The next morning, Sakuta was woken up by Nasuno stepping on him again. When Sakuta didn't open his eyes, Nasuno continued rhythmically kneading his face, one-two, one-two.
Sakuta had no choice but to open one eye. Through his groggy vision, he saw Nasuno looking down at him.
"Good morning, Nasuno."
Sakuta let out a big yawn.
His eyelids felt heavy, and before he knew it, his eyes closed again.
Waking up didn't feel good, or rather, it felt awful.
Sakuta knew it was because he hadn't slept well the night before.
There were many reasons for this.
Too many things had happened yesterday—it was overwhelming.
Out of everything, seeing Kaede when he came home had the biggest impact. It had left him emotionally unsettled. With that on his mind, it was impossible to sleep well.
As a result, Sakuta's sleep was restless. He kept waking up, falling asleep, and waking up again until it was nearly dawn. By the time he truly fell asleep, the sky was already getting light. In other words, he had only slept for about one or two continuous hours.
"Ugh…"
He let out another big yawn.
Sakuta really wanted to just sleep through the day.
But he forced himself to fight off the sleepiness and look at the clock.
It was 7:32 AM.
April 2nd, Sunday.
Without a doubt, it was the day after April Fool's Day and the day after the music festival at the Red Brick Warehouse.
"I hope I don't wake up to find out yesterday was just a dream..."
"Nasuno, is big brother awake yet?"
However, the voice outside the room shattered Sakuta's optimistic thoughts.
It was Kaede's voice.
Nasuno meowed once and then slipped out through the crack in the door. Sakuta got out of bed, letting out a third yawn as he walked out of the room.
When he reached the living room,
"Good morning, big brother!"
Kaede, wearing her panda onesie, smiled and greeted Sakuta.
"Breakfast is ready!"
Just as she said, the dining table was set with toast, scrambled eggs with cheese, sausages, and cherry tomatoes. It was the kind of breakfast Sakuta usually made.
"Did you make all this?"
"Today's scrambled eggs are a special recipe straight from Mai-neechan."
"A special recipe?"
"I'm Mai-neechan's number one disciple now!"
Kaede proudly puffed out her chest. Her confidence wasn't unfounded. The scrambled eggs on the plate looked delicious, just like the ones Mai made.
"Alright, let's see how good the disciple is."
"Go ahead!"
Kaede responded energetically and sat down across from Sakuta.
Recently, that spot had been where Kaede sat. Now, Kaede was sitting there, happily eating toast topped with scrambled eggs. Her smile radiated happiness.
This only deepened Sakuta's confusion.
The person in front of him was undoubtedly Kaede.
Kaede was right there, leaving Sakuta at a loss.
"..."
Sakuta still felt like he was in a dream.
"Aren't you going to eat, big brother?"
"Right, I will."
Sakuta followed Kaede's lead, placing scrambled eggs on his toast and taking a bite. The soft texture of the eggs and the aroma of the bread were irresistible.
"Tasty."
"That's the power of the number one disciple!"
She proudly puffed out her chest again.
"Kaede."
"Yes?"
"How long have we been living here?"
"Four years. This April marks the beginning of our fifth year."
"That's right."
"Big brother, did you sleep so much that you forgot?"
Kaede, like a detective, deduced the situation.
"Looks like you figured it out."
"Let me make you some coffee to wake you up!"
Kaede quickly stood up and headed toward the kitchen.
Her figure seemed a little more mature than the Kaede Sakuta remembered. Four years ago, Sakuta had started living with Kaede in this apartment. That was in the spring of his first year of high school. She had regained her memories and become Kaede again in the fall of his second year.
So Sakuta only knew the middle school version of Kaede.
The face peeking out from under her panda hood looked a little more grown-up.
Just as she had said, they had moved to Fujisawa four years ago.
This was now their fifth year.
Which meant the Kaede before him had always been Kaede for those five years.
"Here, big brother, coffee."
Kaede returned from the kitchen, placing a mug with a tanuki design in front of Sakuta.
"Thanks."
Sakuta took a sip of the coffee. It tasted a bit bitter, but that bitterness grounded him in reality. This wasn't a dream, and it wasn't an illusion.
"Kaede, what did you do yesterday?"
"In the afternoon, I went to school and worked on materials for introducing the club to new students."
"Which school?"
"Mine, of course. Minegahara High School."
Kaede seemed confused by Sakuta's question.
"And what club is that?"
"The biology club."
Kaede's confusion deepened.
"I guess that makes sense."
It seemed that the Kaede before him was attending Minegahara High School and was a member of the biology club.
"If we don't recruit any new members this year, the club's going to be disbanded."
"Then you'd better work hard to recruit."
"I'll do my best!"
Kaede clenched her fists, full of determination.
"Oh, and I was really surprised yesterday."
"What happened?"
"Mai-neechan turned out to be Kirishima Touko."
Sakuta hadn't expected Kaede to bring up yesterday's events so casually. From her tone, she didn't seem to have any doubts about it.
"You saw the performance too?"
"Yeah, I watched it online."
Kaede glanced at the small table in front of the sofa. A laptop sat there. It looked like she had watched the concert on it.
