“Do you believe me now?”
That wasn’t the issue here. I didn’t know where Asahina had moles on her body. The only times I’d seen that much of her skin would be when she was dressed up as a bunny girl and when I accidentally walked in on her changing. In either case, I didn’t have enough time to make any detailed observations. Once I informed her of my thinking, the charming adult Asahina said, “Huh? But weren’t you the one who told me I had a mole here, Kyon? I didn’t even notice it myself.”
She tilted her head in wonder before opening her eyes wide in astonishment. She then suddenly turned bright red.
“Oh… no. It’s still… Oh, I see. It hasn’t happened yet…. Oh my, what do I do?” Future Asahina clasped her hands to her cheeks and shook her head, shirt still partially open. “I’ve made a huge mistake…. I’m so sorry! Please forget what I just said!”
Easier said than done. Anyway, could you button up your shirt already? I’m having a hard time figuring out where to look.
“I understand,” I said. “I’ll believe you for now. I’ve become a person who’s ready to believe anything at this point.”
“Huh?”
“No, just talking to myself.”
This Asahina of an indiscernible age, hands still pressed to her flaming cheeks, finally noticed how my eyes couldn’t help but be drawn to her assets, and hurriedly buttoned up her shirt. She then stood up straight and let out a dry cough.
“Do you really believe that I’ve come to this time plane from the future?”
“Of course. Wait. Does that mean there are two Asahinas in this period right now?”
“Yes. The past me… past from my point of view, is currently having lunch with classmates in the classroom.”
“Does that Asahina know that you’re here?”
“No. I didn’t know at the time. After all, she is my past.”
Makes sense.
“I needed to tell you something so I made some unreasonable requests in order to return to this time. I asked Nagato to leave us alone.”
It is Nagato we’re talking about here so she probably didn’t even blink when she saw this Asahina.
“… Do you know about Nagato?”
“Sorry. That’s classified information. My, I haven’t gotten to say that in a long time.”
“I just heard it a few days ago.”
“That’s right,” Asahina said as she bopped herself on the head and stuck her tongue out. Now she really did look like Asahina.
But then her face suddenly became serious.
“I can’t stay in this time very long. So I’ll be brief.”
Say whatever you want.
“Do you know who Snow White is?”
I stared at this Asahina who was about the same height as me. Her black eyes were slightly moist.
“Well, yeah….”
“When you find yourself in a harrowing situation, please remember those words.”
“You mean the story with seven dwarfs, a witch, and a poisoned apple?”
“Yes. Remember the story of Snow White.”
“I was just in a harrowing situation yesterday.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about. It’ll happen… Let’s see. I can’t tell you any specifics, but Suzumiya should be with you when it happens.”
Haruhi? And me? Caught up in some trouble together? When? Where?
“… Suzumiya may not find anything wrong with the situation… but for you and for the rest of us, it will be a significant problem.”
“I suppose that you can’t—give me any more details, can you?”
“I’m sorry. Still, just think of it as a hint. This is all I can do.”
Adult Asahina looked on the verge of tears. Yeah, she really was Asahina.
“And that would be Snow White?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll remember that.”
Once I nodded, Asahina said that she still had a little time left and looked fondly around the room. She then tenderly brushed her hand against the maid outfit hanging on the rack.
“I can’t believe I was able to wear this. I wouldn’t be able to do it now.”
“You look like you’re dressed up as an office lady right now.”
She giggled. “I couldn’t wear a uniform, so I tried dressing like a teacher.”
Some people just look good no matter what they’re wearing. I tried asking, “What other costumes did Haruhi make you wear?”
“That’s secret. It’s embarrassing. Besides, you’ll find out soon enough.”
Asahina walked over to me, slippers pitter-patting. Her eyes were oddly moist and her cheeks were still flushed.
“I’ll be going now.”
Asahina continued to stare at my face, like she had something else to say. Her lips parted as if seeking something. Just as I started wondering if I should kiss her and moved to embrace her—she got away from me.
Asahina twisted around suddenly.
“One last thing. Don’t get too close to me.”
She sounded like a cricket sighing.
As Asahina ran over to the door, I spoke up. “Please tell me one thing!”
Asahina paused right as she was about to open the door, her back toward me.
“Asahina. How old are you right now?”
Asahina turned around with a flick of her hair. Her smile was so brilliant that any person would fall in love.
“That’s classified information.”
The door shut. There probably wasn’t any point in going after her.
Heh, didn’t expect Asahina to turn into such a beauty. Then I remembered the first words she had spoken. “It’s been so long.” Those words can only mean one thing. That is to say, Asahina hadn’t seen me for quite some time.
“I see. Makes sense.”
Asahina, being from the future, would have to return to her original time before long. A number of years passed before she saw me again. And that happened just now.
