FSE

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Me and Kenji headed to our respective homes right after we left Raimon around 3:30 in the afternoon. When I had gotten my things settled and put on a fresh set of clothes, I gave Grandma and Grandpa the gingerbread cookies that Shin-kun made, them telling me to say thanks next time I would meet the cat. In my room, I passed the time by looking at the old album again, noticing that some had faded colors and others had little white spots. I thought of taking these back to the city to digitize them, but then again, it would be better if I did it while I was here. Just then, the phone rang so I went down to answer.

"Hello?" I said.

The other party answered. "Ah. Hiroyuki-san?"

"Shun-kun?"

"Yes! Er, Hiroyuki-san, are you free today?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Let's play a game! I bought some new games yesterday at Kazenari."

"Oh? Sure! I'll head over there right now."

Hanging up, I fixed myself and told Grandma that I was going out again, her telling me to be careful on the way. So once again, I was out on the streets. Though this time, there was something different once I got to the shopping arcade. What I saw as a clear blue sky not too long ago suddenly had a huge cloud going around, it eventually blocking the sun and graying out the surroundings.

When I heard the rumbling thunder and felt something wet on my hair, I knew I had to run. But fate was a cruel prankster, and I ended up getting drenched in rainwater as I ran. Seeing the bus station, I immediately dashed to it. Finally taking shelter from the rain, I sighed in relief but got surprised when I heard someone call me from behind. Turning around, there I saw Juuichi-san seated on the bench, the bear still dry.

"Did you just arrive here?" I asked.

He nodded. "I had to do some stuff in school and at the dojo before leaving. Luckily I got here before it started pouring."

I frowned. "Yeah. Real lucky."

"I didn't mean to offend," he said, turning to his side.

I shook my head. "Don't mind it. Didn't expect it either so it's kinda my fault I got wet. Should've checked the weather before leaving home."

Juuichi-san reached for something in his bag. "I have an extra towel here. Why not dry yourself off?"

"Is that so? Then, excuse me for a second."

Turning my back to him, I tried taking off my wet shirt, but it was a difficult task as the cloth was too heavy and it clung to my skin. To make matters worse, when I finally got it up, it got stuck on my arms, my entire face was covered, and my flabby torso was exposed. I kept trying to force it off, but the damn shirt wouldn't budge.

"Are you alright?" Juuichi-san asked.

"Sorry, but can I get some help here?" I said.

"Sure. Nishimura, lift up your arms."

Feeling his hands grab my shirt, I lifted up my arms and he tried to take it off, but it still kept on clinging. The bear paused for a bit before letting go, moving his hands to the part of the shirt just above my armpits. His furry hands brushing my skin caught me by surprise and I ended up shaking a bit.

"This might tickle a bit, but put up with it just for now. Keep your arms raised."

I did what was asked, and Juuichi-san kept pulling the shirt up. After a bit of effort the damn thing was finally off, and the bear gave me my shirt. Hanging my shirt to one of the handrails, I dried every inch of me that was exposed: head, neck, shoulders, arms, back and stomach. I was about to take my shorts off to dry my legs, but then I realed that there was another person here, not to mention the fact that I was at a public place. But it seemed like Juuichi-san already picked up on what I wanted to do and stood by the front of the station, shielding me from any passers-by.

"Hurry up," the bear said.

With that, I took off my shorts and dried the rest of my body, considering myself a bit lucky that my underwear didn't get too wet. It also helped that I decided to wear flip-flops when I went out, which made drying up my feet easier. Done with the towel, I returned it to Juuichi-san. Then the bear did something that I honestly didn't expect. He took off his blue jersey, and draped it on me.

"You didn't have to," I said.

"Nishimura, you have less fur, so you'll get cold quicker than me," he said. "And I'd feel bad if you caught a cold in front of me."

"Juuichi-san, it's Summer. I doubt I'll get a cold that quick."

The bear sighed. "Who was it again that played in the rain years ago and never went to school the next day because he had a fever?"

Seeing him stare at me with a scowl, I felt cornered . "Alright, you got me."

