Ch.254Epilogue. Like a Cat (2)

The reason friends gathered after a long time was because of a wedding invitation.

Actually, we had already received one a long time ago. I kept that invitation respectfully at home. In truth, there wasn’t any other way to store it. There was no reason to throw it away.

The invitation we received back then was something like a “preview of a preview,” and I think Miho Mori handed it out to gain a bit more confidence.

It was an invitation that didn’t specify when or where the wedding would take place.

The invitation we received this time was different.

May 27th, Sunday.

Miho Mori and Ryohei Yamashita are getting married.

Thinking about it again, it really took a long time.

They confirmed their feelings for each other when I was in my first year of high school, so it took almost three years.

It was all out of consideration for Yuu.

Yuu seemed to know this fact and couldn’t object further. Actually, during those three years, Yuu’s intensity diminished considerably. Though still quiet by nature, the sharpness in his demeanor was different.

It still seems difficult for him to call Miho Mori “mom.”

I don’t think he believes his father should remain alone…

After all, Mr. Yamashita and Miho Mori are truly far enough apart in age to be father and daughter. She’s not even that much older than Yuu. If you were to call it an age gap between sisters, it would be considered quite large.

…What if Kagami dated such a young man? I think I’d be dazed.

Well, the atmosphere changes considerably when the positions of men and women are reversed.

“They’re getting married in a church.”

“Yeah. That’s normal.”

Yuu answered my comment.

Is it normal? Well, I think it was said to be normal in Japan.

In Korea, it’s normal to have weddings at wedding halls, so it’s a bit interesting, and in Japan… Well, I’ve never lived in Japan so I don’t know for sure, but given the atmosphere of Yuu’s home, I thought Mr. Yamashita and Miho Mori might have a traditional Japanese wedding ceremony.

“…They’re not planning to invite many people. I think less than half the seats will be filled.”

Noticing I was lost in thought, Yuu ignored me and continued talking.

“…”

After hearing Yuu’s words, we pondered for a moment.

Should we congratulate them?

Although the atmosphere had softened considerably, there was still a strange sense of disapproval emanating from Yuu.

Your childhood friend becoming your mother.

It sounds quite strange when put into words. The atmosphere is completely different from just saying they’re a couple with a large age gap.

“…You can congratulate them.”

Only after Yuu spoke with a sigh-mixed voice,

“C-congratulations.”

“The two of you suit each other well.”

We took turns offering such awkward congratulations.

For reference, the people gathered were me, Koko, Yuka, Mako, Harumi, and Yuu.

It seemed like they were planning to deliver invitations to other friends as well, but for now, they had called us, their closest friends, first.

After the congratulations, we silently drank our beverages for a while. It was a coffee-flavored drink full of sugar, but somehow it tasted strangely bitter. Probably because of the atmosphere.

“Ah, really!”

While everyone had awkward expressions, Harumi suddenly shouted.

“We meet after so long and the mood is so gloomy! Ah, not because of the invitation.”

Harumi hastily added, looking at Yuu.

“I know.”

Yuu said with a deep sigh.

“Rather than sitting here like this, let’s go somewhere fun and enjoy ourselves. We’re all college students, right? It’s okay if we don’t go home until tomorrow, isn’t it?”

We just blinked at Harumi for a moment, then nodded a bit belatedly.

Huh, is that so? That was the general atmosphere.

Of course, we’re college students, and we don’t go to school on Saturdays, so we have plenty of time.

But quite awkwardly, we’re college students but not adults. We can stay at accommodations, but we need parental consent at our age.

It’s a somewhat embarrassingly strange thing to say, but that’s the law, so what can we do?

However, Harumi’s suggestion that “it’s okay if we don’t go home until tomorrow” didn’t seem to mean going to a hotel or similar place.

“Let’s go to my house.”

We were surprised once more at those words.

I thought she would suggest going to my house.

“My dad won’t be home today. He’s away on a business trip.”

Seeing Harumi grinning and making a V-sign with her hand, we once again made dumbfounded expressions.

In fact, given Mr. Fukuda’s personality, he wouldn’t refuse to let us stay over. It’s just that Harumi doesn’t want to invite us when Mr. Fukuda is around.

Come to think of it, we never visited Harumi’s house during high school.

I heard it was quite spacious, but I guess there were more convenient places to hang out than Harumi’s house.

In the end, we followed Harumi’s suggestion that day.

