Chapter 1: A Skirt Flutters

「Hey, Kuu-tan. What type of girl do you like?」

「...W-What is this all of a sudden?」

I reflexively asked the girl, who was around my age, in polite language. However, in response to my words, the girl with long black hair simply wore a smile. No, I want an answer, not a smile...

As I stood there perplexed, the girl with short brown hair then spoke up.

「...Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever really asked Kuu-kun that either. Uriuriー so how about itー?」

「Hey, don't poke me with your elbow... Besides, even if you ask me so suddenly...」

「I wonder if your type has changed a bit from how it was back then? ──So, does that mean I might have a shot? That even I, who doesn't have huge bouncy boobs like her, might have a glimmer of hope!?」

「It's not a boast, but I am an F-cup. Truly, it's not a boast.」

「The way you repeat that it's not a boast, only emphasizing that it is, is so obnoxious.」

Following the first two, the girl with medium-length white hair also spoke up. Upon seeing the long-haired black-haired girl cross her arms to emphasize her chest, she tried it herself──but it didn't emphasize anything, and she clicked her tongue. ...As if pulling herself together, the white-haired girl continued.

「First of all, the conversation is getting a little sidetracked. The topic at hand is what Kuu-san's type is, and whether or not there's a need for big boobs is up to him. ──Kuu-san. Hurry up and tell these two. Tell them you love small chests as much as you love world peace.」

「By bringing world peace into it, doesn't that just make it sound sketchy?」

When I say that, the girl with medium-length white hair puffs out her cheeks in displeasure and glares at me. Feeling uncomfortable, I averted my gaze, and the girl with short brown hair was tilting her head.

「But for real, what's the verdict? Between small boobs and big boobs, which do you prefer, Kuu-kun?」

「...Eh, what? Is this a situation where I really have to answer?」

「It's a situation where you have to answerー By the way, if you're not keen on either of those, there's always the option of liking a new choice──"Normal-boobs", how about it? As a supporter of the Normal-Boob Party, I think it's a very attractive faction!」

「Is that so? I think that just means you don't meet the demand from anywhere.」

「You in-betweener who's neither big nor small, keep quiet.」

「Waaah! Kuu-kun! The big-boobed and small-boobed girls are picking on the normal-boobed one!」

「O-Ou. Don't worry about that? ...I don't really care, but this is the first time I've ever heard the classification "normal-boobed".」

「You're different, right, Kuu-kun? You believe that "normal-boobs" are supreme, more so than small boobs or big boobs, right!?」

「Well... it's hard to say this while you're clinging to me like this, but... well, what can I say. I'm a guy, after all, you see?」

「W-What's with that apologetic smile... It's scary... That look is scary! To be specific, it's as scary as when the subcontractor for a company that caused a scandal was my father's workplace!」

「You came up with a weirdly vivid example... Anyway, to give you my conclusion.」

I paused there for a moment, took a breath, and then declared.

「The bigger the boobs, the happier I am.」

「Damn youuuu!」

The short-haired brown-haired girl delivered a fierce slap to my right cheek. Spaaan! A crisp sound. Hey, what are you doing... I'm a patient, you know.

Incidentally, right after I made my problematic statement, the long-haired black-haired girl made a triumphant fist pump with a "shah!", while the medium-length white-haired girl spat "tch" with a scowl.

Then, with a triumphant air, the long-haired black-haired girl puffed out her large chest and said.

「No, there is nothing to be ashamed of, Kuu-tan. It's not as if you are special in any way. As a man, it is only natural to seek a woman with large breasts, and the reason a woman's body becomes more rounded with age is because men desire it to be so. ──By the way, among my body parts, my butt is also large and round, so I recommend it.」

「...Big-titted, lecherous bitch.」

「Did you say something, Washboard-san?」

「I'm not a washboard. I wear a C-cup bra, fair and square. I'm not a washboard.」

「Hey, Kuu-tan, did you know? In this world, there's a thing called a lift-up bra──」

「I'll rip off those cow-like tits!」

Just as the long-haired black-haired girl was about to say something, the medium-length white-haired girl lunged at her. True to her word, she grabbed both of the long-haired girl's breasts and, while spitting out curses like "Hateful, hateful!", began to molest them. The long-haired black-haired girl moaned in pain.

「Ouch, nhaa... tsu, stop the direct attacks!」

「Kuh, the fact that they're soft even through the bra just adds fuel to the flames of my rage... I'll rip off at least a part of them...!」

「......」

「Hey, Kuu-kun!? What are you getting all silent for, watching those two grappling!? You're not supposed to watch! It's bad for your post-surgery body!」

「Hey──stop, don't cover my eyes! If anything, this is the best rehabilitation! I said stop, oi!」

As I was smirking at the suddenly erupted catfight, the one remaining──the short-haired brown-haired girl──placed her hands over both of my eyes. ...To be honest, I wasn't entirely unflustered by this situation of having a girl play "guess who" with me, but more than that, I wanted to stare intently at the rare situation of a small-chested girl groping the chest of a large-chested girl. Let me see already!

And so, in the darkness that enveloped my vision, lustrous sounds like "ahn, hanh" and a tearful voice saying "Damn it, damn it...!" reverberates. Thus I wanted to do something about the girl's hands covering my eyes as quickly as possible, but... in the first place, I felt a resistance to the very act of grabbing her arms and pushing them away, so in the end, I was left at the mercy of the short-haired brown-haired girl.

And so, several minutes later.

「「「Haah, haah...」」」

One was tired from groping, one was tired from being groped, and one was relieved that this situation was over... and just like that, the three of them sat down in the nearest chairs. What even is this? I found myself thinking, a little too late.

And so, I asked them what I had been wanting to ask all along in a rough tone of voice.

「So? Who the hell are you three?」

◆◆◆

Retrograde amnesia. That is the name of the illness I suffer from.

In my second year of high school, in mid-October after finishing my second-term midterms──I was in an accident.

According to a drive recorder, it seems my body suddenly jumped out from the sidewalk next to a park onto the road on a dark night. A car hit me, my body flew into the air, and fell with a thud about three meters away from the point of impact.

Unfortunately, headfirst.

But fortunately, I didn't die. Right after the accident, the driver seemed to have called an ambulance immediately, and thanks to that, my life was somehow spared.

And so, after wandering the border between life and death and being pulled back to this side by the doctors' efforts, although not in perfect condition──I had lost all of my memories up until now.

I do not even remember the accident itself. Even if I try to recall it, there is only a blank space.

However, it is not as if I remember nothing, to the point where I cannot live my daily life alone. Reading and writing, simple math problems, common nouns necessary for daily life. I do not remember recent lessons, so I have become slightly dumber compared to my classmates... but still, my knowledge did not spill out.

What spilled out were my memories of other people. And my memories with my own family.

Right after waking up, a person claiming to be my father appeared before me. His name is Hisatoshi. From him, I learned about my family situation──it seems that since my mother died eight years ago, it had been just my father and me.

It seems we weren't what you'd call a close-knit family, but from his way of speaking and his attitude, I can tell──I was apparently loved. Living with my clumsy father. I cannot remember anything of the days I spent with this person now, but still, the fact that he is my father settled into my gut with a surprising ease for some reason.

And so, after he explained the whole situation, he said this to me.

「I'm sorry, Kusuke. I'm sorry...」

What was there to apologize for, I retorted to the man who called himself my father. He was probably apologizing for not being able to do anything while I hovered between life and death. ──That must have been the only way he could maintain his own sanity.

And so, as I was wondering what I should do from now on... maybe I should start trying various things to get my memory back──the afore-mentioned commotion happened.

Three girls came clattering into my all-white hospital room as if to add color to it, and after they sat down on the chairs by my side without asking, the long-haired black-haired girl among them suddenly declared,

『Hey, Kuu-tan. What type of girl do you like?』

That was it.

No, wait, am I called Kuu-tan?

