「…Someone’s enjoying themselves.」

     Maybe Yume was acting sulky because she was feeling neglected.

     I smiled.

     「Kinda. I mean, I don’t really come off as the princess-y type, right? So it’s funny that there are people saying that about me.」

     「Really? …You’re cute, Kurumi. I don’t think what you’re saying is true.」

     「Huh…」

     「Princess Kurumi, please grace me with a gift.」

     Mutsuki joined in on the conversation. Sighing a little, I gave her my portion of the bread that was being given out.

     「Ah, thanks. …Hm. You took the chocolate one. Whatever, I guess.」

     「I don’t think that’s the right attitude to have towards a gift…」

     I had been given the options of red bean, chocolate, and cream and ended up choosing the chocolate flavor, but it didn’t seem like Mutsuki liked it. Even so, she immediately popped open the plastic wrapping and started munching on the bread.

     「That chocolate we had the other day was so good.」

     「Of course it was. How much do you think it cost us, exactly?」

     Yume said, glaring at Mutsuki.

     「Okay, okay, quit staring. Yume, if you’re feeling hungry and cranky, I can give you some bread.」

     「I have my own. And don’t touch my hair with same the hand you’re holding the bread with.」

     「Don’t worry, it’s clean. …Ah, my bad. I guess some chocolate did get on it.」

     「Hey!」

     Despite having just come from a run, the two of them were full of energy. Mutsuki was teasing Yume while munching on her bread, and Yume was chasing Mutsuki around.

     Things were so peaceful.

     This was my everyday life. That very fact was made quite palpable as I continued to gaze at them. However, this everyday life stood on the other side of a thin film. It wasn’t like at home, where the boundary was set with a thick wall of glass, but I still felt a certain sense of distance.

     Before, this everyday life should still have been within reach.

     I glanced over at Sorahashi-san. She still seemed to be taking some sort of video with her friends. Her brilliant eyes didn’t find their way to me, and her cheerful smile was directed at her other friends.

     I looked up at the sky.

     「…So cold.」

     I muttered, and Yume’s face appeared by the clouds.

     When I realized I was looking right at her, I quickly shut my mouth.

     「Kurumi, are you getting cold!? Just give me a second, you can borrow my tracksuit. No, you can even have my gym clothes if you’d like!」

     「If I borrow your gym clothes, you’re gonna end up naked.」

     「That’s okay! As long as it helps you warm up!」

     「It’s not okay, though?」

     Yume had a bit of a tendency to go overboard. It reminded me of how Mizuki used to be. She would often make a big fuss over even a little sneeze, telling me to go to the hospital or that she’d warm me up.

     「That reminds me. I heard somewhere that if you get stranded on a snowy mountain, it helps to keep warm if you get naked and share your body heat with each other.」

     Mutsuki’s voice rang out from the side.

     Mutsuki. What?

     「…Okay!」

     「Yume? Yume-san? You’re not serious, are you?」

     「Wanna head to the locker room, Kurumi?」

     「No, not really?」

     Yume tugged tightly on my hand. I felt like she was pulling with an unexpected strength, but I somehow managed to persuade her against it.

     I felt as if the thin film separating me from my normal everyday had suddenly been cut away into nothingness.

     I was worried if these days could continue on like before, but maybe there was no need to worry. Just like always, Mutsuki said something odd, Yume got roped into things, and then I got dragged in as well — an ordinary day that would continue to be, just like yesterday.

     It made me a little happy, but for some reason it made my heart ache and I almost forgot to smile.

     Without knowing why, I continued to pass the time with these two.

     The marathon was held at a sports park quite a distance away from school, so when everything was over people just dispersed from there. The station was a little far so there was a shuttle bus to take us there, but because of how many students there were, it was packed like sardines.

     After being shaken around on the crowded bus for a few minutes, I arrived at the station totally exhausted.

     I didn’t have the energy today, so I had turned down an invitation to go out. But just thinking about going home made me feel depressed. Maybe it was weird to not feel like going home even though I was tired.

     「Kurumi.」

     When I got to the station platform, Sorahashi-san called out to me. When had she ended up sitting beside me?

     「Your scarf is coming undone. Come with me for a second.」

  She said, pulling me by the hand. For some reason, she led me into a bathroom inside the station. This wasn’t the first time we’d gotten into a stall together, but I was nervous precisely because of that.

     A few seconds after entering, we heard the door of the next stall over swinging shut.

     「Sorahashi-san, if it’s about the scarf, then you didn’t have to…」

     My voice naturally dropped to a whisper.

     She grinned at me.

     「That’s not it. There was something else I wanted you to wear. …Say, you brought your collar with you today, didn’t you?」

     My heartbeat quickened.

     It would have been easy to say I didn’t, but I certainly did have it in my bag today.

     As I remained silent, Sorahashi-san reached for my bag. Before I knew it, she had unzipped it and taken something out. The white collar was in perfect condition, just as good as new. That was a given, though, since I rarely had the opportunity to wear it.

     「I’m putting this on you.」

     「…Why?」

     「I mean, Kurumi —— You were so bored, weren’t you?」

     「…What?」

     Sorahashi-san smiled.

     Feeling as if the very depths of my heart were being exposed, I instinctively averted my gaze.

     The sounds of stifled laughter entered my ears.

     「When you were with those two, you looked so very bored. …Rather, you’ve been looking like that all the time, lately. You’re such a greedy girl, Kurumi. Spending your time with Futami-san and Nakamura-san — simply just disciplining me — that’s not stimulating enough for you, isn’t it?」

     「That’s not…」

     「There you go, trying to deny it all again. …Still feeling like a human?」

     Her hand gently touched my neck — as if it could shatter at any moment.

     I heard the clang of metal. Sensing someone’s presence and hearing footsteps, I held my breath. Before I knew it, my breathing had become irregular, like when I had been running. It felt like every muscle in my body was about to burst from the inside out.

     My heart hurt.

     「You should know by now that you and I are both beasts. That expression suits you much better.」

     She smiled.

     I no longer needed to look in the mirror to know what sort of face I was making. And so, I lowered my eyes. Just like that, Sorahashi-san set the collar around my neck and then wrapped the scarf over it.

     「There, all done.」

     「Sorahashi-sa…」

     「Now, shall we?」

     「Huh?」

     She took my hand and unlocked the stall. My heart pounded. I tried to stop her, but it was too late. We ended up leaving the stall together. Luckily there was nobody there, so we weren’t seen. If someone from school had been around, though, there would have been a problem.

     Sorahashi-san must have known that, but even so, she was still so confident.

     Just before I left the bathroom, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. Even though I should have felt like this was an awful idea, I looked so awfully happy. It was an innocent smile, like one a child would make on a school trip. I was surprised. I looked so different than when I was treating Sorahashi-san like my puppy.

     I was lost.

     Perhaps there was nothing more difficult in this world than understanding your own feelings. Why was this making me so happy? I wanted to ask the mirror, but I was sure that even if I did, it wouldn’t respond.

     I felt restless and fidgety as we waited for the train at the platform.

     Sorahashi-san quietly watched over me.

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