A few days have passed since then. Surprisingly, everything was turning out normal. No weird encounters. No Kimura-kun. No Ichinoses. No nothing. I was living the most peaceful days of school.
Though, there might be an unexpected encounter now. Nevertheless, I doubt it would cause too much trouble since it doesn't regard the main causes of my headaches.
As of the moment, I'm sitting inside the teachers' lounge after being asked to come by my homeroom teacher, Katō-sensei. Nothing unusual; I suspect that she's going to nag me about the upcoming competition. Apparently, the selection phase for the representatives is just a week away.
Unfortunately for her, I have not a single drop of interest in whatever event this is. I've already prepared what I'm going to say to her to politely refuse the offer and some other arguments to shut down any backup proposals she may have.
After a few minutes, Katō-sensei arrived.
"Sorry for having you wait, Horikita-san. Let's talk at my desk," she walked past. "Over here."
I followed her. I also took the opportunity to look around the room and see what the other teachers are doing. My curiosity didn't last long, though.
"You can sit here."
"Thank you."
Katō-sensei didn't waste much time. She rumbled through her desk and grabbed something. It was a pamphlet.
It wouldn't take long for anyone to know where this is going, especially if you already anticipated it beforehand.
She showed me the pamphlet that advertised the flash arithmetics competition that was upcoming.
"I discussed this in class already and even mentioned it a few times after each of our sessions. I told you all that if you were interested, you should go talk to me. This might just be me assuming things but since I knew you had exceptional grades, and specifically excelling in Mathematics, that you'd be upbeat to compete in this."
"I'm not, though."
"I see. I'm sorry. Actually, I thought you were just too shy to approach me or had issues in doing so. I should've known, though. You're always so calm and collected. Always unfazed by things. Of course, you weren't just shy. I just wanted to make sure everything was fine. If you change your mind, please let me know."
I see. Apparently, she wasn't planning on convincing me after all. That was unexpected.
I thanked Katō-sensei and left the teachers' lounge after giving my pleasantries.
Though, I got to note. It was more unusual for her not to convince me. I don't understand where she got the idea that I was having trouble approaching her about the competition. Has my expression been weird? Is this because of my disastrous first day?
I let out a sigh.
"Oh, Horikita-san," a familiar voice said.
While I was standing outside the doors to the teachers' lounge, a pink-haired gremlin appeared.
"Ichinose-san," I acknowledged her presence. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to talk to my math teacher. You see, I'm planning on joining the upcoming competition. I've been studying for the selection."
"I see. That sounds great. I wish you good luck."
I said that in preparation to leave. It's admirable that Ichinose-san is taking steps towards her goal. I'm sure she thought of her older sister when she decided to join the event. However, as always, this doesn't involve me.
But...
"Wait! Could it be that you're joining as well, Horikita-san? I saw you come out of the faculty room after all."
"No, I was summoned by my homeroom teacher. That's all."
"I see. But I bet you'd do really well! Why don't you join? You see, my big sister is joining as well. And I heard that she met you a while ago, and you guys talked about books. So—"
I cut her off mid-sentence, "Alright, stop right there. I already have a feeling where this is going. I have no interest in that interschool competition. You can't change my mind."
"...Oh."
Her expression immediately turned dismal. Like dark clouds began forming above her head.
"I apologize if that came off as too direct. I wish you luck in the selection," I started walking past her. "If you'll excuse me."
Loitering students may have picked up some of the words in our conversation but it's not like I was shouting at Ichinose-san.
Still...
"Damn, that was pretty harsh, Horikita," a familiar male voice came from the corner.
I stopped dead in my tracks at the annoying comment.
"Kimura-kun," I sent him an icy glare.
"Oh, you dislike me that much," he said with a tiny smug.
"Are you here to ruin my day again with your heroic mindset?"
"Not at all," he waved his hands in denial. "How about I join you for a walk?"
"That's contradictory to not ruining my day. My answer is no."
"What?! You even stopped walking to talk to me, and you answered with a no?"
What is wrong with this guy? He looked genuinely surprised. He's even more bad news than I thought. At this point, I'm considering a quick call to a mental service community.
He acted all cool with his 'You're underestimating it, Horikita', then he turned into this idiot days later.
"Your unnecessary comment irritated me that much. I just had to swat you away before my day went downhill again. Though, it looks like a futile effort from me so I'll just leave now."
I started walking away.
He started following me.
"Gonna join the math competition?" Kimura-kun asked.
"No. I thought you were eavesdropping?"
He laughed, "Yeah. You should though. You'd look really cool and badass."
"I don't need that."
