Chapter 1: The Dreaded Career Planning Surveys

—This will be the last time.

Chapter 1: The Dreaded Career Planning Surveys

I asked myself, what is my life’s purpose? And when I did... I came up empty-handed.

I imagine this question hit Yaegashi Taichi just as hard as it hit me, Inaba Himeko.

If we had never stopped to think about it, would we have carried on living in blissful ignorance forever? No... I don’t think we could have escaped it. We each would have been forced to come to terms with it sooner or later. And then we would’ve had to check in with each other about it.

Worst-case scenario, that’s the point at which it ends. I get that.

And I’m really, really, really scared... but the resolution to this confrontation will determine what path I take going forward.

So that’s just the way it’s gotta be.

+++

Summer break had come to an end for the second time since Yaegashi Taichi first enrolled at Yamaboshi High School, and the new fall semester had barely begun. That day in particular found Taichi on cleaning duty after school. Once he was finished, he headed across campus in the direction of Rec Hall Room 401.

The Culture Festival had come and gone, and now the school was shifting gears back to business as usual. The sunlight still beat down harshly, but if he stood in the shade with the breeze brushing past, he could almost convince himself it was autumn.

Just before he entered, on a whim, he paused to look up at the quaint, old-fashioned Rec Hall building in all its glory. It was a structure in desperate need of earthquake retrofitting, and at this point, some were of the opinion that it would be easier to simply build a new Rec Hall from the ground up. Personally, Taichi hoped the old building would hang in there until after he and the rest of his club graduated.

Nearly a full year had passed since the Cultural Research Club was forcibly dragged into a world of supernatural phenomena. Over that time, they had been subjected to countless crises, each of which they survived by working together. Most recently, their new recruits had gotten themselves caught up in yet another incident, but even then, it was nothing the seven of them couldn’t handle. So when would it end? Surely not even «Heartseed»’s bag of otherworldly tricks was bottomless... though admittedly it was starting to feel like it.

The second-years only had 18 months left until they would leave this campus for good.

As he walked up the stairs, Taichi pulled out a sheet of paper—the handout his class had received that very day. This handout was titled: CAREER PLANNING SURVEY. Below that was a form in which he was meant to detail his plans for the future—college or employment—and choose between the humanities or a science course for his third year.

For the second-years, this decision was of paramount importance. Yamaboshi boasted a relatively high grade point average, and as such, most of its students were college-bound. Some classes even featured separate coursework for humanities or science majors—and this binary choice would affect which homeroom class he was assigned to next year as well.

Taichi flapped the handout back and forth through the air. It struck him as kind of silly that a single sheet of paper could change his life so drastically. Granted, the submission deadline was still two-ish months away, but it couldn’t hurt to turn it in early... He knew he was definitely interested in college, but as for the rest...

As he contemplated his options, Taichi arrived at the fourth floor. He walked down the hall until he located the door with a sheet of A4-size printer paper taped to it bearing the words CULTURAL RESEARCH CLUB. Then he grasped the knob, twisted it, and opened the door.

The first thing he heard was a cheerful voice belonging to their very own Nagase Iori: “Shino-chan! Chee-hee! What do you guys wanna be when you grow up?!”

As he stepped inside, Nagase glanced over at the door and spotted him. “Sup, Taichi!” she called, offering him a playful salute, her long, silky hair swaying with the motion. She was a total goofball at heart, but with that flawless beauty of hers, she could make just about anything look cool.

The other six members of the CRC had already gathered here; with his arrival, they were all accounted for. The others greeted him in a similar fashion as he took his seat at the table.

“When I... grow up...?! Right... When I grow up... Me, all grown up... My future... My life... My afterlife...”

“Getting a little ahead of yourself there,” Taichi snarked under his breath.

“Oh, right! Uhh... When I grow up... I, uhh... well... umm... mmgghh... ggghhh...!”

“Just forget it, Shino-chan! Like, don’t have an aneurysm, okay?!”

“Nngh... Thank you, Yui-senpai!”

