"Hey come play with us!" The pink haired girl shouted. "Okay!" Young Ishihara answered. The two were on a playground, but it wasn't just them. Another girl was with them. The brown haired girl was also playing with them. "What are we gonna play?" The brown haired girl asked. "Let's play hide and seek!" The pink haired answered. "I'll seek!" Young Ishihara said. "Run!" The brown haired girl shouted. Young Ishihara starts to count and the two girls run and hide. Ishihara finishes counting and goes to try to find the girls. He first searched the slides, no one was in there. Next he checked the top of the slides, there he saw the brown haired girl getting ready to slide. He sneaks up on her and pushes her down. "I found you!" Young Ishihara said. "Aaah!" The brown haired girl yelled, sliding down the slide. Ishihara runs down and sees her at the end of the slide sitting down. "You caught me, I thought I found a good spot." The brown haired girl said in disappointment. "Yeah I did." Young Ishihara said proudly. "Well then I'm gonna wait over there." The brown haired girl said, walking over to their parents. "Wait! Do you know where she is?" Young Ishihara asked. "Sorry, but that's a secret. She walks over to their parents and sits down next to her mother.
"Did you get caught first?" The brown haired girl's mother asked. "Yeah, you weren't kidding. He really is smart." The brown haired girl answered. "Well we can have Ice cream after the two finish their game of hide and seek." The pink haired girl's mother said. Ishihara was now searching through the trees. He steps over branches and stone and hears sniffling in front of gim. He walks over there silently and sees the pink haired girl sitting with her knee injured. "Are you okay Taff?" Young Ishihara questioned, going to check on her knee. "I-it hurts a-and it won't st-stop bleeding." Taff answered, wiping her tears. "It's going to be fine all right. Here." Young Ishihara said, pulling out a handkerchief. He wiped the tears from her face and gave her it. "Can you get up?" Young Ishihara questioned. Taff nods her head and Young Ishihara helps her up. "Lean on my shoulder." Young Ishihara said. "Okay." Taff said. She leans on his shoulder and they both walk towards the playground, Ishihara was making sure she didn't trip or fall. They both get out of the forest with no problems and see their parents and the brown haired girl sitting under the canopy. "Mom!" Ishihara yelled. His mom looks towards their direction and sees both of them and runs over to them. "What happened!" Ishihara's mother questioned.
"I tripped in the forest trying to find a spot. I fell and hurt my knee and it started to bleed." Taff answered. "My taffy! Are you ok?" Taff's mother shouted, hugging her tightly. "I'm okay. I'm okay." Taff answered, hugging her mother back.Young Ishihara goes next to his mother and watches this moment. "How about we go get ice cream?" Ishihara's mother asked. "Yeah!" The kids shouted. "But first we got to patch your knee." Taff's mother said. She picks up Taff and they all go out of the park. "Hara." Taff whispered. "What?" Young Ishihara questioned, tilting his head. "Do you want your handkerchief back?" Taff asked. "Keep it." Young Ishihara answered.
"Taff?" Ishihara said, just waking up from his sleep. He gets up and looks out the windows. It was still dark out with the moon out. "Still dark out, huh." Ishihara said. He stretches for a bit before checking the time on his phone. "Just five o'clock, I have an idea." Ishihara thought in his head. He grabs some clothes and goes downstairs quietly, and of course the floor boards creak. "Shush!" Ishihara said. He goes to the bathroom and takes a quick shower. He finishes and dries himself off. "I forgot to grab a sweater." Ishihara said in his head in shock. He goes back upstairs quietly, but of course the same floor boards creak. "Goddammit!" Ishihara said in his head. He goes to his room and grabs his sweater from his rack. He then sees his story plot planner notebook. "Should I?" Ishihara questioned himself. "On one hand, I can write outside peacefully. On the other hand, I can get caught by someone I know." Ishihara said, being indecisive from his decisions. He picks up the notebook and looks at it before coming to a decision. "Time to go." Ishihara said, walking downstairs, putting the notebook in his pocket. He walks out the house and walks down the dimly lit street. He walked past Iwai's shop, a room was lit and he saw her at her desk. "Wow, she still is awake at this time." Ishihara said, stopping to see what she was doing. He sees Iwai look at the stars and then look down at the street, she sees him and goes to open the window.