"Do you think Mai-neechan is really Kirishima Touko?"
"...What do you mean?"
Kaede tilted her head, expressing her confusion with her entire body.
"Didn't Mai-neechan say it herself? How could it not be true?"
"It's not exactly untrue..."
"…?"
Kaede still seemed puzzled, but just then, the washing machine beeped.
"The laundry's calling me."
Kaede stuffed the remaining toast into her mouth and headed to the laundry room as if she'd done it a hundred times before. Her ability to handle chores seemed much more advanced than the Kaede Sakuta remembered. Maybe it was the four years that had helped her mature.
That should have been a great thing, but Sakuta couldn't feel fully happy. He still didn't know how to handle the situation in front of him.
There were too many things he didn't understand.
He couldn't even be sure if this was reality.
Since yesterday, Sakuta felt like he'd been wandering through a fog.
He wanted to learn more about the current situation.
After finishing the last bite of his scrambled eggs, Sakuta left the table and picked up the phone.
He dialed the eleven-digit number that he had memorized.
It was Rio Futaba's cell phone number. She had been Sakuta's friend since high school.
After two rings, the call was answered.
"Futaba, it's me. Sorry for bothering you so early. Do you have a minute?"
Sakuta tried to stay calm, but he couldn't suppress his anxiety. His words came out faster than he intended.
What he didn't expect was a male voice on the other end of the line.
"Futaba's not available to talk right now."
The playful voice was one Sakuta recognized immediately. He knew it belonged to another high school friend, Yuuma Kunimi.
"Why are you answering her phone?"
"Since it was you calling, I figured I might as well answer."
Sakuta was even more confused.
"Where is Futaba?"
"She's off soaking in a hot spring."
Yet another unexpected answer.
"What?"
Sakuta let out a confused sound.
"I said, she's gone to a hot spring," Yuuma repeated, as if it were no big deal.
"You guys went to a hot spring?" Sakuta asked.
"Didn't you tell us you went on a hot spring date with Sakurajima-senpai? That got us interested, so we thought we'd try it out," Yuuma explained, sounding nonchalant.
"So, you're staying overnight?"
"Of course."
"I can't believe you, Yuuma! You've got such a good image, but here you are openly cheating?" Sakuta teased, pretending to be shocked.
"What? Cheating? How'd you get to that conclusion?" Yuuma laughed heartily, showing no signs of guilt.
Sakuta felt something was off.
It was as if he and Yuuma weren't on the same wavelength.
"What about Koga?" Sakuta asked, knowing this would be a more serious question.
"We broke up two years ago. You didn't know?" Yuuma replied.
"Huh?" Sakuta was baffled.
"Are you okay, Sakuta? You're acting really strange," Yuuma said, laughing as if he thought Sakuta was joking.
"So... you're dating Futaba?" Sakuta asked, his heartbeat quickening.
"Obviously."
Sakuta's mouth went dry.
"You're really dating?" His voice trembled as he spoke.
"Yeah."
"When did this start?"
Still struggling to grasp the situation, Sakuta forced the question out.
"Last fall, right after I finished my training. Is that the answer you wanted?"
"..."
Sakuta was speechless. His mind was in turmoil.
Yuuma's words left Sakuta completely at a loss.
"By the way, Kirishima Touko really is Sakurajima-senpai, huh?" Yuuma casually shifted the conversation, though Sakuta was still grappling with his confusion.
Taking a deep breath, Sakuta asked hesitantly, "You think so too?"
"I didn't see the performance, but I heard she announced it on stage yesterday. It's all over the internet now."
"What did Futaba say about it?" Sakuta gripped the phone tightly, tension building inside him.
"She? She said, 'Looks like Azusagawa will be seeing even less of Sakurajima-senpai now. Poor guy.'"
Sakuta focused intensely on each word.
"And, as you can imagine, Sakurajima-senpai's workload will probably increase a lot after this," Yuuma continued.
But it was not what Sakuta wanted to hear. It was the last thing he wanted to accept.
"So, Futaba believes it too..." he muttered, realizing that Futaba also believed that Mai was Kirishima Touko.
Even though she had previously discussed with Sakuta multiple times that it wasn't possible.
"Oh, she's back. I'll let her take the phone."
Sakuta heard familiar voices in the background: "Sakuta's on the phone?" "What's he saying?" "I don't understand."
"What do you want?" Rio's voice came through the receiver.
Sakuta didn't even know where to begin.
Mai had announced that she was Kirishima Touko.
Ikumi had received a message from another world.
Kaede was at home.
And he had also received a phone call from Kaede.
Yuuma was dating Rio.
Too many strange things had happened.
Sakuta's mind was in complete disarray.
Even the one person he trusted to help him, Rio, was now in a strange situation. Could he really consult her about this?
Sakuta had originally planned to talk to the Rio who wasn't dating Yuuma—the Rio who didn't believe that Mai was Kirishima Touko.
But now the Rio on the other end of the line was dating Yuuma and believed that Mai was Kirishima Touko. Sakuta didn't know what to say to this Rio.
"Sakuta?" Rio prompted, as Sakuta remained silent.
"Futaba," he said hesitantly.
"Say what you need to say already," she urged.
