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Camping is quite fun.

To be honest, there are quite a few annoying parts. The most annoying thing, above all, is that you have to set up your own space with your own hands.

Cleaning the floor, pitching the tent, and setting up everything around for immediate use was, to be honest, a bit of a hassle.

At the same time, it was also somewhat enjoyable. If I were alone, I would have just driven the car over, plopped down, and gone to sleep, but preparing leisurely while chatting with Pang-pang was actually quite nice.

The weather was a bit cold, so we stuffed our clothes with hand warmers and snuggled closely together on our chairs.

In front, we also lit a campfire. Of course, too much light would be a problem when coming out to see the stars, so we made it as dim as possible, like charcoal.

Right. We came to see the stars. It was a promise with Pang-pang.

A few days before the date, we debated whether to go spend time on another planet, and Pang-pang showed her Earth Buddy side after a long time, insisting she wanted to see the Milky Way together. I agreed.

We decided to go to a place Pang-pang wanted to see, and we took turns driving.

The place we arrived at was a quiet auto camping site nestled in the mountains.

After parking the car, we set up a tent just roomy enough for the three of us, then wrapped ourselves in blankets and spent some time together.

“It’s quieter than I expected.”

When the sun was still high in the sky, Pang-pang said that. There really weren’t many people around. With the weather getting colder, and especially since this campsite was more tucked away in the mountains than I thought, it made sense.

“It’s good if it’s quiet.”

I replied with a smile.

“How on earth did you find this place?”

“I’ve been looking around here and there whenever I had the time. Even if it looks like this, I’m a big company owner, okay?”

I chuckled at Pang-pang’s words.

“Here.”

I had been hearing the crinkling of a snack bag for a while, and what Pang-pang pulled out wasn’t a snack but a rather large marshmallow. A marshmallow on a stick.

As I accepted it, Pang-pang lightly placed it over the campfire and rotated it gently to roast.

I started to do the same—

“…Ah!”

The marshmallow caught fire.

“The campfire is surprisingly powerful. It’s really hot in spots you can’t see.”

Pang-pang, laughing, pressed some biscuits against the marshmallow she had roasted, squishing it out, and then handed it to me.

“Can I take one?”

“There’s plenty of marshmallow. If you roast them, you’ll definitely succeed at least once.”

Despite feeling slightly embarrassed, I accepted the biscuit Pang-pang offered. So, this was what they called a s’more? I had heard of it but never actually made one. The last time I went camping, the situation wasn’t exactly great.

“It’s okay to eat first. It tastes a bit different if it cools down. You have to eat it when it’s slightly melted… that’s what I’ve heard.”

As I stared dazedly at Pang-pang roasting the marshmallow, she said that with a smile. I felt a bit guilty, but it was hard to bear Pang-pang’s words.

I bit into the biscuit. The sound of it crunching slightly broke through as it crumbled, blending with the slightly melted marshmallow in the middle. The outer part of the marshmallow had a sweet taste. A very thin sugary layer crumbled, revealing the fluffiness of the familiar marshmallow inside. Hmm, upon chewing again, it was closer to being sticky than fluffy, but the texture wasn’t too gooey and felt light enough not to be unpleasant.

I pulled and tore off a bit of the marshmallow and handed the rest of the biscuit to Pang-pang. She let out a short giggle and bit into it.

“It’s delicious.”

Pang-pang said, her eyes sparkling.

Then she handed me another marshmallow and made another s’more with what she had roasted. While I was roasting, Pang-pang took a bite first and then fed what was left to me. Hmm, even on my second try, it tasted heavenly.

As we roasted something over the fire, I really felt like I was experiencing ‘camping.’

We didn’t only roast marshmallows. Since we had packed a ton of stuff into the car from the start, there were plenty of sausages and skewers too. We had a grill, so we piled things up on it and roasted to our hearts’ content.

Thinking about it, maybe we should have roasted the marshmallows at the end? That thought crossed my mind, but what could I do? I had already eaten them all.

Feeling satisfied, we sat back down on the camping chairs we had set up.

They weren’t as comfortable as the sofa at home. But, these foldable chairs had their own charm.

I pulled out two small cans of coffee from a bag beside the chair.

“Want a drink?”

“Sure.”

