5 Days with You Who Found the Invisible Me - Episode 4

“Ayaka Ninomiya... san? Wait, you can... see me?”
“What do you mean, can I see you? Of course I can. I can see you, Minase-kun, soaking wet.”
Someone who could finally see me had appeared, and along with the words “I’m glad,” tears spilled from my eyes before I could stop them.
“What’s wrong? Are you okay?”
Even though I tried to stop, my tears just kept overflowing and wouldn't cease.

Ayaka had no way of knowing that Minase was invisible to everyone else, but she found it strange that the atmosphere around the sobbing Minase was as if he were completely invisible to others.
“What happened?”
Ayaka asked, but Minase couldn't speak because he was crying.

Of course, only Ayaka could see Minase's existence. Therefore, Ayaka, who had crouched down to meet the eyes of the sobbing Minase, looked like nothing more than an eccentric person staring at something invisible to everyone else. As a result, everyone passing by was looking at her. Ayaka, naturally, became self-conscious of the stares.
“Hey, let’s go somewhere else.”
Saying that, they left the station and walked silently down the night road, sharing an umbrella. There was a small gap between them so that their shoulders wouldn't touch. Ayaka waited until Minase stopped crying.
Then, once he stopped crying, Minase opened his mouth to tell Ayaka what had happened today while they climbed the stairs.
“Hey... I...”
“Wait, we're here. I'll listen to your story once we're inside.” Ayaka said that with a smile.
“Wait a second, isn't this Ninomiya-san's...”
“That's right. I live in room 103 of this apartment. It's okay, I live alone.”
Minase thought to himself, if you live alone, that makes it even worse, doesn't it?
“You'll catch a cold if you're that soaking wet. Come on, hurry and come up.”
“Okay... Excuse me.”
Minase was hurried by Ayaka and went up to the room. The room was a studio apartment. A faint citrus scent was spreading throughout the room.
“First, use this to wipe yourself off. Once you're mostly dry, I've already drawn a bath, so go ahead and get in.”
Saying that, Ayaka handed Minase a towel.
As he wiped his wet hair and face with the towel, he caught a faint scent of florals from it.
“I've been obsessing over smells since earlier, it's disgusting.”
Minase muttered to himself while soaking in the hot water.
“To think that there was someone who could see me...”
As he muttered that, he became sentimental and tears almost spilled again.
“Oh, what about a change of clothes?”
Thinking about that, he left the bathroom, and as expected, there were no clothes for him to change into.
“Ninomiya-san... um, do you have any clothes I could wear?”
He asked, looking apologetic.
“Oh, I forgot. You're right. Everything is wet, so you can't wear it. Wait just a moment. I'll go buy some right away.”
Saying that, Ayaka dashed out of the room and headed to a convenience store. Five minutes later, Ayaka returned.
“I'll leave these here.”
Ayaka had prepared a change of clothes for Minase. When Minase came out of the bathroom, there were boxers she had bought at the convenience store and her own gym clothes from high school.
“These are Ninomiya-san's gym clothes, but... is it okay for me to wear them?”
He asked.
“It's fine.”
That was the only reply. While questioning himself if it was really okay, Minase convinced himself by thinking that since she said it was fine, it must be.
And so, he put on Ayaka's gym clothes. Since Minase was 170cm and Ayaka was 169cm, they were almost the same height, so there was no problem with the size. However, Minase was nervous about the fact that he was wearing the clothes of a female classmate.

***

When he came out of the bath, Ayaka, who had been sitting, stood up.
“I'm going to take a bath too, so sit and wait. Oh, and don't peek, okay?”
Saying that jokingly, she entered the bathroom.
While waiting, Minase sat and looked around the room.
“It's so tidy, it's a huge difference from my room.”
It was Minase's first time in a woman's room, and while he was a little excited, he was also facing the fact that he was invisible to everyone but Ayaka.
After waiting for 10 minutes, Ayaka came out of the bath wearing loungewear.
“Minase-kun, do you want some coffee?”
Ayaka asked. Minase had been captivated by how enchanting Ayaka's wet black hair looked, so he hadn't heard her question.
“Hey, don't you want coffee?”
Thinking he hadn't heard her, Ayaka asked again.
“Yes please, hot with extra sugar.”
Minase replied.
“Minase-kun, you have a sweet tooth? That's cute.”
Saying that, Ayaka made coffee for Minase.
“Here you go.”
Ayaka placed the finished coffee in front of Minase.
“Thank you...”
Saying that, Minase took a sip of the coffee. The sweetness of the sugar soaked into his heart.
“How is it? Are you a little more settled now?”
“Yeah. Thank you.”
“That's good. So, what happened?”
Minase talked for about an hour about how he had become exhausted by human relationships and had become a shut-in. That was why he had wished that his existence wouldn't be visible to anyone. And today, that wish had become reality, and he had become invisible to everyone. And then, Ayaka had found him. Ayaka listened seriously without saying a word.
After finishing his story, Minase's tears spilled again. Ayaka hugged him without saying a word.
“It was hard, wasn't it?”
She said just that one thing. Again, Ayaka waited for Minase to stop crying.

