_Chapter 58-2~ Moving_

"Man have I missed this city! Ah, it's so nostalgic!" Masumi exclaimed, gawking at everything we passed on our way down the pavement.

Cold air nipped at my cheeks, which wasn't much of a surprise considering the time of year. Dark, grey clouds blanketed the sky, and the only spots of colour sprouted from the expanses of the bare trees and large piles of shrivelled leaves.

"We used to always play in that park didn't we?" Masumi rambled on. I briefly peeked where he was pointing and he only smiled at the sight of the young kids running around and having a blast. "Children never seem to care about how cold it may be or their surroundings; they'd seriously run around all year long regardless of the weather or situation because they're only focused on living their lives to the fullest."

His words only grazed my ears. My head continued to flutter left and right, eyes peeled. I gripped my coat tighter around myself but it wasn't because of the cold. I'd just needed to calm myself down—clear my head. What was being so paranoid going to do for me? They weren't going to pop up randomly like in the movies to get me. Again, at least. I had my brother with me, too. I needed to calm down.

"—eina? Reina!"

                     Jolting, my arms dropped by my sides. I pivoted on my foot to see my brother's face leaned over to see mine, enveloped with concern.

I quickly feigned a smile. "O-oh, sorry, I was zoning out. What were you saying?"

"What do you think comes first, the chicken or the egg?"

My eyelids fluttered rapidly as I stared at my brother in confusion. "H-huh?"

He rolled his eyes, maneuvering to the other side of me so he was standing on the outer part of the road. He flicked me between the brows without warning. I winced, clasping my hands over the spot.

"Ouch! Why did you—"

"Pay attention, kiddo," he cut me off. "When's the last time you'll be able to spend time and go on a stroll with me? I'm leaving again in ten days so you should make the most of the time instead of zoning out."

I sourly looked over at him, knowing there was truth in his words. "Again?" I said anyway. "You never stay more than ten days."

"That's because time doesn't allow me to," my brother responded, shrugging. "I still have to head back and work on some assignments and projects. Vacation in college isn't actually a vacation at all."

"Sounds tough."

Masumi jostled my arm with his elbow. "You'll be going to college next year, won't you? Wow, you've grown so old. I still remember when you were so tiny and you'd whine and cling to my legs all the time."

"Actually, that was you," I deadpanned, recalling those very days. "You didn't want me playing with other boys so you always found a way to keep them away. But since you were so tiny they never took you seriously—"

"I was just a late-bloomer!" Masumi reasoned. "And considering how puberty hit me like a plane I think all those years of ridicule were worth it."

I gave him a look, used to how full of himself he was. "You're not very tall now either."

"Five foot five is tall enough."

"Whatever you say."

Catching that, my brother rolled his eyes. "I see how it is. Tall guys appeal to you, huh?"

"Height has nothing to do with anything," I quickly refuted.

"Mhmm," my brother hummed dubiously. "Then delinquency does?"

I aimed a scowl at him. "Satoru's not a delinquent."

"He has bright orange hair!" my brother reasoned. "Bleached hair spells delinquency all over it."

I frowned, knowing that no matter how I tried to protest it wouldn't reach him. I elbowed him in the side instead. "Masumi-nii, you promised not to make a fuss about this again."

My brother winced, retreating with a sigh. "Fine. No matter how much it bothers me that my precious little sister is totally entranced by a cliched bad boy I'll keep quiet."

"Satoru's not a—" I stopped myself before I could get swallowed into his pace. "Jeez, I swear if you actually talked to him instead of going all batshit on him you would've learnt how kind and sweet he is."

My brother scoffed. "He's just putting up that front."

"He's not!"

"Okay, okay, I believe you," my brother dismissed. Quickly, he went on, "More importantly, your... boy... issue aside, what about friends? Last time I checked you were an antisocial little thing at your school."

It was a sore spot. Excessive dejection slumped my shoulders and a sullen frown captured hold of my lips' position. Before my brother could demand an answer as to why, I quickly forced a smile and twisted his way. "Enough about me, how are things with you?"

Considering how egotistical my brother was, he appeared somewhat overjoyed that the conversation had shifted towards him. A grin flitted onto his face as he placed his fingers under his chin. "I was waiting for you to ask."

