Shiina and Yamamura

Sunday, a rare day of leisure.

Takahashi Ren slept until he woke naturally, feeling perfectly at ease.

After getting up, he did five squats and five push-ups, and that counted as his workout for the day.

He bought a bun at a convenience store and ate it as he walked toward the school library.

Takahashi Ren was not picky about genres.

As long as a book caught his fancy, he would read it, whether it was fantasy adventure, a mind-bending mystery, or something more like a fairy tale.

He wandered slowly between the shelves, waiting for a chance encounter with a book.

Before long, he reached the foreign literature section.

"Still haven't found a book you want?" A girl's voice reached his ears.

Takahashi Ren was a little surprised by the sudden approach.

He turned his head, and a lovely figure came into view, holding a copy of The Baron in the Trees.

It was one of Calvino's Our Ancestors trilogy.

Takahashi Ren remembered the story: Cosimo, a twelve-year-old noble boy, climbed a tree in a fit of anger after refusing to eat snails, beginning a legendary life. It was quite a romantic book.

"Yeah, not yet," Takahashi Ren replied.

The girl's gaze roamed over the shelves before she asked, "Do you like stream-of-consciousness books?"

"They're all right. I've read Mrs Dalloway."

Her eyes lit up. "Then you're sure to like The Waves, too."

As she spoke, she reached out to pull it from the shelf.

"Wait," Takahashi Ren stopped her.

"Thanks for the thought, but I don't need someone else making my decisions for me. Besides, looking for a book is part of the fun."

"I see... Sorry, that was presumptuous of me."

"Nobody in my class likes novels, so I've never been able to find anyone to talk about them with."

"No worries." Takahashi Ren picked up the thread. "So what kind of books do you like?"

"Mystery novels."

"Oh, the queen of mystery, Agatha Christie. I've read her And Then There Were None and Endless Night. They were pretty good."

"Me too." Her tone finally relaxed. "But my favorite would have to be Dorothy's Gaudy Night. It's a real masterpiece."

The two chatted quietly among the shelves.

During their conversation, Takahashi Ren learned that the girl before him was named Shiina Hiyori. Like him, she was a first-year, and she was in Class C.

Shiina did most of the talking, while Takahashi Ren mostly listened, only chiming in occasionally.

He had come to the library to find a book today and had not planned on spending his energy chatting.

Besides, he had not read that many books. He had never heard of most of the titles Shiina mentioned, so even if he wanted to join in, he could not.

Listening to her speak with such enthusiasm, he simply settled into being her audience and found it quite comfortable.

Eventually, Takahashi Ren stopped somewhere, his gaze falling on a copy of The Last Unicorn.

Shiina looked at the book in his hand and smiled faintly.

The two sat down in the reading room and quietly opened their respective books.

Time passed quickly, and noon approached.

"If you're free, would you like to have lunch together?"

Takahashi Ren thought for a moment, then nodded.

Shiina walked over beside him and picked up the backpack on her seat.

The backpack was unzipped, and Takahashi Ren could just make out two books lying inside. Neither had a library label on its spine.

"Are those your own books?"

"Yes. I thought that if I ever met someone with similar interests, I could lend them a book right then, so I always carry them with me." Shiina took out the two books. "You can take them if you like."

Takahashi Ren glanced at them and recognized them as mystery novels she had mentioned earlier. Unfortunately, neither caught his fancy.

He declined honestly. "Sorry, I don't think I'd be able to get into them."

"I thought I'd finally be able to lend them out today." She put the books back in her backpack and sighed softly. "Oh well. You're too picky."

"There'll be a chance." Takahashi Ren did not offer much explanation.

He was unwilling to go out of his way to please someone, and he did not want to make promises lightly. The future could wait until it came.

After eating with Shiina, Takahashi Ren's next stop was Keyaki Mall.

He had been there a few times for the Light Music Club's performances, but he had never properly looked around.

Takahashi Ren browsed here and there along the way. After wandering for quite a while, his legs were a little sore, and he was thirsty.

He reached the rest area, glanced around, and headed toward a nearby vending machine.

A girl stood in front of it, her figure somewhat familiar.

Just as he was about to make sure, the girl picked up a bottle of green tea, turned, and walked into the shadows beside the vending machine, disappearing from view.

That piqued his curiosity.

He approached with light footsteps and discovered Miki Yamamura sitting beside the vending machine.

"Yamamura."

"Eek!" Yamamura's shoulders gave a slight shudder, and she looked up at him in surprise. "Ta-Ta, Takahashi, how did you know I was here...?"

"I happened to see you walk in."

"Really? Um, d-did you need something from me?" Yamamura hurried to her feet and instinctively took half a step back.

"Nothing. I just remembered that I still haven't said hello to you."

Yamamura froze for a moment, then lowered her eyes and said softly, "I see... I thought nobody in class would even notice me."

"Why?"

"Because I have very little presence." Yamamura's tone was flat, as though she were stating a fact she had long since accepted.

Forget getting people to like her; she could not even get anyone to dislike her.

That's true, Takahashi Ren thought. If he had not happened to run into her today, he probably would never have interacted with Yamamura at all.

"Maybe you could try taking the initiative a little," Takahashi Ren said casually.

"I like spending time quietly by myself."

It had been that way in kindergarten, in elementary school, and in middle school, too. She lacked the ability to converse with others and was always like a transparent patch of air.

That was enough. Being able to turn self-deception into a skill could be counted as one of her strengths.

"You're lying, Yamamura."

People were contradictory by nature. However accustomed they became to being alone, deep down they still longed to be seen. It was human nature, and no one could escape it.

"Wh-what? I'm not."

"Then would you mind having one more friend?"

"Wh-why? I don't stand out, and I'm boring." Yamamura's eyes were full of confusion.

Takahashi Ren looked at her seriously. "Making another friend can't be a bad thing. Can it?"

"...I..." Yamamura tightly gripped the green tea in her hand.

"If it makes you uncomfortable, it's okay to say no."

"W-well... I look forward to being friends."

"Yeah, I look forward to it."

"I-I should probably..." Yamamura bowed deeply, as though she had used up all her strength. "Please excuse me!"

With that, she turned and hurried away, disappearing from his sight after only a few steps.

Takahashi Ren bought a bottle of water and rested against a bench for a while before leisurely continuing on his way.