Epilogue 1 | To a New Season

After successfully getting through Umi’s birthday party held at the Amami house, Umi and I parted ways with everyone else and walked back to the Asanagi house, taking even more time than we did on the way there, strolling slowly together.

In the end, Umi spent the entire party clinging to me. For someone like me, who’d never had friends before, celebrating with friends for the first time was incredibly fun, but it was also more embarrassing than anything else—I think I spent most of the time with my face bright red.

This kind of thing is nice once in a while, but the next time an opportunity like this comes up, I’d really prefer it to just be the two of us.

…With everyone acting as a brake on our lovey-dovey antics, we’re already this much of a baka-couple, so if we’re alone, I’ll need some serious self-control to avoid things getting out of hand in all sorts of ways.

“Maki, today was fun, wasn’t it?”

“Yeah. Well, it was just as embarrassing as it was fun, though.”

“Hehe, true. But now everyone probably sees us as a super close couple, right?”

“Feels like it’s already overkill, though.”

Umi’s got a strong possessive streak and tends to get jealous easily—it’s one of her cute sides—but for people like Nitori-san and Houjou-san, who were seeing the two of us for the first time, it must’ve been quite a shock.

In front of the usual crew like Amami-san and Nitta-san, that’s just business as usual, but Umi going out of her way to flaunt our closeness in a setting like today’s felt a little unusual.

“…Umi, I’m fine, you know.”

“Huh? W-What do you mean?”

“I mean I won’t sway toward other girls… When I was talking to them, you looked, like, really anxious or something.”

“Ugh… H-How did you—”

“Well, just a hunch.”

Since I was surrounded by more girls than usual today, I ended up talking to a bunch of them, and when I glanced at Umi, her face looked a little grumpy.

Of course, she’s the star of the celebration today, and it’s being held outside her home, so she kept it together on the surface, but the way she gripped my sleeve a bit harder or puffed out her cheeks for just a split second when everyone’s attention shifted elsewhere—it was pretty obvious to me, since I’m always watching her.

“Because… I get worried, you know.”

“Worried? Like, maybe I’d end up liking another girl or something?”

“…Mm.”

There’s no way I’d be drawn to anyone but Umi, but since she’s like me—serious and prone to slipping into negative thoughts—she can’t help but think about those ‘what ifs.’

“Hey, Maki, you might not have noticed, but looking at me now, don’t you think something’s different?”

“Huh? Something different…?”

I look at Umi right beside me.

The same earnest, clear eyes as always, silky black hair, and flawless white skin—she’s the girl I love more than anyone and cherish the most.

Since it’s her birthday today, she’s wearing a brand-new spring coat despite the slight chill, along with a knee-length skirt made of thin fabric. Her hair’s neatly trimmed at the ends, and she’s wearing a bit of the perfume she often uses when we go out together.

I’d noticed all that this morning when I visited the Asanagi house, and Umi had even confirmed I got it right.

“Hmm, being this close might make it hard to tell… How about this, then?”

Saying that, Umi lets go of my hand and stands straight in front of me to show herself off.

It’s been a while since I last looked at her standing like this—her figure’s filled out just a tiny bit from her previously slender frame, but her style’s as great as ever.

“…Huh?”

“Maki, you finally noticed?”

“Yeah, uh… I thought it might just be my imagination, but—”

Comparing Umi now to when we first started dating… setting aside how she’s still as beautiful and cute as ever, there’s one thing that’s definitely different in my eyes.

“Umi… could it be my height’s grown a little?”

“…Yup, correct. Well, I only started noticing it myself around the time you began your part-time job, though.”

Comparing it to my past memories, it feels like Umi’s height has shrunk by a centimeter or two—but of course, her height wouldn’t shrink at her age, which means mine’s the one that’s grown.

Lately, Umi and I have been so glued to each other that I haven’t really looked at her objectively, so it was hard to notice, but now that I think about it, I’ve definitely grown.

“You’re pretty oblivious about yourself, Maki, so you might not have realized, but you’ve gotten way cooler than you think. You don’t get all flustered in class anymore, your grades have gone up, you’ve been training with Seki-kun, and ever since you started your part-time job, your hairstyle’s lost that unkempt vibe… Actually, people in class have been talking about how you’ve ‘changed lately.’ Yuu and Nina have been praising you a lot too.”

“Oh, really? That’s how it’s been, huh.”