My mouth twitched. Of course he was.

"When I first went there I didn't think Sumato would be such an amazing town but it really is," my brother spoke energetically. "And believe me, the summer time is the best time to be there. Mass skateparks, beautiful girls in bikinis, rad house parties... Everyone—and I mean everyone—knows who you are and what you're doing with your life too, which can be both a negative and positive depending on how you look at it."

"Because it's a small town," I concluded.

My brother nodded, his identically curly bangs to mine swishing with the action. "It might feel intimidating when you arrive but I swear those guys accept you whoever or wherever you came from—no matter your situation. It's like you're one big family and there's always good times. Bad times too, since there's no such thing as privacy, but even if you're dumped by a girl you'd wanted to devote the rest of your life to, all the older guys in the city would be sure to come over with bottles of sake and you could drink and sob the night away without any of the girls learning a thing."

As he babbled, I caught the twinkle in his eyes that he always seemed to possess when it came to that town. He'd always said it was a nice town with nice people. And even if there were a little squabble between two people, the town citizens would voluntarily bring them to an understanding again. There was no means of privacy, but everyone had your back. Everyone was someone you could rely on—everyone was your friend. Everyone....

Once again, I was overwhelmed with woe. My legs felt heavy, like I was plodding down the streets. The passing scenery had become a blur to me as well. By the time I'd woken up from my thoughts, Masumi was still beaming as he finished explaining the huge skate competition that had taken place annually during the summer time and his participation with his best friend, Natsuo Kiyohara.

"You should really come visit after high school, Reina. I know you'll love it there," Masumi finished with a grin. He met his gaze, and I forced a smile.

"Y-yeah, definitely one day—"

"Reina... you haven't been getting much sleep have you?"

My heart stopped in my chest when Masumi bent over towards me, inspecting me with narrowed eyes.

"No wonder you're spacing out on me a lot," my brother went on.

"I'm fine," I stated, bringing my fingers to the bottom of my eyelids where multitude of bags existed. My lips pressed together. I should've tried to cover them up. "Just a bunch of late night anime marathons—" I started to lie but Masumi had snagged me by the sleeve, interrupting me.

I lost my footing but my brother was already dragging me in the direction of the crosswalk, looking both ways before pulling to the other side.

"Where are you taking me?" I demanded after awhile, not enjoying being hauled like some kind of rag doll.

"You need to wake yourself up so you can properly listen to me tell you about my life," he murmured, looking distracted as he placed his hand over his forehead and scouring the surrounding city square. Almost like a hawk zeroing in on its pray, Masumi squinted at something in the distance before he brightened considerably. With newfound excitement, he dragged me down the pavement.

"Masumi-nii," I hissed, barely managing to keep up with his fast strides. Passersby startled glances our way succeeded in flustering me also. Disregarding the nostalgic stores I had seen countless times in my life, I tugged at my hand but he didn't liberate me. I frowned. "Hey—"

"This place seems good enough!"

Masumi's proclamation once again caught my focus. When I turned my head up to see what in the world had gotten him so giddy, my heart came to an abrupt halt. The cramped shop had sucked away my breath entirely.

"Sugiyama Coffee Shop?" my brother read the familiar name of the shop but unlike my heavy intakes of air, he easily shrugged it aside. "Whatever coffee will do I guess. Let's go inside and get you a cup so you can wake up."

Masumi nudged me forward but with unknown power I didn't know I had, I stayed firm in place. Baffled, Masumi peered over his shoulder.

"Reina, come on," he said, properly fastening his fingers over my wrist. "You're not scared of a little coffee are you?"

"N-n-not th-this shop," I murmured, my voice shaky. My nerves were high. He could be in there, just waiting for me—

"I can't see any other coffee shop in miles of this place so I'm sorry but you're stuck with it," replied Masumi, yanking on me harder and allowing me to lose my balance.

As soon as I did, my nose hit his back and it made it easier for him to glide open the door to the shop and pull me through the doors. The jangle of bells erupted as soon as the door shut close behind us but I was already trembling.

