fold mark on the cover.
ãThis is?ã
Umina looked at the textbook with a curious look on her face.
I clenched my hand tightly.
I canât believe âitâ as if the thing in Umina hand is something special.
I shouldnât have said it out loud. But it would be even weirder if I took back the words I had formed, and Iâm sure Umina would be amused and bite me.
ãItâs not Rukaâs, is it? Who did you borrow it from?ã
Ruka is the friend with whom Umina would have intended to borrow textbooks. But the textbook she is holding does not belong to Ruka, nor to any of her other friends.
The textbook in Uminaâs hand belongs to Miyagi.
The folds on the cover were made by me, so there was no way I could make a mistake.
ãHow did you know?ã
ãI donât know.ã
Sheâs not going to tell me why she found out.
Umina doesnât know that Miyagi and I are close enough to know who the textbook belongs to at a glance, and there is no need to let her know.
ãI was going to borrow it from Ruka, but she wasnât there. I borrowed it from a girl I was in the same club with in second year. Letâs see, who was she again? The plain girl with long hair.ã
Look at that, sheâs probing her memory when I said that girlâs description.
But Iâm sure Umina wonât remember.
So I will answer instead.
ãâ¦Miyagi?ã
ãAhhâ right, right. Itâs Miyagi. Hazuki has too good a memory, doesnât she? You donât forget peopleâs names, do you?ã
Umina said, as if impressed, and stared at the textbook. Then she immediately burst out laughing.
ãI mean, Miyagi seems so humble, but she folds her textbooks with such gusto. Thatâs hilarious.ã
The chime rings to drown out the cackling of Uminaâs laughter. Mariko rushes back to her seat and the teacher enters the classroom.
ãQuiet. Class, letâs get started.ã
With a bang, the teacher says, tapping the teaching table.
And before the buzzing classroom could quiet down, class began.
Flattering handwriting is written on the blackboard. Letters that are not too well suited for the board are like worms that have crawled out of the ground and are difficult to decipher.
I look at the seat diagonally in front of me.
Most of what I see is Uminaâs back, and I canât see her textbook clearly.
She returned her gaze to the blackboard and copied the words into her notebook.
I donât mean to say that the folded textbook is mine, but the thought of Umina using it makes my note-taking arm feel awfully heavy.
The gravelly teacherâs voice is unpleasant and irritating.
Snap!
With a small sound, the lead of a mechanical pencil breaks off.
Umina couldnât even remember Miyagiâs name.
I close my eyes.
This feeling that textbooks bring with them is something I should not pursue.
These inexplicable feelings lead to troublesome things.
So, I close my eyes.
Textbooks are unimportant, not something to be concerned about.
I open my eyes and look at the blackboard.
I hear the teacherâs voice and take notes.
When I kept repeating such things with my head full of unnecessary things, the class was over.
Time is running out.
Before I knew it, the end of the afternoon class was near.
On days like this, Miyagi does not contact me.
What is this?
On a day like today, she should call me.
I complain in my mind.
Iâll be at her house today.
We have never made such contact, but there is no rule that says I canât contact her.
It is just too much of a given that Miyagi will contact me, and it should be okay for me to contact her.
The chime that signals the end of class rings, and I pick up my phone.
I stare at the tiny screen.
ãWaiting for a call? Was it a boyfriend or something?ã
I hear Uminaâs voice and look up.
ãI donât have time for a boyfriend.ã
ãEhhâ If you want, I can introduce you to some good people, okay?ã
ãI donât think itâs a good time. After the exam.ã
ãI see. Todayâs cram school, right?ã
When asked by Umina, who refers to the prep school as a cram school no matter how many times I correct her, I tells her that there is none.
ãWell, thenâ¦ã
She wants to go there, I want to go that way.
Umina dwelled on her hopes, and Mariko, who arrived later, agreed.
I put my phone away in my bag.
I should go from Miyagi after all.
Itâs not right for me to contact her.
By the end of homeroom, we had decided where we were going and we left the classroom.