Someya Wataru just wants to be ordinary.
But with his vivid red hair, sharp glasses, and a mole that draws every eye, "ordinary" has never been an option. Confessed to again and again, he turns each one down—and watches, every time, as something in their expression quietly breaks. It's a cycle he can't escape, no matter how much he wishes to disappear into the background of his own high school life.
When his class volunteers him—without asking—to write the script for their cultural festival pl
Wataru's Nectar - A slightly different everyday life, and a new shadow
The first Monday after the culture festival.
The November morning air had turned completely cold. The sky over Akanezaka was high and clear, and when the morning sun came through the window, it laid a thin band of light across the living room floor. Someya Wataru sat right in the middle of it.
(Why am I so restless?)
The day after the culture festival. His body still felt heavy. The fatigue from yesterday's stage lingered in his shoulders and back. But it wasn't just that. Deep in his chest, something was caught—a ticklish, nagging sensation.
"Big brother, want some strawberry milk?"
His little sister Minami poked her head out from the kitchen. A second-year in middle school. She had the same soft brown eyes as Wataru. Still in her pajamas, her sleep-mussed hair sticking up every which way.
"Yeah, I'll take some."
"Okay!"
Minami pulled the strawberry milk carton from the fridge and poured it into a glass. The pink liquid glugged softly.
"Here you go, big brother."
"Thanks."
He took the glass. Cold. The chill of the glass seeped into his fingertips.
Wataru took a sip.
Sweet.
But.
(...Huh?)
The same strawberry milk as always. A bargain carton from the cheap supermarket. And yet, the taste felt just a little different. The sweetness was oddly mellow, spreading gently to the back of his throat.
"Big brother, what's wrong?"
Minami tilted her head and peered into his face.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"You're drinking your strawberry milk with a weird face."
"...It's nothing. It's normal."
"Hmmm?"
Minami grinned. She sat down beside him and poured herself a glass.
"Big brother, was the culture festival fun yesterday?"
"...Yeah, it was."
"I heard Kou came in a wheelchair. Too bad I couldn't go see."
"Yeah, he came."
"Huh. Did you two get to talk properly?"
"...Sort of."
Wataru stared at the pink in his glass. Yesterday evening, he'd talked with Kou on the Akane River embankment. With the sun setting, Kou had smiled. Just thinking about it made that strange feeling stir in his chest again.
"Big brother, your face is red."
"W-why would it be?"
"Heh. I knew it—something happened with Kou."
Minami laughed happily, sipping her strawberry milk.
Just then, the phone on the table buzzed.
Wataru picked it up. A LINE notification floated on the screen.
Horii Kou: Let's go shopping sometime. You're carrying the bags.
Wataru couldn't help but laugh.
"Yeah, yeah."
He typed that and sent it back.
"Big brother, who's that?"
"...It's Kou."
"Ooh, from Kou? What'd he say?"
"He wants to go shopping. Says I'm carrying the bags."
"Hmm, isn't that basically a date?"
"It's not a date! It's just shopping!"
Wataru denied it in a fluster. But somewhere in his heart, he was a little happy.
Another LINE message came through.
Horii Kou: Oh, and also, buy me a croquette bread.
Wataru smiled wryly.
"Guess I've got no choice with Kou."
He muttered that and typed his reply.
"Fine. But in exchange, you carry half the bags."
Sent. A reply came immediately.
Horii Kou: No.
Wataru laughed.
"Big brother, you're in a really good mood."
Minami said, beaming.
"N-not really."
"It's fine to be in a good mood. Before the culture festival, you had a gloomy face all the time."
"...Did I?"
"You did. I was worried about you."
Minami's voice turned a little serious.
"Sorry for making you worry."
"It's okay. As long as you're doing well, that's all that matters."
Minami smiled brightly.
Wataru took another sip of strawberry milk.
Sweet.
It really did taste a little different from usual.
But it wasn't bad.
If anything, it was comforting.
——
He arrived at Akanezaka High a little later than usual.
