Excerpt

Understanding that Naoko was showing sympathy, Tadashi gave her a grateful smile.

He then fiddled with her fingers while resumed his updates. "On our side... We found the legendary red gemstone. No, it's more like we were presented to it. While they were explaining their way of life to us, they brought us to a memorial hall. It was filled with those deep dark red gemstones. They're gathered in that hall as a form of remembrance of those who lost their lives to the creatures. None of us has tried testing its powers but I doubt that it's going to be like the legend says."

Tadashi's smile turned sad. 

"We should have suspected it from the moment we realised what the gemstones were made of..." He said with a sigh.

His forlorn gaze was on their joined hands but there was faraway look in his eyes. 

"This whole trip proved to be really pointless... It's like I'm making one mistake after another. There were so many things I could have done differently. We could have explored so much more. We wouldn't be stuck here without a way to go back. I could have introduced you to my parents... Date you, marry you, then start a family with you... We could have so much fun together. Now, we're stuck in this mess."

His voice trailed off sadly and silence filled the room.

Tadashi took a while he became aware of how he just made his innermost thoughts known to Naoko. Shit.

His eyes became as wide as saucers. His neck, face, and ears became so red that it was noticeable even in the dim lighting. Feeling mortified, his head sunk lower between his shoulders like he was trying to hide and he raised his hands to cover his face.

"Please forget what I said... I didn't mean anything. My mouth just started running off by itself. I'm so sorry..."

When the silence continued to drag on, he stole a peek at Naoko's face and saw her still looking as still as ever. Her face was as red as his and her lips were pursed tightly together. He buried his face back into his hands and cried out in a small voice, "How uncool...!" I didn't plan to let her know like this!

Seeing him cringe so badly made Naoko's brain switch back on. Feeling sorry for him, she tried to put him out of his misery. 

"The both of us did whatever we could with whatever we knew at that point of time so don't be too hard on yourself. I'm sorry about being separated from your parents, but it's not the end yet. We can still try. There's still hope. As for all your other plans... Well... They can... Still happen... Right?"

⋇⋆✦⋆⋇　 ⋇⋆✦⋆⋇