Enjouji Shino relinquished her grip on her poofy brown locks and lowered her hands, gazing at Kiriyama Yui with damp eyes. This was one of two first-years who joined the CRC as of earlier this year. Reminiscent of a small animal, she inspired a protective instinct in pretty much everyone around her.

“You’re still just a first-year. You don’t have to worry about it for a long time still,” Kiriyama Yui cooed, stroking Enjouji’s hair with a big grin on her face. Her own long, tawny locks were looking as radiant as ever this afternoon.

“Yuiiii! Pet me next! Meooow!” a certain blond-haired, lanky youth cut in. This was, of course, Aoki Yoshifumi.

“Ugh... I’m gonna barf... Aoki-senpai, you should honestly go to jail for that offensive cat impression...”

“Don’t worry, Shino-chan. I’ll handle him. Three kicks and four punches sound good to you?”

“Seriously, y’all?! I get that it wasn’t amazing, but was it really THAT bad?!”

For an outside observer, perhaps it would come as a surprise to learn that Kiriyama was a trained karate fighter, or that Enjouji knew how to drop a sick burn. But for Taichi, it was just another day.

“What did I do wrong?! I just wanted to join in the fun for once!” Aoki wailed to himself, clutching his head in exasperation.

“Did you really think today would be any different...?” Taichi muttered under his breath.

“Can’t fault a guy for trying!” Aoki shrugged, stretching his arms out widely.

“Whoa... You know, when you do that, you kinda look like Riki Choshu when the ring announcer—”

“You can keep your asinine pro wrestling analogies, thanks,” Inaba Himeko cut in.

“Whoa! Inaban actually stopped Taichi! Does this mean you’re finally back to normal?! Because I’m pretty sure Ina-bashful would let him get away with murder!”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Iori. As Taichi’s soul mate, I’m always looking out for his best interests as my number one priority, no matter how—”

“Aaand there it is. Okay, Ina-bashful, you can keep your swooning.”

“HEY! That was my line! Don’t copy me!” Inaba snapped back at Nagase. Her remark may have been childish, but her looks were less cutesy and more sophisticated. At rest, she was captivatingly sexy, but with her emotions on full display and her shoulder-length dark hair ever so slightly out of place, it afforded her an alluring contrast... or was that just Taichi’s bias talking? She was his girlfriend, after all.

“Uh, Taichi-san? Why are you ogling Inaba-san like that?”

Busted . Caught off-guard by the sudden steely voice, Taichi turned to find Uwa Chihiro staring at him with an icy expression on his face. This was the CRC’s other new recruit, and as it happened, he and Enjouji were in the same class.

“I... I’m not ogling her! Well... I mean, she is adorable, but...”

“Now I’m going to barf,” Chihiro muttered dryly, and as he turned away, Taichi got a good look at the shorter side of his messy, asymmetrical haircut. Even at this angle, his facial features were pointed and sleek.

Earlier that year, Uwa Chihiro had succumbed to «Heartseed»’s temptation and taken control of a supernatural power that wasn’t his to wield. And despite having caught on to his deception early on, Enjouji Shino had chosen to do nothing.

But that was all over now, and in the end, the two of them both decided not to quit the club. Personally, Taichi and the rest of the second-years were fully prepared to let bygones be bygones, but nevertheless, the first-years still seemed to carry some residual guilt to this day.

Not that he blamed them, of course, after what they’d gone through. It would be beyond unreasonable to expect them to simply bounce back from that . Still, it was such a waste of heartache to keep agonizing over it months later. He hoped that over time, as the second-years continued to show them unconditional kindness, the first-years would eventually open back up to them.

“Anyway, we’re getting off-track! I wanted to talk about what Shino-chan and Chee-hee want to be when they grow up!” Nagase declared brightly.

“And why should we tell you?” Chihiro asked coldly.

“You’re the one who asked us if we turned in our career planning surveys!”

“That wasn’t me. That was Enjouji.”

“What?! B-But... judging from your voice, you sounded really curious about it...”

“You can tell just from his voice...?” Taichi muttered, though he knew she wasn’t listening. She had a thing for voices that, as of late, had turned into a bit more than just “a thing.”