"What are you doing this early in the morning?" Iwai shouted from her window. "Shush! You'll wake your neighbors." Ishihara said, putting his fingers on his mouth. "Haah, come to the entrance." Iwai said, immediately closing the window. She shuts her lights in the room and runs to get downstairs, Ishihara does what she said from the window. He walks to the front and sees Iwai come from the stairs next to the kitchen door. She runs over to the door and unlocks it. "Come in, don't want you getting sick.." Iwai said, keeping the door open for him. "All right, but you do know it's warm, not cold?" Ishihara asked, coming into her shop. "I know, but still, you might get sick. Plus… I was feeling lonely." Iwai said, her hand squeezing her arm. "Chill, I have until seven o'clock." Ishihara said, sitting at a nearby table. "OH really." Iwai said, her mood shifting immediately. He smiles and Iwai comes over and sits next to him. "Can you tell me why you were out there this early?" Iwai questioned. Ishihara was looking at the notebook he brought and remembers that he didn't bring anything to write with. "Damn it!" Ishihara shouted, facepalming himself. "What's wrong?" Iwai asked. "I forgot to bring something to write with. I'm such an idiot." Ishihara said, clearly disappointed in himself.
"Wait here." Iwai said. She goes to the front and grabs a red pen from a drawer and brings it to him. "Here, use this." Iwai said, giving him the pen. "Thanks." Ishihara said, opening his notebook. He starts writing and Iwai watches him as he writes. Her gaze was focused on his quick writing and the way he writes. It wasn't messy or perfect, but it was in the middle of both. "I'm gonna grab something, okay?" Iwai said. Ishihara doesn't answer and Iwai just sighs. She goes to the kitchen and prepares lemonade and hot cocoa for herself. "I'm back, here." Iwai said. She walks over and puts the drink down for the both of them. "OH, thank you Iwai." Ishihara said, taking a sip of lemonade. "You're welcome, may I ask about what you are writing?" Iwai asked, looking at the notebook. "Um… just writing a plot for my next chapter. " Ishihara answered. "What's the plot?" Iwai asked again. "Just a teenage boy going to a mall with his friends." Ishihara answered again, showing her the notebook. It was filled with words, from top to bottom. Iwai saw a few words that caught her eyes. "Revealed? Dress? Smiled?" Iwai questioned, skimming through the plot.
Ishihara snatches the notebook away and closes it. "That's it no more." Ishihara said, his face turning a bit red. "That plot seemed to be an if scenario." Iwai commented, taking a sip of her hot cocoa. "Even if it's an if scenario, it's still an if. It might happen." Ishihara said, shrugging. She sighs and takes another sip of her drink. "That's just like you, huh." Iwai commented, as she started to smile. "Why are you looking at me like that?" Ishihara questioned. "Nothing. You just reminded me of myself." Iwai answered. She sees her younger self within Ishihara. After a short while the clock hit six fifty and Ishihara started to put his things away in his pocket. "Leaving already?" Iwai asked, preparing the shop for the day. "Yeah, I don't want to be in your way. Bye." Ishihara answered, leaving the shop. Iwai waves him off and finishes on what she was doing. Ishihara walks home and feels like he forgot to do something. "Crap. I forgot to give her back her fountain pen." Ishihara said in his head, facepalming himself. "I'll give it back when I come for a drink." Ishihara said, looking at the sky. "Where is he?" Mari said. Mari was busy preparing his bento and she couldn't find him. "Could he have already gone to school I wonder." Mari said in her head.
