Morning, Shizuna.
Good morning, Ryuichi-kun.
On the day that Ryuichi promised to go on a trip with Shizuna, hed already arrived at her house at about 9:00 in the morning. He thought she would be waiting for him inside the house, but he was surprised to see her already outside the front door, perhaps out of sheer excitement.
This girls just so excited, you see. Fufu, how nice it is to be young~.
I was really looking forward to it, okay? I couldnt help it.
Shizuna puffed her cheeks out poutily. Seeing this made Ryuichi and Sakie chuckle, which made her even more sulky as she turned her head to the side in displeasure.
When he reached out and patted her head, her expression immediately changed to a smiling one, and she hugged his arm.
Youre an easy one to please, arentcha?
Happy things make me happy. Obviously itd show on my face right away, you know?
True,he nodded in agreement. After saying goodbye to Sakie and telling her that he would take care of Shizuna for the day, the two started walking.
True,
he nodded in agreement. After saying goodbye to Sakie and telling her that he would take care of Shizuna for the day, the two started walking.
?
Ah
On their way, they bumped into Sohei just as he was leaving his house. He was probably going out to meet a friend to hang out with today; when their eyes met, he turned his back to them and ran away, looking uncomfortable.
Lets get going, Ryuichi-kun.
Yeah.
Compared to Akira, who still harbored hostility toward Ryuichi, Soheis behavior was much more manly and resolute. For him, Shizuna was his childhood friend whom he had been in love with for a long time, so it couldnt have been that easy to give up on her.
His back was cloaked with melancholy, but Ryuichi and Shizuna walked in the opposite direction from where he was headed without paying any attention to him.
Sorry, Shizuna. Todays date might not really be, well
No, its okay. Im fine with anything as long as Im with you.
I see. Thanks for understanding.
Yes.
Well, he didnt know if it could be called a date that a girl would enjoy, but it seemed that Shizuna truly only needed to be by his side to be happy. Even as he glanced sideways at her, who was walking with his arm in her embrace, her gaze remained unclouded, bright, and forward-looking.
Im glad to have you by my side, Shizuna.
Yup. Ill always be with you, now and in the future too.
Her reply came without a moments hesitation, and he nodded in response. Now, the reason why hed asked her out this time was certainly to thank her for her usual hospitality and also to take her somewhere.
Shed readily agreed to go out with him not only to enjoy this weekend with him, but also to see where he was planning to go.
All right, looks like the stations the first stop of the day.
First, they had to head for the station and take a 30-minute train ride. It had been a while since Ryuichi had been away from town like this, even if he was only traveling a short distance away.
It feels so exciting to go somewhere new with you, Ryuichi-kun.
Glad to hear that.
While they waited for the train to arrive, they killed some time by buying some snacks at a store.
When the train eventually arrived, even though it was a holiday and was thus not as crowded as on the weekdays, the train was still sufficiently populated to see passengers here and there, albeit sparsely.
With Shizunas hand in Ryuichis, they boarded the train and sat down next to each other in an empty seat.
There were four boys about the same age that they had never seen before sitting in the opposite seats where they sat, and though they had been admiring Shizunas figure, they immediately looked away when they noticed Ryuichi.
Fufu, they look so scared of you even though youre such a kind person.
Aint anything new by now, aint it?
Yup. But it doesnt matter what other people think; as long as I and the other girlsknow how kind you are, thats all that matters.
Oh? Well, should we put that to the test next time?
Sure, Ill show you!
Their plans for the evening were set. And so, time went on as they talked about some rather obscene things for high school students, and soon, they arrived at their destination.
Careful.
Yup.
Even in trivial places, he didnt forget to take her hand.
Fufu.
He wasnt aware of it himself, but she properly took notice of his kindness and smiled.
Ill take care of some things first.
All right.
He then stopped by a flower shop. Although he wasnt very picky with flowers, he picked up a beautiful flower that his intuition told him was good, and headed for the cash register.
Ahwelcome.
How much is it?
It was an astonishing sight to see someone so obviously delinquent-looking like Ryuichi buying flowers. Shizuna was laughing behind his back, her shoulders trembling, and the girl at the register seemed so scared of Ryuichi that she wouldnt even look at him Am I really that scary?
he muttered to himself.
T-Thank you very much for your patronage
He gave up, not wanting to say anything else.
She was really scared of you, huh?
Say, Shizuna. Im not that scary, right?
I dont think youre scary, you know?
Shizunas pure and innocent reply was his only saving grace. They then continued walking, with Shizuna surveying her somewhat new surroundings, though that wasnt the case for Ryuichi.
Ive been here before to shop with my mom, but Ive never walked around the place like this.
Well, its a 30-minute trip away, after all. No reason to come all the way here if you aint got anything to do.
While they were conversing, they made their way to a place a little higher up. It was a place where many graves were lined up, and one of the reasons Ryuichi had bought flowers was to come here.
There they are.
There stood two graves on the ground. The names Shishido Maito and Shishido Azusa were engraved on them, respectively.
You can tell a lot about a married couple when theyre buried separately, huh?
Right.
Normally, if a couple died together, their names would be engraved on one grave and their remains would be placed there. The fact that that wasnt the case here, however, symbolized the distorted relationship between Ryuichis parents.
Well, that old man and that hag did argue a ton over this. Doesnt matter now, though.
With that, he turned his gaze to the two graves once more. He then hugged Shizunas shoulder as she stood next to him and held her close to him as if to show her to the two deceased people.
Yo, its been a while. Not sure how many years its been, but are you doin well? Still having affairs in the afterlife?
Those were not words that one would say in front of a grave, but still, those words leaked out of his mouth. Not long ago, he wouldve never come to visit a grave like this, and he wouldnt have come no matter what anyone said to him. But now that his feelings and his mindset had changed, here he was.
Even now, I still dont know if Im happy or blessed. But Im definitely leading a fulfilling life right now. A life that you two regretted not having.
He uttered those words with confidence. And with that, Shizuna opened her mouth to follow.
Nice to meet you, Ryuichis father and mother. My name is Rindo Shizuna.
And so, this was how Shizuna met Ryuichis parents.
Whats wrong, dear?
Is thatno, it cant be.
A short distance away, an elderly couple was staring at Ryuichi and Shizuna. The look in their eyes was one of bewilderment, but it soon turned to disgust and anger.