「...You're right. I just started talking to you normally, but you've forgotten all about us, haven't you, Kuu-tan.」

「I thought you'd remember if you saw my face, Kuu-kun... Uhhh...」

「Kuu-san, you heartless person. Human scum. Garbage dump.」

「No, that's clearly going too far.」

Ignoring my retort, the three of them started whispering amongst themselves. When they finished, the long-haired black-haired girl stood up first and addressed me.

「Well then, allow me to reintroduce myself. ──My name is Iromachi Shiori. I'm in the same class as Kuu-tan, and we often eat lunch together.」

Listening to her words, I looked at her──she was a beautiful girl with sharp features, possessing the allure of a grown woman. Her lustrous hair, the color of a crow's wet feathers, was long enough to almost reach her waist. Her height was average, but her figure had a sensuality unbecoming of a young girl, with a large chest, a narrow waist, and a protruding behind... it was a bewitching figure that was hard to believe belonged to a classmate.

As I was captivated, she──Iromachi──sat down in her chair, and the next girl stood up.

「And I'm Hanayashiki Karen. I've been with you in elementary, middle, and high school, Kuu-kun! I'm your childhood friend! It's nice to meet you again!」

The next girl to stand up was a cheerful-looking girl with faintly tanned skin despite it being winter. She has a light muscle tone that didn't detract from her feminine lines. Her breasts were modest but showed a swell. Her short-cut hair, a bright brown color, suited her energetic self, and above all, her face, with its charmingly large, round eyes, was adorable.

Then, as Hanayashiki plopped back down into her chair, the last one quietly stood up.

「I am Yukinui Mizore. With Kuu-san, emm... anyway, we were on good terms. It's nice to see you again.」

The girl who introduced herself with a strange lack of clarity was, as her name suggested, a girl whose skin was as white as snow. She was short, and her body, including her chest, was not very fleshy. However, if one were to ask if that gave a meager impression, that was not the case... Blessed with good looks and a delicate frame. Her figure, with her white hair close to silver grown to a medium length, was lovely and somewhat reminiscent of a snow country fairy.

「「......」」

However, I then realized something.

Iromachi was watching the slightly nervous Yukinui introduce herself with a somewhat cool expression, while Hanayashiki watched with what looked like a wry smile.

As I was taken aback by the two's suggestive expressions──the three of them once again quietly gazed at me from their round hospital stools beside my bed where I lay.

「How about it? Hearing our names, does anything about us come back to you?」

「...N-No, not at all. I'm sorry...」

「I see. ──No, it's okay. You don't have to force yourself to remember, okay?」

Saying that with a smile, the one patting my futon is, emm... Hanayashiki.

...To be perfectly honest, her proximity was a bit close. To her, I might be a childhood friend she has known for a long time, but to me, she is a girl I just met moments ago. More than feeling happy about her concern, feelings of bewilderment came first.

Perhaps those feelings showed on my face, for Yukinui muttered.

「Hanayashiki-san. Kuu-san is troubled. You should stop being so direct.」

「Ah... I'm sorry, Kuu-kun. I was being too familiar, wasn't I?」

「N-No, it's fine. It was probably normal for you.」

「Yeah... it was normal, but...」

She clenched her right hand, which had lost its place, into a small fist and hid it behind her back. ──My stomach twisted with a slight, sharp pain. At times like this, the old me probably wouldn't have rejected her.

As if sensing the heavy atmosphere, Iromachi suddenly said, "I brought flowers. I'll go put them in a vase" and stood up. Then, as she disappeared to the back of the room, the sound of running water was heard.

During that time, Yukinui opened her mouth as if to fill the silence.

「To what extent do you not remember?」

「Honestly, nothing before the accident. The fact that this is a hospital, a facility that treats sick people──that kind of knowledge-based memory hasn't disappeared, though.」

「What about things related to you? Things you disliked, or things you liked...」

「No, not really... I did just remember that I like big boobs, though.」

「It would have been better if you hadn't.」

I'm glared at by Yukinui's sulking expression. I can't help what I remembered...

Next, Hanayashiki, raising her face as if to change her mood, joined the conversation.

「Kuu-kun, you seeー you loved sweet things! After school, when we could go home together, we'd often each eat one Yukiguni Daifuku. We even did it in winter.」

「Hee, sweet things... come to think of it, I kind of feel like that's true...」

「And you loved caramel. Whenever we had a fight and the mood turned sour, we'd give each other caramel the next time we metー And with that, we're even──that's what we did.」

「Fuhn, I see...」

「...Ehehe.」

When I made a face showing I didn't get it, Hanayashiki forced a smile. On the other hand, I realized that by not remembering that memory now, I was hurting her.

「I'm really sorry, Hanayashiki... san...」

「You used to call me Karen, you know?」

「K-Karen?」

「Yeah. Karen, by my first name. ──Hey, call me that again.」

Hanayashiki said so with an innocent smile. ...That was a pretty high hurdle to clear. For me, to suddenly call a girl I just met by her first name... you know?

「Jiii.」

「This is the first time I've seen someone actually say that while staring at someone...」

「Ka-re-n! See, it's easy! Repeat after me!」

「......K-Karen.」

「Fufu. Yep, yep, that's good!」

When I forced myself to say her name, she nodded satisfied. ...It was somehow embarrassing.

I mean, to begin with──I'm bewildered by this situation of being suddenly surrounded by cute girls, including her... What? Was the me before losing my memory a super popular guy? The face I saw in the mirror earlier wasn't that of a super handsome guy, though...

As I was thinking about such things, Iromachi returned with a vase filled with water and flowers. In the vase was a beautiful bouquet of flowers colored red, white, and purple. It seems they were get-well-soon flowers.

As I was staring at them, thinking how beautiful they were, Iromachi noticed and told me with a smile.

「They're anemones. Lovely, aren't they?」

「Y.Yeah. Thank you.」

「Anemones...? I believe Anemones are...」

At Iromachi's words, Yukinui shows a thoughtful expression. Curious, I was watching Yukinui when my shoulder was tapped, ton ton, by Iromachi. ...My heart skipped a beat at such a trivial thing; I may have no memory, but I was probably a virgin. Damn it.

「When do you think you'll be able to leave the hospital? When will you be able to return to school?」

「Mmm, I wonder... For someone who cracked his head open, the parts other than my memory are pretty much okay. Of course, who knows when my memory might disappear again, but──if I'm lucky, I might be able to go back to school as early as next week.」

「I see, that's good news. If Kuu-tan is coming back to school soon, I won't have to spend my lunch breaks all alone anymore.」

「...Couldn't you just eat with someone other than me?」

「But I don't have any friends other than you.」

「...Well, that's... I'm sorry.」

「Fufu, there's no need to apologize. ──By the way, you don't have any friends in class other than me either, you know?」

「Seriously!? I'm the most surprised I've been all day, seriously!?」

「Yes, that's right. ──Well, I'm sure you will come to realize it soon enough. From the fact that despite having such a serious injury, no one besides us has come to visit you.」

「...I didn't want to know that. So I'm, I see... I see...」

「Ahahaー But in exchange, three cute girls came to visit you, so it's all good, isn't it? Kuu-kun, you're so popular.」

「True. Kuu-san's worries are a luxury. Just being surrounded by girls like this, the fact that you have... pfft... no guy friends... pffft... you should just endure it, ahahahahaha!」

「Umm, Yukinui-san? You're laughing your head off in a way that even I, with my memory loss, can tell is out of character for you.」

「No need to lose your composure, Kuu-tan. You have me. Let us lick each other's wounds, you and I, okay?」

「Uhhh, Iromachi-san... is that really supposed to be comforting...?」

「To be specific, every time we have to make pairs in English class and end up as a male-female pair──let us endure the chilly stares that say, "Aren't those two going out?".」

「I don't even want to go to school anymore, and it has nothing to do with my amnesia.」

I can't help but complain as I threw myself back onto the bed. Seeing my state, the three girls exchanged glances and laughed a little amongst themselves... and I felt a terrible sense of alienation.

◆◆◆

Time passed──and on Tuesday a few days after I was discharged.