“I mean, when we left the classroom earlier, you were saying—”

“HEY! Don’t bring that up, damn it!”

“Ooooh! Chihiro-kun’s blushing! How cuuuute! ” Kiriyama teased, reaching up high to ruffle Uwa’s hair.

“Yui-san! Stop that! Nngh...!” Chihiro grimaced, but didn’t push her away. Compared to his early days in the club, he had chilled out considerably—whether this was a genuine change of heart or merely a symptom of his guilt, Taichi couldn’t say. The boy was still prickly, but he was notably less outwardly pessimistic. Naturally, this meant Kiriyama could mess with him to her heart’s content, and as a result she was in high spirits these days.

“Well, in my case... I’m mostly just hoping to get into a decent university. Then after I get my degree, I’d like to work for a good company. Something stable,” he offered after a moment.

“Wait, what? I thought your biggest dream was to be cool like our senpai.”

“Quit making shit up, Enjouji!”

“Awww, you want to be like us? That’s so sweet!”

“Yui-san, will you quit ruffling my hair?! Keep it up and I’m going to smack you!”

“So he says, and yet he never does! Classic tsundere! I guess someone’s gotta fill those shoes, now that Inaban went full deredere! ”

Chihiro now had Enjouji and Kiriyama and Nagase to contend with.

“Y’know, Yui’s due to make the deredere switch any day now, so there’s actually a second tsundere slot openin’ up soon—”

“Thank you for your contribution, Aoki,” Kiriyama interrupted without looking at him. Her tone was perfectly cordial, but her smile didn’t reach her eyes.

“Hey, uh, Taichi? Is it just me, or did I stop being ‘the guy people make fun of’ and instead now I’m ‘the guy everybody hates’?”

“Hah! Now you know what it’s like to have Chihiro steal your thunder. Remember that time Nagase was saying how he and I are both so calm and rational that it felt like we were ‘two of the same guy’? You have no idea how much that got to me.”

“Oh, did that actually upset you? I had no idea. Sorry, Taichi!” Nagase shrugged. “Seriously, don’t sweat the details. Either way, you’re still pretty [bleep] . Like, totally [bleep] . Your [bleep] is so [bleep] , the rest of us are all like, ‘Holy [bleep] ’!”

“Sheesh, that’s one hell of a throwback! But you can’t just bleep out all the important words and call it a compliment!”

“I... I think for now I’d just like to focus on keeping my grades up!” Enjouji cut in, steering the conversation back on track. “I’d like to be a bit above average, if possible... but I still want to work on myself too, of course!”

“How so?” Taichi inquired.

“Well, umm... To put it simply... I want to get to the point where I can make Taichi-senpai say ‘You’re so cute, Shino’ in that cool voice he does! Eeee!”

“I’m not sure what you mean by my ‘cool voice,’ but if you want me to say it, I don’t min—gaahhcckk!”

Inaba promptly lashed out at him with a throat thrust.

“Did Inaban just attack Taichi?! Is her Ina-bashful phase gone for good?!”

“You don’t really need those vocal cords if you’re just going to use them to flirt with other girls... Wouldn’t you agree?”

“What do you call this next phase?! Ina-bloodthirsty?! ”

Inaba’s probably just playing along with Nagase, but still... I really, really hope she’s kidding...

“So, humanities or science? Who’s picking what?” Chihiro asked the older students.

“Oh, yes! Good question! I’d love to hear everyone’s awesome future ambitions!” Enjouji joined in, increasing the pressure tenfold for no apparent reason.

“Alright then,” Inaba replied. “Personally, I’ll be taking the science course. They say the humanities field has more job prospects, but as long as I get into a decent college and pick the right major, I’ll be set.”

“How very pragmatic. That’s our Inaba-san, alright.”

“Note to self... Get into a decent college and pick the right major...”

“Hmph! What’s the harm in being realistic? That said... I do have my own irrational reasons as well.”

“Like what?” Aoki asked curiously.

“I’m not confident I can do it, and I’m not exactly planning to put a ton of effort in, and I know it’s probably just a waste of time... but on the tiniest off chance that I get lucky, I want to expand my existing knowledge base—” she paused, and with a haughty smirk, declared: “—so I can solve the mystery of «Heartseed».”

