A Date With Tachibana Sara

At School.

"Aoto, you finally recovered. I thought you were gonna die," Ikkun said as soon as I took my seat.

"Don't worry, I won't die earlier than you," I said, stretching my bandaged hands.

"Seems like you guys are talking about life and death," a voice chimed in. Ren.

Ikkun and I didn't react. We both looked away at the exact same second and pretended the air was more interesting.

"What? Bro, you two are really ignoring me like I am not here. You two are the only ones who ignore me. Because no one has ever ignored me before," Ren said, clutching his chest dramatically like a hero in a tragic movie.

It was becoming our favorite game — ignoring Ren Tachibana, the most popular guy in school.

At Lunch.

During lunch, Ikkun finally noticed.

"I didn't notice earlier, but why do you have bandages folded around your hands?" he asked, pointing with his chopsticks.

I quickly hid my hands under the table. "I just got hurt by some glass pieces. Nothing more."

Ren appeared out of nowhere with his tray and sat down without being invited. "Guys, wanna go out with me??"

Ikkun raised an eyebrow. "You have many friends to ask. Why are you asking us?"

Ren grinned. "I just wanted to go out with you two. My real friends are boring. You two are... interesting."

Ikkun looked at me. "Okay, where do you wanna go?"

"I'll pass," I said instantly.

"Then I'll pass too," Ikkun echoed.

Ren looked genuinely hurt. "Huh? Why, Aoto? Let's visit some places in Tokyo. We never hang out outside of school."

Ikkun scratched his head. "Well, it's not that bad though. Cause we both don't really take a step outside mostly."

I sighed. He was right. My entire life was school and apartment. "Fine."

And just like that, we agreed. And we went to karaoke.

I stood in front of the glittering karaoke building and stared at the sign.

"Can I ask why are we in karaoke???" I asked.

Ren looked proud of himself. "I don't know. Girls always invite me here, so I thought it must be a good place. It's supposed to be fun."

Ikkun crossed his arms. "Then start singing. Anyone of you two?"

"I don't know how to sing at all. And even if I knew, I still wouldn't sing," I said firmly.

"Me too," Ikkun added.

We both turned our heads slowly and looked at Ren. "You are the only one left here now, so sing anything," we said in unison.

Ren laughed nervously. "Hehe, I also don't know how to sing."

A vein popped on my forehead. "Then why did you take us here?"

"I told you that girls always invite me here, so I thought..." His voice trailed off.

Silence.

A long, awkward, painful silence filled the tiny karaoke room. The colorful lights kept flashing over our disappointed faces.

We again started glaring at Ren.

"I'm sorry, okay? Let's move to another place," Ren said, raising both hands in surrender.

So we left karaoke without singing a single note and went to a cafe nearby.

As soon as we sat down, I said, "We already ate lunch in school. So why are we here again?"

Ren opened the menu confidently. "I am hungry, dude. Don't worry, I'll pay for you two."

Ikkun's eyes sparkled. "If you are gonna pay, then we can eat."

"Why not?" I said with an evil smile. My wallet was safe today.

Ren sighed, but he was smiling. "I knew you two are stupid. Whatever, I'll still pay."

We ordered. While waiting for our food, I felt it again. That sharp, cold stare that prickles the back of your neck.

I looked up. My eyes scanned the cafe. And there she was.

Two tables away, sitting with her friends, was Tachibana Sara. She was looking straight at me. Not glancing. Not peeking. Staring. So hard, so directly, that I choked on air.

I quickly turned my face to the other direction and pretended to be very interested in the sugar packet. From the side of my eye, I checked again. She was still watching me. Her friends were talking, but she wasn't listening to them at all.

Then Ren, who has a radar for beautiful girls within a 100-meter radius, whispered, "Oh, you can see Tachibana is here too?"

We both nodded stiffly and said, "We can see."

Ren leaned in closer, his voice dropping. "What do you think? Should I go and confess my feelings to her?"

My chopsticks stopped mid-air.

Ikkun grinned, sensing drama. "Go. It will be entertaining for us, right, Aoto?"

I looked down at my bandaged palms. "Yeah, it will be," I said in a low voice.

Ren laughed. "Just kidding. I won't confess to her in front of everyone."

"Why?" I asked, before I could stop myself.

Ren became unusually serious. "Well, think about it. If I get rejected in front of everyone, then it will be so embarrassing, right? So I have decided to confess to her alone. So if I get rejected, still no one will know. It will be our secret."

Something about that logic irritated me.

"Just do it. I know she likes you," I blurted out.

Ren stared at me, surprised. "And how do you know she likes me? Do you stalk her?"

"Shut up, I'm not interested in stalking anyone," I snapped. "And I know she likes you because every girl from school has a crush on you, so maybe she also does."

Ikkun nodded like a wise philosopher. "Yeah, Aoto might be right."

We kept talking, but I wasn't listening anymore. My mind was somewhere else. I saw Sara standing up. She said something to her friends and started walking towards the exit. Our eyes met for one second as she passed our table. One second was enough. Her eyes weren't cold today. They looked... worried?

I looked at the clock. 5:00 p.m.

My heart stopped.

"Guys, I have to go now," I said, jumping up.

