Chapter 32
The crisp air of early summer was fading, and the footsteps of the rainy season were gradually approaching.
More and more mornings, Ryosaku wakes up to the sound of rain hitting buckets left on the tin roof and eaves.
To Ryosaku's ears, even though it wasn't night yet, he could already hear the lively chorus of frogs coming from the rice field behind him.
Ryosaku has always loved rainy days.
Until before...
But now... now that Mieko is gone, Ryosaku's only place to be is that "library".
In the schoolyard, where the new first-year students enjoy "spring in our world" and play as they please, Ryosaku's "presence" is quietly disappearing, along with the image of Mieko.
Ryosaku, who was losing his place in the world, finally sought a "place of salvation" in the nostalgic "library" where he read picture books with his beloved Mieko on rainy days.
After becoming a sixth grader, Ryosaku had a "sweet fleeting dream" with a new first grader, and was able to find some peace of mind, albeit for a short period of time.
...However, Ryosaku was unable to receive genuine "love" from the new first-year students.
Ryosaku, whose emotional wounds have not yet completely healed, visits the "library", a gentle space that once enveloped Mieko and Ryosaku, and desperately pursues "Mieko's scent" that is rapidly fading day by day. It can be said that it was a natural progression.
For him, who is losing his place in the schoolyard along with Mieko...
