Our free time on the third and final day of the school trip was drawing to a close. We had explored as many places as possible, cramming our schedules right up to the last minute, eating delicious and unusual foods while enjoying our time alone as a couple.
"Hey, hey, Maki! Let's take a picture here. One for the memories!"
"I feel like you just said that a minute ago… Well, this place is really pretty too, and I don't mind taking as many as you want as long as it's with you, Umi."
Holding the soft-serve ice cream we'd bought from a shop along the way, Umi and I pressed our cheeks together, adding another photo to our collection for what must have been the umpteenth time that day. The canal flowing through the town, the boats cruising down it at a leisurely pace, and the beautiful rows of buildings lining the river made for a perfect backdrop. It had taken a while to get here, but it was well worth the trip.
…And since we aren't running into our classmates, we can act like a lovey-dovey couple and just get some light chuckles from the locals.
"Maki, it's almost over, but how was the school trip after so long?"
"I wish we had another day or two."
"Fufu, same here."
Today's free time was a given, but the ski training from the previous days and even heading to the airport with our usual group of five on the first morning had all been fun. If only this trip could last a little longer… The thought crossed my mind, but fun times must always come to an end. Once they're over, we have to return to our usual, everyday lives.
…Well, even when that happens, I'll still have Umi, so it's not like I'm really bummed out about it or anything. Just having the person I love by my side was incredibly reassuring.
"Alright, then. It's a bit early for the meeting time, but should we head back to Amami-san and the others soon? It'd be bad to make them worry by showing up at the last minute."
"Yeah. Oh, but before that, I need to buy some souvenirs. For my mom and dad, and for Shizuku-san and Reiji-kun, too." Umi paused for a moment before adding, "…And for Riku-san too, just in case."
"You already have something for my brother, don't you? C'mon, that sword keychain you bought at the hotel gift shop."
"Let's get him something a bit more proper… I mean, not that there's anything wrong with a keychain, y'know?"
"Fufu, Maki, who are you even making excuses to?"
Finally, after making sure to buy souvenirs for Sora-san, Daichi-san, my mom, and others who always look after us, we headed back to the meeting spot where Amami-san and the others were likely waiting.
On the train, we gazed out at the endless, snowy landscape stretching beyond the window, sitting side by side on the seats, nestled closely together.
"…Hey, Maki."
"Umi?"
"About Yuu. I wonder if she's okay? Is she really enjoying the school trip?"
"She's probably fine, right? Even without us, Nakamura-san and Arae-san are there with her."
"You're right. I don't know much about Arae… san, but our, Nakamura's, group is full of good kids." Umi looked down for a moment. "…Did you want to go around with Amami-san, too, after all?"
"Yeah. Just a little bit." Muttering that, Umi smiled, though it was tinged with a hint of sadness.
I knew that Umi thought of me first and foremost. The smile she'd shown me just a while ago wasn't an exaggeration; it was the face of someone genuinely enjoying her time with me from the bottom of her heart. Time with her boyfriend came before anything else, but that didn't mean she'd forgotten about everything else, either. Amami-san, Nitta-san, and Nozomu, who weren't here right now—they were her precious friends, the ones she's walked alongside throughout her high school life so far.
Tomorrow, she'd be able to be with them again, but the opportunity to mess around together in the special setting of a school trip would never come again. The memories she made with everyone must have been just as important to Umi, too. Even so, she chose to spend her time alone with me.
"Thank you, Umi. For choosing me."
"Mhm."
"Our graduation trip… I guess that's what it's called. Let's make sure all five of us go on that one."
"Fufu, you said it. That's a promise, alright?"
"Yeah, it's a promise."
"Then, pinky promise."
With our free hands, Umi and I tightly hooked our pinkies together. I didn't need anything else as long as I have Umi, but I don't want her to end up that way. Memories with her boyfriend, and memories with her precious friends—I want her to spend her remaining year and a bit of high school life without a single regret. In that moment, a new goal was added to my student life.
Having finished almost everything on our three-day school trip, we bid farewell to Hokkaido and boarded a plane back to our hometown. There was still so much left we hadn't done, both for skiing and sightseeing, but I suppose feeling that way just went to show how much fun this school trip had been. Most of the students who had been goofing around on the way here were now sleeping soundly on the return flight, their faces etched with expressions of pure satisfaction. As for me, I felt like I could fall asleep at any moment. Umi, sitting in a different section, was probably already in dreamland.
