The Mystery Behind the Case (1)

Today, Iwasaki and I had to ask the other two students about the incident: Kitamura, a second-year student who was absent from the drama club yesterday, and Nakazawa, a first-year student and former member of the club.

When we went to Kitamura's classroom, he was no longer there, and we were told that he usually eats lunch outside.

We found him outside the school, in the courtyard. There were several benches under the trees where some of the students usually ate lunch at that time. He was sitting alone under one of the trees.

"Hey, Senpai."

He looked at us with a slightly sleepy expression. "Ah, hi."

He had brown hair, cut short and slicked back, with a side bang, and big, kind eyes.

"We were told by your classmates that you're here, senpai," Iwasaki said.

"Ah, really?"

"Yes," I confirmed.

We sat down next to him on the bench.

Turning away from us, he continued to eat from the lunch box he held in one hand.

"I heard you were sick, are you feeling better?" I asked.

"Well, I wasn't really sick. I got injured in a soccer game, and I had a doctor's appointment yesterday. But I'm fine..."

"I see..."

"And you are...?"

"We're from the Mystery Club."

"Ah... Yeah, they told me."

"So you know why we're here?"

"To ask about the costume? What did you want to know?"

As we talked, our eyes were drawn forward. I watched the students walking in front of the school; they couldn't hear us from here.

Just like yesterday, I didn't beat around the bush and asked bluntly, "Where do you think the costume went?"

"Well... Obviously someone stole it. I don't think it could have gotten lost," he replied immediately.

"Then… Do you have any idea who might have done it?"

"Well..." he paused a little hesitantly, "You want me to be honest? I really think it was Nakazawa. It was definitely that asshole."

His words were expected, but I was a little surprised that he accused him so openly, unlike other members.

"Really?" I asked, finally turning to him. "Why do you suspect him?"

All his attention was still on the food, but he continued, "He often hit on different girls, including club members, and he especially annoyed Rina... He even got into a fight with Sato once."

"Wait... Really? No one mentioned that to us," Iwasaki asked, clearly surprised.

Hmm… A fight with Sato? Ah, wait! Sato mentioned yesterday that Nakazawa is a bad fighter. Now that makes sense.

"Me and Sato are the only ones who know about it... So don't tell anyone, okay?"

"Of course," I replied, "Did Nakazawa do anything specific? Why did Sato fight him?"

"Well, I don't think there was any particular reason. Like I said, Nakazawa flirted a lot and sometimes even made nasty comments about girls. He also didn't take any hints, and Sato must have lost his patience that day," he paused in thought, "I can't even understand why Nakazawa joined the club at all. Well, he probably thought he would have a chance with the girls in the club."

"Hmmm… Did he leave the club on his own?"

"He was kicked out of the club after a few embarrassing moments. But to be honest, he rarely attended the club anyway, so whatever."

I fell silent, pondering, and Iwasaki continued for me, "Do you think he stole the costume to take revenge?" he asked.

"Probably."

"And where do you think he got the key from?" I inquired.

"Well... He could have made a copy of the key when he was still a member..." Kitamura paused, "Although... I don't know. As far as I can remember, no one gave him the original key. But he might have stolen it from a teacher or something."

Kitamura was quite willing to share information with us even though he didn't know us well. Maybe he trusted the whole Mystery Club thing more than Rina, for example. Or maybe the club president had asked him to be open with us. It was clear that he wanted to help us with information, but at the same time, something in his demeanor suggested that he wasn't very eager to find the costume. Compared to Miyu and Sumida (the club president), he seemed more calm about the missing costume. Or maybe it just seemed that way to me. I should check to see if it's true or if I'm just imagining it.

"So you really think it was Nakazawa?" I asked.

He paused hesitantly, thinking, which showed me that he might actually be taking this seriously and not throwing accusations around without reason. "I mean, I'm not sure, but I think it was him. Who else?" he finally said.

"Have you confronted him about it?" I decided to clarify.

"You mean if he was behind it or not?"

"Yeah."

"Well... No... Not really..." His voice sounded a little uncertain again.

He hadn't? That seemed strange to me. Was Nakazawa so scary that Kitamura was afraid of him, or was it something else? Maybe he just wasn't entirely sure about it?

"Why?"

"Well... I just didn't..." he answered hesitantly.

"But don't you want to find the costume?" I asked.

He lowered his eyes thoughtfully; I couldn't tell if it was nervousness or indecision.

Sensing his hesitation, I decided to push a little harder. "Look, we just want to know the truth. Help us out, Senpai. I mean, we're trying to help your club, you know ? Whatever you tell us will stay between the three of us, okay?"

"I mean..." he frowned, trying to think of an excuse, but then gave up, "Ugh... Okay... Well... You could say, I'm jealous..."

"Jealous?"

"There's someone I like, but she's playing princess with another guy, so I'm in no hurry to find the costume..."

Even though he didn't mention any names, it was clear who he was talking about. Kitamura is in love with Miyu.

"So that's why you don't want to find the costume?" Iwasaki asked. I felt that there was a hint of suspicion in Iwasaki's voice.

Iwasaki thought the same as I did. If what Kitamura said was true, then he had a motive to steal the costume. However, the way Kitamura calmly admits it and talks about it suggests he's not lying. Still, we shouldn't dismiss this possibility right away…

As if reading our thoughts, Kitamura stopped eating and turned to us. "Hey, look, before you suspect me, I know that stealing the costume won't solve the problem. So it wasn't me," he clarified. Pausing again, he added, "I mean, I am jealous... But what can I do? She likes that guy..."

He seems to have guessed our doubts right away, which is to be expected. Well, not that I suspected him too much.

"We don't suspect you. Don't worry," I assured him. It was important to show that we were on his side.

