Liar's Lips Fall Apart in Love - Volume 1 Chapter 2.9

The Summer When Something Changes 9

Several days after going to the Kyoto Aquarium, as usual, Nanase came over with dinner.

The moment she opened the door to my room, her eyes widened in surprise.

“Wow, it’s hot! Sagara-kun, you’re not using the air conditioner again!?”

Her tone was somewhat accusatory, and I scratched my head awkwardly.

Today the heat wasn’t as bad, and I had to go to work in three hours, so I thought I could endure it for a little while.

“…Sagara-kun. Have you already forgotten when you collapsed the other day?”

Being glared at like that, I couldn’t say anything back. I definitely caused Nanase a lot of trouble that time.

“…Sorry. I’ll turn on the air conditioner.”

As I give up, Nanase had a flash of inspiration and exclaimed,

“That’s right!”

She clasped her hands together in front of her chest, looking pleased.

“Why don’t we eat together in my room? It’s cool because I have the air conditioner on.”

Her outrageous suggestion made me exclaim, “Huh!?” I always thought she was a girl with a strange sense of distance, but what on earth is going on with her sense of crisis management?

“Y-You… Don’t just easily invite guys into your room.”

“I’m not saying it easily. I wouldn’t do this for other boys.”

Watching Nanase innocently smile, I shrugged slightly.

Maybe she should hurry up and get a boyfriend. At this rate, she’s going to drive other guys even further away.

“Besides, we already ate porridge together in your room the other day. You should cool off in my room until you have to go to work! Come on, let’s go.”

When she said that much, I started to feel like maybe it’s okay (whatever), and I went along with it.

Nanase has no ulterior motives in inviting me, and I’m not planning to start thinking weird things.

Absolutely, definitely not. Not at all.

“Please come in. Come in.”

Urged by Nanase, I stepped into her room. This was my second time here since the day I came to exterminate a cockroach.

Her room was enveloped in the pleasantly cool air from the air conditioner.

It was cleaned thoroughly, and it seemed to smell nice. As usual, most of the room was dominated by a ridiculously large closet, making it feel smaller than my room.

Though the layout should be the same.

“Today, I made hamburgers! I even tried my best to make the sauce from scratch.”

Nanase said as she placed a plate with hamburgers and a bowl of white rice on the low table.

As I sat down, she apologized for the cramped space and sat down next to me.

There wasn’t enough room to sit across from each other because of all her stuff.

I was secretly unsettled by the close distance, but I tried to appear calm.

“…Itadakimasu.”

I picked up a piece of the hamburger with my chopsticks and put it in my mouth. Juicy meat juices overflowed inside my mouth, and I involuntarily groaned.

The demi-glace sauce she mentioned was homemade and delicious.

Nanase is truly skilled at cooking.

When I said, “It’s really delicious,” Nanase let out a relieved sigh.

“Really? Actually, when I made it before, it was a little undercooked and a failure. I’m glad it turned out well today.”

Even Nanase can fail, I thought, then realized that made sense. She’s an exceptionally hard worker. Her current culinary skills must surely be the result of her hidden efforts.

It seemed that there was only one rice bowl, so Nanase was eating white rice from her miso soup bowl.

Realizing she had given up the bowl for me, I felt a bit guilty. I would have been fine with any dish.

As we ate in silence, Nanase murmured softly.

“…I’m going back to my parents’ house next week.”

Nanase’s face as she said this seemed to be tinged with an unavoidable gloom.

I swallowed my rice and responded nonchalantly, “Huh.”

“It’s Obon holiday, so they’re telling me to come back.”

I thought it would be troublesome if the topic shifted to my family, but Nanase didn’t touch on that.

After chewing her hamburger thoughtfully, she let out a small sigh.

“…I don’t really want to go back.”

“Why not?”

“…When I go back to my hometown… I can’t help but remember who I used to be.”

For Nanase, her hometown must be a place that forcibly confronts her with her less brilliant self.

While the reasons may be completely different, I can understand the feeling of not wanting to visit one’s parents.

“…Well, probably nobody will remember me anyway. It’s fine, I guess. Yeah. No one probably remembers me anyway.”

As if convincing herself, Nanase muttered. Then, turning to me with a smile, the gloominess from before had vanished.

“Ah. Sagara-kun, do you want another serving of rice? I’ll prepare it for you.”

Nanase, with a smile, took my bowl. In the process, our shoulders lightly touched, and my heart skipped a beat ever so slightly.

◇◇◇

Haruko’s PoV

In the middle of August, I returned to my parents’ home in Nagoya.

I hadn’t gone back even during Golden Week, so this was my first time since graduating. I might run into someone I know.

Even if they see the current me, no one will probably recognize me, but I still felt a sense of discomfort.

I’m grateful to my parents. They allowed me to live on my own after leaving home and accepted the changes in me after high school graduation.

“Well, Haruko is a university student now,” they said with a laugh.

Yet, I wasn’t enthusiastic about going back because being here, I’m reminded of my empty past self.

“Welcome home. You must be tired from the long trip.”

When I got home, my mom greeted me warmly. My dad still hadn’t come back from work.

I replied with a smile, “I’m home.”

“It’s convenient with the Shinkansen, but it’s expensive. Maybe Kintetsu would have been better.”

“You got back quickly, so it’s good. Dinner isn’t ready yet, so go change and relax.”

At my mom’s words, I headed to my room with my suitcase.

My room, which I hadn’t entered in a while, was exactly the same as it had been months ago. Yet, it felt somewhat like someone else’s room. I changed into a T-shirt and shorts I pulled out from the dresser and flopped onto the bed.

…I wonder how Sagara-kun is doing.

Since summer vacation started, he’s seemed extremely busy. He’s still doing a lot of part-time jobs, and I can sense him coming home at dawn.

I hope he’s eating properly, even without me around. He’s probably just eating udon all the time. Hopefully, he hasn’t gotten sick again.

…Come to think of it, I wonder if Sagara-kun is going back to his parents’ house.

A thought struck me, and I sat up, pulling my high school yearbook from the bookshelf. Truth be told, I hadn’t opened it even once since receiving it.

There are no memories of mine within this thick album.

I opened the album with “Nagoya City Koryo High School” embossed in gold on the deep green cover.

I was in Class 3-4. There was a plain, unremarkable girl with black hair braided into three parts.

Wearing a navy blazer with a red tie, all the buttons on her shirt were done up to the top.

She was the very image of “the correct way to wear a uniform” depicted in the student handbook.

I wasn’t featured in the pages of school events or club activities that followed. The only time I appeared was in the photo of the library committee.

Next, I turned to the page for Class 3-6. I found Sagara-kun surprisingly quickly. He looked almost the same as now, but his hair was a bit shorter.

He might not be good at taking pictures, as his expression was stiff.

Looking at the name written below, I thought, “Huh.”

Iijima Souhei. The person there was certainly Sagara-kun, but not Sagara-kun.

I recall he mentioned that his surname had changed. Maybe due to his parents’ divorce or possibly a bereavement. I thought it would be rude to speculate too much, so I shook my head vigorously to stop thinking about it.

…I thought we had become close, but I realize I don’t know anything about Sagara-kun.

Faced with that reality, I felt a sense of loneliness.

I put the yearbook back in its place and flopped back onto the bed.