After spending a warm time at the family restaurant, we decided to go home. Sorimachi remained holed up in the back and didn’t come out.
Tanaka’s little brother and Tanaka waved to us until our figures disappeared.
Hanazono and I kept waving back.
When they were no longer visible, Hanazono let out a sigh.
“…Phew, I didn’t expect Sorimachi to be at the family restaurant.”
“I don’t go there often, so maybe she just started working there recently?”
“In middle school, I was also a bit stubborn… I got angry when Tsuyoshi was made fun of.”
“…… Sorry, in middle school, I wish I had gotten along with the class a bit better.”
Me and Hanazono start walking. The sun has already set. The fun time passes in the blink of an eye.
“No, Tsuyoshi has gotten better after entering high school. Sorimachi and the others… are still stuck on the best memories from middle school.”
I see, they are stuck in the time when they were shining the brightest. That’s why they’ve been looking down on me all this time.
“It’s difficult–“
I once again feel the difficulty of human relationships. I met all kinds of people after entering high school. Besides Hanazono and Tanaka, there were others who interacted with me.
My heart starts to wither rapidly. It’s not just Hanazono and Tanaka. I’ve also lost contact with Michiba and Sasami. It was certainly a painful event. But…, I shouldn’t have erased everything.
“I wonder how Michiba is doing?”
“Ah, I heard she’s gotten really quiet. Even during breaks, she’s studying, and she’s been serious about her class representative duties. … Don’t worry. Michiba changed for the better because of you.”
“Because of me?”
“Yes, otherwise she would have stayed the same. … With that personality of her, she probably has a lot of female enemies too.”
“Enemies? They all look like they get along well.”
Hanazono stares off into the distance. She seems to be reminiscing about something.
“Yeah, there are quite a few tough girls, you know. You don’t need to know the world of girls!”
“Um, I see. But if you say that, I’m curious… Anyway, Michiba would barely talk to me in the classroom, but she tried to include me in her group on the school trip at the beginning of the term. I remember being happy about that.”
“Ah, you remember that!?”
“Of course. You came with us, and the three of us, Michiba, you, and I, went on the school trip. … Nostalgic memories…”
I suppress the urge to stop in my tracks. I shouldn’t have any nostalgic feelings towards the reset Michiba. A sharp pain shoots through my head, like being hit by a hammer. My brain is trying to erase the abnormality. Something in my heart is desperately resisting it.
I can’t let the pain show on the outside. This is a time for chatting with Hanazono.
Hanazono peers into my face. Her expression is unreadable, but a warm feeling comes across. The pain can be endured.
“Oh, right, Sasami quit the track team, didn’t she? I heard that from Igarashi.”
It’s okay. Hanazono doesn’t think anything is strange. I’ll just continue the conversation.
“Yeah, I also heard a lot from Igarashi. It seems she quit not because Shimizu told him to, but to aim higher. Apparently, she’s been busy, like going to get coached by a professional runner and observing practices at a university.”
I was a little worried when I heard that Sasami had quit the track team.
I once saw her running, and her form had become more refined. She seemed to be putting what she had learned into practice.
I remember feeling a little happy about that.
We’re not close anymore. So I thought I didn’t care. But there might have been something tugging at my heart.
… The reality is harsh. Shimizu guy doesn’t have the talent for track. He can reach a certain level, but no higher. I felt a bit sorry.
Just thinking that makes the pain in my head worse.
“In any case, it’s good that she’s being proactive. I’d love to race with her someday.”
“Huh? Tsuyoshi?”
Hanazono questions my response. But even I don’t have an explanation for it. I can’t explain things that can’t be explained logically.
“Maybe a day will come when I’ll be able to interact with her again.”
“Hehe, Tsuyoshi is so kind…”
“You’re the kind one.”
“No, that’s not true. Hey, listen. Sasami quit the club, and Shimizu has become more docile. It must have been quite a shock, don’t you think? No matter how he was as a coach, it seems he was fond of Sasami, right?”
“I can’t even imagine Shimizu being docile…”
I feel the temperature in Hanazono’s voice drop – is she angry?
“… But around that time, there were several ‘girlfriend-like’ girls who came to the classroom, had breakup talks, and the girlfriends ended up clashing with each other…”
“What do you mean? Didn’t Hanazono like him? And girlfriend-girlfriend?”
“I don’t know! I’m not interested in that!”
Hanazono sighs as she continues.
“Apparently, since he was the ace of the track team and people thought well of him, he got confessed to a lot. And Shimizu apparently didn’t refuse most of them. Multiple girlfriends? Five, six? And then after dating, Shimizu’s true personality came out, and he got dumped right away. It was a repeating cycle.”
I’m shocked.
Is there really a guy like that in this world? No, the protagonist in that novel I read earlier also had relationships with multiple women, and in the end, he was stabbed in the stomach with a kitchen knife. I couldn’t really understand the protagonist’s actions in that novel.
“Huh, so they really do exist–“
“Is he… alive?”
“Eh!? No, he seems to be okay. The boys are surprisingly taking care of Shimizu. He may have that personality, but he’s quite the caretaker for the boys.”
Hanazono sighed again.
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT GADGETIZEDPANDA.COM
“Phew… There sure have been a lot of things that happened since Tsuyoshi did reset… It feels like it was so long ago, even though it’s recent.”
“Yeah, a lot has happened. There were things I couldn’t handle on my own, and I experienced a lot of new things. Hanazono–“
“What?”