Ren frowned. "It's too early though. Why?"

"Just... actually, today my mom's gonna visit me, so I don't wanna be late," I lied. The truth was much scarier than my mom. If I didn't reach home before Sara, I was dead.

I said goodbye and started running toward our apartment like my life depended on it.

I reached our building, panting. The lights were on. The door was locked from inside.

She had already reached.

I knocked softly. The door opened. Sara stood there, her arms crossed, her face dark.

"Where were you?" she asked.

"I was with friends at a cafe," I said, trying to catch my breath.

"Who gave you permission to go to a cafe with friends?" she said, her voice sharp.

"I... actually... I am sorry!" I said.

Her expression suddenly changed. She stepped forward and placed her cold hands on my cheeks. Her hands were freezing, but her eyes were not angry anymore. They were filled with worry.

"I'm not forcing you to not go out with your friends, you idiot," she said quietly. "I just want you to notify me that you are going somewhere. What if I wasn't at the same cafe as you? Do you know how worried I was about you? I thought something happened to your hands again."

I felt incredibly guilty. She was at the same cafe because she was worried.

I lowered my head. "I'm sorry. I will notify you from next time. I promise."

She finally let go of my cheeks. "Come in and take some rest, because we are going shopping tomorrow."

I blinked. "Why? You can go with your friends."

She looked at me as if I had just said the most stupid thing in the world. "I said we are going tomorrow for shopping. You have any problem with that?"

I got scared and agreed instantly. "No problem at all!"

Next Day - The Shopping Trip.

The next morning, my door slammed open.

"Are you ready, idiot?" Sara stood in the doorway, fully dressed in a beautiful white dress, her hair tied perfectly.

I had dressed normally — hoodie, mask, cap pulled low so no one would recognize me.

"Yeah, I am ready," I said.

She stared at me from top to bottom. "Why are you wearing a mask and a cap? Are you a celebrity or something?"

"No, it's just that nobody will see you with me," I mumbled. I didn't want people to see the famous Tachibana Sara walking with someone like me. It would create stupid rumors for her.

She was silent for a moment, then her voice became softer. "I wouldn't mind if anyone saw me with you. But whatever. Let's go."

We started walking toward the shopping mall. The streets were crowded on a Sunday. People were turning to look at Sara, as usual. I tried to walk a step behind her.

And then, in the middle of the road, with cars passing by and people everywhere, she stopped. She held out her small hand toward me.

"Here. Take my hand," she said.

I stared at her hand. "Um... so?"

"Hold it," she ordered.

"Why?" I asked, my face burning under my mask.

She looked away, her cheeks faintly pink. "Boys always hold hands with a girl while they are on a date. That's how it is. Don't you watch romance movies?"

My brain crashed.

"A... a date?" I whispered.

She didn't answer. She just grabbed my bandaged hand very, very gently, careful not to hurt me, and intertwined her fingers with mine. Her hand was cold, but soft. She started walking again, holding my hand tightly, as if she was afraid I would let go.

And for some strange reason, I didn't pull away. I let her hold it.

We walked like that all the way to the mall — the most popular girl in school and the most invisible boy, holding hands in the middle of Tokyo.

Inside the mall, it was a nightmare for me and paradise for her. She dragged me into every single shop. I sat outside holding bags while she tried on clothes. One hour passed. Then two hours. Then three hours.

Finally, she came out with three paper bags.

I asked, "So what did you buy?"

She smiled proudly. "I bought three dresses for me. I'll show you when we reach home."

My eyes went wide. "You took three hours just to buy three dresses?"

She pouted. "Yeah, girls take time while choosing anything. It's not easy like boys."

We started returning home. The sun was already setting. The streets glowed orange. We were halfway home when she stopped again.

"Aoto, can you wait here for a moment?" she asked.

I asked, "Why?"

She looked a bit embarrassed. "Actually, I wanted to buy a phone case, but I forgot. The shop is back in the mall."

I said, "Okay, I'll walk with you back."

She shook her head quickly. "No, you are tired. Better you stay here and I'll be back in a minute. You are holding all the bags, after all."

I looked at the time. It was 6 p.m. and getting dark. The street we were on was quiet.

I said, "It's 6 p.m., Sara. It's not safe for you, though. Let me come."

She giggled and patted my head like I was a kid. "Aww, you care about me that much? Don't worry, I'll be back safely. Just wait here, okay? My hero?"

I stayed there, standing on the roadside with three shopping bags, watching her run back toward the mall. Her white dress fluttered in the wind.

Ten minutes passed. Then twenty. Then thirty. Then an hour.

The shopping mall was only ten minutes away from here.

I started getting worried. Really worried. I called her phone. No answer. I called again. No answer.

Something was wrong.

I left the bags under a bench and ran toward the mall. I checked the phone case shop. The shopkeeper said a girl in a white dress came and left 40 minutes ago.

My heart started beating violently. I started searching the side streets, calling her name in a low voice.

After another thirty minutes, I heard a faint voice from a small, dark street between two buildings. A street with no lights.

I went there. And my whole body started shaking. My eyes became all red. And I was refusing myself to believe what I was seeing in front of me.

Sara was there.