Seishun Buta Yarou Series - Volume 12 - Chapter 1.2

2

The eighty-minute lesson over with, Sakuta bade his students good luck on the exam and sent them packing.

“Sakuta-sensei, don’t remind me!” Kento said, scowling at him.

Juri simply bobbed her head—this could be either yes or no—and vanished through the doors.

It seemed it would be a while before he earned trust or respect.

“Don’t worry—I’ll do well,” Sara said. That was nice of her.

He’d asked her to hang back to discuss class scheduling and the lesson plans.

“We’ll probably spend the next class mostly reviewing anything the three of you got wrong on the test, but…what are you hoping for after that, Himeji?”

She was a bright kid and immediately understood what he had left unsaid.

What he was teaching now wasn’t enough for her.

Sakuta’s lesson plan was designed to help shore up Kento’s and Juri’s fundamentals. But Sara already knew all those.

It wouldn’t do her much good to sit through the same lectures.

She thought about it for a minute, then looked right at him.

“Can I decide after the exams are done?”

“Of course.”

“I don’t wanna sound too cocky and then get a thirty on the finals,” she said, fighting back a smile.

“Better not joke about that in front of Yamada.”

Kento had scored exactly thirty on the midterms. And Sara had seen that answer sheet—chances were good that she was referencing that grade directly.

“Don’t tell him I was picking on him. This is…a secret between the two of us, Teach.”

Her smile bubbled over. She seemed quite pleased he’d gotten her joke.

“Then you’ll stick to the same day as them next time?”

“For the exam review? Sure.”

“You might not have your answer sheets back, but bring a copy of the test itself.”

“Got it. We can talk about the future again, then.”

“Mm. Take care on your way home.”

Sara shouldered her backpack. But she didn’t make a move to the door. She was looking up at him like she wanted him to say something else.

“You’re not gonna wish me luck on the exam?”

“I know you’ll get a good grade.”

“Way to turn up the pressure!”

Her words made it sound like she was upset, but her sunny smile suggested otherwise. She sailed out the doors.

Once she was gone, Sakuta filed the report on the day’s class. Since there was an extra student listed, he had more to write.

Once the necessary paperwork was out of the way, he looked around for Rio Futaba, who also worked here part-time. If her class was over, he figured they could leave together, giving him a chance to pick her brain about dreams coming true.

He found Rio readily enough; she was in the common area near the staff room, answering the questions of a rather tall boy—Toranosuke Kasai, who studied physics with her.

She had one finger on an open textbook and was scribbling in a notebook with her other hand. Each time Rio asked “With me so far?” he said “Yes” so softly it was hard to believe it came from a body that big. She finished one problem and moved on to the next.

This seemed like it could take a while.

It wasn’t like the dream thing had to be discussed today. He could wait.

The threat to Mai was much more urgent, and he’d consulted Rio about it the same day he got the message.

He’d straight up borrowed Mai’s phone to call her and had her meet him at Fujisawa Station as soon as her classes were over. They’d discussed the situation at the family restaurant that was Sakuta’s other workplace.

“All I can say now is that there’s two main categories of threat,” Rio said, returning from the drink counter with a coffee.

“And those are?”

“Touko Kirishima herself is a danger to Sakurajima.”

“Or?”

“Someone who got Adolescence Syndrome from Touko Kirishima will put Sakurajima in harm’s way.”

“Yeah, one or the other.”

The warning was so short all they could really deduce from it was these nebulous findings.

There was no indication of what would happen, what the threat was, or even what kind of peril they were facing.

All they knew was that it was somehow connected to Touko Kirishima.

“No matter how I think about it, the direct-threat angle doesn’t seem very likely.”

That would just be a crime. He couldn’t come up with a possible motive. None of their meetings had suggested there was any deep-seated resentment. And since she was invisible, she’d had no shortage of opportunity. The fact that nothing had happened to Mai so far proved him right.

“I agree the latter option is more likely.”

But that didn’t completely rule out the former. Rio took a sip of coffee, leaving that conclusion unsaid.

