Chapter 34: Kitten.
"…Hypermnesia, huh?" Furuya Rei sat at the table in his single apartment, looking at the neatly organized but not particularly well-organized document on the table, recalling the words the Miyano couple had spoken before he left.
[This information was obtained in advance through some connections. There are currently no more than 40 confirmed cases globally, but further research may uncover more. And each of these cases is somewhat different.]
Some people remember their birth, while others are triggered by a sudden stimulus at a certain moment in their childhood.
[However, besides hypermnesia, there is another type of patient who also possesses a similar photographic memory ability: "Savant syndrome." These individuals typically have an extraordinary talent for memory in a particular area, but their limitations are also quite obvious, which I have listed below.]
Besides these, there are also people who simply have photographic memory—the "hypermnesia" and "savant syndrome" mentioned earlier are both "illnesses," which can bring mental burdens or harm. After all, photographic memory can definitely be considered a talent.
One of my sister's children has a similar talent, but it hasn't burdened his life. On the contrary, he's used this talent to pursue his favorite interests.
[If you, Rei-kun, are interested in this and would like to know more... they will soon upload more detailed papers and data to this website. Don't worry, it's okay to show this information to others now.]
Based on Hiromitsu's description and Sora'aki's usual behavior, hypermnesia does seem more likely. However, Sora'aki was diagnosed with autism in his childhood, and his symptoms overlap somewhat with those of savant syndrome…
Furuya Rei hand tapped erratically on the document. He and Sora'aki had spent too little time alone together; he learned most of his information from Hiromitsu.
"...So, I should talk to Hiromitsu first." Furuya Rei raised his hand to brush aside a section of his bangs, leaned back in his chair, and looked up. His purplish-gray eyes reflected the ceiling of the apartment, and the emotions within them were unfathomable.
On the open page of the document on the desktop, there was a passage written in bold.
The first patient diagnosed with hypermnesia suffered from uncontrollable painful memories due to their exceptional memory, experiencing prolonged insomnia, lethargy, and disruption to their work and daily life. This patient even developed depression and attempted suicide multiple times.
Sora'aki didn't show any signs of this, so could we look on the bright side? Furuya Rei sat up straight again, reorganized the documents, and then took out his phone: "Hello? Hiro, it's me. When are you free? Let's meet up."
Morofushi Sora'aki was unaware of what had happened to his brother and Furuya Rei. He simply went to and from school every day as usual.
"Damn it, I'm so envious of Sora'aki-chan!" Hagiwara Kenji said, "After going to Okinawa, I feel like I've gotten so much darker!"
Matsuda Jinpei, who had also gotten a shade darker—far more so than Hagiwara Kenji—scoffed coldly, "Want to compare yourself to me?"
"There's no comparison between Jinpei-chan." and about Morofushi Sora'aki: "Tell me, Sora'aki-chan, did you apply sunscreen behind our backs?"
"Isn't that Hagiwara applying sunscreen?" Morofushi Sora'aki said. "At first, Hagiwara even asked us if we wanted to join him."
Seeing the disgust on Matsuda Jinpei's face, Hagiwara Kenji curled his lip: "Jinpei-chan, you don't understand. You know, this kind of situation is more likely to cause sunburn than tanning, right?"
"Look at Shimamura-kun, he almost got sunburned and his skin peeled off!"
Shimamura, who happened to be passing by with an unusually red face, gave a helpless look: "Don't laugh at me, Hagiwara. Next time we go to Okinawa, I definitely won't refuse your sunscreen!"
This remark resonated with many classmates: "Yeah, I got so tanned when I got home, my little sister didn't even recognize me!"
"Hagiwara was right after all—is this the advantage of having an older sister?"
"Is this also Hagiwara's scheme? After everyone turns dark, he can stand out from the crowd, like a banana tree surrounded by chimpanzees, getting noticed by girls first!"
Why compare us to chimpanzees?!
"...So why am I a banana tree?" Hagiwara Kenji weakly raised his hand, but no one paid him any attention.
"Ah! I see! Even Matsuda has turned dark now! Hagiwara—you actually thought of that! You're so cunning!"
Hagiwara Kenji hadn't expected the topic to take this turn. Instead of refuting it, he lowered his hand, raised his chin, and said arrogantly, "Foolish people, aren't you going to join my Hagiwara Kingdom?"
"His Majesty--!!"
"Lord Hagiwara—please teach us some tips on how to be popular!"
"Actually, the reason I compared them to chimpanzees earlier," the student pushed up his glasses, "was to say that it's perfectly normal for us to surround them, skin them alive, and beat them up, right?"
"..."
"..."
A subtle smile appeared on Matsuda Jinpei's face. He raised an eyebrow and, unusually, agreed with the others in the class. He then hooked his arm around Hagiwara Kenji's neck, controlling his movements, at the closest possible distance between them: "My idiot subordinates! I've captured the King of the Chimpanzee Kingdom, Hagiwara—come and help!"
Hagiwara Kenji's pupils dilated in shock, and the male classmates rushed forward in unison, while Morofushi Sora'aki silently took a step back and left the area that had completely turned into a battlefield.
"These boys are so childish." During the school trip, the classmates had clearly become closer. A girl with pigtails naturally handed a lollipop to Morofushi Sora'aki standing to the side: "Morofushi-kun is the best!"
