Prove Your Eternal Love. There Shall Be No Heroine Correction. - Chapter 5

“Amazing. The balloons just keep going and going. It’s wonderful.”

“Yes, it is.”

Looking up at the countless groups of balloons released into the high sky, people clapped in unison. The sound of fireworks flying in the air, I said sorry to the phone, which was still connected to the phone.

“I apologize, President Fuyuki.”

Aogashima-san was about to throw her stamp, but then stopped. I don’t even know what was going on in her mind. But the situation seemed to have calmed down for the time being.

“What for? It’s just a little early, just enough early. This is just a margin of error.”

—President Fuyuki, please! Please let the balloons soar!

What I asked the President to do was to speed up the signal to detach the balloons. The President did not ask me why, but simply replied, “Okay,” to my urgent voice, and immediately contacted the detachment team. Some committee members hesitated at the earlier-than-planned signal, but she called out, “It’s okay, cut it off!” Somehow the operation succeeded.

“President Fuyuki. Thank you very much. I apologize for not explaining the situation. Actually…”

“No, you don’t have to tell me. You just did your job as a special committee member, didn’t you? Besides, I told you. I am the Student Council President. I am always on the side of the students.”

I bowed deeply in the direction of the conference room. When I looked up, I saw Kuroiwa hugging Aogashima-san on the rooftop. By the looks of it, it was fine.

“Nagisa, let’s go.”

I pulled Nagisa’s hand and headed for the school building, weaving through the crowd.

“Heh, ah. Are you going to check on the two of them?”

“That’s part of it, but the game will probably be over soon.”

We weren’t told to meet on the rooftop, but it would be aggravating to be summoned by that angel.

“Hey there, Suguru and Nagisa. Did you two collect all the stamps?”

When I climbed the stairs, I found Minagi in front of the rooftop door. She opened the stamp book as if she was proud of it and showed off the six stamps she had collected.

“Unfortunately, I couldn’t collect them.”

“Eh, so Suguru is a terrible stamp rallyer. What about Nagisa?

Was there such a thing as a good or bad stamp rallyer?

“I was just barely able to collect them. I mean, Suguru-senpai, even if you couldn’t collect the stamps, you should say that you were able to collect the memories.”

“…Ah, well, basically, don’t worry, Minagi.”

“Ahaha, I wasn’t worried from the beginning.”

Minagi waved her hand in front of her face in an excited manner. I don’t dare to ask her what she meant.

“Are you by yourself? Where did Yuuhi go?”

“I’m right here—Ugh.”

After a muffled voice, there was a clunk. The door of the locker Minagi was leaning against opened by itself, and Yuuhi appeared, wobbling on his feet.

“No, why are you hiding all the way in there? Is it a surprise?”

“Haa? I’ve got a lot on my plate, too. Right, why was I hiding?”

“Well, I wanted to talk to Aogashima-san in private, so that’s why.”

Yuuhi nodded his head. Minagi patted him on the head and said, “Very good, very good.”

“What? Minagi, did you talk to Aogashima-san?”

“Yes, I did. I’m sure those two are fine. They seem to have made up with each other. I’m glad.”

“Perhaps, you were the one who contacted Kuroiwa?”

The part of Kuroiwa’s phone call that stuck out to me was where the source of the information about Aogashima-san’s whereabouts was. I had no time to be concerned about it, but I see, if Minagi was in the dark, it all made sense.

“Yes, that’s right. I’m glad we exchanged contacts when we were in the band. It was a good call, wasn’t it?”

Minagi gave a thumbs-up with a smug look on her face.

“Then I think it would have been quicker if you had stopped her.”

“I, you see, have no obligation to stop her. I mean, she wouldn’t have listened if I stopped her, or if you stopped her.”

“That’s true, too…As an outsider, you are really scary with your situation analysis. I really don’t feel like I can compete with Minagi. I definitely don’t want to make an enemy of you. In other words, I must respect you as a great sister-in-law from now on. At any rate, I will make sure to send you mid-year and year-end gifts.”

“She was a very nice girl, that Aogashima Yuno. I like her. I want to take her as my apprentice.

“What are you trying to teach her…?”

As I was still amazed at her comments, a jingle sounded and the school announcement by President Fuyuki began. I looked at my wristwatch and saw that it was exactly 17:00. The announcement announced the end of the Fuyo Festival and the start of the after-party, which would begin in 15 minutes.

“Shirase, you’re a member of the committee, aren’t you supposed to be in charge of the festival?”

Yuuhi pointed at me in frustration. This boy was trying to get rid of me.

“Unfortunately, neither Aogashima-san nor I have been assigned any work at the festival.”

However, I have been assigned to clean up after the festival. It was much easier to manage the after-party.

“Come on, Suguru-senpai, Onee-chan and Yuuhi-kun, let’s going!”

