ãMorning, Hazuki.ã
A little forward of the middle of the crowded lecture hall, notebook and pen at the ready and touching my ear, I was approached.
ãMorning.ã
Mio, who seems to have a lot of energy, flops down and sits next to me. Several people around me are looking at her, but she donât seem to be bothered by them. Mio, who gave me the opportunity to start working as a part-time tutor, is friendly and easy to get along with, but she is rough around the edges.
Come to think of it, I remember that my senpai was also very random.
The senpai Mio member who introduced me to KikyÅ-chan was the kind of person who would double her promise to contact me in three hours.
ãHazuki, did something good happen to you?ã
At the sound of Mioâs voice, I check the piercing with my fingertips.
A small round thing is firmly attached to my earlobe.
Even though I know that thereâs no way that I would drop it before coming to the university, I am relieved by the feeling of the earring from my fingertip.
ãThereâs none but, why do you ask?ã
I answer in the same voice as usual.
ãYouâre smiling at me, so I thought maybe something good happened.ã
Mio says happily.
Itâs not that there were no good things.
If you asked me what the good things were, I would have saidãnoneãbecause it wouldâve been too much trouble, but today I feel good in the morning.
Miyagi let me apply her lipstick, and we walked together on the way to the station. I even wear earrings that Miyagi opened for me.
But I couldnât tell Mio that.
ãMaybe because I met Mike-chan on the way to the station.ã
I spoke something bland and changes my apparently smiling face into an easy-to-understand smile.
ãIs that the cat you told me about?ã
ãYes.ã
Mike-chan shows up on her way home from college, and we never see her on the way there. Even today, I wouldnât have been there on my way to the station, but itâs trivial enough to pretend I saw something I didnât see in order to maintain a smooth relationship. Besides, Miyagi is like a stray cat, so I donât think itâs a big lie.
ãYou like cats, arenât you?ã
Mio said sincerely and continued,ãTheyâre cute, butâ¦ãThen she looked at my ear and, a little surprised, said,ãIs that a piercing?ã
ãYes.ã
ãHazuki, you said you donât do piercings. What happened?ã
ãI just changed my mind.ã
Mio makes an unconvincedãheehãsound.
When Mio has asked me several times in the past if I donât do piercings, Iâve answered thatãIâm not interested,ãso I can understand why the response would be subtle.
Mioâs gaze is focused on my ears.
I think itâs not a very nice flow.
ãAhh, okay. From your boyfriend, right?ã
Mio smirks and looks at me.
ãItâs not, Iâm telling you.ã
ãNo, itâs definitely from your boyfriend. Youâve been in a bad relationship lately, or rather, for a long time, arenât you? You kept turning down my invitations during summer vacation because you were too busy, didnât you?ã
I knew this would happen.
Even as a college student, half of our chats were about love, the same as when I was in high school. If you cut a girl in half, the word âloveâ would flow out instead of blood.
I donât mind listening to love stories, but I donât like being asked to talk about it.
Miyagi is difficult to explain.
Itâs not that I donât trust Mio, but I donât know what would happen if I told her. I donât want to talk about myself more than I have to, because I donât want to make in-depth friendships in the first place.
ãI was really busy with part-time work and all that.ã
ãYou donât have to lie. I wonât take your boyfriend.ã
ãIâm not worried about that kind of thing.ã
ãThen, okay.ã
Mio opens her right hand as if urging me to do something.
ãWhatâs that hand?ã
ãGive me your phone.ã
ãWhy?ã
ãI was wondering if you had a picture of your boyfriend on your lock screen.ã
ãI seriously donât have a boyfriend.ã
I slapped Mioâs right hand that was offered to me.
ãThen letâs all go out for dinner sometime. Iâm having trouble getting the boys to ask Hazuki to come over.ã
ãDonât lie to me like that.ã
ãIâm telling the truth. Seriously, show your face once.ã
ãEventually.ã
ãEventually? You donât want to come, right?ã
ãWell, no, butâ¦ã
When I said it with a laugh, Mio sighed deliberately. Then she grabbed my shoulder and chuckled.
