When Yume and I stepped out of the school doors, the afternoon sunlight hit me square in the face. I lifted a hand to my brow, and my fingers cast a thin line of shade across my vision
It was bright.
Too bright.
I squinted through the sliver I'd made for myself, letting my eyes adjust to the light—and when they finally did, the first thing I saw was her. Yume stood a step ahead of me, completely unbothered by the glare, as if the sun decided she was exempt from its rules.
Her usual dark brown hair had turned bronze, and her skin…it looked almost like glass. Yume looked like something out of a painting, an ethereal beauty that came to life in front of me.
It made us seem worlds apart.
She stretched her arms above her head with a satisfied sigh. "Ahhh…freedom," Yume declared, as if we'd just been released from a prison instead of last-period homeroom.
I caught up to Yume, who was bouncing the balls of her feet, like she had somewhere excited to be. Which, that was the exact case here.
"C'mon, noodle," She said, tugging at my sleeve. "I'm cravin' snacks right now...To the convenience store we go!" Yume raised her hand in triumph, like a soldier going to war.
"Now?" I sighed as I checked the sky again, the sun falling below the horizon. "Uh, isn't it already getting kinda late? Shouldn't we—"
"Shhhh..." Yume pressed a finger to my lips.
"Oh, Hiromi, Hiromi, Hiromi..." She placed her free hand over her heart. "Are you suggesting—no, are you implying—that there's ever a wrong time for snacks?"
Yume gasped dramatically, staggering back a step like my words had physically wounded her. "I can't believe you'd even think that," She said, shaking her head with deep disappointment. "The betrayal…the treason…the utter lack of snack-related loyalty…"
"Okay, okay—sorry," I pleaded, raising both hands in defense, playing along with her joke. "Didn't mean to offend your, uh…snack religion."
"Too late...You have already angered the snack gods. There's no saving you now..."
She pointed at the sky as if divine lightning would strike me dead at any moment.
I found myself laughing again, the sound slipping out before I could stop it.
For a second, Yume tried to hold her serious expression…but it didn't last.
Her lips began to twitch.
Until she burst out into a bubbly laughter, unable to hold it back anymore.
"Pfft—Hiromi!" She snorted between giggles, doubling over. "You—haha—you actually bowed to the snack gods! I-I can't breathe—hahaha. That's hilarious..."
"I did not bow—"
"Yes, you did!" She insisted, poking my arm as she laughed even harder. "You should've seen your face! 'Oh, please forgive me, mighty snacks gods…'"
This feeling…it was the same as earlier. The way she could wash my troubled thoughts away with nothing but her stupid jokes and her even more stupid laugh.
She wiped a tear from the corner of her eye. "Ahh…geez, Hiromi..."
Once she caught her breath, Yume hooked her arm around mine, pulling me forward.
We walked down a familiar road—past the out-of-order vending machines, the rusted bike racks, the cracks in the pavement we used to jump over when we were younger.
It brought back good memories.
"It's weird, isn't it?" I questioned softly. "Thinking about how graduation is coming up in a few days now. Everything is moving so fast. It...feels like we were just in middle school."
"Middle school, huh…?" Yume hummed thoughtfully, swinging our connected arms. "The era where Hiromi Tanaka single-handedly embarrassed himself every day? Mean those times?"
I shot her a flat look. "Wait...I did not do that."
"Oh?" She raised a brow. "Because I remember a certain someone tripping over nothing but air during our first-year assembly."
"I tripped on a cord," I corrected.
"There was no cord."
"There was..."
"Fine, I'll give you that one." She said in defeat. "But what about that time you tried to run track and face-planted in front of the audience? You had to quit the next day, didn't you?"
"That was one time, Yume."
"Oh, and what about when you tried to jump over that puddle behind the gym...and completely ate it." Yume giggled to herself. "Your pants were completely soaked, huh?."
"One time."
Yume was clearly enjoying this moment.
"Mhmm, yeah sure. One time. And then another one time. And then another one time…"
I nudged her with my shoulder. "You remember way too much."
Yume slowed her pace a little, her laughter fading into a soft smile.
"…I remember the good parts too, y'know."
"The good parts?" I asked, gazing over at her, trying to read her expression.
"Yeah." She nodded. "Like our time in the art club."
It was a pleasant time for sure.
I actually loved painting.
Ever since I was young, I've always struggled to express myself to others...My emotions...My concerns. But a blank canvas allowed me to show how I felt when I, myself, was unable to.
And I fell in love.
That's when I decided I wanted to join the art club.
Later in the first semester, Yume joined too, though mostly because she'd been forced by our homeroom teacher to join a club, and figured it'd just be easier if she'd follow me around.
"Yeah, those were really good times..." I responded with a smile.
We reached the convenience store, its sign flickered above as the automatic doors slid open.
"Welcome in," The clerk called out from behind the counter.
"Uh…thanks," I mumbled.
Yume made a beeline straight to the snack aisle, practically skipping over the tiled floor. I followed at a slower pace, still smiling from our walk down memory lane.
She stopped in front of a shelf and grabbed a bag of spicy chips, the packaging screaming with flames and a cartoon mascot that looked like a raging fireball. I knew this wasn't good.
"Spicy chips, I've found you!" She announced triumphantly, holding up the bright red bag.
"Uh, Yume…you can't handle spicy food," I reminded her, glancing at the bag of chips. "Last time you had those...you chugged milk on the train tracks for like an hour or so."
"Exactly!" She said, holding them out to me. "Which is why I'm not buying them."
"Then—"
"That's why you're gonna buy them. So if I start crying again. It'll be your responsibility to take care of me. You're basically my designated firefighter for when the spices attack me."
I let out a long sigh and took the bag from her. "Fine..."
Yume's face lit up at my acceptance.
I made my way over to the coolers and grabbed a bottle of lemonade. I glanced over at the milk, already anticipating the scene that was about to happen. Yume would take a bite, immediately start sweating, and start to cry. Yep—definitely going to need one of these later.
"Did you find everything all right?" The clerk asked as we approached the counter.
"Yes, sir..." I replied, setting the spicy chips and drinks on the counter.
Yume leaned casually on my shoulder.
"All good, Hiromi?" She whispered, giving me a playful poke.
I nodded weakly in agreement.
When the clerk finished bagging the snacks, he handed the bag over—and looked straight into my eyes. "You have a good night," He said, with a genuine smile on his face.
I felt a weird feeling crawl up my spine, but I forced a polite smile and bowed slightly.
"Ah—thank you. You too."
Outside, the sky was now dark, the moon taking the place of the sun. I pulled the snacks out of the bag, setting the lemonade aside in my own backpack and handing Yume her spicy bag of chips and the small carton of milk.
"Please be careful," I warned Yume, glancing at the bag of fiery red chips. "Don't eat too many at once this time. You'll be crying on the sidewalk before we even reach your street."
Yume put the snacks away in her schoolbag. "I'll wait until I get home. Don't worry, noodle."
We reached the corner near my house, having memorable conversation along the way there.
"I'll see you tomorrow, right?" Yume asked, skipping along the sidewalk.
"Yeah…I'll walk you home," I offered, quick to step beside her.
But she waved me off, already stepping down the sidewalk.
"I'll be fine...You get your beauty rest, noodle." She looked at me over her shoulder, her smile bright against the night. "Just remember, don't stay up too late thinking about me."
I frowned, raising a hand as if it would stop her. "Yume—"
And just like that, she was gone.
I shook my head and smiled.
"Goodnight, Yume..."