Published at 27th of January 2019 04:44:55 PM
It was now the break time before fourth period on Monday . Just like always, I headed to the library .
「Hello . 」
「Hey . 」
I responded to her almost whispered greeting that resembled the rustling of a large phantom tree that wrapped up the world, and our reading circle commenced .
As the two of us sat side by side reading our books much in the same way we had a week ago, Kikuchi-san suddenly spoke to me .
「It’s a little serious……don’t you think?」
「Hm? Serious? What is?」
「Um, the student council election……」
Kikuchi-san turned her gaze towards me as she spoke, a dark night descending upon the forests of her pupils . I wonder what the matter is .
「Nanami-san…… she said she was standing for election, didn’t she? I was just wondering why……」
A surprising topic .
「Well, she herself did joke around talking about getting it on her school record, though………」
「Yes . But I imagine that’s……not the real reason . 」
Kikuchi-san slowly shook her head . Her now almost completely hidden pupils were like waxing crescent moons, giving the impression of a mystical night sky .
「Well, you’re probably right . Perhaps it’s ‘I want to change the school’, or ‘I want to change myself’’ . Something along those lines . 」
「Is that…… so?」
Kikuchi-san began to ponder, gently placing a long, pale finger on her cheek . It felt like if she were to simply hold it out, a small bird would come and alight on it . Seeing her speak less formally once in a while like this felt pleasant, and was a sign she was opening up to me . [1]
「But, I too have that feeling of wanting to change myself……so I think I might understand . 」
「Eh? Is that so? You want to change, meaning?」
I tried asking what she meant in a casual tone of voice . However .
「……Um . S-Secret!」
「Eh . 」
Glancing at her, through the gaps in those beautiful strands of hair that hung gently and mystically, I could see her reddened cheeks, their beauty reminiscent of the forbidden fruit consumed by Adam and Eve . It took my breath away .
H-hm, I wonder what Kikuchi-san wants to change .
「……Are you okay?」
「Y-Yes, I’m fine . It’s……nothing . 」
The sounds of her somewhat sensual *suu*’s and *haa*s as she breathed in and out were accompanied by the rise and fall of her thin, delicate, almost glasswork-like shoulders . Shortly thereafter, Kikuchi-san raised her head . Intricate tremors filled her moist eyes, like a miraculous spring shining in seven colours only once a year . It seemed like by moving just a little closer, I would easily fall in .
「Umm, alright . 」
「……Un . 」
With a mystical expression, Kikuchi-san gazed at me . No matter how you looked at it, this space with just the two of us belonged to the extraordinary .
To the extent that one would be able to clearly see the the individual grains of sand falling from an hourglass, time flowed ever so slowly .
「B…bye then……!」
The first to break free of this flow of time as it coiled about endlessly was Kikuchi-san, who hurriedly picked up her book and left in a half run .
「P-Phew . 」
And so I was left behind in this space that had now returned to normal . ‘For now let’s just read this book, yeah’, I thought . What does she mean, ‘secret’?! And ‘I want to change’?! What’s with that girl?! A real enchantress!
Translator Notes:
[1] Uhh couldn’t find any decent way to TL this, but basically her previous line was spoken slightly less formally than usual . Recall that she speaks… rather… politely, even when talking to her classmates of the same age .