“Whoa... I thought you gave up on that...” Kiriyama blinked.

“It’s only human nature to want to take a peek under the hood and find out how things tick, natural disasters included. Me, I hate not understanding things. But just to be clear, I’m not going to base my major around it. I doubt my affiliation with any one specific department will make a drastic difference.”

Evidently Inaba’s motto, “maintain total control of the situation at all times,” still applied to things that most people would simply accept as immutable. Not only that, but she was taking a rational, level-headed approach. All in all, it was an impressive stance from any angle.

Nagase clapped a hand to her forehead and sighed dramatically. “Jeez, Inaban, way to sound like a total badass! Now everyone else is gonna sound like a loser by comparison! I swear, you can be sooo inconsiderate!”

“L-Let’s hear it, Iori-senpai! What sort of... wonderful future do you have in mind for yourself...?”

“Gah! She’s merciless, this one! I’m starting to think she actually delights in our misery! Nngh... Or maybe not... Look at those innocent little puppy-dog eyes... Now I sound like a bitch for suspecting her...!” Nagase clutched at her chest and grimaced like a thespian onstage. “Fine, you win! Real talk, these days I’m actually starting to get a sense for what I want to do with the rest of my life.” She chuckled sheepishly. “And I don’t really need to pick one course or the other to get there, per se. There are entire departments dedicated to it.”

“The more you dance around it, the more I want to know the details,” Chihiro remarked.

“Well, too bad! It’s still a secret! But here’s a hint: it has to do with kids, most likely. Anyway, once I get all the particulars ironed out, I’ll be sure to tell everyone. Just sit tight for a bit!”

“I get the sense you’re not-so-subtly dodging the question,” Inaba commented.

“Dang it! I almost had you guys, too! You’re always the toughest hurdle, Inaban!”

Meanwhile, Taichi could scarcely believe it. All this time, Nagase had wandered through life, unsure of her desires, preferences, or ambitions... but now she had a tangible goal that she was actively working toward. He’d known she was in the process of overcoming her hangups, but he didn’t realize just how much progress she had made.

Their eyes met, and Nagase offered him a radiant smile reminiscent of a sunflower. For a moment, he thought he heard her voice: thank you . He nodded back quietly.

“Gosh, you guys! Am I the only one who still hasn’t decided?! Don’t leave me behind!” Kiriyama flailed her arms in a quasi-tantrum.

“What are you talking about? I thought you were gonna get a sports scholarship or whatever,” Nagase replied.

“I mean, maybe if I do well in the next tournament... I’m still conflicted, though. I might retire from karate after high school.”

“That’d be a ridiculous waste of talent,” Inaba mused. “Are you sure you want to throw it all away?”

“I don’t know if I’m that talented... but what I do know is that I want to spend my life making the world a better place. Not that karate isn’t useful in its own way, but like... there’s more to life than just being physically strong, you know?” Apparently her natural talent and her ambitions weren’t quite one and the same. “When I look at «Heartseed»—like, I know it’s an extreme example, but when I look at it, I can’t help but think about all the people in this world who suffer on a daily basis with no way to escape. I want to help those people, you know? ‘Cause in a way, that’s kind of like purging the world of evil, if you think about it. So maybe I should be a police officer or something?”

At first glance, her toothy grin might’ve come off as cute and nothing more... but upon closer inspection, Taichi could sense her physical and mental fortitude peeking out from within.

“A charming sentiment, but I find it funny how quickly you went from ‘purging evil’ to ‘cops,’” Inaba snarked.

“Rrgh... Look, I’m gonna figure it all out over time, okay?!”

“So what course will you take? Humanities, I guess?” Nagase asked.

“Mmm... I’ll keep thinking about it,” Kiriyama answered.

“You’re all so cool... I wonder if I’ll be this cool a year from now...” Enjouji murmured.

Beside her, Taichi felt a rush of anxious excitement. The three second-year girls were all wildly competent in their own right, and with their powers combined, he was sure they could accomplish damn near anything. This was, of course, a potentially terrifying concept.

