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Chapter 146
What I know about Miyagi — 146
Translated by KaiesV
Edited by KaiesV
At twelve o’clock.
That’s what I had thought, but although the twelfth hour passed quickly and two o’clock in the afternoon was approaching, there was no reply from Miyagi.
On the bed where I lay, glaring at my phone.
I decide that I have to wait until noon to hear back from Miyagi, so I think I must leave the house soon.
I have my part-time job today.
I may skip college, but I can’t skip my part-time job where there’s a student. If I continue to slack off and wait for a response, it’ll be time for my part-time job, so I should leave home early. I know, but I can’t leave the house because of the awkwardness of seeing her.
I don’t have the confidence to speak as usual.
I don’t have the confidence to see Miyagi’s face as usual.
And I cannot bear it if Miyagi sees me differently than usual and misunderstands that I regret what I did on Sunday. If I told her I liked her to clear up the misunderstanding, he would think I was using the word “like” to justify what happened on Sunday, and my true feelings would not be conveyed. Besides, if I told her I liked her, Miyagi would surely disappear from me again.
「This isn’t good.」
I mumble nothing to anyone and get up.
Looking at my phone, which is not responding, I am pulled by negative feelings more than the desire to see Miyagi.
『Miyagi, reply to me!』
I message Miyagi with frustration and anticipation.
But the phone still won’t budge a bit.
Time is wasting away, and I leave the house, ready to go.
The clouds are low and the sun is shining, but it is not too hot.
I walk quickly to the station and get on the train.
In my bag, my phone is sleeping like dead.
It doesn’t respond when the train shakes.
I took out my phone and look at the screen, but still no reply. It’s not a difficult question to ask when she will be back, so she should send a reply right away.
Look out the window and watch the scenery flow by.
Thinking about what I have to do now makes me restless. I want to get off at the next stop and go home. I get off at the station where I should get off, almost sucked in by the opening door, and proceed with my heavy feet as if I were wearing iron shoes. Step by step, I headed toward the university. I don’t know how long I walked, but I stopped when I saw my destination.
「
Come to think of it, I didn’t look it up.」
I looked up the location of the university when I was deciding on my current house, but I didn’t look up the inside, so I have no idea what’s inside the university. Because I was thinking only about Miyagi, I hadn’t done my homework. I took out my phone and searched where the university was located and what it had to offer.
「Miyagi, I hope I find you.」
As I knew before I came here, a large and crowded university is not a good place to look for people. Even if it was my college, it is difficult to catch someone you don’t know where they are and can’t contact them.
I should have listened to the college a little more.
It’s not that we didn’t talk about college at all, but I didn’t even keep track of her schedule, so I couldn’t even predict where Miyagi would be today, at this time.
I walk into the university with my phone in hand. Even though students from other universities are allowed in, I am just a little nervous.
I look around to see where students might go, but no matter where I go or how many people I pass, Miyagi wasn’t there. Since it’s not even certain whether Miyagi is at the university in the first place, it may be futile to look for her.
After walking around for nearly an hour, I sit down on a bench.
I felt as if I was doing something meaningless, and I was awfully tired even though I was just walking. I check my phone, but there is no reply from Miyagi. I would like to ask her where she is, but if she knew I was at the university, she would run away to avoid being found. That said, I don’t think I will find Miyagi if I keep walking around.
「Maybe I’ll just stay at the gate.」
Searching for people at a university is akin to the task of finding a grain of salt in a grain of sugar. It’s not easy to find Miyagi anywhere. Still, a place where a lot of people pass by should increase the chances of finding Miyagi.
I get up and head for the main gate.
Perhaps because of all the walking around, it was a little hot despite the breeze.
The sky looks annoyingly blue.
Normally I would consider it a nice day, but right now the bluer the sky is, the angrier I am at its blue.
I let out a small breath.
I turn to look around to see if I can find her a bit more on inside. As I walked around, looking around to see if Miyagi was anywhere, I saw a familiar face.
「Ahh!」
I was unintentionally loud.
The atmosphere has changed, but there is no doubt.
「Utsonomiya!」
「
Eh, Ehh!? Sendai-san!?」
I run up to Utsunomiya, who is walking alone toward me, and grab her arm.
「What is it? Why are you here, Sendai-san?」
Utsunomiya looked at me in surprise.
I knew it, I think.
Miyagi said she told Utsunomiya she was living with me, but if she knew I was Miyagi’s roommate, she wouldn’t be so surprised to see me. I knew there was no way she was telling the truth to Utsunomiya, but it was to be expected.
「I was looking for, Miyagi.」
I feel bad for Miyagi, but I mention her name.
「Miyagi, by that, do you mean, Shiori?」
「Yes, that Miyagi. Was she by any chance staying at Utsunomiya’s house?」
「
Why is Sendai-san looking for Shiori?」
「You haven’t heard?」
「What do you mean I haven’t heard?」
Utsunomiya, not quite grasping the situation, makes a perplexed face.
Miyagi, she would be absolutely furious.
But we graduated from high school, and we no longer have to hide from Utsunomiya that I have a connection with Miyagi. Miyagi wanted to keep it a secret, but if she didn’t told her, the story would not go forward. If Miyagi gets in trouble for getting into trouble, she deserves it. It was Miyagi’s fault for lying to Utsunomiya, and it is Miyagi’s fault for not sending a reply.
「I live with Miyagi. Miyagi, it seems she haven’t told Utsunomiya.」
I smiled and looked at Utsunomiya.
「I didn’t know. Is that true?」
「I’m serious.」
「Shiori, she told me she was living with a relative.」
Utsunomiya wrinkled her brow. Then she sighed a single sigh before continuing.