He passed through the school gate and changed his shoes at the entrance. The cold November air had seeped into every corner of the hallway.
The moment Wataru opened the door to the second-year Class C room—
"Wataru!"
Kou lunged at him from right beside the door, as if he'd been lying in wait. An arm hooked around his shoulders, weight pressing down on him.
"Whoa, what the hell, so sudden—"
"You're late. The croquette bread at the shop was about to sell out."
Kou, still holding Wataru's shoulder, made a disgruntled face.
Horii Kou. Wataru's childhood friend. Same second-year Class C.
About the same height as Wataru, with slightly wavy black hair that always had bedhead. His eyes were sharp, but his smile made him look young. His uniform tie was slightly crooked again today.
"You could just go buy it yourself."
"Ehh, too much of a pain. It's your fault for getting here early."
"What kind of logic is that?"
"It's not logic. It's fact."
Kou grinned.
Wataru sighed.
"Guess I've got no choice with you. ...Fine. I'll go now."
"Oh, seriously? Thanks. Croquette bread. And a café au lait too."
"...Your order's getting bigger."
"Come on, it's fine. I hurt my leg, remember?"
Kou pointed at his right leg.
The right leg he'd sprained falling down the stairs the day before the culture festival. He still walked with a slight drag.
"...Fine. Croquette bread and a café au lait."
"Yeah. Oh, and while you're at it, I'm curious about that new chocolate bread they're selling."
"That's way past 'while you're at it'!"
"Heh. You're nice, Wataru, so you'll buy it for me, right?"
Kou looked up at Wataru through his lashes.
(...That's cheating.)
When he made a face like that, Wataru couldn't refuse.
"...Fine. I'll go buy it."
"Seriously!? Wataru, I love you!"
Kou shouted right into his ear, still holding his shoulder.
"Quiet, you're too close!"
Wataru flushed and tried to shove Kou's arm off.
Just then, voices of girls came from inside the classroom.
"Hey, look. Horii's clinging to Someya."
"Since the culture festival, haven't those two gotten, like, closer?"
"Ah, I get it. They were always close, but the vibe's different somehow."
"Wait, what, are those two actually going out?"
"Don't say that. But... it's not impossible..."
Whispered voices—but clearly audible.
Wataru thought, Please stop.
"Hey, Kou. Let go."
"Hm? Why? It's fine, isn't it?"
"It's not fine. Everyone's watching."
"Watching? Oh, them. Don't worry about it."
Kou, still holding Wataru's shoulder, waved casually at the girls in the classroom.
"Heeey, we're heading to the shop—want us to grab you anything?"
"Horii, you're going to the shop with Someya? That's rare!"
"Once in a while's fine. I want to be with Wataru too, you know."
Kou said it so casually.
The air in the classroom stopped for a moment.
(...Huh?)
Wataru felt his heart leap.
(What did he just say?)
(He wants to be with me?)
"Just kidding, kidding. Come on, don't make those serious faces."
Kou laughed merrily.
A strange, ambiguous laughter rose from the classroom—relieved, and yet somehow unsatisfied.
"...Don't say stuff like that."
Wataru let out a small sigh.
"Why? It's the truth."
"...The truth?"
"That I want to be with Wataru—that's the truth."
Kou's voice turned serious for just a moment.
Wataru couldn't say anything.
(Kou.)
(You just say that kind of thing so easily.)
(Without any idea how I feel.)
"Come on, let's go. Before the shop gets crowded."
Kou, still holding Wataru's shoulder, headed into the hallway.
Wataru let himself be pulled along.
——
The hallway was starting to fill with the morning rush.
Wataru and Kou wove through the crowd toward the shop on the first floor.
"Did you actually sleep last night?"
Kou suddenly brought his face close.
"W-what?"
"Your eyes are red. You're sleep-deprived."
Kou's fingers touched Wataru's tie.
"Your tie's crooked too. Fix it properly."
Kou started straightening Wataru's tie.
His fingertips brushed against Wataru's throat.
(Close.)
(Too close.)
Wataru held his breath.
"I-it's your fault."
