A fair amount of time had passed as Akari and I waited for I-chan in the waiting room.
"Akari, why don't you get some sleep?"
"Eh?"
I-chan's wedding dress fitting was scheduled for ten o'clock, which meant Akari and I had been forced to leave Tokyo at the crack of dawn.
I’d recently discovered that Akari wasn’t exactly a morning person. The lack of sleep, combined with the way the three of us—I-chan included—had been making a racket in the car until just a moment ago, had clearly caught up with her. She was nodding off.
"Is it really okay?"
"Did you think I’d say no?"
"Not really. Because you’re Megu."
If she was going to be that blunt about it, our entire back-and-forth had been a waste of breath.
Just as I was about to say as much, Akari happily rested her head on my shoulder.
"You should really find someone like Yamamoto to do stuff like this for you," I said.
"But right now, Megu is the only one who lets me do this, you know?"
I let out a sigh at her nonchalant response.
Honestly, Yamamoto really didn’t stand a chance. I felt a twinge of guilt on his behalf.
"...Just sleep."
"Okay."
A few moments later, the sound of quiet, rhythmic breathing drifted up from beside me.
I pulled out my smartphone and captured a shot of Akari's sleeping face. Even with the sound of the shutter, she showed no signs of waking. This would definitely give me enough ammunition to tease her for a good long while.
Thinking that, I smiled softly to myself.
The waiting room was silent.
Faint noises filtered in from the fitting room next door. I didn’t know exactly how difficult a wedding dress fitting was, but they were keeping us waiting for quite a while; it seemed like a rather tedious process.
It was a quiet weekend afternoon.
The window was open, and a soft breeze drifted through, making the curtains sway.
It was a record-breakingly hot day for this time of year.
The sensation of the warm breeze brushing against my skin felt surprisingly pleasant.
...It’s almost here.
I-chan's wedding.
It wouldn't be long before the three of us could no longer just fool around together whenever we wanted.
I felt a pang of loneliness.
Part of me even felt a sense of rejection toward the idea.
But it was just as Yamamoto had said.
Even so... I still wanted I-chan's marriage to be something wonderful.
Yamamoto had laughed at me for agonizing over it, telling me it was just like me to worry.
But I couldn't help but think.
Back in high school, I never felt the need to be nostalgic or wish I could go back. I was so satisfied with my life that the thought never even crossed my mind.
It was only while I was living through those days of hell after graduation that I found myself becoming a prisoner of the past.
That was why the current me had grown to miss those days.
That was why I felt such loneliness now, knowing I could never go back.
...And yet, I was sure of one thing.
Back when I was in the middle of those hellish days...
I would have been unable to return to the past, I would have felt that same loneliness...
And I don't think I would have been able to celebrate the present.
But the version of me standing here today could do it.
That was surely because I had been saved from that hell.
...There were times when I was haunted by the past. There were times when I wanted to go back.
I knew now that reality could be far more miserable and cruel than my high school self could have ever imagined.
But... I also felt that I wanted to live this life, the one I had now, to the very fullest.
The reason I was able to change.
The reason I was saved from that hell.
"I wonder if he’s doing okay."
It was a strange feeling.
"I wonder if he’s folding the laundry properly."
Only a few hours had passed since I left his apartment.
"I wonder if he’s remembered to eat."
Yet I couldn't stop my thoughts from drifting back to him.
"Is he finishing his cleaning within the hour like he always does?"
The tepid breeze pricked at my skin.
It wasn't an unpleasant sensation.
More than anything, right now... I just wanted to see Yamamoto.
That was the mood I was in.
"Excuse me, the fitting is finished."
There was a knock on the waiting room door, and I stood up.
"Kya!"
In my haste, I had completely forgotten about Akari, who had been using my shoulder as a pillow.
She blinked awake, staring around with half-lidded eyes and a bit of drool on her chin.
"Honestly..."
I wiped the drool away with my handkerchief and helped her up.
"Let’s go."
"Where?"
"To see the bride."
I gave her a gentle smile.