Volume 1 - CH 16

From the bench, we both walked back to Imai-san’s place and continued our conversation.

Imai-san said that he had been at the coffee shop for a long time because he did not know what to do because Himekawa had suddenly run outside.

Himekawa expressed to Imai-san her hope that, if possible, she would leave the tower, move into the boarding house, and go to school from there.

Imai-san also respects Himekawa’s idea and is willing to make arrangements to meet her wishes as much as possible.

Either way, it seemed that I would have to talk to Himekawa’s father, so the matter was put on hold at this point.

Since the boarding house is my house, Imai-san asked me to give him my father’s phone number and I gave it to him.

I had no idea how Imai-san would handle the situation, but he was allowed to stay at my lodgings until he got the results.

After the conversation with Imai-san was over, we finished up at the coffee shop and decided to go shopping in town.

“I don’t know, there’s just so much going on that it’s confusing.

I begin talking with Himekawa as we walk through the archways of the city.

“Yes, that’s right. There are many things about my father’s work that I don’t know either”

“Well, I hear Imai-san is going to be handling a lot of things from now on, so you don’t have to think too much about it, do you?”

“Is Imai-san trustworthy?”

“What do you mean?”

“The person in the house and the housekeeper both said that adults can’t be trusted”

Well, there are all kinds of people in the world. Good people, bad people.

You can’t trust everyone, and it is your own eyes that will tell the difference. You have to gain experience.

“Well, yes, I guess so. We definitely can’t do anything on our own, like in this case, can we? I still think you have to leave it to the adults, don’t you?”

Himekawa, who had lost some of her energy, gradually slowed down her walking speed and then stopped.

I went back to where Himekawa had stopped and looked into her face.

Is she crying?

“How did this happen? I just wanted to go to school and live a normal life.”

“What kind of normal are you thinking? I think normal is probably more difficult than what Himekawa thinks.”

I have a father and a mother. I have a family. There is a house. I have grandparents. I can go to school. I can eat three meals a day.

Have a warm bed to sleep in. Have a smartphone. Is that normal?

No parents. No home. No relatives. I cannot eat three meals a day.

Now, we can eat and sleep on a futon.

“Don’t worry so much. I’m sure we’ll figure something out. Even Himekawa’s father said he would be back soon.”

“Certainly, Imai-san spoke of it that way…”

I am sure we will never come to a conclusion if we talk about it here.

There is nothing wrong with worrying. However, there are a lot of problems that do not produce results even if you worry about them.

“By the way, are you hungry?　It’s a little late, but let’s get something to eat.”

I force myself to change the subject and invite Himekawa to lunch.

The shopping mall has a wide variety of restaurants, from fast-food restaurants to rice bowl restaurants, Western, Japanese, Chinese, and all-you-can-eat restaurants.

You can find pretty much anything you want.

“What would you like to eat?”

Himekawa, who had been silent for a while, opens her mouth after thinking for a while.

“Pasta. With salad.”

“All right, let’s go. I know a place with a great menu, cheap and good food.”

“That sounds exciting.”

With Himekawa cheerfully replying, I proceeded through the arcade toward the pasta restaurant with her.

“Welcome! Two people?”

Upon entering the restaurant, one finds that even though it is past noon, the restaurant is reasonably crowded.

I sit down at the seat for two that we were shown and open the menu.

The restaurant is not a chain, but a private establishment, and is located a bit away from the main part of the arcade.

The interior of the restaurant is stylishly designed, and the jazz music that is playing fits the atmosphere of the restaurant.

“Tendo-kun, do you usually go to this kind of restaurant?”

“I don’t usually come here. I was once brought here by a senior employee of my part-time job”

We order from the staff and wait for them to come.

“I wonder what will happen now”

“I think we’re waiting to hear from Imai-san, aren’t we?　He’ll call me if there’s any progress, right?　School starts tomorrow, and until I hear from him, we can just go about our lives as normal, right?”

“Yes, that’s right. Until we hear from him, I’ll continue to take care of you”

“I don’t think I’ll take care of you much, but do what you want”

The order arrived and we had a little late lunch.

“See, it’s pretty good, isn’t it?”

“It’s delicious. So this is the price… I was shown a good place to eat”

After the meal, it is Himekawa’s shopping turn in earnest.

Shopping for girls is a long process. To buy or not to buy? They don’t know whether they want it or not.

They take the item in their hands and put it back where they found it, going back to the same store several times.

“Himekawa, didn’t you come to this store earlier?”

“Eh, I came here already?”

The answer was immediate. I am convinced that she is aware that it is the same store.

Is she intentionally coming back to the same store? What for? I’m getting tired of walking, you know?

“You know, do you know what you’re going to buy?”

I ask Himekawa.

I’ve already made up my mind. The one I just saw and this one. I’m just having a little trouble deciding which one I like better.”

From my point of view, it doesn’t matter which one it is. But it seems to be important to Himekawa.

I thought to myself, I can’t help it, I’ll go out with her for a while.

Thus, Himekawa’s shopping turn continued, going back and forth to the stores in the arcade.