Chapter 43
“Are you taking some kind of supplementary lesson separately?”
When Tetsuya came out of the shower and asked that, I answered from the middle of the clubroom, where I was standing with Chinami.
“Yeah. You'll have to head home first again today. Do you have an umbrella?”
“I decided to borrow one from the clubroom. Then I'll head home with Miyuki?”
You're going home with Miyuki?
No chance.
You're destined to spend rainy days alone, sadly eating pajeon with makgeolli... No,
eating okonomiyaki with sake.
“Go ahead.”
“Take care. Take care too, Nanase-senpai.”
Tetsuya bowed politely.
Chinami waved brightly at him.
“Take care, Miura-kouhai.”
With Tetsuya gone and the few remaining club members filing out, only a handful of us remained in the clubroom.
Chinami, who had been snooping around the coach's office, let out a relieved sigh and brought over the shinai I'd been using from the storage room.
“Shall we start practicing right away?”
I took the shinai and gripped the hilt properly before saying,
“Before that, I have one thing to ask.”
“What is it?”
“Inoo-senpai said Master mainly uses jōdan-gamae... Is that right?”
“That's right.”
“Please teach it to me too.”
“Huh...?”
She blinked her large eyes.
After blinking like that for a while, she flatly refused.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“If you don't learn chūdan-gamae first, there's no point in learning jōdan-gamae. So no.”
“Please teach me anyway.”
“No.”
“You can.”
“.... Matsuda-kouhai, are you playing word games with me? It's amusing, but no.”
“I said you can.”
As I slowly approached Chinami with a smile on my lips, her head rose gradually in time with my footsteps,
After raising her head almost all the way back, she suddenly folded her arms.
“Even if you insist, no is no.”
“Is it strange for a disciple to follow in their master's footsteps?”
“It's admirable that you feel that way, but if you learn jōdan-gamae, your form will completely fall apart.”
“Isn't that assuming I've learned chūdan first? If I start with jōdan as my first step, it's a different story. I want to be taught by a master of jōdan—my Master.”
“Flattery won't work. But could you step back a little? You're so tall that my neck is starting to hurt.”
“Want me to massage it?”
“Umm...! No.”
She looked a little tempted.
She's so honest about her feelings that she's easier to read than Miyuki.
In any case, there didn't seem to be any point in forcing the issue.
I gave up cleanly and decided to wait for the next opportunity.
I moved away from Chinami, looked at the enormous mirror attached to one side of the clubroom, and assumed a stance.
**
Swoooosh-!
Watching the rain show no sign of stopping, Chinami looked back and forth between the only remaining umbrella and me before saying,
“You use the umbrella, kouhai. I should take a taxi home. But let's share it as far as the main gate.”
“A taxi? Where do you live?”
“Fifteen minutes away by car.”
“Really? Then shall I drive you there?”
“Whaaat...?”
Chinami's mouth fell open.
I wanted to stick my finger inside it.
“Matsuda-kouhai, do you happen to have a car?”
“Yes. I drove here today, too.”
“R-really...?”
“Let's go to the parking lot together. I'll hold the umbrella.”
As soon as I finished speaking, I opened the umbrella and walked out the door.
Thud-thud-thud! Thud-thud!
Heavy raindrops pounded the canopy.
The sound wasn't unpleasant.
I looked at Chinami and beckoned to her.
“What are you doing? Aren't you coming?”
“Ah, yes...!”
She moved carefully and stood at attention beside me.
She kept a little distance between us, though.
As a result, the rain began striking one of Chinami's shoulders, and I could see her uniform shirt quickly soaking through.
On top of that, the height difference between Chinami and me meant that rain was seeping into the long gap between her and the umbrella.
At this point, there was hardly any point in sharing the umbrella.
I let out a light laugh, moved close enough for our legs to touch, bent my knees slightly, and lowered the umbrella until it nearly brushed her hair.
Noticing my consideration, Chinami gave me an awkward, apologetic smile.
“Thank you... You're very kind, Matsuda-kouhai, unlike the rumors.”
The second-year kendo club members treated me fairly well, but only because they'd warmed up to me after seeing how diligently I handled my manager duties.
The other second-years probably still saw me as a delinquent.
I shouldn't worry about them.
They're nothing more than extras with whom I had no connection anyway.
I lightly scratched the hair above my ear and changed the subject as though I had no interest in the rumors.
“Shall we go?”
“Yes...!”
We toddled toward the parking lot at an extremely slow pace, like children taking their first steps.
Walking with my knees bent was terribly uncomfortable, but...
What wouldn't I do to raise her affection for me?
Besides, the only way an event with Chinami could happen was if I created it myself, so I needed to move things forward the moment an opportunity appeared.
**
When Chinami and I reached the eaves in one corner of the parking lot, I asked for her permission and called Miyuki.
After two or three rings,
-Hello?
Miyuki answered in a very low voice.
“Where are you? Are you still far away?”
-I was just getting ready to leave. Are you in the parking lot, Matsuda-kun?“
“Yeah.”
-It should take about two minutes. I'll be right there.
I said I understood, then pressed the button to end the call.
“I have another passenger to pick up, so is it okay if we wait two or three minutes before leaving?”
