A Place to Hang Our Wishes

The cool summer night was filled with the sounds of cicadas and the occasional hoot of a distant owl. Tachibana and Nitsuki walked side-by-side down the dark, quiet street, their footsteps echoing softly against the pavement. They'd arrived just a few minutes ago and parked the car in the shrine's lot, which was unsurprisingly full.

"I guess Tanabata is as popular as always," Tachibana said, smiling.

"When has it never?" She shivered a little, hugging her jacket closer to her body. "Only thing more popular than this in the summer is the stargazing festival—well, that and maybe the bon festival."

Tachibana glanced at a handful of tanzaku placed close to the entrance. "Oh, yeah. That's coming up soon, isn't it?"

"Mhm," Nitsuki hummed, nodding before turning her attention back to the reason they were here. They'd need to find a good spot to hang their own wishes soon, lest the best ones be taken already.

They continued walking, passing the large, red arch of the torii. Nitsuki's eyes scanned the various stalls and trees that lined the shrine. She had to admit, seeing the familiar sight of the paper lanterns and the colorful wishes hanging from the trees was a bit nostalgic. There had been the tiniest period of her early life where she could remember enjoying these things—where she had been happy to write her own wishes.

The soft yellow glow illuminated the trees around them. Her parents had taken her here before. They had walked along this same path, their hands brushing against hers. Her father had bent down to whisper something in her ear. And her mother had held onto her tightly, her warmth enveloping her like a warm blanket.

She deflated a little as her shoulders slumped.

A thought at the very back of her mind was whispering at her to view a future where her parents hadn't died so young—where maybe she could've convinced them to not drive out just to grab some last-minute groceries for the hot-pot. Maybe she and Maya could've had a chance at a normal life. Maybe they'd be supportive of her and be her rock amongst the storm of Hoshimura.

…However, the same reason why she hadn't used it to imagine a future with Maya alive was the same as why she wasn't too tempted now.

It would hurt—a lot.

So you take D*gimon's advice to heart, but always seem to ignore mine? How cruel~

"Hey, I've learned to begrudgingly accept some of your advice," she responded to her brain, not bothering to look at several people that they passed by. "But that doesn't mean I have to follow all of it."

And why not? What's wrong with a little fantasy? It's harmless fun.

"It's not. Unlike the lewd encouragements you've been egging me to indulgent in, the fantasies you suggest would unravel me if I let myself get lost in them. It's not a matter of enjoyment. It's just… I don't trust myself to see them."

"…Hey, Nia, you okay?"

Nitsuki flinched at the sound of Tachibana's voice, snapping her out of her inner debate.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine," she replied quickly. "Just got caught up in my head."

He nodded in understanding, but his expression was concerned.

"Remember what we talked about." He reached for her hand and gently squeezed it before pulling back. "We're going to make sure our wishes are safe this time. No matter what. I'm not letting anything happen to them."

She smirked, feeling a sense of warmth spread through her chest. "I remember. Thank you for being so sentimental."

He chuckled back, and they continued to walk through the grounds and past the crowds. Families, couples, groups of friends—all gathered to celebrate the same holiday and to write their own wishes.

They paused for a moment in the main courtyard, taking in the sights and sounds of the festivities. The place was bustling with activity, with vendors selling all sorts of food and trinkets. A handful of kids were having fun with yoyo balloons as well—at least, before one of them accidentally smacked a playmate in the face with with a loud *THWAP*. They started crying immediately and ran to their parents.

Tachibana flinched. "Ooh, that looked painful."

"Yep. Poor thing." She shook her head. "Reminds me of a certain somebody's clumsiness from back in the day."

He tilted his head at her, confused. "Eh, who are you talking about?"

She snickered, and he froze, his eyes going wide as a realization crossed his face. "Oh, crud. You mean when we were in middle school?"

