[Short] Daria

-- short story --

People who are dexterous are like magicians.

As a member of the high school art club, I sometimes stay late to paint pictures I like.
When I heard a noise from the classroom across the hall and looked over, he was making something.
If I recall correctly, that's Yuki Hakamada from Class 2-3.
I knew him because we were in the same art club.
I secretly moved my art supplies and chair to a position where I could see Hakamada-kun from the window.
While keeping my eyes on my painting, I peeked at his hands through the classroom window.
…It's origami.
Folding it into triangles, into squares.
Line overlaps with line, becoming one.
Every time he flips the origami, there's a rustling sound.

My heart is being drawn in.

As I watched, mesmerized, a paper crane was completed. Next, a large flower petal, then a three-dimensional moon.
And then…

Suddenly, his hands stop.

When silence falls, time begins to move again, as if returning to reality.

Our eyes met.

Thump.

He is looking straight at me.

I can't find the words.

Hakamada-kun stands up, takes the origami he made and his bag, and enters this classroom.

He stands behind me and his eyes widen slightly.

“…Whoa.”

I remained frozen, staring at Hakamada-kun from my upward-looking position.

“Shimizu-san, you're painting a scene, aren't you?”

…A scene?

It was just a watercolor painting. It was the scenery I saw when I went out for a walk in the hills behind our house with my father last night.
The mountains, the lakeside, a small boat, and the moon; the vast night sky was clear and the stars were shining.

A girl standing there.

“…Aren't you going to draw a boy next to this girl?”

“…I hadn't thought about it.”

When I answered quietly, he placed the beautifully folded crescent moon against the moon in my painting.

“It's a perfect fit. …Though, I should have made it a full moon.”

Hakamada-kun smiles.
My chest felt a little warm.

He pulled up a nearby desk, took origami paper out of his bag, and started folding again.
This time he made a full moon and gave it to me.

“…Can you make anything else?”

“What would you like?”

“Something beautiful.”

After thinking for a moment, Hakamada-kun
immediately begins to fold skillfully.

He layered yellow and orange, cut green leaves with scissors, and secured them with tape.

He handed it to me, saying, “Here.”

“There, it's done. Isn't it beautiful?”

Hakamada-kun smiles meaningfully.

“Daria.”

I'm surprised and frozen again.

My heart begins to race.

…Could he really be a magician after all?

I stared at what I had received,
for a long, long time.