「I'm kind of sorry, Yukinui-san.」

「...No, it's fine. Don't worry about it. In fact, I'm happy you relied on me. ──Kuu-san has good judgment, choosing me instead of that lewd, all-tits woman or that noisy, energetic childhood friend.」

「I noticed when you came to visit, but you're quite sharp-tongued.」

「But, why did you choose me to walk to school with in the morning? To you, I should just seem like another stranger you just met, same as the other two.」

「Well, there isn't really a particular reason... It's just that when I realized I needed someone to guide me to the school I always went to, Yukinui-san happened to come visit.」

「......」

When I stated plainly that there was no reason, Yukinui pouted in a way that was easy to understand and pinched my arm through my uniform. It was a subtle, but steadily painful pinch...

And so, with the national highway in sight, we walk along the sidewalk. ...Despite walking right next to the whizzing cars, the fact that no sense of fear was sprouting within me was itself scary. Because I've forgotten the accident itself, I have no sense of caution towards cars...

「Well then, pulling myself together──Convenient Woman Number One will now resume helping Kuu-san get to school. Because I am a convenient woman.」

「...Yeah, I know it's my fault, but saying it like that is a little...」

「By the way, this is called a pedestrian bridge. By placing your foot on this step, and then placing it again, you can climb it. And then you can cross the road.」

「Don't make me out to be an idiot, okay? Just because I can't get to my own high school, don't make me out to be an idiot.」

「Takashi-kun had one apple in his right hand, and another apple in his left hand. Now, how many apples does Takashi-kun have?」

「I told you, don't make me out to be an idiot. Aside from my memory, I'm pretty much fine. I've graduated from the stage where Takashi-kun appears in math problems.」

「The correct answer is zero. Because Takashi-kun is just holding both of those apples for a friend, and he does not own them.」

「What, how sad. So Takashi-kun was just an errand boy.」

As we had such a dumb conversation, Yukinui and I walked side by side. ──Fufu. Yukinui laughed with a happy look on her face. A smile that seems to spill out. It looked beautiful against her white skin and white hair.

「......」

However, even seeing that smile, I didn't remember anything. My heart did give a small flutter at her cuteness, but my memories did not come back.

「...Kuu-san, are you okay? You look pale...」

「Ahh, I'm fine. Thanks for worrying about me, Yukinui-san.」

「......」

「Mm, what's wrong? Why did you suddenly stop?」

「I've been wondering about this since the other day. That Yukinui "-san"...」

「Ah... Did the old me not say that?」

「No.」

「I see... so, what did the old me say?」

「I wuv wuv wuv you, Mizore-tan.」

「Don't tell such brazen lies with a straight face...」

Without a moment's hesitation, and with a deadpan expression, Mizore-tan──I mean, Yukinui, told a ridiculous lie. Honestly, would Yukinui be happy if I called her by such an embarrassing name...?

As I stood there exasperated, she shrugged her shoulders and continued speaking without a hint of remorse.

「Mizore. You just called me by my name. So, keep doing that from now on.」

First name again... The me before my amnesia was really something. Maybe I only think this because I haven't gotten my memories back, but I'm starting to get a little annoyed at the old me. What's with this popular guy? He apparently has no friends, but he's too close with Yukinui, Hanayashiki, and Iromachi.

Even so, I swallowed once and steeled myself. ...When asked by a cute girl, I can't just brush her off. I somehow squeezed out a voice from my dry mouth.

「M-Mizore... Is this okay?」

「──」

However, Yukinui's cheeks flushed red like an apple the moment I said that. Then, she bashfully cast her reddened face downwards. ...? If I was always called her like that, then this reaction seems strange...

「O-Oi, Mizore? What's wrong, Mizore?」

「A-Actually, never mind, Kuu-san... calling me by my first name, the sense of distance is too close... I can't...」

「Haa? Too close, you say... but I've always called you──ah!」

It was only then that I finally realized. This embarrassed look of hers... could it be!

「You've never been called Mizore by me before, have you!?」

「...I mean, I wanted you to call me that...」

Averting her reddened face and puffing out her cheeks, she muttered that softly. Uwa, what kind of reason is that? Too cute──no, that's not it! Indeed, this was a situation I needed to be a little wary of.

I see, I hadn't been very conscious of it before, but they, who have their memories, can do this kind of thing to me, who has none... I'll have to think about this a bit more from now on.

「A-Anyway. Don't do this kind of thing anymore, okay, Yukinui?」

「...Mizore is fine, though.」

「You just said "the sense of distance is too close, I can't", didn't you?」

「When you actually called me that, my heart started pounding too much...」

「......」

It was that statement that made my heart pound. What a sweet girl...

And so, with the conversation having come to a lull──we once again started walking toward our destination, Kunozato private high school.

Towards the school I was supposed to have attended for a year and a half and for which I now feel no attachment whatsoever──

Standing in front of my own classroom, which Yukinui had led me to, I was frozen in place.

My breathing grew slightly ragged. Just then, I felt a tug, tsun tsun, on the sleeve of my uniform from Yukinui.

「Want to hold hands?」

「W-Why...? I don't get the meaning of that.」

「Because you look obviously nervous, Kuu-san. ...I thought, he's weak right now, so maybe I can get away with holding his hand.」

「Why are you revealing your inner thoughts like that?」

And besides, if we're being honest, holding hands with Yukinui now wouldn't calm my nerves at all... if anything, the excitement from holding a girl's hand would just double my nervousness.

「Anyway, I'm fine. You can go back to your own classroom now, Yukinui. ──Thanks for guiding me this far.」

「Yeah...」

Yukinui let go of my sleeve and trotted away. However, she suddenly turned back towards me and said in a clear voice.

「──I'm on your side.」

What that meant, the current me had no way of knowing.

So, I tried to think a little about what implication it held. ...However, upon trying to think, I realized I didn't have the past to reference in the first place, so I had no choice but to give up thinking──and after taking a single deep breath, I opened the classroom door.

「「「......」」」

A downpour of eyes, eyes, eyes. I don't sense any scent of aggression. There were just many eyes in the classroom, full of the kind of bewilderment that comes from not knowing how to act, as if touching a delicate object.

In the midst of that, a girl with braided hair and glasses came up to me and spoke.

「Good morning, Kusuke-kun. Is it okay for you to be out of the hospital already?」

「Y-Yeah. Well...」

「I see, that's good. ──Here, this is your seat.」

The girl with braided hair and glasses guides me to my seat. When I said "Thank you" she smiled brightly and returned to her own seat. ──When I looked, the classroom that had fallen silent only when I entered was now regaining its noisy clamor.

And so, as I was feeling anxious about my isolated situation──someone patted my shoulder with a pon pon. What, did I have a friend after all, I thought as I turned around, but it was her.

「Good morning, Kuu-tan.」

「Y-Yeah... Good morning, Iromachi-san.」

She has an expression of pure joy. "Fufu", with a natural gesture, she tucked her hair behind her ear and sat down. ──Next to me. I had heard we were in the same class, but I didn't know our seats were this close.

「I've been eagerly awaiting your return to school.」

「O-Ou, I see. Thanks... thanks?」

「To be specific, I'd always hole up in the girls' restroom during lunch break and eat a yakisoba bread while crying.」

「I didn't need the specific example...」

「The seasoning was a little strong. I suppose that bakery is done for.」

「That's probably not the bakery's fault, so don't give up on them.」

When I said that, she laughed again and props her elbows on the desk. Then, she pointed a small finger at the girl with braided hair and glasses who had spoken to me earlier and continued the conversation.

「She is Hinayama Moe-san. She's the class president, and recently she's been quite concerned about you. Even though before the accident, your relationship with her was one where you'd just make small talk on rare occasions. ──Therefore, to put it bluntly, it's pity. A boy she hadn't paid any mind to before was struck by a great misfortune. I must do something as the class president... that's what you'd call hypocrisy, or perhaps volunteer spirit.」

「......」

「If you wish it, I could perform a misdeed to the extent of throwing a banana peel in her desk.」

「No, why would you? Was I making that face? Was I making that kind of displeased face?」

「Fufu, I'm just joking. But──in other words, she only talked to you because she pities Kuu-tan's circumstances. She is not your friend, unfortunately.」

「...So then, I really don't...」

「You have no friends in this class other than me (big smile).」

「Don't say that with a huge grin, damn you!」

I couldn't help but retort with all my might. However, even at my retort, Iromachi's expression remains cool. In fact, she looked happy to be able to talk like this again after so long, an expression that didn't hide her delight.

