Chapter 8 (1/2)
[Kimi no Na] C8 Your Name
So the way, I developed a few habits
Like touching the back ofinto my own eyes reflected in the aze at the scenery when I step out of the door in theat my palm for no reason
Next station is Yoyogi… Yoyogi…
As the synthetic voice sounded throughout the train car, I noticed that I was doing it again I reht hand and idly looked out theHordes of people standing on the platform flowed by as the train slowed to a stop
Suddenly, all the hairs on my body stood up
It was her
She was standing on the platform
As soon as we stopped, I dashed out of the train, too i my body around, I rapidly ran ers walked by giving me suspicious looks, I finally calmed down
There wasn’t even anyone in particular I was looking for ‘She’ is no one
This is another one of those habits I picked up soo, probably one of the weirder ones
As I stood on the platfor at er
Just a little longer is enough That’s all
So, not knowing exactly what that so was
“I applied to work for this cos — or rather, the scenery of a town, of people living”
The faces of the four interviewers sitting in front of ination This is the first time I’ve been able to o
“It’s been like that since a long ti at buildings and observing the people who live and work there So I often went to cafes and restaurants, getting part time jobs and–”
“I see” One of the interviewers gently cut me off
“Then may I ask why you want to work in the construction industry as opposed to the food industry?”
The one who asked ed woman, the sole intervieho looked like a nice person I realized II began to sweat in rown accusto
“Well… interacting with customers in my part tier…” Soer? This is like an answer a ht red “Basically… even Tokyo could disappear at any moment”
This ti that I had begun to touch the back of my neck, I panicked and quickly put both hands back on top of my knees
“So I want to build the kind of town that will remain in people’s memories even after it disappears…” This is bad Even I have no idea what I’ht as I shi+ftedup behind the interviewers, holding back the urge to just start bawling
“So today’s intervie i asked
“Haven’t been counting,” I answered gloomily
“Doesn’t look like you’re getting in,” Tsukasa said in an annoyingly cheerful voice
“I don’t want to hear that frorily
“Maybe it’s because your suit looks so bad on you,” Takagi said with a laugh
“You guys’ aren’t much better!”
“I’ve gotten unofficial offers froi said happily
“Me, eight companies,” said Tsukasa
I had nothing to say in return My coffee cup rattled as race Suddenly,noise I checked ulp, then stood up out of my chair
As I waved goodbye to Takagi and Tsukasa and began jogging to the station, it occurred to h school days Back then every day was so carefree There was no need to worry about the future or finding a job, and for so was always ridiculously fun Especially that one suh school For sowildly in excite that reached my eyes I tried to remember exactly what happened, but I could only reach the conclusion that nothing special actually occurred It was just a ti down could be hilarious Idly running through the past in my mind, I hurried down the stairs to the subway station
“Ooh, looking for a job,” Okudera-senpai said with a s up from her smartphone and at me in my suit
The leisurely commotion of people released from a day of work or school filled the streets around Yotsuya Station
“Haha… well I’ a bit of trouble”
“Hmm?” Senpaime from head to toe Then, with a dead serious face, she said, “Maybe it’s because your suit looks so bad on you”
“I-Is it that bad!?” I looked down at myself
“No, no it was just a joke!” she said cheerfully
Senpai suggested that we take a walk, so we decided to stroll down shi+njuku Avenue, going against the waves of college students As we passed through Kioicho and crossed Benkeibashi+, I noticed for the first tie color About half of the people passing by wore light coats Okudera-senpai also had a loose fitting ash gray one on
“So what’s up? Don’t usually get sudden texts fro about how I alone see seasons
“What, I can’t talk to you if I don’t have any business?” She froith her glossed lips
“No no no!” Flustered, I waved my hands back and forth
“Aren’t you happy seeing me for the first time in a while?”
“Ah, yes very happy”
Satisfied with my answer, senpai sht I’d see how you’re doing” Apparently she had landed a job in Chiba at a branch of a big apparel chain “Living in the suburbs is pretty fun, but still Tokyo really is soly entranced by the bustling city around us “Hey look”
I looked up to see one of those large screens on the exterior of an electronics store in front of us On it, aerial footage of the new double lobed Itomori Lake as well as the words ‘8 years since the comet disaster’ were displayed
“We went to Ito her eyes as she dug back deep into her faraway h school…”
“Five years ago,” I said
“That long…” Senpai sighed faintly, sees already”
As we descended froe and walked down Sotobori Avenue beside the Akasaka Goyōchi, I delved into h school — or no, it was about the sa of autumn I went on a short trip with Okudera-senpai and Tsukasa We rode a combination of shi+nkansen and special express trains to Gifu, then walked around aiht, we also found a randohway
After that… after that my memories started to become blurry, alht or so off onback to Tokyo by myself the next day
Yes, that’s right — for some reason, I showed extreme interest in that chain of events set off by the coment of a comet A natural disaster on a scale rarely seen in human history Yet miraculously, almost none of the town’s residents were injured or killed The night the co out a practice evacuation, causing most people to be outside the area of destruction
After the i to explain the extreme coincidence The rare astronoer’s luck of a lifetiinations of the media and just about everyone else Soether the coon God Some praised or criticized the authority of the mayor, who forcefully carried out the evacuation So was actually prophesied All these wild theories flew about for days after the incident Mysterious facts like how Itoe cut off from the rest of japan or how apparently the whole area lost power about two hours before the iinations The craze continued for a while, but like all other episodes of the same nature, the topic eventually disappeared from the mainstream
But still, now that I thought about it, my behavior puzzled me even more I e On top of that, my frenzied interest suddenly welled up years after the incident actually occurred, al had come to visit me and left just as abruptly without a trace But what in the world…
Well, no point in worrying about it now, I thought as I watched the evening sun sink towards the horizon over the streets of Yotsuya Rather than piecing together so from way back that I barely re a job
“There’s a little breeze now,” senpai said quietly as her long curly hair danced in the air
A sweet scent, one that I had so somewhere far away, reached hthe scent