Chapter 10

[Sayaka]

I always wake up before Seiji does, whether it is in this universe or my native universe.

The Seiji in this universe was kind enough to let me sleep on his bed. I wanted him to sleep in the same bed as me so that we could cuddle, but he adamantly refused.

Honestly, it took me a while to accept the fact that Seiji and I weren't going out in this universe. Instead the Seiji of this universe rejected me entirely.

It was as if God wanted to fulfill my wish and deny me my wish at the same time.

I suppose God does have a sense of humor.

I got out of bed, and saw Seiji sleeping on the sofa in the living room.

Heh-heh~

When he was asleep like this, he was so exposed.

I leaned down and tucked my hair behind my ear. His lips were just inches away.

Hnghh~

I really wanted to kiss him. I still remember how the Seiji from my universe kissed me.

An acute pain formed in my chest, and there was a lump in my throat.

I shouldn't think about what happened in my home universe. God has given me this one chance to be happy, and I should make the most of it.

The Seiji of this universe would get mad if I kissed him on the lips. After all, from his point of view, I wasn't his lover, but just a runaway brat.

I gently kissed him on the cheek.

I'll just have settle with this for now.

A little while later, Seiji woke up. I heard him yawn and mumble something.

"Sayaka?"

"I'm in the kitchen. Wake up, and eat breakfast, or else you'll be late for work."

"Mhhh, okay."

Without turning around, I could hear where he was in the apartment. Even though he was a little different from the Seiji I knew, the way he moved and yawned were still the same.

He came out of the bathroom, freshly shaven. I made him his cup of coffee. He drank it, and his soul returned to this body.

"This is good."

"Thanks~ Now eat up."

"Itadakimasu."

After breakfast he got dressed and went to work.

"I'm off."

"Have a safe trip~"

I smiled and waved slightly. This had been our daily morning routine ever since I arrived in this universe. I was starting to feel like a young newlywed housewife, and I think Seiji was beginning to get used to this lifestyle.

Maybe I could get him to accept this marriage form after all?

Heh-heh~

After Seiji left, I began to do the daily household chores. I started with the laundry.

I smiled.

The Seiji in this universe was so kind to me, even though I had caused him nothing but trouble by suddenly showing up in this apartment in the form of convenience store bread.

I hugged the clothes he bought me close to my chest.

"Seiji..."

I thought of the Seiji I knew in my home universe. I recalled the times we had together. Before I knew it, I had begun to cry, and my tears soaked the clothes I held.

"Ku...ug..." I wiped my nose.

Why couldn't God place me in a universe where Seiji and I were already lovers?

No… I shouldn't think like this. God had already broken cosmic laws to get me here. I should be grateful to be where I am.

After putting the laundry in the washing machine, I washed the dishes and cleaned the floor. Once the laundry was done, I hung it up on the balcony.

"Okay, now time for some shopping."

The fridge was empty; I saw in a magazine ad that there was a special sale at the supermarket today.

I left the house wearing my uniform. Until my clothes dried, I'll just have to keep wearing this.

Hmm...what if someone saw me and asked why I wasn't at school? I could just say that I was doing a little shopping for home economics.

JKs really did occupy a special position in society. We were idolized as the height of youth, and our uniform made us easy to identify. Although I heard a rumor that men these days preferred older, more mature woman — the older sister type.

"Hmm..." I looked at myself in the window reflection of a store I was passing by. Am I not to Seiji's liking? Did the Seiji from this universe prefer the older sister type? In that case, it would make things difficult for me.

But I'm sure that my breasts were large enough compared to the older sister type. Although Seiji had shown no interest when I undid the top three buttons of my uniform.

On my way to the supermarket, I passed by my old home, the home where I grew up in and lived before I got married to Seiji.

My parents lived in this house, or at least the parents of the Sayaka who is a native to this universe. I wonder what they were doing. According to Seiji, my parents weren't worried about me due to cosmic dissonance.

"Ah! I'm late, I'm late!"

A familiar voice sounded. My voice.

But I hadn't said anything.

I watched the door of my old home open, and a high school girl stepped out. This high school girl was Yamamoto Sayaka.

"Eh?"

I stared at her for a moment. She was a slightly younger version of me. She was second year Sayaka.

"I'm leaving," she said and closed the door.

I quickly hid around the corner, behind a telephone pole.

Second year Sayaka walked past me. She was humming a song. She seemed to be in a good mood.

I looked at her.

It was me, there was no doubt about it.

