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Twenty-Five
‘I will not be able to make it. I’m still hung up with work.’
I read the text, put my phone away and looked towards Hikaru-nii’s room. He had just finished his shower and stepped out.
I texted Hiro-san back. I know that he hadn't quite asked about it but I reported it to him anyway. ‘He’s home and well.’
It took a minute for me to receive a reply. ‘Did he say anything?’
‘No.’
‘Did you talk to him?’
‘No.’
‘Shouldn’t you?’
I should, shouldn’t I?
“Kakeru, have you eaten?” Hikaru-nii came out of his room and went over to the kitchen counter on which I had left the food.
“No. Not yet.” I replied and got up from the couch. “Let’s eat together.”
“Mm.” He grabbed a plate off the shelves and began serving himself. I sighed and followed him to the dining table after getting my own food.
I really should talk to him about it.
“What about Hiromitsu?” He asked as he began eating without e
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Hiro-san ended up borrowing the bike like he had said that he would. He came by my place at around 05:00 am. Without waking Hikaru-nii up and locking up behind myself with my key, I followed Hiro-san out to the bike. It was a rather cold morning and, while we were riding, especially, the only way that I could fight the chill was by hugging Hiro-san from behind. It was very comforting and I held on as tightly as I could have. In fact, just for those three hours of journey between Hikaru-nii and Aki-chan, with just the two of us, I felt at my most peaceful. I had nothing to worry about except for holding on tight. Do not let go. We arrived at the old house that Kaori-nii’s mother and sister’s family stayed in a little before 08:00 am. Since it was early in the morning, the roads were open for us. We had covered good distance in short time. I cannot say that I was entirely mentally prepared for what that meeting with Aki-chan would mean to me and
Home Twenty-Seven
“They fell asleep in the TV room.” Akari-san came into the dining area carrying Kenta-kun in her arms. He was almost completely asleep. Or rather, it looked like he had been sleeping but got woken up when his mother had picked him up. He didn't look too happy about it either. “My husband’s putting Maki to bed.” I nodded, understanding what she had meant. “Coming.” We adults had sat down to have dinner only after the kids had eaten. We had had things we needed to talk about. The kids had been watching TV while we ate because Aki-chan had refused to go to bed without playing with me a little more even though she had visibly been exhausted. It was no surprise that they had fallen asleep just like that. Hiro-san followed me to the TV room. We had stayed to help Kaori-nee’s mother wind up while Akari-san and Natsume-san had gone to check on the kids. Kaori-nii's mother and the others had wanted to hear more about how Hikaru-nii was doing and that was why the kids
Home Twenty-Eight
Hardly two minutes had passed since I closed my eyes and stopped myself from thinking about much else when I heard the door open behind me, making me turn to see who it was. “Hiro-san?” “Haven’t slept yet?” He smiled at me and closed the door behind himself. He had also changed into night clothes by then. You've got to be kidding me. “Go back to your room.” I turned away again. I was not really surprised to see him though. “Don’t be so cold.” He approached me slowly. “I don’t need this.” “Is that so?” He knelt on the bedding behind me, then leaned over, placing both hands on either side of me, looking down at me. “Kake-chan.” “I have told you not to call me that.” I said but did not budge. What was with him towering over me like that anyway? “You’re in a foul mood. Did it upset you that much that she did not hold on to you when you put her to bed?” It upset me that I was as helpless as I was. “I’m beggin
Home Twenty-Nine
Aki-chan had kicked up quite the fuss when it had come time for us to leave. We had been slowly preparing her for it but when I finally got out of the house with my bag, she couldn't play brave anymore. She had clung to my legs and started crying, saying that she did not want to be left behind. She wanted to go home with me. I had wanted to bring her back with me too. The only reason I was able to hold onto my composure and my sanity was that Hiro-san was mediating. Kaori-nee's mother was too but I don't think I would have been able to deal with her desperate cries had Hiro-san not been there to step in whenever I found myself at a loss for words. In the end, we had started much later than we had initially planned. The ride beack home was largely silent too. Hiro-san had let me hold on to him without question for as long as I needed it. By the time we had gotten to my apartment and I had walked up to the front door, the turmoil within had dulled been dulled t
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“No. Not yet.” I said into the phone. My father had called and enquired about Aki-chan and Hikaru-nii. “He needs more time, I think. It’s getting better though.” “He still does not answer phone calls.” He sighed. “Your mother’s worried sick. She’s been pestering me about wanting to come there.” “I don’t think that that will be a good idea. I mean, we have our own ways of living and… you really won’t be able to appreciate things as they are. Let’s just minimise chances of friction, shall we?” “I told her the same thing. The fact remains that we are worried though. We haven’t even been able to talk to him since the funeral happened and… we haven’t seen you either. We have nothing to go on but your words.” “I understand.” I was standing at the window in my room and looking out. There wasn’t really much of a view. I could only see the street next to our building. The cool night air felt good though. And it was the farthest that I could have gotten from Hi
Home Thirty-One
“Kuronomiya, you okay?” Yamato-san stopped me as I walked past his desk on the way to mine, returning from Hamada-san’s cabin. “I… heard about the mess up.” “It’s fine. I’ll figure something out.” I smiled weakly at him. “It’s not… a total loss. The client just decided that my proposal was not modern enough. I mean, I admit that it isn’t my best work.” “So, what now? You’re resubmitting?” … “No. I’m off the project.” “What? It was a huge one though! And… this is the kind of project that you excel at. Wha- I mean, how come…” He did not complete what he was going to say. ‘How come you messed up?’ ‘What went wrong?’ ‘This isn’t like you.’ ‘What happened to you?’ Hamada-san had already pinned me with all those questions earlier. I had had absolutely no answer to give. All I could do was apologise and promise to do better next time. “Yeah. I know. It was my fault entirely. I messed up.” I scratched the tip of my ear. “I’ll do better
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“I’m… sorry. You should probably, um, leave. I’ll contact you when I’m feeling better.” I stumbled for words because of the look on his face.“You think I can just leave you like that?” His voice was rather stern. “After all this, you really think that I will just leave?”“… You should.”“Kakeru, look at me.” He caught me by both my shoulders and made me face him when I turned way. “Tell me everything.”You’re putting me in a really tough spot. You’re pushing me. Do not do this.“Kakeru.”“I got kicked off my own project.”“Wha- Your current project? Why? You’ve been working so hard on it.” He furrowed his brows.“Not hard enough. I messed up.”“That’s…” He sighed and gave my shoulders a good squeeze. “It’s okay. Ever
Home Thirty-Three
Hiro-san had called me just before I left office to inform me that he would be late but that he would definitely be coming over for dinner. While I had found that a little weird because he would usually have chosen to go straight home, I had absolutely no complaints. He knew exactly what he was doing. I heard the front door opening and checked the time on my phone. It was just past 07:15 pm. Hikaru-nii was early. “Welcome home.” I stepped out of the kitchen to greet him. “You’re early today.” “Mm. I finished work early.” He replied. “And I have a bad headache. Could I get a cup of tea?” A headache? “Okay. Wait a bit.” I went back into the kitchen and began preparing tea as well along with dinner. It had been a while since he asked for anything other than alcohol. “Here.” I took a cup of tea out to him when I had finished making it. “Have you been working too much?” “No. I didn’t sleep much last night.” He answered. “Oh.
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