Chapter 56: Bitter Cold
Bitter Cold
With our visit to the graves complete and our final farewell to my body properly given, we set off on the journey home—a trip that had felt both fleeting and endless.
I was still alive. But my body was dead, so I had to say goodbye. The sheer absurdity of the experience left me feeling oddly lightheaded as the bus rocked beneath me.
Tachibana-san was asleep beside me.
After everything that had happened over the past two days, I had put her through a lot. She must have been exhausted—her body finally succumbing to fatigue.
Careful not to wake her as she rested against my shoulder, I idly waited for the bus to reach the station.
“I—I didn’t drool in my sleep, did I? Tell me I didn’t!”
The moment we stepped off the bus, a flustered Tachibana-san turned to me, her eyes filled with panic.
“You were fine.”
“Liar. Don’t lie to me… Ugh, geez. Ughhh!”
Of all the moments in the past two days, this was when she seemed the most agitated.
“I-It’s not that big a deal. Besides, I’m the one who put you through all that stress.”
“T-That’s right! It’s all your fault… Ugh…”
“I’m sorry. Really, I am.”
“…Don’t apologize. It just makes me look ridiculous, blaming you like this.”
She grumbled under her breath, half complaining, half sulking.
A woman’s heart truly was a mystery.
After that, we didn’t waste words and made our way to the ticket machines, purchasing seats on the next bullet train, which would depart in an hour. By then, hunger had begun to set in.
Since last night, so much had happened that neither of us had eaten a single thing.
We stepped into the same family restaurant we had visited the day before.
Just like yesterday, the lunchtime rush had passed, leaving the place in a comfortable hush.
“Next time, let’s go somewhere a little nicer.”
“…‘Next time’?”
Now fully back to her usual self, Tachibana-san shot me a sharp look.
“Yeah. If you don’t mind… I’d love to.”
“…I don’t mind.”
A faint blush spread across her cheeks as she turned away.
If that’s how she felt, then I couldn’t be happier. Suppressing a smile, I picked up my fork and began to eat.
Several minutes later, we finished our meals, paid the bill, and stepped outside.
“We just barely had enough, huh?”
“Sorry. I’ll pay you back later.”
Tachibana-san had finally exhausted the money she’d scraped together, so I had covered her meal as well.
“It’s fine. Today… No, even today, you’ve done a lot for me.”
“No way. I can’t just let that slide. I need to settle this properly! No exceptions!”
“…Well, let’s talk about it later, okay?”
“…Fine.”
There was no point in arguing when she didn’t even have the money on hand. We could decide once she was in a position to pay me back.
Not that I had any intention of accepting it.
I hoped that by then, she would have completely forgotten about it.
But as we stepped onto the bullet train platform, I realized—Tachibana-san wasn’t the type to let things slide.
“By the way, what was the name of the company you used to work for?”
She asked casually, oblivious to my thoughts.
“Hmm? XX Manufacturing.”
“I see…”
Silence settled between us once more.
“…So, what will you do now?”
Her question was vague, and I tilted my head in thought.
“Sorry, I mean… Today, you finally found out what happened to you, right? The worst possible outcome, but still… At least now you know. So, from here, what will you do? Up until now, your only goal was to figure out what had happened to you. But there are still so many things you don’t know. So… what’s next?”
Realizing what she meant, I lowered my gaze.
There was still so much I didn’t know. About this body. About everything.
Just as she said, there were still too many unanswered questions.
I knew that my body was dead, but I didn’t know the cause of death.
I had no idea why I had ended up possessing Iori’s body.
…But I already knew what I needed to investigate next.
“Iori… What happened to him.”
I answered firmly.
“…Is that because of the clue you found today?”
“No. Even without that, I would’ve chosen to do this.”
“…Why?”
“Because, like you said… To everyone else, I’m Iori now. The world I see is his world.”
“…Yeah.”
“Which means I need to become him. I need to face whatever happened to him.”
Because ultimately… that was the only way to put Kaori’s mind at ease.
She still believed I was suffering from memory loss. If I could show her even the slightest sign of recollection—no matter how false—it would make her happy.
“You’re thinking about Kaori-san right now, aren’t you?”
A quiet voice beside me, tinged with sadness.
I turned to find Tachibana-san staring down, her expression on the verge of crumbling into tears.
“…I asked you once, didn’t I? If you had someone you liked?”
…Ah. So that’s what this was about.
“The person you love… It’s your old girlfriend, isn’t it?”
Her keen insight made me avert my gaze.
“…You call her by her name, Kaori, without honorifics.”
“…Do I? I wasn’t really thinking about it. Sorry.”
“But I’m just ‘Tachibana-san’ to you.”
She pouted, her lips pursed like a sulking child.
“You and Kaori-san… You weren’t just strangers, were you? Tell me. What were you to each other?”
The way she asked made me feel cornered.
I wasn’t sure why, but some part of me resisted answering honestly.
…Still, I quickly realized—I didn’t want to lie to her.
“You probably already know, but… Kaori was kind. She always looked out for others. Someone I could rely on.”
It was the same answer I had given her before.
As if something inside her had clicked, Tachibana-san lowered her head, looking even more pained than before.
A heavy silence settled between us.
The station’s announcement warned of an approaching bullet train.
But neither of us paid it any mind.
“I—!”
With a sharp gasp, Tachibana-san flinched.
The train thundered past, its deafening roar reverberating through the platform. She must have been startled.
My chest felt warm.
Even on this freezing day.
Thump, thump!
I could hear my own heartbeat.
Tachibana-san had instinctively thrown herself into my arms.
No matter how I looked down, her face was hidden from view.
She made no move to pull away.
“Are you cold?”
“…A little. But more than that… I feel warm.”
Her voice trembled.