During that time, all I had in my head was ‘I love Umi,’ and while my height was just a byproduct, everything Umi listed—those were all things I did for the girl I adore. I didn’t want her to get mocked because of my sloppiness or make her worry unnecessarily because of me.

But even though my focus was entirely on Umi and I wasn’t paying attention to anything around me, it seems like people like Amami-san and Nitta-san have been watching me properly, reevaluating me and changing their old opinions.

“Even today, seeing you talk so casually with Sanae or Manaka made me kinda scared. You were supposed to be just mine, but as you kept working hard for me, other girls started noticing that there’s this awesome guy named ‘Maehara Maki’… I started worrying that maybe, like back then, I’d end up alone again before I knew it.”

“Like with Amami-san… you mean?”

“…Yeah. Haha, seriously, what am I even thinking? I trust that you’re not the kind of guy who’d do something like that, Maki, but I still can’t shake those bad memories from before.”

There’s none of her earlier brightness in the weak laugh Umi lets out now.

She wanted things to turn out this way, but before she realized it, the thing she feared most had started happening… Since Umi’s like me and tends to overthink herself into negativity, those middle school memories must’ve flashed through her mind.

Like me, who went through my parents’ discord and divorce, emotional scars like these don’t just vanish once you tie up some loose ends. It takes time—only then might they finally start to heal, maybe.

So no matter how much I say ‘It’s okay,’ if Umi doesn’t feel ‘It’s okay,’ my encouragement is just a temporary painkiller at best.

But even if that’s the case, I can’t just leave Umi like this anymore.

“Umi, wanna take a detour? There’s somewhere I’d like to go.”

“I don’t mind… but is there anything around here?”

“It’s not anything grand… I usually just look at it from afar, so I thought it’d be nice to go up close for once.”

“? If you’re that set on it, Maki…”

Leading a puzzled Umi off our usual route, I walk through the narrow residential streets to a certain spot.

“…Good. Some have fallen, but about half are still blooming.”

“This place is—”

Cutting through the path and stepping into an open area, what spreads out before us is a riverbank. The weather was bad until yesterday, so the river was flowing a bit fast, but after a day, it’s calmed down, the water relatively clear and flowing gently.

And a little ways off, there’s a row of cherry blossom trees—that’s my goal this time.

“Last year, I just stared at them absentmindedly from my apartment window, but I thought it’d be nice to see them up close for once. There aren’t too many trees, so there aren’t many people either.”

There are a few people walking dogs or jogging, but no one’s here for flower-viewing. With no prying eyes, we should be able to relax here.

“It’s definitely pretty, and I’d feel a bit unsatisfied just going home like this, so I don’t mind, but why here?”

“There’s no special reason… but I just felt like this’d be a good place to thank you again, Umi. …There’s a bench over there, wanna sit?”

“O-Okay…”

We sit side by side on a modest bench placed near the cherry blossom trees.

It’s a bit much to call it flower-viewing, but it’s plenty enough to feel the arrival of a new season.

“…You know, I used to not really like spring. The days are nice to spend, and I don’t dislike calm scenery like cherry blossoms or this, but…”

“Really? Was it maybe because of self-introductions or something?”

“Yeah. Embarrassingly enough. For me, there were no meetings or farewells—it just felt like I.was exposing myself to shame all alone. All things considered, it might’ve been my most depressing time.”

My dad’s transfers always happened at the end of the work year, so every time, I’d end up as the outsider, spending my days in places where I didn’t know anyone.

Back then, I thought it couldn’t be helped since it was for my parents’ work, but with my naturally shy personality, a student life with no one to rely on was pretty tough.

And now, another year’s passed, and spring’s about to come again.

“But this year, I’m kinda looking forward to it. Of course, there’s still some worry that it might turn out like last year.”

“Is that… because I’m here, maybe?”

“Yeah. Of course, there’s no guarantee we’ll be in the same class, and we might end up separated from everyone else, so I could end up isolated in class.”

Even so, I’m not completely alone like before.

I’ve got friends who’ll listen if something’s up, and a lover who’ll stay by my side when I feel lonely.

No matter what happens, I’m not alone—that’s why I can muster the courage to face my fears, little by little.

“…Umi, once again, thank you for becoming my friend, for liking me, and for being my lover. The fact that I can grow even a little like this is all thanks to you.”