「Rather, getting back to the basics... Why don't I have any friends in class besides Iromachi-san? Are my communication skills dead?」

「No, that's not it. ──This is something I heard a long time ago when I first met Kuu-tan... but apparently, when you had just started school, you caught the flu. And so you missed the timing to make friends, and it just stayed that way. You'd often make excuses with a face on the verge of tears, saying, "It's not that I couldn't make friends. It's just that I didn't get the opportunity. I have the potential…"」

「...I get it. I get how I'd feel the need to say that!」

「Well, thanks to that, I've been able to monopolize Kuu-tan in this class, so it all worked out for the best, didn't it?」

「"Worked out for the best", you say. Don't be happy about me not having any friends. Are you really my friend?」

When I said that, Iromachi smiled cheerfully. Stop with that nice smile. I'll fall for you.

After that, Iromachi gave me information about the various people in this class. ──There was a glittering group of boys and girls, a group of otaku boys who seemed to be having fun in their own quiet way, a group of girls who held a second-tier position... However, even as various names came from her mouth, the number of people related to me didn't increase at all. Fueeh... (crying sound).

Well, she explained things in that manner, but──at that moment. I found myself suddenly concerned about something else. It was when she would point a small finger at people. The sleeve of her uniform pulled back, revealing her wrist... and on it, a white bandage was wrapped.

A bandage on the wrist. A bad image came to mind. Even though it was none of my business, I couldn't help but worry.

「──Well, that's about it. That's a rough explanation of the people in this class, but was that enough?」

「...Ahh, yeah. More than enough.」

「Mm? What's wrong, staring off into space... ──Ah.」

It seems that because I had been staring so intently, Iromachi realized what I was looking at. Then, looking a little embarrassed, she straightened her sleeve──hiding the bandage, and then said.

「Given the location, it might seem meaningful... but there isn't a very heavy reason for this. I'll tell you later, so don't make that face, Kuu-tan.」

「I-Is that so? That's fine then...」

「Fufu, you're as kind as ever. ──If I can get you to worry about me like this, then maybe even a wound like this was worth getting.」

「......」

Feeling something somewhat pathological in that statement, I instinctively averted my gaze from the smiling Iromachi. ...At a time like this, what kind of reply would the old me have given? Unable to open my mouth properly, I found myself thinking such things instead.

◆◆◆

Lunchtime began.

I stretched once and put my math textbook away at my desk. ──In the end, even for me who had lost his memory, high school classes were only fresh for the first and second periods. That is why this is a longed-for lunch break.

And so, I immediately reached for my school bag, which contained a sandwich──but at that moment.

「Here you go, Kuu-tan.」

Don, what was placed before my eyes was a large bento wrapped in a pink furoshiki cloth.

「...Emm, what's this?」

「It's homemade bento made by me.」

「......」

I met her in the hospital room last Wednesday, so not even a week has passed yet.

I suppose we probably did have that kind of relationship. A step before being lovers, or maybe a relationship that would turn into that if one of us took the plunge... I do think we were at that level, but──homemade, huh. From my perspective, it's a homemade bento from a girl I just met, huhー

「If you say you don't want it, Kuu-tan, I'll go and throw all of this in that trash can in the corner of the classroom right now, though.」

「...Um, you know. Iromachi-san, you sometimes have moments where you seem like an incredible yandere.」

「By the way. The reason I have a bandage wrapped around my wrist right now, which I brushed off earlier, is also this. I cut it a little while cooking this morning. ──Shiori made a blunder. Tehe-pero.」

It was a painfully obvious clumsy-girl appeal. Stop it, it's too calculating.

And so, while I was taken aback, Iromachi proceeds to unwrap the furoshiki on her own. Then she opened the lid of the bento with a pakatto. ──It was, what should I say, a normal noriben. Except, in the bottom right corner, "LOVE" was written in tiny sakura denbu. Then, with a practiced hand, she split a pair of disposable chopsticks and handed them to me. ...No, I can split my own chopsticks, though?

「Kuu-tan, you has lost your memory, that's why you probably only see me as "a woman I met recently", so I did wonder if it was a good idea to bring a homemade bento again at this time, but──I made it.」

「I got a glimpse of your personality in the fact that you made it even though you understood that much.」

「Here, please have some.」

「...I-Itadakimasu.」

What should I say, my feelings were incredibly mixed... A homemade bento from a beautiful girl. As a high school boy, there was no way I wouldn't be happy. However, since I have no memory of "having built a relationship with Iromachi Shiori", no matter how beautiful the girl who made it is, this is a bento made by a girl I just met the other day, and that's why a sliver of unease remained──

「Are you not going to eat?」

「I-I'll eat! I'll eat, but just wait a second...」

「...Ahh! That's right, it's not usually like this, is it? I'm sorry, I was so thoughtless. Emm, can you wait a moment? ──Here, say aahn.」

As I was unable to touch the homemade bento, Iromachi suddenly picked up a piece of tamagoyaki from the bento with her own chopsticks and brought it to my mouth. Eh... What on earth is this?

「...Um, Iromachi-san? Do we always do this kind of thing?」

「(Smiles sweetly)」

To my question, Iromachi simply returns a beautiful smile. Ehhh... We're basically going out at this point. Could it be that Iromachi is my girlfriend? Me, who has Karen, a childhood friend, and Yukinui, a female friend, am I dating a beauty like this? Am I not amazing?

While I was thinking such thoughts, the tamagoyaki remained held out before my eyes. ...Lacking the courage to say, "To me with my amnesia, you are a woman I've practically just met, so I can't eat your homemade bento", I, therefore... hesitantly opened my mouth.

「Ah, aahn...」

「Yes, aahn. ──Fufu, is it delicious?」

「F-Fuhyes...」

Although I nodded for the time being, honestly, with a beautiful classmate feeding me with an "aahn", my head was boiling, and I couldn't really taste a thing. How pathetic.

And so I swallow the tamagoyaki. Having eaten one thing from the bento, I felt relieved, and after saying "Itadakimasu" once more, I began to eat Iromachi's homemade bento.

Incidentally, the taste was normally delicious. It seemed Iromachi was good at cooking.

「Is lunch always like this?」

「Yes, that's right. We often sat next to each other in the classroom and ate. At first, we'd each bring things we bought ourselves. Then, we started going to the school cafeteria together, and sometimes we'd go out onto the roof for a change of pace. Recently, it had become my daily routine to make a bento.」

「Fuuhn... And amidst all that, we even did things like feeding each other with, did we?」

「Ahh, this is the first time we've done that.」

「Oi! What do you mean by that, oi!」

「For my part, I'd always wanted to do it. But because Kuu-tan would get embarrassed, we couldn't do it until now... Fufu, a long-held dream has come true. Right now, I'm very happy. Thank you, Kuu-tan.」

「T-Thank you, you say... for someone who tricked me with my amnesia into feeding me with an "aahn", the fact that you're not the least bit apologetic is on the contrary amazing...」

「Well then, will you give me an "aahn" next?」

「How about you reflect on your actions just a little!?」

Even when I retorted like that, she paid it no mind. Iromachi just started munching on her own bento with a cheerful-looking face. Damn it. After what happened with Yukinui, just when I thought I should be careful...

「At this point, it's even questionable whether I really ate lunch with Iromachi-san...」

「Fufu, I'm sorry about that. You may have forgotten… but when Kuu-tan started eating lunch with me like this──honestly, I was saved. I never had someone as pure as you in my life. Kuu-tan taught me how delicious food is when eaten with someone else.」

Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration? I was about to say so, but I couldn't.

──A terrible headache. The sensation of a drill boring a hole into my skull. My bones creaked with a mishiri.