"Some people look forward to you joining though. Like Ichinose-chan earlier."
"You know her?" I furrowed an eyebrow.
"Yeah. Wait, don't give me that disgusted look! She's good friends with Kushida-san, and I'm also friends with Kushida-san. Naturally, we'd meet."
I didn't bother to comment and continued walking. After exiting our school building, I made my way towards the front gates.
"Ahem. Don't you see Ichinose-chan's efforts in becoming your friend? She told me how she met you on the bus on her way to school. And how you looked so cool and stuff. She totally admires you. I'm sure just a little kindness would make her day."
"She's done nothing but be annoying. Naturally, I set her aside. I can't grasp what she sees that I don't that sparks her to continue acting like this."
"Yeah, no. I don't get why you're pushing her away. If you're not gonna join the competition, why not help her practice? You know, like getting a puppy to stop barking by feeding it treats."
Weird analogy. This guy is just wired differently.
"Very smart of you. Said puppy will then just continue barking until I give it more treats. That's how it works."
"You can discipline it too," he said with a straight face.
"Let's drop this conversation."
After a few more worthless attempts at talking, Kimura-kun finally took a different path and walked towards the side near the cherry blossoms. I paid no heed after that and just continued walking to the bus stop.
Arriving at our household's doorstep, I took out my keys. The sound of metal started rattling.
Click.
A faint creak came from the door when I pushed it open. I slowly closed it shut and proceeded with the only natural words to say after taking the first few steps into your house.
"I'm home."
There were only two situations after this. 1.) Suzuki-san says Welcome home, Suzune-san! or 2.) Dead silence.
"..."
It seemed to be the latter. Maybe she's out? Or somewhere else around the house.
The front door led to this immediate small space to the left where we placed all the shoes, slippers, umbrellas, and other things. Straight ahead was the main hallway of the first floor. The kitchen and dining table were at the other end of the house. The living room was also nearby.
When I took off my shoes and put them aside, I saw something odd.
There was another pair of black sandals sitting on the shoe rack. Now, of course I don't have every single pair memorized, but I can tell when something new is added or there has been some sort of rearrangement.
Mine included; there were now three pairs of sandals. One was used by me, another was used by Suzuki-san. And so this third pair belonged to whom? Of course, we kept extra pairs but they're in boxes.
So, is this a friend of hers? No, she wouldn't bring one over on a weekday.
In any case, I should just find out for myself. Why am I even trying to overanalyze here?
That said, I walked over to the main hallway. As I got closer to the living room, I started hearing faint chatter.
So, she is with someone.
A few more steps and I saw Suzuki-san sitting on the couch.
And to my awe, the person she was with was...
"...Ichinose-san," I acknowledged the presence of the older Ichinose.
"Ah! Suzune-san, you're home! Welcome home. I bumped into a friend of yours on the way home from groceries."
Suzuki-san quickly stood up after realizing I was already home.
"Good afternoon, Horikita-san! Sorry for the intrusion," Ichinose-san also said after standing up to greet me.
"You didn't tell me you were coming."
"Aha. I didn't know how to contact you, so I came as soon as school finished."
"Since when?"
"Just a few minutes ago, actually. I was waiting in front of the porch when Suzuki-san arrived with grocery bags. I thought I had the wrong house at first until she asked if I knew you."
I let out a sigh.
Suzuki-san looks delighted. The thought of me actually having a friend must've deluded her reason to just let a stranger in. Thankfully, it was just Ichinose-san. Although she's just as annoying as her little sister, she's mature enough to know when to shut up.
I replied, "I see. Did you bring anything?"
"Yes! I brought some books that I really recommend. I believe you mentioned Mystery and Thriller, right? I got my favorites."
Apart from that, she poses no harm to anyone, really. That's just the energy she radiates. Probably why Suzuki-san let her inside the house in the first place.
I have to talk to Suzuki-san about this later, though. I can't just have people showing up at my doorstep and being let in because they tell Suzuki-san that they know me.
I put my bag aside and sat down on the other couch to the left of Ichinose-san. She saw this as a cue to sit down as well, so she did.
Meanwhile, Suzuki-san turned to the kitchen.
"I baked some snacks I prepared earlier. I'll go get some for you two."
"Thank you," I said.
As Suzuki-san walked away, two stupefied eyes stared at her in deep awe.
"I never would've guessed that you lived with a maid! And she's fantastic as well," Ichinose-san marveled. "Suzuki-san, right? We talked for a bit before Horikita-san got home. I almost fell in love with her! That's some charm she has."
"She's helped me a lot. And her cooking is honestly amazing."
"I can already tell. It felt like I just met an angel."
