Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818622176550308690/episodes/16818792438252155284
I reached the Lost Children’s Center right away.
The boy who’d been following behind me spotted someone who looked like his mother and immediately started running toward her. He burst into tears and hugged her tightly.
After watching that, I hurried to go find Akito,
“Hey! …Really, thank you so much. You saved me.”
“N-no. I didn’t do anything!”
“Um, I’m sorry… Did you happen to see another girl…? She’s a little older than this one, and I think she was wearing a matching yukata…”
My voice trembled. Watching the anxiously embracing parent and child made my chest ache.
…Yeah. I couldn’t just look the other way.
There should still be a little time before the fireworks start.
“I’ll go look for her. Please wait here so we don’t miss each other.”
I didn’t wait for a reply. …Because I wanted to reunite with Akito as soon as possible.
And I wanted to watch the fireworks together, right beside him.
Imagining that future—even in this situation, I couldn’t help but grin.
I thought, I’m such a bad girl. But… if Akito was right beside me, nothing about myself mattered. I realized just how big a presence he was to me.
◇◇◇
The lost girl was found surprisingly quickly.
She was staring blankly at the shooting gallery stall, sucking her thumb. I called out to her, “Your mom’s waiting for you.”
Unlike the boy earlier, this girl didn’t seem shy around strangers.
Hmm. Without a word, she pointed at the teddy bear prize at the shooting gallery and said,
“I want this one.”
“…Huh? But, but your mom…”
“Onee chan, can I have this?”
Ah—Mouu!
I pulled out my wallet and paid the stall owner. “Thanks for your business,” he replied.
◇◇◇
In the end… it cost me 1500 yen to win that prize stuffed animal. For reference, five shots cost 500 yen.
I carried the girl, who was hugging the bear I’d somehow managed to win, back to the lost children’s center.
“Thank you so, so much…! If possible, I’d like to give you something in return—”
“Eh… no, no! That’s really okay!”
“I’m sorry—” I said, then started running away from the spot as if escaping.
I felt terribly guilty for rejecting her kindness like that.
But… how much time had passed since then…?
Weren’t the fireworks about to start soon…?
I wanted to see Akito… I wanted to see him quickly.
The happiness that had filled my chest just moments ago seemed to be replaced by a growing sense of unease.
“Akito… Right, my phone—”
I reached for my phone, intending to check for a message from him.
It was right then.
—I thought I heard a faint scream from somewhere.
“…………Huh?”
This crowd, this noise.
So I tried to convince myself it was just my imagination.
At the same time, I despised myself terribly for even considering that for a moment.
“…Over there, right?”
In the woods off the path, where the lantern light ended.
From the pitch-black gaps between the trees, where no one else seemed to be—I was certain I heard the voice of a girl around my age. So,
“I have to go…”
If an accident or incident had happened, I couldn’t just abandon her.
—It’ll be fine. I’ll definitely make it back in time for the fireworks.
Convincing myself like that, I moved my feet toward the forest shrouded in dark shadows.
Passing through tall weeds, I emerged onto a pathless trail surrounded by many trees.
There… stood three large men and two women. The women looked about my age. One of them, her expression brimming with fear, cried out,
“No, please stop! We just got lost…!”
“That’s why we said we’d show you the way. Well, to a hotel, that is?”
The frightened woman and the men laughing heartily.
I understood the situation at a glance. …I’m glad I came, I thought.
“Um… those people seem reluctant, right?”
Wondering how Sena would approach them, I spoke up.
I had to act as confidently as possible.
To hide my own fear, I put on as tough a front as I could manage.
…It’s okay. Acting tough is my only real skill.
“Let them go. I’ll scream, you know?”
This was a deserted forest road, far from the fireworks venue.
But it wasn’t too far. If I shouted for help, someone would come running soon.
Unless these men were complete idiots, they’d understand that and back off.
…Good. If I hurry, I might still make it to the fireworks.
Thinking that, I let out a sigh of relief—
“—Hey. Hey, hey, seriously…?”
The blond man looked surprised for some reason.
That expression—made me lose my voice.
“Hey, you’re Renka, right? Heh… You remember me, don’t you?”
“Eh… Ah…!”
Of course I remember.
…I couldn’t forget. There’s no way I could forget.
If it were something I could forget… I would have forgotten it long ago.
“It’s me, me! Sakuma-senpai! Since that time in middle school, right, Renka-chan?”
Sakuma. Senpai.
Back in first year of middle school. The basketball club senpai who tried to force himself on me after I rejected his confession.
—That person. The exact same face and name.-
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God this shit is getting so gay.