Weekend Festival [1]

[Saturday, August 5. 06:20 AM]

Two weeks have passed. And little by little, summer break draws to a conclusion. This has been the best summer of my entire life. I probably sound like those one-dimensional male protagonists who always say some of the cringiest lines you could ever hear.

I might be guilty of that, too, maybe. Nah—I'm definitely the best protagonist for this story we call life; at least, in my head anyway.

The alarm on my phone blared as I lay on the bed facing the ceiling. I had already awoken the minute it rang. Why? Because today is the much-anticipated Weekend Festival.

This is a pretty cool event that's only held here in Kiyomizuzawa practically every Saturday; last week, it was postponed thanks to a sudden shower that lasted for two whole days. I, for one, think it must have been a bad omen—or something.

I learned about this from none other than my beloved gremlin, Miyu. She specifically told me about it because A – she doesn't want to go alone, and B – because she wants me to take Chiyoko-san there as my date.

At first, I was like hell nah, because I knew she had ulterior motives, but after thinking about it for a while, it actually sounded like a pretty good idea. But the difficult part comes next, and that's—asking Chiyoko-san to go with me. What could possibly go wrong?

I swung my legs to the side of the bed as I took in the cool air of the room. Then I stood as I walked towards the window. While I opened it, I heard footsteps approaching the door. 

Thud! Thud! Thud! A sharp, loud knock echoed in the hallway.

“Hey, Hiro-chan, are you dead in there? Say yes if you're dead and no if you're alive.”

Of course, Miyu was the one at the door. Figures.

“You're an idiot.”

“Great, you're alive. Now listen up. The festival will start at 18:30 sharp. So, Operation Woo Chiyoko is a go.”

“I'll say this again: you're an idiot.” I stood there looking out at the beautiful neighborhood, then I sighed. “What are you even talking about?”

“Quit playin’ dumb; you know exactly what I'm talking about. But hey, you're free to do as you please. Yours truly shall now excuse herself.”

Having made her declaration, she walked off as the sound of her footsteps disappeared to who knows where. Even though she was just being her typical self, everything she said was serious. She definitely meant every word.

*****

Four hours later, I lay comfortably under the Elder Tree that breathed pure, clean air. Again, my head was on her lap while she stroked my hair gently. How did I end up like this? Well, two hours ago, I climbed the sacred tree, and then I fell and passed out.

One hour later, I was on her lap. This is as cliché as it gets, and I'm well aware of that. I'm just glad I get to check off something from my Things I want to do that I've seen in anime list. The title is ridiculously long, probably the longest I've seen—as if there aren't still isekai anime.

As she stroked my hair, I opened my eyes and looked at her while she hummed a mellifluous tune, her eyes closed and her expression joyous. Just then, I queried.

“I fell off the tree, didn't I?”

“Yes, you did. You worried me close to death. Please do not attempt something of that nature again.”

“Yes, ma'am,” I ventured with a lopsided grin.

She then continued her humming as the birds chirped. It was as if they were following her lead as they chirped euphoniously. I lingered for a while as I clenched my fist and breathed in slowly. Then I breathed out as I murmured.

“Hey, Chiyo-san, I would like to ask you something.”

As I said that, I started sweating while my heart throbbed frantically. She stared directly into my eyes as she replied.

“I'm all ears.”

The moment of truth was upon me. It was finally time for me to develop a spine and be a man. I was no longer a boy; I was a fully-fledged man.

“So, uh, I was wondering... would you like to go to the festival with me?”

I said it. I finally said it, I thought, as I continued locking eyes with her.

Her lips curled up as her eyes lit up like the sun. “I would love to.”

“Oh, I knew I wasn't fit to—wait, did you say you would love to?”

“Yes. I haven’t been to a festival in a long time. And going with you will make it even more fun.”

“Really? That's great! Then let's meet at Tokiwa Shrine's gates.”

“Will Miyu-chan be joining us?”

“Yeah, she'd never miss a festival.”

“That is so like her, hehehehe.”

