Chapter 121: Date (Part 2)
Date (Part 2)
The three of us walked toward the station. Me, Yuna, and Alicia.
“It’s such nice weather, isn’t it?”
Yuna’s words prompted both of us to agree. The sunlight was gentle, and the breeze felt soft and pleasant. Over the past few days, the air had warmed, and it felt unmistakably like spring.
“Hey… do I look weird or anything?”
I asked the two of them. It felt like I was attracting more stares than usual from people passing by.
“Not at all. You look super cute today, Alice. Of course people are going to stare.”
『Exactly! You should feel confident about it!』
Hearing their words left me with mixed feelings. I thought I’d gotten used to being looked at since getting this body, but being stared at while dressed up for a date made me feel oddly embarrassed and a little self-conscious.
“Oh, isn’t that Alice and Yuna?”
While we waited at the crosswalk, a familiar voice called out to us.
“Good morning, you two.”
It was Hisui and Fumika, our classmates.
“Good morning, Alice. You look absolutely lovely today. That outfit really suits you.”
“Whoa… you’re right!? Alice really went all out today. You look amazing!”
Hisui’s eyes sparkled the moment she saw my outfit, and she dashed over to us.
“Ah, thanks…”
A little overwhelmed by Hisui’s energy, I replied awkwardly.
“But compared to that, Yuna’s dressed pretty casually—heheh, my guess is Alice is headed for a date!”
Hisui’s eyes narrowed like a cat’s, gleaming with curiosity. …Sharp as ever.
“W-Well, yeah…”
“All dressed up like this… so it’s gotta be that upperclassman, right? Right!?”
“Ah, no… it’s not…”
How was I supposed to answer this? I wouldn’t really mind if they got the wrong idea, but if rumors spread too much, it might cause trouble for Souta if girls who liked him misunderstood.
“It’s really not like that with Souta…”
“Then who are you going on a date with?”
“W-Well…”
No way could I say it was with the other personality inside me.
“Come on, no need to be shy! I’m rooting for you! So, where are you—”
“Okay, enough. Cut it out, Hisui—Alice is clearly uncomfortable.”
“Ehhh, but you’re curious too, aren’t you, Fumika?”
“Alice’s got things she finds hard to talk about, so you shouldn’t be prying.”
『Ugh, but still…!』
“Then, should I tell these two everything about that time you came to me for advice about Yamazaki-kun…?”
Hisui’s face instantly turned bright red.
『A-absolutely not!』
“Oho, now that sounds like an interesting story,” Yuna chimed in, visibly intrigued.
Hisui and Yamazaki-kun were a well-known couple in class. The two of them seemed to make an effort not to be overly affectionate at school—they didn’t flirt in class, and during breaks they barely talked, just sneaking little messages to each other. They spent about half of their lunch breaks with friends too.
Even so, from time to time, they’d unconsciously glance around looking for each other, and when their eyes met, they’d both blush and quickly look away. It was endearingly innocent.
But lately, even when their eyes met, they’d smile softly and glance away naturally. People had started to whisper that something might have changed between them.
“Ah, well… that’s… you know…”
“See? There are things even you can’t talk about, so you shouldn’t force Alice to either.”
“…Fine… sorry, Alice.”
“I’m fine, it doesn’t really bother me.”
“Today, you had such a wonderful smile, Alice. I just couldn’t help but be curious about who could make you smile like that… Besides, you’ve seemed really troubled lately.”
Scratching the back of her head, Hisui spoke awkwardly.
Come to think of it, I’d been causing my classmates quite a bit of worry.
Lately, my mind had been so preoccupied with Alicia that I could barely focus on anything anyone said to me, or anything I was supposed to say myself.
I’d told everyone it was because of personal matters related to my birthplace, but it had already been nearly two months of me looking drained, so naturally, a lot of people had grown concerned.
But honestly, I hadn’t had the capacity to respond to their kindness—and I was sure the only reason I hadn’t been completely alienated in class was thanks to Yuna looking out for me.
Even so, these two had continued treating me like always—and I was really grateful for that.
“Sorry… I ended up worrying you both a lot…”
The two of them immediately told me not to worry about it.
“Well… I can’t tell you all the details, but the person I’m going on this date with is really important to me.”
“Yeah, I get it. Sorry for teasing you about it…”
“It’s fine… but you better tell me about you and Yamazaki-kun next time, okay?”