「
I thought the person Shiori lives with wasn’t a relative. I didn’t think it was Sendai-san.」
「Miyagi, did she said she was living with a relative?」
「She said it.」
I think it’s a reasonable lie, but I also think it’s a lie that will be exposed soon. In fact, it is being exposed now.
「Why are you living with Shiori?」
It’s a question that Utsunomiya is natural to ask, and one that she most prefers not to be asked. I know she will want to ask given my relationship with Miyagi in high school, but it’s hard to answer. Thanks to this, I would also have to tell a lie that would be so easily exposed that I would not be able to mention Miyagi.
「Because we’re friends, I guess
」
「Not that I believed you, but when I asked you in high school if you were friends with Shiori, you said you weren’t.」
「Did I mention that?」
I remember, but admitting Utsunomiya’s words complicates the story.
「You did.」
「Well, that’s fine. I mean, we’re friends.」
I couldn’t afford to come up with a good reason, and I couldn’t find anything else that might be the reason why I had to move in with Miyagi, so I couldn’t back out here. I look at Utsunomiya with a smile pasted on my face that couldn’t be more perfect.
「Then, what was it that made you get to know each other well enough to live together? We were in the same class in 2nd year, and you two didn’t seem that close.」
Utsunomiya asked me in a serious voice, but I am not sure how to answer. Miyagi must not have told Utsunomiya about us, not only now but also in high school. I don’t think the relationship between Miyagi and Utsunomiya is something that can be broken by a few secrets, but it would be bad for Miyagi if something happened to crack the relationship.
「There’s a time I once forgot my wallet and Miyagi lent me money.」
「I’ve never heard that story before. If you borrowed money, do you two get along well enough to live together?」
Apparently not satisfied with my bland answer, Utsunomiya demands more details.
「Let’s see— Ask Miyagi about the rest.」
Utsunomiya is a friend of Miyagi’s, and Miyagi should decide how much to tell her. I don’t want to damage the relationship between the two of them by talking further. I will push the troublesome story to Miyagi for now and fulfill its original purpose.
「So, back to the subject, is Miyagi, did she stay at Utsunomiya’s house?」
「Before I answer that, can you let go of my arm?」
「Ah, sorry.」
I release Utsunomiya’s arm from my grasp.
I grabbed her arm unintentionally to prevent her from running away, but on second thought, she is not Miyagi, so she would not run away at the sight of my face.
「Shiori is staying at my place, but
 I didn’t realize the fight was with Sendai-san.」
「A fight?」
Suddenly a word I don’t remember comes up and I can’t help but ask back.
「Shiori said she had a fight with her roommate and asked to stay over.」
Utsunomiya said probingly and stared at me.
If she’s going to stay at someone else’s house for days, she must have a good reason. But I can imagine that she couldn’t just tell Utsunomiya what had happened between us. I don’t know what Miyagi is telling Utsunomiya about the cause of our fight, but for now, we are talking together and connecting the conversation.
「Well, a little bit. The cause was something silly, but we got into an argument.」
「You and Shiori were having an argument?」
Utsunomiya says in surprise.
The cause of the fight seemed to have been “trivial,” but “argument” was not the right word.
「Yeah, me and Miyagi.」
「I thought I couldn’t imagine Shiori fighting, but I can’t imagine you two arguing more. What kind of relationship do you two have?」
The conversation took a strange turn. But my mind goes to other parts of the story than that.
The Miyagi I know could have argued with me, but the Miyagi Utsunomiya knows is not like that. That is, the Miyagi I know and the Miyagi Utsunomiya knows are different Miyagi. I have known that for a long time, but when I hear words from Utsunomiya that indicate that this is the case, I feel a slight sense of superiority and a slight sense of irritation. I squeezed my hand as a buzzing sensation almost spread through my body, as if my bare hand had stroked the surface of my heart.
「She said we are just roommates. More importantly, can I ask you to tell Miyagi to come home soon?」
「Shiori, she’s at the university. Why don’t you tell her in person? Wait for me and I’ll call her.」
「I don’t think that’s possible. Miyagi, if she saw me, she will definitely run away. That’s why, Utsonomiya, please tell Miyagi to come home.」
「
Is the fight that bad?」
「Well, kind of moderate.」
「Then you should definitely talk to her in person.」
I think Utsunomiya is a good person.
She seems to be concerned about me, even though she doesn’t seem to trust every word I say.
「I can only see a future where she runs away.」
「Then, why don’t you come over and talk to her? Shiori said she’s staying at my place again today.」
I don’t think Miyagi would have any way of escaping from Utsunomiya’s house. But I can’t imagine it being very good.
It would be terribly troublesome to meet her in this state, having revealed Miyagi’s lies. And I don’t know if I will see Miyagi with the same face as before.
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「I wish I could, but I have a part-time job now. I’m a tutor, so I can’t take time off. So I would be happy if Utsonomiya could tell Miyagi for me.」
I told her why I am not lying and asked Utsunomiya to persuade her.
「You’re a tutor, Sendai-san? It’s a little different from what I imagined.」
「Am I? I’m pretty good at teaching.」
「Then come over after your part-time job.」
「I’m going to be late, though.」
「That’s fine.」
Utsunomiya simply says and tells me where she lives. Apparently, not going is not an option. I have a bad feeling about this, but I also think that Miyagi will not behave that badly in front of Utsunomiya.
「Thanks. In the meantime, I’ll give you my phone number.」
I decided to go to Utsunomiya’s house as soon as my part-time job was over and we exchanged contact information with each other.