The sound of the classroom door
opening caused Luna and I to separate our embrace.
“Ah, thank goodness. It turns
out you two are here.”
The person who appeared turned
out to be Kurose-san as she said it.
“Takei-sensei is preparing coke
and snacks for a small party for the Class Flyer Committee after the folk
dance.”
Takei Sensei is the teacher in
charge of the flyer.
“Ehh...O-Oh, I-I see.”
“Th-Thank you, Maria.”
We both immediately panicked,
but I think we managed to react normally.
“...Oh, it looks like we can
see the music stage from here.”
As she said this, Kurose-san
came up to us. When she stepped out onto the balcony that was a little far away
from us, she grabbed the balcony railing and looked down.
It seemed that the song we had
just heard was the last song on the stage, and the folk dance was about to
begin.
There is a small bonfire in the
middle of the schoolyard, far from the stage, but the bonfire is not very
bright, so it does not stand out. The students were divided into males and females
to form a circle around it, holding each other's hands and waiting for the song
to begin.
“...Last year I was curious why
the last part of the festival was a folk dance event.”
Luna said as she watched the
crowd of students below.
“Maybe that is a good thing. It
feels like the festival is over.”
“Actually, I think so too.”
As I replied, the music for the
folk dance had already begun. It was the
famous ‘Oklahoma Mixer’ song.
The boys and girls held each
other's hands as they stepped forward, swayed their bodies, then let go of
their hands and started dancing again with the next partner. This happened
repeatedly without stopping.
Kurose-san muttered a few words
as she watched the scene.
“It looks fun. I wanted to
dance to that song.”
“Ehh, really?”
Luna replied with a surprised
tone.
Kurose-san nodded back.
“Yes. Because I went to an
all-girls school, so I never did folk dancing.”
“Then why didn't you come down
and join the dance?”
“Because Sensei told me there
was a small party, so I looked for you two.”
“Ah, that's right...”
Luna replied with a slightly
awkward face, then her face brightened as if she had just thought of something.
“Then how about we dance? Right
here, right now.”
“There is no way three people
can do it.”
Luna dropped her shoulders
after hearing Kurose-san's answer.
“I see. Even if it comes down
now... you won't have time, right.”
After saying that, her face
suddenly lifted with an ‘Aha!’ as if
she got a new idea again.
“In that case, I'll look for
another person!”
“Ehh......!?”
After looking at my shocked
face and Kurose-san's face in turn, Luna rushed out of the room.
“If we have one more person, we
can dance, right? I'm sure there's
someone here. I'll look for him first!”
As soon as she had said that,
Luna ran out into the hallway.
“.......”
She really did leave.
I had to smile when I saw
Luna's enthusiasm.
——
Looks like fun. I really wanted to dance to this song.
I guess she wanted to fulfill
the wishes of her younger sister, who was always so distant and rarely spoke to
her.
Now that things have returned
to normal with me, I think the [Friendship Plan] with Kurose-san should go
according to plan from now on.
Just as I was thinking that I
was suddenly startled by the sensation of human skin gently touching my right
hand.
“Huh...!”
When I turned around,
Kurose-san was holding my hand.
“Ku-Kurose-san...?”
My heart was beating fast at
this unexpected and sudden approach.
Kurose-san looked at me with
wide eyes.
“...I'm going to practice first.
Please join me for a while.”
After saying that, she puffed
up her cheeks with a slight frown.
“Just to this extent, it's no
problem, right? ... After all, it's my first time.”
“......”
O-Oh,
it's about folk dancing, huh...
While holding my still silent
hand, Kurose-san turned around as if jumping into my arms and took the position
of the Oklahoma Mixer.
A fragrant scent wafted from
her lightly swaying black hair. The scent is different from Luna's, and it
smells like soap...
My heart was beating fast and
my hands started to sweat at the touch.
The hand I put in the mouth of
truth that day────.
——
I remember, if a liar put his hand into this mouth, this thing would bite his
hand off
——
Then, Ryuuto can be safe. Because Ryuuto is 'The Last Man'
At that time, what did I swear?
One day, when I can go to Italy
with Luna.
Do I have the courage to put this
hand in the real mouth of truth?
The music of the Oklahoma Mixer
continued to play in the schoolyard.
I began to take awkward steps
with Kurose-san.
I
liked Luna.
I
wanted to be with her forever.
This
feeling was unshakable.
And
yet.
The courage to let go of those
delicate white hands, and the heart of steel to withstand her temptation...
I don't have that now.
