Chapter 24 Mother

Mother

“Well, Manami and Mizuki will go this way. Bye~”

“See you later~ Haruki-chan and Amane-kun.”

An intersection in a residential area. There are four streets leading in four different directions.

Sou and Haruki go to the right while Mizuki and Manami go to the left. The meeting to talk about the bitchiness of Shitty #1 and Shitty #2 at the family restaurant ends, and they say goodbye here.

“Yeah! See you tomorrow~”

Haruki waves at Manami and Mizuki.

Following Haruki’s example, Sou also waves to Mizuki and Manami. Of course, Mizuki and Manami wave back.

The distance between Sou-Haruki and Manami-Mizuki grows. Both continue to wave without stopping.

As soon as there is some distance between them, both Sou and Haruki look forward. Mizuki and Manami are out of sight.

“Ahh. I feel so refreshed. It feels like I’ve let out everything that was building up inside me.”

Satisfied, Haruki stretches and raises both arms into the air. The time in the family restaurant must’ve been worthwhile for Haruki. Her current behavior tells the story.

“How was Amane? You complained and vented your frustration quite a bit~”

As if to tease him, Haruki smiled wickedly and looked at Sou. Those eyes are so teasing.

“Ugh. Like Yakumo-san said, I let off as much as I wanted….”

Sou feels a bit uncomfortable. When he thinks about what he let out, he feels a sense of shame in his heart. He feels the urge to end the conversation immediately.

“Oh well. You don’t need to worry so much. That’s how much unnecessary pus has built up in Amane’s chest. It’s refreshing, isn’t it?”

“Yes. Honestly.”

Just like Haruki said, Sou’s chest feels much lighter than before. It feels as if most of the unnecessary matter has been completely expelled. It’s probably more of a feeling of exhilaration.

“That’s good. Nothing good comes from holding things up.”

“That may be true.”

At this point, the conversation between the two stops. Side by side, Sou and Haruki walk down a residential street. The scenery is the same as before.

“Is Amane’s house nearby?”

It was Haruki who broke the silence. Just when Sou couldn’t stand the silence any longer and wanted to bring up a subject. While he thought about what to say, Haruki asked him a question.

Since it was hard for him to think of a topic, it was good for him.

“Hmm. It’s about 10 minutes from here. I don’t know if it’s close or far. It’s a delicate distance.”

He tilts his head and estimates the distance from his current position to his house and the approximate time of arrival.

“Ten minutes is close, in my opinion. But everyone’s sense of distance is different.”

“Well, then where is Yakumo-san’s house? Is it close?”

Thanks to Haruki, he had something to talk about, so he asked her a question. It was actually something he was curious about.

“My house? My house is—”

“Ah! There you are!! Hey Haruki!!!”

Haruki’s words were interrupted by someone. Haruki’s words were drowned out, and the sound of a woman’s voice stimulated Sou’s eardrums. The voice is quite resonant. It’s a strangely husky voice.

Sou’s eyes darted to the source of the sound.

An adult version of Haruki, with long silver hair, pale blue eyes, and milky, shiny skin like a foreigner, comes running towards her.

Her clothes are garish, a red dress exposing her bare legs and black boots.

Her make-up is also heavy. But her face resembles Haruki’s.

“Oh, Mom. W-What’s wrong?”

The woman who suddenly appears is Haruki’s mother. Haruki can’t hide her surprise at her mother’s appearance. Also, her tone of voice is somehow different from how she usually speaks at school. It’s weak, or perhaps shy. It’s to the point where it feels strange.

“Ha-ha-ha. I don’t have my keys. I left them when I left the house. You definitely have them. Come on then. Let’s go! Oh, my! I’m sweating. I’ll have to put on my makeup again.”

Without waiting for an answer, Haruki’s mother grabs Haruki’s arm and pulls her along, ignoring Sou’s presence.

Haruki is easily carried away by her mother’s forceful actions, which don’t give her a chance to say anything.

“Wait. Mom. Wait.”

“Just hurry! Quickly. I need make-up and money and stuff!”

Not listening to what Haruki is saying, her mother continues to pull Haruki. Unable to respond to her mother’s words, Haruki remains silent.

The distance between Sou and Haruki grows.

Haruki moves her mouth too, but she doesn’t resist with her body. She doesn’t try to shake off the arm pulling her. She just lets it happen.

“…Anyway, see you later, Amane.”

Haruki waves her free left hand and says goodbye. It’s a really awkward way to say goodbye. It’s a really sudden turn of events.

On the other hand, Sou, unable to catch up with the sudden event, just stared in a dazed state at Haruki, who moved further and further away from him. He did not say a single word.