"Love…?"
The girl behind the table stared intently at their clasped hands, looking both speechless and exasperated.
Their fingers were clearly intertwined—so why bother with a fortune-telling about fate? If they weren't a couple, were they perhaps siblings?
"Yeah, yeah." Shouko pulled Akira closer to the table, eyeing the "crystal ball," which was clearly just a fish tank with colored lights inside.
"Ahem…" The girl in a black lace veil coughed lightly, regaining her composure.
"If I may ask, what is the relationship between the two of you?"
"Siblings."
"Childhood sweethearts."
They answered at the same time. Shouko's brow twitched, and she gave Akira's shoe a not-so-gentle step under the table.
"Isn't there any fortune-telling about fate?" she pressed.
"Yes, yes, just a moment…" The girl scrambled, pulling a brand-new deck of tarot cards from the drawer. "One hundred yen per reading, no bargaining."
"Okay." Shouko quickly fished change out of the hidden pocket of her sailor skirt and handed it over.
"This customer exudes a strong peach-blossom energy…" the girl said theatrically, shuffling the deck. "But it seems to be wrapped in a dark 'single barrier'!"
As she spoke, she spread the cards dramatically across the table. "Draw one card, and I will tell you how to break the barrier."
"…" Akira stared blankly. This hundred yen is basically paying for nonsense with props.
"Oh, oh… okay." Shouko nodded seriously, then nervously drew a card. "What does this mean?"
The girl saw it and exclaimed, "Love luck UP!"
On the card was a tiny figure with golden curls, small wings, and a heart-shaped bow.
Shouko blinked in surprise, a breath of relief escaping—only for the fortune-teller to cut in again:
"Congratulations! You drew Cupid, the God of Love! To break the barrier, you must bring your crush a homemade bento every day!"
Shouko's head snapped toward Akira, eyes wide. This coincidence is too suspicious…
"Do you want another fortune?" the girl asked quickly, already scooping up the cards.
"No, thank you. Let's go, Akira."
"Alright."
Shouko politely thanked her and led him out. Since there were others nearby, it wasn't a good place for whispers.
"Have a good day, you two," the girl called, waving. But as she did, the tarot deck slipped from her hands.
She bent quickly to gather them up. A sharp glance confirmed that the "Cupid" cards all had different suits. Breathing a sigh of relief, she tucked them away.
After leaving the fortune-telling classroom, they strolled again, though many stalls were already closing.
They still managed to stop at five or six booths before leaving through the school gate.
The setting sun stretched their shadows long across the street.
The cuffs of Shouko's sailor uniform and the hem of Akira's stand-collar jacket swayed gently, just a hand's breadth apart.
As they counted the steps from the third utility pole to the railroad crossing, their school bags knocked together, startling a flock of pigeons from the wire above.
Twilight poured from the eaves like indigo ink. At the convenience store, the door hissed open, spilling harsh light across the street.
"There's still one more day of the festival. I have to work in the kitchen again tomorrow… I'm so tired, Akira…" Shouko flopped onto his bed, kicking her legs as she complained.
"Yes, yes, yes."
At his desk, Akira understood her hint. He got up and walked over, hands ready to massage.
"What are you doing?" Shouko lifted her foot, dodging.
"Didn't you want me to help you relax?" He paused mid-motion.
Slap! She smacked his arm. "Who starts with the feet? You up to something perverted?"
"I just like starting there, is that not allowed?" Akira grinned, catching her hand instead and massaging with gentle pressure.
Shouko rolled her eyes, but closed them anyway. To be fair, his massage was comfortable—though she still remembered that technically, she owed him five of them.
If only he were the one in her debt, hehe…
"Shouko?"
"…Are you asleep?"
Twenty minutes later, she still hadn't answered. Akira sighed, pulled a blanket over her, and quietly picked up his laptop.
Downstairs, Miyamura Shizuka was absorbed in a drama.
"Where's Shouko?" she asked, seeing him alone.
"She was too tired and fell asleep," Akira explained, plopping onto the sofa with his laptop.
"Figures." Shizuka didn't press further. She trusted her son—and frankly, if he had any designs, he wouldn't wait until the girl was asleep.
The room fell into the rhythm of keystrokes and TV chatter.
Akira was typing Your Lie in April. Over the years, his memories of past-life novels had begun to blur. He still remembered the key scenes, but smaller details slipped further away with time.
That was why he wrote quickly, reconstructing each volume from memory before polishing later.
From Anohana in sixth grade until now, he had already finished several famous ones.
Shouko knew, but chose not to read.
"Can you keep it down? You're distracting me," Shizuka complained, turning her head.
"I'm just fixing details and typos," Akira lied smoothly. No way he'd tell her it was a whole new project—she'd never believe "from a past life" was a real answer.
"Fine, but let me read it when you're done."
"Yes, yes…"
A cushion promptly smacked him in the head.
Later that night, when Shizuka told him to sleep at Shouko's place, Akira flatly refused.
Instead, he went upstairs and gently shook the sleeping girl awake.
"Five more minutes…" Shouko mumbled, swatting him away.
He pinched her cheeks until she sat up, pouting.
"You're so mean, Akira. I just wanted a little nap."
"It's almost eleven," he pointed to the clock.
She blinked, yawned, then patted the space beside her. "Then just squeeze in with me…"
He looked at her in silence. She looked away.
"Good night," she muttered, escaping with a soft slap to his arm.
"Good night."
The next morning, November air glittered cold and bright.
"Are you going to school today too?" Akira asked, towel in hand.
"Of course," Shizuka replied. "I even reserved three tickets for the play."
"Three? Dad's going too?"
"No, Yaeko is," Shizuka corrected.
At breakfast, Shouko arrived and greeted his parents before sitting down beside him.
A few minutes later, after hurried goodbyes, Akira and Shouko stepped out together.
"Uncle, Auntie, we're leaving!"
"Take care of each other!"
On the way, Shouko sighed. "We never get enough time to see everything at the festival."
"Then next year," Akira said, giving her hand a squeeze. "We still have two more, don't we?"
"It's different every year. If you miss it, you miss it." Her eyes brightened. "But what I'm really looking forward to is the school trip."
Akira chuckled helplessly.
They crossed at the light, the November wind tugging at uniforms and scarves, their steps falling in sync.
--------------
Support me at patréon com/Lukas25