“So, what about the boys? Starting wiiiith... Taichi!” Nagase whipped around and pointed her index finger in his direction.

“Well...” Taichi began. But the words didn’t come. His mouth hung open, idle. Silence.

“What’s the matter?” Kiriyama asked, puzzled.

He couldn’t respond. He couldn’t move.

“Uh, Taichi?” Inaba prompted.

Then, finally, he snapped back to his senses. Everyone was looking at him. His cheeks grew hot—was he turning red? He could feel himself start to sweat.

“I just, uh... haven’t had time to really think about it yet, so I’m actually kind of... completely undecided. But I’m gonna start thinking about it, you know, soon.”

“You don’t have to hide it, you know.”

“No, Chihiro-kun, you don’t understand. For someone at Taichi-senpai’s level, you have so many options available to you that it can be impossible to choose. He could be a voice actor, or a narrator, or an announcer, or my personal morning wake-up call...”

“There’s a lot I could say in response to that, but I’ll limit myself to just one thing: that last one isn’t even a profession.”

“Oh crap... Did I say that one aloud...?!”

“Get my damn boyfriend out of your fantasies, Shino. That said, I’m not against the idea of a morning wake-up call... for my ears only, of course...”

“No! Inaba-senpai, please! You’ve got to record it and let me listen to it! Just once!”

“It’s actually kind of impressive just how aggressive you get when it comes to voices,” Chihiro commented dryly.

And with that, the spotlight drifted away from Taichi. He heaved a sigh of relief—then found himself wondering why exactly he felt so relieved in the first place.

“Hmmm... Fine, whatever. What about you, Aoki?” Nagase asked.

“Well...” he began, then fell silent—not an intentional pause, by the looks of it. It wasn’t like Aoki to hesitate. “I think I might just start my own company! Live that CEO life! If I can’t go to college, then I might as well work, y’know?”

“You’re too stupid to get into college? That’s so sad... Surely there’s got to be at least one low-ranking university who’ll take pity on you? I mean, you made it into Yamaboshi, at least!”

“Don’t feel bad for me, Yui! My stupidity has nothing to do with it this time! Er, I mean... Y-Yeah, it’s because I’m stupid, that’s all!”

“What’s gotten into you? You’re acting like a dumbass,” Inaba snapped.

“No he isn’t,” Nagase replied, then turned to Aoki. “Look, um... Is this a ‘don’t pry’ sort of thing?”

For a brief, tense moment, they simply looked at each other.

“Maybe don’t... Ugh, forget it! Pry away! Not like it really matters!”

“Are you sure? I’m not holding you at gunpoint here. I was just checking.”

“Yeah, I know. I just decided I don’t mind telling you guys.”

“Wait, what’s going on?” Taichi asked.

“I’ll explain it,” Aoki replied. “Seriously, it’s no big deal, but just so you’re all in the loop... it’s looking like my old man might lose his job. The company was already looking to lay off some folks, and now Dad’s been caught up in a scandal. He swears he didn’t do it, and the rest of the family believes him, but yeah.”

It was obvious from his tone that this was something serious.

“What’s he been accused of?” Kiriyama asked, looking extremely concerned.

“Mmm... I’d rather not get into it. Anyway, you don’t have to worry, Yui. We’ll be fine.”

“Oh... Okay. Sorry.” Kiriyama stared at the floor, seemingly unsure of how to respond.

“It’s fine. No sorry needed,” Aoki reassured her with a halfhearted smile. “If we need to, we could stay afloat on my sister’s income, but... when you add in the mortgage payments and everything... payin’ for college kinda just isn’t an option.”

“What about scholarships or student grants?” Taichi suggested as soon as the idea came to him.

“Well... Technically we could afford to pay tuition, but then my poor sister won’t be able to get her own place, y’know? And she’s already 24. Mind you, she’s been saying she’ll stay with us until I get my degree—she’s always been the super-responsible type—but I can’t do that to her. Not after she finally found someone she wants to start a new life with.”