“I'm sorry, I'm always crying.”
Minase apologized, feeling sorry for Ayaka.
“No, anyone would be scared in this situation. What are you going to do from now on?”
“Honestly, right now I'm just relieved and happy that you found me, Ninomiya-san. But if I stay here, I'll just be a burden to you. I'll go back to my own house.”
When Minase said that, Ayaka was surprised.
“What will you do if you go back? How will you live in a state where your mother and father can't see you?”
Ayaka asked Minase with a worried face.
“I don't know. Right now, I'm scared of dying, but I might stop being scared and choose death. But more than anything, I don't want to be a burden to you, Ninomiya-san.”
“Then I want you to stay here. You're not a burden. I don't want you to die, Minase-kun.”
Ayaka's emotions were rising, and she looked like she was about to cry.
“Okay... for now, the last train is gone, so... can I stay the night?”
“Y... yes.”
Ayaka said nervously.
“I want to be with you forever, not just today.”
She said that in a voice that Minase couldn't hear.
“Did you say something?”
It sounded like Ayaka had said something, so he asked.
“No, I didn't say anything.”
Ayaka said happily with a smile.
“Anyway, Minase-kun, have you eaten dinner?”
She asked Minase as if to change the subject.
“I haven't, but don't worry about it.”
“Are you sure? Aren't you hungry? If you want to eat something, don't hesitate to tell me.”
“Yeah, I'm fine. Thank you.”

From there, they talked about memories from their high school days and things about Ayaka's recent life.

“Oh, it's already this late.”
Looking at the clock, it was past 1:00 AM.
“I'm getting sleepy.”
Saying that, Ayaka moved to the bed.
“Yeah. I'll sleep on the floor. Good night.”
Minase tried to lie down on the floor.
“Hey... won't you sleep with me...?”
When Ayaka said that, Minase was surprised.
“Why? I can sleep on the floor, so don't worry about it.”
“It's not that. It's... I'm scared of thunder. So, I want you to be near me, Minase-kun.”
The rain that had started in the evening had intensified into a thunderstorm as time passed.
“Haha.”
Minase laughed while looking at Ayaka.
“What?”
“I just thought it was unexpected. That you would be scared of thunder, Ninomiya-san.”
“Scary things are scary.”
Then the sky flashed, and three seconds later, thunder roared.
“Eek!”
Ayaka reacted in a way that seemed a little exaggerated.
“See? Sleep with me. Please.”
Minase was told that by Ayaka.
“Okay... I'll sleep in the bed.”
Minase had an awkward look on his face, but inwardly he was a little nervous and excited.
It was his first time sleeping with a woman. Minase moved to the bed and got into the same futon as Ayaka. The room was air-conditioned, and it felt a little chilly.
“Isn't this room cold? I can adjust it if you're cold?”
Ayaka asked Minase.
“I like it cold enough to cover myself with a blanket, so this is just right.”
“Me too. We're the same.”
Saying that, Ayaka smiled.
“Then, if I had slept on the floor like that, I might have caught a cold.”
Ayaka continued.
“If I caught a cold, no one would see me, so I couldn't even go to the hospital.”
Minase made a negative remark.
“In that case, I'll nurse you back to health.”
Ayaka said that from the bottom of her heart.
“I'd be happy if you did that. Good night.”
Thinking it was a joke, he let it slide.
“Good night.”
Ayaka replied.

Come to think of it, how long had it been? Saying good night and having good night said back. Good night is kind of nice. Thinking that, Minase closed his eyes.
They both kept some distance and fell asleep with their backs to each other.

About an hour later, Ayaka opened her mouth.
“Are you still awake?”
“I'm awake.”
Minase suffered from a sleep disorder, so he couldn't sleep. Various anxieties were crossing his mind. He was thinking about what would happen if he woke up in the morning and was in a state where even Ayaka couldn't see him.
“Minase-kun, you're in a Schrödinger's cat state right now.”
Ayaka said suddenly.
“Schrödinger's cat?”
Minase asked.
“Schrödinger's cat is, simply put, a thought experiment about putting a cat in a box where there's a 50% chance it will die in an hour, and what happens to the cat after an hour.”
When she explained that, Minase said this.
“Does that mean there's a 50% chance the cat is alive?”
Ayaka shook her head.
“No, until you look inside the box, both a living cat and a dead cat exist. And it's a story where the state of the cat is only determined once you look inside.”
She told Minase further.
“In other words, because you're invisible, Minase-kun, both a living state and a dead state exist.”
Ayaka said to Minase.

“I... I went to various places and tried various things to solve the question of whether I was alive or dead... but no one could see me... I wish you hadn't... said things that would deepen my doubts...”
Minase was discouraged after hearing Ayaka's words.
“That question is already solved.”
Ayaka said in a voice filled with kindness and emotion. And then she continued.
“Because I can see you, Minase-kun. Definitely, Minase-kun is definitely alive. So don't choose the option of dying. I will live together with you, Minase-kun.”
Ayaka pleaded through tears.

And one word.
“I love you. I love you, Minase-kun!”
Minase was surprised. Not because Ayaka cried, but because he had been confessed to.
The first confession of his life wasn't behind the school building, nor on a hill with a beautiful night view, nor at a theme park, nor in front of fireworks or illuminations, but in room 103 of a high school classmate's apartment in the pitch-black early morning.

To be continued