「Guh, ugh...!」

「W-What's wrong, Kuu-tan!? Are you okay!?」

However, that pain was but for a moment. And beyond where I had endured that agony, a scene I had never seen before. A memory that should have been lost was shining──

「H-Hey. W-Wanna eat lunch together?」

「...Why?」

Iromachi asked back with a dubious look to him, who was wearing a clumsy smile. Although he faltered a little at her expression, he continued without letting his smile drop.

「Amm... It's tastier with two people than one, right?」

「Fuh. You say funny things.」

「Mu... That cold attitude, I kind of dislike it. Iromachi, could it be that you've never eaten a meal with someone else before?」

「No, almost never. But if you're going to say that, isn't it the same for Kusuke-kun?」

「Guh, you hit a sore spot... B-But, I have! I eat with Karen pretty often, you know! It's not like I've never eaten with someone else!」

「Fuuhn... is it really that different?」

「Then, wanna try it out?」

Saying so, he sits in the chair opposite her and puts his hands together, saying, "Itadakimasu". Then he opened the wrapper of the yakisoba bread he had brought with him and took a bite.

「Yummy!」

「......」

「Come on, Iromachi too. Let's eat together.」

Being told that, Iromachi hesitantly takes out a melon bread from her own school bag. She opened its wrapper and took a small bite. Then, she gives him a dissatisfied look.

「...It's no different.」

「Are you an idiot? There's no way it would change that quickly.」

「......」

「Stop, stop, I'm against violence. Put down that clenched fist. You're not the type to resort to violence, are you?」

Feeling foolish, Iromachi lowers her fist and takes another bite of her melon bread. Her dissatisfied face seemed to say that the taste was still the same.

「You lied.」

「I'm not lying. It just seems there was a misunderstanding.」

「A misunderstanding?」

「Yeah. It's tastier with two than one, that's not a lie. But it's not like we're super good friends or anything, are we? So, it's probably from now on. ──The reason I invited you to eat together is for that. It'll surely become tastier someday, so let's eat lunch together from now on... um, do you get what I mean?」

「...Pfft.」

Iromachi let out a small chuckle. It was because he had looked at Iromachi with a terribly anxious expression at the end, as if he himself no longer knew what he was saying.

Then, she took a small bite of her melon bread. It felt just a little bit different.

「I don't get what you mean. But, well... let's eat together tomorrow too.」

That was the first, small promise that Iromachi had asked of him──

「I... remembered...」

「Eh?」

I blinked my eyes several times and wiped my face with my hand. Then, I replay the scene I had just seen in my head one more time... The details were lost. The feelings I had at that time, what my emotions were, things like that.

But, I was able to remember.

That was probably the day I first invited Iromachi to lunch. ──I was the one who invited her. Iromachi looked a little troubled. But in the end, she accepted my invitation for lunch. And that's why this relationship has continued to this day...

「──I see.」

To think that even I, who thought I had nothing, had someone with whom I had properly woven a bond. I was happy to feel that, and with that momentum, I stood up from my seat. Then I went up to Iromachi, and reflexively.

Following my emotions, I ended up hugging Iromachi from behind.

「I see, I see. So that's how it was──Iromachi!」

「Eh──Kya!? K-Kuu-tan!? W-What's wrong with you all of a sudden! A sudden back hug is like something out of a shoujo manga and of course I'm happy about it but too strong a stimulus is also a poison but I'm so happy I could die hauuuun...!」

A feeling of joy runs through my chest. I did it, I can remember! I can get my memories back!

And so, after hugging Iromachi for a while... in proportion to how the body I was hugging was getting hotter, my head gradually began to cool down. Eventually, I also noticed the cold gazes of the students in the classroom piercing me──U-Uwa! What am I doing!?

Feeling my cheeks flush, I jumped away from her. I immediately bow my head to Iromachi.

「S-Sorry, Iromachi-san! Ever since I lost my memory, I'd been feeling desperate, thinking I had nothing... so when I remembered a past memory with you just now, I got too happy...」

「I-I see... No, it's, fine. If a body like this is okay, you can hug me anytime. On sleepless nights, if you call me, I'll become your hug pillow anytime.」

「Iromachi-san, you say incredible things with a deadpan face...」

「E-Emm, and so──what did you remember?」

Asked by Iromachi, I explained what had just happened to me. ──Although it was fragmented, I had recovered one of my memories. When I told her that, Iromachi made an ephemeral face for some reason.

「I see... that's a good thing. I don't want to see Kuu-tan suffer, but if you were able to regain a memory, then it's a blessing.」

「...Somehow, it seems you're not very happy about it?」

「N-No, that's not what I mean. I'm happy that you remembered about me, but the way Kuu-tan was suffering before that was so severe...」

「Ahh, I see. Sorry for making you worry.」

「......」

When I said that, Iromachi made a face as if deep in thought. ...While finding that strange, I threw a question I was wondering about at her.

「But why was I so proactive in talking to Iromachi-san, when up until then I was a loner with no friends?」

「Who knows? That's something only Kuu-tan would know, so I can't give you a definitive answer... but maybe it's because I was a loner too?」

「Ahh. I guess that's why it was easy to talk to you?」

「If you talked to me because of that, then I'm glad I didn't make any friends in class either. ──Don't worry, Kuu-tan. From now on too, my only friend will be you.」

「...Um, your words are incredibly heavy one by one.」

I couldn't help but make a wry face. Laughing at that, Iromachi picks up her chopsticks again. Just as she was about to take her next bite──she stopped once, then put her chopsticks down. She took a small, deep breath. ...When I noticed something was off about Iromachi's atmosphere and looked at her, she said while looking at me.

「But, um... it feels like I'm raining on your parade while you're so happy, and I feel bad about it, but... maybe you don't have to force yourself to chase after your memories so much?」

I was a little surprised by those words. Because I had been certain that Iromachi wanted me to remember quickly──to regain the relationship we had.

With a pained, ephemeral smile plastered on her face, Iromachi still continued.

「There's the matter of your headaches too, okay? I'll tell you what happened in the past. So you don't have to be so desperate...」

「Mm... well, yeah. Maybe so.」

「Yes. ──Well then, shall we eat?」

Saying that, Iromachi went back to the bento she had left half-eaten. ...Looking only at her words, it would seem she stopped me out of consideration for my headaches, but──of course, I was not so obtuse as to be unable to sense the other implications.

◆◆◆

I regained a piece of my memory, even if it was just one.

That fact lightened my heart, and at the same time──it made me feel a desire to regain more fragments, a second and a third, since I was able to get one back.

And so, after school. I gave up on Iromachi, who for some reason had hastily gone home first, and was wandering the school in search of the remaining two of the three who had come to visit me in the hospital.

And so I found her, Hanayashiki Karen. The girl who had introduced herself as my childhood friend.

She was working hard at her club activities on the school grounds, full of fighting spirit. The girls' soccer club. The sight of her running across the field with her teammates was full of life, and it was fun to watch.

And so, as I was watching her from the edge of the school grounds, it seemed club activities had ended. The members of the girls' soccer club returned to the clubroom once, changed into their uniforms, and came out. Karen was among them, and she walked over here, chatting happily with her club mates.

「Hey, everyone. This Sunday, wanna watch the Yamakaze concert at my place? You all wanna see my beloved Ichimi's sick dance moves, right? How about it, Karen?」

「Ehh, I'm good. The other day, when we all stayed over at Rinrin's place, we binge-watched Ichimi's drama, so I've had my fill.」

「Ha? A drama and a concert are two different things, though? A drama where you can appreciate Ichimi's acting skills and a concert where you can appreciate the sharpness of Ichimi's dancing are two separate stomachs, though? Ha?」

「Rinrin, don't you think your personality changes too much when it comes to Yamakaze?」

「Ahaha... Anyway, everyone, can I have a second? Um──」

With that preface, Karen said something to her club mates in a small voice. At that, they all at once started making a fuss, saying, "Oi! This one is choosing a guy over friendship!", "Ahaha, I'm cheering for you. Do your best!" and "I wonder what's so great about a guy like that with no guy friends". And also, isn't there one girl saying something really mean? Hey, am I imagining things?

