“Okay.

”
“So, what’s the name of this secret society?” I said, half-teasing.
Akiyoshi jutted out her lip and then pointed at my T-shirt, saying, “Something for which there’s
no confirmed theory about its purpose or function.”
“A moai?”
On the front of my T-shirt, which I had just happened to pick up somewhere or other, was a
caricature of a moai statue in profile. Not wanting to orient myself strongly in any particular
direction, this vagueness put me at ease.
I suppose that was the day it all began. I started getting together with Akiyoshi more than I ever
had before, and it was perhaps then that the pretense of our shared friendship truly vanished.
It was not the university life that I had hoped for from the outset, but from there on out, an
exhilarating time began. No matter how quiet or passive I remained, Akiyoshi always had
something new and exciting to bring.
And then, one day…
“Kaede!”
“Hm?”
“Say cheese!”
As I sat beside Akiyoshi in the usual lecture hall, she suddenly called my name and grabbed me
by the shoulder, taking a selfie of us both with a digital camera before I could comprehend
what was happening.
“Huh? What’s with the photo?”
“I just bought this camera. Pretty cool, huh? I’ll send you the pic later!”
“Test shot?”
“Yep. I can take pics anytime I like now, so it’s best to get some practice in.”
When I finally got the file for the picture from my sharp-tongued friend, I saw myself looking at
Akiyoshi in confusion, and Akiyoshi with a wide smile upon her face. From then on, taking
photos became part and parcel of our Moai activities, but thinking about it now, that was the
only time that the two of us ever took a picture together.
Then, another time…
“It’s ready!”
“What is this?”
I took the item that was offered to me, finding myself holding a plastic keychain. It depicted a
cartoon moai head.
“Awesome, right? We can hang it on our bags, as a mark of our membership.”
“Uh…but aren’t secret societies supposed to not stand out?”
“Jeez, you still on about that? It’s fine, Kaede! I’ll be the one to wear it. You just keep yours
somewhere safe.” By that point, Akiyoshi was always calling me by my given name. I eventually
ended up putting my keys on the keychain, though I never told her that.
Then, another time.
And another time.
And another time.
I came to realize that Akiyoshi was spending the majority of her time at university with me, and
so just once, I had to ask.
“Shouldn’t you be hanging out with other girls sometimes?”
“I prefer hanging out with guys. You don’t have to worry about stuff as much.”
It had occurred to me that Akiyoshi probably had very few people she could call friends, and I
understood that life in feminine society must be difficult for a person like her.
There were plenty of times when she did not smile. Her face hardened when she read the
news, and when she grew angry at someone’s opinion, she cut them with a sneer. By the time I
realized that though, I was already well beyond thinking that she was someone to be avoided. I
recognized this, and I understood her. The embarrassing behavior, the naiveté that she
possessed, always chasing after her ideals, after the truth, were things that I did not share.
“By the way, Kaede. Thank you for accepting me,” she said suddenly one day, sometime after
our first meeting, I believe when we were on the way back from some museum we had visited.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I mean, you once told me that you try to avoid getting close to people, so that you can
avoid hurting them just by living. So, I’m glad that you accepted me as your friend when you
could have just turned me away the first time I ever spoke to you. Without you, I’d be really
lonely at school.”
By then, I was already beyond thinking what an embarrassing thing that was of her to say.
Akiyoshi was the sort of friend who could think those things and say them aloud.
“Woooooow, awkward. What’s with this all of a sudden?”
“That’s so rude! I’m opening my heart up here!”
I still remember the way we laughed that day.
Even though Akiyoshi’s laughter is no longer part of this world.