[CH.14] Tour
As I was led by a girl with a short haircut, we walked through the Oshima residence. We reached a veranda with a view of the garden from large windows, and that's where the girl stopped.
"Sorry for being pushy. Ms. Oshima gets angry if we don't act quickly. She's quite impatient," she said with a wry smile, turning back to face me.
I nodded and shook my head in acknowledgment. I couldn't help but notice her undeniable beauty as we faced each other like this. She must be quite popular with others.
"I'm Sumire Matsuda. Nice to meet you," I said with a smile.
"I'm Yumiko Kurita, but please call me Yumi. I dislike names with 'ko' at the end, they sound old-fashioned," she said suddenly. Although I was a bit taken aback by her request, I nodded and accepted it. If that's what she preferred, I had no reason to object. It seemed like a peculiar preference, but it reminded me of my sister in a past life, who had gone through a phase of disliking her own name. There must be a similar reason behind Yumi's preference, something only she understood.
"Yumi-san, have you been studying acting here for a long time?" I asked.
"I've been here for about a year. Before that, I was in a children's theater group. Currently, I'm in the first year of middle school, and I'm the youngest here. I'd be happy to have you as a junior if you decide to join us," Yumi explained.
I hesitated for a moment before asking, "Um, I performed in front of Ms. Oshima, but she didn't say if I passed or failed."
Yumi nodded knowingly and chuckled. She patted my back gently, then kindly explained that Oshima always used the same process for auditions. She would have the applicants perform in the reception room, and if they passed, they'd be guided through the facilities. If not, they'd be sent home. Applying this to my situation, it seemed I had passed the audition, but I still didn't feel the full weight of it.
We continued the tour, moving from the main residence to the annex connected by a corridor. The kitchen was fully equipped, and I noticed a bit of dust on the stainless steel sink. Although it seemed like the sink had been used for washing, it didn't look like anyone had been cooking in this kitchen recently.
"Do none of you cook much?" I asked.
"Oh, no, none of us can cook. All four of us are completely useless when it comes to cooking. We rely on Toyo-san for everything, even simple cleaning. Well, we do some basic cleaning, but it never meets Toyo-san's standards. She ends up redoing the cleaning about once a week," Yumi explained with a laugh.
When I mustered up the courage to ask, I received a response questioning whether that mattered as girls. If they were fine with it, I had no objections, but I couldn't help feeling a bit sorry for Toyo-san, who was working tirelessly as a housekeeper. If I ever ended up relying on her, I would do my best not to cause her any trouble.
On the first floor, aside from the kitchen, there were bathrooms, a laundry area, and a practice room with mirrored walls. While it wasn't very spacious, it seemed large enough for about ten people to practice dancing simultaneously.
The second and third floors were designated as living quarters, with a spacious living room featuring a television and individual rooms for each resident. Each door had a lock, and only Ms. Oshima and the residents had master keys to access them. Making duplicate keys was strictly forbidden, and there were penalties for losing one. While they didn't explain the details of these penalties, I had a sense that they must be quite severe, judging by Yumi's expression.
"The inside of the house is like this, but is there anywhere else you'd like to see? Ms. Oshima asked me to take about an hour for the tour, but there aren't many places to see inside, right?" Yumi said.
Even though it was a large building, it was still just a house, and it would be understandable if the tour ended in about 15 minutes, no matter how much time we took. I suspected that the tour was merely an excuse for Ms. Oshima to have a conversation with my mother without me. She might have heard about my mother's condition from Mr. Kazuki yesterday, and Ms. Oshima might be planning to assist in persuading her. Or perhaps there was a different motive. I knew very little about her at this point, so I couldn't guess.
There was no point in dwelling on what I didn't know. After a brief moment of contemplation, I thought of a place I'd like to see, although it was a bit difficult to ask. I hesitated for a moment before addressing Yumi.
"Um, could I see your room, Yumi-san? I'd like to see how big it is, just to get an idea. That's all," I said.
