As more time passed, more people got into the train. I had expected this to some extent, but the amount of people still exceeded my expectations. When the train arrived at our drop-off station, both the platform and the entrance were filled to the brim with people.
Normally, there would be way fewer people than this, but then again, this was my first time going to a firework festival. I guess this many people were normal?
“Alright, let’s get off first. Seki and I will go out first and the rest of you will follow behind us. Don’t get separated from us, okay?”
“Reiji, you’ll stay in the middle, okay? Maki-kun, I’m sorry, but please watch our backs.”
“Okay. I’ll do my best so I won’t get separated from everyone.”The moment the train’s door opened, the wave of people pushed us from behind. Riku-san and Nozomu, who were a head taller than everyone, led our group at the forefront, followed by Reiji-kun, Shizuku-san, Umi and Nitta-san. Meanwhile, I was at the very back.
We followed the attendance’s instructions to walk slowly to the ticket gate.
“Whoops!”
As we were walking together like that, someone suddenly shoved me from behind and I almost fell on everyone’s back. While ‘walking slowly’ was an easy instruction to follow, when there were this many people, it became quite a challenge to not have accidents like this.
In any case, I put more strength into my legs to prevent my body from falling on Umi’s back.
“Are you okay, Maki? You can lean on me if you wish.”
“I’m fine. Just keep an eye on Reiji-kun, okay?”“Okay, but you should hold my hand, just in case.”
“Sure… Also, sorry, my hand is a little sweaty.”
“Hehe, it’s fine. I’m used to it.”
We clasped our hands in a lover’s hold so we wouldn’t get separated.
The sheer amount of people around me made me feel nauseous, but I managed to distract myself by focusing my gaze on Umi’s nape. I knew she’d scold me for this later, but considering the circumstances, I hope that she could let it slide.
All of us walked together closely through the wave of people toward the ticket gate. After a few minutes, we managed to escape from that sea of people and exited the station.
From there, we walked for another few minutes before finally arriving at our destination.
“We went out of our way to depart an hour before the rush hour and we still had to deal with that kind of crowd…”
“Last year’s festival was held up due to the weather, so there are more people than normal this year. I’ve already expected this to happen. By the way, you came here last year, right, Nina?”
“Yeah, with my ex. It seems like the number of companies who sponsored the event had increased compared to last year, so the event will be considerably bigger.”
Along the way to the venue, there was a long-line of stalls filling each side of the road. On the other side of the river, there was a stage set up, probably they invited some bands to perform there while the festival was ongoing.
Compared to the festival Umi and I went to yesterday, this one was way bigger in scale, probably because practically the whole town arranged it.
Personally though, I preferred the smaller festival.
“Mom, I’m hungry!”
“Ah, now that I think about it, it’s almost dinner time, isn’t it? Since we’re all here and there’s still some time before the festival starts, why don’t everyone grab a bite first? I’ll pay for your food, so don’t hold back!”
“You’re so generous, Shimizu-san, but are you sure? Like my body suggests, I eat a lot, you know? Aside from me, the others also tend to eat a lot.”
Nozomu was right. We usually were quite reserved when there were other people around, but here we wouldn’t need to worry about other people’s gazes. We could empty all the stalls here if we got the chance to.
Hearing his words, Riku-san and Shizuku-san pulled out a few ten thousand yen bills from their wallets.
“You guys don’t need to hold back, I’ve prepared enough money for everyone, right, Rikkun?”
“Yeah. I mean, there’s no way we’ll let high schoolers like you all spend your money here. I was there, I know your small allowances and payments from your part-time jobs wouldn’t be enough. I’ve worked quite hard lately, so I’ve saved enough money to get by even if I spend most of it here for you guys.”
“…Why out of a sudden? You’ve never treated me to anything before this.”
“Because you never asked. Also, good riddance that I don’t need to deal with you every day anymore.”
“What’s your problem?!”
“C-C’mon, Umi, Riku-san, we’re still in a public place, you know?”
As usual, I became a mediator between those two. After that little event was done, everyone split up to get their food and drinks before going to the eating space they provided near the venue.
