Chapter 10: CH 10

Chapter 10: Surprise

Pov: Haruka

“Good Morning!”

I heard a loud voice from behind me, and then, with a running sound, “Boom!” and she hugged me.

“Good morning, Aya-chan. Please don’t startle me like that again.”

Her name is Aya Nishikawa. Aya-chan and I have been friends since junior high school. She was a girl who wasn’t afraid of things and got along with everyone. She became my friend when I came to an unfamiliar place. Aya-chan really helped me in many ways.

I couldn’t resist, because I saw Haruka when I left the ticket gate. It’s been a long time since we’ve been together.

“That’s right. We haven’t been able to get together since summer vacation.”

“It’s been a long time since we’ve been together, but you don’t seem too happy about it… Haruka seems too calm and normal.”

“I’m happy to be with you, but we’re just going to school…?”

“That’s true but… are you sure you can get to school?”

“Yes, I’ll be fine…?”

This was the route I take to school every day from Saijo Station. On days that I have class, Aya and I commute to school together. Aya is a member of the track and field team, and ever since the start of the summer vacation, her club activities were held at different times, so recently I’ve been going to school alone.

One thing that bothered me was that since the start of summer vacation, I’ve been approached by strangers more and more on my way to school…

“Aya, the competition is next month, right?”

“Yes, I’m training to be a little faster!”

Aya-chan specializes in short distance, and last year in junior high school, she came in third in the prefecture. I’m a little jealous of her because I’m not very good at sports…

“Speaking of competitions, will Haruka be cheering for the team?”

“Some of the club members are going to a performance,but I’m not going. I have to take care of the house.

“That’s right. Ah~! I want to eat Haruka’s cooking!”

“Come again sometime. My mom said that when Aya came, the dining table was fun and lively!”

“Won’t that… be too loud?”

“You’re so skeptical… When Aya-chan comes, I have fun too!”

The baseball team of Toko University High School, my school, has decided to participate in the Koshien Tournament, and although the main performers are from the brass band, a few members of the orchestra club I belong to were going to cheer them on, so the club activities were closed for the time being.

My grandmother was in the hospital and I was doing housework for her until she was released. My mother works in the office of my grandfather’s company.

Today I did my club activities and then went shopping and did the chores afterwards. In the evening, I went to the Toko University Hospital where my grandmother was being hospitalized. The hospital was affiliated with the school and had the same nearest station, so I could drop by after school, which was a big help. [TLN: Some chunky lines here, translations might be a bit off]

“I’m here, Grandma! You’ll be discharged at the end of the month, but don’t overdo it, okay?”

“I’m fine. My back is much better now, and it’s going to get worse if I don’t move, so I’m thinking of it as rehabilitation.”

I wonder why I can’t… be quiet anymore…

My grandmother sometimes goes to help my grandfather with his business when she has time, and she gets restless if she stays still… She said she was going to take a walk up to the roof to pick up her cardigan after this.

“Grandma! I’ll go get it, you just rest!”

I don’t usually speak loudly, but I didn’t want to make it worse, and I couldn’t resist.

“Alright!”

I opened the door and went out to the rooftop. It’s evening now, and there’s a nice breeze today.

I remembered that there was a bench in a place where I could see the park clearly, so I went over there.

Huh? Is there anyone at…?

I turned to see a tall boy sitting there, and I seemed to have startled him, so I suddenly turned around. I was surprised to see the boy’s face, and I quickly apologized.

“Oh… I’m sorry.”

The boy who turned around was about the same age as me, and there were tears streaming down his face.

I was confused as to what to do. He seemed to have an injury on his right leg, so I said, “If it hurts, I’ll go get the doctor,” but it didn’t seem right…

I started to calm down, but I didn’t know if I should leave. I stayed there and listened to what he had to say. When I asked him if he had been in an accident, he replied in a vague way, “Something like that…” He laughed and told me that he was going to have a birthday soon and that he had to spend it in the hospital.

I’m not very good around guys, and I don’t usually carry on conversations with them, but for some reason I enjoyed it.

It was the first time we had met today, but it felt strange… I wonder why.

As we walked back to the hospital room, the boy almost fell and I quickly got close to him to lend a hand.

Wow… he’s taller when you look at him up close, and he has kind eyes with a well-defined face.

I don’t usually get this close to people, but it’s still strange…

I escorted him to his hospital room and suddenly noticed that there was only one name tag hanging on the wall, and I thought it was a private room, so I said the name displayed on the tag.

“Hiroto Yoshizumi…?”

The boy was surprised. That’s right, I said his name out of the blue, so he had the right to be surprised.

I remembered that I hadn’t told him my name either, so we introduced ourselves to each other and parted ways.

“Mr. Hiroto Yoshizumi…”

Normally, I don’t think anything about the fact that they had the same first name, but I hadn’t had many conversations with a boy in a while, and I was flooded with distant… memories.

I miss him…

I wonder how he is doing?

I wonder where you are now…

Hiroto-kun…

A childhood friend who was with me all the time.

The boy who protected me.

The boy I loved.

I went to my grandmother’s hospital room, remembering my favorite boy, Hiroto Yoshizumi.

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TLN: Took longer than expected, next chapters in a few days hopefully.