"The ringing of the school bell heralds the end of yet another school day."

"With the exams finally over and the wait until summer break down to days rather than weeks, the mood of the class has lifted immeasurably. Even for those that don't care particularly about their marks, the stress felt by everyone else is contagious."

"Even Mutou looks a little more sedate, and he hasn't been quite as hard on me as he usually is. He wastes little time in declaring an end to the class and beginning to clean up his desk, knowing full well that trying to teach us any further would be futile."

"I can't help but relish the sound of the class as people put away their things and begin to chat amongst themselves. Books, hobbies, movies, music, they talk about all the usual wastes of time students would be into, released from the Hell of algebra and physics."

"As some hang around to gossip and others skip out into the hall to make phone calls and check their messages, I hop up onto my desk with practiced ease."

"Looks like I might be here a while, so I might as well make myself comfortable. With her head on its side resting in her arms, Suzu silently sleeps away as people move around her table paying her little heed. I used to think it painfully cute, but it's become a wholly normal sight nowadays."

"My vision of her is momentarily broken as Hanako skitters past me to the door, the blonde Amazon waiting for her outside as she so often is. Least she has someone to attach herself to, I suppose. There are worse lives than that of a limpet."

"The main attraction finally makes his way towards me, having carefully gone over his notes and finally packed his stuff away."

mik "Nerd."

his "Uh huh. So how well did you do in your exams?"

mik "Fine."

mik "...Probably."

"Hisao just grimaces before briefly looking to the slumbering girl ahead of me."

"It's been interesting to watch him slowly become more used to Yamaku's oddities, with the way he treats Suzu perhaps being the clearest sign of it. Her falling asleep or having cataplexy attacks is just a thing that happens, and all you can do is make sure she doesn't hurt herself."

"But it isn't just her he treats that way. On the track he casually talks with the others from the club, and he occasionally helps out the student council without confusion over whether to address the impossibly busty taskmaster or her ever-bubbly accomplice."

"He's standing on his own two feet as a member of the class, now. I take a small amount of satisfaction from that, even if my help might not have been much in the scheme of things."

his "How'd Suzu do, anyway? She seems to study hard enough."

mik "Some people have to try harder than others, unfortunately."

his "She just finds it hard, or what?"

mik "It's not that. She's got a pretty good brain up there, actually."

mik "How would you do in school if you always felt as tired as she does, though? Plus there are the classes she accidentally naps through."

his "That's a good point."

"As the conversation lulls, a glance aroud the classroom proves we're the last ones here. I wonder when Mutou managed to slip out so quietly."

his "So what're your plans for the holidays?"

mik "Just messin' about at Suzu's place. Pretty nearby, and there's a beach and everything. You?"

his "Going home, I guess."

mik "Catching up with friends and all that, yeah?"

his "I don't really have any left there. Beyond meeting my mother and father, I don't really know what I'll do."

"Hisao has a habit of delivering difficult news with a terribly stilted smile. I can't help but feel a little bit of pity for him, despite how little he may want that. He might do well in class, but I'd know better than most how school isn't everything."

"An idea forms in my head, which only seems better the more I think about it."

mik "Hey, why don't you come with me to Suzu's!?"

his "You sure about that? I'm not even sure she likes me."

mik "Believe me, she's cool with you. It'll be fun, don't worry about it so much!"

his "If she's okay with it..."

mik "C'mon man, lighten up. You survived exams, now's your time to enjoy yourself."

mik "Besides, shouldn't a man be pleased to spend a summer with two girls? We could do this, and we could do that..."

"He tries his best not to look interested as I wildly grin and move my hand suggestively."

yuk "You shouldn't talk like that, Miki; people might think you're serious. Especially with you being you."

"Haru's eyes flit to the side for just a second. I just smirk before addressing Yukio."

mik "Who says I'm joking?"

yuk "You're not seriously thinking of hanging out with this loser, are you?"

his "I don't see anything wrong with the offer."

har "I'll keep an eye on the obituaries."

his "Come on, she's not that rough is she?"

"Yukio and Haru both snort, shaking his head and looking away respectively. All I do is give a flat face, but the possibility of them telling him is there. Hisao doesn't seem the type to hold a grudge, especially after his forgiving me for poking around his room, but he equally seems concerned for those weaker than he."

