Chapter 6 of 11

Chapter 6

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A month had passed since then and Kazusa had skipped school once because of a fever, but otherwise, he was in perfect health. Although the occasional chill or sickness would send him to the neighbouring hospital, he would always return fine by the next day. Shouri would be nervous when he was gone and felt immense waves of relief wash over him when he saw Kazusa return. It was enough for him, right now, that he could still see Kazusa every day.

And now it was summer vacation.

Maybe it was because the town was practically a tourist attraction (despite the fact that it was in such a rural area), but now, the amount of cars on the national highway had increased tenfold and the beaches were overflowing with people. The pale sand – once lonely and grey, was now dotted with colourful umbrellas. The blue of the ocean seemed to swell with the people by the bayside; laughing, chatting, playing in the sea. The sound of their joy travelled across a warm breeze to reach the pair.

The ocean.

Looking at the azure sea in front of him, Kazusa let out a cheer. Shouri watched him and smiled.

“We’ve been here before, haven’t we?”

“Yeah, but, there’s something special about the ocean in the summer.”

Kazusa had always loved the ocean. When he came to this town, he often said that he always wanted to go see it, no matter how sick he was feeling. Every time, he sighed in shame at the fact that he couldn’t swim, instead he breathed in the salty air to savour what he could enjoy about the great expansion of sea out there.

“Don’t get too excited.” He sighed.

Shouri walked over to the shaved ice stand, before noticing the familiar face of Old Man Sato. He was dressed the same as usual. He noticed Shouri and the others and decided to follow behind them. Shouri and Kazusa sat together on the picnic mat and patiently waited for the shaved ice to be prepared. A small child and what looked like his father were playing in the surf. The child ran, falling face-first in the sand, before his father rushed to help him. Melodic sounds of laughter seemed to float in the air as the child got up by himself.

“The ocean… It’s so big…” Kazusa muttered absent-mindedly as he stared nonchalantly into the distance. Shouri hazily nodded in agreement.

Far beyond this blue-black nothingness, there was another country that they had only seen in textbooks and on TV. Maybe over there, someone else was also gazing out at the sea, thinking about their distant neighbours too.

Kazusa turned to Shouri and chucked, his bangs swaying in the lukewarm breeze. As people walked past, their shadows casted shade on Kazusa’s frail body. In the midst of it all, Kazusa’s eyes seemed to sparkle like jewels.

“I want to be a Marine Self-Defense Officer.”

Dazzling. That was the only word to describe his smile. Dazzling, echoed by the surreal sensation created by his words. The look on his face, the look of someone who had dreams and aspirations was captivating, and it completely captivated Shouri.

Despite being in the shade, the summer heat started to surround them. Shouri started fanning them, cooling the pair off as he responded to Kazusa.

“Thet uniform, you’ll look good in it.”

“Really? Thanks,” Kazusa smiled hesitantly, as if embarrassed. Shouri didn’t think Kazusa had the image of a stoic self-defence officer, but he simply thought it would be beautiful if Kazusa wore that snow-white sailor’s uniform.

“I hadn’t told anyone about it. I was afraid they would say it would be impossible.” Kazusa looked sheepishly at the ground. However, his melancholy air was gone in a few seconds.

“What about you, Shouri? What do you wanna be in the future?”

“A fisherman. I’m gonna be the best fisherman in town, following my dad’s footsteps.” Shouri replied, determined. “My father is a figure I have admired ever since I was a child.”

“I see, then we’re both men of the sea.” Kazusa said happily. At that moment, Old Man Sato yelled at him from the beach house.

“Oi! Shouri! Help me out!” Sato shouted, struggling to hold the three shaved ice cones. Shouri made a noise of affirmation, before he rushed to help him.

Kazusa stared blankly at Shouri’s back as he walked away.

Edited by Yolo

Imagine being able to choose what you want to be. For me, its either a doctor, lawyer, engineer or disappointment.

Rei

What’s with the novels I translate having characters with ocean fetishes

Send me a ko-fi!

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