She hears the front door open and goes to see Ishihara taking off his shoes. He sees her and waves his hand. "Where were you?" Mari questioned, her arms crossed. "I was at Iwai's shop." Ishihara answered nervously. He looks away and Mari looks at him with doubting eyes. "Aah, fine. Get your bag and leave, it's about time for school." Mari said, going back to the kitchen to finish his bento. "Right." Ishihara said, going upstairs and into his room. He sees his bag on the chair, but he also sees something else. "Been a while since I saw you." Ishihara said, looking at the four-leafed clover given to him, but in a pendant. He puts the pendant around his neck and hears Mari calling him from downstairs. "It's about to hit seven!" Mari yelled from downstairs. "Aah! I'm coming!" Ishihara shouted. He rushes downstairs and goes to put on his shoes. "Here's your bento big brother." Mari said, giving him his bento for the day. "Thank you Riri. You're such a good child." Ishihara said, patting Mari on the head. "I'm not a small kid anymore… just go!" Mari said with a pouty face. She pushes him out and he starts to run to school. "Bye big brother!" Mari yelled, shutting the door after she couldn't see him any more.
He runs and passes the same clock from yesterday. He stops and takes some time to catch his breath. "I have some time before the first period." Ishihara said. He hears steps behind him and looks to see who it was. He sees no one and thinks it was probably the wind. Before he could start running again, someone comes behind him and grabs him. "Aah!" Ishihara yelled, sounding a bit female. "Wow your scream really is that." A female voice commented. He saw red hair from the corner of his eye. "Yeah it was really cute." Another female voice commented. "What is wrong with you?" A third female voice asked. "I thought it was cute too." A fourth female voice added. He looks back and it was Yumi the red haired girl, Haruko the brown haired girl, Saya the blond haired girl, and finally Reina the black haired girl. "Haah, hey girls." Ishihara said. "Hey Ishihara, sorry for Yumi scaring you." Haruko said, with a small smile. "It's ok." Ishihara said. "Hey Ishihara, nice necklace." Reina said. "Rei, that's a pendant, not a necklace." Saya commented. "What's the difference?" Reina asked. "The difference is one is a standalone piece, the other is easily customizable. Mine is just on a necklace." Ishihara answered, showing his pendent off.
"Woah cool. Is that a four-leafed clover?" Yumi asked. "Yep, just a treasured thing from my childhood." Ishihara answered. Haruko looks at a clock and sees it is about to be the first period. Before Reina could say anything, Haruko started to speak. "Hey everyone." Haruko said. "Yes?" Everyone except Haruko said. "It's about to be the first period." Haruko answered. Ishihara upon hearing this, started to run leaving everyone behind. "Hey wait!" Reina yelled. Even though she yelled, Ishihara didn't stop. "We should get going too." Saya said. "Yeah we should." Yumi added. "All right, time to go." Reina said. They all started to run to school as well. Ishihara makes it there and puts his shoes away in his locker. He then goes to class and was surprisingly there five minutes before the first period. "Wow, you're here early, huh?" Ren said. He was sitting at the desk next to Ishihara's and was scrolling through his phone. "Hey Ren. Man, I'm exhausted." Ishihara said, going to sit at his desk. Ren sees the pendant on Ishihara's neck and starts to tease him for it. "Hey is that pendant from your girlfriend?" Ren said teasingly. "No it isn't!" Ishihara shouted, his face beginning to become red.
"Just kidding just kidding." Ren said. Ishihara knows he's joking and just takes a deep breath and puts his head down. "Rough night?" Ren asked, looking at him. "Just woke up too early." Ishihara answered. While they were talking, Reina and the girls entered the classroom. "Hey Ishi, Rei wants to speak to you. Ishi?" Yumi said, her expression confused. "Hey, Ishihara is asleep. He woke up a little too early." Ren said. "That couldn't be? He was just so full of energy when I met him?" Yumi questioned, scratching her head. "Hey Ishihara, wake up!" Ren shouted. "That's not going to wake him up." Haruko said. "Taff… please don't do that." Ishihara said in his sleep. The group was confused except Saya and Reina. "Taff? Who's that?" Haruko questioned. "Yeah, who is she? And why is her name after taffy?" Yumi added. "Probably just a nickname." Haruko answered. "Hey you two, got a way to wake him up?" Ren asked, poking his head. "I do." Saya answered, going next to Ishihara. She whispers something into his ear, and the next second Ishihara is awake. "Taff it's me Hara!" Ishihara shouted, startling everyone next to him.