"The you I know... isn't dating Yuuma."
"..."
"What kind of Adolescence Syndrome is this?" he asked, choosing the most direct question.
"You're still talking about Adolescence Syndrome? You're turning twenty next week," she replied.
"Yeah." Sakuta glanced at the calendar on the wall, where a big red circle marked April 10th. Next to it, Kaede had written "Big Brother's Birthday!" in large letters.
"But the you I know... really—"
Before Sakuta could finish, Rio interrupted with a serious tone.
"Are you against me dating Yuuma?"
Sakuta quickly responded, "No, I fully support it."
"Good."
Even though Rio said this, her tone still carried a hint of reluctance.
"I've always thought since high school that you two were meant to be together."
This was the truth, no doubt about it.
But at the same time, Sakuta had known it wasn't possible... because Yuuma had already had a girlfriend, and as far as Sakuta knew, they hadn't broken up...
"I see..." Rio finally sounded convinced, her voice more relaxed.
"Futaba."
"What?"
"Are you happy now?"
"..."
Rio took a sharp breath.
There was a brief silence.
Sakuta could easily imagine what happened during that silence—Rio probably glanced at Yuuma, who was in the same room, and Yuuma smiled back at her.
"Of course, I'm happy," Rio answered, her shy tone confirming Sakuta's guess.
At this point, how could Sakuta possibly tell her that something was wrong with the situation?
Even if he did, she wouldn't accept it.
She'd probably just worry that something was wrong with him.
It was all too predictable.
"Sakuta? Is that all you wanted to say?"
"There's one more thing."
"What's that?"
"I wish you two happiness."
"Thanks... Do you want me to put Yuuma back on the phone?"
"No, that's okay. Sorry for bothering you."
With that, Sakuta hung up the phone.
"..."
After putting the receiver back in place, Sakuta stood still, unable to move.
The mystery had only deepened since making the call. There were now even more questions.
But Rio's words reminded him of something.
"Come to think of it, she mentioned once... that she dreamed about dating Yuuma..."
She had said that in the dream, it felt like she and Yuuma were dating.
That had been last Christmas. At the time, many people had posted online about their dreams of the future, causing the servers to crash. The event had attracted media attention and was still being talked about even into January.
Back then, Kaede had also said that she dreamed of becoming Kaede again.
And at that same time, Sakuta had dreamed of Mai announcing that she was Kirishima Touko.
All three of those dreams had come true.
"Could that be what 'reality being rewritten' refers to...?"
"What are you talking about?" Kaede asked as she came out of the bathroom, overhearing Sakuta's muttering.
"I don't even know what I'm saying."
If the message from the other world was true, then the cause of all this was Kirishima Touko.
—Stop Kirishima Touko.
Because there was such a message.
Yesterday, Sakuta didn't yet grasp the importance of it.
But now, Sakuta felt that he had to stop her as soon as possible.
The Sakuta from the other world had described the situation as "reality being rewritten." But Sakuta felt it was more serious than that.
Because the reality he remembered was already starting to collapse.
A sudden sense of unease washed over Sakuta.
His heart was anxious.
Sakuta desperately wanted to escape this feeling as soon as possible.
"Big brother, you have a shift at the family restaurant this afternoon, right?"
"Seems like it," Sakuta replied, distracted.
"Then let's give Nasuno a bath in the morning!"
"Sure..."
Sakuta almost agreed automatically, but halfway through, he remembered there was something else he needed to do.
"No, sorry, I have something to take care of before work."
"Okay! Then I'll take care of Nasuno's bath myself!"
Nasuno meowed from near his feet.
Sakuta felt that there was something he had to confirm with his own eyes.
He had to see if both Kaede and Kaede truly existed at the same time.
2
That day, Sakuta left home shortly after 9 a.m.
"Take care, big brother!"
Kaede, holding Nasuno who was about to get a bath, enthusiastically saw Sakuta off.
As he stepped outside the apartment building, Sakuta was greeted by a bright blue sky.
Not a cloud in sight.
The spring sky was crisp and clear.
But inside, Sakuta felt gloomy. The contrast was so stark that he thought even the blue sky looked fake.
The brightness of the sky made Sakuta feel dizzy, as if he were about to lose consciousness. Quickly, he lowered his head.
At that moment—
"Hello, big brother!"
Sakuta heard a lively voice.
Looking up, he saw a familiar face waving at him from across the street in front of another apartment building.
It was Uzuki Hirokawa, the leader of the idol group Sweet Bullet. Up until six months ago, she had been attending the same university as Sakuta.
She waved energetically as she ran over.
"How are you? I'm great!"
Her smile was as dazzling as the clear blue sky above.
Behind her was Nodoka.
"I'm okay, I guess," Sakuta replied.
"Big brother, did you hear? We finally did it!"
"You're having a concert at the Kokugikan, right? Kaede told me."
"It's the Budokan!"
"But didn't you say you still had a long way to go?"
At least six months ago, both Uzuki and Nodoka had said that.
"Well, we worked really hard, and our fans supported us. What about you?"
"Of course, I'm excited to see you perform at the Budokan, Uzuki."
This was genuine.
"Yay!"
