“I’ve got a whole year on you, you know.”
“Sorry.”
“My hand hurts. Let go.”
He realized he was squeezing pretty hard. He released her wrist.
“Sorry.”
“Sorry won’t cut it.”
“Sorry.”
And with that, both of them fell silent.
A full minute passed without another word.
“…Fine,” Mai finally whispered.
“Mm?”
“If you don’t want to let me go home yet, then I’ll allow you to continue this date.”
Mai looked up, and with an impish grin, she pinched Sakuta’s nose.
At some point, she had stopped trembling.
1
They took the outbound Tokaido Line from Fujisawa Station, riding it about an hour west—roughly thirty-one miles. Silver cars with two stripes around them—one green, one orange—carried them through Kanagawa Prefecture to Shizuoka Prefecture’s Atami, a city famous for its hot springs.
It was now seven PM.
They needed to know.
What was happening to Mai?
Who could see her? Who still remembered her?
At first, they had believed these Adolescence Syndrome symptoms were centered strictly on Mai herself. The question now was the scale of this phenomenon making Mai suffer. How far did it reach?
On the way here, they’d gotten off the train at Chigasaki and Odawara Stations, but nobody had been able to see Mai.
Sakuta had asked a few people about her. “Huh?” “Who?” “Never heard of her.” “I don’t know the new kids.” No positive responses. When they reached Atami Station, he tried again but with no change.
It seemed everyone really had forgotten Mai Sakurajima. It was like they’d never known about her.
Mai watched them all without emotion. There wasn’t a single hint of surprise, grief, or fear in her calm that seemed like the undisturbed surface of a placid lake.
On the platform in Atami Station, Sakuta stared up at the electronic sign displaying the train schedule.
They had to change trains to go any farther, even though it was still the Tokaido Line. The train they’d taken here made its last stop at Atami.
He knew there was one bound for Shimada arriving at 7:11. He had no idea where that was or even what prefecture it was in. But from the map of the line, he knew it was farther west than Shizuoka. That was enough.
Six minutes until the train left. They had a little time.
“I’m gonna call my sister,” Sakuta said.
He ran over to the pay phone by the station shop. He inserted a coin and lifted the receiver. After punching in a number, he listened to it ring.
After a minute, it went to the answering machine.
“Kaede, it’s me.”
Kaede never answered calls from anyone but Sakuta, so he always had to talk through the answering machine first.
“Hello! This is Kaede.”
“Good, you’re still up.”
“It’s only seven!” Even without seeing her, he could tell she’d puffed out her cheeks. “What’s up?”
“Sorry. I’m not gonna make it home tonight.”
“Huh?”
“Had to go pretty far out for something.”
“Wh-what sort of thing?”
“Well…” He hesitated but decided he should ask her. “Kaede, you remember the girl who came over the other day? Mai Sakurajima?”
“First I’ve heard of it.”
She shot him down like it was nothing.
“……”
The next words wouldn’t come. He bit his lip, waiting for the roiling inside him to subside.
“Tell me, who is that?” Kaede asked, sounding jealous.
Sakuta barely heard her. Having someone he knew force him to face the truth was especially painful. Fumika Nanjou had been bad, too. This was far worse than having strangers say they’d never heard of Mai.
Memories they’d shared were really vanishing. That made it personal. It became far more real to him.
“Well, if you don’t remember, that’s fine,” he managed. “You’ll have to make do with the instant ramen in the kitchen cabinet for dinner. Eat any flavor you like. Make sure you feed Nasuno. And don’t forget to brush your teeth before bed. I’ll call again. Good night.”
“Uh, what? Wait—!”
The ten-yen coin he’d put in the phone ran out halfway through her yelp, and they were disconnected.
Plus, it was almost time for the train to arrive.
“Let’s go, Mai.”
“Yes, let’s.”
Sakuta and Mai boarded the train resting on platform two, bound for Shimada.
2
The train left Atami, skirting the Pacific coast as it headed farther west. They changed again at Shimada Station and Toyohashi Station, leaving Shizuoka for Aichi Prefecture. They traveled hundreds of miles, heading toward Gifu Prefecture.
As they went, Sakuta asked people from these places he’d never been to before about Mai, but he didn’t find a single person who knew Mai Sakurajima or even one who’d ever seen her.
Now they were rattling along on a train bound for Ogaki.
That was probably as far as they could investigate today. It would be after midnight by the time they arrived. Each stop left fewer passengers onboard.
The wheels emitted a grinding sound as they traveled along the rails. There was a gentle rattling that came from the vibrating joints. As the noise of the crowds thinned, the ambient sounds turned into lullabies.
A box seat meant for four emptied out, and Sakuta and Mai sat together on one side of it.
“Second-highest population in Gifu Prefecture, after Gifu City,” Mai suddenly said, staring at her phone’s screen.
“What is?”
There were barely any other passengers left in their car. Maybe three, seated some distance away. It felt like he and Mai were alone.
“Ogaki.”
“Oh.”
He could easily hear her, even when she spoke softly.