Nagisa entangled her arms around me and forcefully pulled me along. When we opened the door to the rooftop, Aogashima-san and Kuroiwa, who were by the fence, turned to look at me. Tears were streaming from Kuroiwa’s eyes, and Aogashima-san showed us her stamp book, which was all filled up.

“Geh, why are you crying?”

Yuuhi immediately made an terrible remark. That was the part you don’t usually mention.

“What? Shut up, you little brat. High school girls have nights when they want to cry.”

“Aika. It’s still evening.”

“I-I know that!”

Kuroiwa wiped her tears with the back of her hand. They must have made up properly. Nagisa and I looked at each other silently and smiled. I was really happy.

Though, there was one disturbing factor in this peaceful scene. It was an angel descending from the sky while spinning.

“Well, well, welll, it looks like you are all here together. I didn’t tell you where we were going to meet, but you all have been excellent. Well, it was almost the end of the time limit, but five people successfully completed the course, so the game is now over. Now, we will announce the results you have been waiting for!”

With great energy, Ocupido raised its arms to the sky.

“First of all, the loser is—Shirase Suguru-san! The result was five stamps. Well, that’s too bad, isn’t it? Was it a little too difficult?”

Ocupido came whizzing up to me, floated in the air, and pointed the microphone at my mouth. Being stoked by an angel was quite a rare experience.

“…Well, yes, it was. It was difficult.”

Not so much the stamp rally, but the questions and answers that accompany it.

“And the winner is—the rest of you! Yes, round of applause!”

But the applause that Ocupido had indicated did not occur. Ocupido looked around impatiently, then clapped by itself.

“…Oh no, I guess everyone is tired already. Well, that’s okay. We’ll be handing out the prizes you’ve all been waiting for. Ta-da!”

Ocupido snapped its fingers with its right hand, and before we knew it, it had five pieces of paper in its left hand.

“Here are the special tickets for the after-party. Show them to the committee members and you will be shown to a special seat! And if you shred this ticket stub and present it to a specific person, you can find out their true intentions! Isn’t it great!”

Ocupido bounced back and forth excitedly with a smirk on its face.

“The winners, please come and get your tickets! Oh, there’s enough for all of you, so don’t panic and get in line, okay?”

Ocupido called out with a smile.

But — none of us made a move.

Nagisa held my hand tightly and did not let go. Aogashima-san also looked at Kuroiwa and just shook her head. Yuuhi was about to take a step forward but stopped. Minagi giggled at this ludicrous situation.

“Heh? Huh? Um…?”

Ocupido looked around restlessly at us again.

“A-Are you sure? Don’t you want to find out how your loved ones feel, or how you feel? Isn’t that what you are here for?”

Nagisa took a step forward to answer the angel’s question with sweat on her forehead.

“Yes. It is true that at first I did. But I don’t need to rely on that kind of power anymore, I can trust Suguru-senpai.

“…I can believe in Minagi-san, too.”

“Because, Suguru. You changed everyone. Come on, you’ve got to be more proud of it.”

“I won’t.”

Minagi spoiled the good mood by adding an unnecessary word at the end.

“Oh, I see. Well, you all are really funny.”

Ocupido let out a sigh, and for a moment, a happy expression appeared on its face. It seemed to be the same expression as when I had rejected Ocupido’s proposal at the beginning.

“Ocupido, you remember my promise, don’t you? Now you will never appear in front of us again, right?”

“Yes, I am an angel and I keep my promises. I have collected enough interesting data.”

Ocupido bounced twice on its feet, then floated in the air and made eye contact with me. Then it smiled and gave its signature sarcastic fake smile.

“—Except, of course, when one of you call for me.”

“No, Ocupid. We don’t need your games anymore.”

I said immediately with mixed feelings of love and hate.

I don’t mean to say that we didn’t need it from the beginning. We each realized something important through this game. Surely we all thought it was meaningful.

Still, such a joke of a game should never be held again.

“Sorry for still lingering. But—If you’re going to go that far, I’ll return the favor by saying this. ‘We’ are very much looking forward to the 『result』 you will reach in the end, Shirase Suguru.”

“Yeah. I will make this love last eternal.”

I don’t know what Ocupido’s intention was. However, I thought this answer was probably appropriate.

We then watched in silence as the angel faded away. The angel never broke its deep bow until the end.

Thus, indeed, the game was over.

There was no shortage of talks among the participants. But now, I guess they all wanted to reflect on what they had gained. Yuuhi, Minagi, Aogashima-san and Kuroiwa leave the rooftop to go to the party later that night.

The door slammed shut. I watched it and stared intently into Nagisa’s eyes.

“…They all left.”

“Fufu, who knows? You can never be too careful.”

Nagisa walked teetering toward the door and opened it again with a jerk. Immediately yelled, “Goodness, Onee-chan!” and shooed Minagi away. Don’t try to peek in as a matter of course.

“Suguru-senpai, I’m sorry to keep you waiting.”

“Is it fine? Minagi is not going to go home like that.”

“Yes, but Yuuhi-kun will take care of it.”