Uzuki grabbed both of Sakuta's hands and forced a high-five.
"Anyway, congratulations!"
"Thank you!"
Uzuki's excitement was infectious, as if she were thanking her fans on stage.
"And congratulations to you too, Nodoka. You've achieved your goal."
Sakuta offered his congratulations to Nodoka as well.
"Thanks," Nodoka replied, but her reaction was subdued. She should've been happier.
"Why do you look so upset?"
"You don't know, do you? Nodoka is sulking because the announcement of our concert clashed with Mai's identity reveal. We got overshadowed," Uzuki whispered to Sakuta.
"Stop saying that!"
But Nodoka had heard everything and refuted it.
"Then what's bothering you?"
"I've been living with my sister this whole time and didn't notice anything. I feel like I've been really oblivious."
"So you believe it too, huh?"
"Believe what?"
"That Mai is Kirishima Touko."
"Why wouldn't I? She said it herself yesterday, in front of all those people."
"I watched the recording too! It was such an amazing performance!" Uzuki exclaimed excitedly.
"But Mai has always said she wasn't Touko."
"It's probably something the agency or record company wanted," Nodoka said, glancing away with a somewhat disinterested look, explaining from her own experience.
"When I filmed a commercial, they didn't let me reveal it was me until the final version aired."
"That makes sense. Mai said something similar."
Sakuta could understand that. Showbiz had its rules.
But it was still hard for Sakuta to accept. What bothered him even more was how easily everyone else believed that Mai was Kirishima Touko. This feeling of unease only grew stronger with time.
"So what? You don't think it's true?" Nodoka asked, noticing Sakuta's troubled expression.
"Well, I find it hard to believe."
"Why are you saying that, big brother?" Uzuki looked puzzled, as if there was a giant question mark above her head in a cartoon.
"Didn't you go to the live performance? You must've heard my sister say it herself, right?"
"I did."
"So why don't you believe it?"
Nodoka was visibly confused now, her expression shifting to concern and worry—emotions directed at Sakuta.
Uzuki glanced back and forth between Nodoka and Sakuta, then looked at him with the same concern. Her eyes seemed to ask, "Are you okay?"
"Are you okay?" she even voiced her concern aloud.
At least from their perspective, it was Sakuta who wasn't acting normal.
Sakuta felt a growing distance between himself and them.
Close enough to touch, yet always a step too far.
When he moved closer, they moved farther away.
To escape this feeling, Sakuta changed the subject.
"Oh no, I'm going to miss my train."
"Uh-oh! We need to get to our rehearsal too! Hurry up, Nodoka!"
"If we miss the train, it's your fault!"
And so the three of them began walking quickly.
As they hurried toward the station, Sakuta felt like his feet weren't firmly on the ground, as if his mind and body were disconnected. He couldn't find his usual rhythm while walking. The further he walked, the more uncertain he became.
By the time they reached the station, Sakuta was trailing behind Nodoka and Uzuki, watching their backs and wondering how he normally walked, all while doubting if this was even reality.
3
On the way, all three of them broke into a jog, and Nodoka and Uzuki barely caught the Romancecar train to Shinjuku.
After seeing them off at the Odakyu Line ticket gate, Sakuta headed up to the JR ticket gate. He swiped his card, entered the station, and caught a train on the Tokaido Line.
After riding for about twenty minutes, he got off at Yokohama.
He stopped by a shopping mall that had just opened at 10 a.m. and bought some pudding. The packaging had the silhouette of a stylish old man on it.
Then Sakuta went back to the platform, catching the Yokohama Line train bound for Hachioji.
Kaede was at his apartment. Kaede was at his parents' house.
Sakuta needed to confirm this with his own eyes.
He rode the train, passing through Higashi-Kanagawa, Ooguchi, Kikuna, and Shin-Yokohama, eventually arriving at Kodomo no Kuni Station.
After exiting the station and walking straight down the main road for about ten minutes, he turned into a smaller street and saw his parents' apartment.
He climbed to the third floor and stood at the door in the corner, ringing the doorbell.
After a three-second pause—
"Who is it?"
His mother's voice came through the intercom.
"It's me, Sakuta."
"What are you doing here? I'll open the door right away."
The intercom crackled and cut off, followed by the sound of light footsteps behind the door.
Then the door opened.
"Big brother? Where's your key?"
The person who opened the door was Kaede.
It was the Kaede Sakuta knew. Her hairstyle, her tone, her attitude toward Sakuta... everything was unmistakably Kaede.
"Brother?"
Seeing that Sakuta was silent, Kaede looked a bit surprised.
"I forgot something at home."
Sakuta said this while walking into the house.
"Here, a gift."
While taking off his shoes, Sakuta handed a box of pudding to Kaede.
"Great! Mom! My brother bought pudding!"
Kaede excitedly took the box inside to show their mother.
"We'll eat it at snack time at 3 o'clock."
"Why wait~? Let's eat it now, okay?"
Sakuta listened to their conversation as he entered the house.
"Sakuta, what brings you here?"
His father, who was watching the news on a tablet in the living room, looked up and asked.
"Is something wrong?"
"Nothing much, I just thought I'd be busier once school starts, so I figured I'd visit during spring break."