"M-M-Masumi-nii," I stammered, my voice barely escaping my throat.

"This place is super empty," Masumi whistled. He hadn't heard me. "What are these boxes for? Are they packing up?"

Finally letting go of my hand, Masumi strolled towards the counters. Hit with a wave of panic at being exposed, I pursued him, clasping onto the back of his coat and staying as close as possible.

"Weren't you just insisting I let go of you earlier?" Masumi blinked rapidly as he rotated to see me. My proximity to him didn't allow for that. Quirking a brow, soon a silly smile breached his features. "So in honest truth you did want to hold your big brother's hand? Aww, you're so cute, Reina. Did you miss me that much? People will get the wrong idea about us, you know."

"L-let's leave," I pleaded, ignoring his tease.

"Not without our coffee," Masumi responded, resting his arm onto the weathered wood. "Where are the workers, anyway? The sign on the door said 'open', didn't it?"

"Mommy! I hear voices!" the familiar squeak of voice echoed within the vacant cafe. From the open frame of the door leading to the back room, out poked the head of a little girl in pigtails. Her big brown eyes grew as wide as saucers before she clambered into the back once again. "M-mommy! D-daddy! We have customers!"

In a rather hurried manner, soon emerged a female, her light brown hair tossed into a high bun from behind her red topless hat. Similar—though weary—features of Daichi's face stared back at us as she hastened to the counter.

"I apologize, I didn't hear anyone come in," she spoke, hazel eyes flickering from my brother to a cowering me.

"It's fine, don't worry about it," said Masumi, flashing her a charming smile. His gaze averted downwards.

Tamiko Sugiyama—as displayed on her name tag—automatically looked to see what Masumi was staring at only to find the little girl from earlier hanging at her side. She hissed quickly, "Suzu! I told you not to come out here!"

"But, Mommy," whined Suzu, dressed in a blue kindergarten uniform. "I want to help you!"

"Go help Daddy in the back," her mother responded with a warning look. She froze up, spinning to face us again. "I-I apologize. My son brought her in and left a little while ago. She's—"

"No way!" Suzu cut her off, her exclaim and enlarged eyes aimed in my direction. I stiffened as she gasped, running around the corner and out in the open. "Is that you Big Sis Reina?"

Both Masumi and Daichi's mom simultaneously watched as the little girl ran up and tackled me into a sideways hug. My mouth fell in surprise and she tilted her head upwards, beaming a toothless grin.

"Big Sis Reina, it is you! I can't believe it!"

Though I was momentarily shaken, it didn't take long for recognition to flicker in Daichi's mom's gaze as well. "Reina...? Oh gosh, it's Daichi's friend!"

"Daichi's friend?" Jinro Sugiyama poked his head out from the back, equally startled. Right away, his countenance lit up. "Ah, I remember! You came with Daichi once to bring Suzu in before!"

Before I realized it, the entire Sugiyama family excluding Daichi were all present in the main room, sending me friendly smiles as they did. Masumi's head jerked back and forth, as if trying to make sense of everything, all the while I was left out in the open, speechless.

"Wait, you have connections here, Reina?" Masumi demanded after a pause.

Connections... It was only one measly meeting, that day. Daichi was so antsy to not let his parents see us but they'd caught sight of the two of us anyway and were overjoyed, rambling on about how they hadn't known Daichi had such a lovely friend.

The memory formed a knot in my stomach. I swallowed hard, shuffling my feet. "U-um...."

"She's our son's friend," Jinro proudly admitted, answering Masumi's question for me. The term felt like a knife to the back.

Tamiko shook her head, unaware. "Jeez, Daichi left in such a hurry. He should've stayed a little longer."

"Really? My sister has a friend? That's amazing!" my brother shouted in shock. He faced me, equally ecstatic at the idea. He swivelled back to the couple. "You won't believe it but she's so shy. It's always been tough for her to make friends since she doesn't like getting out of her bubble."

"Our Daichi's always been so rambunctious his entire life but ever since last year we were surprised he settled down a bit, too," his mom happily agreed. "I'm guessing Reina here is the reason why."

