“See you tomorrow.”

With the school day now over, Conway-san shined me the peace sign. Not sure why that seemed so natural in my eyes.

“Best of luck, Mado-chan!”

Ma-chan with a grin on her face snickered. She’s lucky I don’t punch her lights out. I waved to Conway-san and Ma-chan as we broke off. Mom and Hana-chan should be around the corner so I put a pep in my step and make my way to them.

“Madoka!”

Mom waved to me. It appeared a bunch of parents came today as there are plenty of older men and women walking with their children. Hana looks to be pleased as I approach.

“Did everything go well you two?”

“Yeah! My mom’s the best!”

“You’ll have to tell me all about it, Hana-chan.”

She is so much like an elementary school kid. At that age, I’d be embarrassed to have mom show up at school.

“Well, let’s catch the train before we miss it you two.”

Mom led the way. The walk to the station is a little over ten minutes so, this might be the perfect time for me to ask a few questions to mom.

“Mom, can I ask you something?”

I ventured to the front. Hana-san reached out her hand as I take hold.

“Oh! You and Hana walk hand in hand too?”

“Eh?”

Out of sheer habit, I took Hana-san’s hand. Great, this is embarrassing.

“I have to keep her from getting lost.”

My little sister, like a stone, replied curt and dry.

“Oh, how cute! Well, as you were saying, Madoka?”

My face was red, and I haven’t even got to the embarrassing part yet. I coughed to clear any tension still in the air.

“Ahh…I wanted to ask you about Koda-san.”

Mom slowed down and turned to me.

“Mari? What about her?”

I tugged on my collar unconsciously.

“I…wanted to know how she and I knew one another…before my coma.”

Mom’s expressions widen. But suddenly it turned gentle and a soothing motion engulfed my chest.

“So, you’ve finally taken an interest in her, huh?”

“Huh?”

Hana-san snickered. Now I regretted not waiting for this little brat to be out of sight before asking.

Mom nodded then turned back to me with a dreamer’s gaze.

“Well you see, when I started at the company as an intern, Mari just got hired on. She was my senpai.”

“Mari was your senpai?”

“Yep, and she taught me quite a lot too. But soon, we started working late nights and I would go out after work to have a drink or two…”

“Hm…I think I remember something like that. You having to stay out later than usual, mom.”

“Mari would drive me home and even sometimes lie me in bed or the sofa, which was much easier for her back.”

I nursed my forehead. So, in other words, mom got plastered. Now that’s embarrassing.

“Anyway, I take it that’s when you met and got to know…Mari.”

“Huh? That’s it?”

“Well, most of the time I was out like a rock. It got to the point that I gave her my key to let herself in. “

“That’s terrible, mom.”

“I know, I was pretty bad back then.”

“Is that really all you can tell me, mom?”

“Hm?”

I bit my lip. It seems a bit of my annoyed state seeped out in my last question.

“Well, that might not be all…I do recall something Mari said to me in the hospital…”

Mom put her finger in the air, the wind blew in response, lifting her bangs up to the sky. It was as if the world was taking a picture-perfect image.

 “Madoka-san is special to me.”

Mom looked at me, endearingly.

“It seemed that Mari took a liking to you, Madoka. And at the very least she would call you Madoka-san.”

“Mari took a liking to me?”

Koda-san would call me Madoka-san too? Is that why she’s had a hard time calling me Nakagawa-san? To her, it must have been like forcing herself to distance from me. I guess I didn’t take it into consideration that I may have been insensitive to her feelings. I wonder if she felt something hearing me call her daughter…Hana-san in front of her as we still are as far apart as two people on different sides of an ocean.

If I learned anything from this is that Koda-san and I have two different levels of relationship in our heads. It might be why I’ve seen everything she’s done as strange or creepy. Because to me, she’s a stranger but to her…I’m something more. But…what more am I to her? Now there is only one person left to ask. And that’s Koda-san herself.

Once we entered the home, I took right to my room. I shut the door gently and lie on my bed.

“Now what will I say?”

The question escapes my mouth. As I thought about before, Koda-san and mom are on the same schedule. By the time Koda-san and I actually get a chance to converse it’s at the table with everyone or too late into the night for us. I could wait for the weekend, but I’ll be stressing over this until then. I have five more days being that it’s only Monday afternoon.

Koda won’t be back until late because of the errands she has to run after work. Maybe I’m making this too difficult. Probably I could just approach her when she gets home tonight and asks her if she’d like to chat? No, knowing Koda-san she’ll likely tease me, and nothing will get accomplished.

Reluctantly, I thought back to all the times that she’s bothered me. Us going out to get dinner for everyone and that ending up in her putting an apron on me. Her coursing me to watch that drama just so she can tease me with that stupid lemon scent and get me flustered.

“She pisses me off.”

My irritation echoed off the walls of my room…that’s going to get me in trouble one day. I just seriously hate being toyed with. So, I’ll have to retaliate and do something she wouldn’t expect.

Well, to be honest, Ma-chan, and I already came up with a suitable strategy. It’ll bring me late into the night…and on a school night too, but I think it would be the best time for me to have a long one-on-one chat with the enigma named, Koda-san.

Now I just had to think of the words I wanted to say. I pulled out the piece of paper. This is in a way my rebuttal prank to Koda-san. I imagined the face she’ll make once I get her there…Then it brings back the fact that it’s hard for me to see her.

Now thinking about it, at night in the dark with only the streetlights on might be the best time. I won’t have to look at her and get nervous. With all the confidence I could muster I sat at my desk and turned on my light.

“To Koda-san,

 …”