“ You look really pretty tonight.” Goro praises Mi with an appreciative smile.
“ Thank you!” She smiles back and lowers her head shyly. Glancing at the bouquet of flowers in her arm, she raises her head again to look at him. “ Thank you for the flowers. They are really pretty.”
Goro smiles without replying. She mustn’t know how he had saved up every dime to buy her that bouquet.
“ Happy Birthday.” He whispers again instead.
Holding her hand snugly in his, they amble along the shore littered with large groups of people. Everyone is there to see the summer fireworks of the year. Low laughter and a light chatter of conversation filled the otherwise humid summer air.
“ Are your brothers coming tonight?” Mi asks as they continue their stroll.
“ Nakai and Takuya will try to rush over after work. Tsuyoshi and Shingo are coming with their classmates. We may meet them here if we are in luck!” Goro beams. Mi smiles back.
“ There’s some summer snacks on sale over there! Let’s get some!” Mi suggests excitedly. As soon as he nods, she moves quickly in that direction, pulling him along.
Everyone in the queue is jostling around playfully. It is turning into a sweaty event but no one seems to mind. The air becomes thinner as time goes by, and Goro begins to feel faint. Mi is peering over the shoulders of the person standing in front of her and as she turns back, she utters a strangled cry.
“ Are you feeling ok?” She asks anxiously, putting her arms around him. “ Can you walk? Let’s find a seat to rest.”
Goro could not answer her despite his wish to. His vision is swimming and his knees are weak. Sudden fear seizes him as he feels himself lose control of his senses. Mi half drags half pushes him as she pulls him away from the crowd towards an empty bench and sits him down.
“ How are you feeling?” She mutters to keep herself calm. When his body starts to waver again, she pulls him into her arms and holds him tight. Instinctively, she squeezes her eyes tightly shut and buries her face into the crook of his neck as they sit huddled together like statues.
After a long while, she suddenly feels that his body is pushing lightly away from hers. She opens her eyes slowly and look up. Almost miraculously, he is looking at her with a pallid smile on his drawn face. His hand rises to stroke her hair gently as if to calm her anxious mind.
“ Are you feeling better?” She asks in a harsh whisper.
He nods lightly. “ I felt giddy for a moment. Sorry I scared you.”
“ What happened?”
“ Probably hungry.” He lies smoothly and grins mischievously.
“ I’ll go get you some food!” She suggests instantly. Before he can protest, she is already on her feet hurrying away.
While she’s gone, he reflects on his earlier experience. For the first time in his life he lost control of his balance and that is really frightening! He knows he wasn’t hungry and that is what’s really worrying him.
After she returns, he eats under her watchful eyes. Slowly, color returns to his cheeks and she observes with satisfaction that he seems to have regained his strength.
Nakai runs all the way from the bus stop towards the meeting place. He wants to be in time to view their first fireworks with Masako whom he knows would be waiting for him where he had told her to, although he isn’t too confident that he will be able to meet up with his brothers in this crowd.
“ Nakai kun!” Masako coos sweetly and waves fanatically when she catches sight of him just as he sees her too. He waves back with a smile as he continues to thread through the crowd towards her.
“ She looks kind of cute standing there.” He thinks happily to himself.
Takuya walks towards his destination with hurried footsteps. He had promised to meet his brothers there and he doesn’t want to miss the fireworks too. He pushes his way through the crowd till he is almost near the front of the line of people heading in the same direction. Suddenly he catches sight of something that slows his brisk walk down.
He suddenly feels threatened by the familiar back view walking just a few steps ahead of him. The longing to call out to her and the fear of what that may lead to hits him simultaneously. The impact affects him so much so that he stands stock still in the middle of the footpath. Many people grumble, as they have to walk around him. Eventually when he returns to his senses, she had disappeared and he is left behind in the crowd. With a sad sigh for himself, he continues towards his destination, but without the excitement he had felt earlier.
