Chapter 5

A week had already passed since I became otaku friends with Yukikawa.

As always, Yukikawa maintained her position at the center of the class. Today, too, she was surrounded by the popular crowd, lazily fiddling with her phone.

“Wanna hit up that new family restaurant by the station after school?”

“Sounds good!”

It was lunch break. As usual, the popular kids were making plans to hang out somewhere. The second- and third-tier groups watched them enviously from the sidelines. People could cherish the relationships around them, but it seemed human nature to envy those at the top.

“What about you, Tsukino?” Momoki asked Yukikawa.

Yukikawa shook her head. “Sorry, I’ve got plans, so I’m heading home.”

“Got it,” Momoki replied, casually seeing her off.

But the guys in the popular crowd—except for Onijima—looked a bit disappointed. They were probably hoping for a chance with Yukikawa. Plenty of guys aimed to join the popular group just to get closer to her.

—Oops, no time to gawk.

I quickly stood up and left the classroom, heading straight for the school gate. There, just by the gate, Yukikawa was waiting, messing with her phone.

“Kept you waiting,” I said.

“Mm,” she replied.

We started walking side by side toward the station. We didn’t bother hiding our relationship, but I doubted anyone had caught on yet. Even if someone saw us now, they’d probably think, No way that nerd is with Yukikawa, and dismiss it.

“What’re you doing? Hurry up, or the new volume’ll sell out,” I teased.

“No way it’d sell out…” she muttered.

Yup, we were headed to Animate in Ikebukuro to grab the latest volume of Day After Future. Known as Deiafu for short, it’s a wildly popular manga about survivors in a world where civilization collapsed after a massive meteor strike. The hauntingly beautiful, desolate world is drawn with breathtaking detail.

“A Deiafu artbook would be awesome, right?” Yukikawa said.

“Totally. They’ll probably release one after the series ends.”

Chatting like that, we hopped on the train to Ikebukuro. From the east exit, it was a quick two- or three-minute walk to the newly renovated Animate store.

“This is my first time at Animate,” Yukikawa said as we stepped inside. “It’s pretty crowded for a weekday.”

She wasn’t wrong—there were way more people than you’d expect. I come here often to shop, but I’d never really noticed before.

“Don’t get lost,” I warned.

“Hey, don’t treat me like a kid!” she shot back.

“Sorry, sorry.”

I led Yukikawa up the stairs to the manga floor and straight to the new releases section.

“There it is,” I said, picking up the latest Deiafu volume. “Anything else you want?”

“Can we look around? I might grab something if it catches my eye.”

“Sure.”

We wandered through the manga section. Sometimes I look at my bookshelf at home and feel proud of my collection, but seeing the endless rows of books here humbles me. I’ve still got a long way to go.

“Oh, this manga’s new volume is out,” Yukikawa said, picking one up.

“I’ve got that at home,” I told her.

“…I’ll read it later then.” She put it back.

“Oh, this one’s new too!”

“Got that one too.”

“…You seriously have everything.”

“Not that much.”

We went back and forth like that a few times. At some point, Yukikawa started calling going to my place “heading home.” It felt a little embarrassing.

“…”

“What’s up? Feeling sick?” she asked.

“Nah, I’m fine. It’s nothing.”

“…?”

I couldn’t admit I’d clammed up from embarrassment.

“A-Anyway, I’ll go buy Deiafu. Wait here.”

“Huh? Why? I’m coming with you.”

“What?”

“It’s a book we’re both gonna read, right? Shouldn’t we split the cost?”

“…Huh.”

I hadn’t thought of it that way. It made sense—we were both reading it, so splitting the cost was fair.

“…Nah, I’ll cover it,” I decided.

“Why?”

“Collecting books is my hobby. It doesn’t feel right unless I buy them with my own money.”

“Hmm… if you feel that strongly, I won’t argue.”

“Thanks for understanding.”

I headed to the register, feeling a bit guilty for making her go along with my stubbornness. But collecting books with my own money—that was one thing I couldn’t compromise on.

◇◆◇

“Hey, can I start reading this now?” Yukikawa asked, pointing to the freshly bought Deiafu the moment we left Animate.

“What, right here!?” I exclaimed.

“I can’t wait anymore.”

“Well… fine.”

We sat on a bench in a nearby park, and Yukikawa tore open the manga’s packaging. I was thrown at first, but the weather was nice, and reading outside didn’t seem like a bad idea. Might as well join her. I pulled out a half-read light novel from my bag and flipped to my page.

