[Past Arc] Ichinose Honami

Ichinose Honami often thought she was the luckiest person in the world.

Otherwise, how could fate have brought Miyano Makoto into her life?

Though, looking back, the circumstances of their first meeting had been a little strange...

"Since we're neighbors now, I should introduce myself. I don't know your name yet, though. I'm Miyano Makoto. What's yours?"

With his parents' encouragement, the awkward boy worked up the courage to speak to the older daughter of the family that had just moved in next door.

"Nice to meet you. My name is Ichinose Honami. I hope we can become good friends."

The girl held out her right hand with poise. It was how she had always conducted herself: when meeting someone, a handshake was the most basic courtesy.

But the boy in front of her seemed to freeze up. After a long pause, he finally spoke.

"Did you just say your name was Ichinose Honami?"

"Yes. Is there something wrong with my name?"

The girl tilted her head, confusion written across her chubby cheeks.

"No... I'll take another look..."

The boy's meager courage melted away like snow beneath the morning sun. He fled, shamefully.

"...What a strange boy."

The little girl, Ichinose Honami, couldn't understand the strange things the boy had said or done. She simply decided he was a strange boy.

"Mom! I'll help you!"

After finishing her exchange with the neighbor's child, Ichinose Honami conscientiously helped her mother with whatever she could around the house.

She took her family's toothbrushes and cups out of their bags and put them in the bathroom, or carried folded clothes to the old wardrobe.

Her mother had just moved here with her and her little sister so that she could continue her education.

She hoped she could make things a little easier for her mother by helping out.

Time flew by. That awkward scene from the day they first met didn't leave much of an impression on Ichinose Honami at the time.

She was a very sensible child. Unlike most kids her age, who were still throwing tantrums over toys, she already understood how hard things were for her mother.

So she did everything she could to play the part of "someone else's well-behaved child."

"Look at that kid from the Ichinose family. Why can't you behave like that?"

People often shouted at their own children.

"Because she doesn't have a dad."

Children didn't know how to hold their tongues. Hearing that, the mother could only cover her child's mouth and glance guiltily toward Ichinose Honami, afraid she might have heard what had just been said.

Ichinose Honami had heard. Her expression didn't change, but bitterness welled up inside her.

If she could, she wanted to be like a normal child and cuddle up to her parents. But she had understood life's hardships too early to do that like her little sister.

Her little sister already gave their mother enough to worry about. She couldn't add to her mother's burden.

She dutifully kept playing a false role.

Hadn't someone once said that if you wore a false mask long enough, it could become real?

She thought about it with a hint of self-mockery.

"About that sachet you gave me yesterday—my parents really liked it. Could you make a few more?"

A sudden voice reached Ichinose Honami's ears. She turned toward the speaker in confusion.

It was Miyano Makoto, speaking to her with a smile she recognized very well.

Why did it seem so familiar to her?

During all those days she'd spent practicing in front of the mirror, she'd often seen that kind of smile in her reflection.

It was a completely fake smile. By now, she had learned to control it perfectly, and no one could spot the slightest flaw.

Unlike the boy in front of her, who was still so inexperienced and easy to read.

"Sure. I can give them to you tomorrow."

Ichinose Honami gave the perfect response, carrying herself in a way that wasn't supposed to belong to someone her age.

But life was unpredictable. She was no longer a child who could simply enjoy the love her parents gave her.

"Thanks. I'll pay you fairly for them."

Miyano Makoto had a little money lately. He'd made a splash in several competitions, including swimming and table tennis, for elementary school students, and his parents had won a great deal of prize money. He'd decided to do something with it.

"Huh?"

Ichinose Honami froze. This was the first time anyone had offered to pay her for something she'd made.

"You don't have to. I don't need you to pay me. I was making them because..."

She reflexively tried to refuse.

"But... my parents really like them... If I don't pay you... we'll all feel bad about it."

Miyano Makoto stumbled through the words. For some reason, his social anxiety seemed to have gotten a little worse.

Seeing the boy's flushed face and his legs trembling as he fought the urge to run away, Ichinose Honami pressed her lips together, then agreed.

"...All right."

She couldn't quite describe the complicated feeling, but warmth was rising in her heart.

So there really were people like that in the world, she thought.

The next day, Ichinose Honami received an amount of money far greater than the sachets were worth.

Holding a Fukuzawa Yukichi bill that still felt warm, she stood there, stunned.

"This is too much. How can I accept this? The things I made aren't worth that much."

Ichinose Honami spoke earnestly. She was poor, and her mother had to work three jobs to support the family, but poverty didn't mean she lacked pride. She believed that if she worked hard, things would get better.

"Your kindness isn't something money can measure, Ichinose. My parents both think this is what you deserve. Oh, they told me to say that to you."

Miyano Makoto scratched his head awkwardly. Actually, it had been his idea.

His parents weren't nearly so kind. Indifference toward anyone outside one's own family seemed to be ingrained in the people of this country.

Looking the other way was the norm.

"...Thank you."

A thousand words gathered at her lips, but only those two came out. Ichinose Honami sincerely thanked the boy for his kindness.

For the first time in a long while, she smiled from the bottom of her heart.

"By the way, I'm going to an international chess tournament in a little while. My parents will both be busy then. Could you come with me?"

Miyano Makoto took the opportunity to invite her.

"Of course, I'll pay you."

"Huh? Me?"

Ichinose Honami pointed at herself, puzzled.

She was just a child. What could she possibly do to help?

"The trip would be boring. There wouldn't be anyone my age to talk to."

Miyano Makoto patiently explained.

"So if you came with me, Ichinose, I think I'd be really happy."

He spoke smoothly now, without stumbling. The practice he'd done the night before was clearly paying off.

"O-okay."

Somehow, Ichinose Honami found herself agreeing without really thinking it through.

She nervously told her mother about it.

"Is it the boy from the Miyano family? I've been hearing people talk about him lately. They say he's a prodigy."

Her mother spoke as if to herself, then crouched down to look at her daughter.

"I'll let you go, but if I find out your grades have slipped when you get back from the midterms..."

"I promise I won't let you down, Mom!"

Ichinose Honami believed her hard work wouldn't go to waste. Even while taking time off to accompany Miyano Makoto, she wouldn't stop studying.

"Mom says you're a prodigy. Are you really that amazing?"

On the way, curiosity shone in Ichinose Honami's eyes. She really wanted to know what made a prodigy special. He didn't look any different from everyone else.

Maybe he was just a little withdrawn?

Thinking about Miyano Makoto's usual behavior, she came up with an answer that was clearly unreliable.

"...Is that so? I'm not that good... They're the ones who keep talking me up."

Miyano Makoto took that bit of information to heart. He decided he'd hold back a little in his studies from now on, in case he accidentally got bumped up a grade.

If that happened, he'd spend less time with Ichinose Honami. More importantly, he didn't want to miss the future Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School. It was too important an event.

"Okay. Miyano doesn't really look like a prodigy to me."

Ichinose Honami giggled.

He looked so clueless. It was adorable!