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第三章 星灯的第七节课
Chapter Three: Seventh Period at Starlight
Starlight High’s timetable had no seventh period. But whenever Rin began to draw the circle, the clock on the wall ran an extra forty minutes.
In that surplus of time the corridor was empty. The vending machine dispensed only lukewarm barley tea. The announcement looped the same line: “All students, please leave the school grounds as soon as possible.”
“This is seventh period.” Rin handed Tōru the can of barley tea. “Today’s lesson: how to hold onto an afternoon you don’t want to end.”
“And the teacher?”
“The teacher is this missing corner.” She tapped the floor. “It’s been waiting for someone willing to fill it in. The one who fills it in may make a wish. The price of the wish is—this stretch of time will be withdrawn from everyone’s memory.”
Tōru held the can, which was no longer cool. “Including you?”
“Including me.”
He thought for a moment, took the chalk from her hand, and tucked it into his pencil case. “Then I won’t fill it in. Class is changed to self-study.”
Rin looked at her empty hand. The tips of her ears went red. “What do we write for self-study?”
“The duty roster.” Tōru said, “Tomorrow it’s me again.”