— — — — — —
Some people would rather look good than stay warm. Oikawa was not one of those people.
The moment he stepped out of the inn, he realized just how brutally cold Kyoto nights could be. One gust of wind was enough to cut straight through him. It was freezing to the bone.
Shizuka Hiratsuka noticed his miserable state, and the satisfied smile tugging at the corner of her mouth made it clear she was enjoying every second of it.
Still, she had standards as a teacher.
She didn't leave him out in the cold for long. After a short while, she raised a hand and flagged down a taxi.
"Yukino, you get in first."
Yukino climbed in before the others. Oikawa had briefly considered showing what little gentlemanly spirit he possessed, but one glance from Shizuka-sensei had him obediently taking the middle seat instead.
Shizuka got in last and shut the door.
The back seat felt cramped with three people squeezed together, but Oikawa wasn't complaining.
At least he was warm again. He felt like he'd come back to life.
"To Ginkaku-ji."
The driver lowered the "Vacant" sign and started the meter.
Ginkaku-ji had been one of the places they'd passed during the day. The area around it was packed with restaurants and food shops, and it wasn't far from the inn either.
Looks like Shizuka had done her homework before coming to Kyoto. Then again, that wasn't surprising. She'd been looking forward to this school trip for a very long time.
...
Inside the taxi, the three of them chatted casually.
Well, mostly Shizuka and Yukino.
Their conversation revolved around famous authors and literary works.
Oikawa wisely kept his mouth shut.
When it came to Japanese literary giants, his knowledge stopped at Natsume Sōseki, Osamu Dazai, and maybe Haruki Murakami.
The problem was that he had only read a little of their work.
He knew their names. That was about it.
As for his novels and writing skills… well, he was really a copycat. If you asked him to write an original story, he probably wouldn't even manage a single page.
...
Amid the conversation between Yukino and Shizuka-sensei, the taxi finally arrived at Ginkaku-ji.
The streets nearby were lined with restaurants of every kind.
The three of them entered a yakiniku restaurant called Raiseken.
To be honest, the name had a distinctly Kyoto flavor to it.
That was Kyoto in a nutshell. Ancient and elegant on the surface, yet dazzling and indulgent underneath.
The restaurant wasn't particularly busy. Led by a server, they were shown to an excellent table.
...
An hour later, the three returned to the area around the inn by taxi.
The moment they got out, Shizuka headed toward a convenience store across the street.
"I'm going to buy some alcohol for the party. You two can head back on your own. See you."
She waved goodbye and walked off.
Watching Shizuka disappear into the distance with a cigarette in hand, Oikawa found himself reevaluating whether she was really suited to be a teacher.
Well... Setting her private life aside, the old lady was undeniably a good teacher.
..
Oikawa and Yukino started walking back to the inn together.
Kyoto's night was incredibly quiet. Aside from the occasional passing car, there was almost no sound at all. Neither of them spoke.
Oikawa walked with his arms folded across his chest, shivering hard enough to feel like he might fall apart.
"Are you cold?"
Before Oikawa could answer, Yukino reached for the zipper of the jacket she was wearing, "Here. Take your coat back."
"No need."
Oikawa stopped her and pulled the zipper back up himself, fastening it all the way to the top. "You keep wearing it. The inn's right there."
They continued walking side by side. Silence settled between them once again.
"Oikawa."
"Hm?"
"What do you want to do in the future?"
"I'll probably become a boss somewhere. Or maybe not. Who knows? I might just decide to slack off and coast through life one day."
It was a simple question and answer. She wanted to know. And for once, he answered honestly.
"...That really does sound like you." Yukino's tone had returned to normal, calm and composed, with just a trace of her usual disdain mixed in. "But I suppose it's still better than what I expected."
"And what was that? I thought you'd say something ridiculous, like becoming a kept man." Oikawa's eyes immediately lit up. "...Actually, that's not a bad career path."
He stroked his chin thoughtfully before breaking into a grin, "With a face like mine, plenty of rich older women would be happy to throw money at me. If I don't cash in on my looks while I'm young, I'll just end up wasting my youth and regretting it later."
Yukino froze. Then she shot him an icy glare.
A moment later, she quickened her pace. Her cold voice drifted back on the night wind. "I don't want to walk with a pervert. Stay ten meters away from me."
After a brief pause, she corrected herself, "No. Twenty."
Oikawa couldn't understand why she'd called him a pervert.
He'd provide emotional companionship. The wealthy women would provide material support.
A mutually beneficial arrangement.
A fair exchange.
What part of that was perverted?
...
"Why'd you stop?" Oikawa asked.
