"You're here."
"Well. Yeah—so, what exactly are we doing today?"
Seeing Eriri standing before him, Haruto let out a long, exhausted sigh.
"Is seeing me really that painful? Do I bother you that much?"
"No. I just didn't get enough rest, and the walk over here wore me out. It has nothing to do with you. As for today's task… same as before: moving the posters, setting up the booth, right?"
"Mm."
Haruto had helped Eriri with these things before—setting up her booth at comic conventions. Though it had been quite some time since then, the process was still roughly the same in his memory.
The actual sale of the doujinshi would take place tomorrow, once the event began. Alternatively, they could haul everything to the booth in the middle of the night and guard the spot until the exhibition officially opened.
Because of her age, Eriri wasn't allowed to personally appear at the booth. The one actually selling the doujinshi would be her mother, Sayuri. But it was unrealistic to expect her to handle the booth all day alone—hence, Haruto's involvement.
"Let's just get this over with quickly. I even had to take time off from cram school for this."
"Cram school?"
As they walked into the house, Eriri looked at Haruto with a strange expression, her gaze filled with surprise and curiosity.
"Is that really so strange? Since I already decided not to get tangled up with you... I've got to handle everything on my own. It's not bad to quietly work on some stories or creative writing. All I want now is a peaceful life."
"I don't see how you look like someone aiming for a 'peaceful life.' You've got more than one girl at school entangled with you. Are you really sure you can handle all those relationships?"
"Why would I need to 'handle' them?"
Haruto's indifferent reply made it clear he was well aware of the situation. Among the girls who had a connection with him, there was only Rio Futaba and Koharu Otori who could be considered genuinely close. Neither were the overly clingy or emotionally volatile type.
As for Ichika Nakano—he hadn't spoken to her in quite a while. They hadn't seen each other or exchanged a single message during the entire summer break.
Anyone else?
Maybe... Yoshida Saki?
Even she hadn't contacted him for a while. She seemed to be living a peaceful life, getting along well with classmates at school.
"What kind of reaction would those girls have if they heard you talking so irresponsibly?"
"Who knows. But whatever they think... doesn't concern you, does it?"
His bluntness made Eriri click her tongue and storm into the house. Haruto followed behind her, eyes drifting across the familiar surroundings, and soon they both arrived at the living room.
"Miyamizu-kun, it's been a while. Thanks for helping out today."
Sitting on the couch was Sayuri. When she saw Haruto enter, a strange emotion stirred in her heart. The faint flutter in her chest puzzled her—it felt as though she had been transported back to her own youthful school days.
The odd sensation made her wonder if it was simply because she hadn't exercised much lately and her condition was deteriorating.
"It's no trouble."
Haruto, feeling a small ripple in his otherwise calm heart, kept a tight grip on his self-control. He nodded politely to Sayuri and followed Eriri toward the studio.
While Eriri usually did her illustrations in her bedroom, the printing of the doujinshi was handled in a dedicated room in the Sawamura residence.
When Haruto opened the door, he saw a full set of equipment and stacks of printed doujinshi on the floor. The sheer volume made him sigh.
"This isn't something one person can move easily."
"It's only about three hundred books. That's not so bad, is it?"
Seeing Eriri's response, Haruto muttered:
"Carry them yourself."
"You're telling a girl to move all of this on her own?"
"You can carry two."
"You—!"
Eriri glared at him in frustration. But after a moment, she lowered her head and began lifting the stacks herself. Trying to carry too many at once—about 40 copies—she quickly found herself swaying.
Crash—
Books tumbled to the floor. Eriri almost fell but was caught by Haruto, who held her by the arms.
Holding her arms and feeling her delicate weight, Haruto stabilized her before gently letting go.
Without saying a word, Eriri lowered herself and began gathering the books, hugging them to her chest. Haruto picked up around 30 copies and walked out. After a brief hesitation, Eriri picked up 20 or so and followed behind him.
Back and forth they went nearly ten times, moving all 300+ doujinshi to the car parked outside.
"We'll use a trolley at the venue," Eriri said. "Just borrow one to move everything inside. Now we just need the posters. Do you have them all?"
"Yes, they're in the car already."
"You didn't forget anything, did you?"
"No."
Haruto casually closed the car door.
"I'll go get my mom."
"Alright."
As Eriri went back into the house, Haruto stood by the car, his eyes scanning the familiar front yard.
Same place, different time. But being here again brought back memories that stirred something inside.
Things weren't the same anymore.
He understood that clearly. Yet, standing here still caused his thoughts to drift back.
He didn't have much interest in conventions. In fact, being part of the staff made the whole thing even duller.
"This year's turnout looks way bigger than last year. Feels like tomorrow's going to be hectic."
When she stepped down from the car, Eriri had already put on her mask and sunglasses. But her bright blonde hair was completely unhidden. Haruto turned away, glancing at Sayuri who was also getting out of the car.