And so, while being poked and prodded, Karen detached herself from the circle. Then, she raised a hand to me and called out, "Ossu, Kuu-kun! Let's walk home together!" ...I was slightly taken aback by her casualness, but when I replied, "Sureー", she grinned brightly, then ran over to my side. She said with a smile.

「Alright. Well then, let's go.」

「Yeah. ...You didn't have to rush over like that, you know?」

「Ehehe. I wanted to get to Kuu-kun's side quickly.」

「...I-I see...」

I falter at those words. However, Karen didn't seem to mind my reaction and exited the school gate while skipping. "Going home with Kuu-kun! Going home with Kuu-kun!" ──she was somehow strangely high-tension. Finding that strange, I end up asking her a question.

「Why are you so hyper just from walking home?」

「That's obviously because I'm with Kuu-kun! I mean, when I heard Kuu-kun might never wake up again, I cried my eyes out! So, being able to walk home together again like this makes me really happy. ──Thanks for being alive.」

「...Emm... am I supposed to say, you're welcome?」

「Ahaha! Yeah, I think that's fine.」

While saying that, Karen gave me a broad, friendly smile. ...My heartbeat quickens slightly. Even though I didn't remember anything about her yet, I felt like I somehow understood what our relationship was like from that smile.

And so, Karen and I began to walk side-by-side along the road. ...I just noticed, but Karen is taking the initiative to walk on the side closer to the road. It was somehow as if she was wary of me wandering out into the roadway.

「By the way, Kuu-kun. Were you watching our club practice earlier?」

「Ahh, yeah. I watched for a bit. ──You were working hard.」

「Ehh, you think soー? For my part, I wanted to practice with even more spirit. Around this time of year, we have to break up by the time the sun setsー」

「Is there a tournament or something coming up?」

「Mmm? No, that's not it. That's not it──it's just that I'm a super-masochist.」

「Ahh, I see. It's just that Karen's a super maso──ha?」

Since Karen said it in such a normal tone, I almost let it slide, but... she just casually made a pretty big confession, didn't she? Thinking that, I end up glancing at her walking next to me. At that, Karen had a face that clearly said, "Ah, I messed up".

「That's right... Kuu-kun, you've lost your memory. You didn't know that I'm an M. Uwaah, I messed upー!」

「W-What? Karen, are you an M?」

「...Y-Yeah! My clothes size!」

「That's a bit of a stretch.」

When I retorted like that, Karen's face turned weary, and she muttered, "Uhhh... why did I go and say it myself". Then, after a while. She continued as if she had resigned herself.

「A-Actually, I have masochistic tendencies, I guess is that what you call it? I seem to have those... I love things like running a marathon until I'm completely exhausted, running, and running, and running... and finally reaching the goal while suffering from dehydration, ahahaー!」

「......」

「T-That's why I didn't want to talk about it!」

When I was unable to reply, Karen said so with tears welling in her eyes. ...N-No, it's not like I was put off by it. It was just that, it was true I was bewildered.

「So what I wanted to say earlier was... I want to do even tougher practices in the soccer club and push myself as an M, is what I meant. Our club isn't as strict as a powerhouse team aiming for nationals, you know. For me, the S-degree isn't high enoughー」

「What is "The S-degree isn't high enough"... You were sweating so refreshingly, but were you thinking such things inside while you were at your club activities?」

「I-It's not like I'm always thinking that. It's just sometimes!」

「Don't make such a textbook joke.」

「It's not a joke, I'm serious! ...A-And it's not like I'm playing soccer because I'm an M. Of course I like soccer, so I joined the soccer club. ...Is it wrong to want to satisfy my sexual preference on the side!?」

「It's such a great line, it's a wonder it sounds like a sound argument...」

When I first started listening, I thought, what an outrageous thing to think, but... it's true. Karen isn't bothering anyone, so perhaps it's not really a bad thing for her to satisfy her M-desires through club activities──as I was thinking that, she said.

「I-It's true that in order to satisfy my M-side, I became the captain of the soccer club and set up training menus for personal practice that are so tough the members complain a lot... but that's also for everyone's sake, not just for my own sexual preference!」

「Someone fire this captain!」

That was mixing public and private with a vengeance. To make the other members suffer just because she wanted to suffer, what a masochist she is. At this point, I can't even tell if she's an S or an M...

「Anyway, Karen? We've only been talking about you being an M, but, um... just so you know, I waited for your club to finish because there's something I want to talk to you about... can I change the subject?」

「Y-Yeah, of course! You can change it!」

「You'd probably prefer it if I berated you more for being an M, so you probably don't want to change the subject, though...」

「W-What do you think I am, Kuu-kun!? There's no way I'd think that!? It's true I'm an M, but I only feel happy when my body is in pain or it's tough! Don't misunderstand me!」

I see. So Karen is an M, but the kind of M who likes to be physically pushed, not the kind of M who finds pleasure in being mentally cornered──what am I contemplating so seriously.

For now, I got permission from Karen to change the subject, so... I cut to what I wanted to talk to her about in the first place.

「Actually, while I was talking with Iromachi-san today, I regained a little bit of my memory.」

「Eh──Really? That's great!」

「Yeah. ...But, even though I say I regained it, it was really just a little, only a part of an event from when I first met her.」

「I see. ...But hey, it's okay! Even if you can't remember your memories with everyone right away, we can just build up new memories! There's no need to rush!」

「......」

Iromachi was the same, but the girls around me don't seem to be very proactive about me regaining my past... thinking that, I continued the conversation.

「So. That's why today, Karen, I'd like you to tell me something that might touch the chord (kinsen) of my memories, so that I can regain my memory...」

「Kinsen? What's that? You mean money?」

「That's "kinsen" for money…」

「W-Wait a second, Kuu-kun! You're wrong! It's true that I am, um, not very smart, or have a slightly dumb side to me! But that's my, emm... n-not... not the real thing, I mean... emm, what was it again. A word with a similar meaning... ess... what was it?」

「...Are you trying to say essence?」

「Yes, that! That's not my essence!」

「......」

「It's not my essence!」

When I ended up looking at Karen with the eyes one uses for an airhead, she shouted that and looked up at the sky. Her high spirits make her easy to talk to, and so she's fun to be with, but I thought she was indeed an airhead. ──For now, I brought the main thread of the conversation back to where it was and continued.

「Today, when I was talking with Iromachi-san, there was apparently a keyword, I guess... something that stimulated my brain. That became the trigger for me to regain a memory with Iromachi-san. So, um... I was hoping Karen could also say something that would become a trigger to remember a scene from the past that you and I spent together... or, I'd like you to reenact something we used to do in the past...」

「Reenact? So, you mean I should just act as I always do?」

Karen didn't seem to understand very well, but that was correct, so I nodded my head once. At that, she gave a mischievous smile, and then──with a gyuh, she intertwined her right hand with my left.

「Wh... O-Oi!?」

Surprised by that, I let out a cry. I don't know what the old me was like, but the current me has no memory of ever holding a girl's hand. So, I tried to shake her hand out of panic, but──my grasped left hand remained strongly held.

And so, the girl standing next to me smiled at me and said.

「It's warm, isn't it?」

「W-Well, that's true, but──」

──In that instant, a dull pain struck the back of my head.

The world goes black. I myself do not realize I have closed my eyes. And so, in that darkened world, I saw a single bright light. That was the fragment of memory I had lost──

「Uhh, it's coldー」

「Be quiet, don't whine. ...Speaking of which, they say muscle gets cold easily, so maybe you're cold because you have too much muscle for a girl?」

「Muu. Kuu-kun, you're so mean! I worked hard at exercising because Kuu-san said "I like girls who are good at sports"!」

「You say that a lot, but you just liked exercising and hated studying, didn't you? Don't use my past remarks as an excuse for you becoming an idiot.」

「Shut up, shut up! Kuu-kun made me an idiot! Take responsibilityー!」

「Ahahaha.」

Karen lunges at him. But he doesn't resist. He lets her do as she pleases.

That was their communication. Teasing, laughing, it was comfortable.

「If you're cold, wanna hold hands?」

「Yeah.」

And so the two of them intertwined their hands. It was their usual skinship, and no particular emotion should have been attached to it, but──at this time, she. Or perhaps he, what were they thinking?

