The sounds of drums, flutes, and the faint jingle of kagura bells echo throughout the assembly hall.
Even though I’m the one dancing, it feels like I’m looking down at myself from an outside perspective.
In the midst of my heightened focus, I catch glimpses of several musicians switching places at the edge of my vision.
That day was a rehearsal.
The musicians carried on as usual.
As the dancer, I wore the costume—partly to check the fit—and performed the dance while holding the kagura bells.
Without taking any breaks, just like the real performance, I danced through the entire routine.
Even though we’d practiced the full routine countless times, dancing in the miko outfit and桐 geta clogs felt entirely different—nothing like the usual practice.
I usually sweat a lot during practice, but today, with the heavier costume and the pressure of being watched, the exhaustion was on a whole other level.
“Wow, that was amazing! Getting to see the quality improve every year is definitely a perk of the job, huh?”
“Keep it up for the real performance, alright?”
“Cough, ha… hah… phew… Yeah.”
Toki-chan was the first to come support me as I caught my breath, shoulders heaving.
“Himura, great job.”
“…Yeah, thanks. This is gonna be a long road…”
“That outfit really looks tough to handle, doesn’t it?”
When Misora asked me that, I glanced down at my feet.
“The outfit’s fine, but these geta…”
I always practice while keeping in mind how my sleeves move with my arms or how my hair flows, so I’m used to accounting for the costume.
But today, we’re on a slick floor. On the actual day, I’ll be dancing on a less slippery stage while wearing geta, which makes the fatigue pile up even more.
“Oh, everyone, great job today! Looking forward to the real thing!”
I bowed to the musicians who came to rehearse with us.
“Great work, everyone. Misora, Mom already headed home, so I’ll see you later, Ao-kun. Catch you at the performance!”
“Thanks for today!”
“…Himura’s always so polite with older people.”
I mean, it’s normal to act differently around older people, right? Like, what are you even saying when it’s a married woman with a kid our age?
“Phew… my heart rate’s finally calming down.”
“It’s kinda crazy how it shoots up to 200 like it’s nothing, huh?”
“Himura’s got lung capacity way beyond normal, so he’s fine.”
I don’t really think I’m that exceptional, but if Toki-chan says so, maybe I’m a bit above average.
After a while, the assembly hall was back to just the three of us: me, Toki-chan, and Misora.
Toki-chan helped me take off the costume while I dragged my heavy body along. By the way, I didn’t wear makeup today, just the outfit.
“Ugh… it’s next week already, right? I’m starting to get really nervous.”
“You say that every year. When are you gonna get used to it?”
“Never, probably.”
It’s not like I haven’t done this enough to be used to it… or maybe I have? I mean, it’s almost my tenth year as a dancer.
Maybe it’s about time I stop getting so stiff with nerves and find a better balance with the tension.
When I’m actually up on stage, I’m so focused it’s fine, though.
“Hey, Toki-chan.”
“What?”
“You free after this?”
“No plans.”
So, she’s got time, then.
I hung the costume on a hanger and sprayed it with disinfectant.
“Sorry, but there’s something I want to check. Mind if we practice a bit more?”
“Sure, as much as you want. Misora?”
“Of course, I’ll stick around even if it’s till midnight!”
Having these two who so casually agree to stay feels like such a blessing.
I should probably find a way to repay them someday, but with Toki-chan, she’d probably say something like, “Then be my boyfriend!” so I can’t just bring it up lightly.
Misora’s probably still hung up on wanting to get closer to Souma, so I doubt she has any romantic feelings for me. I think Shiho-san mentioned something about a first-love thief, but whatever.
“…Hey, you two, after the festival’s over and we’re done with the afterparty, wanna have a little second gathering, just the three of us?”
“I’m down.”
“I didn’t expect you to suggest something like that, Ao-kun… I’m in too!”
That said, there’s a solid chance I, the one who suggested it, might get dragged off by someone else.
“Alright, let’s take a quick break and then get back to practice.”
Seeing them both nod, I slowly stood up.
As we left the assembly hall, I waved goodbye to the two of them heading toward the station and started my own way home.
“Oh, Kaori.”
“Ao-kun, heading home now?”
I ran into Kaori, who was unusually walking alone through town.
Unlike her usual plain style, she was wearing a cute, elegant dress that looked like she’d just come back from a date.
“Oh… you were visiting Midori-san’s family, right?”
