Chapter 22: Spearhead
It was her last year in high school. In a few months she would be leaving her Alma Mater to seek a higher institution. She didn't want to leave the high school life but the river of life had to go on flowing for eternity. She made a lot of memories here in the very grounds of the campus—the place where she jumped too far and had her face planted deep beneath the sand, the place where she secretly gave chocolate to a guy (although it was nothing more but fantasy), the stage where she and her friends danced…in a matter of months, all of these would be nothing more but memories—chronicles for other people to hear.
But things won't end that way as easy as that.
"Last night, a man armed with a revolver pistol stormed the warehouse full of anime novelty products and stole thousands of yen worth it. Although no security guards were killed during the incident, police are having a hard time tracing his tracks because he left almost no evidence except for the gunshots in parts of the warehouse…"
"I can't believe it…another one like Konata…" Kagami said; drinking her usual mug of hot cocoa in a rainy school morning. "Worse, he's got a gun."
"Onee-san, I'm sure Kona-chan wouldn't resort to something like that." Tsukasa replied.
"I'm not thinking of such things. But who else would steal those kinds of stuff but someone like Konata?"
"You're right."
"Come on, we're going to be late for school."
To someone as pragmatic as Kagami, a rainy school day is like any other school day of the school year. The difference was the weather which was very obvious. Normal life resumes…that's all there is to it—no abnormalities, no supernatural phenomenon, no disasters; just a regular school day in her last year of high school before pursuing their goals. Without any idea of her lover's return, she felt incomplete that day—as if she had forgotten something.
When she checked her bag a few hours after the first period, she did forget something: her math textbook. It was time for borrowing from her friends in the next class.
"Konata, may I borrow your math textbook for now?"
"That's very unusual of you. Luckily, I'm in a good mood today so I'll let you borrow it."
"No scribbles this time, okay? You know the last time I borrowed a book from you."
"Rest assured, Kagamin, that book is as clean as your face."
"(Clean…? Face…? I don't feel like commending her for such an overstatement.) By the way, why are you in a good mood today?"
"Yesterday at work, my friends at work and I got a raise!"
"A raise…? You and your friends must've put up a good show."
"Yesterday's stage play increased sales so we got a raise. Add that to the overtime pay and do the math."
"Really…? That's very untypical of you."
"Kagami doesn't even bat an eye. Of course I work hard sometimes. It's just the place I work hard for turns me on all the time."
"I wish your love for doing homework is like that."
When the bell rang at noon, there were only three of them enjoying lunch. No wonder Kagami felt incomplete; Miyuki was nowhere to be seen.
"She called me last night and said to me she got the cold." Konata explained.
"It's not like her to be as sickly as your cousin, Konata." Kagami said.
"It's a coincidence, Kagamin. Viruses are not picky on their targets."
"Shall we visit her later after school?"
"That's a good idea. Let's do that."
"Oh, it's not like you to be excited about visiting Miyuki's house, considering that we've already been there once."
"Really…? I was hoping for her to let me copy her homework."
"You know what, just shut up."
As the day grew to a close, they took a train bound for the metropolis. Even at the rainy weather, it was packed with commuters mostly heading home. It took a while before they arrived at her house because of the thousands of commuters pushing outward. A full year had passed and the number of commuters in the urbanities doubled. They went straight for Miyuki's room as if time wasn't on their side.
"Izumi-san, Kagami-san, and Tsukasa-san; thank you for visiting." Miyuki said on bed. "I'm sorry to bother your schedule with my illness."
"That's what a visit is supposed to be." Kagami responded.
"Miyuki-san, we've known each other for a long time." Konata started in a persuasive tone. "We've been through different ups and downs of our lives and we struck down all opposition. I would like to ask you one favor."
"K-Konata, you're not serious are you?!" Kagami said.
"I assure you'll feel good after this. Give it a shot." Konata said to her.
"Is something the matter, Izumi-san?" Miyuki curiously inquired.
"Don't mind her, Miyuki. She's just going overboard." Kagami intervened.