"It's only now that Yukio notices Suzu in front of me, walking past my desk to get closer. He reaches out towards her, but I quickly intervene."

mik "Oi, hands off."

yuk "Since when were you in charge of her?"

"I think Hisao's getting a sense of when Yukio and I are about to start going off at one another; he quickly steps in before things escalate once again, making making his friend - however reluctantly - back away from Suzu."

his "So uh, I'm guessing you guys came for a reason?"

har "Just wanted to see if you lot wanted to come to the Shanghai with us."

his "Don't see why not. Miki?"

mik "I'll stay here, go on and have your fun."

his "But..."

mik "It's fine! See you guys tomorrow."

"Hisao doesn't look pleased with the idea of leaving a comrade behind, but Yukio swings an arm around his neck and drags him out with he and Haru. I give an unseen wave as they leave the classroom, before turning back to my charge."

"And so, the classroom goes quiet. All I'm left to do is idly gaze out the window."

mik "Summer holidays..."

"The words roll off my tongue with ease. I'm excited for them... I think. I know I've been looking forward to them, that's for sure. The topic's been on my mind for a good long time. Now that they're actually here, though, I can't quite pin down my feelings about them."

"Maybe it's less the holidays themselves giving me cold feet, so much as what they signify. This is the last summer holiday before we graduate high school, after all."

"I should be happy with how things are right now. My carefree days with Suzu, Haru, Hisao, Yukio, and the other guys in track club and class have been some of the best I've had since the accident, after all."

"But those days will be over in a few months."

"A movement from Suzu's desk catches my attention, the girl finally stirring from her long nap."

"Blinking heavily and obviously still dazed, she picks herself up a little and groggily glances around while still half-asleep. It's only after scanning the room that she catches sight of my legs, following them up to my gently grinning face."

"She simply turns to look out the window as I'd been before. Maybe she's still disoriented from her sleeping, apathetic towards my presence, or simply has nothing to say. In any case, she doesn't bother to say a word as she gazes at the bright summer scene outside, head resting in her hand as always."

"I should be annoyed with her apathy for my sticking around here for her sake, but I can't even pretend to be. Maybe this is what it's like to be a doting parent, forgiving their daughter's impoliteness as lovable quirks. The more simple answer is that I'm just used to being treated like this by her."

"I wonder what she'll do with her life. Suzu's terribly shy, but that isn't unheard of; it's not like she's anywhere near Ikezawa's level. She's never expressed any kind of ambition though, nor does she have any particular talents beyond a good work ethic."

mik "You know how I'm coming over to your place for the holidays, right?"

suz "Yes?"

mik "I kinda invited Hisao."

"Suzu just sighs. She briefly turns back to check my reaction, before going to looking outside. I can't even read her expression like this."

suz "I guess it's fine."

mik "Yay! It'll be great, I promise. He's a cool dude."

suz "Is that really why you invited him?"

mik "How do you mean?"

suz "He doesn't like being pitied. Nobody does."

"She really knows how to put me in my place, sometimes."

"Is it really that bad to try and do the right thing by someone, though? I just want to make him happy, just like I want Suzu, Haru, and Yukio to be happy. That's normal for friends, right?"

mik "Don't worry about it. Summer holidays are for relaxing, remember? We should make the most of them while they last."

suz "'While they last'..."

"Ah, I see now. She's been pondering the same things I have."

"It pains me a little how I can't give her any advice on the matter. If I could find any answers, I'd give them."

"All I can do is stay beside her as I've always done. Given that she's stayed at my side all this time, she must think the same."

# Timeskip

"I give a quick nod to a passing first-year girl as I make my way back to my dormitory room, my hand occupied by a soft drink can. She returns the greeting as we pass, her eyes momentarily lingering on the arms bared by my tank top before we pass each other. At least that's one thing I can be proud of."

"Another girl stands not far from my room, leaning against the wall and tapping away frantically on her phone. I might as well have not existed for all the attention she gives me as I pass by her and enter my dorm room, closing the door with a push from my foot."

"The bed gives a soft thump as I fall onto it, sitting up and opening the can afterwards."

