Blossom

A few days have passed since I last saw Chihara past midnight. With the festival happening tonight, we've been way busier than usual. While she stuck with her group of friends, I followed Haruto and Kanon around. We'd see each other in passing, but... There was something about those moments that didn't seem quite as natural as our late-night meetups.

Now, with only a little over an hour left until the festival, all the members of the Festival Committee were gathered in the Student Building for one last meeting.

Haruto stood at the front podium, overlooking everyone with a smile.

"Good morning, everyone," he said. "I'm sure you all enjoyed getting up today, knowing that classes have been cancelled for the festival."

A couple of chuckles came from the crowd as everyone shared awkward glances.

"Hmm... I can sense something in this room, though I can't put my finger on it. Could it be... Are you guys feeling nervous?"

Silence was the response, yet it was also in and of itself the answer.

"Oh boy," Haruto scoffed. "Well, I guess now's the time for me to give a pep talk. Just relax, guys. At the end of the day, this is a simple student-run festival. We're gonna get a lot of people outside of the school, but it'll be okay. Just smile, wave, and be engaging. As long as they see that you're having fun, they'll naturally mold into the atmosphere and join in. Got it?"

"Yes, sir!" everyone shouted.

"Good. Now, I know what some of you are thinking. The festival starts tonight and will run through the weekend. No, I won't be having you work all three days. Only tonight. Using my extensive connections, I managed to snag a bunch of volunteers from other student organizations. But, if you find yourself wanting to work the other nights, I won't keep you."

Haruto turned, grabbing a stylus to write his contact info on the digital whiteboard behind him.

"This is my contact info," he said. "If you wanna work Saturday or Sunday — or both — just text me, and I'll find a place to put you. Any questions?"

No one said anything.

"Perfect! Alright, everyone, let's get this thing rolling. Man your battle stations!"

With one last cheer, the Festival Committee members began spilling out into the hallway. Meanwhile, Kanon and I waited at the side for everyone to leave first.

"You ready, Kazuha?" she asked.

"Honestly? No idea. I've never run a stall before, let alone attended a festival. This is all new to me, kind of like when I joined a student organization."

"Yeah, well... Getting out of a bad relationship does that to you. Don't tell me you started a gym membership, too."

"Hah. I'm not that butt-hurt about it, you know."

"Just checking."

My attention snapped away when I noticed a head of brown hair passing by right in front of me. It was Chihara, but it seemed like she was preoccupied with her friends walking next to her.

I decided to leave her be. Didn't wanna interrupt her when her friends were right there. Kanon, however, had a totally different idea.

Without warning, she reached over and tapped her shoulder, then quickly retracted while looking the other way.

"W-wha—?!" was all I could get out before Chihara glanced over, and of course, the first person she saw was me.

"Oh! Hi, Kinoshita!" she smiled brightly.

Unable to ignore her now, I said, "H-hey, Chihara..."

She turned back to her friends.

"You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up in a second."

And they did just that, but not without letting out a resounding, "Ohh~"

"Q-quit it!"

As they disappeared beyond the hallway, all that was left was me, her, and...

"...Kanon?" I called out.

Then, my eyes locked onto her as she escaped with the rest of the Festival Committee. She looked back, winked, and gave me a thumbs-up.

My head kept repeating, "You snake," but only God knew how badly I wanted to shout it across the damn corridor.

"Are you also manning a stall for the festival?" Chihara asked.

"Ah... Yeah," I replied. "I'm gonna be with Kanon and Haruto at the Ema stall."

"Oh! I really wanted that one. Writing wishes or inspirational quotes onto a wooden plaque seems like a lot of fun. Maybe I could've made some, too. Something like... I wanna graduate quietly. Yeah, that sounds pretty good."

"Heh. Sounds like my kind of wish. Clearly, that didn't work out for either of us."

"I guess not."

We looked at each other, then shared a laugh. I never thought I'd be joking about getting cheated on, but here I am. In a way... It felt liberating.

"By the way, where did you end up getting placed, Chihara?" I asked.

"Take a wild guess."

I pinched my chin.

"Well, Haruto let us choose what stall we wanted to man. Since you didn't choose the Ema stall despite liking it so much, that means you must've chosen something that you like even more—"

It clicked so fast in my head, and Chihara's smile made it all the more clear.

"No way you chose the boba stall," I scoffed.

"Hey~! That's exactly it! You know me so well, Kinoshita. If you find yourself feeling parched, swing by my stall, and I'll get you a free roasted oolong milk tea."

"Haha, I'll keep that in mind. Likewise, if you feel like making an Ema, just come my way."

"Mm, I don't think I'll have time. With how popular the boba stall is definitely gonna be, there's not gonna be a moment for me to step away. Oh! Hey! How about you make one for me?"

I crossed my arms, leaning back against the wall with a chuckle.

"That's not how it works, Chihara. An Ema is supposed to be meaningful to the person who creates it. I'm not you, so there's no way I could know what you want."

"But you have some kind of idea, don't you?"

"What? How could I—"

I froze when I looked at her. Really looked at her.

I've never been the best at taking hints. Knowing signs and reading body language? They're somewhere down with all the "Things I'm Terrible At" category. Good neighbors with Calculus, probably.

But right now... I feel like my mind is screaming at me to take the hint. And that hint? Chihara is standing in front of me, arms behind her back, eyes curling above the cutest smile.

"Kinoshita..." she whispered delicately. "I..."

Without thinking, I raised my hand and rested it on top of her head, catching both her and me off guard.

"K-Kinoshita?"

"Sorry," I chuckled as I let go. "I'm not even sure why I did that. Maybe you're starting to rub off on me, being a loose screw and all."

Her eyes widened, and thank God for that, because it meant she knew exactly what I was talking about. Just a few weeks ago, we went to the mall, and she decided it was a good idea to put her head under my hand.

"Anyway, what were you gonna say?" I asked.

Chihara hesitated for a moment, then shook her head.

"No. Never mind."

And she began walking away.

"Ah... Did I make a mistake?" I asked, a little panicked.

The moment she reached the door, she paused. With a deep breath, she turned her head just a little — not much, but just enough for me to see a thick red tinge above her trembling lips.

"No. Not at all," she said. "I just... Heh... We don't have to work the festival tomorrow, right? Are you gonna be there, Kinoshita?" 

"Huh? I mean... Yeah, I will."

"Good. I'll tell you then. But it sucks, because now..."

That was when she fully turned around. Just from that, I lost my breath.

"Now, I'm really looking forward to tomorrow," she smiled.

With that, Chihara ran off.

And as me... For a while longer, I stood there, unable to register everything that just happened. Then, as if my body finally caught up to my head, I stumbled back, hitting the wall.

There was something in my chest. It hurt, but it wasn't entirely unpleasant. Even as I clawed into it, it kept pounding faster and faster.

She likes me back. She actually likes me back. I mean, I don't really know that, but at this point, is there any reason for me to doubt it?

And now, with that in the back of my head... Suddenly, I'm looking forward to tomorrow, too.

"...Hah. Fuck."