"Aww, two outcasts becoming friends, huh?" Masumi drew out with a grin. His joy soon seemed to crack once something finally hit him. His neck craned back so fast you'd think it'd snap. "W-wait... a boy? 'Daichi's' a boy?"

Both parents were frazzled at the odd question.

"Of course he's a boy," Jinro said.

Masumi immediately waved his hands to show that he didn't mean any harm when he said that but still discreetly sent me a disapproving look. Not really feeling the need to protest to a concern to something that obviously wasn't there, I veered my focus to the ground.

"Big Brother Dai is my brother!" Suzu interjected, moving away from me and up to Masumi. "Who are you?"

Masumi craned his neck and smiled fondly at the sight of the little girl. He crouched down. "I'm Reina's older brother, Masumi the Great."

"The Great...?" repeated the little girl with careful blinks. She laughed. "You're a weird person."

Masumi chuckled, reaching out to ruffle her hair. "How about you, munchkin? How old are you?"

"I'm five," she proudly declared. "And I'm not 'munchkin.' I'm Suzu! Suzu means bells!"

"I know. It's such a pretty name," Masumi said with equal enthusiasm. "Can you guess what Masumi means?"

Her eyebrows scrunched up together in confusion as she cocked her head to the side. "Um...."

"It means bells," Masumi told her.

"Really?!" Suzu looked amazed for a moment. Then, her head snapped up properly, her mouth dropping in disbelief. She grabbed his arms. "Hey! Liar! No, it doesn't!"

Masumi erupted into a fit of chuckles, along with her parents watching this all unfold. "I know, I know. I was kidding."

"What does it mean?" Suzu demanded with a pout.

"Do you really want to know?" Masumi drawled.

"Yes!"

"Really? Really, really badly?"

"Yes! I wanna know! Really, really, really badly!" Suzu begged. "Please tell me, mister!"

"Hmm... okay." Grinning, he gestured for her to come closer. Suzu brightened and she carefully did. Shielding his hand with his mouth, Masumi leaned towards her ear, whispering, "It means this..." After whispering it into her ear, he pulled away and tapped his lips with a wink. "Our little secret, okay?"

Suzu only grinned, covering her mouth with her hands. She bobbed her head as muffled giggles passed her lips. "It doesn't suit you."

"Hey, don't say that," Masumi warned despite his smile. "You'll make me cry."

Suzu's shoulders continued to shake, that cute titter of hers resounding around the vacant shop. Both Tamiko and Jinro laughed as well, and at that, even I couldn't stop a similarly warm look from taking over my face. My previous fright slipped entirely from my veins as I watched my brother in awe. He had always been good at dealing with others, even if they were kids. And although it was Daichi's family he was associating himself so nonchalantly with, even if it couldn't be said for the guy himself... they truly were kind people weren't they?

"Masumi, is it?" Tamiko stepped in, catching his focus. "Sorry for keeping you occupied. You and Reina want to order something don't you? What would you like?"

"If we can have a black coffee I'd much appreciate that," Masumi spoke before I could. "Large."

"Straight?" Jinro asked with surprise.

I opened my mouth, "Actually—"

"Yes, straight," Masumi cut me off, returning to his feet. "Or, add a shot of expresso in as well if it's possible."

I sent my brother a look. Biting on my lower lip, I quickly stepped forward. "Can you make that one large coffee and one medium hot chocolate?"

Despite being puzzled by our disagreement, Tamiko and Jinro met each other's gazes with a smile. Masumi reached for his wallet to pull out money, Jinro quickly shook his hands around.

"Oh no, don't worry about it!" he said as Tamiko hurried to prepare the drinks. "Consider it on the house. Any friend of Daichi's is a friend of ours."

Masumi's eyes glistened. "What kind people...!" He swivelled my way, where I withheld a flinch. "Why didn't you want to come in here again?"

As all eyes turned to me I produced a feeble laugh. My gaze fell onto the stacks of cardboard boxes towards the back of the room and the bare tables across the shop. I cast my gaze to the outside window where even majority of the specials posters were peeled off. My brows came together in confusion. Why was the shop so bare looking?

"Me?"

I was woken up from my trance to see Masumi was once again conversing with Suzu.