Yukino had suddenly come to a halt. If he wasn't mistaken, she seemed to be waiting for him.
"I thought you wanted to stay twenty meters away from me."
"You..." A faint blush appeared on Yukino's face. "You walk in front."
She looked away, clearly trying to hide something.
Unfortunately for her, Oikawa noticed immediately, "Yukino... don't tell me you can't find your way back?"
"I just... I just didn't want you to look too lonely, that's all. Yes... I didn't want you to look lonely."
The excuse was unbelievably terrible. She'd stumbled over the first half of the sentence, then suddenly emphasized the second half. It was obviously something she'd made up on the spot.
"Well, thanks for your concern."
Oikawa chose not to expose her and simply quickened his pace, taking the lead.
Yukino looked almost comical.
She kept glancing around at her surroundings while sticking close behind him.
Yep. Definitely a hopeless directionally challenged person.
Oikawa couldn't resist teasing her a little.
Whenever he sped up, Yukino would unconsciously speed up too.
When he slowed down, she would hesitate and slow down as well, all while glaring daggers at him.
Fortunately for her, Oikawa didn't keep it up for long. The cold creeping into his back was becoming impossible to ignore. If he continued messing around, he felt like he might actually get stabbed.
Two or three minutes later, they stepped into the inn's lobby. Warmth immediately enveloped him again.
The sudden comfort made him feel sleepy.
"You should head up first," Oikawa said, stopping in place. "Otherwise, if someone sees us together again, it'll become another topic of discussion."
A little farther ahead, they would start running into students from their grade.
The boys weren't a problem. The girls, however, would definitely start gossiping in their little circles.
By tomorrow morning, the whole year would know about it. Especially when one of the people involved was someone as famous around school as Yukino.
"Here's your coat. Thank you."
"And... good night."
Yukino handed his coat back to him. Then she thanked him, wished him good night, and headed upstairs with the panda plush in her arms.
Yawning, Oikawa started toward the stairs as well, his eyes already half-closed.
Exhaustion crashed over him like a tidal wave. The moment he entered his room, he dove straight into bed.
Sleep claimed him almost instantly.
...
..
The second day of the school trip.
Today was group activity day, and the route had been planned by Yui Yuigahama.
Their itinerary would take them from Uzumasa to the Rakusai area. Both were districts within Kyoto.
Their first stop was the Uzumasa movie studios, a theme park centered around period dramas and an actual filming location for historical productions.
It had once been known as a movie village, but had since become a major tourist attraction.
Visitors could dress up in period clothing, experience life from another era, and take commemorative photos.
There were also attractions like a haunted house and a ninja museum.
Yui's plan was obvious. She intended to use the haunted house to help Tobe and Ebina grow closer.
After taking a bus, Oikawa's group soon arrived at the Uzumasa Movie Village.
Honestly, he wasn't disappointed. The various performances throughout the park alone felt worth the price of admission.
The courtesans greeting visitors at the entrance. The samurai action demonstrations teaching sword-fighting choreography. The wandering swordsmen strolling through the recreated Edo-era streets.
All of it was surprisingly impressive.
"Want to check that place out?"
Yui finally moved to the next step of her plan and pointed toward a building labeled, 'The Most Terrifying Haunted House in History.'
Oikawa snorted.
There was no way a tourist-oriented movie village could have a genuinely terrifying haunted house. In his opinion, it probably wasn't even as scary as the Haunted Spirit House he'd visited in Tokyo.
To be fair, that one had actually been pretty creepy. Unfortunately, Utaha Kasumigaoka had been so frightened that they'd ended up leaving halfway through, preventing Oikawa from properly clearing the attraction.
"I want to go!"
"I'd like to try it too."
Tobe raised his hand first, while Ebina's eyes sparkled with excitement.
The rest of them were merely supporting characters in Yui's little play. Since the stars of the show had taken the stage, the supporting cast naturally cooperated.
Soon all eight of them were standing in line for the haunted house.
The staff informed them that only four people could enter at a time, so they split into two groups.
Hayama, Tobe, Miura, and Ebina went first.
The remaining four, including Oikawa, formed the second group.
Oikawa thought the arrangement was excellent. At least this way he wouldn't be forced to help with the matchmaking scheme.
Before they entered, something amusing happened. The staff member gave everyone a serious warning, "The ghosts inside are played by actors. Please do not use violence against them."
Oikawa had no idea what kind of tragedies had occurred in this haunted house before, but the employee's heartfelt warning seemed to carry countless untold stories.
The group soon entered the attraction.