As I handed one over, Pang-pang smiled and accepted it.

Pang-pang gets tipsy from canned coffee. Meanwhile, I probably would be wide awake for a while after drinking a can of coffee.

For Pang-pang, wanting to enjoy the atmosphere, and for me, wanting to look up at the stars, coffee was perfect for both of us. I thought about how unfair it seemed, yet wondered if there was another drink that matched our personalities so well.

Well, even if she got tipsy, at least one of us had to stay sober.

Normally, Pang-pang would down canned coffee like beer, but now she was sipping it slowly like I would. Her eyes were fixed on the sunset slowly sinking on the horizon.

“…”

I glanced at her for a moment before asking.

“Are things tough for you these days?”

“Hmm?”

Pang-pang looked a bit surprised and turned to me.

“Oh, no, it’s not that bad.”

“It’s written all over your face, you know.”

I sipped my coffee as I spoke.

“I can’t really help, but I’m here to listen if you want to talk.”

I’m not sure how much value there is in listening without being able to help.

But once I thought about wanting to have that kind of relationship, I didn’t want to just leave Pang-pang alone. After all, her taking over the company was partly due to the consequences of my actions.

Pang-pang paused for a moment and let out a light sigh.

“Well, there’s just a lot to learn, you know. But really, I’m fine. The company’s work isn’t that hectic. It’s just that I’ve almost never had to learn anything before.”

“Really?”

When I squinted at her, Pang-pang burst into laughter, looking incredulous.

“Seriously, it’s true. If I were really busy and struggling, I wouldn’t be able to meet you every day. Company owners are usually busy but don’t seem that busy.”

I’m not sure if that’s actually the case, but it was true that Pang-pang always came to see me. Just like the other kids always around me.

“I’ve even been able to take this vacation. And I’ve spun off several businesses, so now the scale is a bit smaller than before. I want to focus a bit more on the space industry.”

“Hmm, well, uh.”

Pang-pang’s expression as she said that was very gentle, so she really seemed to mean it.

We paused for a moment, looking up at the sky.

The sun had gone down more, and now the sky was starting to turn blue.

Hmm.

As I looked silently up at the sky, I began to understand a bit why Pang-pang hadn’t said anything.

It’s not so much that she was tired or overwhelmed, but rather, sometimes it’s just more comfortable to sit in silence with no words.

Sometimes, that silence could even become a chance to be more honest with each other.

Suddenly, Pang-pang took off her left glove and reached her hand out to me. I couldn’t help but chuckle, and after taking off my gloves, I held her hand.

Her slightly cold hand gradually warmed up while I held it. That was a good thing for me too, as it meant I could spend this winter night comfortably.

The sky was quite arid, but there couldn’t be a better one for those like us who came to see the stars.

Twinkle.

After the sky turned almost black, a star finally peeked out from afar, sparkling.

The more I gazed quietly, the more faint stars began to appear in the darkening night sky.

The camping site, as if aware that people had come to see the stars, dimmed all lights except the necessary ones, like those guiding the paths.

It felt like the stars were about to pour from the sky. This might be the widest and brightest sea of stars I have ever seen in my life.

Well, technically, there are stars visible in space, but that’s a different kind of appreciation.

“…It’s beautiful.”

I muttered, and Pang-pang replied softly.

“Yeah.”

The stars moved slowly. They gradually marched in one direction, keeping pace with the turning sky, silently.

We were also marching together in that flowing time, quietly.

While looking at the stars that seemed to pour down so abundantly I might forget to breathe, Pang-pang’s hand tightened slightly.

Maybe she was remembering the promise. Without even considering the half-finished coffee we had left, Pang-pang—

Pang-pang was looking at me. Before I knew it.

“…”

I looked back at Pang-pang.

The starlight wasn’t bright enough to reach here. The light illuminating Pang-pang’s face came from other sources nearby, carefully dimmed for optimal stargazing.

Receiving light from one of those sources, were those eyes sparkling like that?

Logically, that could be the case, but I decided to think that Pang-pang’s eyes sparkled that much.

Eyes that always look toward hope, sparkling.

Under the pouring stars, we held hands and gazed at each other for a long, long time.

Even in the darkness, the two stars shining were more beautiful than the pouring starlight.

 

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