His words were harsh, but there was something gentle about the way Akiba spoke them. Because of their shared connection to Natsuki Books, Akiba had a soft spot for the younger boy and his hikikomori shut-in tendencies. Even at school, he’d sometimes stop Rintaro for a quick chat. Now his concern was obvious; Akiba had dropped by the bookshop just to check in on him.
Akiba watched Rintaro, who remained tight-lipped. Eventually, Akiba broke the silence.
“So I guess you’ll be moving.”
“I suppose so,” said Rintaro, without taking his eyes off the bookshelves. “I’m going to move in with my aunt.”
“Where does she live?”
“I don’t know. Before my grandpa died, I’d never met her.”
The tone of Rintaro’s voice never changed; it was impossible to get a read on him.
With a slight shrug of the shoulders, Akiba dropped his gaze to the books he’d put on the counter.
“Is that why you’re having a closing sale?”
“Yes,” Rintaro said.
“Pity. This bookshop’s collection is one of a kind. These days you rarely come across stuff like a whole set of Proust in hardcover. I finally found those volumes of Romain Rolland’s The Enchanted Soul I was looking for here.”
“Grandpa would be happy to hear that.”
“If only he was here to hear it, it would have made his day! You know, being your friend helped me get my hands on so many great books. And now you’re going to move.”
Akiba’s bluntness was his way of expressing concern. Rintaro didn’t know the right way to respond, so he just stared over at the wall where there was a huge pile of books. Even for a secondhand bookshop, it was amazing that they could stay in business with the kinds of books they carried, most of which were far from the current trend, and many of which were out of print. Akiba’s compliments about the bookshop were not only said to be kind to Rintaro—there was a lot of truth in them.
“When are you moving?” Akiba asked.
“Probably in about a week,” Rintaro replied.
“‘Probably’？ Vague as usual!”
“It doesn’t matter. I don’t have any choice anyway.”
“I guess not.”
Akiba shrugged again and looked up at the calendar that hung behind the counter.
“Next week’ll be Christmas. That’s rough.”
“I don’t really care about Christmas. Unlike you, I don’t have any special plans.”
“Thanks for reminding me. Yeah, my schedule sure keeps me busy. It’s packed. You know, one of these years I’d really like to try staying up to see Santa Claus on my own watch.”
Akiba cracked up laughing, but Rintaro didn’t.
“Oh really,” he replied quietly.
Akiba pulled a face and sighed.
“I guess if you’re moving, there’s no point in making an effort to go to school, but don’t you think you should leave on a good note? There are people in your class who worry about you, you know.”
He glanced at the pile of printouts and the notebooks on the counter. Akiba hadn’t brought them; a little earlier, Rintaro’s class president had dropped them off.
Her name was Sayo Yuzuki, and she lived nearby. She’d known Rintaro since primary school. She was a strong, no-nonsense type and not particularly close with the silent, hikikomori Rintaro. When she’d turned up at the shop and seen Rintaro staring blankly at the shelves, she let out a pointed sigh.