---0---0---0---0---0---
With the good news that Miyuki was on her way to a full recovery, her friends spent time at her side talking about random stuff. If possible they could stay for the night not only because she needed company to hasten her recovery but the rain had gotten stronger since they arrived; and it would be bothersome to try going home under such circumstances. The last thing in their minds was experiencing Kagami's electrifying ordeal when a bolt of lightning surged through her and almost paid the price of a loss of life.
"You be careful out there, dear." The voice of the twins' mother echoed through the head of the handset.
"We will, mother." Kagami answered.
"If you can't get home, you can stay for the night."
"Thank you very much."
She slowly placed the headset back and returned to her friends in the room.
"Tsukasa, mom said we can stay for the night if we can't get home." She told her little sister (practically speaking, neither is older nor younger between the two).
"Well too bad I can't join you guys." Konata apologized. "No one's going to look after my little cousin. My dad's going to come home late from a party."
"What about your older cousin?"
"Sobbing back home because her husband can't come home for their anniversary…"
"Ouch (Your family can be harsh sometimes)."
A different kind of rain, much different from the rain last year, poured down on the metropolis. It drenched everything below the clouds in water: streets, trees, buildings, umbrellas, windows etc. It was accompanied by a ferocious roar of thunder after a strike made by bolts of lightning. Kagami's decision to stay over for the night was a wise move. Amidst the storm, anybody can be as good as dead unless protected in some way. Her friends quickly got to studying while updating Miyuki of the things she missed today at class. As usual, Konata sought help from the two smartest pupils of her time every five minutes. Tsukasa never sought help especially from her big sister because she seemed to pass out on a problem she couldn't handle alone. Nevertheless, they were happy third year school girls and anybody would die just to see them smile.
A taxi pulled over in front of the house: it was Sano's cab. Takashi came out of the passenger seat with a bag of groceries.
"When I'm out of jail, you owe me taxi fare." He said.
"Sano, do you recall any instance where I didn't pay my debt to you?" Takashi replied.
"It's called 'making sure', dumbass!"
"Again with the D word…"
"Hurry up with your groceries. I need to be back at the garage by nightfall or they'll cut my pay."
"Okay, okay, don't be so pushy."
The cab left the house when Takashi returned home with some groceries, including ingredients for chicken soup for the nosy common cold. He proceeded to the kitchen to prepare the ingredients for the soup. As a family member, he felt responsible for the welfare of a fellow member of the family. Wearing a pink apron with a picture of Hello Kitty at the center, he took charge of dinner tonight. He didn't expect that he had guests tonight.
Meanwhile…
"I'm thirsty." Kagami said. "I think I'll help myself to a glass of water."
"Let me get it for you." Miyuki replied.
"No, you need to rest. Don't worry; I know my way around the house."
"I just want to let you know that the dispenser is broken. The water is inside the fridge."
"Okay, thanks for the tip."
Kagami left the room for a while and made tracks to the kitchen alone. She grabbed a bottle of water out of the refrigerator and poured some over a tall glass. All that talking about random stuff made her throat very dry. After cooling off, she returned the bottle back in the fridge and walked back towards the room. But the feeling of incompleteness still remained inside of her. Aside from forgetting her math textbook and being unable to meet one of her friends for a day at school, she wondered if the source of her incompleteness was the curiosity of the surroundings; frankly speaking—a self-tour of Miyuki's home while the chance was still existing. But she didn't need a tour to satisfy her incompleteness. There may be other reasons for such a condition. She returned to her friends and joined a new conversation.
Half-an-hour later, the chicken soup was done. For the chef, he felt like praising himself for creating a dish that would aid Miyuki on the road to recovery. He put some in a bowl on top of the tray along with a spoon and a napkin. Through the use of a dish cart, he went to her room and heard a lively conversation from behind the door.
"Hmm…I didn't expect company. Maybe I'll create dinner for them too. After all, it's rare for her to have enemies." He humored himself.
He knocked on the door and turned the door knob to open.
"Miyuki, have some of this. It'll make you feel—"
Takashi stopped talking when all eyes were on him. All eyes meant Kagami…
TO BE CONTINUED