"Yep," she smirked. "That kendama phase you had was hilarious. Still remember how you smacked one of my bullies in the balls with—well, your ball. Ball-buster Tachibana~"

"Ugh, please don't remind me. I felt so bad." He groaned and covered his face. "I mean, I'm glad I helped enact some karmic justice, but I couldn't even look at the thing for weeks after that."

"I can imagine." She shrugged. "You were pretty squeamish. The fact that he collapsed to the ground and screamed, 'My family's bloodline is ruined!' probably didn't help. Though that was funny to watch."

Tachibana's cheeks suddenly became dusted in pink. "Um, well, maybe after we put up our wishes, we can get a pair?" He smiled sheepishly, his eyes darting away from her gaze. "For old times' sake?"

Nitsuki chuckled at his reaction. "Sure. So long as you don't go knocking out any bystanders with it."

As they walked further along, they came across a small hill that overlooked a part of the shrine's grounds. It had a good view of the place and some of the surrounding forest. Most importantly though, it was relatively secluded and open to the stars, and there was a tree nearby with just enough space to hang a few more wishes.

Nitsuki took a deep breath and looked up at the sky.

"I think this is the place."

They stopped in front of the tree, the leaves swaying softly in the breeze. Nitsuki reached into her bag to pull out her wish, but she hesitated as she caught sight of a tanzaku already hanging on a branch near them.

Her eyes widened as she read the neat, loopy handwriting.

≻───── ⋆✩⋆ ─────≺

I wish to become as strong as Miss Amano.

≻───── ⋆✩⋆ ─────≺

She covered her mouth. "Oh my goodness. This is Yamaguchi's, isn't it?"

"Wait, the girl from our support group?"

She quickly nodded, trying not to let the mushy sentiments overwhelm her. There wasn't anyone else she could think of that would refer to her like that.

"I can't believe this. She's… way too precious."

A smile grew on Tachibana's face as he read it too. "Well, she's very right. You're quite strong—as a person, I mean. You can't exactly beat me in arm wrestling matches anymore."

"Stop that, dummy. I'll start tearing up," she grumbled, her face feeling a little damp and warm.

"Aw, is that such a bad thing?"

She turned away from him, embarrassed. "Yes. Very bad. Now shut it. Let's just put ours up before anyone sees us."

He chuckled and pulled out his own slips of paper. She watched as he carefully placed them on the tree, making sure they were securely tied.

She bit her lip, trying to calm herself down. She was still reeling from the surprise of seeing Yamaguchi's wish.

Had she really impacted the kid this much? It'd barely been three days since their meeting.

"Alright." Tachibana took a deep breath. "I'm ready."

Nitsuki nodded, her hands trembling slightly as she reached up to place hers on the branches too. A light breeze came by to ruffle their hair and the leaves. Her wish was a little long for a typical Tanabata tanzaku, but she didn't care. This was her message to whoever was listening, and she'd be damned if she didn't say everything she needed to.

≻───── ⋆✩⋆ ─────≺

I want a place where I can exist. A world where people can just be safe and happy. I want love to always win over hate, and kindness to always win over cruelty.

However, if that's too difficult to fulfill, then please, just give me a place where I don't have to hide anymore.

(That or a billion yen. I'm not that picky.)

— Amano Nitsuki

≻───── ⋆✩⋆ ─────≺

She took a step back to admire her handiwork. In that moment, standing there in front of the tree with the wind whispering through the leaves, she couldn't help but feel a sense of peace.

"You have quite the imagination, Nia," Tachibana remarked, giving her an affectionate smile. "I hope you'll share more of it with me someday."

He pulled out a few more tanzaku from his bag, each of them a dazzling array of different colors.

"W-woah there. That's a lot more than I was expecting. How many wishes do you have?" she teased, her cheeks flushing a little from his earlier comment.

"Hey, you're one to talk, Ms. 'I have a whole essay's worth of things I'd like to ask for.' Don't worry though, I'll put these ones on that other tree by the wall. I don't want to take up all the prime real estate."