“It says they also have lots of groundwater.”
“Well, I’m always up for good water.”
“……”
“……”
When they fell silent, the sounds of the train filled the gap. It was too dark outside to enjoy any kind of view, but Mai still leaned her elbow on the little table beneath the window frame, staring at the strange lands passing beyond.
A good ten minutes went by without either saying a word.
“Hey, Sakuta…”
“What is it?”
“Can you see me?”
Her eyes, reflected in the windowpane, caught Sakuta’s profile.
“I can see you.”
“And hear me?”
“I can.”
“Do you remember me?”
“You’re Mai Sakurajima. A third-year student at Kanagawa’s own Minegahara High. A famous child actress who went on to do a whole lot more.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“As a result of her childhood celebrity, she’s become rather twisted and incapable of sharing her true feelings.”
“Who? Me?”
“You’re scared, but you’re trying to hide it.”
With that, Sakuta reached out and took her hand.
Mai raised her eyebrows, surprised. Her gaze dropped to their hands.
“I didn’t say you could hold my hand.”
“But I want to.”
“……”
“I feel like I deserve a little reward here.”
“…Then go ahead.”
Mai turned her gaze back to the window, but her fingers slid between his.
Like boyfriend and girlfriend.
A little bit embarrassing. A little bit thrilling.
“Don’t get used to it,” Mai said.
He was pretty sure she was blushing. But she was also getting a kick out of the look on his face.
; Eventually, the announcer informed them the next stop was Ogaki. End of the line.
They held hands until the train stopped.
When they stepped onto the platform in Ogaki Station, it was 12:40 AM—a new day.
He asked an attendant about Mai, received a “Never heard of her,” and then they exited through the gates.
They picked the south exit at random, walked as far as the bus terminal, and stopped there. Sakuta had been worried it would be the sort of station with nothing around, but this seemed like it was in the heart of the city. There were buildings and businesses all over. It wouldn’t be too hard to find a place to stay.
Only question was where to spend the night. Alone, Sakuta would have used a manga café in lieu of a hotel, but he didn’t want to take Mai there. More importantly, that option went right out the window when Mai said “I really need a bath” as they stepped off the train.
Sakuta felt the same.
They’d spent a lot of time in the salt breeze on Shichirigahama, and he could definitely use a shower. His clothes felt sticky, and he was pretty sure they both smelled like salt.
He considered a few options but decided the safest bet was the business hotel across from the station.
He asked if they had rooms, and the man at the desk gave him a deeply suspicious glare. A totally normal reaction when a high school boy with no luggage wanted to rent a room in the middle of the night.
But he got through the check-in process just fine. He paid for the night in advance to avoid further suspicion.
Since the clerk couldn’t see Mai, there was no need to check her in. Sakuta turned to make sure she was fine with sharing a room, but she was already headed to the elevators.
The elevator was waiting for them, so they stepped inside and rode it to the sixth floor.
Their room was at the end of the hall. Room 601.
When Sakuta got stuck trying to figure out how to use a card key, Mai reached out and opened the door for him.
“You push it all the way in, then pull it out.”
Sakuta tried it himself. It just didn’t feel right. He didn’t get the sense that he had opened anything. But like Mai said, the door undeniably cracked open.
It was a single room. One bed. A dinky little table with a mirror. And a chair in front of that. There was also a nineteen-inch TV, a tiny refrigerator, and a pot.
This was the definition of cramped. The bed took up maybe 70 percent of the space.
When he said as much, Mai scoffed, saying, “This is typical.”
She sat down on the bed, used the remote to turn the TV on, then peeled off her boots. Legs swinging, she flipped through all the channels before turning it off.
Mai let herself fall backward onto the bed. She must have been exhausted. They’d spent the whole day sitting, but that had been more than enough to wear Sakuta out. His whole body felt weary.
“I’m gonna take a bath,” Mai announced, sitting up.
“Go right ahead.”
“No peeping.”
“Don’t worry. I get three meals worth on the sounds of the shower alone.”
“……”
Mai pointed silently at the door. A clear sign for him to leave.
“Allowing a younger boy to hear the sounds of your shower and writhe in agony is a pleasure reserved for the confident older woman.”
“F-fine! I knew that. Obviously.” Mai snorted like she’d always intended as much. “Just don’t do anything weird out here.”
“Weird how?”
He knew what she meant, of course.
“By weird, I mean weird! Don’t make me spell it out!”
She turned her back and headed into the bathroom. The door slammed behind her. He heard a loud click as she turned the lock.
“That was really cute.”
Eventually, he heard the shower start.
Listening to it with half an ear, Sakuta examined the room’s phone. It seemed like it could handle outbound calls.
He picked up the receiver and dialed his friend’s cell—the one number he had memorized.
Halfway through the third ring, a familiar voice came on the line.
“You know what time it is?” Yuuma asked, sounding sleepy.
“One sixteen AM.”
There was a clock built into the bed.
“I know!”
“Were you asleep?”
“Sound asleep! Practice and work wore me out.”
