Brave Story - Miyuki Miyabe [88]
“Huh? What?” The other two leaned toward him. “What did you say?”
“Mitsuru. What about Mitsuru? Is he here today?”
“Mitsuru? Is he talking about the kid in the next class?” Sanae looked at Katchan. Katchan shook his head. “I don’t see what Mitsuru has to do with anything.”
“Oh, but maybe—hey, hey, Misa!”
Sanae caught a face she recognized in the crowd of students going by them on the stairs. One of the girls stopped and looked around.
“What?”
“Mitsuru’s in your class, right? Is he here today?”
“Nope. Didn’t see him at the morning speech, and he’s never late to class.”
“No kidding. Thanks!”
Misa waved and ran off to class. Wataru’s vision dimmed, his skin felt cold, he could barely stand. Ashikawa took the day off. Ashikawa was gone too.
So long. Goodbye.
Was that what he’d said?
Sanae’s grip on Wataru’s elbow tightened. “Katsumi, wake up! Your friend’s anemic or something. He’s gonna collapse. Quick, get a teacher!”
“No, I’m fine,” Wataru said slowly. “I’m really fine. I’m not going to faint.”
“Are you sure?”
“Um, Sanae…”
“Huh? What? What’s wrong?”
“You’re hurting my arm.”
Sanae stood flustered for a moment, and then quickly released his arm.
“Oh, sorry! Sorry.”
“Don’t know yer own strength,” Katchan said, grinning, as she smacked him on the shoulder.
Still concerned, the two of them got on either side of Wataru and walked with him to the classroom. Katchan looked like he wanted to say something, but Sanae kept him quiet with a stern glare.
Wataru stood in the doorway to the classroom, but his mind was somewhere else entirely. The scenes from last night played through his head like he was skipping through a movie on DVD, jumping to each moment, replaying them in vivid clarity.
The classroom was buzzing. It was clear that Kenji’s mysterious disappearance was the topic for the day. Their teacher left the room twice during the first class, returning each time with a clouded expression on his face.
Report cards were handed out, and just before they were released to go home, their teacher was called out again. Left on their own, the students erupted with worried chatter and mounting curiosity. It was the same in every classroom. The sound spilled out into the hallways until it seemed like the whole school was participating in one giant conversation.
When the teacher finally returned, he announced that all students would be going home in groups, escorted by PTA-appointed parental chaperones. They would all go down to the schoolyard in order, so until their class was called, they would have to wait patiently at their desks. Message delivered, the teacher left them again.
The excitement had risen to a fever pitch by this point. A few brave souls sneaked into other classrooms to gather information. Some students had brought in contraband cell phones in their bags, and they called home. Their friends clustered around the desk, trying to hear what was being said.
In the middle of it all, Wataru sat listlessly in his chair, half of his mental energies committed to the sole task of replaying last night’s events. Katchan and Sanae got up and went over to him.
“Something is definitely wrong with you, Wataru,” Sanae said seriously.
“What’s the matter?”
How easy it would be if it were something he could explain, something they would believe.
A shriek rose from one of the clusters of students in a corner of the room.
“What?!” Katchan shouted, whirling around. “Don’t shout like that!”
The circle broke up, leaving one girl in the middle with a cell phone still pressed to her ear. She was gripping a friend’s hand tightly. They both looked ready to cry.
One of the other girls from the group walked into the middle of the room, her face drawn, and told the class, “They found two of the sixth graders.”
Wataru looked up.
“Two? You mean Kenji’s friends?” Katchan wasted no time in asking.
“Yeah. Collapsed in Senkawa Park.”
“Both of them?
“Both.”
“Were they dead?” someone asked.
“No, not dead, but it’s strange.”
“Whaddya mean, ‘strange’?”
“They weren’t hurt at all, but they say they don’t remember a thing