According to Yumi's explanation, the residents' rooms were all the same size, about six tatami mats in a Western-style room. Since the vacant rooms were locked, I couldn't enter them, but I wanted to get a sense of the size and atmosphere of an actual room with furniture. I wanted to clarify that I had no intention of prying into a junior high school girl's room, I just wanted to see the space she lived in.
Yumi-san graciously agreed, and we headed straight to her room. She mentioned that she lives on the third floor, and when residents move in, they can choose from the available rooms. Yumi-san had chosen the third floor so that she wouldn't have to worry about noise from above. I couldn't help but be impressed by her maturity, considering she was just a first-year junior high school student.
"It's a bit messy, but please come in," she said.
Upon opening the door, I was greeted by a room that was undeniably girly. A white bed frame with a vibrant red checkered duvet cover, plush dog plushies, and various small items on the chest of drawers all exuded a definite sense of femininity. Yumi-san handed me a foldable chair, while she sat on a swiveling chair at her study desk.
"It's got a pretty big closet over there, so I can stuff away things I don't use much apart from clothes. If it weren't for that, my room would probably be even messier," Yumi said with a chuckle.
I couldn't help but glance at the accordion closet door she mentioned, wondering just how much stuff was crammed inside. My own home had plenty of storage packed to the brim, and seeing something familiar made me feel a connection.
Despite my initial hesitation, Yumi-san and I managed to maintain a steady conversation. She had moved here last year during the new school term and attended a nearby school, which was about a 15-minute walk away. She wore a sailor-type school uniform, with two sets—one for winter, navy with white trim, and the other for summer, white with navy trim.
As she explained and showed me her actual uniform, I couldn't help but feel a desire to wear it. However, judging from my mother's behavior yesterday, I doubted I would be granted permission to study here. No matter what I said, the legal position of a parent was strong as long as there were no defects in their rights. Compared to the late Heisei era in my previous life, when children's rights were less recognized, I couldn't take any drastic measures.
Furthermore, even if I did get permission, relocating would mean being separated from Nao and the others. While it wouldn't be a permanent separation and we could meet during visits, physical distance could lead to emotional distance. Even with correspondence, if you didn't see each other frequently, you could grow apart. It was unavoidable, but just thinking about it made me feel incredibly lonely.
"Yumi-san, when you transferred schools, weren't you sad that you couldn't see your old friends anymore?" I asked, wanting to hear the perspective of someone who had experienced it. Yumi-san pondered for a moment before responding.
"In my case, it wasn't too bad because it's a place I can reach by train for a day trip. I was nervous when I started at the new school, but I didn't really feel lonely," she replied.
Hearing that, I realized that our circumstances were quite different because of the distance between Kanto and Kansai. It seemed like you couldn't chase after both your desires and cherished friends. I still had a lot I wanted to say to both of them, but if my friends grew tired of me, we might have no choice but to part ways. My thoughts turned negative, and I tried to shake off those feelings.
Just then, a soft knock on the door interrupted my thoughts. Yumi-san answered, and there stood Toyo-san, wearing a warm smile.
"Yumi-chan, thank you for the tour. Matsuda-san, madam has requested your presence. Would you come with me?" Toyo-san said.
Upon hearing that, I checked the wall clock and saw that it was nearly 11 AM. I was surprised at how quickly time had passed, and I hurriedly agreed. I thought about clearing the chair I had used, but Yumi-san instructed me to leave it as it was. It seemed likely that I wouldn't be returning to this room again, so I accepted her offer and left the chair where it was.
Toyo-san reminded me not to forget anything, and I realized that I might not return to this room at all. That meant I might not see Yumi-san again on this visit, so I turned around and bowed to her.
"Thank you for the tour and the conversation. I found it very informative," I said.
"No problem at all. If you end up living here, let's get along," Yumi-san replied.
I shook her outstretched right hand firmly, then followed Toyo-san out of the room.
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