"I see."
His father responded and went back to his tablet.
Sakuta wasn't sure if his dad believed his story or not.
"Sakuta, are you staying for lunch?"
"No, I have plans this afternoon."
Sakuta had heard from Kaede earlier that she had to work a shift at a family restaurant starting in the afternoon.
"Do you have a date with Mai?"
His mother teased with a smile.
"Something like that."
Sakuta went along with her words.
After all, he couldn't say that he was just there to confirm Kaede's existence.
Even if he did, they wouldn't understand.
"By the way, brother."
"Yeah?"
"Can you cover my shift next week?"
Kaede had no way of knowing what was on Sakuta's mind, so she acted like everything was normal.
"Are you going to a Sweet Bullet concert?"
"I'm going to Hakone with mom and dad to enjoy the hot springs."
Kaede looked over at the laptop on the table.
The homepage of a hot spring inn was displayed.
"You're not taking me?"
"Didn't you already go to the hot springs with Mai during Christmas?"
"Can't I go more than once?"
"Anyway, please cover my shift."
"Alright, alright."
There wasn't anything special in their conversation, just a typical sibling exchange.
For Sakuta, it felt normal to talk to Kaede this way.
It was because it felt so normal that it also felt abnormal.
That morning, Sakuta had just spoken to Kaede.
They had breakfast together and cleaned up the dishes.
Kaede had even smiled and waved as she saw him off.
So, Sakuta's common sense was ringing alarm bells.
The two of them shouldn't be able to exist at the same time.
But no matter how he looked at it, both seemed real.
Faced with this bizarre situation, Sakuta couldn't find an explanation that made sense to him.
Looking at Kaede, Sakuta couldn't help but feel doubtful.
"Brother? Why are you staring at me like that?"
Noticing that Sakuta had suddenly fallen silent, Kaede looked puzzled.
"It's nothing. Enjoy your time at the hot springs."
"Is that all you've got to say?"
"Bring back some tasty local treats."
Sakuta managed to squeeze out this one line with all his effort.
After having a cup of tea at his parents' house, Sakuta left.
He retraced his steps back to Fujisawa Station.
Then, five minutes before his shift started, Sakuta arrived at the family restaurant.
He hurriedly changed into his uniform and clocked in just in time.
From there, Sakuta acted as if nothing was wrong.
He welcomed customers, seated them, took their orders, served the dishes, cleared the tables, and handled payments at the register.
Afterward, he cleaned up the tables and greeted new customers.
Sakuta repeated these tasks until the lunch rush was over.
As the number of customers dwindled, the restaurant entered a more relaxed afternoon tea time.
Sakuta took this opportunity to restock the drinks in the self-service area.
"Azusagawa, take a break."
While Sakuta was cleaning up the empty boxes, the manager signaled that it was time for his break.
"Okay."
Sakuta stacked the boxes neatly and went to the break room.
Entering the empty room, he sat down on a steel chair.
There were some snacks on the table that someone had brought.
Just as Sakuta was about to reach for one, someone passed by the door.
"Huh? Senpai, what are you doing here?"
Tomoe Koga's surprised voice came as soon as she saw Sakuta.
She hurriedly tried to hide a large item behind her back, but since she was so short, she couldn't conceal it properly.
It was a flat, manta ray-shaped garment bag.
Though she tried to hide it, both sides stuck out.
It seemed to be a bag for holding a suit.
She had graduated from Minegahara High School in March, and starting in April, she was going to be a university student.
There was only one reason she would be carrying a suit now.
"Are you here to show off the suit you'll wear for your entrance ceremony?"
"I went to pick it up because the store would be closed after my shift!"
Tomoe angrily denied Sakuta's assumption.
"You've got it with you, so why not show me?"
"No way. You'd just make fun of me, saying I look like I'm celebrating Children's Day."
"Then I guess I'll have to wait to see it at the actual ceremony. When's your entrance ceremony?"
"Huh? You don't know?"
Tomoe seemed incredibly shocked by Sakuta's casual question.
Sakuta didn't understand why she was so surprised.
"Why would I automatically know the date of your entrance ceremony?"
She hadn't told him about it before.
"We're going to the same university."
"Huh?"
Tomoe's words left Sakuta dumbfounded.
"Why are you acting surprised?"
Tomoe was equally confused.
"Didn't you get into a girls' school in Tokyo? I even gave you Bluetooth earbuds as a congratulatory gift. I can't be mistaken about that."
"I did get your gift… but after talking with you, I decided to turn down the recommendation. So, I took the exam for your university instead..."
As Tomoe spoke, a cloud of uncertainty crossed her face.
Perhaps it was because Sakuta's expression also clouded over as he listened.
"Senpai, do you really not remember?"
Tomoe asked seriously, her face filled with doubt or maybe mistrust toward Sakuta.
But Sakuta was equally confused.
He couldn't accept Tomoe's version of events because it was so far removed from his own memory.
"The Tomoe I know is going to a girls' school in Tokyo this year."
"..."
Tomoe didn't argue anymore, but she looked troubled.
Her gaze seemed to reflect worry about Sakuta, as if she thought something was wrong with him.