"I go to kin...kinger... kingergawden," she responded, fumbling for the correct word. Regardless, but played it off with a giggle.

"Kindergarten?" Masumi whistled. "You must be having tons of fun then."

"I do! I made a lot of friends too!" Seeming to come out of nowhere, Suzu frowned. "But... it doesn't matter because we're leaving soon anyway."

"Leaving...?" Masumi slowly repeated, blinking as he rose his gaze towards her parents.

Tamiko forced a tiny smile and laugh with her back facing us. "Oh, um, we're moving out of the city this Saturday. Today is our last business day."

"M-moving out of the city?" I had shouted before anyone else, eyes growing wide. "S-Saturday? That's in less than a week!"

That was why the store was so empty? Daichi... was moving?

"Um, yes," Tamiko awkwardly replied. "It was sort of a last minute decision. Daichi... didn't tell you, did he?"

He hadn't. Then again, why would I expect he would? This entire time he had been an enemy to me. Wasn't this a good thing then?

My mind was a jumble as Jinro bid us farewell saying he still had to organize things in the back room while Tamiko remained, finishing up the last of our drinks. She extended them out for us, a weary smile poking up her cheeks.

"Here you are."

"Thank you very much... Tamiko," Masumi drawled, sparing her name tag a smooth glance. He smiled yet again, his hands lingering on hers as he received the coffee. "I hope everything works out for a beauty like you wherever you may go."

Tamiko bashfully peered down at his hands on hers, clearly troubled. "U-um...th-thank you."

"But whenever you decide to come back to the city we should definitely meet up and talk outside of this place—"

I stood to my tippy-toes and punched my brother upside the head. Flirting? With a woman nowhere near his age and married? Masumi Kikuchi for you.

"I apologize for him," I told Tamiko, bowing my head. Grabbing Masumi by the arm, I yanked my brother backwards. "Let's go."

"I was just trying to repay my kindness," defended Masumi as he allowed himself to be pulled away. "Bye, Mrs. Tamiko! Mr. Jinro! See you my lil' bell! Stay healthy, okay?"

"Bye, Big Brother Masumi! Big Sis Reina!" Suzu shouted after us, waving. Tamiko followed in suit with a tiny laugh.

The door to the shop closed behind us and once we were back into the cold, unexpected relief flooded my body. I let go of Masumi's sleeve soon after getting a good distance away from the shop and he frowned at me.

"Why are you in such a rush?" he asked. "We could've stayed a little longer."

"I'd rather not," I told him, flopping down onto the vacant bench beside a riverbank. "They're busy cleaning up, anyway."

Masumi didn't respond, probably hearing the bitterness along with my words. He fell down beside me and extended the coffee for me to take. I rolled my eyes.

"No thank you. That bitter stuff is yours—"

"Wow, see, I couldn't believe my younger sister knew so much about my tastes," drawled Masumi, taking a sip of the hot chocolate. "I happen to love hot chocolate to death."

I grasped for the drink as quick as I could. Despite scorching his tongue a couple times, I couldn't grab the drink from him in time. He chugged it all before looking my way with a wide grin. I scowled at him, appropriately settling down in my seat.

"Here." Masumi slipped the coffee into my hands. "Drink that, wake up and truly smell the December air."

The coffee ended up in my fingers before I was able to stop him. Staring at the cup, my thumb tapped over the sleeve keeping it cool as I turned my head up to watch my surroundings.

A single golden leaf travelled down an invisible spiral of breeze, twirling amidst the air. I looked towards the nearby tree that had shed mostly all its leaves onto the grass and the exterior of the riverbank, leaving it bare.

I wanted to reach down and pick it up, smoothing out any creases that existed but I didn't have the opportunity to stall anymore.

Masumi was already interrogating me again.

"Your boyfriend...."

I rolled my eyes. "Unless you want to apologize, stop bringing him up. We didn't do anything more than kiss."

"Kissing is still unacceptable," Masumi murmured. "Your delicate lips...."

"What's your issue—"

"But if... if he did kiss you to cheer you up or something like that, I might allow that kind of kiss."

My eyelids rose in surprise. I rotated my body towards him and my brother fiddled with the empty drink in his hands.

