u/Responsible_Mud_3406

Is Sendai’s hair dyed? What is her natural hair color? Because in the LN 7 extra, she’s shown as a child with brown hair, so I was wondering if her hair is dyed?

1.-Miyagi Shiori

It’s 11:21 at night.

Out of nowhere, Sendai-san cheerfully says:

“What about the shoebill?”

“It’s not ‘ha,’ Miyagi. It has to end with ‘u.’”

“Shiritori?”

“Correct. Your turn.”

Sendai-san keeps smiling, but I reject her invitation.

“I don’t want to. I’m not playing.”

I’m already thinking about turning off the lights in this room soon.

Which means going to sleep, and this isn’t the time for Shiritori.

But she doesn’t seem to have any intention of reading the mood.

“Why not? Come on, play.”

“Because I’m going to sleep.”

“Don’t say that. Just say a word ending in ‘u.’”

Staying up late is fine since it’s spring break.

But if I stay up with her too long, it wouldn’t be surprising if she started saying she wanted to sleep in this bed. I don’t know what she’s thinking while sitting beside me, but I need to make her go back to her room soon.

“Why are you doing this? I already said no.”

“Ah, you ended with ‘n.’ Miyagi loses.”

Even though I clearly said I wasn’t playing, she unfairly declares my defeat.

“That doesn’t even count as Shiritori. Besides, the ‘n’ problem was your fault to begin with. Sendai-san, do you really want to play that badly?”

“It doesn’t have to be Shiritori, but since it’s spring break, let’s stay up a little longer and do something together. If you let me put nail oil on you, that’s fine too.”

“I don’t need nail oil.”

I don’t like her deciding I lost on her own, but I also don’t want her putting nail oil on me.

“Then should we play something? Racing games, sports games, whatever you want, Miyagi.”

“Sendai-san, you’re bad at games. It’s boring.”

I’ve played on the console with her several times, but she almost never wins…

“Then what do you want to do with me, Miyagi?”

I wonder what kind of child Sendai-san used to be, considering she hardly seems to have played video games before.

But now isn’t the time to think about that.

And there’s nothing I particularly want to do with her at this hour. So I propose a rule that will probably make things end quickly.

“Skimmer.”

“If it’s a game about things that fly, I’ll play. But I’ll start.”

Before I can respond, she repeats:

“Skimmer.”

Apparently, she doesn’t know what it is.

“What’s that? Does it fly?”

“It’s a bird. And yes, it flies.”

“What kind of bird is it?”

“That kind.”

Just as expected, Sendai-san looks confused.

“A bird with a big beak.”

“Miyagi, do you like animals with big beaks? The shoebill has a big beak, and platypuses have beaks too… Wait, isn’t that not a bird?”

“A platypus is an egg-laying mammal.”

“I take it back. Miyagi, you like weird animals, don’t you?”

“‘Weird animals’… Sendai-san, you don’t actually know what kind of bird a skimmer is, do you?”

“I’ll look it up right now.”

Saying that casually, she grabs the smartphone sitting on the table and starts searching.

“Was it called a skimmer?”

I give a short reply, and immediately hear:

“Ah!”

“I’ve seen this bird before. It’s called a skimmer.”

“Sendai-san, it ends with ‘shi.’”

I happily remind her that this is still Shiritori and hurry her along.

“Quick, say something that starts with ‘shi.’”

“Uh… ah… something that flies starting with ‘shi’? Clam?”

Just as expected, with her brain half-working,

Sendai-san gives the wrong answer.

“That doesn’t fly. Sendai-san loses.”

“Miyagi, it’s unfair to make a game about something you’re an expert at.”

“Flying things aren’t my specialty.”

Later

“Then what makes you want to do things with me, Miyagi?”

“Nothing in particular.”

“Then what are you good at?”

“Why are you asking?”

When I answer bluntly, Sendai-san complains in an unusually sulky voice.

“Not answering is unfair.”

“Sendai-san, go back to your room already.”

“I already told you. I’m going to sleep.”

“Isn’t it too early to sleep?”

“No, it isn’t.”

Both Miyagi’s university and mine are on spring break. We don’t have classes tomorrow.

I’m not saying it’s a good example to follow, but I feel like we could stay up a little longer.

“It’s not early. It’s already past eleven.”

For most people, this would probably count as late.

But I still want to stay with Miyagi.

Still, she won’t stay with me without a reason.

That’s why I brought up the nostalgic game of Shiritori, trying to stretch out the time we spend together in this room.

But because I couldn’t think of flying things, I ended up saying something that lives in the water.

“If you think about it being spring break, then yes, it’s early.”

I take the hand of Miyagi, who’s trying to send me away.

“Even so, I’m going to sleep today. Sendai-san, you should sleep too.”

Miyagi pulls her hand away from mine.

I find myself wishing I were one of those “weird animals.”

If I were an animal Miyagi liked, maybe she wouldn’t pull her hand away, and maybe I could stay with her longer without having to go to bed so soon.

“Miyagi, you’re boring at times like this. At least once, you could say, ‘Let’s stay up together until morning.’”

This time, so she won’t pull away, I — who am not a “weird animal” — hold her hand tightly.

She doesn’t pull away.

But her voice remains dry.

“Then if Miyagi kisses me, I’ll go back to my room.”

I bring my face close to our joined hands.

When I pull away and look at her, I see her brows

furrowed.

But she still doesn’t let go.

Our hands aren’t magnets that can never separate once connected.

So this means Miyagi is allowing it of her own will.

That’s why, surely, I can still stay here.

Even if it’s just a convenient interpretation, I want to believe it.

“No way. Stop saying weird things, go back to your room and sleep.”

Her voice is cold, but I still pull Miyagi toward me.

Her body comes closer with barely any resistance, and I wrap my arms around her waist.

“Then I’ll do it myself.”

Before Miyagi can protest, I kiss her lips.

She doesn’t push me away by the shoulders or stomach.

I have enough time to feel the warmth of her body.

I gently part her lips with the tip of my tongue.

“You promised.”

I slip into a warmer, softer place, intertwining our tongues. But apparently that was too much for Miyagi, because she pushes me away by the shoulders.

“Wait a second, Sendai-san. What’s with you today?”

Miyagi glares at me, clearly dissatisfied.

“Nothing’s wrong. But isn’t it fun to stay up late on an ordinary day and do things together?”

I’d be happy if there were lots of days that became special memories.

But in a year, there are overwhelmingly more ordinary days.

It would be nice if all those ordinary days could become memorable, but that’s impossible.

That’s why I want to increase the amount of time I spend with Miyagi by spending ordinary days together in an ordinary way.

“…When it’s midnight, go back to your room.”

Even though dissatisfaction still lingers in her voice, she doesn’t kick me out.

I reach out and touch Miyagi’s ear.

And I softly kiss her plumeria earring.