Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16817330662545387095/episodes/16817330666567228447
Early March. On the day when the wind was gradually warming the nape of my neck, Ryoko and I were meeting up with Misumi senpai at the station closest to the university.
In front of us, young people clutching their examination vouchers were passing by with a vacant look on their faces.
Then Ari san, dressed in her Atago All Girls’ uniform, arrives.
“Kingo ! Ryoko san and Shino san, good morning !”
The three of us send our greetings to Ari san, who we haven’t seen in a long time.
It had been a while since I had seen Ari san since the day of the second exam. After the exam, Ari san had refrained from talking to me because she wanted some time alone before the announcement of her pass/fail and the graduation ceremony. Thanks to this, although it had been only two weeks, I felt as if I had not seen her for a long time, and I even felt nostalgic.
“Finally, the day of the result announcement.”
“Yeah……I’m so nervous.”
I should be happy to see her again after such a long time, but it feels strangely awkward because she’s nervous.
Ari san was also looking down with a frown on her face, as if she was having trouble breathing.
Today is the day of the result announcement of Hokusei University. The results will be posted on the Internet, but as has been the tradition for a long time, they will also be posted on the bulletin board on campus.
It is the day when the culmination of all that we have accumulated since we first met will be revealed. We were all anxious, and Ari san was afraid to check it by herself, so we all decided to go and see it together.
“Hey, am I going to be okay? I wonder if I passed the exam…”
On the way to the campus, Ari san expressed her concern. Even that cheerful Ari san was tense and nervous as she faced the moment of destiny known only to God.
“I’m sure you passed. Your response was sufficient.”
“Yes, I’m sure you will.”
“You should wait and see what happens. Let’s go without hesitation.”
The same thing happened to me and my colleagues, so I understand her feelings very well.
Did she really give it her best?
Could I have done more?
Regrets are endless. But it all comes back to bite you in the butt. After the moment of destiny has passed, all we can do is wait for the outcome.
If that is the case, I hope that you will at least witness your destiny with a cheerful heart.
“Yeah……it will be all right.”
But even so, it was still not enough to wipe away the pressure from Ari san.
*
The plaza just past the main gate of the university was already overflowing with people.
The students were in uniform or in plain clothes, but all of them had a complex mixture of anticipation and anxiety.
It was the same for us. As usual, Ari san was in uniform, but as soon as the university students arrived at the campus, her face became tense and her breathing became raspy.
“Ari san, the bulletin board for the sociology department is over there.”
“Y-yeah. Kingo, follow me.”
“Of course.”
Ari san held my hand as we weaved our way through the crowd. Her hand was shaking unreliably.
A large sheet of paper with a series of numbers written on it.
I’m sure that Ari san’s number is here.
Even though I was sure of it, my breathing was still ragged.
“All right ! I passed ! I’m going to be a college student in the spring !”
“Why……I worked so hard…..”
“What should I do, Noto sensei ! My number isn’t here !?”
“Calm down, Igarashi. That’s the engineering department. The science department is over there.”
“Ah, it’s true. ……There it is ! It’s here, Noto sensei !”
“Hey, stop hugging me !”
I inhaled the air of sorrow and joy around me, and my head began to spin.
The result is one of two things. Either joy or sorrow…….
“Ari san, what’s your number?”
“1113……”
1108……1110……1112……1113…..it’s there…….
“Ari san, there it is ! It’s 1113 !”
“No way……where? I can’t see it.”
“Look, there it is !”
I hugged Ari san’s shoulders and pointed at the bulletin board in front of her small face. She opened her eyes wide like acorns and let her eyes follow my gaze while breathing heavily.
“…..It’s here……it’s true……. Kingo, there it is !”
“Yes ! You passed ! Congratulations !”
A fever of joy welled up from inside my body.
Ari san had done it. She improved her ability so much that she went from a “C” grade in the fall to an “A” grade. Although her success in the common exam was in doubt due to an unexpected miscalculation, she showed her ability at the final exam, and was able to pass.
“You’re really amazing, Ari san—ha !?”
At that moment, I finally realized that I was touching her shoulder and holding her body close to mine. I realized that I was so close to Ari san’s small, pretty face that it filled my entire field of vision.