Light novels—or novels in general—are a great deal to me. For the same price as a manga, you get way more reading time. Hard to beat that value.

We read quietly for about thirty minutes. Then, out of nowhere, I heard Yukikawa sniffling beside me.

“Sniff… ugh…”

“Need a tissue?” I offered.

“Yes…! Thanks…”

I handed her a pocket tissue as she sobbed. Was the latest Deiafu that emotional? I needed to read it ASAP.

“…Sorry, can I go fix my makeup? I must look awful right now.”

“Uh, sure.”

“I’ll be right back…!”

Yukikawa stood and hurried out of the park. I didn’t think she looked bad at all, but I guess girls’ standards are beyond me.

“Well then…” I reopened my light novel.

I could’ve started Deiafu, but I didn’t want to leave my current book hanging, so I held off.

“Hey—is that you, Nagai?”

“Huh?”

I looked up at the sound of my name. Standing there, of all people, was Momoki Haru, one of the popular kids from our class.

A jolt of tension shot through me. I didn’t care if people found out about me and Yukikawa, but now that the moment was here, my mind raced. Yukikawa had ditched the popular crowd to come here with me. If they found out her “prior plans” were with a guy like me, some of them might be disappointed in her.

—Calm down. I can still play this off.

Luckily, Yukikawa was off fixing her makeup. I could pass this off as just me hanging out alone.

“Fancy meeting you here, Momoki,” I said, trying to sound casual.

“Right? What’re you doing here, Nagai?”

“Oh, just grabbing a new volume of a manga I like.”

I showed her the Deiafu volume, hoping she’d lose interest and leave. She wouldn’t care about this stuff, right?

“No way, Deiafu! The new volume came out today…?”

“…Wait, you know it?”

“Huh!? N-No, I mean… yeah, uh… my brother reads it!”

“…?”

Apparently, Momoki knew about Deiafu too. But she seemed oddly flustered. What was she so shaken about?

“So, Nagai, you’re into manga and stuff?”

“Oh, yeah! Manga, anime, light novels—I love it all!”

“Wow, really…”

See? I’m the kind of otaku you popular kids can’t stand. Just leave already, before Yukikawa gets back.

—Wait.

Something felt off. I glanced around.

“By the way, where’s the rest of the… I mean, your group?”

“Oh, I had something to do, so I’m on my own right now.”

That explained why I didn’t see any of the other popular kids.

“Hey, Nagai, actually…”

“Yeah?”

“—Never mind, forget it! Anyway, you free after this?”

“Huh?”

“Since we ran into each other, wanna hang out a bit? Like, a little date?”

“…A date!?”

Caught off guard by the unexpected invitation, I let out a ridiculous yelp. Hearing it, Momoki burst into laughter, just like when she invited me to karaoke before.

“Haha! Your voice is hilarious!”

“It’s not funny at all… my voice, I mean.”

“No, it’s totally funny! So, what do you say? A date with me?”

“…Sorry, but I’ve got plans after this.”

“Aw, bummer!”

Momoki laughed and pressed a hand to her forehead. For a split second, she seemed genuinely disappointed—or was that my imagination? Either way, dragging this out any longer wasn’t a good idea. I decided not to pry.

“See ya, Nagai. Catch you at school!”

“Yeah, later.”

Momoki waved as she walked away. I let out a breath once her figure grew small in the distance. For someone like her to take the time to talk to a nobody like me—Momoki really is a good person. I felt a bit guilty for not coming up with a smoother response.

—Wait a sec…

Didn’t Momoki come from the direction of Animate? …Nah, no way. Her being an otaku would be too convenient. She probably just happened to be walking from that direction.

“Sorry for the wait.”

Lost in my thoughts, I heard Yukikawa’s voice behind me.

“Oh, you’re back… Whoa, why do you look so grumpy?”

“No reason. It’s nothing.”

Saying that, Yukikawa plopped down heavily on the bench. Did something happen while she was fixing her makeup? I couldn’t think of anything I’d done to upset her.

“…That was Haru just now, wasn’t it?”

“Huh? Oh, yeah, you saw?”

“I didn’t want to deal with any nosy questions, so I watched from a distance. And I definitely saw you grinning like an idiot at her.”

“Grinning like an idiot!? Me!?”

“Yeah, you were totally swooning when she was flirting with you.”

For some reason, Yukikawa puffed out her cheeks, looking sulky. But come on, accusing me of swooning? That’s just unfair.

