–+–
The afternoon on Sixth Street felt lazy and warm.
Belle and Wise walked into their own Random Play.
Sandrone stood in front of the ramen shop and watched the siblings vanish behind the door.
“Let’s go.”
She took Columbina’s hand and led her toward the corner at the far end of the street.
Sandrone didn’t know what she was thinking about.
The noodles, the box, Belle’s line about “because we’re family,” and her own halting words: “our home.” It had only been something she’d said offhand.
So why had it been so hard to say?
“Sandrone.”
Columbina spoke all of a sudden.
“Hm?”
“We’re home.”
Sandrone looked up.
“Oh.”
She took out the key, slid it into the lock, and turned it twice.
The door opened.
Afternoon light slanted in through the doorway and cut a bright line across the wooden floor.
The huge red-and-white box stood in the corner, quiet and still.
Columbina sat down on the sofa as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
She rested both hands on her knees and tilted her head at Sandrone.
“Aren’t you going to open it?”
Sandrone didn’t answer.
She stood in front of the box for a long while.
…She was a little nervous.
The feeling came out of nowhere.
She could guess what was inside.
With that size, it most likely wasn’t a torso.
If it wasn’t a leg, then it was an arm.
But when her fingers touched the edge of the lid, she still paused.
Pop.
The sound of the seal tearing was soft.
The moment she lifted the lid, Sandrone froze.
The packaging was far more… refined than she’d expected.
Dark gray velvet lined the bottom.
Shockproof foam wrapped the item inside with a perfect fit.
Every corner had been pressed neat and flat, and even the folds in the velvet looked as if someone had smoothed them by hand.
Sandrone reached out and eased the foam aside.
It was an arm.
From the shoulder joint to the fingertips, the smooth metal parts gave off a cool white matte sheen.
She lifted the arm with both hands and turned it over.
Her fingertips traced the edge of the connector.
The connector was whole.
Every latch was smooth and clean, with no sign of any forceful dismantling.
Sandrone lowered her eyes and let out a soft breath.
“Good…”
“What’s good?” Columbina had somehow come over and rested her chin on Sandrone’s shoulder, looking down at the thing in her hands.
“Nothing.” Sandrone put the arm back into the box, much more gently than before.
She closed the lid, and for some reason, felt a little lighter.
She had only recovered one-fifth of it, but compared to the unknown she’d started with, this was much better.
That faint sense of control put her at ease.
“All right, stop putting your head on my shoulder. Your chin’s digging into me.”
Sandrone pushed the uninvited head off her shoulder, stood up, and patted down her skirt.
“We should head upstairs and rest too. This afternoon, we still have…”
Then she seemed to remember something, and her voice stalled.
“No.”
She turned around, crossed her arms, and stared straight into Columbina’s eyes.
“What’s wrong, Sandrone?” Columbina stopped on her way to the stairs.
“What?” Columbina looked a little puzzled.
Sandrone pointed at the sofa.
“Go. Sit properly!”
Columbina went back without complaint, sat on the sofa with her knees together, and looked perfectly well-behaved.
“I’m sitting.”
“…Columbina.”
“I’m here.”
“This morning.” Sandrone paused.
“When I went out to buy breakfast.”
Columbina tilted her head and waited for her to continue.
“You were awake, weren’t you?” Sandrone’s voice was certain.
Columbina blinked and said nothing.
“The distance between us back then,” Sandrone said, stressing each word, “had already gone past five meters!”
Columbina still didn’t speak.
Sandrone stared at her.
“Why didn’t the safety rope trigger?”
Silence.
Sandrone took two steps forward and pressed her.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?”
Columbina suddenly let out a soft laugh.
“Sandrone,” she said, her voice gentle, “if you want to hug me, just say so.”
“W-What?!”
“I won’t mind.” Columbina’s eyes curved with a smile.
“You don’t need to make up an excuse like that.”
“What excuse am I making?!” Sandrone’s voice shot up.
“I’m asking a serious question! Don’t change the subject!”
“Then…”
Columbina stood from the sofa and walked barefoot across the floor, step by step, toward the door.
“Want to test it?”
