CHAPTER ELEVEN – Girl heart

At the bottom of the slope. She`s there again, standing still.

"Good morning."

"Yes, good morning to you too." She said.

"What are you doing here again?"

"I was waiting."

"Waiting...? For me?"

"Yes, I thought I`d be going to schoolwith you from now on."

"Hah?"

"If it bothers you... well... I won`t..."

"Well, aren`t you here pretty early? Climbing up this hill? That might be so..." I look up at the school gate. Climbing this hill...I wonder if she still believes that climbing this hill is bravery...

"... I guess it`s not all right with you?" Holding back her hair blown by the wind, she reverts her gaze back to me.

"But you`ll always be late if you wait for me everyday."

"It`s okay. As compared to not going...being late is always better."

"You have to go. Even if you`re alone."

"... Yes. I`ll give it my all."

"Yeah." I heard her reply so I started climbing the hill. I can hear her footsteps following me from a distance. I passed through the school gates without looking back.

"Ah... well... Okazaki-kun..."

"Ah...? "As I rest my body on the desk since I have nothing particular to do, Fujibayashi Ryou began talking to me.

"T... this..."

"Ah... it`s the homeroom lesson print out?"

"Y... yes."

"Thanks." I extend my hand as I receive the print outs from Fujibayashi.And after that, I rest my body on the desk again.

"......"

"......"

"......" She still looking at me.

"... Is there something else you want?"

"Ah... no..." Our class rep leaves quietly.

"Huaaah..." I wonder why do I yawn as this time arrives...? I look at the desk in front of me. There`s a textbook lying on it... 

"Whoa..." It`s English Grammar again. Sunohara isn`t here... all right, I`m going to skip class!" I stand up and quickly leave the classroom.

I spent five minutes inside the washroom first. I`ll head to the old school building after that. Hiding my footstep, I walk the hallway. Everyone inside the classrooms are listening to some boring lecture. Only this empty space felt like it belonged to me. Other than me, there shouldn`t be anyone walking around here. I feel quite good.

"Yo!" I feel so good that I`m even willing to greet a girl who shouldn`t be walking around.

"... hey, wait a minute!" After I shouted, I immediately tried to lower my voice.

"Why are you here?"

"???..." The girl that I met in library panicking.

"......" It seems that my question is too deep for her.

"... sorry for asking like that. Anyway, I`ll ask you normally now." She nods.

"Is it your hobby to skip class?" She nods. She`s very frank. She`s carrying a bunch of hard cover books like bricks.

"Let`s go." She said that to me as if we had an appointment. Being alone is boring, so I`ll go with her. The girl walks as if she doesn`t mind about me. The book she`s carrying against her chest doesn`t seem to be heavy. Though there are classrooms having lessons beside us, she doesn`t even hide her presence. You wouldn`t think that she`s skipping class,and it`s quite impressive. We arrive in front of the library. There`s a note in front of the door and it says "Closed." In short, we shouldn`t be able to go in. I put my hand on the sliding door, and opened it sideways.

"Eh?"

"Why are you surprised?" Said me, wondering.

"Well... It`s really strange."

"I wonder..." Just like in our first meeting, our conversation is slipping off to nowhere. Passing through my side, the girl went inside. I also went in. There`s no change at all. The bookshelves are still aligned properly. The girl was gazing inside with a face that looks like she met an old friend. She probably really likes it very much here but, I`d get bored in here.

"... well it`s fine, I guess ..." I murmured a little and turned around smiling.I know we`re fellow skippers, but she`s unusually over-familiar with me. And adding to that, I think she spends her time in this sad distant world. I glance around the library. It`s obvious but, there are no other people except us.

"Do you always come to this place around this time?"

"Most of the time. But if there are lessons which I have to be in, I`m late coming here." The amazing part she does here is not "attend lesson" but "be in the lesson." Like Sunohara and I, it`s proof that attendance is the only thing she cares about. But we`re quite different from her. She doesn`t emit that strong stupid scent that Sunohara or I give off.... stupid scent? I sniff myself. It`s all right. At least I don`t understand it. It`s the same as not minding the smell of your own socks. In other words, it`s a meaningless behaviour.

"?" She was looking at me with curiosity.

"Don`t mind an idiot like me, just do what you like." I answered that as if I don`t care what`s going to happen. She put the books she`s carrying on a desk.

"Please wait a minute." She rushes over the window. She opened it to let the new air enter. She then went inside the librarian`s counter and opened a locker to get some cleaning tools. She returned with a mop in hand. She then started sweeping the floor in front of me for some reason.

"Hmph... hmph..." She sweeps the wooden floor with her slender arms with all her might. I was told to wait, but this is getting me quite bored from standing. I feel like a customer lost inside a shop that`s still getting ready to open. I wonder if something will come up if I stay waiting like this?

"Hot coffee." I tried to order something.

"?" She stops mopping and looks at me curiously. It seems like she doesn`t have any coffee here.

"Well then, omuraisu (omelet rice)."

"W... Suika (watermelon)."

"Kappa (raincoat)."

"Painappuru (pineapple)."

"Ru... rujinen (anthropoid)."

"N`Djamena (njamena)."

"Nasubi (eggplant)….. Hey, wait! What in the world is N`Djamena?"

"It`s the capital city of the Republic of Chad in Africa. Chad lake is located a hundred kilometers northeast of the city. The population is..."

"... you don`t need to explain."

"??"

"What are we going to do now then..."... that`s what I want to ask myself.

"Anyway, you can`t use N`Djamena."

"...... are you a bully?"

"Wrong."

"We wouldn`t be able to continue after that then..."

"Let`s stop playing shiritori and continue sweeping." Nod. She nods and moves the mop again.

"Sigh..." Without anything to do, I grab a nearby chair and sat down. I rest my chin on my hand and watch her sweep. She wipes the floor many many times. I think dedicating your time here in the library whenever skipping class is good. Though there`s the question of whether it`s natural to read on the floor.By chance, I see the book she was carrying a while ago piling up in the nearby desk. And just like before, they are technical books stamped with an ownership seal.