"You always bring up my womanizer ways," he started again.

"Well, yeah. You were just flirting with a middle-aged woman!"

"That was different," Masumi reasoned. "Anyway, even if I do flirt with girls, hold hands here and there, it's not like I've ever kissed or had...sex with anyone."

I would've refuted that he had the wrong idea again but I was caught by too much astonishment. My jaw fell. "Y-you're kidding, right? But you always—"

"I'm twenty-two," Masumi cut me off. "It's embarrassing to say I haven't yet. People my age are already married, too."

My eyes dropped to my drink. "No way... not even lip to lip contact? With anyone—"

Masumi tinged. "Hey! I just want to save something like that for someone special, okay? That's why I got a little mad. Even if you think you're old enough, you should save it for the one, too."

I gently tapped my fingers against the drink. "Satoru is special."

"Reina," he warned.

"But even then, like I told you, I wasn't nor will do something as extreme as you know what until I'm ready. Or, marriage. But I have no qualms on kissing so don't go freaking out on me on that."

A warm smile slowly spread across my brother's face. "Wow," he drawled.

"What?" I asked.

He shook his head, swivelling his empty cup in a circle. "My little sister has grown so much since I've last seen her."

"I am eighteen."

"Yikes," Masumi jokingly sucked in a breath. "But, it still stands, y'know."

I tilted my head in confusion.

"If he ever does break your heart, just call me over and I'll break him all right?"

"Masumi," I started.

"I know, I shouldn't be saying that," Masumi said. "But you're my precious little sister. Even if something were to happen, I want you to know I'll always be there for you. Through thick and thin, tall and short, wide and skinny...."

My shoulders slumped as I stared at a leaf on the ground. "Mom and Dad told you didn't they?"

"That you've begun ditching school, yeah," Masumi easily replied, proving my thoughts right. "I used to be quite notorious and got in trouble for that but it's never happened with you before and they're worried. Is there a reason why?"

I stayed silent.

"Let me rephrase that," he spoke again. "Is there a reason you want to tell me?"

At the quiet that ensued, he sucked in a breath.

"I'm just... lost," I eventually admitted. "About everything."

"Did you lose your best friend?"

My eyes bulged and I jerked his way in surprise. "How did you...."

"I knew it," Masumi said. "You and that Daichi kid aren't really friends after all. Or at least, not anymore."

His accuracy hit me like a ball to the gut. Had I made it that obvious? And if he could tell did that mean Daichi's parents were able to as well? It was hard to swallow. What a great person I was then.

"You're like an open book," drawled Masumi. "To me, at least. But Reina, even if it feels like the world is over, trust me, things get better."

I chewed the inside of my cheek. "How do you know? It's not so simple like you're thinking."

Masumi didn't respond at first. He then nudged my shoulder with his. "Do you remember when Natsuo left Osaka in the middle of my second year of high school?"

"...Yeah," I slowly replied, wondering what his best friend had to do with anything. "He moved back to Sumato and you were pretty depressed for awhile."

"'Depressed' is a little bit of an exaggeration. Natsuo's grew up with us all our lives," Masumi said. "Anyway, after I graduated high school and I had to head off to college, let me tell you, I had no idea what I wanted to do. Mom told me to become something in the medical field, Dad was saying engineer, but I was lost. I researched day and night, did countless of online tests, but nothing.

"Still, by the time a whole year rolled around, I knew I had to get into college or university. So settling on sciences, I went to Jikukawa College." Masumi faced me and with a laugh, he said, "And guess what? The moment I walked into my first class and the professor opened his mouth, I knew immediately that science was not for me. No blood and needles. No elemental, chemical stuff. No figuring out the basics of circular motion. All of that. But since Mom and Dad wasted a lot of money on me, I decided to simply stick with it. Thought that maybe it'd grow on me."

"Let me guess," I piped in.

"It didn't," we chorused simultaneously.

Masumi cringed, shaking his head at the memory. I snorted.

"I was failing all my classes. Badly," Masumi bluntly continued. "It took no time for Mom and Dad to sit me down and demand for answers as to why. And when I told them I didn't like what I was studying...."

"They were furious," I finished, bobbing my head at the memory.