I wonder how much time passed for her. Based on her appearance, I’d say five years… no, three years? Girls go through some dramatic changes once they’re out of high school. I think of my cousin, a brainy type who didn’t stand out much. But the second she entered college, she metamorphosed from a chrysalis into a Monarch butterfly. Come to think of it, I didn’t know Asahina’s actual age. Though I was pretty sure she wasn’t really seventeen.
I’m pretty hungry. I should go back to the classroom.
“…”
Nagato entered the room with the usual look of cryopreservation on her face. But she wasn’t wearing glasses. In the absence of that glass barrier, her eyes bored directly into me.
“Yo. Did you see someone that looked a lot like Asahina on your way here?”
I was just joking when I said that, but Nagato responded.
“Mikuru Asahina’s time-divergent variant. I met her this morning.”
I couldn’t even hear Nagato’s clothes rustle as she sat down in a metal chair and opened up a book on the table.
“She is no longer here. She has vanished from this timespace.”
“Could it be that you can also travel through time? And that Overmind thing, too.”
“I cannot. But time travel is not very difficult. The humans of this epoch are simply unaware of the process. Time is similar to space. Travel is a simple matter.”
“Maybe you can tell me how it’s done.”
“Words would be insufficient for conveying the concept and you would not understand.”
“Oh, really?”
“Really.”
“Guess that’s settled.”
“Settled.”
I felt like I was trying in vain to talk to an echo. I once again prepared to head back to the classroom. I wondered if there was still time to eat.
“Nagato, thanks for yesterday.”
The unnatural look on her face changed ever so slightly.
“There is no need to thank me. Ryoko Asakura’s abnormal behavior was my respon
sibility. My incompetence.”
Forelocks of hair swayed gently.
Did she just lower her head?
“You really do look better without glasses.”
There was no reply.
I raced back to the classroom where my lunch awaited, figuring I could eat super fast and at least wolf down a few bites. Unfortunately, I ran into this obstacle known as Haruhi right in front of the classroom and was forced to miss lunch. It must have been fate. I’d already resigned myself to whatever might come.
Apparently, Haruhi had been waiting for me in the hallway. She looked irritated.
“Where did you go?! I waited to eat since I thought you’d be back soon!”
“Could you say that again, except this time sounding like an old friend just pretending to be angry?”
“Stop babbling like an idiot and come with me!”
Haruhi used some judo technique to firmly lock my arm in hers, and I was dragged up to that dimly lit staircase landing.
Anyway, I was hungry.
“I just asked Okabe over in the faculty office. Nobody knew about Asakura transferring until today. First thing this morning, a person claiming to be Asakura’s father called and said they had to move abruptly. And guess where to? Canada! Does that even make sense? It sounds so made-up!”
“Really, now?”
“Then I asked for her contact information in Canada. I said I wanted to stay in touch.”
You never even held a conversation with her.
“And guess what they said? They didn’t even have that information! You would normally leave your new contact information, right? Something has to be up here!”
“How about, no?”
“Since I was there, I asked for Asakura’s old address. We’ll go check it out after school. We might learn something.”
As always, she didn’t listen to anyone but herself. Well, I wasn’t going to bother stopping her. She was the one wasting her time, not me.
“You’re coming with me!”
“Why?”
Haruhi squared her shoulders, took a deep breath like a monster about to breathe fire, and shouted loud enough that people in the hallway could probably hear her.
“And you call yourself a member of the SOS Brigade?!”
In accordance with Haruhi’s proclamation, I scampered off with my tail between my legs. I returned to the club room to let Nagato know that Haruhi and I wouldn’t be here today, and also to let Asahina and Koizumi know if they stopped by after school. But if I only gave the silent alien the message, it might end up turning into a game of telephone, so I took one of the extra paper flyers and wrote SOS BRIGADE, SELF-ACTIVITY DAY WITH HARUHI in magic marker and stuck it on the door with a thumbtack.
I didn’t really give a damn about Koizumi, but I should at least save Asahina the trouble of having to change into her maid outfit.
And as a result, I heard the bell signaling the beginning of fifth period on a completely empty stomach. I ate during the next break, though.
Going home from school with a girl is pretty normal in school drama TV shows and I’d be lying if I said I’d never dreamed about that happening to me. And presently, I was living out my dream. I wonder why I was not the least bit happy about it.
“Did you say something?”
That was Haruhi, walking in long strides with a memo in one hand. I figured she meant “Got a problem?” with that line.
“No, nothing.”
We quickly descended the hill and walked along the railroad tracks. A little further and we’d reach Kouyou Park Station.
I had been thinking about how we were getting close to Nagato’s apartment when Haruhi actually turned in that direction and stopped in front of a familiar, newly-built condominium.
“It looks like she lived in apartment 505 in this building.”
“I see.”
“See what?”
“No, nothing. Anyway, how are you planning on getting inside? The front door’s locked.”
I informed her of the number pad next to the intercom.
“Entering a number should open the door. Do you know the code for that?” I asked.
“No. It’ll be a battle of attrition.”
Against what?