ãSo, instead of a dinner party, why donât you get a part-time job at a cafe? Short term.ã
ãI think youâre jumping the gun here.ã
ãDonât worry about the details. Iâve got a school festival to prepare for at my club, and Iâm not going to be able to go to my part-time job much.ã
I sigh this time at Mioâs words, which seem to be more random than generous.
ãDoes that mean I should go to a part-time job instead of you, Mio?ã
ãI doubt thatâll be the case.ã
ãIs it okay for someone else to go to the part-time job?ã
ãItâs okay, itâs my relativeâs store. Itâs just until the end of the school festival. Besides, it would be more difficult without someone, and I can trust Hazuki to take care of it. If not, Hazuki can go and prepare for the school festival and I can work part-time.ã
Mioâs light voice that doesnât seem to be okay echoes, and as if following it, the door of the lecture room opens and the teacher enters.
In a little over a month, there will be a school festival.
Preparation for it is out of the question, but I am interested in a part-time job.
I was actually planning to do some part-time work other than tutoring during the summer vacation, but I prioritized spending more time with Miyagi. I donât want to cut back on time with Miyagi now or in the future, but I also want time to use for me in the future.
I need money to live here after I graduate from college. I cannot and will not rely on my parents after graduation. Even though Miyagi is dissolving our relationship as roommates, I am not going back to my parentsâ house. Of course, I have no intention of giving up my life with Miyagi and will do everything in my power to make sure we can live together forever, even if we are just roommates.
ãWhat about a part-time job? If you donât, I donât mind. Iâll ask the other girls.ã
The lecture begins and I hear a small voice from next door.
ãIn the meantime, tell me more about it later.ã
I say in a small voice like Mio, and she replies,ãOkay.ã
Iâm planning to get more part-time work during the winter break, so itâs not a bad idea to do something other than tutoring until the school festival as a prep exercise.
If there is a problem, it was Miyagi.
She is not comfortable with me working part-time.
If Miyagi doesnât want to do it, I can still get a part-time job, but it shouldnât be too good for me.
I touch my ear.
I stroke the earring and exhale quietly.
I hear the teacherâs voice echoing and the sound of my pen running over my notebook.
I too sluggishly grabbed a pen and lined up the words in my notebook.
Perhaps it was because I was thinking, but the lecture was over in a flash.
I will hold off on my reply when I hear from Mio about the part-time job.
I took all of my lectures for the day and head home.
The part-time job itself is not unusual. It was a waitress at a café, and the hourly wage was good. I had no reason to refuse, but I was too worried about Miyagi to respond immediately.
I donât think itâs like me.
Things that used to be easy to decide are now impossible to decide.
Miyagi is becoming a bigger and bigger part of my life, and when I do something, I think of Miyagi.
I was shaken by the train and walked from the station, looking for Mike-chan. But Mike-chan doesnât show up, probably because I lied about seeing Mike-chan, who I didnât see.
Go up the stairs to the third floor and open the front door.
Miyagiâs shoes were there.
I take one deep breath.
I take off my shoes and go to the common space.
ãIâm home.ã
I call out to Miyagi, who is pouring cider into a glass.
ãWelcome home.ã
Miyagi stares at me.
I donât know if the lipstick I applied to her lips this morning has come off or not, but there is not a bit of it left.
ãI need to talk to you for a minute. Can you come to my room after dinner?ã
ãWhat are we talking about?ã
Miyagiâs voice is a little low, as if she has a bad premonition.
ãWeâll talk later.ã
ãCanât we do that now?ã
ãIâd like to talk to you slowly. Iâd like to do it later.ã
Miyagi drinks the cider she has just finished pouring into a glass without replying.
The clear liquid shakes and disappears into her body.
The glass, half full, is placed on the table, and Miyagiâs eyes fix on my earrings. My ears heat up at the different look from Mioâs gaze. I almost donât care about the part-time job, so I pull my ears to release the heat.
ãâ¦Okay.ã
Miyagi replied quietly as she looked at me.