“Yeah, Mom went home earlier, though. I figured you’d be at the assembly hall today, so I swung by.”
“Good timing, then. Wanna walk home together?”
“Nah, mind if we take a little detour?”
I had no reason to refuse Kaori’s suggestion, so I nodded right away.
And so, I ended up walking side by side with her for a bit.
“How’s practice going?”
“Same as always, I guess.”
“‘I guess,’ huh?”
I don’t really overthink my usual practice, so when someone asks me how it’s going, I don’t have much to say.
“Speaking of, you haven’t come by to see Kohaku lately, have you?”
“Well, you’re never home! I feel bad for Kohaku-chan, but she’s kinda just an excuse to see you.”
“That’s pretty harsh on her, you know. If you wanna see me, just say so.”
“Tch, that’s… kinda embarrassing, you know!”
“Embarrassing? After you had the guts to confess to me straight-up?”
Still, though…
I hesitated about whether to say it out loud, but after a moment’s thought, I stopped walking and took a good look at Kaori from head to toe.
“Huh? W-What…?”
“Kaori, did Midori-san pick out that outfit?”
“Y-Yeah, she did… It’s not really me, right?”
Her white hair, which she’d been growing out since that day she confessed, swayed gently in the summer breeze.
The white dress had a bit of lace on the skirt. Her slightly heeled sandals matched the summery vibe perfectly.
“…Yeah, it’s not very Kaori, is it?”
“…R-Right?”
“But I like it. I think it’s cute.”
“H-Hey! Ao-kun, that’s not fair, saying stuff like that!”
I didn’t mean to tease her, but Kaori’s face turned bright red as she stepped closer.
“Whoa!”
She wobbled a bit—probably not used to the heels—so I gently caught her by the shoulders.
“Careful. Your balance isn’t that bad, is it?”
“B-But you just suddenly called me cute…!”
“You should be used to hearing that by now.”
“I’m not used to hearing it from you!”
Fair enough, I don’t say it often.
But today, I really did think she looked cute.
Since I was already holding her close, I reached out and touched her hair.
“It’s gotten pretty long.”
“H-Hey, that tickles!”
I pulled out a hair tie I had on me and loosely gathered her hair into a quick half-up style.
“There.”
“Oh, wow…”
Kaori took out a compact mirror to check her hair.
“…Ao-kun, you’re seriously so good at this.”
“It’s easy once you learn how.”
“No, but why do you know how to do this?”
“Hm? Good question.”
As we walked side by side, I ran my fingers through her hair to tidy it up, then, for no real reason, brushed her ear.
Maybe because she was blushing earlier, it still felt a little warm.
The detour Kaori wanted to take turned out to be a park near our high school.
For no particular reason, I found myself staring into her blue eyes, gently brushing my fingers against her soft cheek.
Her hair’s still medium-length, but it suits her so well. It’s such a shame she didn’t wear it like this before.
This dress, too—just looking at it makes me think of all sorts of other outfits that’d suit her.
If I’d realized how I felt about her sooner, maybe I wouldn’t have carried around all those pointless insecurities about her.
“Ao-kun, what’s wrong…?”
“Nothing, really.”
“‘Nothing’…? You don’t make that face for nothing.”
“That face…?”
“You look like you’re about to cry.”
Hearing that, I instinctively touched my eyes. Sure enough, a warm droplet fell onto my fingertips.
“…Mom said something to me before.”
“?”
As she tilted her head slightly, I mustered up the courage to ask.
“Kaori, if someone asked you about memories with me, what comes to mind?”
“Huh… memories? Hmm…”
As expected, she didn’t seem to have an immediate answer.
“…Being with you, Ao-kun, every moment feels important to me, so it’s hard to pick just one memory.”
“That doesn’t exactly make me happy, you know.”
“W-Wait, I was being serious!”
Yeah, I guess “memories” is a tough question to answer on the spot.
“…Alright, what about memories with Kaname?”
“Hm, last year’s summer festival, maybe. It was her birthday, so I gave her a handmade misanga as a present.”
She answered instantly, even though they’ve only known each other for a year and a half. I’ve spent ten times that with her, and yet…
“Ao-kun, do you… want memories with me?”
“It’s not really about me… Mom just said maybe we should make some.”
“…Then, before the summer festival, could you maybe indulge me a little?”
Looking up at me slightly, Kaori said that, and for some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to refuse. I nodded slowly.