At most, Touko had once sounded irritated by Mai’s arrival. But that was arguably just a reaction to having their conversation interrupted. Even if there was more to it, it hadn’t felt strong enough to justify committing a crime.

“What do you think I should do, Futaba?” he asked, once she’d put her cup down.

Sakuta felt like he lacked enough information to take any decisive action.

“If you want to cut the problem off at its source, then cure Touko Kirishima’s Adolescence Syndrome.”

Only Sakuta could see her.

Just like how only he’d been able to see Mai.

“That’s your department.”

The smile on Rio’s lips suggested she was recalling how he’d solved Mai’s problem.

The moment he’d asked Mai out.

He’d run out on the field during a test and yelled “I love you!” for the whole school to hear.

“If only that solved everything.”

Sadly, Mai and Touko were very different. Not just his relationship to them, but the why and the how.

They’d known enough about why Mai was disappearing that Rio had been able to put together a working hypothesis, but they still knew next to nothing about Touko.

Why couldn’t anyone else see her?

The similarities to Mai’s symptoms only emphasized the differences.

Touko had merely vanished from the visible spectrum. Where Mai had vanished from people’s memories, everyone still knew who Touko was.

They were listening to the songs she uploaded and talking about how much they loved her and her music.

“Futaba, do you think she’s actually causing this latest round of Adolescence Syndrome?”

Touko had described that as giving out “presents.”

Like how Uzuki Hirokawa had suddenly learned to read the room.

Or how Ikumi Akagi had swapped places with another potential self.

As for the students dreaming of the future…she’d called those presents, too. Apparently those were the gifts everyone wanted.

“She said so herself.”

And that was why Rio was suggesting that curing her Adolescence Syndrome would solve everything else.

“On the other hand, all we have is her word for it.”

And no actual proof. He and Rio could sit here speculating for hours and get nowhere. The path forward was already closed.

“I guess you’re right, then.”

Standing at the dead end did bring him to one conclusion. It prepared him to accept the task.

“I’ll just have to cure Touko Kirishima.”

Rio agreed with a meaningful look.

“Might be some small comfort, but keep an eye on the dreaming hashtag. Maybe one post will give you a clue.”

“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, and Adolescence Syndrome for Adolescence Syndrome.”

When he got home, he put Rio’s advice into action. He borrowed his sister Kaede’s laptop and pored over all the #dreaming posts for anything about Mai Sakurajima. He found exactly zero stories that seemed connected to any overt danger.

Ever since, he began routinely searching the hashtag.

As long as Sakuta maintained a good pace, the walk home took maybe ten minutes. After class ended, Sakuta made it back to his apartment just after nine.

“I’m home!”

He took off his shoes and stepped up inside. Their cat, Nasuno, came padding out from the living room. A moment later, the washroom door opened.

“Oh, Sakuta. Welcome back.”

It was his sister, Kaede, in her pajamas.

She headed into the kitchen, still drying her hair. He heard the freezer door open, so she must have been in a mood for a cold treat.

He took over the washroom to wash his hands and gargle. Then he headed into the living room, allowing himself to feel a little hopeful.

His eyes snapped to the answering machine.

He was waiting for a callback. Desperate for it.

But the red light held steady. It would be flashing if someone had left a message. He checked the call logs, but nobody had phoned them.

“Guess I’ll try again.”

He punched in the newest number in his mental telephone directory.

The one the miniskirt Santa had given him.

A moment later, he heard it ringing.

That proved the number was in use.

If she was telling the truth, this should be Touko Kirishima’s cell phone.

After the seventh ring, it sent him to voice mail. It was the same default message he’d heard several times over the last few days.

He hadn’t just called once or twice. He’d left a voice mail the day before, as well.

There was no sign of her calling him back, but Sakuta didn’t let that discourage him. Once more, he spoke into the receiver.

“Is this Touko Kirishima’s number? This is Sakuta Azusagawa, calling to learn more about Santa Claus. Hope you’ll call me back.”