Tsuyoshi and Shingo have also arrived with a group of classmates but then everyone splits up to do or see what they want. Tsuyoshi wanders off to watch a group of children fish for goldfishes while Shingo makes a beeline for the snack stalls.
Chapter 94
The big group of people waiting in the line to fish the goldfishes blocks him completely from view. He stretches his neck and toes to see over their shoulders till eventually he peers successfully through the human barrier.
“ I want that one!” A childish voice catches his attention.
“ That one?” A mature female voice replies.
“ Ah! Be careful! Be careful!” The childish voice shrieks rather alarmingly.
“ Yes, I will, I will.” The amused female voice replies.
Ryo! That is the first name that comes to Tsuyoshi’s mind as he listens on the conversation. His stomach starts to cramp and his heart misses a beat. He starts to peer fanatically; he needs to know if it is indeed she. Then, a man standing before him moves away and she comes into his sight. Sitting on her heels by the small tank of water, with a little girl of 4, she is frowning with intense concentration as she tries to scoop up the fishes with the paper net provided.
The sight of her freezes him even though his heart is beating erratically. When the net breaks, she starts to laugh with embarrassment and the little girl joins her. She looks up; he is unable to hide himself in time. He stands frozen solid in full view before her. She stops laughing and instead, continues to stare at him as she rises to her feet.
Her facial expression calls out to him to respond but he keeps still, with the blank expression on his face. Gradually, disappointment replaces anticipation. She walks up to him and looks into his eyes.
“ Tell me you want me to leave you alone.” She pleads.
His expression is still blank as he stares into her eyes, into her soul. He sees the first trace of tears in her eyes and he starts to waver.
“ Tell me you want me to go.” She insists.
“ Chiaki!” A middle-aged man calls out from the crowd, waving at Ryo’s 4-year-old companion.
“ Papa!” The little girl cries happily and runs towards her father.
The first subtle sign of relenting in Tsuyoshi starts to show as he draws his lips between his teeth and bites down on them.
“ Tell me!” She repeats herself determinedly.
Suddenly, there is a loud bang and the dark sky explodes into a wide array of colors. Tsuyoshi and Ryo raise their heads in sync to look at the firework display. The playful assortments of colors gladden their hearts and for a moment, they allow a smile to escape from within.
When the sky darkens for a moment, Ryo lowers her head and catches sight of Tsuyoshi staring intently at her. She cannot understand the look in his eyes and is about to question him again, just as the next group of fireworks once again lights up the sky and drowns her out.
Chapter 95
Shingo jostles through the crowd with his arms piled with food. All his classmates had wandered away from him as he searches high and low for them. With his head high above the crowd, it isn’t long before he bumps really hard into someone.
“ Ouch!”
“ Ah! Sorry! Sorry! Did I hurt you?”
“ That hurts!”
Shingo’s eyes snap open immediately upon recognizing that familiar girlish whine. He lowers his head just as she raises her head and they stare at each other in shock.
“ You!” Momoko cries out angrily. Shingo couldn’t articulate as she continues glaring at him angrily. “ You hurt me!”
Hearing her words, he immediately jumps into the wrong conclusions. Raising his arms quickly to deny, he ignores the food packages dropping onto the ground. “ No! I never meant to hurt you!
“ I had my reasons for not talking to you! I really do! You have to believe me!” Shingo defends earnestly. When he sees no response from her, he starts to panic further. “ You have to believe me! Please believe me!” He begs.
It took her a while to realize what he is trying to convey and when she does, she manages to keep her expression neutral.
“ If you don’t want me to blame you any longer then tell me the reason.” She bargains.
“ I ~ I can’t!”
“ Then don’t expect me to believe you any longer.”
“ No! Please don’t!”
“ Tell me!”
In the end Shingo gives in and tells her everything that had happened after she left that day. She is stunned to learn that their playfulness had caused so much trouble.
“ I really didn’t know! I swear!” She cries guiltily. “ Has Goro kun recovered?”
“ He’s okay now.”
The anxious expression on her face disappears as she thinks of something else. “ So you are saying that if none of those things happened, we could still be friends?”
