This is the 10th Chapter of The Summer Hikaru Died manga series, written and illustrated by Mokumokuren.
Synopsis[]
Raw chicken, as part of home economics class? The sheer sight of it triggers Yoshiki to think back to day he first touched "Hikaru"'s insides. How uncomfortable they made him feel... but also good? Disregarding any warnings Kurebayashi gave Yoshiki that day in the diner, he gets closer and closer to the entity he calls his friend. But as Yoshiki will soon find out, recklessness like this will have consequences that may not affect him alone...
Plot[]
Hikaru laid on the ground on Red Sand Mountain. He lamented his injuries, realizing he was going to die because he'd slipped after he'd gotten distracted by a tree that looked like a woman's body. He mentally apologized to his father for being unable to carry out the family ritual, and to his mother because he didn't want to make her suffer. He wished that no one would be sad about his death, and particularly thought of Yoshiki, who would be all alone without him. He noticed a distortion in the sky and wondered if it was Unuki-sama. Before passing away, he requested for it to take his place and stay by Yoshiki's side.
At school, Yoshiki stares at the raw chicken he's sliced in home economics class. After they finish cooking the assigned fried chicken, "Hikaru" pulls Yoshiki over and asks why he was staring so intensely at the chicken earlier. Yoshiki reminds him that it feels very similar to "Hikaru"'s insides, which makes "Hikaru" laugh. He asks Yoshiki if he wants to try feeling it again. He denies at first, but "Hikaru" reminds him that he is weak to entities from the Other Side, so he'd be less vulnerable if he got used to feeling it.
After school, they go into an empty classroom, leaving a "no entry" sign on the door. Yoshiki cries out at first when he puts his hand inside the slit on "Hikaru"'s chest, but quickly adjusts, realizing it isn't as bad as the last time. "Hikaru"'s insides then rush out of him, climbing up Yoshiki's arm, which reminds him of the incident in the classroom[1] from a few days ago. Yoshiki panics, thinking it's wrong to do this, but admits that it feels rather good. He shouts for "Hikaru" to stop, who immediately draws his insides back in. Angered, Yoshiki demands to know what he did. "Hikaru" says he just wanted to try touching Yoshiki for a second, but admits it seemed like a bad idea since he wasn't used to it. Yoshiki glares at him and asks if that was the truth – and whether "Hikaru" only suggested this because it feels good to him, too. "Hikaru" looks worried and promises that he wouldn't lie to him about his intentions. Yoshiki decides to believe him for now, and they leave the classroom together.
At the Tsujinaka household, they have fried chicken for dinner. Yoshiki notices the bruises on his arm, left by "Hikaru" after grabbing it, which don't seem to fade – he actually wonders if they've gotten darker than they were yesterday. He recalls Kurebayashi's warning that he'll mix with "Hikaru" until he won't be able to be separated from him anymore, or worse, and that the process might attract more entities to his side.
Kaoru goes to use the bath first. While she's showering, she notices long, black hair on the tile, which confuses her since everyone in their family has short hair. She turns and notices even more black hair draped over the rim of the bathtub. When she goes to touch it, the hair quickly draws itself underneath the bathtub cover, out of sight. Now feeling scared, Kaoru immediately dresses herself and rushes to leave the room, but behind her the black entity forms on the sliding door. She screams out for her mom.
Character Appearances[]
- Indou Hikaru
- Indou Kouhei (mentioned)
- Indou Yuki (mentioned)
- Tsujinaka Yoshiki
- Maki Yuuta
- Tadokoro Yuuki
- "Hikaru"
- Tsujinaka Kaoru
- Tsujinaka Satoko
- Kurebayashi Rie (mentioned)
Gallery[]
References
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