Lonely Rock for the Blind.

Iwashita Shima sighed.

"So, do you know why I still came to find you?"

"...Ask me about things I didn't tell you."

Eliza whispered.

"You know, Kikuri was the one who should have come to find you."

"...Then why..."

Eliza asked.

"Why me? Well, I'm actually a little worried about her."

Iwashita Shima closed her eyes.

"However, you should also be glad that it was me who came to find you, right?"

"... "

"You're afraid of her."

"…Um."

Eliza nodded, her already damp blonde hair dull.

"Why? Did the punch to your stomach hurt too much?"

Iwashita Shima asked, squinting.

"...No...because...she's already someone close to Qing."

Eliza said.

"…so."

Iwashita Shima gripped the umbrella handle a little tighter.

"Let's go somewhere warmer."

Iwashita Shima crouched down and took Eliza's hand.

Eliza slowly broke free.

"...Just ask me whatever you want... There's no need to continue contacting me."

"... "

Iwashita Shima took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

"Qing knows very well that it was most likely an accident, so why did the accident happen?"

“...I looked at him, and kept looking at him, for a long, long time...until the day I mustered up the courage to call out to him.”

Eliza looked at Shima Iwashita.

"...He doesn't know me."

Should he know you?

Iwashita Shima asked rhetorically.

"... "

Eliza did not speak.

"...You won't blame him, will you?"

Iwashita Shima continued to ask.

"...At least at the time, I... felt very resentful."

Eliza nodded.

"...Is this what arrogance means?"

Shima Iwashita clenched her fists, recalling the meal she had at Eliza's house.

"...He never saw me...he never remembered me...he was whole."

Eliza turned her head to look at Iwashita Shima.

"But I still can't help feeling resentful... I've given so much of my feelings unilaterally for so long..."

"He doesn't know you at all, and he has no idea what you are."

“I know…but…I spoke to him…”

Eliza's hands trembled.

"If he could recognize me..."

“…Eliza…that’s not what I’m asking.”

Iwashita Shima's voice was muffled.

The rain outside the platform intensified, splashing water onto their shoes.

"…good…"

Eliza nodded, pursed her lips, and continued.

"I ran away as soon as I realized he didn't remember me... But... a few days later I picked myself up again... Shima, I understand what you're saying, I understood it back then too... So, I want to create another chance."

"... "

His wine-red eyes calmly observed the bewildered blonde woman.

"...the opportunity to get to know each other..."

Eliza gently laid her hand flat.

"...I continued my pursuit..."

"…track?"

Iwashita Shima was stunned.

"...Yes, I'm looking for an opportunity, a chance to meet him, a chance to contact him."

Eliza smiled wryly.

"...Did you find it?"

Iwashita Shima asked.

"Not found..."

Eliza shook her head.

"You can go and get to know him directly."

"...No, he wasn't as approachable back then as he is now."

Eliza continued to shake her head.

"...And then what?"

Iwashita Shima remained silent for a moment before continuing to ask.

"I want to create an opportunity."

Eliza looked up.

“Create an encounter that makes it possible for him to fall in love with me.”

"...What did you do?"

Iwashita Shima continued to ask.

"...I imitated anime..."

Eliza looked up, her eyes filled with complex emotions.

...

……

.........

A sunny day.

Hello, where are your mom and dad?

At one end of the park, the girl asked the other girl.

"Mom and Dad? I came out to play by myself."

The girl shook her head.

"Yeah."

The blonde girl nodded, then glanced from time to time at the boy across the street, leaning against a lamppost, who seemed to be replying to messages on his phone.

"...Were you staring at the big brother across the street the whole time? You pervert?"

"Ahem! How do you know this word?"

"...Do I know what's strange about it?"

The girl pouted.

Eliza sighed, then turned her gaze back to the boy in the distance.

"What a great opportunity..."

She took a deep breath and then looked at the girl.

"Want to act in a play with me?"

"…play?"

The girl blinked.

"Well, I'll pay you, twenty pounds? How about it?"

"Too much...no, not enough!"