Collision of Heaven and Hell ✅

Chapter Seven

The class trip gave me reprieve. I was able to get away from Tokyo and Japan and spend a wonderful vacation with my classmates in Pape'ete. One of the more enjoyable parts of the trip for the Shirahime students was watching our teacher chaperones, Inaba-seijin and Kazusa Miyajima-sensei. Both were extremely popular teachers at Shirahime but it was very obvious to us students that they either had feelings for each other or were in a relationship. It ended up being a running gag watching Inaba-seijin and Miyajima-sensei try to act like they weren't in a relationship in a tropical paradise, and failing miserably.

There was only one...strange part of the trip. On one of the mornings I was sitting and talking with other members of the Dance Club who had made the trip when I heard someone approach me from behind. "December 1st."

"Eh?" I turned to see a girl standing there. She looked like a Yamato Nadeshiko but she had smoky blue eyes. I knew who she was; everyone did. It was Hoshiko Nimura, an eccentric girl who had a reputation for being a psychic. She seemed to practice both eastern and western mysticism, and oftentimes during lunch or our free period I saw her giving tarot card readings to other students. Her homeroom for the most recent Culture Festival did a fortune teller's parlor with Hoshiko as the central focus, but they got a poor reception because students and visitors generally hadn't liked the fortunes Hoshiko had given.

But now she was looking at me...and she was saying strange things. I slowly stood up to face her. "I'm sorry, Nimura?"

"December 1st," Hoshiko responded, staring at me with a wide-eyed expression. "That will be a good day for you."

"R...Really?"

Hoshiko nodded. "Focus on December 1st, Mai Takasoto. It will help you." Then she turned and abruptly walked away.

The members of the Dance Club laughed at her peculiar behavior, but while I found it strange I was able to put it out of my mind and enjoy Pape'ete.

On one of the days we stopped at a shop that sold genuine pearl jewelry. Shirahime girls were looking at souvenirs for themselves, and Yukinaga boys were looking for souvenirs for their girlfriends. I had already bought souvenirs for my parents, but one piece of jewelry caught my eyes. It was simple necklace of a white gold chain, and one pearl that was onyx black. I stared at the necklace for a long time, and a single name came to mind when I continued to stare.

Yamagishi.

"Prix, s'il vous plaît?" I asked the clerk with an embarrassed smile. I was proud of my English but French was not my strong suit.

"34,000 francs," the clerk told me, pointing to the price tag with a smile. I felt a spike of panic—Papa had given me enough money but that was still a lot—but I decided to go for it. It felt like it was something that he would like.

Overall it was a great trip and gave me many happy memories. But...I didn't realize that I wouldn't have many more happy memories for a long time.

~*~

August 5th, 2029

"What should we have for dinner tonight?"

The grocery store was too hot. I was glad I brought a fan and was fanning myself while I walked alongside Mama down the aisle. "Can we have shaved ice, Mama?" I complained. "I'm too hot to be hungry."

Mama choked on a laugh. "We can have that for dessert, Mai. How about..." she let her voice trail off as she looked at the nearby shelf. Her face brightened and she snatched a large bag of ramen from off the shelf. "Hiyashi chuka! We'll have that tonight!"

"Sounds good," I said, but then something caught the corner of my eye. I saw a familiar face at the end of the aisle looked at a bag of rice, and...it was strange. All of a sudden I suddenly felt happy. "I'll be right back, Mama," I said, and then hurried down the aisle.