“Thank you for becoming my friend from the start–“
“Wha-!? T-Tsuyoshi? Stop it, that’s embarrassing! And it’s not like you feel anything for me, right!?”
Hanazono’s face flushed a little. My feet stopped again, this time for sure. My head was pounding. But this feeling was something I couldn’t suppress.
“Tsuyoshi?”
I could clearly feel my body temperature rising. My face must have turned red with the blood rushing to it.
“It’s not like I don’t feel anything for you, because I have feelings for you, and… and… I had a hard time breaking up with Hana-chan, so I reset, but that was just a childhood memory… “
The words weren’t coming out smoothly. I was clenching my fists, my nails digging into my palms. I strongly wanted to crush the reset.
The past where I had reset was irreversible.
So, don’t cry.
It was because I was weak, right? Then, take it back. The lost emotions–
“Tsuyoshi, it’s okay as you are now. I’ll always be waiting for you. Even after graduating high school, becoming an adult, or even an old lady, I’ll be by your side, hmph.”
Her kind words pierced deeply into my heart. It was a suffering more unbearable than any pain.
Despite her strong words, Hanazono gently grasped the hem of my uniform.
I instinctively held her hand.
“No, that’s not it. That would just make you suffer, Hanazono.”
“…I see, Tsuyoshi has started to understand people’s hearts. Yes, waiting is indeed painful. …But, I believe in you.”
“Believe in me?”
“Yes, you’re my childhood friend. So be strong!”
I could smell Hanazono’s scent. Scents evoke memories. As someone who can remember everything in an instant, there is a degree of vividness to my memories. Unnecessary things are usually blurred. But the memories with Hanazono are in vivid colors.
“Hanazono, can we stay like this for a while–“
“Mm, I don’t mind…”
Hand in hand, we headed home. I had memories of walking like this. Just that was enough to make me forget my painful days. I didn’t need to reset. It was just my own weakness.
In front of my apartment, Hanazono and I looked at each other and let go of our hands at the same time.
I was surprised at myself for feeling a tinge of regret–
That’s what emotions are.
“Hehe, I’ll keep trying no matter how many times it takes! Besides, a reset is something that can be dealt with somehow!”
Her words were full of confidence, as if she was speaking from experience.
But I simply thought that Hanazono illuminated by the moonlight was very beautiful.
A quiet conversation, Tsuyoshi Toudou, 5th grade
“Hm? Why are there other students in this classroom besides me?”
“Ah, hello! I’m [Shimafuji Toru]. Hehe, I’m actually a year younger. I’m your new classmate starting today, nice to meet you!”
“I see, I am Tsuyoshi Toudou. I look forward to working with you.”
“Your way of speaking is a bit strange. Hey, Toudou-kun, what are you good at? I’m kind of a failure, I can’t control my resets well.”
“I see, but the surname Shimafuji is still special. You must be an exceptional student.”
“Ehehe, Toudou-kun is the special one, in my dorm you’re famous, you know. Let’s study hard for the test together today!”
“No problem.”
I made a friend. He was a boy who laughed and cried a lot, his emotions were plain to see. I couldn’t help but worry about the overly defenseless Shimafuji. …I can actually worry about someone.
I know this encounter is some kind of experiment by Eri. But I don’t care about that.
Being next to Shimafuji felt right. Even though it’s irrational, it seems to be something important.
More and more students started to gather. This is an abnormal situation. I’ve never experienced this in elementary school before.
[※※] [※※] [Shimafuji] [※※] [Dojima] We all became good friends.
I thought I could graduate from elementary school like this.
On the bus ride during the outdoor study trip before 6th grade, we were attacked by an organization trying to kidnap the children with exceptional talents.
The bus fell off the cliff, and the adult drivers were falling one by one. I didn’t feel anything watching it. Such things are just daily occurrences. But this worst-case scenario was a first. Especially the absence of Eri.
“I’ll handle this somehow. Everyone, escape in the meantime.”
“No, I don’t want to! I absolutely don’t want to leave Toudou-kun! If I leave him here, I’ll never see him again!”
“It felt so nice being with the Shimafuji and others. …Thank you all up until now. I’ll probably forget their memories. So I hope the Shimafuji and others remembers me. I’ll break through the limit of the reset now – I have to escape and contact Eri.”
“No… Toudou, you have a hole in your stomach… Toudou, the bleeding won’t stop. Toudou is going to die…”
“That kind of injury can be dealt with by the muscles. [] is about to die. And []’s wound is also deep. I don’t want to see my friends get hurt anymore. Sorry, please hit the future me.”
“Toudou-kun!!”
So I exceeded the limit of the reset – trading memories in exchange
And arrived at 6th grade in elementary school, sitting alone in the classroom.
It’s fine. I’ve always been alone. So it’s the same as usual. Yet, for some reason, I feel lonely.
The classroom door suddenly opened with a loud noise. Two girls were standing there.
“Hello! I’m Doujima Ayame! This is Doujima Natsuki! We’re in the same class now, so nice to meet you!”
“Y-yes, nice to meet you.”
That girl’s face looks familiar, like my old childhood friend Hanazono Hana from the kindergarten days. But she couldn’t be here. They look exactly the same.
“Come on, introduce yourself! Ahaha, I actually know your name already. You’re Toudou-kun, right? Call me Ayame!”
“Uuu, the boy is scary.”
“Ah, well, you’re a little too close, aren’t you?”
I was only bewildered by these new classmates.
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