"..."
"..."
Neither of them knew what to say.
The break room, piled high with stuff, was filled with an awkward silence.
The one who broke the silence wasn't Sakuta or Tomoe.
"Good morning!"
It was a cheerful voice that suddenly brightened the atmosphere.
Sara Himeji walked in with a spring in her step.
She was wearing a light-colored shirt and skirt that were perfect for the spring season.
Seeing Sakuta and Tomoe, she smiled and entered the room.
"Good morning, teacher! Good morning, Koga-senpai!"
"Good morning."
"Good morning, Himeji."
Sakuta and Tomoe each responded with a greeting.
Both of their voices sounded off, a bit awkward.
Neither of them had completely shaken off the tension from earlier.
Sara quickly noticed that something was wrong and began glancing back and forth between Sakuta and Tomoe.
"What's up with you two?"
"Nothing at all, right, Senpai?"
Tomoe immediately tried to brush it off.
She was probably giving Sakuta an easy way out.
But Sara clearly wasn't going to let it slide.
"Really? But the vibe between you two seems off."
Sara looked at Tomoe with suspicion.
"There's really nothing going on between us."
"Is that so? Well, okay then."
Surprisingly, Sara didn't push further.
Maybe she figured that asking more wouldn't yield any results.
What she said next revealed why she stopped probing.
"Oh, by the way, Sakuta-sensei! I have something really important to tell you!"
Suddenly, she beamed, changing the topic with excitement.
It was clear she couldn't wait to share something with Sakuta.
"Do you know what I saw at Enoshima yesterday?"
"What did you see?"
"I saw Yamada-kun and Yoshikazu-san on a date."
"..."
Sara proudly said this, but Sakuta didn't have much of a reaction. He wasn't surprised by it, since Sakuta already knew.
Of course, it wasn't from reality, but from a dream.
Earlier this year, one of Sakuta's tutoring students told him that he had dreamt of going on a date with his classmate Juri Yoshiwa at Enoshima. Then, Sara said she dreamt of seeing them on a date there as well.
"So, your dream and Yamada's dream both came true..."
"Dream... what are you talking about?"
Sara looked a bit puzzled, hearing Sakuta's muttering.
"Didn't you mention before? You dreamt of going to Enoshima with your friends and seeing Yamada and Yoshiwa on a date."
"..."
She was confused when she first heard it. And after hearing it now, she was even more confused.
Nearby, Tomoe looked at Sakuta with even more concern, which made him feel uncomfortable.
Some invisible force seemed to be binding Sakuta. He even felt a bit of tightness in his chest, as if he didn't belong.
To break the awkward silence, Sakuta spoke again, trying to gain their understanding.
"Come on, don't act like you don't know. Wasn't the whole 'dreams coming true' thing all over the place a while ago?"
Sakuta tried to remain calm, but there was a hint of frustration in his voice.
"Koga-senpai, do you know what he's talking about?"
"No idea."
When Sara asked this, Tomoe shook her head.
"That 'dreams' hashtag went viral on SNS. How could you not remember that?"
Sakuta's tone grew more intense. Their expressions became serious as they listened.
"Koga-senpai, do you know what he's talking about?"
"Sorry, I have no idea either."
Tomoe shook her head, looking troubled.
"..."
Seeing their reactions left Sakuta speechless. He felt as if he had frozen, like the pillar supporting him had crumbled, and he was about to collapse.
"Wait a minute! You don't even remember the '#dreams' hashtag?"
Sakuta, unable to contain his anxiety, unconsciously moved closer to them, raising his voice.
Tomoe and Sara exchanged glances, both looking unsure of what to do.
"Sorry, Senpai. I really don't know what you're talking about," Tomoe said.
"Then why don't you check your phones right now? You'll find it all over SNS."
Tomoe and Sara glanced at each other again, then pulled out their phones and started searching.
"Teacher, I don't see any tag like that."
"Me neither."
Soon, they handed their phones to Sakuta to show they were telling the truth.
"How is that possible..."
The search results on their phones were completely different from what Sakuta had expected. There was no exact match for the '#dreams' tag, only some loosely related keywords.
"Sorry, can I borrow your phone for a second?"
Sakuta asked Tomoe and took her phone. He typed in '#dreams' himself and searched again.
But there was still no result he was looking for. The results were exactly the same as before...
"Why... why can't I find it?"
Sakuta searched again.
But the outcome didn't change.
"Senpai, are you okay...?"
Sakuta looked up and saw Tomoe staring at him with a worried expression. Sara also lifted her eyes, looking at him with the same concern.
Their voices seemed distant to Sakuta, even though they were right in front of him. It felt as if they were standing ten meters away.
A wave of dizziness hit him.
"Senpai?"
His head started to spin.
"Teacher?"
It felt like his feet weren't touching the ground.
"Senpai...?"
Tomoe and Sara began to tilt.
"Teacher?!"
The table and walls started to tilt too. It felt like the ceiling was about to collapse. Sakuta, along with the steel chair he was sitting on, fell to the ground.
The chair hit the floor with a loud crash.
"Oh no!"
Sara cried out.
"Senpai!"
