Chikasugiru Karera no, Juunanasai no Tooi Kankei [LN] V2 Chapter 4.4

Chapter 4 - Something That Lingers In Them

While I was waiting in front of the bicycle parking lot, Yuriko came out of the entrance alone.

"Where's Tachibana?"

"She said she was going home with Nagai and would be home a little later. She's still trying to hide it."

"They've already made it obvious, though."

When I said that, " I know," Yuriko laughed as well. A cold wind blew, blowing softly on her cream-colored scarf and the long strands of hair that stretched out from under it. Carrying her backpack, Yuriko was wearing a white sweater inside a dark blue blazer. The sleeves of the sweater extended slightly beyond the cuffs of her blazer.

We left the school and headed down the main street. The lights of several headlights streamed down the dark street. The pale light in the sky that was there at the end of club activities was gone now, and the darkness of winter seemed to engulf the city. The white light of the LED street lamps, which made my breath float white, felt cold.

If I was going to bring up that subject, I thought it would be now, when Yuriko and I were alone. But when I thought of doing so, I felt uneasy because I wondered if I would be able to speak well enough to do so.

Then, while waiting at a traffic light, Yuriko said.

"Hey. Can we stop by the convenience store?"

"Ah, yeah." 

We went into the store we used to stop at on our way home. Yuriko bought a notebook, a bottle of juice, and corn pottage. I also bought a can of coffee.

"Izumi-san, she's going back her home after New Year's, isn't she?"

We sat down on a bench in front of the store. I put my enamel bag for club activities by my feet, and Yuriko put her backpack on her lap.

The plastic bench was cold. Yuriko was wearing only a skirt above her knees, and her legs seemed to be covered in goosebumps. Several times, she even rubbed them with her hands. 

It had been a long time since I had heard Rina's name come up when talking to Yuriko.

"Is she getting ready to go home already?"

"No, not yet. But maybe when the year is over."

"I see," Yuriko said.

"......It makes us miss her."

While warming my cold hands with a can of coffee, I replied.

"Yeah. Well, it's not like we're never going to see each other again."

Then Yuriko fell silent.

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When I looked at Yuriko, feeling uncomfortable with the silence, I found her holding a can of corn potage in both hands on her lap, staring down at an angle with a blank expression on her face. And then, without changing her expression,

"......As I thought, you are still going to see her."

That was all she said in a small voice. Then she suddenly looked up. Her gaze met mine.

"Why? Up until now, you haven't had any inconvenience from not meeting her, have you?"

"Yes, that's true......But we're relatives, so I thought we might see each other in the future.

"Stop it."

Yuriko said in a small voice. Somehow I was momentarily irritated by her words.

"---What do you mean?"

I was trying to keep my emotions in check, but my words were filled with irritation, inexplicably. Yuriko turned her head and muttered, "......I knew it."

Suddenly, her mood changed. Then I guessed what she was thinking, and I was like, "Oh crap,"

"No, you're wrong. You, maybe, misunderstood."

Then Yuriko's expression shifted. With a stern look in her eyes, she hurls words at me. 

"About what? It's already been four months. Kenichi, you're just avoiding it. You like Izumi-san, don't you? That's why you keep putting things off, isn't it?"

"I've already told you that I don't see Rina that way."

When I said that, Yuriko gasped and then bit her lip.

"......Are you calling her by her name?"

Unintentionally, I clicked my tongue. I have to explain quickly, I thought impatiently. If I didn't, the misunderstanding would grow deeper and deeper. So, without even gathering my thoughts, I immediately began to speak.

"I started calling her by name because I thought, how should I say it, that we'd be more like a proper relative than calling her by her surname.......When we're in the house and I'm treating her like a stranger, it's on the contrary......"

Yuriko looked at me with doubtful eyes. I could tell right away by her eyes that she didn't believe anything I said.

"Of course, that's right. You two live together. It's natural for you to be close to each other. The other day, you were being awfully clingy with her."

"I'm telling you it's not like that. Just listen to what I'm saying."

"I don't want to listen."

Yuriko turned on her heel, drank her corn pottage, which was probably still hot, in one gulp with a frown on her face, threw the empty can in the trash, and walked away. I put my coffee can on the ground and tried to chase after her, but she brushed my hand away and said, "Don't follow me,". She got on her bicycle and headed toward home. She quickly disappeared into the darkness of the night.

I went back to the bench and sent a message on SNS saying that I would call her again later and that I hoped she would pick up.

When I looked at the sky, before I knew it, heavy, wet, black clouds were drifting in, as if it were about to snow. My breath became heavy, as if I had a lump of lead in my stomach. For a while, I just stared at the overcast sky. Then I downed the remaining can of coffee in one gulp. It was already cold. I felt as if the sweet bitterness of the sugary coffee would stick to my tongue.

My heart was terribly uncomfortable, a mixture of frustration at myself for having caused the misunderstanding and irritation with Yuriko.

When I returned home, I found Rina, who had finished her final examinations earlier than my school and had come home earlier, in her casual red sweater and sitting under kotatsu.

"Welcome back," she said.

"......I'm home."

I was going to just drink the water and go upstairs right away. I took a glass cup from the cupboard, filled it with cold water, and drank it. The cool water slid down my throat, but it didn't take away the suffocating sensation in my chest.

I exhaled hot breath and put the cup on the table. Then Rina turned to me and said,

"Kenichi-kun, you look kind of unhappy. What's wrong?" Rina said.

"No......I'm fine. It's nothing. I'm going upstairs."

I replied and went upstairs to my room. I took off my blazer, sat down on a chair still in my school uniform, and called Yuriko. But she didn't answer.

Anxious and irritation became a lump, and then I sighed.

I looked out the window. The sky was completely covered with clouds. The temperature was low. It looked as if it would rain or snow at any moment, but in the end, the day remained cloudy and the dark night passed.

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