He winked, and she laughed again as they made their way over.

It was hard to believe she was actually having fun at a festival again. Being here with Tachibana somehow made everything feel so much more amazing.

You'll have lots of future shrine visits together, you know~ Just think about how it'll be when you're here older, married, and have a kid or two~

Nitsuki's face became bright red. "S-stupid brain! D-don't say that! And especially the kid part! We both know my equipment won't allow—"

Tachibana paused in his hanging of the second round of wishes. "…Equipment? Nia, what are you talking about?"

She flinched and looked away. Crap, she'd said that out loud, hadn't she?

Hehe, idiot~

"I-it's nothing. Don't worry about it." She coughed. "Anyways, let's see what these other wishes are."

He gave a look that said he wanted to know more but ultimately decided against it; he just angled the newly secured wishes towards her.

Nitsuki's eyes bulged as she read them.

"…A-are you seriously this shameless?" she asked, her mouth agape. "'I want to spend every waking moment with the love of my life'?! 'I wish to make sure Nia is never lonely'?! T-Tachibana, what happened to not making the rumors any worse?!"

Tachibana's face turned red as he quickly turned away. "W-well, it's better than what the last ones are, I think…"

Her eyes flicked to the other part of the tree where the final pieces of paper hung and she immediately squealed.

"T-take that one down before someone sees it!" She hissed, covering her face. "Holy hell, is that what's going through that 'innocent' and derpy-bright brain of yours? I-I might have to reconsider my opinion on you."

"N-Nia! P-please, don't say things like that. I'm not—I mean, I just thought that…"

She looked over at her boyfriend's embarrassed expression. "Sheesh, it's… fine. Well, except that last one. Seriously, take that down before we get kicked out of the shrine for a real reason."

He sighed and did as she said. "Okay… but, well, uh, we can at least talk about it at some point, right?"

"…"

She didn't respond, instead just burying her face into his shoulder. She'd just been yelling at her stupid brain for more-or-less the same damned thing. They weren't even engaged yet!

Hehe, 'yet'~

"Aaagh, shut up!!!"

Suddenly though, she spotted movement from the corner of her eye. It was an adult man, and he was cautiously approaching the first tree that they'd placed their wishes on. She couldn't quite confirm because of the darkness, but he reminded her briefly of the flower shop's bespectacled owner, Mr. Miyamoto.

The last time she'd seen him was… well, the day she'd decided to off herself—when she'd bought those last flowers for Maya and herself.

It didn't look like he'd seen them yet, or at least, Nitsuki was pretty sure he hadn't. She watched as he began to reach for her wish.

"!" She scoffed at the nerve. Damn it, was someone already trying to tear down her wish?! He could've at least gone through the effort of using a pocket fan or something to actually blow it away if he insisted on taking it down this early.

Her body tensed, and she felt Tachibana's hand slip into hers and squeeze.

…However, after reading it, he simply let it go and started tying up his own tanzaku. He didn't touch Yamaguchi's either, nor did he seem like he was going to mess with any of the others hanging on that branch.

"…" She exhaled a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "T-thank God. Not a jackass."

Unfortunately, she'd been just a tad bit too loud. The man perked up suddenly and slowly turned over in their direction, squinting at them.

Nitsuki gulped. Uh, well this was awkward.

Hold on, now that she thought about it, didn’t it sort of look like they were spying on people's wishes?

He opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but instead, he quickly tried scampering off to somewhere else—

—and tripped over his shoelaces, hitting the pavement hard.

"Oof—!" Tachibana winced, and Nitsuki looked on with her mouth gaping open.

Without thinking, she immediately made her way over to him.

Crap, crap, crap, she had no idea why she was doing this, but… her conscience wouldn't let her just leave him like that, especially after showing he had the human decency to not literally tear up other people's wishes.

Stupid morals.

Why'd he have to give her that damn discount?