Connections

Sleeping. It's one of my favorite things to do. Mostly because it rests both mind and spirit… and my exhausted body. I'm… so tired. I was up with Miyu till late last night. That sounds so wrong.

We weren't doing anything inappropriate, I swear. Ahem, we were binging an awesome isekai about a dude who can supposedly return from dying. Sort of like he dies and restarts from a certain save point.

His story was heart-wrenching and even more thought-provoking. It's truly a work of art. Never mind that today is a new day, a new morning; a fresh start here in Yubari's Kiyomizuzawa. I can’t wait to go out into the sun and the beautiful forest. All so I can see… her. But first, 'tis time for torture. Too bad I'm the one being tortured.

I lay motionless on my new bed here in Kiyomizuzawa. Yes, I said it twice. I breathed slowly and peacefully. My body felt so calm and relaxed. It was as if I were flying through the air.

But then, the door was murdered by Miyu with a front kick. In my dream, the entire world I was in shook in unison with the door's reverie. She entered slowly. Then she took a few steps and stood near my feet on the lower end of the bed. A devilish smile appeared slowly on her face.

Then she screamed loudly, but her voice still had a soft undertone. The little fool climbed onto the bed and jumped towards my stomach as if executing a frog splash.

“Rise and shine, bro!!!”

She landed it cleanly. It was pretty impressive, but that doesn't mean it wasn't painless. I jumped up while my face contorted, my mouth open as my soul tried to escape my body. I breathed heavily, a sharp contrast to my earlier peaceful breaths.

An aching sensation reverberated throughout my entire body. It might seem like an exaggerated reaction… to you… But to me, it's the most logical reaction. She sat next to me while she smiled innocently. Little devil. I sat up and turned my furious gaze towards her.

“What's wrong with you!!!” I shouted, exuding pure rage.

“I'm sorry, I don’t know what came over me, tee-hee.” She closed both eyes and shrank to chibi size.

That was an intentional dirty joke, jeez. She's such a lost cause.

“That is so not cute, you fool.” Having said that, I karate-chopped her on the head.

She squealed like a kitten begging for milk, and it was so not cute. Or rather, at that moment, she wasn't. The little fool had just splashed me so hard it felt like my stuffing was gonna explode out of my mouth.

But even though she's annoying, I will admit I missed her more than I had originally thought. Turns out she's my best friend, and I wouldn't have it any other way. I finally admitted it. Yay.

“Oh come on, you have to admit, that was the warmest wake-up call ever.”

“Like hell it was, you idiot. Why did you just have to ruin my peaceful slumber? I was in an isekai, for crying out loud. For once, I was the main character of my own story!” The exaggerated tears tracked paths down my cheeks.

“Yikes, sorry, bro.”

“It's fine. I guess I'll just settle for the side character role.”

“Nah bro, you'll always be the main character. I'm the one who perfectly embodies the side character role, for real.”

“You'll actually settle for second best. That's a first. Princess Narcissism actually wants to be second best. Today, pigs will fly, I just know it.”

“Don't be so rude about it. And who are you calling a narcissist?! Baaaka!”

“Still not cute.”

“You're just a hater.”

“I can respect that. Anyway, is there a reason you woke me up in such a warm way ?”

“That's actually a pretty good question.”

“Something's seriously wrong with you.”

“Oh right, Mom made breakfast.”

“Did she make you your favorite?”

“Hell yeah.” She jumped off the bed and turned to me with a wide, shining smile that was too blinding for normal folks. Then she raised her left hand to her eye and imitated a power-level scouter. “And now, my happiness level… is over 9000!!!”

“I can tell. Now please get lost, I need to go take a bath.”

“Get lost? How ballsy of you, sir. I will not forget this. Mark my words.”

She murmured as she left the room. Quickly, I took a bath and dressed in cool summer clothing. A red shirt with the characters: 夏の雰囲気 on the back, with summer being on top and vibe following under it. I wore some cargo shorts too.

【夏の雰囲気 — translates to — ‘Summer atmosphere/vibe’】

Then I went to the kitchen, and the little fool was sitting on the other end of the table, stuffing her face with food. Apparently, Tamago Kake Gohan is her favorite dish. I, for one, don't have a specific favorite dish. I'm as neutral as they get.

“Good morning, Mom.”

“Good morning to you as well, my favorite son.”

I sat down as Mom placed my food on the table.

“He's also your only son.”

“Just shut up and eat,” I said as if baiting her to respond.

“I'm not gonna take the bait. Have you forgotten? I'm the one who created the thing.”

“No you didn't.”

“Who asked you, you, you fat—”

“Okay, both of you shut your mouths and eat, or else I'll shut them myself, Got it?”

We nodded in unison. Our eyes focused on our food as she stood on the side of the table, her entire body releasing a chilling aura.

Then she proceeded to get ready for work. As we ate, she hurried all around the house, and by the time I took the last bite, she was already heading out the door.

“I'll see you kids tonight. Be good to each other, okay?”

“Okay, Mom.” We said it at the same time yet again.

She entered her car and hurried off to work. Her journey to Sapporo is pretty long, so I understand why she's going so early. It's literally 6:10 a.m.