“ We are friends ~” Shingo exclaims with mock shock. Suddenly, there is a loud bang and the dark sky explodes into a wide array of colors, drowning out the remaining of his words. Distracted, they raise their heads to the sky above and stare in wonder. When the sky darkens for a moment, Momoko lowers her head and stares indulgingly at Shingo’s profile. Then she stands on her tiptoes and whispers in his ear.
“ I was talking about you hurting me when you bumped into me just now.”
Shingo turns his head so fast it might have snapped off. He frowns as she laughs with satisfaction. Slowly he begins to blush as he realizes that he had given himself away.
“ Did the kiss we had mean anything to you?” She asks again, confident that he will tell her the truth this time.
The sky lights up again while he hesitates. Once again she turns away from him to look up at the stunning visual display above her while he is still struggling with his answer. The moment the commotion stops, Momoko turns to him again for the answer. Shingo hems and haws awkwardly when cries containing his brother’s name floated into his ears. Without hesitation, he starts running towards the source of the sound with Momoko following behind him.
Chapter 96
“ Have you told your brothers about us?” Masako asks casually while they sit down by the beach eating grilled corn.
“ Should I?” Nakai asks absentmindedly, as he gnaws at the corncob in his hand.
“ Well ~” She is at a lost for words.
“ I’ll announce it when the time comes.”
“ When the time comes?”
“ Yes. When the time comes for them to know.” Nakai replies simply.
Masako becomes thoughtful but she knows he will not explain to her what he really means. Suddenly there is a loud bang and the dark sky explodes into a wide array of colors. “ Fireworks!” He cries happily but she is too preoccupied with her own thoughts.
“ When is the best time to tell them?” She asks immediately when the sky quiets down.
“ When it’s time.” Nakai replies with an amused grin just as the fireworks light up the sky again.
Takuya wanders aimlessly through the crowds of happy people. His face is a classic expression of total boredom but his mind is hard at work trying to win an argument with his heart. As the level of joy rises in the air, he finds it harder and harder to prevent himself from leaving.
“I need to find my brothers,” he thinks desperately to himself as he starts craning his neck and searching for them. “I must find them quickly.”
Gradually he begins to feel dizzy from craning his head in all directions. Just as he is about to give up, he vaguely spots Tsuyoshi! Happily he threads his way through the thick crowd. Suddenly, someone wanders in front of him and obstructs his path.
“ Oops! Sorry!” Takuya cries out even before he actually sees the face of the person.
“ Are you, really?”
Takuya freezes. He recognizes the face, the voice, and the stance.
“ I saw you outside the gates earlier on and I followed you around.” Rei informs calmly. “ You look so unhappy. Why?”
Takuya’s mind starts to feel numbed. He doesn’t know it but blood has rushed off his face. He couldn’t help but observes the slight tilt of her chin as she looks at him challengingly.
“ I want to tell you how sorry I am.” He finally manages to find his voice and croaks.
“ I did not ask my brothers to lie to you the other day. I did not know about their plans.” He continues as he regains more of his composure. He can see that she is processing the information seriously.
“ You made it hard for me to believe you.”
Takuya’s heart sinks at her remark. He lowers his head consciously then suddenly he raises it again and she can see strong determination flashing vividly in his large eyes. Before she can work out the reason behind the sudden change that had overcame him, he takes one big step forward, closing the distance between them. His arms shoot out and wrap themselves around her. Giving her no chance to react, he brings his face to hers and presses his lips firmly on hers.
Suddenly there is a loud bang and the dark sky explodes into a wide array of colors. Beautiful flowers of light bursts open in the background as Takuya holds his lips firmly on hers. A part of him is extremely alert, watchful of any kind of reactions from her and to his joy; her legs are giving way ever so slightly. He holds her up as the fireworks continue in the sky and undoubtedly in both of their minds.
When the sky darkens for a minute, he breaks the kiss and pulls her abruptly into his arms. He can feel some of the sharpness leave her as her body readily conforms to the natural curves of his lean body just as the sky lighted up again.