I should get some sleep too—just as I thought that and slowly started to close my eyes, someone gently poked my cheek.
"—Hey, Maki-kun."
"? Amami-san… Sorry, I was dozing off."
"No, no, I'm the one who should apologize for waking you up. …Is it okay to talk right now?"
"Sure. …Sorry if I end up falling asleep halfway through."
"Fufu, it's fine. Once we're done, I'm going to use Nagisa-chan as a pillow and go to sleep myself."
"…I'll send you flying the moment you lean on me, y'know." Arae-san retorted from beside her.
"Eh? You really mean it? You're the best, Nagisa-chan!"
"........."
Smiling wryly at Arae-san, who silently turned her whole body away, Amami-san faced me again and began to speak. "This might not be the best time to ask, but you're going to college, right, Maki-kun?"
"Yeah. I'm planning to apply to some private universities too, but my first choice is the national K University. With Umi."
"K University is local, but it's a bit far to commute to from our area, isn't it? …Could it be that you two are, um, going to live together… or something?"
"…Well, that's the plan."
"I knew it! …But wow, you two are moving so far ahead of everyone else."
"…Our goal is just a little earlier than others', it's completely normal." Life isn't a competition, and the path everyone takes is completely different, so I think it's best to just advance at your own pace. We were a lovey-dovey couple heading straight for our goal, but there was nothing wrong with taking it slow. There was no need to rush.
"What about you, Amami-san? You were planning to go to college… right?"
"Yeah. Up until about the time of the parent-teacher meeting last year, I thought that's what I'd end up doing."
"Up until then… so it's different now, huh."
Giving a small nod, Amami-san whispered softly so only I could hear. "—I've decided not to go to college."
"…I see."
"Yeah. I was hesitating about it for a long time, but I finally made up my mind today."
"Um… is that because of, well, what happened today, or…"
"Fufu, who knows?"
I couldn't know to what extent, but it seemed what happened was powerful enough to give Amami-san the push she needed. …Though I have no idea if that was actually a good thing or not.
"Ah, I haven't properly decided if I'll just do regular job hunting, or look for a completely different path or anything yet, okay? I just decided to stop copying everyone else simply because it's what they're doing."
"…In that case, your student life will be over in a little over a year, huh."
"I think so. …Oh, I see! If that's how it plays out, I'll become an adult a step ahead of you."
"If you go out into society and start working, that just might be the case." It means that Amami-san really had made a huge decision. She'd said earlier that we were 'moving so far ahead of everyone else,' but… wasn't she the one who was actually doing that? Leaping forward in a completely different direction from us, who were walking down a somewhat paved road—that was something Umi and I couldn't do right now. It was a path that surely only Amami-san could carve out for herself. She thinks she's no match for Umi and me? No, that's not true at all. The one who's truly amazing and unbeatable is Amami-san. If she gets serious, she can surely make any dream come true. Everyone believes she holds that much power.
…Well, time travel might be a bit too much to ask for, though.
"That's why, Maki-kun." Tears slowly welled up in her eyes, but her smile remained just as sunny as it was when I first saw her. "—Thank you. For becoming my friend."
"Yeah. Thank you too, Amami-san."
"From now on, we're really, truly friends… right?"
"Yeah. Not 'my girlfriend's friend,' but 'friends.'"
"Just friends?"
"Well, yeah."
"…Can't we make it sound a little closer?"
"Have you really moved on from all those lingering feelings? Are you sure?"
"…Ehehe~"
"Don't try to laugh it off."
I was a bit worried about whether she could really change or not, but since Amami-san went this far to say it, all I could do was believe her. Amami-san will go her own way, and I'll go mine. We just have to keep a close eye on our feet and the path ahead so we don't stumble, taking our steps forward one by one.
"…Is that all you wanted to talk about?"
"Yeah. …Thanks, Maki-kun."
"No, thank you. Well then, um… good night."
"Good night. …I'm tired too, so I think I'll get some sleep."
I turned towards the window, and Amami-san, just as she declared, snuggled up against Arae-san and fell asleep. The awkward relationship between Amami-san and me, which started with the incident at the sports festival, had finally come to a complete close.
…I have to do my best to make Umi happy, so I don't lose to Amami-san.
The plane headed back to our hometown, toward our new daily life.