Late Winter's Spring Blossom (2)
What the hell was she doing drifting into a rundown dump like this? I was pretty sure she'd said something this morning about plans with the girls.
Truth be told, whatever Ronari was up to here wasn't my business. If I tried acting like I knew her, I'd just get a sharp comeback asking what I was doing in a place like this. I figured I'd just ignore her and walk on by.
But then a strange sense of wrongness hit me. Well... to be precise, Ronari herself—standing there all spring-day bright in this dreary spot—was the very picture of out of place. But this feeling was something else.
Just then, a guy in a cap pulled low over his eyes started approaching from behind her. He moved naturally, like he was just passing by, but my gut screamed otherwise. Pickpocket.
My body moved on instinct. In a flash, I'd closed the distance and grabbed the kid's wrist just as he reached for Ronari's bag.
“Ow!”
“?!”
The kid yelped as I clamped down, and Ronari whipped around in surprise.
“Ilsea?! What are you doing here...”
Her eyes shifted to the boy I'd nabbed.
“What the hell do you think you're doing?!”
“This punk's a pickpocket,” I said flatly. “He was going for your bag just now.”
The kid let out a shrill wail. “What're you talking about, you lanky freak! Got any proof!? You know who I am!?”
Yeah, they'd deny it every time. I lowered my voice and leaned in close. “...Want me to drag you around by the scruff, shove your face in front of every merchant till they ID you? Or hand you off to the guards and let 'em figure out who you are? Either way, everyone'll know your mug soon enough.”
“Ugh...”
His face went ghost-white under my glare.
That's when Ronari suddenly grabbed his shoulder and yanked him away from me.
“You can't do that! Threatening a kid like some thug!”
“But that guy's—”
She leaned in close and whispered, “...I know, but he's pitiful. Come on...?”
Then she patted the kid's shoulder and shooed him off. “Looks like he got the wrong idea. Sorry about that—I'll make it up to you. Forgive him just this once?”
With her asking like that from barely two feet away, the kid's pale face flushed beet red. He nodded mutely a couple times and started backing away from us, inch by inch.
Once he was a good distance off, he yelled back at me. “You got lucky, beanpole! Next time you grab the wrong guy, you won't walk away with your soup!”
And with that, he bolted into the crowd.
“Phew.”
Ronari sighed in relief, watching him go. Merciful, huh.
I shrugged and turned away from her.
“Where do you think you're going!”
“...”
No choice but to stop. I answered without turning. “What. You let him go, didn't you?”
“What're you doing here? I told you to stay home and behave.”
“Why should I listen to you?”
“'Cause you'd just cause trouble out here! Wandering dumps like this? You're obviously up to no good again today, right?”
Figured she'd say that.
“...”
Ignoring her and leaving would just mean a nagging storm back at the dorm anyway... Might as well tell the truth. Nothing shady about what I was actually doing here.
“Got some busted junk to pawn around. And for the record, I'm not a thug.”
“Hard to believe...”
She eyed me suspiciously. This'd go on forever at this rate.
“Fine, what about you? What're you doing here? Didn't you say you were hanging with the girls?”
“Ahaha... Did I~?”
Super suspicious. But no reason for me to pry.
I turned to leave again. But she grabbed my sleeve.
What's her deal with me...?
“...What now.”
“I asked you before...! Where are you going!”
“Why do you need to know?”
“B-because! As class topper—”
“And your roommate, you have a moral duty to supervise me and make sure I don't go astray... That it?”
She nodded vigorously.
I sighed and pointed up. Her gaze followed my finger.
A narrow strip of sky between the rooftops blazed with the midday sun.
“The sun?”
“Heading to eat. Lunchtime, right?”
“Oh.”
“Now can I really go?”
“W-wait, then take me with—!”
I couldn't hide the grimace. I shot her a look.
“...”
“Why the sour face! We can at least eat together, can't we?! I skipped breakfast 'cause of plans too...!”
Pathetic as it was, I rubbed my face without thinking. She was weirdly clingy today... but it wasn't like I couldn't guess why.
Reluctantly, I said, “Not going to any fancy restaurant. As you can see, nothing like that around here.”
“Then?”
