"Hey, Ichika!" Yua called out as I hurried into the convenience store.

Rain poured down from the sky out on the streets.

"Hey, Yua!" I called back as I grabbed a can of chips off of the shelf and a chocolate milk.

I strode around to the back corner and grabbed one of the snack cakes that Asahi loved so much. He had been bugging me to get him one. I grabbed a Coke and headed for the counter.

"How's your Mom?" Yua asked as I tossed the stuff onto the countertop.

"Just talked to her last night, she said she's going to end her boss if he drags her into another boring out of town business meeting."

"Hm," Yua said as she bagged my stuff, "that sounds... cheerful. I'm a little worried for her boss, though."

"I wouldn't be," I told her, "a little birdie told me that she's due to replace him at any moment now."

"You have to stop having Kaito eavesdrop while he's working."

"But he does it so well. He's so quiet that no one even sees him coming."

"Like a supervillain," Yua mused.

"Exactly."

"Well, how is your Asahi?"

"Annoying," I answered, taking the bag from her.

"So he's good then?"

"As good as he can be when I'm on the verge of murdering him."

"Oh, come on, Ichika! You wouldn't! You love that boy."

"Did you know that murder is considered a crime of passion?" I called back over my shoulder.

She laughed.

"Hey, one last thing," Yua said as I pushed the door open.

"What?"

"I'm loving your raincoat."

I chuckled and pulled up the hood of my bright red jacket. In the reflection of the door I could see how much of my father's face I had inherited. I waved goodbye to Yua and stepped out into the rain. Laughing, I began the sprint back to my apartment. I could feel Masaaki watching me as I ran, keeping the first and last promise he had ever made to me.

"Don't be afraid of death; be afraid of an unlived life. You don't have to live forever, you just have to live."

― Natalie Babbitt, Tuck Everlasting

The End