Take 3 - Like a Glass House

It’s almost unbelievable that I’m saying this, but Iori’s obsessive punctuality saved me from burying myself too soon.

“Uh… Ha-Haruka…” she stammered, slowly opening the door. “Sorry, am I interrupting something?” she asked, a bit nervous. I could tell by the way she gripped the edges of her notebook.

That’s what happens when you live thinking everything’s a straight shot from point A to point B. The slightest curve from what you expected or prepared for throws you off.

“Something like that…” Agami replied, turning to look at her. He sounded dead serious, but he wasn’t being harsh—it was just how he came off to people he didn’t know well.

“Come on, come on…” I said, hopping off the desk and slinging an arm around Iori’s shoulder. “I told you I had news, and… looks like it spreads fast.”

Agami didn’t say anything, just looked at both of us.

“You’re looking at… the newest member of the photography club!” I said, trying to sound as pumped as possible.

“Who are you?”

“I-Iori, I’m in the same class as Haruka…” she answered, dipping her head slightly. “I… already filled out the form.”

“So, you’re into photography? Got any samples? Something I can see?” Agami asked, taking the form from her hands and tossing it onto the desk without even glancing at it.

I’d warned her—formalities were pointless here, but well… I knew Iori wouldn’t listen.

“No, I mean… just a few… with my phone…”

“You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“No, I—”

“Actually, your rooftop photo totally blew her mind,” I said, nudging Iori closer to Agami. “In fact, she was so impressed she came straight to me to talk about photography and stuff. I just told her you’re the expert.” I stepped aside.

“Expert?”

“Yup. So… there you go, she’s the new member. Why don’t you, you know, give her a starting point?” I said, sitting on the windowsill.

My legs swung back and forth. We were on the third floor, so I couldn’t help but wonder if falling from this height would kill me.
I lit a cigarette.
It was a dumb question.

I’d lied again, but I guess lying for Iori’s sake wasn’t really a bad thing, right? I mean, Iori gets closer to Agami, and he stops breathing down my neck all the time.
Everyone wins.
Well… not everyone.

“Hey, idiot, at least sit on the other side. I don’t want to have to go check on your splattered body.”

“I hear you, but I just don’t care…” I said, turning my head back and waving him off. “Come on, start training the newbie. Trust me, she doesn’t know a thing so that makes her your perfect apprentice.”

Agami just sighed, exasperated. He was used to my nonsense but could never stop acting like some kind of older brother.

He turned his attention to Iori and started inspecting the photos she’d taken with her phone.

“They’re not bad, but—”

“I know, wrong angle and wrong season?” She probably didn’t even realize it, but if she kept clutching her notebook like that, she’d end up tearing it.

“That… exactly that… you’ve got a good eye,” Agami said, slightly surprised.

“Oh… uh… actually, it was Ha—”

“Actually, it took her a bunch of tries to figure it out… it was a mess, but yeah, she’s got a good eye,” I cut in as fast as I could. I hopped off the windowsill and leaned toward her. “Idiot, at least lie a little…” I whispered before heading for the door.

“Haruka,” Iori said, watching me slip away.

“Hey, idiot, where do you think you’re going? You’re gonna leave me to explain everything alone?” Agami added.

“Ha, explain? The club’s just an excuse to hang out. The photos are just a bonus, come on, just give her a camera and make her practice or something I don't know... You always come up with ideas.” I said, closing the door.“

Why so early?”

“Huh?”

“Why are you leaving so early?” Agami continued before I could shut the door.

“You know… the night job thing… I at least need a nap.”

I closed the door before he could nag me further and headed down the stairs. The hallway was already empty, the other students had finished classes hours ago.

“Just a little longer…” I said, tossing the pill bottle up and catching it as I walked. “…I want to see more things… just a little more.”

But reality stopped me dead in my space like a magnet.
Because the truth was, that 'little longer' was so relative it felt like it had no weight at all.
This could’ve been fun. If it had happened earlier, the three of us probably would’ve gotten along great. Of course, Iori would’ve had to put up with Agami’s fifteen hundred corrections per minute every time she took a photo, but I would’ve liked to be part of that.

“I bet they’re really having fun,” I said to myself, catching the pill bottle. “At least Agami probably is,” I added with a laugh. “What’s it matter?”

I could go back with some excuse, spend the rest of the afternoon with them. Maybe they’d get a laugh out of me. I’d bet anything Iori was scribbling down every word Agami said in her notebook right now, like he was her professor. But… was that really okay?
Could I really keep trying to have fun?
What was the point?

A while back, I saw a performance on TV by a Polish artist who locked herself in a glass cage for three days in the middle of the city. Everyone could see her routine, no filter.
This was the opposite. The world was a glass cage, and I could see everything—just couldn’t touch it anymore.

I decided to grab a beer on the way home. The sun had already set, and though the night had a slight breeze, it was still unbearably hot.

“Ugh… this tastes awful…” I said out loud, emptying the bottle as I walked. I was never, as they say, a fan of alcohol, so I’d decided to try it for the first time. Honestly, I still prefer soda. "No cheers for me I guess..."

The same stairs again. Every day, they looked taller.
Was my brain exhausted, or was my body giving out?
I really didn’t want to go home because, lately, an empty house didn’t feel like a home.

“No night job tonight?”

When I looked up from the steps, I saw Agami leaning against my front door. And, though it’s obvious, no, he didn’t look happy.

“Huh? Oh… uh… just decided I didn’t feel like going today…”

“Just like that?”

“Yup, simple, right? You know me, I don’t like getting tangled up in routine,” I said as I climbed, stopping in front of him. “What about Iori? Any potential?”

I saw his brow furrow. He was annoyed but let out a sigh and brushed it off. “She asks too many questions…”

“Ha… tell me about it…”

“Did you notice how she writes down everything every two seconds?” he said, mimicking Iori’s posture.

“God, yeah, it’s the worst…” I replied, laughing. He stepped aside as I unlocked the door. “But I think you two could get along if you let a few things slide.”

“Don’t you mean the three of us could get along?” he asked, just as the lock clicked open.