“Ah, right. I hope he will grow up to be a stopper for Minagi.”

I held Nagisa’s hand and proceeded toward the fence as I looked forward to Akikusa Yuuhi’s future.

A crowd of people formed around the after-party stage set up on the ground.

For a while, there was a period of silence.

It was not an awkward one. It was a time to make sure we were next to each other. And so we waited. We were waiting for the moment when the fireworks went off. The next conversation we were going to have has already been decided, so this silence was a necessary process.

Hurrrrrrrrrrr. The first firework was shot into the sky. It exploded with a bang, and colorful sparks were scattered in the sky that has begun to darken.

That was the signal.

I looked into Nagisa’s eyes and grabbed both sides of her shoulder.

“Nagisa. I love you.”

“Fufu. I’ve already heard that.

“…Even so, there is still a difference in style.”

“We don’t need that kind of thing now. Right, unconventional Suguru-senpai?”

Soon the next fireworks would go off. Really, she was right. Our love didn’t follow a set path at all. We started out with love without a process, defined each other as potential lovers, opened up to her that there were two people I loved, and promised to love each other forever, and now it was too late to say we love each other with such style.

The fireworks that shot off one after another did not wait for our questions and answers. There were fifty fireworks in all. I wondered how our relationship would change after they were all shot off.

“So, Suguru-senpai, what do you want me to do?”

The way she asked cutely while shaking her red ribbon reminded me somewhat of Minagi. People are changing. Every moment. They grow up and become adults.

“I want you to go out with me.”

“I don’t want to.”

It was an immediate answer.

With a big smile on her face, like the seventh firework scattered in the sky.

“Eh, ah, uh, Nagisa…?”

I was caught off guard by what she said. I had not expected such a development.

I was so confused that Nagisa took advantage of the opportunity and hugged me. Then, happily depositing all her weight on me, I lost my balance and we both fell on the rubber-chip floor.

“Suguru-senpai. Do you remember? Our first promise.”

As I lay down, my vision only reflected Nagisa who was covering me. That was all I needed.

“…I’m going to love you again. I am not talking about the baseless feelings I inherited from the distant me, but the feelings that I myself have now.

I repeated, word for word.

“Right. I know how you feel about me, Suguru-senpai. But I still don’t know if those feelings are really the feelings of Suguru-senpai in this world. So this is—the final test. Please be still, okay?”

Nagisa covered both my ears and hesitantly closed her eyes. Even her curled eyelashes were cute. Listening to the sound of fireworks, I also covered both of her ears and closed my eyes.

At that moment, we were cut off from the world. I couldn’t see the sky. I couldn’t hear the fireworks.

All that connected us was the warmth of our bodies against each other’s ears, the breath we could feel, and the sound of our heartbeats. And yet, as if pulled by an invisible thread, we did not hesitate. Nagisa’s lips met mine. Not only once, not twice, but three times.

In the silent space, only the sound echoed each other. My brain was in a state of debauchery.

Yeah, I see — that was how she test you.

The feeling of rejection no longer appeared.

That was the undeniable proof that my current feelings had surpassed my past feelings.

Nagisa took her hands away from my ears and we opened our eyes. At that moment, the sound of fireworks punctuated the sky.

My potential lover smiled innocently, her bright red cheeks were still visible.

“Fufu. You passed the test. Suguru-senpai, I really love you. I love you so much that I don’t want to leave you even for a second. So, Suguru-senpai. Please go out with me.”

I can’t count many times I’ve seen fireworks exploding around in her background.

“…Isn’t that just like…my proposal?”

I was so amused that I gently put my hand on Nagisa’s cheek and made fun of her.

“W-What are you talking about!? The result is the same, but the process is different. I am confident that my feelings are greater than Suguru-senpai’s feelings. That’s why I’m confessing my feelings!”

Nagisa pouted. It was adorable.

“But I think I also love you so much that I don’t want to leave you for even a second.”

“Then…I love you more than that, way more.”

The voice, which became quieter as it neared the end of the word, still did not disappear with a roar in the sky.

Nagisa, breaking through the limit of embarrassment, turned her face away from me, changed her position, and looked up at the sky as she got up. I stood up next to her, so close that our shoulders were almost touching, and we were in the same posture, looking at the sky from the same angle.

And then—

The biggest firework ever shot off.

This was probably the last one.

The petals of the firework burned up and disappeared in free fall. But our feelings would never disappear.

“So what is Suguru-senpai’s answer? Will you go out with me? Will you be my boyfriend, my husband, hold all of my memories in your arms, and go to the grave with me?”

Remaining in the same position. Nagisa fell toward me.

“Sounds like you are offering a long time in advance.”

“Because that’s what you promised, isn’t it? That’s what eternity means, right?”

Nagisa’s eyes were so bright as she asked me.

I answered simply.

“Yes, that’s right.”

That was the future we were aiming for. If we have decided so, there was only one thing we could do. We have to get there by the most beautiful process.