Chapter 37 - The Morning of the Orienteering Event
And so, Monday morning arrived.
This was the day of the second major event we, the Student Council, had been preparing with the Disciplinary Committee—our orienteering event. I was heading to Marimo’s house.
For some reason, the time between pressing the doorbell and the door being answered felt unusually long. Marimo wasn’t in top shape, but honestly, neither was I. I just couldn’t shake off this feeling of unease. And since I couldn’t figure out the reason, it made it even worse.
But it didn’t matter how I felt. The real question was whether Marimo would be able to come out.
"…Good morning, Kou-chan."
Marimo appeared. Though she was clearly not full of energy, with obvious signs of sleep deprivation under her eyes, it was unmistakably her. Just seeing her face brought me some relief.
"Shall we go to school?"
“…Yeah.”
Normally, Marimo was chatty enough to make you think she could be a radio DJ, but today, she was barely speaking. Still, I tried to keep the conversation going, figuring it was just one of those days.
"Hey, don’t push yourself too hard today, okay?"
“…Yeah.”
"Remember, Karin is the one who’s been leading this whole thing from the start, right? Plus, the Disciplinary Committee members are here, and Onigawara-kun too. And, well, I’m here as well. You don’t need to overdo it."
"Got it. Thanks, Kou-chan."
"…No problem. Don’t mention it."
Though as I said that, I couldn’t help but realize that I was the one worrying the most. It seemed I wasn’t exactly in peak form either.
I don’t usually like to rely on others, but today, maybe I should lean on the people around me.
Even though I kept trying to chat with her, the conversation didn’t really go anywhere, and before I knew it, we had arrived at school. I had probably wasted what little time we had alone together.
"Good morning, Kouhei-senpai! Marimo-senpai!"
Even though we left home pretty early, Karin had already changed into her track suit and was fully prepared. For her, this was the first big event of her high school life, and as the person in charge, she seemed full of energy. Honestly, I found her enthusiasm reassuring.
"Morning! You’re really pumped up, huh, Karin?"
"Of course! I’m the one who was put in charge of this event! So you two should take it easy today, okay?"
She really was an impressive and considerate girl.
"Yeah, maybe we’ll let you handle things today and take it easy."
"Haha, exactly! I’m taking charge today!"
Karin clenched her hands in front of her chest and gave a warm smile.
"There you are, Kamino-kun!"
Asamura-sensei, the student guidance counselor, approached.
"I need to confirm today’s schedule. Can we talk over there for a moment?"
Both Karin and I started to offer to go, but Marimo shook her head.
"It’s fine! I’m the Student Council President, after all. Even though I’m mostly working behind the scenes today, I’ll do my part! I’ll be right back!"
…And then she left.
"Um, is Marimo-senpai going to be okay?"
Karin asked, looking worriedly at me.
I hadn’t sunk so low that I’d admit, "Actually, she’s not doing great," just yet.
"She may look like that, but Marimo is incredibly responsible. She’ll be fine. And above all, she’s a genius. If things get too tough, she’ll come to us for help."
That was half a statement of fact, half a hope.
After that, Karin and I headed off to manage the transportation of food and drinks. By the time we realized it, all the other students had already started arriving at school.
"Good morbing, evweyone! I meban—excuse me! Good morning! Today is the Student Council’s Orienteerwing... Orienteering event!"
"Who put Onigawara-kun in charge of the announcements!?"
Karin was visibly irritated.
"Uh, um… He volunteered and said, ‘I’ll do it,’ so…,"
A nearby male member of the Disciplinary Committee reported.
Apparently, Onigawara-kun was stepping up to help in the Student Council’s time of need.
"Ugh, does he not know the phrase ‘right person for the right job’?"
She turned her frustration toward the broadcasting equipment, where Onigawara-kun was fumbling.
"I’ll go sort this out! Senpai, can you handle things here for a bit?"
"Ah, sure. But you know, Onigawara-kun is just—"
"I know! I’m not going to yell at him too much! …Haha."
Onigawara-kun, you’ve really done it now.
A few minutes later, a dejected Onigawara-kun returned, and I gave him a Mountain Dew as a token of my appreciation for his effort.
"Hey! You over there! Pack the stuff in the fridge more tightly! There’s no room left!"
"And you! Where do you think you’re taking that? You’re just creating extra work for yourself!"
"What’s going on here? Who’s the idiot in charge?"
That would be me.
I raised my hand timidly, only to have my collar grabbed by Hino-san, who marched over to me.
I had my collar grabbed by a yankee at the amusement park the other day, but this was about two hundred times scarier.
"Are you slacking off? Pull yourself together, Kirishima Kouhei!"
"S-sorry! I’ll help right away."
"Ah, forget it! You’d be useless with those scrawny arms anyway!"
Somebody, please! Bring me some cushioning—fast! One or two layers won’t be enough. I need a whole box!
"Oh, here’s someone perfect! Onigawara Takezou! You’re in charge of the transportation!"
"Y-yes, ma’am! I undberstand!"
"Hey, are you sure you’re okay? If it’s too much, just say so."
I was seriously worried we’d have another dropout.
But Hino-san’s aggressive pep talk seemed to light a fire under Onigawara-kun.
"Everyone, grab as much as you can carry and bring it to the gym, which we’ve set as a temporary storage area! If you can’t carry something, bring it here! I’ll take it all!"
And so, Onigawara-kun confidently shouldered what must have been 50 kilos of juice bundles and walked away as if it was nothing.
Wow, that’s kind of cool.
Seeing the underclassmen working so hard made me realize I couldn’t afford to slack off either.
"Anyone who’s free, come over here! I’ll give you a sign to put up. Go to the designated spots and tape them down! We can’t have any accidents from loose signs, so secure them properly!"
"Yes!"
"Understood!"
"Vice President, should I take this over as well?"
The Disciplinary Committee members were full of energy, and my instructions flew out like well-placed arrows.
"Yeah, I’m counting on you!"
"Next time, do things right from the start! If you lose your jack-of-all-trades skills, you won’t have anything left, will you?"
Was Hino-san actually encouraging me? For now, I’ll take it as such.
"Now, give me your hand."
Wait, is this… a handshake?
Was this really the same Hino-san who once said with a straight face, "If I could get rid of one person from this world, it would be you"?
No ice is eternal after all!
She dropped something into my hand—a small, round tablet.
…It was a breath mint.
I guess there is such a thing as eternal frost, after all.
Though things were hectic, we somehow managed to complete all the preparations on time. Right on schedule, Karin approached the microphone in the broadcasting room.
"Thank you for waiting! At exactly 9:30, the Student Council’s Orienteering event will begin!"
She stood confidently.
It reminded me of the first time I saw her at the entrance ceremony. Back then, I could only catch a glimpse of her from between the gaps in the stage, but no matter the setting, her voice had always been clear and dignified.
"The Student Council officers and the Disciplinary Committee will be here to assist you throughout the day!"
Despite some lingering concerns, the event was finally about to begin.
"Please enjoy yourselves! This is Saeki Karin, the Student Council Secretary!!"
And so, the festival began.