"Hella," Masumi chuckled. "They told me I was on my own. That it was up to me to raise my own funds and do what I really wanted. But, the thing was— I still didn't know what I wanted to do. I was super lost and unmotivated in life. It was around that time I began fooling around a bit."

I hummed, recalling that period of his life where he'd be out of the house nearly every day, with a seemingly new girl every time. He'd always told me he was up to 'adult' things but I guess those adult things didn't include kissing or sex since he was surprisingly innocent.

"Mom and Dad didn't like that either, if you remember," Masumi went on. "They still don't. But, it was all to channel out my frustrations. I was twenty, single about every other day, ambition-less... I even worked at various gas stations and restaurants for some pocket money. By then, I'd given up and wanted to just travel the world—get away from everything. That's when Natsuo hit me up again.

"It was Natsuo who suggested I go to Sumato's local college; said there were options I'd most likely enjoy. When I first visited during the summer and started staying with him, I didn't exactly think much about school. I didn't want to, anyway. And as I already told you, everyone in that town is extremely close, so at first I was a bit turned-off by it. But I did enjoy myself a lot. And due to the suggestion of one boy that lived there suggesting I should become a teacher since I'm always lecturing others towards a better future. And you know what, after about two long years, I finally found myself a passion. I found myself a direction to head towards—hope."

Feeling Masumi's boring gaze from above me, I remained silent, sitting, waiting. My heart had already grown heavy. Maybe being a teacher was the best occupation for him. My brother always knew the best things to say.

"Even when the world says "give up," hope always whispers, "try one more time,"" Masumi quoted, reaching over and patting the top of my head. "The point of my story is to tell you that some things may seem terrible and agonizing—a loop you feel you won't ever be able to move on from—and you know what, most often times it could be true. But even still, most times if you just wait and keep going—pushing on despite all the darkness ahead—you'll always find sunshine waiting for you at the end."

"Ah. I missed my dose of brotherly wisdom," I sarcastically murmured, eyes glued to the plastic cup that had already cooled down due to the temperature outside.

Masumi chuckled. "Look, I'm not trying to be preachy or anything. I say this all because I know from experience."

"I can see that," I said, raising my head to promptly meet his eyes. "Thank you, Masumi-nii."

He mussed my hair yet again. "You're welcome, my lil' Reina. Cheer up and head back to school soon, all right?"

"All right." As silence lapsed around us, I brought the cup towards my lips and took a sip of the coffee. I gagged as soon as the taste touched my tongue. It was disgusting. Even still, I smiled. "Then maybe afterwards I'll ditch university for two years like you and elope."

Masumi, who had taken the drink from my hands and placed it to his mouth for a swig, choked instantly. He coughed hysterically before staring at me with wide eyes. "D-did you not understand a single thing from our conversation?"

"Hmm, I kinda zoned out after learning that my womanizer of a brother has never gotten kissed or laid before," I drawled with a cheeky grin.

Masumi narrowed his eyes at me, pink dusting his cheeks. "Shush about that! That's not something you should just casually do!"

"Aww, you're so innocent."

"Reina!"

I ended up laughing. It felt like a long time since I'd laughed so hard that it felt foreign to me. Regardless, Masumi ended up joining in and we both were laughing without a care in the world.

"Thanks for coming home, Masumi-nii," I said after calming down, wiping at my eye.

"I'm the one that's thankful. I missed you a lot, lil' sis," Masumi said. He randomly brightened. "But right now, since we're talking about missing, I have to call Amano!"

"Amano?" I asked in confusion.

But he already swiped my phone from my pocket and was dialling a number. As soon as the line went through, Masumi began dramatizing everything to the girl on the other end, and also flirted. I shook my head with a sigh, rolling my eyes at my brother's behaviour and his ways of ruining a perfectly good mood.

Still, there was still a fragment of me that was grateful. Due to his reassurance, and Satoru's since the very beginning, it was as if the scattered and broken pieces existing inside of me were being recollected and woven back together again.

_______________________________

Ahh sibling-hood. Tell me what you think of Masumi's character!

Anyway, a couple more chapters left! Love you all! 💞

-Misty