“Ugh… We’re already on a date, so don’t go chatting up other girls like that.”

“Whoa, hold up—this is a date!?”

“—W-Wait! No! Forget I said that! Pretend it didn’t happen!”

Yukikawa frantically backpedaled. She’s usually calm, even around me, so hearing her raise her voice like that was surprising. Must’ve been a major slip-up for her. I decided not to poke at it further—it’d only make things messier.

“…I don’t really get it, but, uh, sorry about that.”

“No, you didn’t do anything wrong… Yeah, you’re fine.”

The second half sounded like she was convincing herself. At least she seemed to have calmed down.

“…Wanna head back?”

“Yeah…”

The mood had gotten weird. But we couldn’t stay here forever. We started walking toward the station.

“…Oh.”

“Hm?”

Yukikawa let out a small sound as we walked side by side. Following her gaze, I saw a woman dressed in a costume of Mikoto, a heroine from Marionette Harem modeled after a Japanese doll. A cosplayer, in other words.

“That’s so cool…” Yukikawa murmured.

“You into cosplay, Yukikawa?”

“Huh? Oh… yeah, a little.”

She scratched her cheek, looking slightly embarrassed.

“Getting to become a character from a series you love—that’s pretty amazing, right? It’s gotta cost a ton, too… You’d have to really love the series to do it.”

“…You’re probably right.”

You’d have to love the series to pull it off—that’s true. The woman we saw must adore Marihare with all her heart.

“Hey, there’s a place I wanna check out. Is that okay?”

“Sure, where to?”

“A shop that sells cosplay stuff.”

Yukikawa gave a shy smile.

◇◆◇

Following Yukikawa’s lead, we walked for a few minutes and arrived at a store specializing in cosplay goods. The place had an intimidating vibe—like walking in was declaring, “I’m into cosplay.”

“I’ve come by here a few times before,” Yukikawa said. “I always chickened out, but since you’re with me today, I feel like I can go in.”

With that, she stepped inside. After she put it like that, I couldn’t back out either. Steeling myself, I followed her.

“Welcome!” a store clerk called out from a distance.

The shop was packed with anime character costumes and accessories. The colorful outfits were almost blinding—like stepping into a 2D world.

“—So, uh… what kind of cosplay do you want to do, Yukikawa?”

Snapped out of being overwhelmed by the atmosphere, I asked her. Yukikawa, who’d also been momentarily frozen, blinked and looked around nervously before answering.

“Oh, um… I’ve always wanted to try being Merry from Marihare.”

“Merry, huh? I can see that.”

Merry, a doll based on ghost stories, is a yandere character who pops up behind the protagonist at every turn, true to the “Mary-san” urban legend. Her defining feature is her long, beautiful silver hair. With Yukikawa’s hair, she could probably pull it off just by styling it.

“Is your hair natural, by the way?”

“Nope. It’s naturally kinda silvery, but the real color’s a bit duller. I get it dyed at the salon to look like this.”

“Gotcha.”

“When I first got it dyed… I showed them a picture of Merry and asked for her color.”

Yukikawa’s eyes softened with nostalgia as she spoke.

“Is there a Marihare section? Let’s look for it.”

“Sure thing.”

I started scouring the chaotic store for Yukikawa. The costumes were mixed together, male and female characters alike, loosely grouped by series. But with so many outfits, finding the right one was tough.

“Looks like the upper floor’s for accessories…”

It seemed costumes were only on this floor, with wigs and props upstairs. That meant we’d find what we needed here if we kept looking—

“Nagai, I found it…!”

“Whoa…”

Yukikawa called out in a brighter tone than usual. When I joined her, there it was—the Marihare section.

“Amazing, they’ve got everyone!”

The section had costumes for the protagonist and all four heroines, each intricately designed to match the originals.

“Wow, these are way more detailed than I expected…”

“Right? I thought they’d be kinda cheap-looking, honestly.”

Yukikawa reached out to touch one, but her expression clouded over mid-motion.

“…What’s wrong?”

“…Nagai, feel this for a second.”

“Uh, okay…”

The moment I touched it, I understood why she looked disappointed. The costume’s design was spot-on, but the fabric felt cheap—flimsy, almost like a knockoff. Sure, cosplay costumes prioritize looking the part, but the shoddy material made it feel like a hollow imitation, dulling the excitement we’d felt at first.

“And check the price,” Yukikawa said.

“Huh? …Yikes.”

I couldn’t help but react. The price tags were way higher than expected. Even the cheapest character’s costume was over ten thousand yen. This wasn’t something you could just casually buy.

