I somehow manage to tear my eyes away from the letters that spell out Mitsuha.

“So…!”

When I raise my head, my face is reflected in the dark window in front of me. Who are you? I think, out of nowhere.

From deep in my mind, very far away, I hear a hoarse voice. “…My, my. You’re—”

“You’re dreamin’, aren’t you?”

A dream? I’m drowning in a wave of confusion.

What…

…in the world…

…am I doing?

In the next room, I can hear the sounds of a dinner party.

Someone says something, there’s a burst of laughter, and then applause echoes like a downpour. It’s been happening over and over for a while now. I strain my ears, wondering what sort of group they are. No matter how hard I listen, though, I can’t make out a single word. All I can tell is that they’re speaking Japanese.

Thunk! There’s a loud noise, and the next thing I know, I’m slumped over with my head on the desk. I must’ve hit my forehead; a dull pain follows a little later. I’m dead tired.

No matter how much I read the reduced-size editions of old newspapers and magazine back issues, I can’t seem to get the text into my head anymore. I’ve checked my phone several times, but not one of her journal entries is on it. Every trace is gone.

With my head still down, I open my eyes. Glaring at the desk a fraction of an inch in front of me, I try putting into words the conclusion I’ve reached over the past few hours.

“It was all just a dream, and…”

Do I want to believe that or not?

“The scenery looked familiar because I subconsciously remembered the news from three years ago. Meaning, she was…”

What was she?

“…A ghost? Or, no… It was all a…”

All… my…

“…Delusion?”

With a start, I raise my head.

Something’s disappearing.

Her—

“What was her name…?”

Tap, tap, comes a sudden knock, and the thin wooden door opens.

“Tsukasa says he’s going down to take a bath.”

Okudera-senpai enters wearing one of the inn’s light robes. The atmosphere in the room, which had seemed cold and isolated, suddenly softens. I feel terribly relieved.

“Uh, Okudera-senpai?”

I get up from my chair. She’s crouched down in front of her backpack.

“I’ve been saying all sorts of weird stuff… I’m sorry about today.”

Zipping her backpack as if carefully sealing something away, Okudera-senpai stands. Somehow she seems to move in slow motion.

“…It’s fine,” she says, shaking her head with a faint smile.

“I’m sorry we could only get one room.”

“Tsukasa said the same thing to me downstairs,” Okudera-senpai chuckles. We’re sitting facing each other across the little table by the window.

“I don’t mind a bit. They say a group just happened to be staying here tonight, so they don’t have any rooms to spare. The man who runs the inn said it’s a teachers’ union social.”