‘I ordered a large houseplant to be delivered this morning, and I need you to sign for it,’ her mother said. Kokoro was worried.

Having to sit tight at home this morning meant she couldn’t go to the castle. And there were only two days left. On top of that, she wanted to get to Careo.

‘I think they’ll deliver fairly early this morning.’

‘OK,’ Kokoro said cheerily. The last thing she needed was for her mum to feel suspicious.

But the delivery was not at all early; the delivery man arrived, apologizing for the delay, at three minutes to twelve, so technically still the morning but just under the wire.

Kokoro was despairing. She signed for it with a surly thank you. But she knew showing any irritation was pointless.

She placed the plant carefully in the hallway, grabbed her purse, ran out of the house, jumped on her bike, and raced down the road. It was going to be hit or miss whether she still had time to get to the castle after all this.

Whenever she passed other junior high-schoolers on the road, she felt herself shrinking, and gripped the handlebars tighter.

I should have worn gloves, she thought.

She’d forgotten how sharp the air could be in March.

When she reached the shopping centre, she was a little confused about where to go. Cakes, napkins – she wasn’t totally sure where she’d find them, and by the time she had, it was getting close to three o’clock.

Just below the entrance to Careo were advertising banners exhorting shoppers to buy stationery for the new school year. Kokoro couldn’t bear to look.

Whenever her eye caught anything with an April date on it, she looked away. By then the castle would no longer exist.

Her mind was filled with these thoughts as she pedalled furiously home. Somehow she made it back. She climbed off the bike, and was about to go inside—

‘Oh.’

She thought she could hear a small voice nearby. She looked up from her bike.

The small figure of Tojo-san.

She was standing on the pavement in front of the house, gazing across at her.

She was wearing a cool duffel coat and checked muffler, and looked a thousand times smarter than when she was in her uniform. She was holding a bag from a convenience store, as if she too were just back from shopping.

‘Tojo-san,’ Kokoro called, worried she might ignore her as before.

‘Kokoro-chan,’ Tojo-san said.

Kokoro’s chest tightened. It had been a long time since she’d even heard her voice, let alone when she called her name.

‘Thank you for your note,’ Kokoro said quickly, to pre-empt her walking away. ‘Is it true that you’re going to transfer?’

‘Yeah.’ Tojo-san nodded, coming closer. Suddenly, Tojo-san broke into a smile. ‘Would you like to come over to my house?’