Red Data Girl - Series 1 & 2

My First Familiar - 18

Red Data Girl: My First Familiar
By Noriko Ogiwara
A Translation

Red Data Girl: My First Familiar
Chapter 3: Yukimasa
Part 3 (1 of 2)

Even though Miyuki was taking her to a place that neither of them had ever been to before, Izumiko did not feel unsafe. Every time she suggested that they could use the navigation on the phone however, Miyuki said something to make her feel like an idiot. He might have found a new way to look down on her, but she was still grateful for his ability to take charge.

Unfortunately, things did not go the way Miyuki had expected.

After sneaking out from under the teachers' gazes, the two retraced their steps to Shinjuku Station. Their plan had been to ride the Soubu line to the East Nakano Station and look at a map there. But their trouble began before they could even buy their tickets.

Like before, the large crowds frightened Izumiko. She couldn't bear to look at the huge, beehive like crowd that would swallow her up like a shadow in Shinjuku station. She could feel the endless eyes on her like before as she broke into another cold sweat.

Beyond that, there was an incident while she was standing in front of the ticket machine. The moment she touched the machine, she had a feeling that she shouldn't have done so. They were already running late.

Miyuki, who had been standing a step away after buying his own ticket, lost patience with Izumiko and returned to the machine.

"I'm not even going to say anything about you not knowing how to use this. It's not going to change anything,"

Izumiko nodded, feeling miserable.

"I think... I broke it,"

Miyuki pushed the cancel button, but the machine didn't respond. Finally, he called a station attendant even though it was what Izumiko had wanted to avoid the most.

They had to wait a bit, but the station attendant opened the machine's door and eventually returned Izumiko's 1000 yen bill. Miyuki bought Izumiko's ticket at a different machine and they headed towards the ticket gate, but this time the automatic gate let off a shrill alarm and read error... but only as Izumiko tried to pass. Once again, a station attendant had to assist them.

There was a continuous stream of other riders, but none of them looked at the two middle schoolers suspiciously. They simply passed through the other gates instead. The large amount of people obstructing their route and forcing them to stand still put Miyuki in a bad mood. The station attendant took the gate apart and pulled out Izumiko's ticket. Then she and Miyuki hurried onto the JR platform.

They crossed through endless passages that connected the ten tracks. In the end, the yellow Soubu Line they needed was near the west ticket gate along with the Yamate Line. After climbing a set of nearby stairs, the times for their train were posted not far away.

"Just riding from one station to another can take an hour alone apparently,"

Miyuki sighed as he looked at his watch, but his words were an understatement. The train was packed with people, but after five minutes had passed, the doors still hadn't closed.

"This is a message for our passengers. We know you are in a hurry and we apologize for the trouble." A male voice announced through the train's intercom. It was difficult to hear through the noise on the platform.

"An alert light has gone off on the track and we have sent a mechanic to check on it. Please wait momentarily on the train,"

"What the hell is happening?" Miyuki muttered, clearly frustrated. He looked at Izumiko who was standing next to him. "Should we give up?"