"What are you planning to do, Eriri?"
"Mm? I'll go in with you."
Eriri handed over the exhibitor badges to Haruto and her mother, keeping one for herself as she prepared to head inside with them to help set up the booth.
"Then let's go together."
The doujinshi didn't need to be moved inside yet. The three of them entered the convention hall with the posters, and began setting up their booth. It wasn't a particularly complicated task, but it wasn't easy either. Just locating their designated booth in the large venue took some time.
Once they arrived at their spot, it took even more time to hang the posters and decorate everything. By the time they were done, the heat inside the venue had left Haruto drenched in sweat.
"Whew, that's all for now. Looks good, right?"
He looked toward the two others for confirmation. Eriri had no objections, and Sayuri looked around and nodded as well. She then began tidying up some trash, and the three of them left the venue together.
"We can rest tonight. Tomorrow's the real battle."
"Want to go eat together?"
Faced with Eriri's invitation, Haruto gently shook his head.
"Someone's waiting for me. I'll pass. I've also got to check in on something from yesterday."
"Yesterday?"
"Nothing important. Well then, I'll be going."
Without offering much explanation, Haruto simply said goodbye to Sayuri and headed toward the subway station. Watching his back, Sayuri turned her gaze to her daughter.
After walking straight to the station, Haruto boarded the train and quietly stood inside, glancing at the other passengers before lowering his head in silence.
When he arrived back at his apartment, he entered, walked straight into the bathroom, and turned on the shower.
The sound of water cascading calmed him down. Afterward, he walked to the balcony, looked across at the Kiyoura residence, then let the sheer curtain fall behind him, leaving only a slight gap. He turned on the air conditioner and sat down at his desk, facing his laptop.
"No progress at all..."
He'd already written quite a bit—around 100,000 words. Enough for a short novel, but his goal from the start had been at least 200,000. And now, he had no idea how to continue.
Thinking back to that dream he had a while ago, Haruto closed his laptop with a sigh, leaned back, and stared up at the ceiling. A sense of aimlessness lingered in his chest as he sat there in silence, dwelling on questions he usually avoided.
Lately, he had started to feel a strange fatigue hanging over him.
"Just cram school shouldn't be this exhausting..."
He muttered to himself, looked down at the notebook beside him, then slowly stood up and lay down on his bed.
When he woke up, warm wind was blowing into the room.
He slowly opened his eyes and sat up, only to find the room shrouded in darkness.
"It's night already?"
He didn't know the exact time. Still hazy, Haruto sat up and looked toward the balcony. The warm breeze continued to flow in, and his sluggish body wobbled as he got to his feet.
He shuffled over to the balcony, looked across at the Kiyoura home across the way.
The lights were still on—they weren't asleep yet.
But he didn't feel like disturbing anyone. Nor did he want to do anything. Slowly, he leaned against the balcony doorframe and sat down, gazing out at the city lights and listening to the sounds of insects. He couldn't help but close his eyes.
"Haah—"
Maybe it was because he had seen Sayuri earlier. Or maybe it was something else entirely. Either way, he felt completely drained. Everything was tiring. He didn't want to think, didn't want to act.
"Even... breathing feels difficult."
There were moments like this, when the weight of everything became too much. So many tangled emotions, too many expectations—just thinking about them hurt.
What's the point of living?
Love, hate, entanglements?
Walking a path paved by others' expectations, carrying the burden of someone else's dreams, becoming a puppet that only moves when pulled by someone else's strings. If no one tells him what to do, he stands still.
—Keep walking. Don't stop. Stopping means falling into a bottomless pit. Stop, and you'll shatter.
His hand pressed against his forehead, his expression twisted in pain.
Falling in love Sayuri—maybe that was his form of rebellion. A protest against the obedient, boring life he'd led. But the result of that rebellion...
Just keep living.
Don't resist too much. Live quietly, peacefully.
Listless on the balcony, Haruto slowly opened his eyes and looked up at the moon hanging high in the sky. He let out a long, heavy sigh and stood up.
Grabbing only his wallet, he left the apartment and began wandering the night streets. Under the streetlamps' glow, he walked forward step by step, without a destination. Staying home tonight would've served no purpose—there was nothing he wanted to do.
Neon lights flickered red and green at the edge of his vision. His normally straight posture was slightly hunched, hands in his pockets, eyes cast downward as he moved along the path ahead—
Society places a lot of restrictions on minors. Some businesses ignore them for profit, but most follow the rules to avoid trouble.
There were plenty of patrol officers on the night streets. Safety wasn't much of a concern—so long as he stayed away from alleys and shadowy corners.
"You're asking to stay at my place for free again?"
"Mm-hmm."
Up ahead, he heard voices. Looking over, he saw a girl squatting beneath a streetlamp, and a drunken young man who looked every bit the tired corporate worker.
~~~~~~~~~~
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