The rooftop of a certain high school.
After school.
In a place that was technically off-limits, two male students were killing time and chatting.
Judging by the slightly disheveled way they wore their uniforms, they didn’t exactly look like model students.
“Haah…”
One of them, a boy with black hair and blue eyes—Takasegawa Yuzuru—let out a deep sigh.
His expression was one of utter lethargy.
“What’s up, Yuzuru? Sighing out of nowhere like that.”
“Just listen to this.”
Yuzuru began venting to the boy beside him, Satake Soichiro.
“You know how recently the legal marriage age was lowered to fifteen for both men and women, right?”
“Yeah… what about it?”
“I don’t know if that’s the reason, but ever since I graduated middle school, my grandpa and grandma keep nagging me, telling me to get married… to go to matchmaking meetings.”
Every chance they got, they’d ask him things like “Do you have a girlfriend yet?” or “Is there someone you like?” — and before he knew it, they were even arranging marriage proposals and setting up matchmaking meetings without asking him.
Of course, he had absolutely no interest in engagements arranged behind his back, so he firmly refused every one of them…
“But you’re only fifteen, right? That’s way too early, even for you. …Why are they so desperate?”
“They say they want to see their great-grandchild.”
“Well… yeah, I guess they won’t see that unless you get married early.”
Soichiro burst out laughing.
From Yuzuru’s perspective, it was anything but funny.
Yuzuru lives alone, so he doesn’t usually see his grandparents. But whenever he gos back to his family home, there is no avoiding them.
And during the early May holidays, they will definitely bring it up again, maybe even drag him to a matchmaking meeting.
“It’s not like I have someone I like, and it’s not like I even want a relationship right now… but if I ever do want one later, having a fiancée already would just get in the way. And going to a matchmaking meeting when I have zero intention of getting engaged is a total waste of time… Isn’t there some way I can avoid it?”
“Then how about throwing out some impossible conditions?”
“Impossible conditions?”
“Like: If you want me to do matchmaking, bring me an unbelievably beautiful girl! Something like that.”
“…Huh. Yeah, that’s actually not a bad idea. But what exactly does impossible mean in this context?”
“Hmm… maybe blonde hair and blue eyes? Even your old man probably couldn’t pull that off.”
“Nah, he might just bring someone from overseas. Grandpa’s got connections abroad too.”
It might be much harder to find in Japan, but you shouldn’t underestimate an old man desperate to see his great-grandchild.
“Then add a condition that she has to speak fluent Japanese. Since language barriers are a hassle, say she needs to be Japanese — or at least that she needs to speak excellent Japanese. Narrow it down that much and it should be a great challenge to find someone like that.”
“You have a point… And if she’s going to marry into the family, she’d probably have to be someone with a proper background anyway. Add fluent Japanese on top of that, and yeah, it gets pretty tough… Alright, let’s go with that.”
Just as Yuzuru finished deciding—
his phone rang, as if on cue.
“Hello?”
‘Yuzuru! When you come home during the holidays… would you consider attending a matchmaking meeting? It’s the one thing I ask in this lifetime. I want to see my great-grandchild before I die…’
“Sure.”
‘Please, I’m begging you — …wait, huh!? You will, Yuzuru!?’
“On one condition.”
To his stunned grandfather on the other end of the line, Yuzuru calmly laid out his “impossible conditions.”
“If the girl is a blonde, blue-eyed, fair-skinned beauty, I’ll consider it. Oh, and of course she has to be around my age and have Japanese nationality. Age gaps and language barriers are a pain. And also…”
Yuzuru glanced at Soichiro.
Soichiro quickly typed something on his phone and held up the screen.
Yuzuru read it aloud.
“She needs to have big boobs and a big bum — well, basically a great figure. She should be kind, graceful, and a proper Yamato Nadeshiko. Japanese term for the “ideal” traditional woman And also… good at cooking, smart, and athletic… There’s no way someone like that exists, right.”
Yuzuru shot Soichiro an exasperated look.
Soichiro shrugged back in response.
Then he typed on his phone again and showed it to him.
That’s why it’s fine, isn’t it?
‘Th-that’s… even for me, that might be a bit—’
“If it’s impossible, that’s fine too. Doesn’t bother me.”
‘Ghk… Fine! I’ll find someone by the holidays, so you’d better be ready!’
“Sure, sure=.”
Yuzuru hung up, wondering what exactly he was supposed to “be ready” for.
Then he turned to Soichiro.
“Do they really want to see their great-grandkids that badly?”
“Who knows? Maybe you only understand after you get old… Oh, speaking of which, isn’t there someone nearby who fits those conditions?”
“Nearby?”