Pulling the jersey closer, I put my arms inside the sleeves. It was still warm from his body heat, and it felt like he was hugging my whole body. But it would be best not to make this situation any weirder than it already was, so I dismissed the thought. I gotta say though, the jersey was pretty huge; my hands couldn't reach the end of the sleeves, and the base of it reached all the way to my thighs. I zipped it up so no heat could escape, and the collar went all the way to my mouth, making it look like a turtleneck sweater. Since it was hard to talk with the collar blocking, I unzipped it a bit.

"It doesn't smell... does it?" he asked, blushing and looking away slightly.

I sniffed to collar of the jersey, but the bear got upset by my gesture. But I told him that it didn't smell, which calmed him down. As he was wringing my clothes, we had a conversation to lighten things up a bit.

"By the way, I've been wondering." Juuichi-san hung my well-wrung shorts on the handrail. "Do you exercise often when you were in the city?"

"Gym class, yes."

"And outside it?"

I took a deep breath. "Aside from my part-time work lifting boxes at the convenience store, not much. I was pretty much a recluse. But hey ever since I got here, I've gotten more exercise than I've ever had in the past five years. It even felt like my gut here got a little thinner!"

As I smacked my little gut, Juuichi-san felt his own gigantic one. "Just so you know, I do control my bodyweight even if it doesn't look that way," the bear said.

I chuckled. "But you really let go when sweets are involved. Remember that time you demolished a bowl of candy and you didn't even notice it?"

Juuichi-san fell silent. Noticing my own remark, I considered that Shin-kun's bluntness might be rubbing off on me. After letting out a sharp breath, the bear spoke again.

"The heavier you are, the harder it is to get thrown. And your opponents will have a hard time when they get pinned," he said. "And being physically large can intimidate opponents. One's weight can be a weapon too, Nishimura."

"Sorry, sorry." I cleared my throat. "But you know, your muscles are big enough that even getting a little fat here and there ain't really much of a problem."

The bear picked up my shirt and wrung it tightly. "Really?"

"Really. It complements the whole 'big and strong' thing you have."

The bear stopped wringing, pausing for a bit. "I'm... not strong."

"What do you mean?"

"It's nothing," Juuichi-san said, shaking his head. "Forget what I said." He hung the shirt next to my shorts.

"But Juuichi-sa-"

"I said forget it!" he shouted, looking angry.

I didn't know what expression I had on my face, but I definitely felt afraid of him that moment. His angry look changed to a remorseful one not long after. "Sorry, Nishimura," he said, turning his back on me.

It was one of those times where it would be better if I kept silent and let him be for the time being. While I still did want to ask why he acted like that out of the blue, it felt best to just drop the topic and switch to another. Since we mentioned sweets a while ago, a question came to mind, but it had to wait for a bit. After minutes, I broke the silence.

"H-Hey, Juuichi-san..."

He turned to me. "Yes?"

"Who makes better sweets? Tora or Shin-kun?"

At first the bear looked surprised with the question, then got to thinking. "Hmm, Tora's definitely an above-average chef, and there's nothing he made that I wouldn't eat. But Kuroi on the other hand caters to one's preferences. Whenever he would make sweets for everyone, he would mix money into my share."

"Is that so?"

"Yes. So, in my opinion Kuroi. But don't tell Tora I said that, okay?"

I nodded. "If I did, either he'll get sad about it for god-knows-how-long, or challenge Shin-kun to a cooking match. Oh! Looks like the rain's stopped."

Both of us looked out the station and saw that the sky has cleared up, as if the rain didn't even happen. The dirt road became wet and muddy, but it wasn't too much of an issue. Though the scattered puddles might be a challenge to avoid. I tried to take off the jersey, but Juuichi-san stopped me.

"Your clothes aren't completely dry," he said. "You can hold on to that jacket for now, so leave it on."

"Are you sure?"

He patted my hair. "Yes. Consider it part of my apology."

While I thought that I should be the one who did the apologizing, I didn't bother going against it and agreed to take the jersey. He did remind me to put on my pants before leaving though, else I risk getting in trouble with people. Holding my half-wet shirt, I thanked Juuichi-san for what he did before both of us headed home, me needing to change before heading again to Shun-kun's place.

But thinking about what just happened, I noticed that there have been times where Juuichi-san seemed a bit off. First was when we were firefly catching, and then this. Come to think of it, Kenji had been mentioning about something that happened to Juuichi-san years ago, but he won't tell what it was. Could it be related? Still, it was no time to ponder; Shun-kun was waiting!