“They’ve got accessories and stuff upstairs, apparently,” I said.

“…Wanna check it out?” Yukikawa replied.

We headed up to the next floor. As expected, it was filled with character wigs, weapons, accessories, and other small props. As a guy, I’ve always had a thing for cool stuff like swords and guns, but the prices made my jaw drop again.

“They’re almost as expensive as the costumes…”

The average price was over ten thousand yen. Luckily, Merry doesn’t wield a sword or gun. Instead, she carries a massive scythe as tall as she is. And, unbelievably, the shop actually had that scythe in stock. The price? Twenty thousand yen. Putting together the whole outfit was way out of a high schooler’s budget.

This was probably on the cheaper side, though. They must’ve cut costs on materials to make cosplay more accessible. The designs were spot-on, and maybe an adult with a job could afford it.

“Cosplay costumes are this expensive, huh? Well, they are clothes, I guess,” I said.

“Yeah… I get living expenses from my parents, but if I bought this, I’d be eating bread crusts for the rest of the month,” Yukikawa sighed.

Cosplay felt like a pipe dream. But then, an idea hit me.

“Hey, how much would it cost to make this ourselves?”

“What, like handmade?”

“Yeah, maybe that’d be cheaper.”

Just like cooking at home is cheaper than eating out, making everything ourselves might save money. Plus, we could pick better materials to avoid that cheap feel.

“…You’re right. Can we look into it? There’s gotta be, like, craft stores or something that sell this stuff.”

“Let’s go find out.”

Our next stop was a craft store. After looking up directions on my phone, we made it to a shop that felt like a completely foreign world to someone like me.

“Whoa… It’s really just craft supplies,” I marveled.

“It’s a specialty store, duh. But look—doesn’t that stuff seem perfect for cosplay?” Yukikawa pointed to rows of colorful fabrics neatly arranged.

Up close, they did match Merry’s vibe—richer, thicker, more luxurious than the store-bought costumes.

“You can buy it by ten-centimeter increments. If we just get what we need, it might be cheaper than a premade costume,” she said.

“…I’m starting to feel like this could work.”

We pulled up images of Merry and started picking out materials. But when we crunched the numbers, reality hit us hard.

“If we make all the accessories from scratch… it’s about the same as buying the whole thing,” I admitted.

“Yeah… Merry’s outfit has a lot of detailed decorations,” Yukikawa agreed.

We both slumped, defeated. And that wasn’t even counting shoes or colored contacts. Adding all those little details would easily surpass the cost of the store’s costume.

“But it’d definitely look more authentic,” Yukikawa said.

“…No doubt about that.”

Making it from scratch with these materials would absolutely look higher quality. The problem was cost and skill. A short-term job could cover the money, but the skills? We had none. Could we learn in time? Even practicing would require materials, which meant more money…

“…What do you want to do, Yukikawa?”

“Huh?”

“Buy the costume or get materials and make Merry’s outfit from scratch?”

“…”

It wasn’t my dream to wear the costume—it was hers. This was her call.

“—I’ve always… been jealous of people who could get obsessed with something,” Yukikawa began, staring at the piles of fabric. “I’m half-hearted at everything—sports, studies, you name it. I’m always so… detached. Honestly, I respect you, Nagai. People who are passionate about something are just… cool, you know?”

Her direct gaze caught me off guard. I hadn’t realized she saw me that way, and it threw me.

“So… I want to go all-in on something, just once.”

“…So that means?”

“I’m gonna make the costume from scratch.”

Her eyes burned with determination, a resolve that made me jealous. Her willingness to change, to dive in headfirst—it was dazzling.

“So, um… could you help me out a bit, Nagai?”

“Sure, but what do I do? I’m a total cosplay newbie…”

“For starters, help me find a job.”

“That’s it? I can do that no prob—”

“And work with me.”

“Isn’t that a bit more than ‘for starters’!?”

Her request was a shock. But, thinking about it, I’d been considering a job myself lately, so the timing wasn’t bad.

“…Alright, I’m in.”

“Seriously!? Thanks, Nagai!”

“Whoa, hold on—!”

She threw her arms around me, and the soft sensation sent my virgin otaku brain into a panic.

◇◆◇

Back at my place, we started job hunting right away. Our goal was to fund Merry’s costume. Day-labor jobs with same-day pay were our best bet.

“Weekend gigs that pay around ten thousand yen a day would be ideal,” I said.

