Chapter 4: I'm Radio Waves

Reincarnation. A previous life.

The word "reincarnation" has gotten kind of trendy lately, so I deliberately shifted it and said "rebirth" instead.

It just sounds more fitting, don’t you think?

When I suddenly dropped that question on Kishine-san, she blinked a few times in confusion, then paused to think it over.

"I guess... I don’t know."

For Kishine-san, that was a pretty normal response. But I could tell from her really serious expression that she was giving it proper thought.

Even if it wasn’t some fancy phrasing, that alone made me happy.

Because it meant she was really trying to respond to my words.

Mysterious girls—deep down—are actually happy when their friends pay attention to them!

…And maybe I’m feeling happy too, you know? That Kishine-san came here like this.

I mean, I’m too embarrassed to say it properly, and my mouth’s, well, like that, so I can’t express it well.

"What about you, Shirogane-san? What do you think?"

Still, Kishine-san’s kind like that.

She actually makes the effort to talk to someone like me, even though I’m a total level-100 in lack-of-words and unfriendliness.

If my face wasn’t the steel type, I probably would’ve cracked a goofy smile right there.

"…I do."

That’s why I just spoke honestly, saying exactly what I felt.

I mean, I am someone who was reincarnated, so there’s really no room for doubt!

It’s just… if you asked me to prove it, I’ve got nothing to show.

So all I can do is look up at Kishine-san with my blank expression and silently ask her to believe me.

But I figured that alone might not be enough, so I added a bit more. Something that tied into today’s theme about life and death—something that sounded thoughtful.

"People keep being reborn… as someone else."

"As someone else?"

"Someone."

I had thought about why I was reincarnated before.

Back when I was a kid—I had a lot of time on my hands.

And the thing is, my reincarnation wasn’t something that happened after I died. It happened further back in the past.

That was when I first realized… being born again doesn’t always have to mean going into the future.

Yeah. The world after death lies somewhere between the past and the future.

You can go anywhere from there, and you can end up anywhere too.

If that’s true, then maybe the me who’s going to be born in the future—maybe she’ll have a different soul entirely. It’s not like my rebirth is far off or anything. Unless someone copy-pastes my soul, it’d cause a paradox or something.

And if I am wrong about this, and only one of the same soul can exist at a time…

Then maybe I’ll be dead in the near future...

──Just kidding!

That wouldn’t happen. I mean, this was my first ever delusional theory!

Thinking about stuff—daydreaming—it’s fun, right? That’s what I realized.

Ehehe, when you start imagining "What if I were like this?" the ideas just don’t stop!

By the way, right now I’m playing the role of a mysterious-school-type girl!

Anyway, to summarize all that?

"Kishine is me, and I’m Kishine."

"…Huh?"

"Sometimes, that’s just how it is."

Like, maybe my next life is Kishine-san, and her next life is me.

I totally stole that idea from this ridiculously thick novel I read in my previous life.

We can be anyone—we really can. That’s what I think.

Don’t you think that’s kinda interesting, Kishine-san?

"…………Shirogane-san, did you just say boku?"

"Mmm…"

Ah, that’s the part she picked up on!?

---

"──Do you think reincarnation is real?"

The question came out of nowhere. I'd never even thought about it before.

Shirogane-san looked at me with those pure, clear eyes. …It made me feel like she was considering what lies ahead—thinking beyond just this moment.

This question, I realized, came from her imagining what might happen after taking that first step toward the sky. After the journey begins—what comes after.

To be reborn. To become a me who isn’t me.

Just the sound of it sent a shiver crawling down my spine.

Starting over from the beginning—being someone who isn’t myself.

If that’s really possible, then it’s beautiful, joyful, sweet—and somehow terrifying.

"I guess… I don’t know."

I don’t usually understand most of what Shirogane-san says.

But her words always stay with me.

"What about you, Shirogane-san? What do you think?"

Like reenacting yesterday, I tossed the question back at her.

I felt nervous, wondering what she’d say.

Either way, I wanted to know what Shirogane-san thought.

"…I do."

So when she gave such a clear, direct answer, it caught me off guard. I expected something more whimsical—like when she talked about the stairway of angels.

"Why do you think that?"

Her white hair fluttered in the wind, her skirt billowing.

As the world swayed gently in the breeze, Shirogane-san stood unaffected, meeting my gaze straight on.

The moment her eyes pierced into mine, the thought crossed my mind.

Today, Shirogane-san feels like the color of the sky.

"People are always being reborn. As someone else."

"As someone else?"

"Someone."

As always, her words were soft and vague.

Does that mean the me in my next life wouldn’t have any part of the me now?

If so… that is kind of scary.

"Kishine is me, and I’m Kishine."

"…Huh?"

"That’s how it is sometimes."

Then, as if to blow away my fearful thoughts, Shirogane-san said something totally mysterious.

She stepped softly closer, away from the fence.

That I’m Shirogane-san, and Shirogane-san is me…

What could that even mean?

As usual, her words were difficult to grasp—wait.

Hold on. Wasn’t something about her first-person pronoun just now… weird?

"…………Shirogane-san, did you just say boku?"

"Mmm…"

Honestly, I should be reflecting on everything she told me.

I know she brought up reincarnation for my sake.

──But still, just for now!

More than pondering future lives, I wanted to focus on the Shirogane-san right in front of me.

Because I really wanted to get to know her better.

And hearing her use "boku" in that small voice of hers… to be honest, it just felt really nice.

"Right?"

"Mm."

I took one step closer, and Shirogane-san stepped back twice.

I stepped again, and she tottered all the way back to the fence.

Her eyes stared right at me—no different from usual—but from her movements, I could tell she was on alert, and somehow… it was kind of endearing.

I used to think I had no clue what kind of girl Shirogane-san was, but maybe—just maybe—it’s starting to come through: she’s actually a really cute girl.

"Kishine… don’t come."

And with her speech even more babyish than usual, it felt like she might be flustered.

…What should I do? Shirogane-san’s adorable.

"Meh!"

As I took a step closer, Shirogane-san, still completely expressionless, let out a sharp little "meh!" like she was trying to ward me off.

That strange, mysterious aura she wore when I first got here—it had completely slipped away. All that remained was Shirogane-san, a single girl who looked as cute and cuddly as a kitten.

"Sorry."

She was just so unbearably cute—I couldn’t help but close the distance.

Shirogane-san didn’t run. She just kept staring at me.

"Shirogane-san… are you boku?"

I met her gaze and asked.

"…Boku."

She muttered it, like she’d resigned herself to admitting it.

Turning her face away—maybe out of embarrassment.

"So… so cute…"

I couldn’t hold it in, and the words just slipped out.

Then, in a tiny voice, Shirogane-san whispered:

"Kishine… meanie."

And just like that, she slipped right past me, heading for the exit of the rooftop.

…Or so I thought. But then she tottered back over to me.

"Kishine… see you tomorrow."

With just those words, she finally left the rooftop for real.

---

Before I knew it, the sky had turned to dusk.

That time of day that usually makes me feel down.

──But today was different.

"See you tomorrow, huh…"

Just a simple, everyday phrase—yet somehow, when Shirogane-san said it, it lingered in my ears with a special kind of warmth.

Even though I always tell myself I don’t need a tomorrow…

Just a little—just a tiny little bit…

"See you tomorrow, Shirogane-san."

…I felt like maybe I could accept tomorrow coming after all.