Volume 4 - Me, Her, and our Changing World
Chapter 4
And so, we all went our separate ways and returned to our respective homes.
Along the way, there was a moment when Suzuka-san looked exasperated at how overly cheerful Chinatsu was being, but the three of us got off together at Hachioji Station and then took trains in different directions to go home.
After that, a few things happened here and there. Like me suddenly covering a shift for someone at my part-time job, catching up on some leftover schoolwork, and going out for street basketball for the first time in a while. Somehow, when Chinatsu went to consult Kana-san about something, Shinji and Gen-san found out right away, and for some reason, I became the target of what I can only describe as their unique idea of a rough, celebratory questioning. But aside from those small things, nothing major happened up until now, as we cross into the new year together.
Nothing major had happened.
The reason I emphasized that is because right now, Chinatsu and I were at my house, just the two of us, to celebrate the New Year together. But instead of being in the living room like usual, we were in my room. Yep, m.y. r.o.o.m.
I don’t know if the temple bell had already rung 108 times, but eventually, the sound faded away into silence.
This was the first time Chinatsu had stayed over since that brief period when we were living together temporarily. And this was the first time we were completely alone like this at night ever since being at her grandmother's house in Nagano.
“Say, Hajime… I don’t know if it’s because mom had already completely gotten over the stuff about dad, but she said she’s going to spend the new year’s eve drinking with her friends all night. So I thought… I want to spend the end of the year and the beginning of the new year together with you…”
Even before she said that, I’d already been thinking the same thing. That I wanted to welcome the new year with her. Though, honestly, I’d only imagined maybe joining her and Suzuka-san for the occasion. But when it turned out it would just be the two of us, and at my house no less, I probably started acting weird from the very moment Chinatsu showed up that evening.
Just in case… I’d prepared in advance. I’d bought what I needed from the pharmacy, trying to hide it among other everyday items in my basket. But when the cashier lady casually separated it and put it in a discreet black bag, I realized that my attempt to blend it in had been completely pointless. Now, it lay quietly in the drawer of my desk, waiting for its turn to be used.
We had dinner, took our baths, and watched TV while listening to the new year’s countdown.
“Happy New Year, Chinatsu. Looking forward to another good year with you.”
“Thank you so much for everything last year, Hajime. I’m looking forward to this year too.”
As we exchanged greetings, Chinatsu looked up at me with eyes that shimmered as if asking me something silently. She wore pajamas that were slightly too thin for winter weather, with a cute cardigan draped over her shoulders.
To me, she looked impossibly beautiful, almost too alluring.
“We’ll go for the first shrine visit tomorrow, and it’s getting late, so… do you want to go to my room?”
“...Yeah.”
Miraculously, neither my wussiness acting up nor a typical cliché scenario happened. Chinatsu simply nodded at my words, and for the first time, I welcomed her into my room. I’d already cleaned the sheets and blankets that afternoon, drying them thoroughly.
We sat down together on the bed, and then, the sound of the temple bell filled the silence. Neither of us spoke.
It wasn’t that I was trying to escape into recalling some random memory, I was simply listening to the calm, solemn sound of the bells marking the end of the year. Though, honestly, their timing couldn’t have been worse.
After the bells stopped ringing, a moment later, I felt Chinatsu’s head gently rest on my shoulder.
No matter how many times I looked at her, I couldn’t help but think she was beautiful. Her features, her scent that always made my head spin… It was all right there, closer than ever.
“...Mmm.”
Cautiously, I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and kissed her.
The first touch was soft and fleeting.
The second, a little deeper, conscious, deliberate.
When we parted slightly to catch our breath, Chinatsu turned to me with a questioning look, as if asking if it was already over.
“...Those bells… they’re supposed to cleanse people of their worldly desires, right…?”
After saying that, she mumbled in a small, yet somewhat sweet voice, ‘But mine certainly didn't disappear at all.’
Mesmerized by her flushed cheeks and moist, glistening eyes, I gazed straight at the face of the person I loved most and gently pushed her down.
That night, as the new year began, I lost the right to one day become a wizard.
◇◆
Wrapped in a strange blend of fatigue and euphoria, Chinatsu felt a sensation she had never known before. As Hajime gently stroked her head, she murmured softly,
“I just… feel so happy right now. What should I do?”
It might sound strange to call it “lucky,” but there hadn’t been any bleeding for her, and there was almost no pain. She had no latex allergy, and her body felt just fine afterward. Perhaps it was because Hajime had been endlessly gentle, making her feel so safe that she hadn’t even been nervous.
At her quiet words, Hajime let out a small sigh of relief and said with a shy smile,
“I’m glad… not just because it was good for me, but that it didn’t hurt… and that you… felt good about it too.”
Even though they had just done what they did, Hajime’s embarrassed smile radiated an almost overwhelming aura of kindness, as if it existed solely to make Chinatsu happy. Feeling even more embarrassed, she hid her face against his chest, realizing that even after showing him everything, her shyness hadn’t changed at all.
As she felt Hajime’s warmth and calm heartbeat, she began to drift toward sleep. Her worries seemed to melt away little by little, until she quietly lost consciousness.
It was a very happy new year’s night—the night Chinatsu and Hajime took their relationship one step further.
