I am a teacher at a girls' school in Tokyo

……

The willful eldest lady guessed correctly, Tetsufumi Hirakawa did have considerable doubts about the agreed time and place.

This is a street outside the shrine's torii gate.

The lights are on, decorating the dim evening. The sun has already set, but the afterglow still extends from the skyline, rendering a dark blue-purple sunset and a gray-blue sky.

Below, in the dim lights of various colors, there is a bustling street scene with people coming and going. Looking through the gaps in the crowd, there is a street with various stalls on the side of the street.

There was some noise in my ears, all kinds of conversations and shouts.

The words "festival" and "fireworks" appeared in Hirakawa Tetsufumi's eyes.

"..."

Summer festivals are events that are held all over Japan starting from the summer.

Tetsufumi Hirakawa naturally knew this.

But... didn't we agree to have a good talk? Why did you show up at the summer festival?

Tetsufumi Hirakawa raised his phone and saw that the girl on line had not answered his question.

"You'll know when Mr. Hirakawa comes."

Just saying that.

After thinking for a long time, he was helpless. Hirakawa Tetsufumi finally accepted the invitation to come for the girl's "last decision".

But the girl hasn't arrived yet.

Tetsufumi Hirakawa put away his phone for the moment and used his eyes to picture the festival here.

The decoration is quite exquisite, and the combination of various lights makes it look very gorgeous. There are many people, friends, families and couples, walking hand in hand between the stalls.

A very lively festival.

From time to time, you can see women in yukatas among the crowd, with a touch of classical charm, chatting and laughing with their companions.

By the way——

Hirakawa Tetsufumi suddenly thought of a question——

Shinohara Shiori, you're not coming in a yukata too, are you?

This question just appeared in Hirakawa Tetsufumi's mind. Before he could think about it carefully, a girl's soft call came from behind.

"Teacher Hirakawa, I'm here."

Miss Shinohara's voice is clear, pleasant, and highly recognizable, and can be recognized immediately.

"Student Shinohara."

Hirakawa Tetsufumi turned around and called out her name, and then, naturally, asked the question that he had wanted to ask for a long time.

"I think you should explain why..."

Halfway through the question, the voice suddenly became quieter and quieter until it was completely drowned out by the noisy festival.

Shinohara Shiori stood in front of him, very close.

The first thing that caught my eye was the girl's face. The light was dim, and the girl's delicate makeup was reflected in my eyes.

A little makeup embellishes the already outstanding face, just the right amount, and makes it even more beautiful. It's like the early cherry blossoms in early spring turning into the cherry blossoms in full bloom in April.

The girl's usual long hair was tied up behind her head, and her snow-white and delicate neck was completely exposed to the view.

And just as I had imagined unintentionally just now, the girl was wearing a yukata.

Miss Shinohara and yukata are a perfect match, just like summer festivals and fireworks displays are a perfect match.

The yukata with cherry blossom pattern, in bright red, wraps around the straight figure in the night scene, and this red also highlights the fairness of the girl's skin.

It really looks like cherry blossoms in full bloom, so gorgeous that it leaves one speechless.

Tetsufumi Hirakawa looked at Shiori Shinohara's outfit, and the words he was about to ask were stuck in his throat.

It is human nature to appreciate beauty. Even he has to admit that Shinohara Shiori is stunning tonight.

The girl's appearance is so stunning that anyone who sees it for the first time will pay attention to her and stop to look.

Tetsufumi Hirakawa is not the only one.

At the busy festival entrance, passers-by bumped into each other.

"Hey."

"Sorry, sorry."

"..."

It was only after such a commotion that Tetsufumi Hirakawa came back to his senses.

He closed his open mouth, glanced at the person he bumped into next to him, then quickly retracted his gaze and focused his attention on the girl.

"Teacher Hirakawa."

Shinohara Shiori also withdrew her curious gaze. Then, she raised her hand, and the sleeve of the yukata slid down the girl's smooth arm, revealing a small part of the smoothness. In her hand was a small handbag.

She turned slowly in front of him.

The back of the neck is white and the waist is tied with a big bow made of a red belt.

"What do you think of Shiori's outfit today?"

"..."

Tetsufumi Hirakawa swallowed back the word "beautiful" that was almost blurted out subconsciously.

He fixed his gaze on Shinohara Shiori's face, her eyes, and his tone became slightly more serious.

