4th Mystery: That girl at the intersection
Chapter 1 “I was always by your side”
That girl was her best friend.
They were always together wherever.
They’ve been best friends since kindergarten to now.
She frequently visited my house, stayed overnight, we played a lot, and had countless conversations.
“Hey, Houzuki-chan.”
The friend who smiles beautifully.
“We will always be friends, right?”
The friend who puffs up her cheeks in dissatisfaction.
“You will always stay by my side, won’t you?”
During sad times, she comforted her.
“Hey, Houzuki-chan.”
That day had a beautiful sunset.
The sky was ablaze with a deep red, and beyond the mountains, the sun was setting.
At a rare large intersection in Tsukinashi Town, several cars had collided in a typical pile-up accident. It was a significant incident, reported on television and featured in newspapers.
Sitting in front of the intersection, where ambulance sirens wailed and police car red lights flashed, a girl looked at her red backpack that had been blown away.
The matching keychains she had attached were covered in mud. The red backpack was full of scratches, and the strap hanging from the shoulder seemed to be torn. No, was it really torn?
Thin arms, wrapped in familiar clothes, were entangled with the red backpack rolling on the ground.
“――――――――To-wa-cha-n?”
There was no response to the girl’s call.
That day had an exceptionally beautiful sunset
☆
Towako is nowhere to be found.
Her best friend, Aoyagi Towako, is gone.
She checked all the classrooms for third-year students, but there’s no sign of her anywhere.
“Is she absent today……?”
The current time is lunch break.
For students, it’s the time to enjoy pleasant conversations while nibbling on their lunch. The most enjoyable part of her school life is typically eating lunch with her best friend in a quiet spot. However, the crucial best friend is missing.
Houzuki, with a lunchbox in hand, headed towards the usual staircase.
“Hey, you’re here.”
There was already someone there.
With silver hair cascading down to the shoulders and red eyes that seemed to have captured the hues of the evening sky. A face so well-crafted that it wouldn’t go unnoticed by modern high school girls, and the pitch-black stand-up collar uniform accentuated the white skin.
The male student, using the stairs as a makeshift chair, was like a specter appearing in the old school building. Despite being in the opposite time frame when ghosts are said to move, why would he know about this place?
Recognizing his figure, Houzuki turned on her heel.
“I’m going back.”
“Now, now, hold on a moment.”
“Why are you here?”
“The old school building is boring. I came to tease you, the lonely one.
The male student with silver hair and red eyes, Yuiru Enen, pats the space beside him invitingly.
“Well, go ahead and sit, Houzuki. Let me be the conversation partner for you, the rumored friendless one.”
“Towako just hasn’t come to school today. Besides, I’m not friendless.”
“Just being avoided by other students is enough to confirm your friendless status. Don’t pretend, Houzuki.”
“……”
Silenced by a straightforward argument, Houzuki falls completely silent.
Indeed, that’s the truth.
Her only companion has been her longtime friend, Aoyagi Towako, and the other students look at Houzuki with eyes that seem to perceive her as a fearsome monster. They exchange only the necessary minimum of conversation, and Houzuki herself is fine with that.
She doesn’t need unnecessary friendships. As long as Towako is there, that’s all that matters.
“You’re leading quite a lonely youth, aren’t you?”
“Lonely…?”
“Is there any term other than ‘lonely’ for a youth without a single friend?”
Yuiru grinned,
Well, you really have it tough. If the teacher says ‘pair up with a friend’ in class, you’d definitely be the student left out.”
“…So, did you have friends?”
“Not a lot. Well, a decent amount, I guess.”
Yuiru, answering Houzuki’s question with a proud demeanor,
“By the way, Houzuki.”
“What?”
“Why isn’t your so-called best friend here at school?”
Upon receiving that question, Houzuki found herself at a loss for an answer.
Aoyagi Towako hadn’t come to school since the morning. It was unusual not to see her around.
Thus, Houzuki had been spending her student life alone until now, and even though no one spoke to her, it didn’t particularly bother her. The reactions around her were along the lines of, “It’s quieter than usual today,” but she wasn’t always making noise.
“Don’t tell me you don’t know? Even though she’s your one and only best friend.”
“I’ll know if I send a message.”
“Oh? Then go ahead and send one.”
Upon Yuiru’s suggestion, Houzuki took out her mobile phone.
She touched the liquid crystal screen with her finger, launching the messaging app.
It was an app commonly used among students. After tapping the name of her friend listed in the app, she composed and sent a message.
[Are you not coming to school today? Are you sick?]
The messaging app quickly showed that the message had been read.
Ping
After a moment, the sound indicating the reception of a message echoed.
On the mobile phone screen, there was a message from her best friend, but
[Houzuki-chan]
That was the only word.
“It seems you didn’t get a satisfactory answer.”
The silver-haired, red-eyed ghost sitting on the stairs chuckled, looking amused.
“Your so-called best friend is indeed strange. Strange, I tell you. And coming from me, it’s undoubtedly true.”
“Don’t judge Towako as strange. Who are you to say such things?”
“Because it is strange. Where else do you find a student skipping school without any reason or explanation?”
Yuiru casually stood up and approached Houzuki. Startled, she stepped back, and he snatched her mobile phone from her hand. With unaccustomed movements, he touched the liquid crystal screen.
Carefully scanning the message from Towako that appeared, he then nodded as if saying, “I knew it.”
“You’ve been quite adept at reading all these messages.”
Holding the liquid crystal screen in front of Houzuki’s eyes, Yuiru said,
“All these messages are composed of characters that I can’t understand at all.”
“Maybe it’s just that your eyesight is bad?”
“Oh? That’s what you say.”
Yuiru ran his finger across the liquid crystal screen and said,
“Let’s see…… This, this, and this…… oh, so I do it like this? Amazing, the recent electronic devices are something else. Quite modern.”
Muttering to himself as if impressed by something, Yuiru skillfully moved his fingers.
Then, he casually returned the phone to Houzuki. The messaging app displayed a straightforward message.
[Where are you?]
Houzuki, clutching her mobile phone, gave Yuiru a sharp glare.
“What are you telling Towako?!”
“It’s better to inform her straightforwardly. No need to worry about the other person.”
“But even so…”
Ping
The sound of a received message echoed.
Did Towako send a message of anger or one filled with questions?
As Houzuki thought about composing an explanation, the next message appeared on the screen.
“I’m here.”