Chapter 97
Goro and Mi find a spot by the beach to sit down and wait for the fireworks. Although his face is in the shadows, she senses the feeling of discomfort he must be undergoing. But he chooses to act nonchalant.
“ It’s our first summer together.” She said to him.
“ Yes.” He smiles. “ We had been through spring and summer!”
“ Goro kun, please promise me that we will have many summers together.” She hints keeping the anxiety away from her voice successfully.
“ Of course.” Goro smiles comfortably at her, squeezing her hand gently. “ We’ll not only have summers together. We’ll have springs, and autumns, and winters too!”
She had to smile at his reassurance. She chooses to forget what is worrying her simply because she believes in him. Suddenly there is a loud bang and the dark sky explodes into a wide array of colors. Both of them raise their heads in unity to look in wonder. Goro stands up and pulls her to her feet.
“ It’s so beautiful!” She whispers softly in awe as she rests her head on his shoulder in a moment of indulgence.
“ Yes, it is.” Goro replies absentmindedly as his mouth remains apart in awe.
As the sky darkens, they lower their heads and stare softly into each other’s eyes. With an unspoken understanding between them, they inch forward slowly till their noses gradually touched. He nudges her nose with his as they rub noses playfully. Just as the sky burst into brightness again, their lips finally meet as they lose themselves in their first kiss.
Mi ’s eyes snap open as she feels his lips slipping abruptly away from hers. Looking down, she discovers to her horror that he is slumping onto the ground. The lifeless body slips from her arms and hits the ground with a soft thud.
“ Goro kun! Goro kun!” Mi cries as the first signs of tears appear in her eyes. Falling to her knees, she grabs hold of his upper arms and shakes them real hard. “ Please wake up!”
Just then the fireworks end and everyone lowers their heads. It is only then they realize the couple on the ground.
“ I heard someone cried ‘Goro’!” Nakai says the moment he hears that familiar word. Grabbing Masako ’s hand, he starts to push his way through the crowd.
Takuya’s ears pick up his brother’s name too. Without a word, he turns and runs with Rei threading through the crowd behind him.
All four of them reach the scene at once. Seeing each other and the girls by their side give them a shock. But what affects them most is to see their brother lying unconscious on the ground and Mi sobbing helplessly by his side.
Takuya is the first to react. He falls to his knees too and grabs hold of Goro, pulling him up into a sitting position.
“ Goro! Goro! Wake up!” He commands in a shaky voice. Instead, Goro’s head just sags into the crook of his arm.
“ We must get him to a hospital!” Nakai decides instantly as he wills himself not to lose his head.
Shingo bends forward and scoops his surprisingly lightweight brother into his arms. Easily he stands up again and starts running. Masako lends a hand to Mi as she helps her up and half carries her along running after the rest heading towards the exit. The crowd of curious onlookers part as the group hurried away.
Ryo is about to follow when she catches sight of Momoko standing alone shivering. “ Are you coming?” She asks kindly.
To her astonishment, Momoko opens her mouth and tears starts to stream down her cheeks in unstoppable torrents. She shakes her head vigorously and even shrinks away when Ryo reaches out to hold her hand. Ryo, seeing that the others are too far to for them to catch up by now, decides to stay behind with Momoko.
“ Come on, let’s go somewhere to rest for a while.” She urges the tearful girl gently and takes her hand firmly to lead her away from the crowd.
Chapter 98
The doctor did not bear any good news when he left the treatment room to face the frantic family members. He shook his head solemnly.
“ He needs an operation immediately.”
“ Operation? Will he be fine?” Nakai asks anxiously.
“ Chances are 50-50.”
“ You can’t be serious!” Takuya protests. “ He’s my brother! We cannot lose him!”
“ The blood clot is sitting on his sensory nerves. The chances of injuring the nerves are quite high.”
“ What will happen if the nerves are injured?” Nakai’s voice starts to shake.
“ He will remain in a coma for life.”
