Volume 1 - CH 1.1

Arriving at the station where we were to meet, I walked quickly through the crowd, then leaned my back against a large pillar in front of the ticket gate, and looked at the time on the electric signboard.

It was 4:12 p.m., three minutes before her train arrived. Relieved that I was just in time, I put the back of my head against the pillar and let out a small breath amid the hustle and bustle of the evening station.

It was a month ago that my mother told me that a relative of ours was going to move into our house. Since then, I had hurriedly cleaned up the room on the second floor, which had been a storage room until yesterday, and put an unused old desk and extra futon in the closet to make it ready for people to live in.

I had never met her, nor did her name ring a bell. I had never had much contact with my relatives. Once when I was in elementary school, I was taken to the funeral of my grandmother's sister, whose face I did not even know.

Today, it had been raining since this morning. The sky was a heavy gray of the rainy season, and there were many droplets of water on the windowpanes. The air smelled a little fishy. The wet umbrellas and shoes of people walking in the station soaked the tiled floor.

As I gazed at the station at dusk, with people busily coming and going, the time display on the electric board showed 4:15 p.m. An announcement announcing the arrival of the train could be heard outside the ticket gate, and the metal clang of the train's stop rang out. Suddenly, the cell phone in my pocket shook. On the screen was an unknown number. But the timing was right: it was definitely her. Perhaps her mother had given her my number.

I felt my breath catch in my throat, but I couldn't ignore it. I let out a slow breath, touched the call icon, and held it to my ear.

"Yes."

The speakers were filled with a motley mixture of footsteps and announcements. Then, as I expected, a soft girl's voice announced her name.

"I'm Izumi. I just arrived. Um, where are you?"

When asked, I hurriedly looked around. A number of office workers and high school students in school uniforms were walking quickly past me.

"---I'm at the pillar in front of the ticket machine. I'm wearing jeans and a gray shirt."

"Got it. I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

The phone hung up after the words "excuse me,". There was an electronic beep, and I pulled the phone away from my ear and tucked it into my pocket.

I looked up and saw the passengers who had just gotten off the train coming through the ticket gates one after another. Of course, there was no way I could tell which one was Izumi Rina, who I would be living with from now on, but I somehow found myself staring at the flow of people.

Then my eyes met those of a dark-haired girl with a small brown backpack and a red carry case, who had just left the ticket gate.

As soon as our eyes met, her face lit up, she bowed her head and walked straight to me. I knew from the look on her face that this was the girl I was looking for.

Her medium-length hair was straight, down to her collarbone, and the top of her ears is slightly peeking out. Her relaxed cheeks and eyes were soft, and her white blouse, pale beige cardigan, and long navy blue skirt gave her a neat impression.

She bowed her head in front of me and asked, "You are Sakamoto Kenichi-kun, aren't you?

"Yes, I am."

When I answered, she smiled and began to speak in a friendly manner.

"I'm sorry, I had you come all the way to the station. I'll be indebted to you from now on."

My shy nature came out and I could only reply vaguely, "Hello". After my mother told me about her move, it was a strange feeling to actually see the person I had imagined from the mere sound of her name, "Izumi Rina," appear in front of me.

I looked at the clock at the ticket gate and turned my body toward the exit of the station, saying, "It's almost time for the bus to leave,". Izumi nodded and started walking ahead of me, trailing behind me with her carry case in tow.

We got off the escalator and went out to the station roundabout. The bus was already at the stop, doors open, waiting for passengers. The city was dark and wet from the continuous rain falling from the deep gray clouds. Outside, the sound of the rain was even louder than inside the building.

There was no roof over the fifty-meter distance to the bus stops. Under the concrete roof at the entrance of the station, Izumi unbuckled the shoulder strap of her backpack and pulled out a red folding umbrella from inside.

I also open the shabby plastic umbrella in one hand, and we start walking to the bus stop. The sound of the rain tapping on the umbrella and the sound of Izumi's pumps on the brick sidewalk echoed around us. On a dimly raining evening, the people walking in front of the station were all taciturn, as if shadows were walking by.

There were some vacant seats on the bus for two people. I walked to one of them and motioned to Izumi, who hurriedly followed behind me, to take a seat by the window. Perhaps noticing my signal, she bowed her head, lifted her heavy carrying case, and carried it over the steps with her knees. Then she sat down and put her backpack on her lap.