Tomoe called out to Sakuta, worry in her voice.
"Senpai, pull yourself together!"
Sakuta sat on the floor and looked up. Immediately, he saw Tomoe staring at him with a tense expression.
It wasn't until then that Sakuta realized he had fallen.
"I'm fine. Just a minor issue..."
Sakuta waved his hand, indicating he was okay.
"How can you say you're fine when you've fallen? If you're feeling unwell, you should head home."
"I'll go get the manager."
Sara hurriedly ran out of the break room.
"Senpai, you need to go home and rest today."
Tomoe urged him once more.
At this point, Sakuta was starting to think she was right.
"Sorry, Koga. I guess I'll head home."
If he stayed any longer, his mind might break.
"Senpai, take care on your way home."
"And don't wander off somewhere else."
With their words of concern, Sakuta left the family restaurant. But even after stepping out, he still didn't feel like his feet were on solid ground.
It felt like he was walking on cotton, without any stability.
He had walked this route countless times from the station, yet it all felt like it was covered with a strange haze. Even though this was the city he had lived in for years, it felt foreign, like he was in an unfamiliar world.
At this moment, Sakuta recalled a message he had received from another version of himself in another world.
— Stop Touko Kirishima.
— Before reality gets rewritten.
Faced with the current situation, Sakuta finally understood what those words meant.
"Why didn't that other me tell me sooner that things would get this bizarre..."
Mai claimed she was Touko Kirishima, Kaede appeared at home, but at the same time, Kaede hadn't disappeared. Yuuma and Rio were dating, and Tomoe was about to enroll in Sakuta's university.
And it didn't stop there.
Even the '#dreams' tag that had previously driven Sakuta crazy had disappeared. Of course, Sakuta wanted it gone, but not in the sense that it had vanished from everyone's awareness.
So many things no longer matched the reality Sakuta knew. Or rather, they no longer matched what had become his new reality.
If Touko Kirishima was the cause of this strange phenomenon, then Sakuta indeed had to stop her. Having been dragged into such an incomprehensible situation, he had to find her and confront her in person.
But the key problem was that Sakuta didn't know who Touko Kirishima really was. He had previously thought that the mini-skirted Santa Claus was Touko, but it turned out she was someone else. Nene Iwamizawa wasn't Touko Kirishima either.
"I'll have to ask Fukuyama's girlfriend about it..."
She had pretended to be Touko Kirishima for almost a year. Now, the only thing to do was to ask her about the situation.
Sakuta unconsciously started to run.
Running through the busy streets from the family restaurant to the station...
Was it to find Touko Kirishima?
Or was it to escape his uneasy feelings?
Sakuta himself didn't know. But he did know where he was going.
Sakuta ran across the pedestrian bridge in front of the station and headed toward JR Fujisawa Station.
In a corner of the station, lined with coin lockers and small kiosks, there was a yellow-green public phone that nobody used. Sakuta picked up the receiver, inserted a coin, and dialed the number he had memorized not long ago.
"Who is it?"
The voice on the other end was a man. It was Sakuta's classmate, Takumi Fukuyama.
Sakuta immediately realized he had dialed the wrong number.
"It's me, Azusagawa."
"Oh, it's really you? I saw the call was from a public phone, so I thought it might be you. What's up?"
"Sorry, I dialed the wrong number. I was actually trying to call Iwamizawa."
It seemed like Sakuta was even more flustered than he thought. Just realizing this made him want to laugh.
"Huh? Are you okay? How could you mess that up?"
"I'll hang up and call her now."
"Wait, she's with me. I'll let her take the call."
On the other end, Takumi called out, "Nene!"
"What do you want?"
Soon after, a not-so-happy voice came through the receiver.
"Do you know who Touko Kirishima really is?"
"Huh? Isn't that your girlfriend?"
Her voice sounded somewhat resigned.
"You're making me feel like a clown. I can't stand it."
Although her tone was calm, her words were mocking Sakuta.
But Sakuta didn't have the time to banter with her.
"Anything at all, do you know any other information?"
"Why don't you ask your girlfriend directly?"
Sakuta pressed further, but Nene seemed annoyed and refused to engage.
"Didn't you say before that you gave everyone puberty syndrome as a gift?"
"Maybe I said that."
"What exactly did you mean by that?"
"What else could it mean? I listened to Touko Kirishima's song, and then I got puberty syndrome. Isn't that the reason?"
Nene's tone was as if it had nothing to do with her.
"At the time, I guess I just wanted to feel special."
She let out a self-deprecating laugh.
"So you're saying you know nothing else about the situation?"
"I don't."
"…"
Sakuta's last glimmer of hope vanished instantly.
"But I still have to thank you. Thanks to you, my puberty syndrome was cured."
"…You're welcome."
"Do you want me to pass the phone to Takumi?"
"No need."
"Alright then, goodbye."
She promptly hung up.
Sakuta placed the beeping receiver back in place, noticing that his hands were trembling.
Everyone he talked to was saying things that didn't make sense.
There seemed to be no way to resolve the problem.
His mouth felt dry.
It was becoming difficult to breathe.
The noise of the crowd around him felt distant, but his own heartbeat echoed loudly in his ears, as if his heart was pounding painfully.