Everybody’s heart skipped a beat. Mi ’s legs give way and she would have fallen to the ground if Masako and Rei were not holding her up. More tears start to roll down her tear-stricken cheeks. The doctor starts to walk away, sensing that he has finished his speech.
Tsuyoshi had fallen against the wall earlier for support. He has also lowered his eyes to nurse his own grief, in silence. When he senses movement beside him, he raises his head to look, in time to see Shingo inch away.
“ Where are you going?” He questions harshly.
“ I am afraid!” Shingo cries.
Tsuyoshi can see that his sibling is really frightened, but of what? Shingo’s eyes are wide and diluted, and the tears that had fallen earlier have left two dried streaks on his cheeks.
“ Goro will be fine!” Tsuyoshi assures him.
“ He won’t be! He will die! And it’s my fault! My entire fault! Takuya is going to kill me!” Shingo utters hysterically.
Everyone present turns towards him upon hearing the commotion he is creating. That’s when he sees the murderous glint in Takuya’s eyes. Without a word, he turns and runs.
“ Shingo!” Tsuyoshi cries.
“ Shingo! Come back here!” Nakai shouts.
But Shingo just continues running. Takuya did not even bother to stop his youngest sibling. He knows he would not be able to control himself.
“ I want to see Goro kun.” Mi mutters weakly in a faint murmur.
“ Tsuyoshi.” Nakai motions for his brother to accompany the three ladies to Goro’s ward.
“ We have to talk.” He commands Takuya.
Finally alone, Nakai studies the angry expression on his face. Takuya’s mouth is taut and he is grinding his teeth. Nakai can recognize the measure of anger in him right now.
“ Goro needs us right now. This is not the time to blame anyone.” Nakai tries to sound diplomatic. He takes in a deep breath when Takuya turns sharply and flashes him a piercing stare.
“ We must stay united and support Goro.” Nakai emphasizes undauntedly. “ This is a very serious test on our family. We mustn’t lose sight of our priorities.”
“ Our priorities?” Takuya mumbles absentmindedly.
“ Yes.” Nakai replies more calmly, now that he realizes that Takuya is no longer angry enough to lose his head.
“ Our priority now is to help Goro regain his health so he can come back to us.”
“ It’s all my fault.” Takuya mutters. Nakai can see that Takuya is starting to self-blame as well.
“ I said this is not the time to blame anybody. That includes yourself!” Nakai stresses painstakingly.
Takuya lapses into silence and Nakai follows. Both brothers sit feeling totally dejected and helpless against fate.
“ Remember the day we learnt that dad and mom had left us?” Takuya asks.
“ Yes.”
“ I vowed never to let Goro get hurt again.”
Nakai swallows deeply. He watches calmly as his brother loses control.
“ What’s done cannot be undone, now what we must do is to ensure that Goro recovers fully. We mustn’t lose him.” Nakai persists strongly.
“ You believe that Goro will recover?” Takuya asks jadedly, a lack of his usual haughtiness and confidence.
“ Isn’t that what you want for him?” Nakai asks.
“ If I can, I would rather I am the one lying there now.” Takuya replies with absolute conviction.
“ Yes, but don’t you want to see Goro recover fully again?” Nakai presses on, unwilling to give up.
Takuya’s fire is stoked and he flashes his dense brother an impatient look. “ More than anything in the world!” He snaps.
“ Then what is stopping you from believing?” Nakai challenges. Silence once again settles upon them as Takuya sorts out his thoughts. And when he does, he fixes his stare on his emotionally strong brother and gives him a wide smile.
“ Goro is going to be ok!” He declares positively for the first time this evening.
“ Let’s go see him.” Nakai replies with a confident smile as they get up from their seats and head for the wards.
Chapter 99
“ Feeling better?” Ryo asks when Momoko finally stops weeping. But she receives no reply.
“ Don’t be so frightened. Goro kun will be fine.”
“ It’s my fault that he fainted.”
“ Why do you say that? You weren’t near him at all just now.” Ryo asks curiously.