『Ugh… if it’s within what I can talk about…』
…So… it’s already like that between them, huh? Someday, I’d love to have a proper girls’ night and dig out all the details.
“Well then, we should get going. We’ve been holding you up long enough.”
Since we’d started chatting at the crosswalk, the signal had already changed several times.
“Not that we’re going anywhere exciting—we’re just heading to the library to do homework…”
Hisui let out a loud, exaggerated sigh.
“If you hate it that much, you could just go home, you know? Who was it crying to me last night again?”
“Ack—just kidding, I’m sorry! Without you, Fumika, I’d never get my homework done. Yay, library, studying, can’t wait~!”
“…Seriously. Sorry about all the noise.”
“Hehe… Alice, enjoy your date for us too, okay?”
“Yeah!”
At that moment, Alicia made a small request to me. I agreed without hesitation.
“See you later—bye-bye!”
The two of them walked off.
And then—
『Goodbye, you two—take care.』
Alicia spoke through thought communication, bidding them farewell.
It was the first time she had ever spoken to them.
Neither of them knew about Alicia. But even if only I knew, the fact remained that Alicia had been part of our class life, together with me.
The two of them looked a little puzzled at the voice that suddenly echoed in their heads.
“See you too, Alice—take care!”
Hisui called back, hopping up and down cheerfully.
She probably just thought my voice had sounded a little weird.
Fumika, while looking slightly embarrassed at Hisui’s reaction, gave a polite nod toward us.
『…Thank you for indulging my selfish request.』
“No problem—it was the least I could do.”
…This is all I can really do.
When the light turned green, we started walking toward the station again. Yuna kept the conversation flowing with light, casual topics as we walked.
But the closer we got to the station, the quieter we became.
By the time we reached the roundabout in front of the station, none of us were speaking anymore.
We went into the station, bought our tickets, and finally arrived in front of the ticket gates.
“Looks like we have about five minutes before the train arrives.”
Yuna checked the timetable and spoke. In other words, that was the time limit left for Alicia and Yuna to talk.
『Yuna, thank you for everything. I really enjoyed every single day.』
“Alicia… I had so much fun too. It felt like I gained a real little sister—no, actually, I think of you as my real sister.”
『Thank you, Yuna. Just… well, I’m technically the older sister here, you know?』
“Oh yeah… I totally forgot about that.”
Geez… Yuna…
You haven’t forgotten I’m the older brother too… right?
『Since I was born and raised in the church, I never really knew what it meant to have a real family.』
Alicia spoke calmly and softly.
『…But now, after being welcomed as part of Ikuto-san’s family by Mother, Father, and you, Yuna… I think I’ve come to understand a little bit about what that really feels like.』
“Ah… Alicia!”
Overcome with emotion, Yuna hugged me tightly.
Unlike the usual way she would embrace me, tucking my head into her chest, this time she leaned down slightly and wrapped her arms around my shoulders. Probably because I was wearing makeup today.
The pleasant scent wafting from my neck was from the citrus cologne we had put on together before leaving the house.
The sight of us hugging drew the attention of passersby, but once they realized it was just an ordinary scene at the station, they respectfully looked away.
We remained like that, unable to say a word.
It felt like if we said anything, everything we were holding back would spill out all at once.
But we couldn’t stay like that forever…
The station announcement signaling the train’s arrival told us the moment of parting had come.
“Yuna…”
My quiet murmur was the cue for Yuna to step back, putting a few paces between us.
“Have tons and tons of fun, okay?”
『――Yes!』『Yeah!』
We both answered her with all our strength.
Turning our backs to Yuna, we headed toward the ticket gates.
We handed over our tickets, had them punched, and stepped inside the station.
After entering the concourse, I turned around.
Yuna’s expression clouded over the moment she noticed me looking back.
Her frustration at her own helplessness, the guilt that weighed on her—it all showed clearly in her eyes.
And I knew exactly how she felt… because I carried those same feelings within me.
“――”
But Yuna bit her lip, swallowed her words, and turned back toward us with the brightest smile she could muster.
Light sparkled in the air.
“Have a good trip!”
Even through the harsh screech of the train’s brakes, I could clearly hear Yuna’s voice.
The doors opened with a hiss, and the station announcement echoed through the platform.
『――We’ll be back soon!』
As soon as the words left our mouths, we turned away again.
We boarded the train.
The departure bell rang out sharply, and soon after, the doors closed.
And so, our date began.
Only happy things awaited us from here on.
—So please, just for now… don’t fall, tears.
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