The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya Read Online Free PDF Page A

of waiting friends.
    “Wait.”
    My voice cracked a bit.
    “Why are you here?”
    That person turned around and gave me a frosty, penetrating look.
    “What do you mean? Is there something odd about my being here? Or are you trying to imply that I should have been sick longer? What’s that supposed to mean?”
    “That’s not it. I don’t care about your cold. I’m talking about—”
    “Kyon.”
    Kunikida was poking at my shoulder with a worried look on his face.
    “You’re acting really weird. You haven’t been making any sense at all, really.”
    “Kunikida, you don’t have a problem with seeing her here?”
    I couldn’t take this any longer, so I stood up and pointed my finger at that person , who was staring at me with a baffled look.
    “Don’t you know who this is? It’s someone who isn’t supposed to be here!”
    “… Kyon, it’s not very polite to forget the face of a classmate when she’s only been absent for a few days. Isn’t supposed to be here? She’s been in our class the whole time.”
    I could never forget her. It’d take a lot longer than half a year to forget the face of this wannabe murderer who tried to kill me.
    “I know.”
    That person smiled as though she had just come up with a hilarious joke.
    “You were probably nodding off as you ate your lunch. Did you have a nightmare or something? That must be it. Isn’t it time for you to wake up?”
    A smile spread across her comely face as that person turned to Kunikida for support. I was focused on the images that had been burned into my brain.
    They were flashing through my mind. A classroom in sunset hues—shadows extending across the floor—a windowless wall—distorted space—the swing of a knife—that unnerving smile—crystal grains, crumbling like sand…
    Our former class representative who, after being annihilated in the battle with Nagato, was said to have transferred to Canada.
    Ryoko Asakura stood before me.
    “You’ll feel a lot better after you wash your face. Do you have a handkerchief on you? I can lend you mine.”
    I grabbed Asakura’s arm as she reached into her skirt pocket. She might pull out something that isn’t her handkerchief.
    “No thanks. Anyway, explain what’s going on. Every little detail. I especially want to know why you set your bag down on Haruhi’s desk. That isn’t your seat. It’s Haruhi’s.”
    “Haruhi?”
    Asakura frowned as she turned to Kunikida.
    “Who’s this Haruhi? Was there somebody who went by that name?”
    Kunikida’s response was yet another reason to despair.
    “Never heard that name before. Haruhi, is it? How is that spelled?”
    “Haruhi is Haruhi,” I grumbled as I was hit by a spell of dizziness.
    “You people forgot about Haruhi Suzumiya? How could you possibly forget about someone like that…?”
    “Haruhi Suzumiya… Uh-huh, Kyon.”
    Kunikida spoke slowly in a consoling tone.
    “There’s no such person in this class. Besides, this has been Asakura’s desk since the last time we changed seats. Did you confuse our class with a different one? But I don’t recall ever hearing the name Suzumiya before. Can’t be a freshman…”
    “The name doesn’t ring a bell for me either.”
    Asakura seemed to agree that I needed to get my head looked at as she continued in a gentle, purring voice.
    “Kunikida-kun, could you look inside my desk real quick? The student directory should be near the end.”
    I snatched the small notebook from Kunikida as he pulled it out. I immediately opened it to class 1-5’s page. I traced my finger down the list of names for the girls.
    Saeki, Sakanaka, Suno, Suzuki…
    There wasn’t a name between Suno and Suzuki. Haruhi Suzumiya’s name had vanished from the student directory. It was as if the pages were asking “Who are you looking for? There’s no such person” as I shut the directory and closed my eyes.
    “… Kunikida. I have a favor to ask.”
    “What is it?”
    “Pinch my cheek. I need to wake up.”
    “You