"Speaking of which, Morofushi-kun, do you really like sweets? I brought a cake today—"
"How cunning you are, Yuzu! I brought chocolate too, Morofushi-kun!"
Before Morofushi Sora'aki could refuse, he was surrounded by the girls in his class.
Once the boys finished their one-sided battle, they saw that the area in front of Morofushi Sora'aki was piled high with desserts, and Morofushi Sora'aki was biting a fork, glancing at them coldly.
The male students in the class: "..."
"So you were the most cunning one all along!! Morofushi!!"
"It's one thing for Hagiwara to be popular with girls, but Matsuda's face... tsk! And Morofushi! Why are three guys of this caliber in the same class?! There's absolutely no chance for them!!"
Morofushi Sora'aki licked a bit of cream that had accidentally gotten on his finger: "Because you guys are idiots."
Just as Morofushi Sora'aki was about to incur everyone's wrath, the teacher finally opened the door and walked in. Looking at the chaos in the classroom, veins bulged on his forehead: "Get back to your seats!!"
Hagiwara Kenji, who had been pinned down by a group of people, finally managed to get up and sit down in his seat: "Seriously, I'd rather be surrounded by girls than boys!"
"Dream on." Matsuda Jinpei smoothed his hair before lazily resting his chin on his hand and sitting down. "But, Morofushi, when did you become so popular?"
"Actually, Sora'aki-chan has always been very popular, it's just that everyone hasn't had a chance to feed him." Kenji Hagiwara said with a smile. "Since we finally have a chance to feed him, of course we have to seize it!"
"...Is Morofushi some kind of zoo's wild animal? And you're feeding it..." Matsuda Jinpei retorted.
Just then, a piece of chalk flew towards Matsuda Jinpei's forehead. Matsuda Jinpei's eyes narrowed, he tilted his head, and the chalk hit an innocent classmate behind him.
"Ah, missed!"
"Aren't you proud, Matsuda?"
"Of course—Kuma-nii?!"
"Call me Kumazawa-sensei properly! Come to my office after school!"
Kenji Hagiwara covered his mouth, his shoulders shaking as he tried to suppress a laugh.
Kumazawa-sensei stood on the podium and patted it: "I know everyone is still very excited after the school trip, but now that we're back on campus, we must abide by the school rules and class rules—"
The teacher's words were always the same old routine, and most of the students in the class just let them go in one ear and out the other. When school finally ended, Matsuda Jinpei was looked at with pity by the whole class, and some even boldly patted him on the shoulder: "Good luck, Matsuda."
"You bastards—"
"Awooo! Matsuda's about to go berserk! Everyone run—!!"
Instantly, the students scattered, and even Hagiwara Kenji, pulling Morofushi Sora'aki along, smiled and said to Matsuda Jinpei, "Jinpei-chan, Sora'aki-chan and I are going to grab that limited edition game first. Remember to come find us after you've finished talking to the teacher!"
This was agreed upon beforehand, and Matsuda Jinpei was also interested in that game, so he lazily waved his hand.
There was only one person needed to queue. When Morofushi Sora'aki noticed the new limited-edition cream puffs next door, he pointed in that direction and said, "I'll go buy some cream puffs, we can eat them together later."
Hagiwara Kenji also made an OK gesture.
Hagiwara Kenji finished faster than Morofushi Sora'aki. When Morofushi Sora'aki came out carrying a box of cream puffs, he saw Hagiwara Kenji nervously grab his arm and run to a corner, pointing in that direction.
When Morofushi Sora'aki peeked out, he saw Matsuda Jinpei talking to a girl in casual clothes.
Hagiwara Kenji, perched on his head, asked in disbelief and shock, "Is Jinpei-chan on a date?!"
Morofushi Sora'aki: "...Matsuda's in love?"
"No way, how can we let Matsuda be the first one among us to get a girlfriend!" Hagiwara Kenji immediately winked at Morofushi Sora'aki, then rushed forward and put his arm around Matsuda Jinpei's shoulder: "Jinpei-chan~ Didn't we make plans to go to karaoke with a few girls? What are you doing here?"
Matsuda Jinpei hadn't reacted yet: "...Huh? When?"
Morofushi Sora'aki suddenly felt this scene looked familiar. He thought for a moment, then slowly walked over, carrying the cream puff in his hand, and said in a dry tone, "Could you please not touch him? You bunch of philanderers."
Hagiwara Kenji: "...?!"
Matsuda Jinpei: "...???"
The girl in the background: "...?"
"Jinpei-chan is going to violin practice with me now." Sora'aki tilted his head, continuing in the same tone as before, "We absolutely have to learn 'Twinkle Twinkle Little Star' today."
Matsuda Jinpei: "..."
Matsuda Jinpei said expressionlessly to the girl in the street, "Don't worry about it, just go that way."
"Thank you." The girl bowed awkwardly in thanks and quickly left the area.
Matsuda Jinpei turned around, veins bulging on his face, his knuckles cracking as he said, "Hey, Hagiwara, give me an explanation."
Hagiwara Kenji took a step back: "...Ahaha, um, Jinpei-chan, listen to me—"
"Let's put that aside for now. What exactly did you teach Morofushi?!"
Hagiwara Kenji felt utterly wronged: "I really didn't teach them this time!!"
"Who else but you would say such strange things?!"
Morofushi Sora'aki recalled the anime he had seen in a certain world while on a mission, and then, without any intention of explaining, calmly took out a cream puff and started eating it.