While we were busy complimenting her, Suzuki-san raised her voice from the kitchen nearby.
"Do you guys want to drink anything with the snacks?"
"I'll have tea," I said, raising my voice slightly.
"Same!" Ichinose-san followed.
After a bit of hovering around, I finally pointed towards the elephant in the room.
Once I'm done happily accepting whatever books she recommended to me, she can head right out and all problems for today will be over.
"Ichinose-san. What books did you bring?"
"Oh, right!" she exclaimed as she reached for her bag. "There's a high chance you've read it already, but I can't possibly miss out on the chance to recommend you the Queen of Mystery's best-selling novel."
The Queen of Mystery would be Agatha Christie, right?
She's really familiar but I can't say I've read any of her works. In fact, the study is filled with her titles. However, I had a feeling that I should save reading them for later and take on other authors' works first.
"It's And Then There Were None," Ichinose-san said capriciously in English.
She showed me the cover. The image showed a view of a seashore and, from what I could only guess, a lighthouse. The waves were imminently crashing, and the orange-to-red sunset with dark clouds gave off slightly sinister tones.
I see. Quite intriguing. The main takeaway from the first impression is the title. And Then There Were None.
"Interesting. Fortunately for us, I haven't read this."
"Really? I really recommend that you do!"
I guess I'll put it in the queue.
"Hey, take this!" Ichinose-san handed me the book. "I'll take out the rest."
As I received And Then There Were None, I gently caressed the whole thing with my fingers and stared intently at the cover. I was trying to sense its vibe and how it would feel when I actually started reading it.
"Uhm... sorry I had to include this one," Ichinose-san said, holding another novel. "It's a romance novel. I actually talked about this when we met last time."
"The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. That's why it seemed familiar. Though, I'm not really into romance."
"Make an exception for this one! Or though, I can't really force you. If you end up not liking it, I might just sob."
"Please don't."
Love is just a really vague feeling. I'd have difficulty relating with the characters if it's about romance. I have much better experiences reading Mystery because I can immerse myself in the story. Romance would be tough luck unless it's really compelling.
"However, I'll take it."
"You will!? "That's a relief," Ichinose-san sighed contentedly.
After a while, Suzuki-san returned with two cups and another plate of cookies.
"Here are your teas, ladies."
"Thank you," I said.
"Hehe. You're just so lovely, Suzuki-san!" Ichinose-san flattered.
"Let me know if you two want anything else."
She left immediately, seemingly wanting to escape Ichinose-san's embarrassing comments.
I turned back to Ichinose-san to continue our discussion.
"Are there more?" I asked.
"Ah, right. Sorry! I have a bunch more recommendations, but I only brought three. I didn't want to overwhelm you."
"That might've been for the better." I paused. "What's the last one?"
"I just finished reading this one recently," Ichinose-san said as she pulled out another book.
And after three installments of her book showcase, I finally saw one I actually recognized.
"Oh, it's Raymond Chandler," I said.
"Ah? You know the author? What a surprise!"
"Yes, this series especially. Philip Marlowe."
The book she held was none other than Farewell, My Lovely. I started reading the series in order, with all the books ready at hand, except for one. It was exactly what Ichinose-san brought to me.
"I was looking forward to reading this. After I finished reading The Big Sleep."
"Oh, you're reading that? What a coincidence! I finished it a while ago."
"May I ask why you didn't recommend that one first? I thought it should be in order."
"Well, not really. Each book is like its standalone story. You can definitely read the books in any order."
"I see. Though, I would feel some sort of strange uneasiness if I were to do that. Perhaps just a fear of missing some details."
"Yep, I understand. Though, in that case, it shouldn't matter much. Once you finish The Big Sleep—Farewell, My Lovely is what comes next."
"That's right."
"And that's about it. I wish I could've talked to you about Mystery when we were walking home that time. Whenever I talk to other girls about books, I just mainly talk about romance because they would be able to relate better most of the time. It's refreshing to meet a girl who is more focused on other genres like Mystery, especially since I like it a lot as well."
"Likewise, Ichinose-san. This has actually been very fruitful."
To end the conversation about books, Ichinose-san reached for some snacks Suzuki-san brought.
"These are delicious! This makes me so jealous, Horikita-san. You get to basically have her cooking all to yourself."
"Well, yes. I do. I'm actually quite proud of it."
"Mind if I visit often?"
"If it's about business, maybe."
"What business? Aren't we like, friends now?"
"No."
"That's mean!"
In the first place, she wasn't even supposed to be here. However, I did get good things out of her visit. Perhaps I can be more lenient. I don't find her that annoying anymore as well.