“Grab some bread or fruit from a stall. That cool?”
No hesitation. “Sure!”
Fine... Better than her hemming and hawing like she was doing me a favor.
“Follow me.”
I took the lead, her heels clicking behind me—loud enough I didn't need to look.
A few alleys later, the late-winter breeze carried a whiff of fruit. Not the pleasant kind, though—mostly overripe or borderline rotten.
“Ooh...”
Glancing back, Ronari didn't look disgusted. If anything, she was peering curiously at the stalls lining both sides.
“Hold up.”
“?”
I stopped at a fruit stand. She pulled up beside me.
The vendor gave us a weird once-over, then half a beat late: “Come on over!”
The fruit was predictably crappy overall. Compared to academy grub, the best she might touch was... I picked a decent-looking pear.
“That's 5 shillings each!” the vendor said.
“Oh... cheap,” Ronari muttered, and his face lit up.
But obviously, total bullshit. Yeah, thought so.
“1 shilling,” I countered.
“Wha? That's ridiculous—”
“Who do you take us for? Blind? Even a blind man wouldn't pay 5 for this.”
I glared. The girl next to me might be clueless about street prices, but not me.
The vendor caught on quick, fumbling. “C'mon... 5 was a joke, but 2 at least—”
“1 shilling 5 pence. No more.”
Then Ronari butted in. “You swindler! Gouge 'em like that, how're they supposed to eat? No conscience?”
“Conscience my ass—they make do fine at that price—”
But she wasn't listening. She shoved 5 shillings into his hand.
He snatched it like a hawk and bowed. “Thank you!”
“...”
Then she pushed me along, pear in hand. “Let's go! Go!”
I had no choice but to let her drag me from the stall.
After that, every time I tried haggling, she'd whip out her own cash and pay the vendors' absurd first prices. After getting burned half a dozen times, I wandered out of the market in a daze.
Whether she noticed my mood or not, Ronari plopped onto a bench under a park tree, poking at the bread she'd bought like it was some curiosity.
Not my money anyway...
I pulled a canteen from my bag and held out the pear. “Here.”
“?”
She set the bread down and took it with both hands.
“Hold still.”
I poured water over it. Dirt and grime rinsed off in the stream.
“Eat.”
“Oh. Thanks...”
“Whatever. You bought it.”
She took a bite. I sat beside her, stowing the canteen, as she mumbled, “Tasty.”
I sighed to myself. “That thing wasn't worth 2 shillings. Without your meddling, I could've gotten everything you bought for half—hell, a quarter.”
She swallowed and murmured back, “But then I'd feel bad.”
“Feel bad for what? They're the ones ripping people off first.”
“Still.”
She took another bite. “I can afford it.”
“If you can afford it, you can haggle too.”
“Maybe... but.”
She swung her legs under the bench, kicking air. Her bright skirt fluttered above her knees.
“Saving that cash doesn't do much for me anyway. But for them? Might make their whole day. Or at least a little while. Thanks to some clueless rich girl wasting it.”
She smiled faintly. “Right?”
A gust swept through the park then, tousling her cream hair into a shimmering haze under the noon sun.
For just a second, I forgot what I was going to say and stared.
Worried that nothing moment might stick in my memory forever.
“...”
What kinda stupid worry is that.
I let out an involuntary chuckle.
“Pfft.”
“Why're you laughing!?”
I shook my head, looking away from her flushed face. “Nah... sorry. Just impressed. Way beyond my petty little worldview.”
“What's that supposed to mean?! Like I'm bragging about money!?”
“No. I respect it. Straight up.”
“You're mocking me!”
“I'm not.”
“Then quit laughing!”
She punched my arm—hard, no playfulness. Hurt like hell, but for some reason, I couldn't stop snickering.
Couldn't say why. Maybe I was ridiculous. Or she was. Or both.
I dodged her final swing and stood.
Then asked her, “So, seriously—what're you doing in a place like this?”
“Huh? Oh... uh, just... had some business...?”
“What. You a delinquent too?”
“What're you saying! I'm not like you, doing bad stuff—”
“Yet here you are lying to me. Didn't anyone tell you lies are bad?”
“...Ugh.”
She looked totally busted, face twisting in embarrassment.