Never mind. It didn’t take very long. A lady apparently on her way out to do some shopping opened the door from the inside. She gave a look of disgust at the two of us trying to look innocent before leaving. Before the door could close, Haruhi slipped the tip of her foot in as a stopper.
She wouldn’t be winning any smart criminal awards any time soon.
“Hurry up.”
After being dragged in, I stood in the entrance hall. We then got on the elevator that happened to be waiting on the first floor. Normal elevator etiquette would require us to stare silently at the floor number display.
“About Asakura.”
Looks like Haruhi doesn’t give a damn about etiquette.
“There’s something else afoot. Apparently, Asakura didn’t come to North High from one of the city middle schools.”
Well, I’d assume she didn’t.
“I did some snooping and found out that she transferred in from a middle school in the suburbs. Something’s definitely up with that. It’s not like North High’s a good school for getting into college. It’s just your typical prefectural high school. Why would she bother coming here?”
“I dunno.”
“But her residence is so close to school. And it’s a condo. Not just some rented apartment. Great location, too. Must be expensive. Did she commute to middle school in the suburbs from this place?”
“I said I dunno.”
“Looks like we’ll need to find out when Asakura began living here.”
We reached the fifth floor and stood in front of apartment 505 for a while, just staring at the door without saying anything. There may have been a doorplate at one point, but it was gone now, a silent indicator that the place was empty. Haruhi jiggled the knob, but naturally, the door didn’t open.
Haruhi stood with her arms crossed, contemplating if there was a way to get inside. I stood next to her, trying to stifle my yawn. This was a waste of time, even for me.
“Let’s go to the manager’s office,” said Haruhi.
“I doubt he’ll let you borrow a key.”
“Not that. I’m going to ask him when Asakura began living here.”
“Learning that information won’t accomplish anything. Just give up and go home.”
“No, I won’t.”
We took the elevator back down to the first floor and headed for the manager’s office at the side of the entrance hall. There wasn’t anyone on the other side of the glass door, but a while after ringing the bell on the wall, a little old man with tufts of white hair slowly stepped out.
Before the old man could say anything, Haruhi declared, “We’re friends of a former resident, Ryoko Asakura. She suddenly moved and we don’t know how to contact her. Did you happen to hear where she moved to? And I was wondering if you could tell me when Asakura came to this place.”
I was marveling at the fact that Haruhi could sound like a normal person as the manager, apparently hard of hearing, kept going, “Eh? Eh?” for a period of time. Haruhi was able to successfully learn that the manager had also been surprised by the Asakuras’ sudden move (“I was shocked when I found the room empty when I hadn’t seen any movers come by”), that Asakura moved here three years ago (“I remember since the lovely young lady brought me a box of candy”), and that she hadn’t needed a loan, but instead paid a lump sum up front in cash (“I supposed she was filthy rich”). She should become a detective.
The old man looked like he was enjoying this chance to talk with a young girl. “That’s right. I saw the young lady a number of times, but I don’t recall ever meeting her parents—
“Her name’s Ryoko? She was a good-natured, kind girl—
“She could have at least said goodbye. What a pity. By the way, you’re a fine-looking g
irl yourself—”
The old man was apparently running out of things to ramble about. Haruhi must have determined that he didn’t have any more information to offer.
“Thank you very much for your help.” She delivered an exemplary bow before motioning to me. No need to motion. I was already following Haruhi out of the building.
“Lad. That young lady will definitely grow up to be a beauty. Don’t let her get away—”
I really didn’t need to hear that parting line from the old guy. Pretty sure Haruhi was also within hearing range. I was nervously awaiting Haruhi’s reaction, but she kept on walking without a word. I chose to follow her lead in keeping my mouth shut. A few steps out the entrance we ran into Nagato carrying a convenience store plastic bag and her bookbag. She usually stayed in the club room until the school closed, but if she was here right now, she must have left soon after we did.
“Oh? Do you live here, too? What a coincidence,” said Haruhi.
Nagato nodded with her pale complexion. It was obviously not a coincidence.
“Then did you hear anything about Asakura?” Nagato gestured a negative response.
“I see. If you learn anything about Asakura, let me know. Okay?” She motioned an affirmative response.
As I stared at the plastic bag containing canned goods and daily staples, I came to a conscious realization that Nagato ate food after all.
“What happened to your glasses?” asked Haruhi.
Nagato just stared at me without answering the question. She was making me uncomfortable. It looked like Haruhi wasn’t expecting an answer anyway. She shrugged her shoulders and started off again without looking back. I waved goodbye to Nagato. As I walked past her, she spoke in a soft voice only I could hear.
“Be careful.”
Be careful of what this time? I turned around to ask, but Nagato had already disappeared into the building.
I stayed two or three steps behind Haruhi as we walked along the local railroad tracks with no destination in mind. I was just getting further and further away from home. I tried asking Haruhi where she was going.
“It doesn’t matter.”
That was her response. I continued staring at the back of her head.
“Can I go home now?”
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Page 13