The person I was a year ago.

My heart beat fast. I thought Seiji said the Sayaka from this world disappeared when I appeared.

Why was second year Sayaka here?!

I stayed where I was, frozen in place.

It shouldn't be possible for two of me to exist in this world.

If that was the case, then why was this happening?

I looked down at my hands. I was still here. I looked down at my feet. My body was still casting a shadow.

I still existed in flesh and blood. Which meant that cosmic laws had been broken and there were two of me.

Breathe in, breathe out. Calm down.

I emerged from my hiding spot and followed second year Sayaka. Just in case, I put on the cap and face mask Seiji had given me. This way, if anyone saw me, they wouldn't recognize me.

Second year Sayaka walked at a leisurely pace even though she was late for school. She even stopped to play with a cat on the way.

She took the long way to school, walking through the shopping arcade and greeted a few people whom we both knew — shop managers whom we had both known since childhood.

When I walked past, these same people shot me an odd glance, but didn't show any other reaction.

This confirmed that both me and the second year me were visible to the other people.

We were both real.

A little while later, we reached our school - Kimura High.

Just before she was entered the school gates, second year Sayaka turned around and looked directly at me.

Our eyes met.

She smiled and waved.

Then she turned and walked into our school.

I stood there, unable to process what had just happened.

Second year me knew that I was following her, that was undeniable. But this version of me didn't seem to be bothered the least by what was going on.

And that look in her eyes when she smiled.

That wasn't me. That wasn't Sayaka.

Cold sweat ran down my back. I felt the sudden urge to throw up. I leaned against a telephone pole, breathing deeply, my heart beating fast.

I looked at Kimura High.

Seiji was in there. Second year me would just walk in like that. How would Seiji react?

There was no point staying here. If any other late student saw me, it would be troublesome.

I gathered my strength and stumbled back home.

[Seiji]

I took attendance.

"Tanaka."

"Here."

"Ogasawara."

"Here."

"Takahashi."

"Here."

I went through the class list, and all students were present, with the exception of Sayaka.

"Yamamoto."

Nothing.

I glanced at Tanaka. She was the only one who glanced at Sayaka's desk, looking concerned. The rest of the class didn't react at all when no one answered. It was as if they hadn't heard me.

A shiver went down my spine.

This was still kind of creepy, if you think about it. Like a horror movie where everyone except the main character begins to act weird.

Tanaka raised her hand.

"Yes?"

"Sensei, I met Sayaka over the weekend, and she said that she won't be able to attend school for a while, but she is fine."

"I see. Thank you for telling me."

The rest of the class didn't react at all, like they couldn't hear what Tanaka said.

I watched Tanaka's reaction. She glanced at the people around her, none of whom showed any concern. Some people stared out of the window, others played with the stationary in their pencil cases.

Something changed in Tanaka's expression. She was feeling the same sense of creepiness I was feeling.

I had to change the atmosphere quickly.

"Let's begin class," I said. "Pass your homework to the person in front of you."

Class started uneventfully.

I collected the homework, then began teaching from where we left off last time. After I finished the lecture, students raises their hands to ask questions. I made sure to pay special attention to the weaker students, since they were prone to fall behind, and if ignored, tend to lose hope and give up.

After an hour, the class was over.

"Alright, that's enough for today," I said. "For next class, focus on pages — "

The classroom door slid open, interrupting me.

"Sorry, I'm late~"

A second year high school girl stood there, with one strap of her bag dangling off her shoulder.

It was Yamamoto Sayaka.

I stared at her. I forgot to breathe. I could hear my heartbeat in my ears.

"Sayaka?" Tanaka stood up.

"Ayumi!" Then she looked at me. "Sorry I'm late Sato-sensei. I just couldn't wake up today because the alarm clock app on my phone didn't work for some reason. It really isn't my fault."

I blinked a few times.

"R-Right, just sit down at your desk. Come see me during lunch."

"Okay~"

She waved slightly at Tanaka on her way to her desk, then sat down.

For a moment I stood at the lectern, thinking. This was Yamamoto Sayaka, but somehow I got the feeling that this wasn't the Sayaka who was living in my apartment. This Sayaka gave off a different vibe…

Was she the original second year Sayaka?

If was that was the case, did the third year Sayaka in my apartment go back to her native universe? Had the timelines gone back to normal?

The rest of the class didn't seem perturbed by her sudden appearance. It was as if they couldn't see her at all.

Was cosmic dissonance still in effect?