Looks like the first phase of Miyu's plan is a success. Now for phases two and three, I thought as I stood up, stretching my pained body.

*****

[Several hours later, 18:00]

In the past seven or eight hours, I worked like a slave practicing my manners and basically prepping for doomsday. While I did that, Miyu picked out my clothes and brought out her favorite yukata. She was definitely going all out. Why was she doing this? I have no idea.

With only thirty minutes left, I went to my room to dress up. Miyu was already dressed as she stood outside my door, tapping her foot on the floor continuously.

She wore a vermilion-red yukata with large, overlapping chrysanthemum blooms. Her hair was worn in a single, sleek fishtail braid, and she wore wooden sandals called geta.

Her black hair makes me want to go back to my black hair. And maybe I will go back.

Having finished getting ready, I opened the door and stood in front of her. She held her chin as a confident smirk appeared on her face.

“I've outdone myself. You look awesome.”

“Thanks, I guess.”

She had picked out a lot of clothing for me. Basically, she couldn't decide whether I should go anime-style or just casual. I ended up going athletic-style.

I wore a black long-sleeve tech tee and some black nylon windbreaker shorts along with some swanky white sneakers with a black pattern of two lines on each sneaker.

I was also going all out. We took our phones and walked out of the house. I locked the door while she typed away at her phone like a cat playing with a mouse toy.

When I finished locking up, she pulled at me while she ran towards the west side of town near Tokiwa Forest. In fact, Tokiwa Forest is a neighbor to Tokiwa Shrine. The forest and the shrine were named after the main street of the west side of town, which is Tokiwa Street.

We walked from Yawarakai Street to Tokiwa in record time, thanks to her rushing for no reason. I caught sight of the shrine's gates as we approached.

Then I saw her. She wore an indigo and white yukata that had an asanoha pattern on it, and she wore her hair in a high ponytail that was shifted to the side. She also wore wooden sandals.

[Asanoha - Translates to - A geometric hemp-leaf pattern.]

“Whoa…” Miyu exclaimed softly as we stood in front of Chiyoko-san. “You… look so cute! Oh my god, I'm literally gonna die of cuteness!"

“Thank you so much. You also look very lovely, Miyu-chan. I like what you did with your hair. You look like a lily in human form,” Chiyoko giggled as she murmured.

“Naturally. Miyu Sato always looks beautiful no matter what she wears. Well, when she tries, anyway.”

Why are you speaking in the third person? For someone so smart, she can be such a ditz, I pondered as my eyes transitioned to Chiyoko-san. I couldn’t look away. It was as if her beauty begged me not to look away. The yukata paired with her petite frame and that hairstyle—all of it made me speechless.

While I stood there like a mannequin showcasing athletic clothing, Miyu nudged me hard as she cleared her throat.

“Ahem!”

She wants me to compliment Chiyoko-san. What is she thinking? She stared at me so hard it was as if she was firing a laser beam through my skull. I guess I don't have any other choice. It's do or die.

“Chiyoko-san, you look—” I paused as my hands shook, my breaths getting heavy. But then I felt a warm hand placed on my back.

“You can do this. Just speak from your heart, not your mind,” Miyu whispered.

“Thanks, Miyu,” I whispered back as I stared at Chiyoko-san again, this time with determination burning in my face. “Sorry about that. What I was trying to say is that you look like a luminescent star that shines brighter than any spotlight. Your yukata brings out the beautiful, kind person you are and always will be. In short, you look resplendent.”

“Okay, okay, calm down. You're starting to ramble,” Miyu whispered again in a hushed tone that only I could hear.

Meanwhile, Chiyoko looked at me with a surprised and somewhat blown-away expression. Then, for the first time since I met her—she blushed—so hard that it seemed like she was going to explode. Seeing her flustered for a change made me feel a little more at ease.

“Okay, now that the flirting is over and done with, let's get this festival started!”

Miyu ranted while more and more people passed by the gate and marched up the stairs to the main area, the shrine. We sauntered up the stairs too, and after climbing for a while, we made it to the top. What we saw was truly beautiful.

[To be continued...]