SCPK 120

Chapter 120 

Memories of That Summer (3)

“—!”

It started raining again.
The middle of the night? No—there was still a faint bit of daylight. Probably around five in the morning. So it didn’t even last until sunrise.
—Ah! My wound hurts. Yeah, just washing it wasn’t enough. The sky was completely covered in dark clouds. It might turn into a downpour again.

“Hey, little sis, wake up.”
“…Huh?”

This girl really was a heavy sleeper. Still, there was no way anyone could sleep that soundly on a sandy beach.
I shook myself alert, and together we headed into the forest in the rain.
Our destination was the cave I’d seen the night before. If we were lucky, it might shelter us from the rain.

“There! Let’s go inside that!”

The cave was wider than I’d expected. Maybe it was shaped like a tunnel.
But there was no room to explore in our current situation. Without any light, we couldn’t go farther anyway.
We sat down in a spot where the rain couldn’t reach us.

“Let’s rest here for a while. Once the rain stops, rescue will come for sure.”
“……”
“Hey, little sis?”

That’s when I noticed. She was breathing weakly, sluggishly.
Her face looked flushed too. This condition—

“Do you have a fever?”
“Ahaha… I guess I wasn’t feeling well to begin with.”

Now that I thought about it, she’d been sneezing unnaturally ever since we arrived on this island.
After asking her permission, I placed my hand on her forehead. It was hot… way too hot.

“I’m fine…”

No, you’re not. What should I do?
But either way, we couldn’t move until the rain stopped.
The fact that she’d even managed to walk this far in her condition was a miracle. I couldn’t drag her around anymore. If only the weather were clear…

Time passed while I was lost in thought.

“…I’m cold.”

I took off my jacket and draped it over her. It was already dry, so it should help keep her warm at least a little.
This was bad. At the very least, she needed something nutritious… and water. We didn’t have much left. When someone has a fever, you want them to drink as much water as possible.
I had secured a relatively clean plastic bottle that had washed up on the beach.
Right—the cave… On a hunch, I went farther in. There wasn’t much, but there was a trickle of spring water.

Lucky… but at this rate, it’d take a long time to gather even a single person’s worth. I fixed the bottle in place and let the droplets collect. Would this be enough to help?

“Stay here and don’t move.”

I remembered where the bayberry trees were clustered. They should still be there.
Leaving the cave behind, I headed deeper into the forest.

“The rain’s getting heavier…”

The downpour made climbing difficult, but I forced myself up the tree and gathered what fruit I could. Not many… but it couldn’t be helped.

—Ah!

“Damn it!”

I slipped in the rain and fell from the tree.
A sharp pain shot through my body. I’d hit my leg.

“Gah—ghh…!”

I cried out despite myself. I’d messed up.
…Probably just a bruise… my leg was turning blue…
I can walk. I’m fine.

Dragging my leg, I made my way back to the cave.

After confirming that a fair amount of water had collected, I went over to her.

“Here. Water and bayberries. Can you eat?”
“What about you…?”
“I already ate. Come on.”
“…Okay.”

She was really weak. In a situation like this, it couldn’t be helped.
I gave her water to drink and fed her the fruit. Hopefully this would help her recover, even a little…
Once the rain stopped, we’d leave immediately. We had to reunite with Seiya and get her to a hospital.

“Haah… haah…”

She looked like she was in pain. Maybe her fever had gone up again. I placed a cloth cooled with rainwater on her forehead, but I couldn’t tell if it was helping.

“Big brother… I’m scared…”
“—!”

I grabbed her hand. In Seiya’s place… could I be enough?

“Tsukiyo, I-I… I’m right here. Don’t give up!”

I didn’t want to see the smile that shone under the moonlight cloud over.
She was always radiant at school too. Just like Seiya, she’d surely continue walking a bright, shining path.
I want to see what lies at the end of that path. I want to stay by her side and see what shape her smile takes in the future.

I’ll save her.
No matter what.