"...... The rain hasn't stopped, has it? The forecast said it would stop in the evening."

Izumi said as I sat down next to her.

I said, "Yes, that's right,". Izumi was looking up at the sky through the water-drop-stained window. The inside of the window was slightly fogged up, probably due to the warm air in the bus.

As we sat side by side in a space where our elbows touched each other, the air in the dusty bus was filled with a faintly sweet smell wafting from her. I wondered if it was her own scent or cologne.

She sits with her hands neatly on her lap. On her left wrist, she wore a small wristwatch. Her belongings looked a little more expensive than those of an ordinary high school student. Izumi attends a well-known private all-girls school, with an integrated middle and high school. The atmosphere she was giving off earlier gave me a sense of her upbringing, which made me, a student at an ordinary public high school, feel a little self-conscious.

Soon the engine started, the car shuddered, and an announcement was made in an unobtrusive manner, telling the driver where the car would stop. Suddenly, Izumi turned to me and asked, "How far is it from here?"

"About... 20 minutes."

"I see."

The conversation was cut short at that, and silence fell. At the same time, the bus closed its doors and drove off into the rainy city.

Izumi smiled and turned her head toward me for a moment as if still trying to find a clue to the conversation. I tried to find something to continue, but couldn't think of anything to say. As the silence dragged on, I could sense that an aura of awkwardness was seeping out from behind her pleasant smile, and I began to feel sorry for her.

This girl is nervous, after all. It's only natural when you think about it. Even though it is a relative's house, she is going to live with someone she has never met before for a while. She will be away from her parents, and she may be feeling a bit lonely.

Umm, Izumi said, her voice coming out of a smile that almost made me break out in a cold sweat. 

"How far is it from the bus stop to your house?"

"...... About five minutes."

"Oh, is that so ..."

The conversation was cut off again in an instant, and Izumi casts her eyes down. I was impatiently trying to think of something to say to Izumi, and I managed to come up with an unrelated question.

"Are you doing any club activities?"

She raised her face and then gave a bright expression to my low voice, which seemed to blend in with the sound of the bus engine.

"I'm in the badminton club. It's not a very active club, just a light workout a couple of times a week. ---What about you, Sakamoto-kun?

"I play soccer."

When I replied, she sounded a little excited.

"I like watching soccer. I don't really know the rules, though. I know players like Honda. ---How long have you been playing?"

"Since I was in elementary school."

"That's great. So you've been doing this a long time."

She then started asking me some questions and talking about her school. Although I still felt uncomfortable talking to her, I kept on responding to her, trying not to act as if I was refusing to have a conversation with her.

While we were repeating the conversation in such a way that we could gauge the distance between each other, the nearest bus stop was approaching.

"Next is our stops."

When I told her so, she said, "Yes," and hit the switch with the "Get off" sign on it.

The bus slows down and stops. I walked down the aisle ahead of her and looked back at Izumi, who was carrying large baggage at the exit.

"I'll take your luggage."

The steps are narrow and slippery from the rain. I held out my hand, knowing that it would be dangerous with a heavy carrying case in her hand. If I don't cover for my inability to speak well in places like this, I will really just be perceived as a guy with a bad attitude.

"Ah...... Yeah, thanks."

Izumi looked reserved for a moment, then smiled and handed me the handle of her carrying case.

I lifted it up to see what was in it, and it was quite heavy. It was a good suggestion because it was surprisingly difficult to avoid bumping the narrow landing and the case.

I got off first and opened my plastic umbrella. Izumi, who came down after me, also opened a red folding umbrella, said, "Thank you," and received the case.

The rain continues to fall in a quiet, rainy season-like manner, and it continues to sprinkle without seeming to stop. The bus started to drive away when the flow of traffic died down.

"All we have to do now is walk straight."

"Yeah."

Izumi nodded and walked beside me at a distance where our umbrellas would not collide. This time, the subtle distance and the sound of the rain filled the silence.

The streets, drenched with rainy season rain, have large puddles of water in some places. The rain was pouring down there incessantly, creating several circular crests. I looked at Izumi from the side and saw that she was a head shorter than me. Her soft, fine hair seemed to absorb moisture and have a moist weight to it.

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