Oh shoot ! I lost my self-control and hugged her……
I feel guilty for being overly physical with a girl who isn’t my girlfriend, and I’m getting impatient. I need to get away from her right away.
“I-I’m sorry–“
However, contrary to my concerns, Ari san doesn’t seem uncomfortable. No, on the contrary, this time Ari san hugged me.
“Thank you so much, Kingo ! If Kingo hadn’t told me that day that he would tutor me, I wouldn’t be here today. It’s all thanks to Kingo !”
Looking up from my chest, her eyes were filled with tears of joy.
My heart lightened. She had successfully completed the entrance exam. At the same time, I completed the tutoring, and I felt a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
*Shino Side
Ari chan passed the exam. Ryoko san and I were waiting behind the crowd for the report. Then Ari chan came back with a big smile on her face and told us that she had passed.
Ari chan pulled Ryoko san and turned back toward the bulletin board.
I watched the crowd in a daze.
“I see you passed the exam without incident, Azekura san.”
“Nee san.”
My sister let out a sigh of relief. It was a weekday, but there would be no classes for a while since all the third-year students in my class had graduated. She is supposed to be preparing for the next school year, but just today she is here instead of at Atago All Girls’ Academy because of the result announcement.
“Ari chan, you’re amazing. You overcame so many adversities and finally passed the exam. If it had been me, I would have given up…..”
I can’t get over how tenacious and competitive she is. Two years ago, when I was a student taking entrance exams, my academic ability was stagnant, and my common test results were also poor. Thanks to that, I did not do well in the second examination and was not accepted.
It was really a big difference from me.
“Of course, after all, you are my student. I was sure that you would be able to get through this.”
“Eh……?”
I was caught off guard by my sister, who spoke so matter-of-factly.
What does that mean…… It’s not true.
“Nee san, you thought that it would be impossible for Ari chan to pass Hokusei University, right?”
“Eh !? I didn’t think so?”
“You’re lying……. Because you said that Hokusei University would be difficult for her because of her poor results in the mock exams……?”
Yes, my sister must have given up on Ari chan when her academic performance was sluggish. As a result, Ari chan had changed her choice of school to a lower-level city university.
So I cooperated. I felt that I could surpass her if I could pass that girl whom she thought she couldn’t pass,…….
My sister tilted her head curiously, not knowing about the strong energy that came from such a complex.
“Oh, you heard it from Azekura san, didn’t you? I thought it would be difficult for her to enter Hokusei University with her academic ability at that time. But I told her that she could make up for a C grade or so, and above all, she’s more tenacious than anyone else, so I thought it wouldn’t be impossible if she put in the effort, you know?”
“Wha…..”
What a surprise. My sister didn’t abandon Ari chan. On the contrary, did she believe that she would be able to do it?
Well, if you think about it, it’s only natural. I, as the younger sister, know better than anyone else that she would never abandon her student. It was because I was obsessed with vanity that I had forgotten that.
I’m such a child……
“I gave up once, but I was really happy that she was willing to give it another try right away. I’m sure it was thanks to Shino’s support. Thank you so much.”
She smiled and expressed her gratitude. To be able to politely thank your younger sister…you’re an adult.
However, here I am…this is the first time that my sister has thanked me like this.
“From next year, you will be watching over Azekura san in my place.”
“Eh, me?”
“Yes, because you are her senior.”
Yes……I will be her senior. Even though we are in a different department, there is definitely something I can help or teach.
“Yeah, I get it.”
There is no sense of superiority over my sister. However, a more sublime thought had sprouted in my heart.
It was the moment when I received the baton from my sister.
“Oh, it’s Misumi sensei !”
“It’s true ! Sensei, we passed !”
“All Atago students passed this year!!”
And then a group of girls in Atago Girls’ Academy uniforms came running up…..to me.
“Sensei, I’m going to miss you.”
“Thank you for everything you’ve done for me !”
“Erm……erm…… I’m not a teacher……”
“Hey everyone. Misumi sensei is over here…….”
My sister is standing next to me with a lonely look on her face. Are we that similar?
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