With that, he hung up.

From behind him, Kaede scoffed. “What was that, a prank call?”

He turned around and found her giving him a look of great suspicion, an orange Popsicle in her mouth.

“Not a prank. Just a normal call.”

“You’ve totally lost it!”

“Kaede, you’re starting to sound like a high school girl.”

“Your fault for always being weird.”

“Yeah?”

“The fact you don’t even realize how bad you are means you’re already insane.”

Their sibling banter was suddenly interrupted.

The phone was ringing.

Not Kaede’s cell phone, but the landline.

An eleven-digit number was on the display. It was a number he didn’t yet recognize instantly but did know.

He grabbed the receiver.

“Azusagawa speaking.”

He opened with the most ordinary greeting.

“……”

No response came.

But he could hear someone on the other end.

“Kirishima, right?”

The number on the screen proved as much.

“You’re smarter than you look,” Touko said, somehow managing to make it not sound like a compliment.

He had a hunch what she meant.

She’d flashed that number at him for three seconds total and was taking a dig at him for managing to memorize it.

“I get that a lot.”

“And downright devious.”

This was probably a warning not to keep playing dumb. Or maybe it referred to how he’d pretended he hadn’t learned her number. Possibly both.

“And yet awfully stupid.”

His reputation seemed to be in free fall. But it hadn’t exactly started out high. It had only seemed that way because she’d called him smart. What she’d meant by it was less flattering.

“If you call someone and they don’t answer, most people would work out they’re being ghosted.”

“I figured it’s fair play till you block the number.”

He had good reason not to just let it drop.

 Find Touko Kirishima.

 Mai’s in danger.

The other Sakuta had told him this.

“I got questions, Kirishima.”

“How to become Santa Claus? That’s a secret.”

“Can we meet again?”

He definitely didn’t expect to get much out of a single phone call.

There was too much he didn’t know.

He’d been told to find Touko and had her on the line—he’d also met her in person. Arguably, he’d already found her.

But that didn’t bring him any closer to finding out why “Mai’s in danger.”

Like Rio said, right now they only had two working theories.

Touko harming Mai herself.

Or the threat coming from someone who’d received a gift of Adolescence Syndrome from the miniskirt Santa.

One or the other.

But even that was just conjecture.

For that reason, he wanted to meet her in person, gauge her responses with his own eyes.

“It’s December now,” she said.

His eyes turned to the calendar. “So it seems.”

Only one month left in the year.

“This is a busy time for Santa Claus.”

“Can you squeeze me in?”

“How about tomorrow?”

“Uh, actually, tomorrow isn’t…”

Today was December 1. Which meant the next day was December 2—a special day that came once a year.

“Call again after classes are over. If I feel like it, I might meet up with you.”

Touko wasn’t listening to him sputter.

“It can’t be another day?”

He was clutching at straws.

“You have other plans?” she asked, sounding annoyed.

“It’s my girlfriend’s birthday.”

Mai had secured a rare day off and said, “I’ve got somewhere I want to take you, Sakuta. Don’t make plans after class.” He’d been looking forward to that birthday date ever since.

“Oh,” Touko said, apparently convinced.

Perhaps that meant she’d agree to change plans.

But that hope was soon dashed.

“Then I’m definitely not meeting you any other day.”

There was a mocking lilt in her voice.

And she hung up immediately.

He couldn’t even try to stop her.

He tried calling back.

“……”

Shockingly, she didn’t pick up.

All he got was the voice mail.

“This is Azusagawa calling to discuss tomorrow, will call again.”

With that, he hung up.

“Sakuta, these prank calls are going too far,” Kaede said, dropping her Popsicle stick in the trash.

“I’m calling to make sure things don’t go too far.”

Now how was he supposed to break this to Mai?

She’d likely understand if he told the truth. She was familiar with the circumstances. But he didn’t think she’d like it.

“Guess I’d better go to bed early.”

The next day was gonna take a lot out of him.

He’d need stamina to weather his tongue-lashing.