The next day, Tatsuki went to school as usual.
He stopped by Eriri's place in the morning, but Sayuri said she wasn't feeling well and needed another day to rest. Her slightly awkward and subtle expression spoke volumes—Tatsuki got the hint.
Eriri had made a lot of noise yesterday, and Sayuri had found out about the situation between him and Eriri. He didn't mind; they had done what they had done, and there was nothing to hide. It was just that Eriri's discomfort was indeed his fault.
After checking on Eriri, he headed to school alone. Today, as always, the train was packed. He kept his head down, scrolling through the news on his phone while standing for quite a while.
Suddenly, someone bumped into him.
Looking up, he saw a long-haired blonde girl who had crashed into him—she looked like a "gyaru" type, sporting manicured nails, several rings, earrings, and a somewhat disheveled uniform with a choker edged in black lace around her neck. A very textbook "gal" style.
"Ah, I'm so sorry! I was feeling sleepy and lost my balance!"
Surprisingly, she had a polite way of speaking, her voice bright and refreshing.
"It's all right," he responded.
Seeing that Tatsuki wore the same integrated high school uniform, the girl gave him a once-over. What a handsome face, and a great figure. Perfect for cosplay! When she noticed Tatsuki's golden eyes, hers sparkled immediately. She asked boldly, "Are your eyes contacts too?"
"Contacts… too?"
Tatsuki hesitated. Glancing at the girl's own eyes, he realized they were red—she must be wearing color contacts herself.
"My eyes are naturally gold, not contacts."
Her eyes lit up even more, and she let out a small gasp. "That's amazing."
He found this girl rather interesting—very outgoing and straightforward.
"I'm Tatsuki, second year, Class 1, XYZ High School. And you?"
Realizing she hadn't introduced herself, the girl quickly spoke. "I'm Marin Kitagawa, second year, Class 5, also at the XYZ High School."
'Marin Kitagawa?'
The name immediately reminded Tatsuki of the protagonist from My Dress-Up Darling.
"Nice to meet you."
"Mm-hmm, you too!"
After just a few sentences, Marin felt like she was already on friendly terms with Tatsuki. Her chat became even more direct.
"Tatsuki-kun, have you ever been into cosplay?"
"Cosplay? I've never really gotten into it."
Marin was disappointed—'such a perfect body for cosplay was going to waste! What a pity!' She decided to give it a shot anyway: "So, Tatsuki-kun, are you interested in trying cosplay at all?"
Tatsuki rubbed his chin in thought for a moment. "Hmm, it sounds interesting."
Marin's eyes sparkled. "Then you could be my model! There's a con next weekend!"
"Sure, though I don't know much about it. I might need your help, Kitagawa-san."
Beaming brightly, she patted her chest. "Leave it to me!"
They exchanged phone numbers. Marin was always enthusiastic about anything she loved, and cosplay was her greatest passion.
Just then, a sudden shriek from elsewhere in the carriage grabbed everyone's attention.
Tatsuki looked over to see another girl wearing the same XYZ High School uniform—a black-haired girl in a short skirt—who had fallen to the train floor, tears welling in her eyes. She offered a weak laugh, rubbing her knee. "I tripped yesterday, and my knee still hurts so much."
Everyone around realized that must be why she cried out. But in Tatsuki's eyes, that wasn't the real cause. The girl's frightened, tearful gaze betrayed her forced calm, because there on the floor in front of her stood a terrifying evil spirit, rising up through the train's floor.
Miko Yotsuya.
A girl who could see evil spirits.
She was actually Tatsuki's junior in school. The reason she fell was that she'd been scared by the spirit she could see. The reason she mentioned her knee hurting was that the spirit kept repeating, "You can see me? You can see me?" She was trying to hide the fact that she really could see it by making an excuse.
But the horrifying evil spirit loomed right in front of Miko. "You can see me? You can see me?!"
Miko was on the verge of tears, wanting to stand up but trembling all over. The bystanders stayed detached—none were interested in helping lest they be scammed or labeled a creep.
Just as Miko was about to break down, someone spoke up: "Are you all right?"
A gentle voice.
A hand pierced right through the evil spirit's body, extending toward her. To everyone else, it was just someone offering a hand. But in Miko's eyes, the moment that hand touched the spirit, it dispersed like smoke.
She froze, gazing up at a pair of golden eyes so like her own.
"Need a hand?" Tatsuki asked quietly.
"Mm…"
Miko pressed her lips together and placed her own hand in his. With Tatsuki's stable, strong arm supporting her, she stood easily.
"…"
All the while, she stared at Tatsuki, as though wanting to speak yet hesitating.
Tatsuki simply told her, "I'm the same as you."
"!"
Miko's eyes widened— 'He's like me!He could see evil spirits too—and he'd just destroyed one!'
Ding!
The train pulled into the station.
"If you want answers, come find me at the Paranormal Research Club. My name's Tatsuki," he said, stepping off the train.