"Hara?" Reina mumbled. She thinks for a second and remembers a boy from her childhood. A younger boy with black hair and a younger sister. She connects the dots and finally understands that Ishihara was the boy she was waiting for. Instead of her telling him that's her, she wants to wait if he can connect the dots too. "Hey did you say something Rei?" Saya asked, now in front of Reina. "Yes Saya?" Reina asked back. "You were lost in thought weren't you?" Ren said. "No I wasn't… okay maybe." Reina answered, her cheeks puffing up. The teacher arrives and tells everyone to sit down. "Okay everyone sit down. Class is starting now." Ms. Saito said. Everyone goes to their seats, Reina gets to her seat and keeps on looking at Ishihara. She couldn't believe that Ishihara was the person she was looking for a very long time, that name and pendant was the selling point. The school passes with no trouble, besides a few talks there and there about Ishihara. Ishihara just kept out all the drama about him and just went on with his day. It was the beginning of lunch and Ishihara was about to leave for lunch. "Hey, where are you going?" Ren asked.
"Going to find a spot for lunch." Ishihara answered. "Well go find one then, don't let me stop you." Ren said, getting up from his desk and going next to Ishihara. "Going to buy bread?" Ishihara asked. "You know it." Ren answered, winking and giving a thumbs up. Ren goes to the school store and Ishihara goes to find a quiet spot to enjoy his lunch. He walks all over the school before settling on a bench outside in some shade from the canopy of trees. "Nice, a spot with shade, away from people, and best of all. No loud people whatsoever." Ishihara said to himself, taking out his bento. "Hey, can I sit next to you?" A female voice asked. "Wait, that tone is so gentle and calm." Ishihara said in his head. He looks up and sees Saya with a bento in her hand and is staring at him. "Yes you can." Ishihara answered. "Thank you." Saya said, sitting down right next to him. She sits at a respectful distance and she sees the bento on Ishihara's lap. "Wanna compare our bentos?" Saya asked. "That's what little kids do." Ishihara commented. Saya looked disappointed and sad at the same time, she looked at her bento as a way to not look at him. He looks at her and gets a brief flash of Mari crying. His hand instinctively went up and patted Saya's head. She looks surprised and looks up at him. "Why did you pat my head?" Saya questioned, looking at him with tears forming under her eyes.
"No reason. You wanted to see what my bento looks like, right?" Ishihara answered, taking his hand off her head. "Really!" Saya said, her calm demeanor becoming one like Yumi. "Ahem, I'm sorry, please show me." Saya said, her demeanor immediately becoming calm. "Right here." Ishihara said, opening the bento. Inside the bento was two onigiri, four pieces of tamago, edamame, and grilled octopus hotdogs. "Wow you made this?" Saya asked. "No, my little sister made this. Even though she's younger than me, she's much better than me at cooking." Ishihara answered. "Now mine." Saya said, opening hers next. Inside her bento was rice with pickled plum, two pieces of tamago, two tempura shrimp, pickled veggies, and a small piece of fish katsu. "Saying mine is amazing, while yours looks like that. Mine is just a side dish while yours looks like an expensive meal." Ishihara commented. "Yours is special in its own way." Saya said, meaning for that to be nice. Ishihara looks at her and blinks his eyes. "How about we trade tamago?" Saya said, trying to end the staring. "Fine, open up." Ishihara said, taking his chopsticks and picking up his tamago. He puts his hand under it and Saya opens her mouth. She's prepared to eat it, but before she can, Reina and the other girls find the two of them. "What are you doing?" Reina asked, Yumi and Haruko looking at both of them.