幼馴染（Osananajimi-Childhood friend）

Episode 9: Black Hair

　After knocking, the mothers came back into the hospital room. Kyoko's mother's eyes were red.

"Well then, Yusuke, it's time for us to leave. Take care of yourself, Kyoko-chan.

"Thank you, Yu's mother, for coming to see me.

"Kyoko-chan, take care of yourself.

　From the hospital room, I stopped by the nurse's station, checked the list of visitors to leave, and got into the elevator. There was no one in the elevator when it came in.

"Yusuke, did Kyoko-chan tell you about her illness?

　I shook my head.

"Yes, you'd better prepare yourself.

　What do you mean?

"Kyoko-chan, she said she has acute XX disease. They say it's very advanced. The treatment is said to be anti-cancer drugs and radiation, and if she can last for three months, it's a 50-50 chance that she'll make a full recovery. They're going to start treatment right away tomorrow, so they're going to shave her hair before it falls out, even though it's such beautiful, magnificent black hair. ......

　That's when Mom started to cry. I myself was in a daze, feeling as if the muscles in my face had frozen up.

　I got off the elevator on the first floor and walked from the hospital to the bus stop.

　I was walking after my mom, but I felt like I was walking on a cloud, and I couldn't feel my legs.

　I sat at the bus stop in front of the hospital for a while, waiting for the bus with Mom, unable to think about anything else, and then the bus came. We didn't say a word to each other until we got on the bus and headed home.

　As soon as we arrived home, I went to a haircut shop and had it cut. The hairdresser did not have clippers that could cut it any shorter. I noticed that when it was this short, my head looked blue, just like when I shave.

　Of course, Mom didn't say anything to me at dinner.

　The next day.

　On my way to school, my round haircut seemed to attract a lot of attention, not only from the junior high school students on their way to school, but also from adults who were staring at me.

　If it were me, that would be no problem. But you know what? How can a girl stand these eyes?

　You guys are probably staring at me out of casual curiosity, but you don't know what it's like to be stared at. It's natural to not understand. It can't be helped.

　As I opened the door to the classroom and walked in, my classmates who had already arrived at school noticed me and started to make a fuss. I don't even care what they're saying. Some of them were laughing at me too, while others looked somewhat confused. I guess they're having trouble dealing with me with my shaved head.

　I ignored them and closed my eyes, waiting for homeroom to start.

"Hanazawa will not be attending school for the rest of the semester due to illness.

　The homeroom teacher announced this, and my classmates threw words at the homeroom teacher that seemed to be taken out of context. The homeroom ended with a meaningless exchange of words. The homeroom teacher looked at my head, but didn't say anything.

　During the rest of the class, I tried to look forward and listen to the teacher's voice, but nothing entered my mind. It's not that I'm thinking about Kyoko, it's just that I'm losing my ability to think. It's strange that I can look at myself objectively like that.

　As soon as I left the classroom after school, I saw Uzao, an annoying man again, the student council member with the black glasses, standing at the exit of the classroom.

"Matsuda, have you heard anything about Hanazawa-san?

"No, I haven't.

"Are you sure?

"Suit yourself. See you later.

　We had the same conversation as yesterday, and I hurried to the shoe box. I changed my shoes and hurried straight to the hospital where Kyoko was staying.

　At the nurse's station on the top floor of the hospital, I went through the procedures for visiting Kyoko and headed for her room.

　I knocked on the door and was greeted by a woman from inside.

"Come in.

　She opened the door from inside.

"Oh my God, Yusuke-kun, what happened to your head?

"I heard that Kyoko cut the hair on her head, so I shaved my head too.

"Stupid. But you're so kind, Yusuke. Kyoko is sleeping right now, but her drip will run out soon, so the nurse will replace it. At that time, I'll wake her up, so please wait a little while.

　Kyoko was lying on the bed, her head shaved as short as I was. She had the same inhaler tube in her nose as before, and her eyes were red, though she was sleeping with them closed. A tube dangled from the almost empty IV pack, once through a small machine and connected to a taped arm.

　It was time to wake up Kyoko, so I decided to stay outside the room.

"Yusuke, come in.

　The Kyoko's mom called me, so I went inside. Kyoko seemed to have just woken up.

"Yusuke, thank you for coming again today. I heard from my mother. What are you going to do now that you have a shaved head?　But thank you. Actually, I was a little embarrassed too, so I prepared a woolen hat, but I stopped when I heard that Yusuke got a shaved head.

"You don't have to worry about your head, you know.

"Right.

　We talked for a bit after that and then a nurse came and changed the IV pack.

Afterword.

I apologize if anyone has an actual disease, so please think her disease as an imaginary one.