“Of course. But, Matsuda-kouhai, how much would gas cost for a fifteen-minute drive?”
“Why are you suddenly asking about gas...? Don't tell me you're planning to pay me back?”
“Yes.”
Looking at her guileless eyes, I could tell she wasn't trying to keep me at a distance.
She genuinely seemed to think that was the proper thing to do.
I gave her an incredulous smile and said,
“Just accept it as a favor.”
“I can't really...”
“Then I should pay you too, Master. For teaching me how to put on the uniform, how to clean the bogu, and how to perform kendo techniques...”
“W-wait a minute...! That doesn't make any sense...?”
“By that logic, what you just said doesn't make sense either. Forget the gas money; if it really bothers you, just buy me a drink sometime.”
At my casual words, Chinami's round face relaxed slightly.
She lowered her head to me and said,
“I understand. Then I'll gratefully accept the ride today.”
We hadn't been chatting for long when I spotted Miyuki approaching from a distance at a brisk pace, wearing sandals and carrying an umbrella.
She had been heading toward my car, but stopped short when she spotted Chinami and me beneath the eaves.
After looking flustered for a moment, she approached us.
I flashed her a grin and introduced Chinami.
“This is Nanase-senpai, the kendo club manager.”
“Ah... um... The Master you mentioned last time...?”
“That's right.”
Miyuki slowly nodded.
She bent at the waist toward Chinami and greeted her.
“Hello, senpai. I'm Miyuki Hanazawa...”
“Hello! I'm Chinami Nanase. It's nice to meet you, Hanazawa-kouhai.”
After the two exchanged greetings, I told them to wait there and hurried to the car.
**
Chinami's house was... just an ordinary apartment building you could find anywhere.
She seemed to live a perfectly ordinary life.
“Thank you, Matsuda-kouhai! Get home safely!”
When the car reached the apartment entrance, Chinami leaned forward from the back seat.
I turned toward her and pointed at the umbrella dripping rainwater beneath the seat.
“Take your umbrella with you.”
“Yes! You too, Hanazawa-kouhai, get home safely! It was nice meeting you today, and I enjoyed talking with you!”
At her lively farewell, Miyuki's face brightened from the passenger seat.
“It was nice meeting you too, Nanase-senpai. I look forward to getting along with you.”
After getting out of the car, Chinami greeted us once more beneath the umbrella, which looked oversized on her.
Then she entered the apartment building.
Miyuki watched her retreating back until the car began moving, then turned to look at me.
“Do you normally speak so formally?”
“With everyone. She always uses formal speech, regardless of whether they're older or younger.”
“Really...? She's so nice... and cute too. But, Matsuda-kun.”
“What?”
“It would've been nice if you'd at least told me beforehand.”
Miyuki's voice sounded slightly chilly.
She understood the situation from the explanation Chinami and I had given her in the car, and she had no ill will toward Chinami, but...
She was subtly jealous without quite realizing it.
For a normal person, feeling uncomfortable about a woman other than oneself was only natural.
That is, if you had normal tastes.
“I was going to tell you when I called you.”
“Then why didn't you?”
“You said you'd be here soon, so I thought I'd tell you when we met.”
“.... Is it so hard just to tell me? How long would it take?”
The traffic light turned red at exactly the right moment.
I gently pressed the brake, came to a stop, and turned to Miyuki.
“Are you angry?”
Miyuki shrank back and avoided my gaze.
“Why would I be angry? There's no reason...”
She jolted.
Miyuki trailed off, clenched her lips, and bobbed up and down as though she had the hiccups.
That was because my hand had slowly reached over and grabbed her wrist.
I gazed at the speechless Miyuki, raised one corner of my mouth, then tightened my grip and pulled her toward me.
Miyuki's body moved slightly... just slightly closer to me.
“Well... now that I think about it, I suppose there might be enough reason.”
“.... What do you mean...?”
Don't pretend you don't understand.
No matter how awkward you are when it comes to romance, you know what I meant by that.
I raised one corner of my mouth, took Miyuki's hand, and placed it on the console box instead of answering.
Then I gently scratched the hollow between her index and middle fingers with my own finger and changed the subject.
“What are you going to make me today?”
“.... I don't know.”
“Then shall we buy something random at the supermarket?”
“I'll choose for myself...”
She was pretending to sulk, but her cheeks were twitching.
It was proof that she liked the light yet subtly risqué physical contact.
Her reactions were already this obvious from something so simple, so I wondered—and looked forward to finding out—how she would react at home.
I glanced at Miyuki and asked,
“Should we buy beer too?”
“Beer...? It's bad for your health.”
“It's barley. It tastes good, too. So it's good for your health.”
At my utterly matter-of-fact statement, Miyuki let out a hollow laugh.
“Then should I drop you in the middle of a barley field?”
Normally, she would have scolded me for saying something ridiculous, but this time she was playing along.
Maybe she was bothered by how seriously she'd taken me before.
She didn't seem to have considered that drinking meant I wouldn't be able to drive, though...
She wasn't planning to cook me dinner and then go home alone, was she...?
If so, should I use the beer as an excuse to ask her to stay the night?
I'd have to decide after seeing how things went.