You're probably wondering what her job is. Well, you'd be surprised to learn that she's the key animator at a pretty major studio called All Heights Studios.

Meaning they chase after all heights and break through them. I always found the name a little cringe, but they make up for that with their incredible animation.

I always watch a new anime they put out, and the animation is always top-tier. The studio even won three times in a row at the anime awards, taking home the Best Animation award. One day I hope I can be a legendary animator like her. 

But for now, I'm here with this little gremlin. Since I had finished, I took my dish, washed it, and left it on top of the sink. Then I said,

“I'll see you later, I'm gonna take a walk.”

“Okay, don't get lost.”

“I won't.”

I left the house, and as soon as I exited through the gate, I started running lightly, feeling the mild air grace my fair skin. I passed by the park as always, and then I climbed the fence and jumped over to the other side. 

I was in Tokiwa Forest. The sounds of technology and home life were replaced by the gentle sounds of mother nature and forestry.

I sauntered through the trees, and as I looked ahead, there she was standing near the Elder Tree. This time she was wearing a black sweatshirt and a yellow wrap skirt. For a sheltered girl, she sure was fashionable.

She looked really cute. She had even tied up her hair into a bun. As I finally reached her line of sight, she turned to look at me with her unintentionally cold eyes.

“Good morning, Hiroshi-san.” She looked me dead in the eyes as she smiled subtly.

“Good morning to you too, Chiyoko-san. You're here early.”

“I'm always here.”

“Wait, what?”

“Sorry, I meant, I'm always here early.”

“Oh, I guess that makes sense. So how long have you had those dreams?”

“I do not remember. All I know is that he's always standing here staring into the sky. Whenever I walk up to him, I wake up, which is why I've never seen his face.”

She looked up to the clear blue sky that shone like diamonds. It was like looking at an upside-down ocean.

I looked at the sky with her too as I asked,

“Do you like looking at the sky?”

“I do. For some reason, it makes me feel relaxed and—”

“Peaceful,” I finished her sentence as she looked at me with a surprised expression. “Sorry for interrupting you, I just sorta kinda relate. Heh heh.”

“There is no need to apologize. I was surprised, that's all. I wasn't expecting you to be thinking the same thing.”

“I guess that's because we actually have something in common; we just don't know it yet. Would you like to find out together?”

“I would like that. Oh, before I forget, there is something you must know about me. My manner of speech is quite complicated. I tend to switch from formal to informal speech, so please bear with me.”

“It's no problem at all. I actually find that cute.”

Hold on, what did I just say? I thought while my cheeks burned like firewood.

She also blushed subtly, but she wasn't embarrassed in the slightest, unlike me, who wanted to die.

“Thank you, Hiroshi-san. It pleases me to hear such words from you.”

She said it pleases her… I'm so happy right now.

“T-That's great. Anyway, how about we take a walk?”

“That's a wonderful idea.”

We left the Elder Tree and walked along a small path fit for only two people. As we walked, I couldn't think of anything to say. Every time I thought of something, it would disappear immediately as if I'd never thought of it.

Kind of like when you leave one room and go to another to retrieve something, only to forget what you were looking for. It happens to me all the time, and this moment was no different.

As I struggled to make conversation, I heard her murmur as she inquired, “Hiroshi-san, if you don't mind my asking, what are your favorite activities or hobbies?”

I swallowed as I got even more nervous. “Well, let's see. I mostly like watching anime and drawing.”

“Oooh~ drawing? Hmmm, do you wish to be an illustrator when you graduate?”

“Not exactly, but something like that. I want to be an animator.”

“Oh, that's even better. I actually love anime as well. But I haven’t seen any of the latest ones, just the ones from the 90s and 80s.”

“You like anime? Like seriously?”

“Yes, is that wrong?”

“N-No, not at all. I wasn't expecting that, is all. Anyway, it seems like you're old school. You've only watched the classics. My favorite classic is Princess Tamaki. What about you?”

“Hmmm, I can't think of one off the top of my head. Let me think.”

I can't believe what I'm hearing. This girl who looks like a full-blown normie actually likes anime. Is this real life? Have I ascended to heaven already?

I mused as I glanced at her for a few seconds while she held her chin, a cute expression illuminating her entire face.

“I got it. It's Prince of the Two Kingdoms."

“Oh, I know that one. It's about the dude who fell in love with a princess from a rival kingdom, right? I think they ended up not being together since she sacrificed herself to save him.”

“Yes, it was such a beautiful love story. Forbidden love is truly a cruel thing. Why can't two people who love each other just be together forever?”

“Well, because in real life, happy endings are merely fictional. They basically don't exist, at least most of the time anyway. They were most likely going for a touch of realism, I bet.”

“Why?”

“Well, most likely as a way of closely resembling reality,” I said simply, a neutral look gracing my features. “Life really is a cruel mistress, huh?”

“Indeed.” Her face looked plain, but a touch of a smile was present.

We both laughed as we headed deep into the forest, our talk about classic anime continuing smoothly. I guess one should expect the unexpected in this cruel reality.

Never had I imagined I'd ever meet a girl who likes anime and doesn't think it's childish. Maybe life might just be worth it… just maybe though.

[To be Continued...]