“Yukishiro. Yukishiro Arisa from your class.”
Yukishiro Arisa.
A female student in their year who is quite famous around school.
Her hair is a slightly pale brown — almost flaxen — and her eyes a beautiful green.
Her skin is as beautiful as white fresh snow, smooth like porcelain.
Her body looks slender at first glance, but has striking curves if you look closer.
She carries an aura that keeps people at a distance.
That kind of girl.
She is a mysterious, picture-perfect beauty, so she is looked upon with envy by the male students
And apparently she receives confessions all the time.
Yet there are virtually no rumours of romance surrounding her — meaning she must have rejected every single one.
“She’s got jade-green eyes, not blue. And her hair isn’t quite blonde, more a pale brown, really. I don’t know if she’s good at cooking or if she’s a Yamato Nadeshiko, though…”
Unfortunately, Yuzuru wasn’t close enough to know her personality.
They were only on greeting terms, and he wasn’t even sure how much she recognised him.
“Her showing up would be quite a hilarious development.”
Soichiro said half jokingly.
Still, setting aside subtle differences in hair and eye colour, personality, and domestic skills, she was the person who best matched the conditions Yuzuru had set out. So it wasn’t entirely out of the question.
“But even if Grandpa searches, he’s not putting out newspaper ads or anything like that. He’ll just pick a girl around my age from his connections. Who knows if Yukishiro’s even in that network? And more importantly… would Yukishiro even agree to meet me? A matchmaking meeting won’t even start unless the other side is somewhat willing too.”
“Well… wanting to do matchmaking at our age is weird in the first place.”
“Right?”
These are not ancient times of nobles or samurai.
Yuzuru figured it was already questionable whether a girl matching those conditions even existed.
“Alright, hypothetically. If Yukishiro Arisa showed up… what would you do? Would you accept? She’s definitely a top-tier catch.”
For the students who had fallen for Yukishiro Arisa — or been shot down by her already — getting a matchmaking meeting with her would be a dream scenario.
But for Yuzuru…
“I mean, she’s beautiful, sure. But I don’t particularly fancy her. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think she’s a bad person, but… how do I put it? She feels kind of cold. Not really my type. At the very least, I wouldn’t want to marry her.”
It wasn’t that Yukishiro Arisa couldn’t express emotions. Nor that she was completely devoid of them.
It simply felt like she rejected close relationships with people.
As long as she could maintain a suitable distance that kept her from being excluded from the class circle, she had no intention of making close friends or a lover.
That was the impression she gave.
“Also… doesn’t she have kind of dead eyes? Sure, the colour’s beautiful, but there’s no emotion in them.”
Like a lake so pure that not a single fish could live in it.
That was the colour of Arisa’s eyes.
Soichiro seemed to agree with Yuzuru’s assessment, nodding slowly.
“Now that you mention it… yeah. And if you’re choosing someone to spend your life with, it’s safer to pick based on personality rather than looks. Compatibility matters most in the end.”
Yuzuru nodded back.
“Exactly. What matters is whether it’s fun being together. Yukishiro Arisa is more like… something you admire from a distance.”
Just looking at her was pleasant enough.
In fact, Yuzuru occasionally caught himself stealing glances too, trying not to be noticed.
Someone that beautiful was a bit soothing just to look at.
“She doesn’t seem like someone that jokes would land well with. Feels like she’d just stare at you with a cold face… But to be honest, that might have its own appeal.”
“Mate, that’s a bit creepy… But I kinda get it.”
Yuzuru and Soichiro burst out laughing.
…At that moment, Yuzuru still didn’t understand—
The stubborn determination of an old man who wanted to see his great-grandchild.
Some time later.
The latter half of the early May holiday — Golden Week. A series of consecutive national holidays in Japan from late April to early May
At a traditional restaurant somewhere in Tokyo.
Seated formally in a kimono, Yuzuru faced a girl with flaxen hair kneeling neatly in seiza across from him.
She wore a kimono decorated with beautiful hydrangeas.
Her skin was translucent white, and her facial features were exquisitely balanced.
A girl who could truly be called a once-in-a-generation beauty.
She looked straight at Yuzuru with her green eyes, then placed her hands on the tatami and bowed politely.
“My name is Yukishiro Arisa. It’s a pleasure to meet you… although, I suppose it isn’t our first time meeting.”
Arisa said this while staring intently at him with pure, yet lifeless eyes.
(…How did it end up like this?)
Yuzuru buried his head in his hands internally.
Author note:
Due to story convenience, some laws differ slightly from real-world Japan, but the setting is essentially modern Japan.
In reality, I don’t know whether it’s possible for a classmate to show up at a matchmaking meeting.
