Lavender | Wakatoshi Ushijima

50 | Sugar-sweet

Entering campus feels unusual, I haven't been here in a while. I enter through the big gates, a joyful sense of familiarity settles in my heart. I take my time, going easy on my legs. Shiratorizawa is as bright as ever, prestigious buildings and gates with purple accents and flying colors.

My sneakers pat the ground as I make my way to the building. The flowerbeds beam at me, as if they're keeping a surprise in store. A few of the students I tutored welcome me back, but there's no sign of Kiyo. I suppose she's late or settling in class early.

I approach the classroom. Its homely door welcomes me back. I missed it, I missed everything here. I open the door and there's figures popping up from every corner. They burst up at once, screaming from under the chairs. Holding back a yelp, I hear them shout in unison, "Welcome back!"

Faces of boys and girls that multiply by the second.

They're all here for me. Smiling, laughing, and walking towards me as I loosen my grip on the door frame. I'm bombarded with hugs and sweet words. Aiko, a shy girl that sits two seats behind me, gives me miniature flower bouquets made of pastel paper. There are gift bags with letters on my desk. They garnish it after weeks of being empty.

And, suddenly, I realize my class has put up homemade banners and have drawn a stick figure that wears a skirt and holds a bouquet of flowers. Me. There's hearts and notes that are signed by each of them. Their handwriting and signatures everywhere on the board.

A desk is decked with heaps of sweets. Chocolates, éclairs, everything. It almost looks like a feast of sugar.

I thank them all with tears in my eyes. I've never felt so loved and missed. I chat with them, distracted by it all. They tell me about things that happened with the sports teams and the teachers. They say Mrs. Ito praised me when I was absent. The poetry competition is still going. I'm back in time for that and for final exams. More gossip. The boys' soccer team got caught trying to steal from one of the vending machines. I'm distracted, bursting with joy and excitement.

The boys of my class are huddled in the corner, hiding something. I peek over curiously. A cone hat is placed on my head from behind me. Instantaneously, Isamu and Hiroto, my classmates, hold their phones up to record. Furious whispers of 'now!' are thrown around when Kiyo emerges from the crowd.

A little cake in both hands, garnished with halved strawberries and a light pink cream neatly worked around it. A little disc of spongy sweetness. She holds it, a message in frosting saying it to me one more time. Welcome back.

Her hair is in its usual straight cut, barely laying on her shoulders. I catch a heart clip at her temple. The lights go out and the candle standing in the middle is the only source of light in the room. It burns furiously, desperate to survive the windstorm as Kiyo walks. Their faces all form a circle, they all come around. They smile at me as Kiyo approaches with the cheekiest smile I've ever seen, her features illuminated by the light.

The happiness bounces off of them and I feel so warm and fuzzy on the inside. It feels like I have another family. They've come together, baked a cake, and showered me with compliments and presents. A get-together to give this morning a dose of serotonin. I can't stop smiling about it. Everything I've given to people has come back to me. My classmates that I've helped, some of the underclassmen I've tutored, they've all surrounded me with positivity.

They stand and record, laughing and swaying around.

She hands the cake to me, her fingers warm.

I can't stop smiling and laughing, the joy is in every pore of my skin. They start singing a childhood song and I beam with all that I have. I sing along with them as I sway the cake around, left and right. The girls dance along with me. It's like a birthday party, a bunch of teenagers prancing around and planning things behind the teachers' backs.