21: The Girl from My Memories

If I go through that tunnel… I’ll see Rena.
The inside of the giraffe was hollowed out, and even with his grown-up body, Tom could crawl through it easily.
As he reached the middle, he heard her voice again.

“This way! Hurry and slide down!”

It was definitely Rena’s voice—though it sounded a little higher-pitched than usual.
Tom figured the tunnel must be making it echo that way.
As he approached the bright opening at the end, he spotted the familiar swing set in the distance.
No one was on the swings. But something else caught his attention even more.

“Huh? That small swing next to it… I thought it was removed. Why is it back…?”

Tom blinked and squinted. Then—there it was again. That strange, transparent thing.
It started swinging back and forth with lively motion.

“Hurry up! Hurry!!”

Before he even realized it, Tom slid down the slope just like she told him to.
But as he landed, one of his shoes flew off.
He hurried to put it back on—but it didn’t fit. Too loose. Both of them.

“Geez! You were so slow, I’m taking these! Tadaa! A red cape! Hero cape time!”

A blur of red danced in front of him.
The figure became clearer with each passing moment, until it took the shape of a small girl.
She wore a light blue dress, her shoulder-length blonde hair sparkling in the sunlight.
While swinging, she kicked off her white shoes, sending them flying—one landed right in front of Tom.

“Huh? What… what is this…?”

Then he noticed—his school uniform was too big.
Way too big. His hands were lost in the sleeves, and everything felt heavier than before.
Frantically, he tried to roll up the sleeves and unbutton his blazer.

“What’s going on!? These aren’t my clothes! And my pants—I’m stepping on the cuffs!?”

As he struggled with the oversized outfit, the girl from the swing suddenly stood before him.
It was Rena—just as she had been back when they used to play in the sandbox.
She burst into laughter at the sight of him.

“Kya-ha-ha!! What are you wearing!?
Are you playing the bad guy? Did Hero Rena beat you and turn you into dust? Wait, is it ‘kuppa’ or ‘koppai’?”

Her tone hadn’t changed a bit—it was the same playful teasing from back then.
Hearing it again made Tom smile despite himself.

I like your usual clothes better. You can’t play properly in that.

Her voice echoed around him—but Tom realized it wasn’t coming through his ears.
It was resonating inside his head. And then—he felt lighter.
A warm, comforting calm washed over him. He stopped questioning the strange situation.
His instincts told him: just accept it.

“All done changing? Then let’s ride the swings together!”

Rena’s childlike voice chimed again.
Tom felt a brief dizziness… and the next thing he knew, his baggy school uniform had vanished.
In its place, he was wearing the clothes he had loved as a child—his favorite cow-print T-shirt and bright red shorts.