It seems there's a class reunion for the first time since graduating high school and the coming-of-age ceremony. I hadn't been back to my hometown in a while, so there was no reason to refuse.

At a chain izakaya you can find anywhere, when I opened the door, a gathering of familiar faces was there. Aoi was there too. His hair was longer than in his student days and he looked more mature, but the fact that people gathered around Aoi hadn't changed. He noticed me coming in, seemed a little surprised and froze for a moment, but quickly returned to his usual expression and called out to me.