Free The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya by Nagaru Tanigawa

with Asakura would be too suffocating? Though it didn’t really matter once I saw Nagato looking so fragile.
    “—Or that was the plan, but I’ll stay and eat. I’m about to starve to death. I won’t make it home if I don’t get something in my stomach right away.”



Her fingers finally let go. I felt a twinge of regret. Under normalcircumstances you’d never see Nagato express herself in such a straightforward fashion. A very rare occurrence.
    I returned to the living room to find Asakura narrowing her eyes and giving me a knowing look.
    My taste buds wanted to scream in joy, but deep down I had no idea what I was eating as I focused on stuffing oden down my throat. Nagato was going at a slow pace: it took her three minutes to nibble through a piece of kelp. Asakura was the only one trying to lighten the mood with conversation, as I was limited to vague responses.
    After an hour of this bivouac-at-the-gates-of-hell meal, my shoulders were completely stiff.
    Asakura finally stood up.
    “Nagato, you should put the leftovers in another container to refrigerate. I’ll come for the pot tomorrow, so have it ready.”
    I followed suit. I felt as if the chains had finally been removed from my body. Nagato barely nodded as she walked us to the door with her face down.
    I made sure that Asakura was already gone.
    “Later then,” I murmured to Nagato in the doorway. “Mind if I go to your clubroom again tomorrow? I don’t really have anywhere else to go after school these days.”
    Nagato stared at me before flashing…
    … a smile, faint but plain to see.
    Dazzling.
    As we rode the elevator down, Asakura turned to me with a chuckle.
    “You like Nagato, don’t you?”
    I sure didn’t hate her. If I had to choose between the two, then sure, I liked her. I mean, there was no reason for me to hate her. She’s saved my life before. Right. How could I possibly hate Yuki Nagato after she saved me from your dagger of death, Asakura?
    … But I couldn’t say that out loud. This Asakura was a different Asakura. The same could be said for Nagato. I was the only one on a different page, since they had all turned into ordinary humans. There was no SOS Brigade.
    I’m not sure how my beautiful classmate interpreted my silence as she snorted.
    “I guess not. I must have been mistaken. You prefer weird girls. Nagato wouldn’t qualify.”
    “How would you know my preferences?”
    “I happened to overhear Kunikida mention it. That’s how you were in middle school.”
    Bastard’s making up crap again. Kunikida has no idea what he’s talking about. Just ignore him.
    “Still, if you intend to go out with Nagato, you’d better be serious about it. Or else I won’t allow it. Nagato is more sensitive than she looks.”
    Why was Asakura so concerned about Nagato? I might have understood if we had been in the old world, where Asakura was Nagato’s backup. Well, in the end she went postal and had to be eliminated.
    “We live in the same building, after all. I can’t bring myself to leave her alone. I always start to worry when I look at her. It makes me feel awfully protective of her, you see?”
    Kinda, but not really.
    That ended our conversation as Asakura stepped off the elevator at the fifth floor. Room 505, was it?
    “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
    Asakura flashed a smile at me as the elevator doors shut.
    I exited the apartment building. The night air was as cold as an industrial freezer. The biting winds were robbing my body of its warmth and more.
    I considered saying hello to the old landlord for a moment before abandoning that idea. The glass window to his office was shuttered, and the lights were off. He had probably gone to bed.
    I would love to do the same. Or at least start dreaming. She was probably capable of entering other people’s dreams without even trying.
    “You’re always making trouble for me whether you’re around or not, so you could at least show up when it matters. How about listening to one of