~~ • ~~

The Goldfish Scooping Stall

At last, we stopped in front of the goldfish scooping stall.

A shallow pool took up almost the entire stall. Inside, dozens of small goldfish swam to and fro. Their scales caught the glow of the paper lanterns, flashing with hints of gold every time they darted around.

Sometimes they moved quickly.

Other times, they simply drifted, suspended in the completely still water.

"Do you want to try catching them, Yuna?" Mika asked.

Yuna stared at the pool for a long time.

"Umm... I don’t have an aquarium."

She turned to look at me.

"Besides, would Papa even let me?"

"I’ll go first, then."

Mika immediately turned around and ran over to Misaki to ask for permission—and money.

Hana, on the other hand, had already made her move.

She paid the stall owner, received a paper scoop, and crouched by the edge of the pool.

Her expression was entirely serious.

Calm.

Not rushed in the slightest.

I walked over to Yuna and pulled out a few coins.

"Here."

Yuna looked up at me.

"Give it a try, if you want."

"But I don’t have an aquarium."

"I’ll make one for you later."

Yuna’s eyes immediately went wide.

"Really, Papa?"

"Yeah."

Her face lit up.

"Thank you!"

She took the coins and jogged over to the stall owner.

A moment later, she was holding her own paper scoop, crouching down right beside Hana.

Seconds after that, Mika returned with her scoop in hand as well.

She took her place on Hana’s other side.

"What do you think, Itsuki?"

Misaki’s voice came from beside me.

She walked past me, stepping a little closer to the pool.

"Do you think they’ll catch any?"

"I don’t know."

I took a few steps forward to join her.

"It’s a pretty tough game."

We stood behind them, quietly watching.

It didn’t take long for the difference in their skills to become glaringly obvious.

Yuna and Mika looked incredibly tense.

They dipped their scoops into the water.

The moment a fish swam close—

*Splash!*

They moved way too fast.

Much too fast.

Their paper scoops tore instantly.

"Ah!"

Mika lifted her ruined scoop, staring at the hole in the center.

"This is really hard."

"Yeah..."

Yuna nodded dejectedly.

"It really is."

Hana, however, was completely different.

She remained perfectly still.

Her scoop was submerged in the water.

She barely moved a muscle.

The fish around her didn’t seem bothered at all.

They continued to swim leisurely.

Calm.

Natural.

Then, a small goldfish swam directly over her scoop.

Hana didn’t react immediately.

She waited.

Just for a moment.

Then, slowly...

Very slowly...

She lifted the scoop.

The fish still hadn’t realized what was happening.

It was only when it neared the surface that it began to thrash in panic.

But Hana was faster.

With a light, fluid motion, she lifted it completely out of the water.

The first fish was caught.

"Whoa!"

Mika half-stood from her crouch.

"Hana, you’re amazing!"

Yuna stared in absolute awe as well.

"You actually caught one."

"Please teach me."

Hana let out a soft chuckle.

Her laugh was as gentle as always.

"Haha... there’s really no secret to it."

"Then how do you do it?"

"You just have to stay calm."

Hana pointed at the surface of the pool.

"If you rush it, the fish will swim away."

"That’s all."

"That’s it?" Mika repeated.

"That’s it."

Yuna and Mika exchanged a look.

Then, they turned their attention back to the pool.

"Alright."

"Let’s try again."

They both lowered fresh scoops into the water.

This time, they tried to mimic Hana.

Remaining perfectly still.

Taking their time.

Waiting.

Truly waiting.

Behind them, Misaki crossed her arms, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Itsuki."

"Hm?"

"What do you think now?"

I watched Yuna and Mika for a few seconds.

Then, I gave a casual reply.

"I still don’t think they’re going to catch anything."

Misaki shot me a look.

"That’s so mean."

I chuckled softly.

"Haha."

"You’re the one who asked for my opinion."

"Fair enough."

Misaki joined in my laughter.

While we were talking, Hana successfully caught a second fish.

And a few moments later...

A third.

"Whoa..." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

I raised an eyebrow.

"Look at Hana."

"She’s really a pro at this."

"She really is."

Misaki nodded slowly, her eyes fixed on the little girl.

"Even though she makes it look so simple."

"Mhm."

I kept my gaze on Hana, who was still kneeling calmly by the pool.

"It’s always the quiet ones who are the most dangerous."

Blissfully unaware of my comment, Hana remained entirely focused on her task.

Meanwhile, right beside her, Yuna and Mika were still struggling desperately against tiny fish that were proving to be much more slippery than they had ever imagined.

_

Yuna and Mika were entirely focused on the pool.

They crouched there, barely moving, trying to remember exactly what Hana had done.

The water settled back into a calm stillness.

Small fish began to swim closer.

Mika gripped the handle of her scoop tightly.

The moment a fish passed right over it, she began to pull it slowly upward.

The fish was lifted along with it.

Right up near the surface.

Mika’s eyes immediately lit up.

"Come on... come on..."

But the moment the fish started to thrash, Mika panicked. She jerked the scoop up way too fast.

*Rip.*

The thin paper tore instantly.

The fish splashed right back into the pool.