Riku-san, Shizuku-san and Reiji-kun were assigned to get everyone’s drink. As for the food, we split into two groups; Umi and I, Nozomu and Nitta-san. Both groups would go and get food from different areas.
“Let’s go, Maki.”
“Mm.”
After promising each other to regroup in front of the eating space’s signboard, everyone split up. Umi and I headed to the food stalls.
There were various stalls here, varying from the staple festival food like yakisoba, takoyaki and ikayaki to karaage, beef skewers, kebabs and sweets. Honestly, everything smelled so good, I was having trouble choosing which one I should buy.
Also, there was a long line in front of every one of the stalls.
“Which one do you want to eat, Maki? Since my brother’s the one paying, why don’t we get that A5 wagyu kalbi over there?”
“Have mercy, he’s your own brother. Why don’t we get that marbled meat instead? They only sell it for two thousand yen a piece.”
“You’re even more merciless than me.”
“I was kidding. Reiji-kun is with us, so we should get something that is easier to eat.”
“Okay.”
After a brief discussion, the two of us decided to join the line in front of the kebab stall. They offered a reasonable price for a festival food, it seemed like it had plenty of meat and vegetables in it and the size was also considerably big. With this kind of crowd, if we were to try to get more than one kind of food, we wouldn’t get it done until they started doing fireworks, so it’d be better if we got one big food that covered all the bases like this.
“Still, the crowds are something else here, and the atmosphere is even more so. Yesterday’s festival was already quite something but this one’s on a whole nother level.”
“It’s because there’s so many people here, I guess.”
I looked around while waiting in the line. Most of the people around us seemed to be having a good time, laughing and chatting. Some of them were talking about the festival and some of them were like us, having fun while joking around with their friends.
While I still had trouble getting used to a crowd this size, the bright atmosphere made me feel better about the whole thing. Truth to be told, when we were on the train, the crowds made me regret all my life decisions, but after seeing all this, I guess it made that horrible experience worthwhile…
Guess I could look forward to having fun in this festival, considering that this would be my first experience and all.
“Thank you for listening to my selfishness, Umi. I can already tell that I’ll be having fun today.”
“Really? Hehe, you’re welcome.”
“Why are you imitating the way I speak?”
“It’s because you infected me~ Who told you to stick with me at all times~?”
“So, are you saying that it’s my fault?”
We waited for our turn to come while laughing and joking to each other.
When it finally came, we ordered enough kebab for all of us and some side dishes that looked tasty enough like the bite-sized chicken they were selling. After we were done, we moved away to a waiting line nearby.
It took them twenty minutes to make our order and another ten minutes for us to receive it.
I knew that waiting in line for this long was normal due to the size of the crowds, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t tiring. I heard that in some of the large theme parks, it was a common thing to wait for hours in line, a revelation that made me both scared and repulsed.
“Here, be careful, okay? Don’t let it spill.”
“Okay. Let’s go back.”
We immediately took a picture of the food we bought and sent it to the group chat to notify the rest of our group. Then, with all this food in hand, we made our way through the crowds to the signboard where we promised to gather.
Of course, we had to bow our heads to make the people in front of us give way to us. We also had to endure their occasional annoyed gazes.
While this wasn’t a bad thing because we both were doing this so that we could have a nice dinner with everyone, those gazes made me feel a little conscious. I knew I shouldn’t mind them too much though.
There was only half an hour left before the fireworks went off, but honestly, I already felt tired.
“…By the way, Umi, how’s everyone doing? Are they done buying everything? Also, what about Amami—”
“…”
“Umi? What’s wrong?”
I turned around to look at Umi, who was walking beside me.
Since I didn’t hear her response, I thought she was probably getting tired or something.
“H-Huh?”
That was when I noticed that she wasn’t there.
…Not only that, I seemed to be in an unfamiliar place. I was still inside the venue, but I couldn’t even see the arrangement of stalls where I bought all this food in my hands. All the landmarks and signposts were completely different from what I’ve seen before.
“A-Am I lost…?”
Since both of Umi and mine hands were full, we couldn’t hold each other’s hands. Guess that was the reason why I somehow lost my way…