Sensing the confidence in my voice, Iwasaki also seemed to put aside his doubts. "Hmm… Did you tell her that you like her?" he asked.

Kitamura turned his attention back to the food. "No, I tried dropping hints, but she's a little dense. I'm pretty sure she has no idea that I like her."

"I see…" I muttered thoughtfully.

"...So, any advice guys?" he asked calmly, as if he didn't expect any useful advice from us and just wanted to keep the conversation going.

I put my finger to my lips and looked up for a moment. "...I'm not exactly an expert on romance…"

He looked down at his food, a hint of disappointment on his face. "Well… It's okay, I can't force her to fall in love with me, I guess…"

The sudden change in his tone caught me off guard. Why so depressing? It seemed like he was giving up without even trying.

We sat in silence for a moment. Well... This is getting a little awkward… What should I say? Iwasaki save me! I looked at Iwasaki, silently pleading for assistance.

Catching my gaze, Iwasaki seemed to understand my thoughts immediately. "Hmmm… Do you like paranormal stuff?" he asked.

Ah, Iwasaki, of course! I'd forgotten about that! You're a genius! I felt a rush of relief.

"Hmmm? Ghosts and stuff?" Kitamura asked.

"Yeah..."

"Not really, I think it's stupid." His response was too quick and confident.

Oof... He didn't know about Miyu's interests? So Miyu wasn't that open with everyone. Well, I hope he won't say something like that to her face.

I wondered if I should end the conversation there or not. But before I did, I decided to share a piece of advice that popped into my head. "Hey, next time consider not saying things like that so openly. What if the person you're talking to likes that kind of stuff and your words unintentionally mock their interests, you know? Just be a little more careful..."

Kitamura seemed to be the kind of guy who would talk openly about his feelings and thoughts. This is probably why he was so willing to share so much with us. However, being too direct can sometimes backfire, especially when trying to build relationships with others. I hope he understood what I was trying to convey to him… Well, seeing the mixture of incomprehension and realization on his face, I think he understood what I meant.

"That's my advice… Anyway," I said, getting up from the bench, "we still have to question Nakazawa before lunch is over. And you were a really big help. And don't give up. At least confess to her. Or your feelings will eat you up inside."

I pulled Iwasaki aside. "So, what do you think?" I inquired.

"Well, at the very least, I don't believe Kitamura is the one who stole the costume," he replied.

"Yeah... and he says it was Nakazawa."

"Hmm...."

"Do you agree?"

"Well, we have to ask him directly, right?"

"Yeah, let's find out," I said.

As we walked, he mused, "You gave him some good advice."

"You think so? I'm really not good at romance."

"Well, actually... I think you're pretty good at it."

"...I guess. But I still don't think the advice was all that helpful."

"No, it was... And... " he hesitated, "so you think it's better to confess than to keep quiet?"

"Yes, otherwise he'll only suffer from these feelings if he keeps them bottled up," I replied calmly.

He fell silent, and I walked beside him, lost in my own thoughts, oblivious to the meaning of his question. It wasn't until I heard his voice again that I realized something was wrong. "Hey..." His tone was serious.

"Yeah?" I replied, looking at him innocently. Oh, my God, how naive I was!

The expression on his face was serious and slightly frowning, as if he was struggling with a multitude of conflicting emotions, as if he was caught in an inner struggle. Wait. Why did he have that expression on his face? Why did he ask that question and then abruptly stop speaking? Wait... Why did he look like that? And then it hit me. Could it be...?

Suddenly, a slight embarrassment washed over me. Oh my God, I thought, I'm beginning to understand why he asked that question and what's really going on here! I know you like me, Iwasaki, but now is not the time to confess, okay?

"B-but you know... Sometimes it's wise to hold off on confessing," I interjected hastily, feeling the urgent need to turn the conversation in another direction.

He looked at me with a hint of surprise dancing in his eyes. "Really?"

"Of course!" I said. "You know, jumping into confession isn't always the wisest decision!"

He averted his gaze once more, pausing, while I watched him with bated breath. Please! "Yeah... I guess...," he finally replied, and there was a calmness on his face with a faint hint of relief.

Phew! Crisis averted, I think. I managed to survive this moment! A confession would be completely unnecessary at this moment. Completely unnecessary!

…It didn't take long to find Nakazawa. He was sitting on the stairs leading to the upper floors of the school, accompanied by two boys who seemed to be his friends, typical bullies. By occupying the stairs, they were blocking the way for other students, but I remained silent, wearing my usual smile.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" I asked, addressing Nakazawa directly.

He looked at me, then at Iwasaki, then back to me.

"What do you want?" he replied, his tone somewhat harsh.

I was already thinking about what words to use with people like him and what kind of mask to wear, but suddenly I felt Iwasaki's hand grab mine. He pulled me gently as if to signal me to follow him, and when I looked at him, it seemed as if he was saying something with his eyes.

"It's important," he whispered to me.

I didn't understand what was happening, but I followed Iwasaki as he led me away.

"Hey, what did you want?!" Nakazawa's voice echoed behind us.

I quickly turned around, gave him a guilty look, and simply said, "Excuse us." Then I continued to follow Iwasaki, who was still holding my hand.

"Where are you taking me, Iwasaki?" I asked.

What has gotten into him? Did he remember something? Or did he have some idea about the case?

When we got out of the school and there was no one around, he finally stopped. "We don't have to ask him anything."

I just blinked uncomprehendingly. "Huh? Why?"

He showed me the screen of his phone, which had a message on it, "Thank you, the costume is back in place. I don't know how you did it, but it seems the culprit returned the costume. We just found it! Thank you, and tell Asano-san thank you too!"

Wait, what?! What happened? Was it Kitamura who stole the costume and then he returned it after we talked to him? No, that doesn't make sense. Then who was it?