My gaze lifting, my posture straightening, my height starting to grow again, the gray world around me gaining color—all of it.

“…So, Umi, if there’s anything worrying you even a little, tell me anytime. You don’t have to hold back thinking it’d burden me or anything.”

“Is that okay? If I’m honest, you won’t hate me, Maki? I surprised even myself, but I’m kind of a heavy girl, you know? I get jealous super easily, and I’m clingy too.”

“It’s fine. Being ‘heavy’ just means you like me that much, right? …Of course, I won’t just go along with everything—I’ll speak my mind too.”

“…Then, even stuff like this?”

Saying that, Umi taps away at her phone and sends me a message.

(Asanagi) Please don’t get any cooler than this. Stay my Maki only.

(Asanagi) You don’t need to do that part-time job—just spend that time with me instead.

(Asanagi) I don’t want you getting along with Nakada-san either.

When I look over at Umi after reading that far, she’s blushing and looking down, turning her face away from me.

Looking just at this, it’s heavy and feels like she wants to tie me down, but Umi knows that’s not okay, so she’d never say it out loud or force it.

Even as she looks away, she keeps sneaking glances at me, and right now, that feels so endearing and cute to me.

“Umi, come here.”

“…Mm.”

When I spread my arms, Umi hesitates for a moment but then dives into my chest, burying her face there.

“No matter what anyone says, Maki’s mine… Your kindness, your slightly pathetic sides, all of it, every single bit is my Maki…”

“Yeah. From now on, forever, I’m yours, Umi.”

Just like Umi’s done for me, I’ll accept her selfishness too.

Even if this is just temporary comfort, as long as we have the reassurance that ‘Maki’ is there for ‘Umi’ and ‘Umi’ is there for ‘Maki’ whenever something happens, I believe those scars will one day stop hurting.

For a while after that, I keep stroking Umi’s soft, silky black hair, ignoring the scenery around us. Every now and then, I feel the gazes of passersby turn our way, but I’m too preoccupied with Umi to feel embarrassed right now.

Amami-san, Nitta-san, Nozomu—those ‘friends’ are great people and important to me, of course, but if I had to choose one or the other, I’d pick my ‘lover,’ Umi, without a doubt.

“Maki’s scent really calms me down… It’s annoying right now since it’s mixed with other girls’ smells, though.”

“Is that how it works…? Then feel free to cover me in your scent so much that everyone else backs off. I don’t mind.”

“You say such nice things… If you keep that up, I might end up doing something irreversible.”

“Irreversible… like what, for example?”

“First, I’d turn yandere.”

“That’s the one thing I absolutely want you to avoid right off the bat.”

Maybe she’s calmed down a bit and gotten some leeway, because she’s starting to crack jokes every now and then.

Knowing Umi, I doubt it’d ever turn into something like that… but I want to keep cherishing her from now on too.

“…It’s getting dark, so should we head back? If we’re too late, Sora-san might get worried.”

“Yeah… Thanks for cheering me up, Maki. I feel totally reassured now.”

“Oh, good. Glad to hear it.”

“Yeah. Really glad.”

After flirting just a little more, we get up from the bench and head back to the Asanagi house to drop Umi off, this time for real.

Along the way, Umi, now in a much better mood, clings to my arm sweetly, making it as hard to walk as ever—but that just means we can take our time getting back, which works out nicely.

“Hey, Maki, there’s one more thing I wanna do—just once more. Is that okay?”

“Again? Well, if it’s something you want, I’ll stick with you to the end… What do I do this time?”

“Same as before—just stand there normally. I’ll take care of the rest.”

“? Got it.”

So, just like earlier, Umi steps in front of me and turns to face me.

With my height having grown, our gazes meet at a slight angle now, locking together.

“…Maki, excuse me for a sec, okay?”

“Huh?”

—Chu.

The next moment, Umi stands on her tiptoes and presses her soft lips against my forehead.

“…Yup, even with your height growing, it’s still pretty far from my ideal, huh.”

“What? What do you mean?”

“I like how our eyes are about the same height now, but I kinda dream of a height difference where I’d have to tiptoe to kiss you.”

“I don’t think my height’ll grow that much… but I’ll keep trying for you, with that in mind.”

“Yeah. Do your best, Maki.”

With my beloved girlfriend cheering me on like that, I’ve got no choice but to keep pushing forward.

With a vague new goal in mind, we take another step together into the new season.