38 The station name is wrong

"what did you think of?" i ask him again on the train. "why are you so secretive? you can tell me. this also affects me."

"i will tell you when we reach home," kamiyama answers me with his closed eyes.

"tch!" i click my tongue and look out of the window. the scenery is beautiful. it's getting greener as the train is moving ahead. we should reach home within a few hours. i decide to take a nap. i close my eyes.

"takeuchi." kamiyama nudges my shoulder. "wake up."

"mmmm." i open my eyes. "have we reached?"

"there is a situation."

i look around. there is no one but us. it's already dark outside the window. i have a bad bad bad feeling. very bad bad bad feeling. "what is the situation?"

"the station name is wrong," he tells me with fear in his eyes.

"???" name is wrong? what?

we get out of the train. it's out of nowhere. oh, damn! we are at the other end of the country.

"kamiyama, show me the tickets?" i ask him with a smile. he gives me the tickets. the tickets are for the correct destination, but we got on the wrong train.

"why were you so sure that it was the right train?" earlier, he dragged me to the train confidently. just after we got on the train, it started moving. i thought that everything was right since he was that confident. he acted like he knew everything.

"i think it was the other train." he sighs. "it is your fault. we could go back faster on the helicopter, but you wanted to ride the train."

"then, you should have let me take the train. did i stop you from flying back to the city?" i yell at him. i have met fools, but he is on a different level. "kamiyama, have you rode a train before?"

"today is my first time." he looks around. "where are we? are we in the same country?"

this person makes me want to kill him. i decide not to waste my breath on him. i go to the ticket counter. a plump man is dozing on the other side. i tap the window pane once. twice. thrice. i decide to yell. "when is the next train coming?"

he wakes up with a start. "girl, don't scare me."

"when is the next train back to t city?"

"t city?" he looks at the chart. "tomorrow evening."

"..." i put my palm on my head.

"did you take the wrong train?" the man asks us with sympathy.

"yes, we did," kamiyama answers him.

"that happens all the time." the man laughs again. "do you need a place to stay tonight?"

"yes, we do."

"there is no hotel in the village." the man explains to us. "go to uncle ozaki's place. they are kind people. they will let you stay for the night."

***

kiyohira has never walked this much in life. the man has told them that the ozaki house was only five minutes away from the station. but, it has been twenty minutes since they have been climbing the hill. they haven't seen a single living creature. no sign of civilization. kiyohira is afraid. it's getting darker and darker. he looks at takeuchi. she must be more scared than him.

nope. she is still grumbling about having a dumb man with him. she keeps glaring at him, looking completely mad. when he doesn't take a step ahead, she walks in front of him fearlessly into the night. he wonders how she is not afraid of being in a strange place with no one in sight. what if a wild animal attacks us?

"takeuchi." he grabs her wrist from running ahead. "we should go back to the station and wait there. it's too dark here."

she jerks his hand off. "are you afraid of darkness?"

"i am not afraid of anything." he licks his lips. he is sweating profusely. "i am sure that you are afraid. you don't have to act courageously. let's go back."

"haha!" she crosses her arms. "it's not far. i can smell the scent of food. it should be that way."

now, he can also smell the scent of food. his stomach rumbles loudly. she laughs and pulls him along with her. by the time they reach, kiyohira's soul is ready to fly away. the ozaki old couple is surprised to see them, but they welcome them without a question.

"you boarded the wrong train?" aunty ozaki asks takeuchi curiously. "your husband looks tired."

takeuchi stops eating the curry. she stares at the aunty, not knowing what to say. kiyohira blinks hard and opens his mouth to correct them.

"yes, my husband is not used to climbing." takeuchi smiles shyly. "he is getting old."

"aish!" uncle ozaki pats kiyohira's back hard. "a man should not be a burden on a woman. look at me. i am twice your age, but i can easily climb the mountain every day."

kiyohira doesn't know what to say. the fact that she could lie that easily or the fact that she lied about them being married? both are surprising to him.

"i have prepared the bathwater and clothes. you can rest in the guest room," aunty ozaki tells them. "you had a hard day. sleep early."

takeuchi rie takes the bath first. she comes out after fifteen minutes, dressed in a simple kimono. her hair is moved to one shoulder. kiyohira can't stop staring at her. this is the first time when he is seeing her in something other than her large hoodie and loose trousers. aunty ozaki and uncle ozaki chuckle when they see kiyohira's gaze. the young husband is completely head over heels for his wife.

"weren't you also used to be like him?" aunty ozaki pokes uncle ozaki playfully.

"i still do." uncle ozaki smiles at her. both of them giggle, sharing some sort of joke. they don't stay around for long, deciding to leave the young couple alone.

"ahem!" takeuchi rie clears her throat when she sees kiyohira staring at her. "you don't want to take a bath?"

"ah...yes." he stands up fast and runs to take a bath. after ten minutes, he comes out wearing a yukata. he looks for her in the guest room, but she is not there. worried, he comes out of the ozaki house and finds her standing in the middle of the field. the plants are reaching up to her waist. she is completely surrounded by the fireflies. under the bright stars and a crescent moon, the fireflies are moving around her like she is their sun. she tries to touch a few of them, but they shy away from her. she laughs alone, looking happy for the first time. he walks to her without making a sound, but the fireflies run away when they see the intruder.

"you scared them away." she complains to him, watching the fireflies fly away from them.

"i was afraid that they would steal you away to the night." kiyohira voices out his thought. then, he regrets when she turns around and looks at him strangely.

"you might get into trouble if you run after them into the forest." he tries his best to rectify the situation.

"i won't go away before your problem is resolved." she makes a face. "you are too afraid. i am not the type to let a kid suffer because of me. whether i like it or not, takeshi is my half brother. i will not leave him in a mess."

takeshi is more important. kiyohira feels a pang of jealousy to his own little brother. but, that reason is good enough. people like her don't have anything to lose. they can disappear easily. they can reappear easily. they can begin a new life at a new place easily. now, he knows that she has the power and means to disappear from their lives.

it is sad. it has only been days since he knows her. he didn't think that it would happen to him this fast. he didn't think that she would become that person. kiyohira can't deny anymore.

he likes this woman.

he wants this woman.

he can't breathe without this woman.

____________________________________

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