Momoko proceeds to tell Ryo her side of the story, injecting the process with loud sobs. “ That’s why Shingo kun chose to keep away from me since! He felt responsible for hurting Goro kun too!”
Ryo remains silent. A piece of the mysterious puzzle finally falls into place. Is that why Tsuyoshi made a clumsy attempt to keep away from her too?
Seeing that she is not answering, Momoko panics. “ I really did not mean to cause anyone any pain! You have to believe me!” She pleads.
Ryo snaps back into reality quickly to comfort Momoko who has broken into tears again. “ Do you want to do something for Goro kun?”
“ What can I do for Goro kun? There’s nothing I can do for him!” Momoko wails.
“ You can pray for his fast recovery. Pray for his health.” Ryo urges reassuringly.
“ Where? Where do I go?” Momoko finally stops crying. Her eyes grow wider with curiosity and relief.
“ There’s a famous temple in Asakusa. I heard all wishes would be answered.” Ryo comforts.
“ Really? If I go now, my prayers will be answered? Goro kun will recover?” Momoko ‘s eyes sparkle with joy. Ryo nods in silence.
“ Then I’ll go now. I’ll go immediately.”
“ We’ll go together tomorrow.” Ryo coaxes.
“ No! I must go today! I must!” Momoko insists tearfully.
“ Ok, we’ll go now.” Ryo relents. “ We’ll take the train.”
Chapter 100
When Ryo enters, she surveys the surroundings briefly. A group of people is standing around one of the four beds in the room. The other beds are empty.
Her entrance creates a slight disturbance and everyone raises his or her heads to glance at her. She approaches Tsuyoshi and tugs at his sleeve, motioning for him to leave the room with her. He doe so, meekly, and as Ryo turns to follow, she catches sight of the young man standing by the window glaring at her with his large eyes. The look in those eyes sends shivers down her spine.
Tsuyoshi flops down onto one of the plastic seats lining the corridor as Ryo joins him. “ How is your brother?”
“ He needs an operation.” Tsuyoshi replies dully.
“ Will he be ok?”
Tsuyoshi shakes his head sadly just as Masako walks out of the room to join them.
“ Is my sister with you?” She asks worriedly.
“ She was.” Ryo admits ruefully. “ We were going to take the train to a temple but I lost her at the train station.”
“ Oh no!” Masako moans. “ What am I going to do?”
“ What’s wrong?” Nakai’s demanding voice precedes him as he walks out of the room. Masako turns around upon hearing his voice and she notices how wan he has become in a matter of hours.
“ Nothing. Nothing is wrong.” She mutters.
“ Who are you?” Nakai asks Ryo, not too politely.
Tsuyoshi’s body stiffens with fear. Ryo is unable to find her voice. She shrinks away from Nakai’s scrutiny.
“ Tsuyoshi?” Nakai asks again in a more severe tone.
“ She’s ~ she’s Momoko’s friend.” Masako replies hurriedly.
“ Do you know her?” Nakai questions Tsuyoshi.
“ Of course! They are classmates.” Masako fights to reply again.
Nakai looks from Tsuyoshi to Ryo to Masako thoughtfully. Tsuyoshi knows that his brother is trying to make up his mind whether or not to accept the story at face value. Finally he turns and walks back into the room, much to their relief.
“ Ryo, can you please find Momoko for me? I am very worried about her wandering around in the dark but I feel I should stay here too.”
“ Of course. I will.” Ryo promises.
Chapter 101
Shingo wanders aimlessly on the streets after he runs out of the hospital. Fear has taken over him and now, everywhere he turns, he cannot decide where to go to hide from what is attacking him now.
Fear and worry besiege him till tears start to well up again and he wipes them dry with his shirt sleeves, ignoring the curious stares of the passer-bys brushing past him. But the more he tries to wipe them dry, the more they come pouring down his cheeks till eventually he is weeping openly.
Like a prayer answered, a temple looms ahead in sight before him. His legs carry him towards it as if by remote till at last he finds himself standing in the inner courtyard before the main praying hall. His heart begins to calm down and that’s when he sees a figure kneeling all hunched up in the dark.
