Tangerine Day
The high school girl in front of me is peeling a tangerine. She is peeling it perfectly. Maybe she is used to eating them on a regular basis.
“I never thought I would be praised for the way I peeled it. Do you want some?”
She used her eyes to indicate the 3 tangerines that she brought on her table.
“No, thanks.”
“Well, then.”
Without any interest, she took a slice of tangerine into her mouth. It must have tasted really good, that she cracked a slight smile on her beautiful face.
“Are you floating?”
(^It’s an expression for eating something really good)
“Yes I am.”
“Maybe it’s because the tangerines are so good.”
“I’ve seen people bringing canned tangerines in a Tupperware or something, but maybe this is the first time someone bring actual tangerines to school.”
“I’ve seen people who eat tangerines as their lunch.”
“…why would they do that?”
“Maybe all they had in their house was tangerines.”
“That’s a tough life.”
“Well, I don’t know their exact situation.”
Then, she ate the last slice of the tangerine. She was smiling happily.
“By the way.”
When she gets into the second tangerine, I changed the topic of the conversation.
“What is it?”
“I want to know how do you read minds, are you reading their thoughts, or is it like hearing them? Or maybe they just go directly into your brain?”
She seemed to be thinking as she peeled the tangerine. After she finished peeling the tangerine, she eats a couple of slices of it. Then she ate another slice.
“It’s almost like coming directly to my brain.”
“Almost?”
“Yes. For me, it’s hard to explain how it feels, they just flow ‘like that’, I couldn’t find a better way to explain it. Like for example, what if I ask you to explain how do you breathe?”
“Breathe?”
“It’s so obvious that it’s hard to explain how to do it you know?”
“Oh, I suppose so. Besides, I don’t think I would get it how it feels even if I was explained.”
That’s how it is. It’s actually pointless to ask her about it.
“Was it pointless?”
“It was interesting.”
Maybe I feel that way.
“You’re a liar.”
She said so, and I can’t deny what she said.
“So, that means you can cheat all you want on a test.”
She narrowed her eyes as if to say, ‘Did you notice? ‘
“Hmm, you noticed.”
Her tone of voice was somewhat like a mischievous child. Did she speak that way because she was confessing that she cheats in a way that will never be caught?
“But I can’t be that reckless. If I don’t understand the subject, I can’t just pass the test by reading someone else’s thoughts.”
“What about your memory, is your memory great?”
“Well, I have a person who has a really great memory in front of me. So that helps a lot.”
She smiled deeper than the time she was eating those tangerines.
“Oh, I’m good at games, too. Well, I don’t play games these days because no one wants to play with me. Would you like to play with me? Its ‘Bubba Dummies’.”
I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw her pull a deck of cards out of her bag. She was too well prepared. There was no way I could win.
“The conditions are too bad for me.”
In a competitive game, this would be a more effective way to win than knowing the hand of the opponent’s hand. No matter what, she must know the position of the joker. When I think about it, I’m a little envious. I guess if she can use her ability well, it could make her life a lot better.
“But even you think that way, you wouldn’t want this ability, would you?”
She laughed aloud. Even so she sounded happy, but there seemed to be a hint of sadness in her voice.
“That’s right.”
For her, it was not something that she ever wanted. I am ashamed of my own thoughtless way of thinking.