His body was afraid of something.
Sakuta had felt like this before.
"No one understands me... just like back then."
It was when Sakuta was in his third year of middle school.
At that time, no one believed that puberty syndrome was real, and Sakuta was isolated.
Now, it was the same. Sakuta's perception was different from everyone else's. He was alone in this world.
With trembling hands, Sakuta picked up the receiver again.
"Yuuma was with me yesterday. She'll definitely..."
When Mai had declared herself to be Touko Kirishima, Yuuma had also been surprised, showing disbelief. She shared the same perspective as Sakuta.
Sakuta dialed her number, but his hands were shaking so much that he pressed the wrong buttons.
The first time, he got it wrong. He had to try again, and it took even more time.
Finally, he dialed the correct number.
His hand, holding the receiver, trembled even more. Sakuta gripped the receiver tightly to prevent it from slipping out of his hands, but the tighter he held it, the more he shook.
The only fortunate thing was that the call connected quickly.
"Yuuma!"
Sakuta shouted into the receiver.
But the response that came back was,
"The number you have dialed is not in service. Please check the number and dial again."
A cold, mechanical voice.
It must have been another dialing error, Sakuta thought, as he redialed.
Again, the call connected right away.
"The number you have dialed is not in service. Please check the number and dial again."
But the reply was the same automated message.
"..."
Sakuta had given up on thinking.
With an empty mind, he dialed Yuuma's number again.
But the same mechanical voice greeted him.
He double-checked the number—he hadn't misdialed. It was also unlikely that he had remembered it wrong.
Yet, he couldn't get through. The number was out of service.
A sharp pain stabbed Sakuta in the stomach, like someone was clutching his insides.
It hurt so much that he could hardly stand.
Sakuta leaned against the phone, using his arm to prop himself up.
There was no one left to rely on.
He pulled out his wallet, intending to retrieve the coins he had put into the phone.
At that moment, a slip of paper wedged between the thousand-yen bills fell out.
"..."
It was as if some unseen force was guiding him as Sakuta slowly bent down and picked it up.
On the paper, in his own handwriting, was a phone number.
Sakuta knew exactly whose number it was.
He had known this number for two years.
He knew who it belonged to, and the person's name.
However, Sakuta had never called this number before. The other person hadn't called either. For the past two years, they had only communicated through letters.
Sakuta put the remaining coins into the phone.
Then, with great care, he dialed that number he had rarely used.
He pressed each number cautiously, afraid of making a mistake.
At the same time, he took deep breaths...
After dialing, the phone began to ring.
The first ring, no one picked up.
"..."
The second ring, still no response.
"..."
After the third ring, someone answered.
"Hello?"
The voice that came through the receiver was the one he remembered.
"It's been a while. Sorry for calling out of the blue. It's Azusagawa."
Sakuta hadn't prepared anything to say, so he just awkwardly pieced together a sentence and said it.
The other person chuckled softly, probably because Sakuta's phrasing sounded strange.
"As expected, Sakuta-senpai and I were destined to meet."
The other person playfully said this.
But Sakuta didn't understand.
"…Destined?"
So he could only ask back.
The other person immediately answered.
"Look behind you."
This voice didn't come from the receiver.
It came directly from behind him, entering his ears.
"…"
Like a puppet on strings, Sakuta mechanically turned around, an unbelievable feeling welling up in his mind.
Turning around, Sakuta saw a high school girl standing not far from where he had been pacing.
She was wearing the uniform of Minegahara High School, standing a short distance from Sakuta.
She smiled brightly when their eyes met, a smile full of unmistakable joy.
Sakuta knew her.
She was a very important person to him, but he had sealed her away in his memories a long time ago.
During his toughest times, Sakuta had gone to the beach at Shichirigahama, where he had met this high school girl.
She had been the one who helped Sakuta get through those dark days... and she was also Sakuta's first love.
And now, she was standing right before him, looking exactly the same as she did in his memories.
Sakuta instinctively opened his mouth, wanting to call out her name.
—Shouko-san.
He wanted to call out to her.
But no words came out.
"Why...?"
He barely managed to squeeze out these few words.
"It's because I still wanted to attend Minegahara High School."
She said this shyly but with joy.
Seeing her smile, Sakuta finally understood everything before him.
"Today, I have to go to school... I need to explain my situation to the teacher before classes start. That I had heart surgery."
Seeing her place her hand on her chest, Sakuta finally realized that she wasn't the same person he had met at Shichirigahama all those years ago.
She was the girl who had moved to Okinawa.
He understood that she had successfully graduated from middle school and was now, in this spring, fulfilling her dream of becoming a high school student...
"By the way, how do I look in this uniform? Does it look good?"
She posed slightly in front of Sakuta, showing off her school uniform.
"Makinohara!"
Sakuta couldn't contain his excitement and shouted her name loudly.
Hearing Sakuta call out to her, Shouko seemed a little surprised.
But that surprise quickly turned into immense joy.
"It's me, Sakuta-senpai!"
She energetically replied.
"Don't worry, everything will be fine with me here."
"...What do you mean by 'fine'?"
"Let's go together and meet Touko Kirishima."