She stopped in the entryway, turned around, and clasped her hands behind her back.
“Let’s see if that safety rope’s still there.”
Her tone was so calm it was as if she truly hadn’t done anything.
Could the safety rope really have stopped working?
Sandrone couldn’t help doubting herself.
…Should she try?
If it really was gone, that would be best.
She’d have freedom of movement.
She wouldn’t have to keep thinking about that five-meter limit, and she wouldn’t be forced to stick to someone else all the time.
She looked at Columbina.
Columbina was waiting for her answer with her head tilted, a faint smile tugging at her lips.
“…”
Sandrone took a deep breath.
“Fine. Let’s test it.”
She kept her eyes on Columbina and started backing toward the other side of the living room.
Three meters, four meters, five…!
“Whoa—!”
A familiar force yanked hard around her waist and stomach, pulling her toward the entryway with no effort at all.
Her vision spun.
“Mm!”
Her face hit something soft.
A moment later, another person’s weight pressed down on her, along with a faint sweet scent.
Columbina sat on Sandrone’s lower stomach, her hands braced against the floor on either side of Sandrone’s ears.
Her hair fell down and brushed Sandrone’s forehead, making it tickle.
“Looks like it’s still there.”
She spoke one word at a time, her voice light.
Sandrone’s eyes went wide.
“Columbina! You did that on purpose, didn’t you? You knew all along!”
Columbina only looked at her with smiling eyes.
Something buzzed and exploded in Sandrone’s mind.
“This morning… don’t tell me you followed me the whole time! And then came back and pretended to be asleep?! You—!”
Columbina blinked.
“I don’t know.”
Her lips curved in an innocent smile.
Those three words, “I don’t know,” rose at the end, without even a hint of guilt.
Sandrone turned red from the base of her ears down to her neck.
“CO-LUM-BI-NA!”
She raised a hand to push her away, but when her palm pressed against Columbina’s shoulder, she couldn’t put any strength into it.
Or rather, she had no strength to use.
That pulling force was still there.
She remembered now.
It lasted for thirty seconds!
As long as Columbina didn’t get up, they’d be stuck in this position.
And clearly, Columbina had no plans to get up.
Sandrone opened her mouth.
For a moment, she didn’t know what to say.
“Why were you following me?” she finally forced out.
“Because you went out alone,” Columbina answered at last.
“And you didn’t take me with you.”
As she spoke, her long, slender fingers drew small circles over Sandrone’s chest.
Sandrone took a deep breath.
“Then why didn’t you tell me?”
“I was asleep,” Columbina said as if it were obvious.
“How was I supposed to tell you?”
“What?” Sandrone choked.
What kind of nonsense answer was that?
“Then you…” She tried to gather her words.
“Fine, you followed me. But why didn’t you tell me?”
Columbina tilted her head, as if thinking over some deep question.
Then she said, “Because I wanted to see what Sandrone would do when I wasn’t there.”
Sandrone: “…”
“But in the end, you only bought breakfast and came back.” Columbina’s tone seemed to carry a little regret.
Sandrone’s temple twitched, and she pushed again with more force.
“Columbina—are you getting up or not?!”
“Thirty seconds aren’t over yet.”
“They are.”
“They’re not.”
“They are!”
“Nope~”
“…”
Sandrone gave up.
She simply stopped moving and lay weakly on the floor, staring at the ceiling.
Only the sound of soft breathing remained in the air.
“…Next time.”
Her voice was quiet, as if she had to squeeze it out of her throat.
“I’ll… call you myself.”
Sandrone broke the silence first.
Columbina didn’t speak.
Sandrone turned her head and met those pink eyes, deep as a starry sky.
Columbina’s brows and eyes curved with joy.
“Okay.”
Then she pushed herself up, and the weight pressing down on Sandrone moved away with her.
Sandrone was finally free.
She sat up and straightened her rumpled clothes.
Columbina had already gone to the foot of the stairs.
As if nothing had happened, she held out a hand and waited for Sandrone to go to bed with her.
“…Jerk.”
Sandrone cursed under her breath, walked over, and slipped her fingers into that open palm.