Outside, the sunshine had felt warm and pleasant. The moment they stepped inside, however, a chilling atmosphere settled over everyone.
The haunted house was set during the Edo period.
Unlike the Haunted Spirit House from before, it didn't seem to have much of a story. This one was the straightforward kind.
You walked in. You got haunted.
Some distance ahead, Oikawa could hear sounds coming from Hayama's group.
More specifically, he could hear Ebina's eerie laughter.
Honestly, it sounded scarier than the ghosts.
'Miss, please stop increasing the difficulty level of the haunted house. Can't you see Kawasaki is already trembling?'
To Oikawa's surprise, Kawasaki was genuinely terrified of this sort of thing.
She had a death grip on the corner of his shirt and absolutely refused to let go, like she'd planted roots into the ground.
Hachiman, meanwhile, was busy examining the surroundings with interest. There wasn't the slightest trace of fear on his face.
Definitely a kindred spirit.
If Oikawa ever decided to explore a truly terrifying haunted house in the future, bringing Hachiman along might be a good idea.
"Oi-Oikawa-kun... I'm scared."
Yui's voice was already trembling.
She nervously looked around, afraid that something might suddenly jump out at her.
"What are you scared of? They already told us before we came in. The ghosts are all staff members in costume."
"I... I know that, but it's still scary!"
Even knowing the ghosts were fake didn't help her overcome her fear.
Oikawa had no idea what to say to that. So he simply stayed quiet and continued following behind Hayama's group.
After walking a little farther...
Suddenly, a ghost with skeletal makeup painted across its face sprang up from the darkness and let out a loud, "Uwaaaah!"
"Aaaah! A ghost! I'll beat you!"
Yuigahama did the screaming. Kawasaki did the punching.
"Stop! Stop! It was already explained that it's a person in costume! Miss, please stop hitting me!"
The skeleton ghost repeatedly begged for mercy.
Judging from the way he was crouching on the floor with both hands over his head, he'd taken a pretty solid beating.
"Ow! Why are you still kicking me?!" The ghost looked utterly wronged.
His face was practically overflowing with untold sorrow. For the rest of the route, Oikawa's group moved through the haunted house without encountering a single ghost.
Kawasaki deserved all the credit for that.
...
After leaving the Uzumasa Movie Village, the group took a taxi to Rakusai.
From Ninna-ji to Ryōan-ji, then on to Kinkaku-ji, they spent the entire afternoon visiting one temple after another.
To Oikawa, it was mind-numbingly boring.
Only when the sun began to set did they finally return to the inn.
And just like that, the second day of the trip came to an end.
From the looks of things, however, Ebina and Tobe's relationship hadn't made any real progress.
After dinner, Oikawa bought a bottle of soda from a vending machine and hid himself away in a quiet corner, where he started playing Pokémon on his phone.
He had no interest in going upstairs to play Monopoly with Zaimokuza. And he definitely didn't want to play Uno. All he wanted was to sit peacefully in his little hideout, drink his soda, and play games.
Before long, a message arrived from Utaha Kasumigaoka.
It was a photo... She was slumped over her desk, looking exhausted.
"Senpai, I'm so tired. There are way too many things I want to revise in the second volume of Love Metronome. It feels like so much work."
Oikawa smiled.
Then he sent over the photo he'd taken earlier of the panda plush.
"Bought you a souvenir. Do you like it?"
Utaha replied instantly, "A panda?! I love it! I absolutely love it!!!"
Pandas really were universally effective.
After that, the two chatted for a while longer about ordinary everyday things.
"What did you have for dinner?"
"Curry."
"Anything interesting happen at school today?"
"Blah blah blah..."
That sort of thing.
After about ten minutes, Utaha went back to revising the second volume of Love Metronome.
Oikawa, meanwhile, opened Twitter.
After clearing out some direct messages, he thought for a moment before posting a new tweet.
45 days until the release of the heartwarming novel Clannad.
Only a few seconds later, the first reply appeared.
["Heartwarming, really? I may not read much, but don't try to fool me!"]
Oikawa liked the comment and replied, "Guaranteed authentic. Honest business. I stake my reputation on it. Clannad is absolutely a heartwarming novel."
Heartwarming. The first half of Clannad was the very definition of a healing story.
Everything was moving toward a brighter future.
Oikawa was busy painting beautiful dreams for his readers when a new message suddenly popped up.
It was from Hina Ebina.
"Oikawa-kun, do you have a moment? Could we meet and talk?"
Oikawa scratched his head, puzzled.
Why was Ebina messaging him all of a sudden? What could she possibly want to talk about?
.
.
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