"Shinohara-san, I think... you should explain why we are here."

The question was asked again.

"Well... about this."

Shinohara Shiori also looked directly at the teacher in front of her, thinking, and replied: "This is the summer festival, of course we are here to participate in the festival."

Hirakawa Tetsufumi was stunned for a moment after hearing this, then frowned slightly: "What about the final decision we agreed to have a good talk about?"

"Well... let's talk about this after we finish visiting the festival."

"..."

Hirakawa Tetsufumi couldn't help but open his mouth and wanted to say something, but was interrupted by the girl.

At this moment, the sky has lost its luster, and only in the illuminated night, Shinohara Shiori's eyes reflect colorful colors.

She bowed.

"Teacher Hirakawa, for the last time, Shiori wants to attend a festival with you. From now on, I will not bother you again, so today, please let Shiori be willful."

"..."

"The last time" and "only once" are very cunning ways of saying that the unpredictable future is betting on the present in order to achieve the present goal.

But sometimes it is indeed a statement that is quite difficult to refuse.

The last time is a prayer and a regret. It contains an almost irreparable regret, a regret that makes the other party want to make amends.

"..."

Finally, the girl stood up, and a smile appeared on her face as the person opposite her nodded silently.

"Well, Mr. Hirakawa, let's go."

-

I participated in this festival for some unknown reason.

That's exactly what Hirakawa Tetsufumi felt when he followed Shinohara Shiori into the entrance of the festival street.

Shinohara Shiori's thoughts are a bit hard to understand.

However, this issue was soon forgotten amid the noise.

After all, people are still quite easily affected by the atmosphere, just like watching a comedy in a movie theater is always more enjoyable than watching it alone.

It was a summer night, the air was hot and dry, and there were people all around, talking and playing.

Colorful lights, exquisite decorations, and snacks with tempting smells on the stalls.

This is a festival, a lively festival.

Next to him, there was a girl wearing a yukata and walking briskly.

The wooden clogs made a "tapping" sound as they touched the ground.

"Shinohara-san, are you wearing geta?"

It was at this time that Tetsufumi Hirakawa noticed the delicate feet of Miss Shinohara below.

Shinohara Shiori also looked down, then looked up at him again, holding a string of candy apples in her hand.

"Well, Mr. Hirakawa, what do you think?"

"…It suits Shinohara-san very well."

Hirakawa Tetsufumi, who had not eaten dinner and was currently eating fried noodles, spoke incoherently and looked towards the street stalls.

But he quickly turned back.

He stared at the corner of Shinohara Shiori's mouth.

"Shinohara-san, your lips."

"Hmm?" Shinohara Shiori took a small bite of the apple candy. The noisy environment made it difficult for her to hear what the teacher next to her said, so she asked in confusion.

At the same time, her cheeks were slightly puffed up and moved, which was very cute.

The lively festival atmosphere, the dazzling lights, and the exquisite girl beside him——

Indeed, all these things made Tetsufumi Hirakawa a little overwhelmed.

He stretched out his hand naturally, and while Shinohara Shiori was in a daze, his fingers poked the girl's fair face, sank slightly, and then he removed the rock sugar that was stained on the girl's mouth.

"There is something."

It was not until he flicked the rock sugar away that Hirakawa Tetsufumi came to his senses and looked at his fingers.

"..."

"..."

"Ah... um, sorry."

Tetsufumi Hirakawa put his hand away with a wry smile, looked at Shinohara Shiori and apologized.

"…It's okay." Shinohara Shiori reacted and smiled slightly, then raised her other empty hand and wiped the place that was originally stained with rock sugar.

"Also, if Shiori is not mistaken, Mr. Hirakawa just bounced the rock candy onto someone else."

"...Is this so?"

"Yes, I can see it clearly."

"..."

"..."

"Sorry." After apologizing to the innocent passers-by who had no idea where to go in the crowded crowd, Tetsufumi Hirakawa silently picked up the Kaiko again and finished the last bite of fried noodles.

The two continued to stroll and chat in the festival streets, with the topic of conversation being endless.

-

"Have you ever participated in a festival with others before, Mr. Hirakawa?"

"Yes, I came here with my classmates when I was in junior high school and high school."

"Shiori has only been here alone. The rest of the time, she was with her mother only on the cruise ship."

"……OK."

-

"What kind of fruit does Mr. Pingchuan like?"