As he looks, the figure gradually gets up onto its feet and even starts walking towards where he is standing. “ He or she must have worries as bad as mine.” He thinks.
The figure continues towards him till the distance is close enough for him to see the face. “Momoko!”
The figure raises her head upon hearing her name. “ Shingo kun?”
Shingo is stunned to see her turn and run away from him. “ Momoko! Wait! Stop running!”
But it seems that the more he calls out to him, the faster she runs away from him. Soon they are outside the temple grounds and near the river that runs by it. The whole place is shrouded by darkness due to lack of street lamps.
“ Momoko! Stop! Stop! Danger!” Shingo yells at the top of his lungs, too worried to move his eyes away from her.
“ Aaaaaah~” He hears her scream at the same time that he sees her fall into river. When he arrives at the shore of the river, he cannot see anything in the dark although he can hear her spluttering.
“ Momoko!” Shingo shouts as he plunges into the dark waters too after her.
Chapter 102
Masako ’s mobile phone rings, just as she is about to leave the room to get everyone a drink. What the caller said drains her face completely.
“ Momoko fell into the river!” She cries out to no one in particular but everyone in the room except for Mi looked up at her. Nakai frowns in silence.
“ Shingo is there too! I must go to her!” She adds, just before running out of the room.
“ Wait! Tsuyoshi and I will go with you.” Nakai decides unexpectedly.
“ Let me go with you.” Takuya beseeches quietly.
“ No, stay here with Goro.” Nakai refuses immediately. “ Tsuyoshi!”
Before Takuya can argue, they are already on their way out of the door. It’s not easy for Takuya to accept having his will forced onto him but this time he chooses to listen to Nakai and stays behind.
When the whole entourage arrives, they start searching frantically along the dark riverbank till they catch sight of Ryo waving fanatically at them from a distance. Masako races forward when she sees two dark shapes huddling by Ryo’s feet.
“ Momoko! Momoko!” Masako cries anxiously when she nears. Nakai and Tsuyoshi catch up with her almost immediately and the scene before them renders them totally speechless.
Shingo is sitting cross-legged holding an unconscious Momoko in his arms, silently rocking her wet body as if trying to rock her to sleep.
“ I tried to get him to let her go but he wouldn’t.” Ryo explains regretfully. “ That’s why I had to call you.”
Nakai took a minute to assess the situation before squatting down next to Shingo. “ Shingo, what’s wrong?” He asks gently.
As if by magic, Shingo looks up in response. In the weak light they see clearly that his eyes are all wet and puffy, double eyebags have formed under his eyes.
“ Shingo?” Nakai plods gently.
“ Nakai?” Shingo utters forlornly. His glazed over eyes search hysterically if he could hear his brother but cannot see him.
“ Shingo, I am here.” Nakai replies in a soothing tone as he lays his hand gently on Shingo’s arm. Suddenly Shingo’s eyes manage to fix themselves on Nakai’s face.
“ Nakai? Nakai!” Shingo burst into tears again when he sees Nakai by his side.
“ What’s wrong, Shingo?”
“ Goro, Goro is dead ~ I killed him ~” Shingo cries hysterically.
“ No, Shingo! He’s not dead! Goro is not dead!” Nakai insists painstakingly as he struggles to calm Shingo down. With a loud wail, Shingo falls into Nakai’s arms weeping loudly, Momoko still tightly clutched in his own arms.
Masako and Ryo stand aside, wiping their eyes quietly with their heads lowered.
Shingo starts to shudder from excessive weeping so Nakai has to hold him tight. He only let go when Shingo starts to calm down.
“ Shingo, let’s go and see Goro.” Nakai coaxes. All the while, he is prying loose Shingo’s arms to release Momoko .
Masako rushed forward to catch hold of her sister’s limp body as it slips from Shingo’s arms. “Momoko! Momoko!”
“ She probably fainted from the cold and shock.” Ryo suggests helpfully just as Momoko starts to revive.