"My fault? Why?"
"...Because of what you said yesterday."
"What I said?"
Kou tilted his head.
"...When we went to see the sunset."
"Ohh. That."
Kou finished with the tie and looked at Wataru's face.
"Wataru, are you still hung up on what I said yesterday?"
"...I'm not hung up on it."
"Liar. Your face is red."
"It's not."
"It is. Go on, look in a mirror."
Kou poked Wataru's cheek with a finger.
"Stop it!"
Wataru swatted his hand away and stepped back.
"You're embarrassed. You're so easy to read."
"Shut up."
"But that's what I like about you."
Kou grinned.
(...This oblivious idiot.)
Wataru cursed Kou in his head.
But.
(I don't hate it.)
(If anything, this kind of time puts me at ease.)
Wataru realized that his heart had begun to take Kou's presence beside him completely for granted.
——
The shop already had a long line.
"Whoa, it's packed."
"Because you ordered this and that."
"It's fine. I get to talk with you while we wait."
"...Saying stuff like that is exactly why it's so crowded."
Wataru sighed as he joined the line.
"Hey, Wataru."
"Hm?"
"Was the culture festival fun?"
"...Yeah, it was fun."
"I see. I had fun too."
Kou smiled, a little bashfully.
"Your Melos was good."
"...You watched?"
"I watched. From start to finish."
"So that's how it was."
"When you ignored the script and started saying weird stuff, that surprised me though."
"That surprised me too."
"But it was good. Your words reached everyone."
Kou looked straight at Wataru.
"...Thanks, Kou."
"Yeah."
Kou patted Wataru's head.
(I like this hand.)
(Kou's hand is always warm.)
Wataru thought that in his heart.
——
After school.
Wataru and Kou headed from the east exit of Akanezaka Station toward Hidamari Street.
Hidamari Street was a covered shopping arcade stretching about four hundred meters from the station. Along with the shop famous for its croquette bread, there were around sixty businesses—a bakery, a bookstore, a greengrocer, a coffee shop, and more.
"Wataru, those clothes suit you."
Kou looked Wataru up and down.
"...What's with you all of a sudden?"
"I mean, I always picture you in your uniform. Seeing you in regular clothes is refreshing."
"You're in regular clothes too."
"I always look like this."
Kou wore a black hoodie and faded jeans. Simple, and very Kou.
Wataru wore a white shirt and a navy cardigan. Safe clothes his mother had picked out.
"Even in regular clothes, you look like a model student."
"Shut up. It's normal."
"Normal suits you best, Wataru."
"...Is that a compliment?"
"It is, it is. You're at your best when you're normal."
Kou laughed and lightly tapped Wataru's shoulder.
"So where are we going? Shopping, I mean."
"First, Bunrindou. The new manga volume's out."
"A bookstore. You buy way too much manga."
"It's fine. It's my money."
"I guess."
The two walked through the Hidamari Street arcade.
A November evening. The sky was still bright, but the wind was cold. Inside the arcade it was a little warmer than outside. Housewives shopping for dinner and students on their way home from school drifted past.
Bunrindou was an old bookstore in the middle of Hidamari Street. The owner, Sanae, was a woman in her seventies, and Wataru and Kou had been coming here since they were kids.
"Welcome in. Oh, Wataru and Kou. The two of you together—that's rare."
Sanae called out cheerfully from behind the counter.
"Hello. Kou dragged me along for his new manga."
"Oh my. Kou, still bossing Wataru around as always, I see."
"I'm not bossing him around. Wataru said he wanted to be with me."
"I did not!"
"What, you did. You're the one who invited me to see the sunset yesterday."
"Well, that's true, but..."
"Fufu. Youth is a wonderful thing."
Sanae laughed happily.
Wataru lowered his head, embarrassed.
Kou went to the manga corner and picked up the new volume.
"Oh, here it is. Finally out."
"What? That manga."
"A battle series. The hero reunites with his childhood friend and they fight together."
"Huh. You do like that kind of thing."
"Childhood-friend stories are a must."
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