“...I almost feel bad saying this, but... that’s actually a perfectly valid reason not to pursue higher education,” Inaba mused, her expression sympathetic.

“Guys, c’mon, quit acting like it’s my funeral! My family’s tryin’ ta figure something out for me, so I’m sure it’ll all work itself out eventually!”

Aoki donned a smile... but they’d known him for too long, and Taichi couldn’t pretend he didn’t see the pain lurking just beneath.

Sometimes real-world problems carried far more weight than the supernatural. After all, the supernatural was only temporary.

“I only knew about it because... I kinda overheard Aoki talking with his teacher about it,” Nagase confessed sheepishly.

Kiriyama looked up. “Um... If there’s anything we can do, please tell us, okay? I mean it! Anything!”

“Thanks. I might just have to take you up on that!” Aoki grinned.

For a moment, Kiriyama’s expression softened... but then it darkened all over again, and she hung her head. Then she muttered something in a tiny voice that no one else was likely to have heard—save for Taichi, who was right in front of her and thus was able to read her lips:

I wanted to tell him how I feel and lay this whole thing to rest... but I guess it’ll have to wait.

□■□■□

After club activities ended, Taichi and Inaba headed to the local cafe. The two of them actively made an effort to spend some quality time alone together, even if the end result wasn’t a full-scale “date,” per se. (And naturally, Nagase teased them relentlessly every time they left campus together.)

As they were sitting there enjoying their drinks, Inaba suddenly reached across the table and poked Taichi’s cheek.

“Poooke.”

“What’s up?”

“Poke, poke.” She continued to press her index finger against his skin.

“Okay, seriously—”

“Poke.”

“C’mon—”

“Poke, poke—”

“Knock it off.”

“...Poke?” Inaba tilted her head innocently without pulling her hand away, reminiscent of a child begging for attention. Needless to say, it was adorable.

“I-Inaba... You know I’m weak to that kind of stuff...”

“Gotcha right in the heart,” she grinned, miming a gun with one hand and “firing” it off with a wink that was somehow both cute and badass.

“Gah!” Taichi clutched at his chest. He didn’t even have to pretend—it was just that effective. Seriously, how is she so good at that?!

“Hmm... Okay, I’d say I’ve met my lovey-dovey quota for the day.”

“Can we maybe not talk about our relationship like it’s a business transaction?” You don’t have to ration out how much you flirt with me!

“So tell me, are you really 100% undecided?”

Once again, the topic had shifted back to the career surveys.

“Yep. But hey, we’ve still got two months or so until it’s due... so...” Taichi took a sip of his milk tea to mask his awkwardness.

“Do you at least know what course you’re taking?”

“...No.”

“We’re already more than halfway through our second year. Surely you have at least some idea of what you want to do,” Inaba pressed.

He’d noticed she was a bit more critical of him as of late, and it made him feel like she was angry with him—possibly because he’d gotten so used to the soft and sweet “Ina-bashful” version of her. Then again, maybe she had every right to be angry.

Unlike Aoki, Taichi had every option available to him, and yet he had no clear vision for his future like Inaba did. He wasn’t even at the “conflicted” stage. He was just a blank slate.

Thinking back, he didn’t have any particular future ambition at the start of high school, either.

“I know you can be indecisive, and I know it’s because you care about making the right choice.”

Wasn’t that a little overly generous?

“And because you care so goddamn much, I want you to...”

Suddenly a shadow fell over her face—so dark, it seemed to reject all light—but then it was gone, and her expression brightened once more.

“...think long and hard, young grasshopper.”

“We’re the same age,” he retorted.

She chuckled, her glossy dark hair swaying over her shoulders. Overall, she had a very mature vibe—but perhaps that was only natural, considering she was on the cusp of adulthood now.

As was he.

College. Future. Employment. Dream. Life. The words towered over him, immeasurably vast, weighing down on him like a ton of bricks. He knew he had to pick something , but he didn’t have the slightest idea of what he wanted.

A low hum of anxiety settled over him, and he exhaled sharply, hoping to expel it from his system.

“Eh, we’ll figure it out,” Inaba offered.

And so Taichi decided to stay optimistic for the time being.