“This is an emergency. I need your help.”
“With what?”
“One question first—do you remember Mai Sakurajima?”
He didn’t have much hope. He’d asked dozens…maybe hundreds…of people about Mai without ever getting the answer he hoped for.
“Huh? Of course.”
“Yeah, figured you didn’t,” he replied, answering on reflex.
“What? Of course I do,” Yuuma insisted, still sounding sleepy.
Sakuta’s brain started spinning. What had Yuuma just said?
“Kunimi!”
“Ugh, why are you yelling?”
“You remember Mai Sakurajima?! The Mai Sakurajima?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
He didn’t know the reason. It made no sense. But Sakuta had finally found what he was looking for, in the way he least expected. Delight and surprise had his heart racing so fast it hurt.
“Is that it? Can I go back to sleep?”
“Wait. Gimme Futaba’s number.”
“Uh, sure…”
Yuuma was starting to wake up. Grumbling, he read out Rio Futaba’s cell phone number. Sakuta found a pad by the phone and scribbled it down.
“You’re gonna call her now, Sakuta?”
“That’s why I asked.”
“She’s gonna be pissed if you do.”
“Don’t worry. I would be, too.”
“Then, fine. You owe me lunch for this. Futaba, too.”
“Got it. Good night.”
“Yeah…night…”
Yuuma hung up.
Sakuta immediately dialed Rio’s number. She answered.
“This is Azusagawa,” he said.
“Do you know what time it is?” she complained grumpily. But she spoke clearly—maybe she was actually still up?
“One nineteen AM.”
“One twenty-one. Your clock is slow.”
“Oh, really?” You’d think a business hotel would get that right. “Got a minute? I need your advice on something.”
“You’ve got yourself in trouble again, right?”
“I dunno if it counts as trouble.”
“I can hear a shower running. Is that Sakurajima?”
“…How’d you know?”
That was way too on point. And something about it was bugging him.
“Your adorable sister wouldn’t be taking a shower this late. And I can tell from the caller ID you aren’t at home.”
As she spoke, he realized what was wrong.
“Futaba, you remember Sakurajima, too? You know her?”
He had to be sure.
“Why would I not know someone that famous? Are you a total idiot?”
“Something incredibly dumb is happening. That’s why I’m calling at such a stupid time.”
Rio sighed. “Okay. Well, if you’ve got something stupid to say, I’ll hear it out.”
Sakuta took around twenty minutes to fill Rio in on everything happening to Mai. He did his best to leave conjecture out of it, only reporting what he’d personally witnessed. Rio asked a few questions along the way but mostly just heard him out.
“…What do you think?” he asked when he was done.
There was a long silence.
“I see,” she said at last. There was a thoughtful sigh. “You and Sakurajima are way closer than I thought.”
“Is that all you got out of it?”
“I did not want to hear your love story.”
“I didn’t ask for help on that end of things!”
“You just s
pent twenty minutes boasting about it. At this time of night.”
“I wasn’t boasting!”
“Bragging, then.”
“Be reasonable!”
“This is inherently unreasonable,” Rio grumbled.
“Yeah, I know, but…think about it. Compared to me being with the Mai Sakurajima, people not seeing her and forgetting she even exists seems totally normal.”
“You can say that again.”
“Argh…”
He’d been joking, but Rio readily agreed.
“But like I said before, I don’t actually think Adolescence Syndrome is real.”
“I know. Because it isn’t logical, right?”
“Yes.”
But she didn’t accuse Sakuta of lying outright because he’d shown her the scars on his chest and told her about what happened to Kaede. Rio had said, “It may not be logical, but if I believe your story, it does explain some things.”
Naturally. Sakuta was telling the truth, after all. Kaede’s Adolescence Syndrome was a big part of why he’d left home and come to Minegahara High. Otherwise, he’d just have gone to his local school, never met Shouko Makinohara, never even known Minegahara High existed.
“So what do you expect from me?”
“I need your help figuring out why this is happening and finding a solution.”
“That’s a big ask, Azusagawa.”
“I’m desperate enough to ask anyway.”
“……”
“Uh, Futaba? You still there?”
“Kunimi once said…”
“Huh?”
Why was she bringing up Yuuma now?
“Your best trait is that you can say things like thank you, sorry, and help me.”
“I mean, it’s not like I say those things to anyone but the two of you.”
He was deflecting, embarrassed, and she just snorted dismissively.
“Fine,” she said. “I’ll try to think on it. Don’t expect much.”
“I’m expecting a lot!”
“Look…”
“Thank you. It’s a huge help.”
Honestly, Sakuta was scared. He couldn’t see a way out. He hadn’t been this scared since they were in the worst of Kaede’s Adolescence Syndrome. He had no idea where to even start fighting. And that was terrifying.
Maybe Sakuta would lose the ability to see Mai. To hear her voice. He might even forget she existed. That was the most terrifying thing of all.
“Will you be at school tomorrow?”
“We’re in Ogaki now, so…not in the morning, at least. Why?”
Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai, Volume 1 Page 12