“Yeah. Two weeks of that would get us forty thousand yen—should be enough for materials,” Yukikawa agreed.

“Right, forty thousand should do it.”

Thirty thousand was the bare minimum; forty gave us some wiggle room. Two weeks felt doable. The problem was finding a job that fit those conditions perfectly.

We debated back and forth, searching for about half an hour.

“Hey… what about this?” I showed Yukikawa a listing.

It was for “Event Staff Wanted.” They needed people for events, mostly on weekends, not far from here. The daily pay was eleven thousand yen—two weeks would net us forty-four thousand.

“Event staff… looks good. The pay’s perfect,” Yukikawa said.

“And check this out.”

“Huh!?”

In the job description, there it was: staff for a cosplay event. They were hiring for a big cosplay event happening three weeks from now. The timing was almost too perfect—like fate.

“We gotta apply for this, right?” I said.

The cosplay event was just one day, but the other gigs—like concerts—sounded fun too.

“Yeah, let’s do it. You’re applying too, Nagai.”

“I know, I know.”

We filled out the application forms and sent them off. Soon, we got emails about a “registration meeting.”

“Looks like we need to attend this… registration thing,” I said.

“Like an interview?”

“Probably something like that.”

We coordinated our schedules and set to attend the meeting later that week. Things were moving fast—almost scarily so—but it wasn’t like we were losing anything. I’d decided to help Yukikawa and earn some cash for my otaku hobbies, so there was no backing out now.

“Ugh… I’ve never had a job before. Think I’ll be okay?” Yukikawa asked.

“Well, you won’t know till you try. Everything’s a first at some point.”

“…True.”

We met the job requirements. Whether we could handle the work was another question, but we had every right to apply confidently.

“And I won’t be alone. You’ll be there too, Nagai,” she said, nudging my shoulder.

I’d gotten that kind of casual touch from her before, but I still wasn’t used to it.

“…By the way, once the costume’s done, what’s next?”

“Next?”

“Like, don’t people do photoshoots for cosplay?”

“Oh… I hadn’t thought about that.”

From her blank expression, it was clear she really hadn’t considered it. I might be out of place saying this, but after all the effort to make a high-quality costume, it’d be a waste to settle for sloppy photos.

“You’re right… I’d love to do a shoot. Making a costume from scratch might be a once-in-a-lifetime thing,” she said.

“…Not planning to keep going?”

“I’d like to, but… I’m not sure yet.”

—Got it.

For Yukikawa, this cosplay was a test to see how passionate she could get.

“I’ll focus on finishing this one costume with everything I’ve got. I’ll figure out what’s next later.”

“…Fair enough.”

If this might be her only shot, we’d have to go all out.

◇◆◇

“Man… without Momoki or Yukikawa, it’s just not the same.”

At the new family restaurant by the station, the core members of Class 1-A were hanging out. The vibe was noticeably down. The reason? Yukikawa Tsukino and Momoki Haru weren’t there.

“Yukikawa’s been kinda distant lately, don’t you think?” Yamanaka said.

“It’s not even been a month since we started this class, but… yeah, I’d say she’s been flaky,” Watanabe agreed.

The others nodded. They hung out almost daily, but Yukikawa only joined every other day now. Momoki had also been dipping out early more often lately.

The popular group’s status hinged on having standouts like Yukikawa and Momoki. Their presence defined the “top tier.” If the two of them started hanging with a different crowd, that group would become the new elite. For these guys, who saw being in the top tier as a status symbol, this was a problem.

“What do you think, Onijima?” Yamanaka asked.

“Hm?” Onijima, who’d been zoning out on his phone, shot Yamanaka his usual cool glance. “Eh, whatever. They’ve got their own stuff going on sometimes. I can’t hang when I’ve got gym, either.”

“Yeah, but we know your deal. Those two just say they’re busy and don’t tell us anything…” Yamanaka grumbled.

“…”

“And there’s this rumor—someone saw Yukikawa walking with a guy.”

The moment Yamanaka said that, every guy except Onijima leaned in.

“No way! Who’s the guy!?” one demanded.

“Uh, someone from our class… Nagata, maybe?”

“Nagata? Who’s that?”

Names like Nagayama and Nagahama got tossed around, but they couldn’t pin it down. That’s how little they cared about anyone outside their circle.

All except Onijima.

“—You mean Nagai, don’t you?” he said.

“Oh, yeah! Nagai! Wait, Onijima, you know him?”

“He’s our classmate. I know his name, at least.”