「Somehow, we don't change either, do we... How long are we supposed to keep up this inseparable bond?」

「Mu, what's with that tone! It sounds like you hate being childhood friends with me! Even though you're actually happy about it!」

「Not really? Even if I weren't childhood friends with you? It wouldn't really be a problem?」

「Even though you have barely any friends other than me!」

「Oi, even close friends should have manners. ──Besides, I have one now. I was a total loner when I first started school, but now I have one friend in my class, you know?」

「Iromachi-san, was it? ...I wonder about that? Maybe you just think she's a friend, but from her perspective Kuu-kun might not be a friend, you know?」

「Hey, there's no way that's... true......」

「...Um, sorry for making you so down you can't even retort, okay? There, there, good boy, good boy.」

「Oi, don't pat my head...」

「It's okay, Kuu-kun. I will always be your childhood friend.」

「Hey, don't say embarrassing things...」

「Ahaha!」

The two walk along the snowy road, having such a conversation. Their left and right hands, surely linked. They remained that way, maintaining a small warmth there.

「...Rather, should I bring you gloves next time? I don't need any.」

「No. I think I don't need them either.」

「──Did you get a memory back?」

After the dull headache and the retrieval of memory ended, I opened my eyes──and Karen's face, wearing a terribly serious expression, was right in front of me. I shouted "Uoh!?" and took a step back.

「Ah. Sorry, Kuu-kun. Was my face too close?」

「N-No. That's fine...」

「So? What about the memory?」

My arm is grabbed firmly. I could tell from over my clothes that a great deal of force was being applied. ...I try my best to ignore it and briefly tell her the memory I had just recalled.

「Yeah... I don't know the timeline, but Karen and I were walking on a snowy road together. And we were holding hands... like we were good friends...」

「──I see.」

Hou, Karen lets out a single breath. Then she suddenly hugs me. "Wh──" A gentle, yet clinging embrace. Of course I was taken aback, and my heart, unaccustomed to contact with girls, began to pound loudly, but she seemed not to care about that (it even seemed like she was deliberately ignoring it), and then she whispered in my ear.

「You remembered, Kuu-kun.」

「Y-Yeah... We were close, weren't we?」

「That's right. You and I are childhood friends from way back. We couldn't be together twenty-four seven. But I thought of Kuu-kun, as half of me.」

「......」

「It's not about liking or disliking. You were the most important to me.」

As I listened to those words, I tried to raise my own arms that were hanging down──to hug her back. I feel like I can do it now. Because I now know that she and I have a relationship.

But I didn't.

That was because I knew that my current feelings and the feelings she had built up did not balance out. I don't understand this girl enough yet to be able to hug her back with these hands.

That's why my reply was clumsy.

「Thank you, Karen.」

「...Ehehe. Then, let's we go home.」

Gently letting go of me, Karen starts walking again. I caught up to her, and we started walking side-by-side once more. ...It was a scene very similar to the memory I had just seen──and feeling a surprisingly calm emotion, I walked the path home with her.

◆◆◆

The next day, after school. I declined Iromachi's invitation of "Want to walk home together?" with an apology and was wandering the school building alone. ──Because I was looking for her.

「I should have asked what class that girl is in...」

Iromachi is a close girl in my class. Karen is a childhood friend from long ago──I was able to confirm it. So this time, in order to regain my memories concerning that white-haired girl, I was searching for her.

And so, after walking around searching for about ten minutes. I was about to give up, thinking she had already gone home since I couldn't find her, but it was nothing of the sort. She was there, in the hallway on the same floor as my classroom.

「Ah... Kuu-san.」

Yukinui Mizore. One of the three girls who came to visit me in my hospital room.

The slanting sun pouring in from the window dyed her white hair and translucent skin a faint orange. I awkwardly raise a hand and approach her.

「H-Hey. What are you doing here?」

「...Nothing, really.」

「??? There's no way it's nothing. Didn't you have some business on this floor?」

「No. You're noisy.」

Yukinui says so and looks away. I couldn't see her averted face, but her white ears were slightly tinged with vermilion. ...? What was there to be embarrassed about?

「Well, if you have no business, that's perfect... Wanna talk for a bit?」

「...It's fine, I guess? If that's what Kuu-san wants. I don't mind.」

「So that's a yes, right?」

I sensed a troublesome atmosphere, so I said that. Then, saying, "Then, let's sit down somewhere", I open the door to my own nearby classroom. ──There is no one there anymore. It seemed everyone had left for club activities or to go home.

Following me, Yukinui enters the classroom hesitantly. With quiet yet firm steps, she strode through the classroom and sat in my seat without hesitation. ...Why my seat?

While wondering that, I sat in the seat next to hers──Iromachi's seat. Then, I quickly got to the main point. Specifically, I told Yukinui the same kind of thing I told Karen yesterday. "I want to get my memories back, so please help me"──something like that.

「I see. In that case, I'll cooperate.」

「...Somehow, that was frighteningly quick.」

「The other two didn't cooperate?」

「No, they did cooperate. They did, but...」

「There were implications?」

「──That's it. That's the right word.」

If it's possible, you don't have to remember.

The way the two of them were with me, that was there. In contrast, Yukinui had none of those implications, and I got the feeling that she had agreed very flatly.

Thinking about such things, I asked something that I had become curious about in that flow.

「Rather, I'm starting to get a sense of the relationship between me and you three... but what's the relationship between the three of you?」

「Look, Kuu-san. The sunset is beautiful.」

「You are bad at dodging questions.」

「...It's not something I can't talk about. Simply put, we are not friends. That's all.」

「Eh, really? Then why did the three of you come to visit me together at first?」

「That was just a coincidence. Kuu-san was hovering between life and death and then you were able to have visitors, so we who had been waiting all went in at once. ──If you think about the situation, you can understand. Think for yourself a little.」

「......」

「...E-Emm, um, was that too much? I-I'd be happy if don't come to hate me...」

「No, if you're going to be sharp-tongued, then train your mentality.」

Besides, that's not it. The reason I fell silent just now was because I was thinking.

The relationship between the three of them. According to Yukinui, they aren't particularly close. That was something I was vaguely starting to understand since I returned to school, but──then why was there an atmosphere between those three that didn't let on that they weren't on good terms at that time?

「Anyway, sorry for sidetracking. ──So, in order to get my memories back, could you tell me about the things we always did together, the conversations we had?」

「Things we did, conversations we had... Mmm.」

At my question bringing the conversation back on track, Yukinui tilts her head. I thought she was searching through her memories with me, but──

「Guu...」

「Don't fall asleep in an instant like that. Are you Nobita-kun?」

「It's not that there's anything in particular to say about the conversations I had with Kuu-san... just like now, we just talked about whatever came up at the time...」

「An example is fine. Isn't there anything?」

「...Small chests are the best, you'd say.」

「Alright. I'm going home now, okay?」

Just when I thought she would cooperate in restoring my memory, I gave up on the unserious Yukinui and stood from my seat. At that, Yukinui said "W-Wait" and pulled on the sleeve of my uniform.

「Indeed, what I just said was a lie. Kuu-san... kuh... likes... guuh... big chests...」

「Don't make a face like a general right before raising the white flag...」

When I retorted with an exasperated look, she sighed once and continued.

「Anyway. The conversations I always had with Kuu-san were terribly unproductive like this. So I don't think they'll be a trigger to regain your memories.」

「Mmm, is that so?」

But it's not like I was having productive conversations when I regained my memories of Iromachi and Karen, either... I had a hard time accepting that, but if Yukinui wasn't enthusiastic, I had no choice but to change my approach.

「Then, what did Yukinui always do with me? For Iromachi-san, it was eating lunch together. For Karen, it was walking home together. ──What about you?」

「I-I, um...」

「Um?」

「Well, emm... drawing...」

「Drawing?」

「──Never mind, it's nothing.」

What's with that, I almost fell out of my chair. Why can't she tell me what she used to do with me in the past now that I've lost my memory.