“ Momoko?” Masako shakes her sister anxiously.
Momoko coughs lightly and opens her eyes slowly. When she realizes that the people she wanted to escape from are surrounding her, she starts crying too.
“ What’s wrong, you silly girl?” Masako asks, crying too, with relief.
“ Goro kun ~ Goro kun ~” She manages to utter between sobs.
“ Goro kun is fine.” Masako lies smoothly. “ If you don’t believe me, we’ll go see him now.”
“ Really?” Momoko asks tearfully.
Nakai gets up and walks to where Tsuyoshi is standing quietly. He whispers rapidly into his ear and Tsuyoshi quickly walks away to do what he had been instructed to do.
“ Let’s go.” Nakai says gently as he grabs hold of Shingo’s arm and pulls him onto his feet with Masako doing likewise to Momoko.
Chapter 103
Takuya’s face darkens for a minute as he presses the “OFF” key on his mobile phone. Shifting a sidelong glance towards the figure lying on the hospital bed, he sighs inwardly. Then he moves towards it in reluctant steps.
“ Mi chan,” He calls out unwillingly.
“ Yes, Takuya kun?” She sounds surprisingly calm as she raises her eyes to look at him. Maybe it is guilt, but Takuya deciphers the look in her eyes as anguish.
Taking a deep breath, he tells her what Nakai had requested for them to do. “ For Shingo, I am afraid we have to do it.”
Mi takes a long time to think over the request then slowly she nods her head. Takuya moves closer and together they try to wake Goro up.
“ Goro kun?”
“ Goro?”
Under their continuous probing, Goro’s eyes finally pull apart slightly. Takuya quickly bends over and whispers Nakai’s instructions hastily into Goro’s ear.
When the whole group arrive back at the hospital, Nakai and Masako have to half carry their rebellious siblings into the room.
“ Goro!” Shingo cries out happily as he races to the bedside. “ You are ok!”
“ Of course I am, don’t be silly.” Goro gasps with a forced smile.
Takuya and Mi stand by the window with their heads lowered. Nakai glances briefly at them and he knows the trauma they must have been through to carry out his instructions.
Momoko rushes forward too and places her hands on the bed. “ Goro kun, I am so sorry for causing you so much trouble!”
“ Apology accepted!” Goro replies jokingly and immediately an appreciative smile appear on her face while Tsuyoshi and Masako look on worriedly at Goro in silence.
“ I was so worried!” Shingo says with a slight pout as he steals fugitive glances at Takuya.
“ Don’t worry. Takuya promised me he would not beat you up again.” Goro guarantees. Shingo’s face lights up immediately and he even attempts to grin at the grim-faced Takuya. But when Takuya does not respond, Shingo’s face falls.
“ Takuya, please. You promised me.” Goro pleads weakly. Mi rushes forward as he gets weaker from the exertion. Takuya bites on his lower lip unhappily while everyone looks at him in anticipation. When he sees Goro sagging further into the pillows propping him up from behind, he realizes that he is torturing his brother. He nods begrudgingly.
“ Ok, ok, let’s go now. Goro needs to rest.” Nakai says cheerfully as he ushers Shingo and Momoko out of the room. Tsuyoshi, Masako and Rei follow dumbly behind.
Goro’s body goes limp again and Takuya catches him in time. With Mi’s help, he lowers Goro onto the bed. Mi begins to tear again and she turns away quickly to wipe her tears. That’s when she feels someone grasping her hand gently. When she turns, she realizes that Goro is holding onto her hand.
“ Goro kun, you are very brave today.” She whispers with tears still streaming down her face.
“ I promise you, that we will have many springs, summers, autumns and winters together.”
“ Yes.”
“ Promise me you will be strong and wait for me.”
“ I will.” Mi burst into fresh tears.
“ Goro, don’t be so negative! You will be fine!” Takuya can’t help interrupting. He is trying to be rational but how can he be when he is about to lose someone so precious to him?
“ I’ll survive. Don’t worry about that!”