"Ah..."

Mika’s shoulders slumped.

"I was so close, too."

Beside her, Yuna remained perfectly still.

Her gaze was locked onto a fish swimming lazily past.

She raised her scoop, little by little.

The fish rose with it.

The surface of the water drew closer.

Yuna stayed calm.

Almost too calm.

When the fish finally realized it was being lifted, it immediately darted to the side and swam away.

It slipped right out.

"Tch... missed."

Yuna hissed softly.

Mika immediately burst into laughter.

"Hahaha, Yuna can’t do it either!"

"Haha..."

Yuna joined in the laughter, though she sounded just a tiny bit annoyed.

Mika stood up and walked over to her older sister.

"Sis..."

"Yes?"

"Help."

Misaki let out a long sigh.

"Alright..."

She walked over and crouched by the edge of the pool.

Yuna turned to look at me.

That single look was more than enough to convey what she wanted.

"Yeah, yeah..."

I stepped forward and took a crouch next to Misaki.

Meanwhile, Hana had already finished.

She was busy transferring her catch into a water-filled plastic bag.

I glanced over at Misaki, who was about to lower her final scoop into the water.

"Careful. It’ll tear."

Misaki gave a small smile and glanced back at me.

"You be careful, too."

The two of us lowered our scoops into the water.

The thin paper slowly soaked through.

I began observing the movements of the fish.

"Alright..."

"Come to think of it, the more angled the scoop is, the less water pressure the paper has to take."

"Then it’s just a matter of waiting for a fish to pass."

"They’ll swim away if the water moves too much."

"So the key is to move slowly, guide it near the surface, and lift it at the exact right moment."

I began putting my theory into practice.

Slowly.

Very slowly.

A fish drifted right over the scoop.

I lifted it.

Up, little by little.

"Good..."

"Just a little more..."

Right as it neared the surface, I pulled it up just a bit faster.

*Rip.*

The paper gave way instantly.

The fish bolted off.

I stared down at the ruined scoop.

"...Yeah."

I gave a small nod.

"This game really is tough."

Beside me, Misaki actually seemed to be having more luck.

A fish sat perfectly atop her scoop.

She lifted it.

Higher.

It even cleared the surface of the water.

"Itsuki!"

I whipped my head around.

"Quick, the bowl!"

"Got it!"

I hastily grabbed the small plastic bowl resting by the pool.

Misaki tried her best to balance the fish.

Slowly.

So slowly.

Then, suddenly—

*Rip.*

The fish dropped right back into the water.

"Aaa..."

Misaki hung her head.

"I’m terrible at this."

I let out a soft laugh.

"Hahaha."

"Alright, one more try."

I reached into my pocket to grab some more coins.

But Misaki caught my wrist, stopping me.

"Wait."

"Hm?"

"Look at them."

I turned to look.

Misaki did the same.

Over there, Hana was walking toward Yuna and Mika.

In her hands were three small plastic bags, each holding a fish.

"Mika."

"Yuna."

"These are for you."

The two of them were immediately taken aback.

"Huh?"

"But these are yours." Yuna shook her head. "You caught them."

"Yeah." Mika nodded in agreement. "They’re your fish."

Hana offered a small smile.

"It’s okay."

"I already have a lot of fish like this at home."

"Really?"

Mika’s eyes immediately sparkled.

"I want to see them sometime!"

"I’ll take it, then."

Yuna carefully accepted one of the plastic bags.

"Thank you, Hana."

"Thank you!"

Mika chimed in.

"You’re welcome."

Mika immediately held her plastic bag up to eye level.

A tiny fish swam around inside.

Mika stared at the fish.

The fish stared back.

Or at least, that was how Mika saw it.

They locked eyes for a few seconds.

Then, with utter conviction, Mika spoke.

"Fish..."

"From now on, your name is Johnson."

"How about it? Do you like it?"

The fish just kept swimming, offering no reply.

Mika gave a serious nod.

"Alright."

"I’ll take that as a yes."

Yuna immediately leaned in.

"Hello, Johnson."

Hana leaned in as well, offering a tiny wave.

"Hello."

Watching the scene unfold, Misaki and I could only smile.

Then, suddenly, Misaki leaned in close beside me.

Very close.

I could feel the warmth of her breath near my ear.

"Umm..."

It seemed like she was about to say something.

But she stopped herself.

Instead—

*Whoosh...*

She blew lightly right into my ear.

"Hey!"

I instantly jerked a step back.

A ticklish sensation shot straight down my neck.

My hand flew up reflexively to rub my ear.

"That tickles."

Misaki immediately burst out laughing.

"Hahaha."

"I didn’t think you’d react like that."

Her laugh sounded light.

Not overly loud.

But free enough that her eyes crinkled slightly at the corners.

Bathed in the warm glow of the paper lanterns, her smile looked incredibly bright.

I looked away for a moment.

Trying my best to ignore the slightly strange rhythm of my heartbeat.

*What is actually wrong with me...*

*I can’t let myself get swept up in the mood just because of something like this.*

Yet, for some reason, the harder I tried to ignore it, the clearer Misaki’s smile became in my mind.

~~ • ~~