The Notebook’s Owner

“Do you know who you’re talking to?” Mom asked, squinting, her arms crossing over her chest. The Yakuza might be intimidating, but I would highly avoid Mom’s fixed stare more. I only knew her as the sweetest Mom, and I never wanted to see her angry.

“Tsk!” Sheathing their swords, the Yakuza’s tongue clicked and turned around, leaving like nothing happened. But why? Mom is just… Mom! She didn’t have any affiliation to Yakuza or something.

“Hey, apologize first!” Sera shouted as a follow up, but I covered her mouth to prevent her from spitting words of danger.

My hands shaking, my cringy whisper reached her ears. “Stop that, Sera! There’s no chance they’ll apologize.” Everyone entitled doesn’t.

Flicking my hand, she complained, her eyebrows furrowing. “Why? They did something wrong! Isn’t it the right thing to do? ”

“This isn’t the place to talk about that. Just let it go.” Which parent did she learn how to be confrontational? I want to know.

With the crowd still staring at us, Mom pulled us up standing. I narrowed my eyes and asked, “Mom, I thought you’ll wait for us in Shinjuku?”

“I’m just visiting a friend. Why do you think it will take long? As soon as I finished, I came to search for you.” Luckily, she came at the right time. Else, we’ll be minced meat.

The girl stood up with a stooped posture, rushed to get her green notebook, shook off the dust it got, and rushed back towards us, specifically towards us. With a shaky voice, she stuttered, which was accompanied by jerky gestures, “S–Sera-chan… I’m sorry, it’s so s–sudden. But… I’m a huge fan… since you p–participated at CosFiesta Mashup 7th… C–Can I get an autograph?”

Sera-chan? How did she know her name? Was she one of the followers of the underground blogger that leaked her name? Or maybe my whispers were so loud. But still, it was questionable how she knew Sera at the event. This wasn’t just a simple fan. Our eyes did meet, and after that, she tried her hardest to avoid my gaze, hiding her face with her hood.

“Autograph?” Sera asked me, her eyes narrowing, her head tilting towards her side. The concept of ownership still didn’t click to Sera. After all, she was just starting to involve herself in this world. But even in another world, they should know how copyright works.

Pulling out a pen from my bag and giving it to her, I explained. “It’s one proof of your identity. A sign should be your personal Kanji stroke, something that only you can write. If I see it, I will know it’s yours.”

“I see… What is a fan?” Sera asked.

“Puns aside, it is someone who really loved your cosplays, Sera.”

“Then… those that approached me for memories, they’re also fans?”

Nodding, I replied, “The longer you pursue cosplaying, the more fans you’ll know. You’ll be grateful that you’re helping them too much.”

She took the notebook, but only gazed at it for seconds before she asked, “Should it be in Kanji?”

Shaking my head, I replied, “I wouldn’t suggest that, but I have a suggestion.”

After that, I whispered to her ear a message only she could understand. Her pupils dilated when her head flinched back and pivoted at me. It seemed she got an idea what to write. She gripped the pen like a quill, drawing strokes of elegance horizontally. Six characters, that was all it took to present Sera’s name in another world’s language.

“There! I’m happy I have such a bright admirer!” After signing, she handed the notebook to the girl with a warm smile.

The girl clasped Sera’s hands before getting the notebook. Though the girl’s mask hid her mouth, her eyes closed and curved in joy when she replied her gratitude to Sera. “T–Thank you very much!”

Sera slightly flinched, half-smiling due to shock. She expected her adoration, but her expectations of it might be low. “Y–You’re welcome…”

The girl bowed for about ninety degrees and walked away with lingering happiness. As I saw her getting further, a recent memory suddenly appeared, overlapping my reality. Her back… It was like when I saw Rise get out of the bathroom after PE class. Now that I think about it, their heights match. Am I still sick? I softly slapped my cheeks and shook my head to return to reality.

“What are you doing, Kou-chan?” Mom asked.

“Nothing, Mom. Just a reality check.” But what if that was really Rise? Will it be possible that she hid her face because she will be discovered as Hina Satou? And if she really was Rise, does her ignoring me a huge hint of what I discovered from her face?

We went home and explained the concept of Yakuzas to Sera. With her contagious curiosity, knowing there exists a power beyond societal rules, I also questioned if the peace we felt was real… or was it only an illusion?

Still, I expected this day to end with me getting answers, but I only got more questions. First, was she really Hina Satou? Second, what was the reason she was hiding her face from everyone? And third, what did Hina Satou mean she didn’t have any classmates?