First, we quickly finished our drinks, went to a karaoke place to sing enthusiastically, and then rushed to Harumi’s house.

The inside of the house was surprisingly neat. As I expected, it was a spacious two-story house.

Maybe because it was a place I was seeing for the first time?

With a fresher feeling than expected, we played excitedly until the next day and then fell asleep.

At some point, I think we also drank alcohol, but the memory is hazy because the alcohol, which I hadn’t had in a long time, went down too well.

I think Harumi started taking out alcohol from the cabinet on her own.

…I could recall it more clearly if I tried, but I didn’t feel like doing so, so I decided to bury it deep in my memories for now.

I’ll just mention that we only woke up when Mr. Fukuda, who returned home around 1 PM the next day, saw our state and burst into laughter, rolling on the ground.

*

And so, late May.

The weather was getting humid, and it was already a season that could be considered summer.

Koko and I went to a church in Tokyo.

It looked like a place that had been built quite a long time ago.

Not an incredibly flashy modern building often seen in downtown Seoul, but a church with the atmosphere of an old cathedral.

“The atmosphere is nice.”

“Right? Buildings like this have their own unique atmosphere.”

When I muttered while looking up after entering the building, Yuka agreed beside me.

“Is it okay for a shrine maiden to say that?”

“How long has it been since I quit being a shrine maiden?”

No, quitting doesn’t mean I don’t believe in gods anymore.

To be honest, in this world, I’m not sure what’s correct about “gods.”

There are yokai, and judging from the circumstances, the gods worshipped at shrines are probably real gods. Because this is a light novel.

Then, do the gods worshipped in major religions also really exist?

…

Well, let’s not delve too deeply into it. I’ve already had many clashes with the church in various ways.

“By the way, Kotone, your clothes are pretty.”

“My mom picked them out.”

“Wow!”

Of course, Kagami chose the clothes for Koko and me.

Men can just wear suits, but women’s fashion seems to have so many varieties that I wasn’t sure exactly what to wear, so I had to ask Kagami.

As a result, I ended up wearing a slightly flowy but not flashy white blouse with a dark blue skirt.

Koko and I wore the same clothes, but as always, children recognized me by my demeanor.

“Where’s your mother?”

“She went to see Miho Mori.”

It seems the adults have something to talk about. It’s probably not a serious conversation. Maybe just exchanging greetings?

Mr. Yamashita was already outside greeting the guests.

As he said they wouldn’t invite many people, there weren’t many in number, but somehow all the people coming were large in build. Judging people by their appearance isn’t a good thing, but I kept thinking of a certain profession.

From what I overheard, there seem to be police officers among them.

…Maybe I should stop listening more closely.

“Kotone, Koko!”

While I was thinking about whether to move elsewhere, I heard Kagami’s voice and saw her waving at us from in front of a door.

“I’ll be right back.”

“I’ll stay with the others.”

I waved slightly at Yuka who answered like that, and took Koko’s hand as we approached Kagami.

“Miho Mori says she has something to tell you.”

“Miho Mori?”

I tilted my head at Kagami’s words and followed her.

The place Kagami took us to was the bride’s waiting room.

There were a few women who appeared to be Miho Mori’s friends in front of it. Did they perhaps send them out to talk with me for a moment?

Thinking “no way,” I entered, but inside there was really only Miho Mori.

“Ms. Mori.”

“Kotone.”

Miho Mori greeted me with a smile.

The white wedding dress suited her very well. It was a somewhat retro-style wedding dress that didn’t reveal much skin, but that matched Miho Mori’s atmosphere perfectly.

“Um… you called for me.”

“Yes, I wanted to tell you something.”

As I approached awkwardly, Miho Mori smiled and said,

“Thank you.”

“Pardon?”

“That day, you were the one who protected Yuu, weren’t you? Thanks to you, we can be here as a family like this.”

“…”

That’s…

Actually, I hadn’t thought that far.

Well, I can’t guarantee what would have happened to Yuu if he hadn’t come to stay at our house that day. He wasn’t even mentioned in the main story.

“Above all, I think Yuu has opened up a lot while getting to know you.”

“…Ah, no, it’s nothing. I became friends with him because I wanted to.”

When I scratched my head and spoke, Miho Mori smiled.

There, the happiest person in the world was present.

“Still. I just suddenly wanted to tell you. You also saved me.”

“…”

Miho Mori’s words made me feel proud and ticklish at the same time, so I had to press down the corners of my lips.