Episode One - The Children & The Parent, Both At Once
At present, there was no soul in sight… well, with the exception of two individuals embracing each other in the middle of the street. It was pouring, water droplets that could be mistaken for bullets came down and soaked the two who had almost no distance between each other.
Apart from the sound of rain hitting roof and ground alike, there was sobbing and maybe because of both his emotions and the coldness from the heavy rain, a certain someone’s body shivered intensely.
Holding him in her arms, caressing his black hair, a girl a year older than him shut her violet eyes completely as she let the boy cry in her chest, in a way that let him vent out all of his deepest emotions.
“Why…? Why did things turn out like this…?” The boy sobbed.
“For whom do they think that hard work was for?” He continued… and as if mirroring his emotions, the rain poured harder. And even with no clouds or fog… the night was starless.
“For whom… have I been working so hard… for?”
✦•✦•✦
“Good morning…” Entering the medium-sized room, Ichirou lightly greeted the other two people inside. “Mornin’, you look worse for wear…” Kei Ichinose greeted back with a bitter face once he saw Ichirou’s complexion.
“I couldn’t sleep last night, if anything, I feel like I’m on the verge of falling asleep…” (Ichirou)
“Now that’s no good, we can’t have you fall asleep through your classes, can we now?” Kotone Ichinose, Kei’s older sister and council president, motioned Ichirou to sit down and served him a glass of iced tea. “Sorry… It should be me who serves it.” Ichirou apologized.
“Don’t mind it, taking care of their members is also a duty of a president!” (Kotone)
“You say all that… but isn’t that just your sisterly instinct acting up?” (Kei)
“Did you say anything, Kei?” (Kotone)
“That isn’t it just you sis—” (Kei)
“Did you say anything, Kei?” Noticing the pressure along with her interruption, Kei simply decided to keep quiet and shook his head, “N-nevermind, it’s nothing…” He murmured. Finishing his iced tea, Ichirou looked at the batch of papers at a side of the table and carefully inspected its contents.
“A festival, huh? It’s been a while since the last time I participated in one…” (Ichirou)
“Is that so? You don’t go to the ones that are held during summer?” (Kei)
“Nah, I don’t really feel like going usually. I prefer staying at home reading something or doing whatever can cure my boredom.” (Ichirou)
If his memory serves him right, the last time he went to a festival was during his second year of middle school, with his at-the-time girlfriend. Apart from that, he never really went to one on his own volition. The high density crowds formed during those times of the year never sounded appealing for him, he didn’t even have anyone else he could go to.
“This one’s a school festival… so even if I don’t come, I have to work, huh?” Ichirou said with a bitter expression, expressing his clear objection. “You still have to come, we have to ensure everything goes smoothly.” (Kotone)
“...damn…” (Ichirou)
As the conversation went on, Kei checked his watch, then stood up and cleaned up his own space. “It’s almost time for class, let’s go.” (Kei)
At his cue, Ichirou got up and left together with Kei, bidding farewell to Kotone, who was also getting ready to attend her own classes.
✦•✦•✦
“Thank you very much, I’ll come back at a later date, then.”
“Sure, we’ll be waiting.”
Leaving a general store he frequented, Ichirou headed home after making some slight investigations regarding some materials the council would need in order to prepare for the festival that was approaching.
“That should be enough, I’ll consult with Seichiiro about what we should do next.” (Ichirou)
Before heading home, he stopped by the supermarket and bought some things for his own dinner. At the other end of the hallway he was at, he could see a couple with a little girl. The girl held a box of cookies and had a twinkle of happiness in her eyes, the parents laughed and while the mother took the cookie box from her daughter, the father pulled her into an embrace and lifted her up leaving from the cashier.
Ichirou stood there staring at the fleeting backs of the happy family. It would be a lie to say that he wasn’t at all interested in being that close with his parents, however he has long given up. He was already seventeen, even if he could wish for it, there was no way he could experience that.
Not again, at least.
✦•✦•✦
“Ichirou speaking.” As he cooked, Ichirou got a call from his senior and friend Kotone, picking it up, he skillfully cut the vegetables in equal slices and mixed them into the bowl.
“Are you busy?” From the other side, Kotone’s gentle voice seemed to match the pace he stirred the vegetables at. “Not really, what’s up?” Ichirou asked.