Though, I do get the feeling that Suzuki-san will pester me about Ichinose-san all the time. Things like asking me when she'll come over again or asking if we meet outside often.
Scary thoughts.
"Oh, right! Is my little sister still bothering you?" Ichinose-san asked, looking a bit skeptical.
"Not as much as before. We did meet this morning. She asked me about that Math competition."
"Oh, I see. Our school is also getting ready for that. I ended up joining after a bit of convincing from my classmates and, of course, my little sister."
She let out a faint giggle.
"You must have it tough."
"Well, she does get a bit hectic. However, she will always have good intentions, no matter what."
"Good intentions don't always lead to good outcomes, though."
Ichinose-san seemed to have understood that. Her expression took on a more serious tone. Dropped eyebrows and an indistinct smile.
"I know...That's why I have to support her. I can tell that she's working really hard these past few weeks. We're sisters, after all."
Unfortunately, I'm not able to resonate with her feelings. Whatever their situation was, I just felt indifferent.
"I see. Good for you two," I replied anyways.
"How about you, Horikita-san?" she asked. "Do you have any siblings?"
...
It's not a topic I want to discuss at all. However, I didn't want to leave a bad taste in the atmosphere if I ever refused to have this conversation. If I reply normally, there's a higher chance she won't chew over the topic anyways.
"I do. I have an older brother."
"Ah, I see. I take it that he's in college or something?"
"No, he's in high school. Second year."
Ichinose-san's eyebrows rose, her whole expression looking surprised.
"Oh! He's still pretty young. Well, not as young as us, but you know what I mean."
I stared at her blankly.
She continued, "Erm, if you don't mind me asking, what high school does he attend? Is your older brother under Muteki as well?"
As I was getting sick of answering this line of questions, Suzuki-san stepped in.
"Manabu-san used to attend Muteki when he was in middle school. He's now in Kōdo Ikusei. He's a very astute person. A man of incredible talent and determination. Suzune-san looks up to him a lot."
"...Suzuki-san," I called.
"Oh!" Suzuki-san gasped. "Did I say too much? My apologies."
"It's fine."
After realizing that the atmosphere went from a pleasant and regular book discussion into a more bleak and semi-emotional situation, Ichinose-san decided that maybe it was already time to go home. It also seemed like she took a hint and didn't intrude any further.
"Well, I think I should get going now. Hina must already be waiting for me at home. Thanks for talking with me, Horikita-san. And, Suzuki-san as well. I loved the tea and snacks."
Ichinose-san stood up and reached for her bag.
"I appreciate the recommendations as well. You should get home safely," I replied.
"You're welcome, Ichinose-san. We hope to see you again soon."
Suzuki-san guided her to the front door. Ichinose-san sent her final pleasantries before finally heading home. Afterwards, Suzuki-san came back and sat right next to me.
I saw this as unusual, so I decided to ask:
"What's wrong?"
"Today was really fun, wasn't it?"
"I guess. It's my first time actually discussing what books to read and whatnot."
Suzuki-san gave me a frail look accompanied by a smile of pity.
"I mean fun because you were discussing with a friend, no?"
"She's not a friend. The only reason I asked for recommendations in the first place was that Ichinose-san was stubborn about apologizing on her little sister's behalf."
"Well, you got something good out of it, anyways. I think you can hang out again."
"We'll see. We still have to talk about the fact that you just let a random stranger inside the house."
Suzuki-san's eyes dilated, and she turned slightly pale. Presumably, she has finally realized the mistake she made today.
"...You're right. I'm sorry, Suzune-san. But Ichinose-san's a nice person."
"Yeah, I get that. It's fine. But you can't let it happen again. At least, without telling me."
"...Understood."
I let out a sigh. Afterwards, I stood up, perhaps just wanting to do anything that wasn't sitting down. Should I lie down? Take a bath?
I was restless for some reason.
"Suzune-san, are you alright?" Suzuki-san checked up on me with worried eyes.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Thank you."
"I picked it up from your conversation earlier. Hina should be Ichinose-san's little sister, right?"
I turned to her, confused.
"Yeah, what about it?"
"From what I heard, she was pestering you a bit. But she seems to be a really hard worker, according to Ichinose-san, who's been paying special attention to her," said Suzuki-san before pausing.
She continued, "I might regret asking, but does Hina-chan remind you of yourself, perhaps?"
Her words struck me like an electric current straight to the chest. I was in utter denial of the idea.
"...No, I don't."
"I see."
"I'm going to take a bath."
"I'll clean up then."
After abruptly ending the conversation, I headed upstairs to take a bath.