Just a moment ago, she willingly agreed to help me get my memory back.

「「Haa...」」

Our sighs overlap. I wanted to ask why Yukinui was sighing too.

「Sorry, Kuu-san. Apparently, I'm still feeling a sense of discomfort, or rather, difficulty, in having a conversation with you who has lost the memories of your time with me. I'm not speaking well.」

「I see...」

「I may not look it, but I have a bit of trouble with communication.」

「But you look exactly like that...」

「But, I do have female friends in my class. My situation it's not as bad as Kuu-san's.」

「Why are you trying to take the moral high ground? Stop it, it hurts my heart.」

「...If I can just say one thing. I'm really on Kuu-san's side. I don't know about the other two, but I, purely for Kuu-san's sake──never mind.」

「You've been trailing off at the crucial moments for a while now...」

Even when I retorted like that, she was inattentive. With her reddened face cast down, she muttered quietly, "Rather, I've said too much just now..."

For that matter, a curious word came up again. "Ally"──I'm sure she said something like that the other day too... which means, do I have an "enemy" somewhere else?

As I was thinking that, Yukinui suddenly looked up and gazed at me. Her cheeks still flushed, she wore a serious expression.

「H-Hey, Kuu-san. Do you have a smartphone right now?」

「No, it apparently broke during the accident... so I don't have one.」

「I-I see... then, I want to make a promise now.」

「A promise? What about?」

「Next Sunday... d-d-d-da──」

And so, after opening and closing her mouth a few times, she blurted it out.

「K-King Dedede is strong in Smash Bros if the person using him is good. Don't you think?」

「What are you suddenly talking about?」

At the same time as I said that, Yukinui slams her forehead against my desk. Oi oi, stop the self-harm! Why did it suddenly come to this!?

Looking up again, Yukinui stared at me. This time, not just her cheeks but her forehead too was red, and then, after taking one big deep breath, she started over from a few words earlier.

「N-Next Sunday... d-d-d-da, d-d-d-d-da──」

And so, after opening and closing her mouth a few times, this time she finally blurted it out.

「W-W-W-Would you go on a d-d-d-date with me?」

「──」

My heart pounded. A date with Yukinui. At that invitation from her, I couldn't help but feel my heart leap. Even if my memories are lost, Yukinui Mizore is a cute girl. So first, happiness came first.

However, trying to think about it a little more calmly──there was also a feeling of being troubled.

Right now, I hold a kind of wariness towards both Iromachi and Karen, whose memories I've recovered. It seems we were on good terms in the past, but still──to the current me, they are strangers with whom I have a thin relationship. So, I'd be troubled even if I were invited by those two, and yet, with Yukinui, with whom I haven't remembered a single thing...

That thought must have shown on my face. Yukinui's expression became anxious, and her eyes darted about.

「I know that the current Kuu-san dislikes me…」

「No, it's not that I dislike you... it's more that I don't know you, that's the big thing.」

「T-Then! I-I'll guide you through the date course you took me on in the past! On Sunday! So, um... is a no?」

「......」

She may have said it casually, but that was an attractive offer to me.

A date course we went on in the past. If I went around there, I might be able to pick up some memories with Yukinui. And to me, that was a very important thing.

The current me is like an invisible man. No legs, no face, no hands──no heart. I've lost all my memories, been thrown out in a blank state, and just... I have enough knowledge to somehow get by in life. ──But, it's not enough. Who I was connected to, what kind of memories I had. Right now, I want those so badly I could die. I want to remember what shape the person known as me was made of. I want to return to being a flesh-and-blood human.

Thinking that, I therefore naturally gave my reply.

「Okay. Let's go on a date then.」

「──」

The moment I said that, Yukinui's face lit up. I was taken aback that she could make such a face, but then she tapped her own cheeks lightly with both hands several times──transforming that grin into a smile, and with tears welling at the corners of her eyes, she whispered quietly.

「Thank you, Kuu-san...」

「N-No, don't mention it...」

Honestly, I was dizzy. It was that kind of smile. ...I wonder how the me of the past was able to take a girl like this out on a date. I couldn't help but think about such things as I watched the overflowing smile of the girl who was ecstatic to go on a date with me again.

◆◆◆

That night. I was alone, at the scene where I had my accident.

「...Hou.」

When I let out a small breath, white smoke appears in the empty air and disappears into the darkness. It was a very cold night.

──While I was hospitalized, the police came to see me once.

Apparently, the police did not see any criminal element in this incident. But still, they said they came to hear my story because the possibility of a crime wasn't zero.

However, there was nothing for me, who had lost my memory, to talk about, so in order to regain even a little of my memory from that time, I asked the police to guide me to the scene where I was hit.

And the place we arrived at was here. A desolate park and the roadside facing the national highway.

From this roadside by the park's entrance──the sidewalk, I had apparently jumped out onto the road without any warning and was hit. That's about all that was left on the video. Whether there were people around, or not, was not recorded on the drive recorder.

I wonder what the reality of it is.

Was it my carelessness, or the car's carelessness? Or was I thrown in front of the car by a third party? ──Maybe I had a reason to be so desperate as to take such an action myself... and in an unexpected turn, maybe there was something on the other side of the road, and I was hit while chasing after it.

But to be honest, for the current me, finding out that truth was not my biggest wish.

What was important to the current me was regaining my lost memories, that was all.

「...But even coming to the scene like this, it still doesn't seem like I'll be able to remember.」

I look around again──in the park, only a single small streetlight is lit. The playground equipment consisted only of a swing set, a slide, and a sandbox. It was a park so deserted that I doubted even the neighborhood kids came to play.

But something I didn't know was supposed to have happened here. Even if it was just an accident, there must have been some reason for me to come here. And as a result, I lost everything──seventeen years of memories, the things I had built up. Their end point was here.

Perhaps it's a memory I shouldn't remember.

I think of my current memory-less self as unfortunate, but perhaps I'm actually happy now. And by prying into the past like this, by digging it up... I might just end up with a deeper misfortune.

But still, I──

「...Mm?」

At that moment. I saw a woman in a skirt pass by on the sidewalk in front of the park.

The next moment, as I was impressed that she could wear a skirt in this cold.

──A sharp pain shot through my brain. Beep beep beep. An alert rings out for a memory that shouldn't be remembered. But I reached out my hand to grasp the light beyond──

「──────」

With a "don", my back was gently pushed.

It was a loving touch. The emotion put into it must have been intense, but the touch itself was soft, and he only staggered.

But that was enough.

A flash of brilliance runs through, and his eyes are blinded. Light. White light. It was a car's headlights.

By the time he recognized it, it was too late. A shrill braking sound echoes, and his consciousness whitens.

The next moment, his body was floating in mid-air. Then, before he knew it, his head was on the ground. His skull cracked. He groaned in pain, but that groan reached no one.

With his last ounce of strength, he pushed open his eyelids. His hazy, blurred vision caught it.

A back, running away in a hurry. A fluttering skirt. ...It was, certainly.

The designated uniform of the school he attended, "Kunozato Private High School"──

「......Well, this is a pickle.」

My first words were, what should I say, so carefree that I was astonished at myself.

That's why, probably──I might have known it on some level.

I may have lost my memory, but I'm the one involved in this accident... no, this incident. I kind of thought that might be the case. I didn't think it would be confirmed this clearly, though.

──I was probably almost killed by one of those three.

It's not that there's zero possibility that it was done by a male classmate who likes to cross-dress, or maybe the class president, but... honestly, I think that's a thin line. I mean, I was almost killed, you know? For something like that to happen, you first need to build a proper human relationship, and then it needs to get twisted from there──if that's the case, I can only think it was one of those three who are still involved with me now.

「...I wonder what in the world happened in my past.」

I muttered so, and sighed again. The white smoke lingers for a moment before quietly disappearing.

──Honestly, I have no intention of doing something as boring as playing detective.

However, I became curious about that past. The cause of such a twist──what did the past me do, and what did he not do. And then what happened, and conversely what was missing... and as a result, by whom was I almost killed. I wanted to regain that memory.

And then, I realized.

That in the end, it was no different from searching for the culprit──