"I try to focus on things I need to do, such as packing a bag for my outing to Suzu's, but I can't get my mind off what I was pondering earlier."

"Nothing lasts forever. If I've learned anything in my life, that'd be it. That's not inherently a good or bad thing; it just is. Might as well ask why winters are cold and summers are hot."

"I give the upturned cardboard box in the center of my room - a makeshift table that ended up just the right size for the job - a kick out of boredom. My aging phone falls off with a clunk, but I'm hardly worried; the thing's practically indestructible, which has been proven many times over."

"Some of us will go on to great universities, others to menial jobs, and a few will go into family businesses. Most of the students here have long stories ahead of them, of which high school is but one small chapter. For me, graduation is as final as the period at the end of a sentence."

"They might not say it, but I suspect the same thing has run through the minds of Suzu and Hisao. Yukio and Haru have their futures planned out, as a politician and baker respectively. The other two, not so much."

"But I'm sure they'll both be fine. They're both good people, and know how to work hard once their hearts are set to a task. I had my shot, and I blew it."

"Eventually, our carefree days will end. These summer holidays will be our last distraction from that looming future."

"A sudden ringing breaks me from my thoughts. Setting the can on the corner of my desk, I hurridly got off the bed and scavenge the noisy phone from the floor as it skitters about vibrating away."

"The number on the display is instantly recognisable."

mik "Hi, dad."

"I always feel like I'm on tenterhooks when I talk to him like this. Not at all when I'm talking to him face to face, but something about yakking away to a disembodied voice always put me off."

"His deep voice is warm and boisterous as always, and entirely too loud for what's appropriate over the phone."

jun "Miki! What'd I tell ya 'bout callin' me sometimes?"

mik "I know, I know. It's just been busy."

jun "Ah, exams, right? I hope you've done better than last year's effort."

mik "So what's going on?"

"Yeah, real smooth. I bet he didn't catch that diversion at all."

"Thankfully, he just grumbles a bit before moving on. I'll get an earful once the results come in, no doubt."

jun "Just wonderin' if you wanted to come up here. Finally got some of the rooms cleared, so we actually 'ave some space if you want to bring anyone."

"Thinking back, a good half of the house has tended to be a complete mess. Since we never used the rooms, they ended up filled with this and that and rarely ever even dusted, let alone properly organised."

"A summer at home. I've already made arrangements with Suzu, but I could probably twist her arm into coming with me. Same goes for Hisao."

"It's been so long since I've been there. Simply no point, really; it's quite some way from here to travel, and beyond my father, there was nobody to meet or play with. If I had Hisao and Suzu for company, though, it might not be so boring."

"But I'd agreed to go to Suzu's, which has always been a fun experience. An opportunity to show Hisao the country, though..."

# Choice point

# Follow existing plan

"As much as the idea may tempt me, I told Suzu that I'd stay with her family."

mik "I kinda already promised Suzuki I'd stay with her. Sorry."

jun "Don't worry! Long as you're spendin' the time with someone, it's fine! Drop around at some point, though. It's been too long since I've seen you."

mik "I will, don't worry. I'll give you a call later, okay?"

jun "Just take it easy, Miki. I love you."

mik "I know. I love you too."

"I hate saying that over the phone."

jun "And your exam result had better be better than you last ones, you hear me?"

"All that can be heard afterwards is the phone's beeping."

"Son of a bitch."

# Continue onto Suzu branch

# Agree to go

"After thinking about it, I finally come to a decison."

mik "Alright, I'll come. I'll be bringing two of my friends, though."

jun "That's what I like to hear! Couple of your running friends, or what?"

mik "Just Suzuki and Nakai, if they agree."

jun "Nakai... Nakai..."

"Oh, right. I haven't mentioned Hisao to him yet."

mik "He's a friend from class. Pretty mild-mannered dude, shouldn't be trouble."

jun "Bah! Your friends have always been trouble. Good thing I'm used to it by now."

jun "It'll be good to see you again. Take care of yourself until you get here, alright?"

mik "I will. Thanks."

"With that, we say our goodbyes."

"I guess I have some explaining to do with Suzu... but it should be an interesting holiday, provided they come."

"After all these years, I'll finally be returning home."

# Continue to Hisao branch