“U-uhm… I was kind of bored… so I thought I could talk with you for a while, am I bothering you?” (Kotone)
“Not at all.” An instant response, even though he didn't know how he got there, but he spoke without even thinking. There wasn’t a soul apart from him around, so sooner or later the laughing and loud noises would get absorbed in the walls that previously kept them and held pictures filled with color.
“I see… That’s a relief, sorry again. I just felt like talking to you, you know?” (Kotone)
“It’s okay, I’m always happy to have you as a conversation partner, you know? You all have been a great help to me.” (Ichirou)
“Same here, things have gotten easier ever since Kei entered the council, not to mention that your guidance really helped me out.” (Kotone)
“It is my pleasure. After all, all I can do is be useful and support the council to the best of my best.” (Ichirou)
He never really had any ambitions, Ichirou’s life only consisted of getting good grades, landing a good university and having a stable job. However, when he was scouted to join the student that changed, day by day he worked hard as an intermediator, connecting with various people and supporting those close to him to achieve their best performance.
“Oh right, I talked with a place that can offer the materials used for the passes, as well as some other ones that can help the students with the expenses.” (Ichirou)
“Eh? Already?! Segawa, you sure work fast… didn’t we have the meeting today?” (Kotone)
“Ahaha, I had a little free time this afternoon, so I went around some stores to advance on the preparations, the festival should be a month and a half from now, right? ‘The sooner the better’, right?” (Ichirou)
“While it’s true that we have to do whatever we can right now to make the preparations easier, you shouldn’t worry too much, we can’t have you get sick because of it, right?” (Kotone)
“R-right… I’m sorry…” Ichirou quickly apologized.
“Huh? N-no, don’t take it that way! W-what I meant to say is that it would be unfortunate to have you sick! P-please don’t take it the wrong way!” (Kotone)
“Hahaha, it’s okay it’s okay, I was just joking. I make sure to take better care of myself, last summer I was just taken by surprise.” (Ichirou)
“Hmm, if you say so…” Kotone didn’t seem convinced, after all that was the type of person her younger brother was. Someone who didn’t care too deeply about himself. “So, what are you doing now?” Deciding to shift the topic of conversation elsewhere, Kotone asked him in a gentle voice.
“I just finished eating, I made something simple, not that big of a deal.” (Ichirou)
“Heh~ I’m somehow craving your cooking right now!” (Kotone)
“Huh? R-really? Well… it’s self-taught, so it may not taste as good as Kei’s cooking, so—” (Ichirou)
“Is that a no?” (Kotone)
“...It’s… not a no… but—” (Ichirou)
“Then it’s decided. You know, sometimes it is nice to have a home cooked meal, don’t get me wrong, Kei’s cooking is delicious and all but at this point it feels like a restaurant’s set meal rather than a home cooked meal…” (Kotone)
“Which is weird because we only have normal ingredients…” Kotone’s voice trailed off as she muttered to herself. “Oh but please don’t tell Kei I said that!” (Kotone)
“Haha, sure, I won’t.” (Ichirou)
It was really comforting to talk with Kotone, the place that was previously drowned in complete silence, gradually began to liven up with the sole sound of Ichirou’s hearty laugh. They talked about anything and everything, though Kotone was more of the quiet type, she really got into it, to the point that the two never realized that it was close to eleven p.m. by the time they finished,
✦•✦•✦
The Very Next Day
“Then, mind explaining what that even means?!” As Seichiiro opened the door to his class, a weird scene unfolded in front of him. As Kei, who was in their class for some reason, raised his voice in clear indignation and annoyance, the other party Kotone, who was hiding behind Kokoro, looked away with a wry smile as if she got caught while doing a mischief.
“N-no… w-well…” (Kotone)
“*sniff* So that’s how it is… Did you get tired of me, sis?!” Kei exclaimed in fake tears. Confused, he turned towards the specimen that seemed to enjoy the scene while trying to hold her laugh. Kei’s girlfriend Arisa.
“What’s happening?” (Sei)
“Pfftt… W-well… puh… Kei overheard Kotone saying that Kei’s homemade food was getting stale.” At her words, Kei’s voice only got sadder, of course he was only playing around… well, at least that’s what he wanted others to think, he still was a little hurt though…
“I-I see…?” (Sei)
I don’t get it…
At the end, it took a great amount of effort from Kotone’s side to comfort Kei, while Arisa was still laughing without restraint in the back after losing it.
(A/N)
Hello, it's been a while. I've been extremely busy, so I had no time to deliver the first chapter of the Afterstory until now (it was originally planned for February, well whatever. Here we are, I hope you guys stay around once again~