“Thank you so much for giving your precious little time to visit me at Shibuya! Though there’s a little minor scene that happened, this is the Halloween that I will never forget in the rest of my life! A little life update! Why do you think that cheesecakes are too sweet? I personally like sweet things! By the way, I will be attending as a judge for the upcoming contest in OtakuMania Convention. Who’s going to be the next rising star for this year? I’m itching to find out!”

So much so that I watched the early Hina Satou streams, I walked to school the earliest out of all of my attended classes for only one reason… I wanted to talk to Rise directly. I hoped she wouldn't avoid me.

After an hour of investigating Hina Satou’s page and underground blog posts, Ms. Yamamoto’s history class started. However, Rise didn’t come. Our adviser initiated the attendance check, and no one had information why Rise hadn’t come to school yet. Everyone thought she was still sick… until she opened the classroom door.

Entering the room, she ignored all of her classmates as she went towards and sat on her seat. Everyone witnessed the unnatural redness of her swelling right cheek, and only a few, including me, knew that it wasn’t makeup. Still, she tried her hardest to avoid making eye contact with me.

I waited until breaktime for the opportunity to talk to her, but seconds after the bell rang, she vanished instantly from her seat like a bubble pop. It would be a hassle guessing which place she was hiding, but it was my only way to talk to her. Usually, I wouldn’t care about it and give up, but these thoughts of curiosity bothered my mind like an unstoppable alarm clock.

But I didn’t notice that the biggest clue to my questions for her was the green notebook she left at her desk. I pretended to pass through her seat, hiding my intentions, and gazed over the notebook, witnessing the same six strange strokes written by Sera yesterday. Signatures were really unique to one's identity. Rise was there at the Shibuya Halloween, but I still couldn’t figure out if she was Hina Satou.

Rise and I share the same feeling of withdrawal from society. Crowded places were a no-go to us. I first thought of the rooftop, but when I checked it, countless groups of students practicing their dances and doing mini-picnics greeted me. Closing the rooftop door, I shook my head and uttered, “Lonely rooftops were only present in Animes.”

If I didn’t want to be bothered, the library would give me the least noise of reality. When I checked the place, traversing from bookshelf to bookshelf and wandering around the lobby, I didn’t find her. How about the abandoned storerooms? Those places were blocked by a barricade.

Fifteen minutes of running, those were the only places within the building where I could hide from the crowd. Outside was also filled with students eating lunch and playing video games. I still had half of my break to search, but my breath already started catching up to my fatigue.

Then I realized… Do I really need to explain to her? Why am I so conscious about this simple matter? If she has matters secret, I shouldn’t be meddling. I should respect her space, even if it means I won’t be her friend anymore.

Soon, I passed through the Sewing Club’s room that was rarely used, however, the wide-open door sucked-in my curiosity. With a little peek, I witnessed various mannequins wearing familiar anime character clothes, though most of them were made of cheap fabrics. It felt like I entered my own workroom. I’m wondering why I’m not in this club only if I know I would be creating costumes.

A little eye-wandering, I witnessed the lonely Rise knitting a colorful sash that weaved complimentary hues through the color wheel. It contained laces made of gold-glittering linen, its shape danced in circles. Her eyes darted over the sewing machine, the nerves in her hand popping out, focused yet trembling.

I sew like that when I’m thinking deep thoughts, pacing into my own world, far from reality and towards future possibilities. I would like to talk to her, but she was too focused on her work… not until she gazed at me.

“S–Sugiyama-kun…” Her head stooped and her face wasn’t covered by makeup, she slowly turned her head back to her knitting. Since she already noticed me, I approached her to check what she was making. It turned out that she was fixing a costume that was worn on CosFiesta. It turned out that my classmate and the Rise that won the competition were the same… but was she Hina Satou?

Giving her the notebook, I uttered, “I didn’t know you’re also a fan of Sera.”

Continuing her work, she said, “I–I adore her, and how perfect her appearance was. She was the only 3D Shizu-sama in my eyes. I personally believe that there would be no one that could defeat her in terms of beauty.”

“Yeah, I already knew it from first impressions.”

“Which is why I would like to make a request,” she uttered, stopping the sewing machine and glaring at us. “It’s really important for me to win the upcoming OtakuMania Contest. In fact, it will mean more to me than it ever will for you and Sera–”

“I know where you’re pointing at.” OtakuMania Contest is a cosplay contest that will raise the popularity of the rising stars, and possibly put them in the top 30 of the Regent of the Glamour rankings.

I’m not sure about her reason, but if she’s joining the contest, there must be an important reason for her to win. But this proves to me that she wasn’t a judge, nor was she a big shot shielded by six bodyguards… that she was not Hina Satou.

After a deep breath, I replied, “If you’re asking Sera to back out, sorry… but we’re not doing that.”