Chapter 7 - The Lost Brother

Sakura was crying.

Taki stood silently beside her.

The news was still playing on the television.

The same footage, the same words, repeating again and again.

Suddenly, Sakura’s phone started ringing.

Taki picked it up.

The call was from the police.

“Am I speaking to Sakura?” the police officer asked.

Taki replied, “No. I am her husband.”

“Oh… I see,” the officer said. “Please come to the hospital as soon as possible. We need to talk to you.”

“We are coming right now,” Taki replied.

He disconnected the call.

Then he turned toward Sakura and said softly, “Let’s go to the hospital.”

But Sakura was not in her senses at that moment.

Her body was weak, her mind completely broken.

Taki lifted her carefully and took her to the hospital.

When they reached there, Taki saw two bodies lying on the stretcher.

They were Sakura’s parents.

The moment Sakura saw them, she broke down completely.

She started crying even louder than before.

The police officer stepped forward and said, “So, you have arrived.”

“We found Sakura’s number in their mobile phone.”

“Can you tell us whether Sakura was their only daughter, or did they have any other son or daughter?”

Taki replied immediately, “No. Sakura was their only daughter.”

Looking at the bodies, tears filled Taki’s eyes as well.

Suddenly, Sakura cried out, “No… I am not the only one.”

Taki was about to say something.

But before he could speak, Sakura continued while crying.

“I had a younger brother.”

“He got lost when he was five years old.”

Taki said quietly, “We don’t know anything about him now.”

“We don’t know whether he is alive or dead.”

“You were seven years old at that time when he went missing.”

Sakura tried to say something more.

But Taki turned toward the officer and said, “Officer, Sakura is their only daughter.”

“She did have a brother, but he got lost in childhood.”

The police officer replied coldly, “That doesn’t concern us.”

“We only need to do our job.”

He handed a form to Sakura.

“Please sign this form.”

“After that, you can take the bodies.”

With trembling hands and tears falling down her face, Sakura signed the form.

When the police officer was about to leave, Taki stopped him.

“Excuse me… did you find out anything?”

“Who were the people who hit them?”

The officer replied, “We haven’t caught them yet.”

“According to the CCTV footage, they were drunk.”

“They hit the vehicle and ran away.”

Taki nodded and said, “Alright.”

But inside Taki’s mind, only one thought was repeating again and again.

Why the cinema hall?

Why are all the incidents happening near the same place?

Suddenly, Taki remembered Hoto.

Hoto was following him that night.

Where was he now?

Taki tried calling him.

But Hoto’s phone was switched off.

Taki lifted Sakura and tried to comfort her.

“I feel like crying too,” he said.

“But what’s the use of crying now?”

“Anyone who is born… dies one day.”

At that moment, a flashback hit Taki’s mind.

His father’s death.

A sharp pain exploded inside his head.

He held his head tightly and sat down.

The next day.

Sakura’s parents’ funeral was over.

Sakura was still in shock.

She was not in a condition to talk.

Taki was restless.

His mind could not stay in one place.

It felt as if thousands of thoughts were attacking him all at once.

But one question kept haunting him.

Why that cinema hall?

They were at home.

Sakura was in her room.

Taki was lost in his thoughts when his phone rang.

It was the police officer.

“Do you know a person named Hoto?” the officer asked.

“Yes,” Taki replied. “He is my friend.”

“Why? What happened?”

The officer said, “Actually, this morning we found his body.”

“It was lying in front of the cinema hall near Hono Park.”

“Please come as soon as possible.”

Taki froze.

Hoto was dead.

How was that possible?

Taki rushed toward the cinema hall.

On the way, his mind was filled with questions.

How did he die?

How could he die?

And why in front of the cinema hall again?

Why was everyone dying near that place?

While running, tears filled Taki’s eyes.

When he reached the cinema hall, he saw police officers standing there.

News reporters were clicking photos.

Hoto’s dead body was lying on the ground.

The moment Taki saw him, he ran toward the body and started crying.

The police officer recognized him.

“You are the same person who came to the hospital yesterday, right?” the officer asked.

But Taki did not reply.

He was crying.

His mind was screaming.

Hoto was my friend.

He helped me the most.

How did he die?

Why is this happening to me?

Why is everyone dying around me?

The officer said, “We found his body here in the morning.”

“We are still searching for the killer.”

“Can you tell us when you last met him?”

Taki remembered drinking beer with Hoto.

Then Sakura called him.

He told the police, “We were drinking beer together yesterday.”

“Then my wife called me, and I left.”

“Hoto was following me.”

“I think he said he was coming too.”

The police officer asked, “Did your friend use drugs?”

Taki replied firmly, “No.”

“He was not like that.”

The officer said, “We found drugs in his pockets.”

Taki shook his head.

“That’s not possible.”

“As far as I know, he never used drugs.”

After asking a few more questions, the police said, “You can go home now.”

“We will inform you after the post-mortem.”

Taki walked back home.

The house was completely silent.

He went to Sakura’s room.

Sakura was sitting quietly.

She was crying.

She asked, “Where did you go?”

Taki replied, “Nowhere… I just went out for some work.”

Sakura looked into his eyes and said, “You are hiding something from me, aren’t you?”

“You always look tense.”

“As if you are scared of something.”

“What are you hiding from me?”

Taki panicked.

But he controlled himself and said, “No, it’s nothing like that.”

“I am just sad.”

“What happened was not good.”

“But you need to think about the future now.”

“You haven’t eaten anything since last night.”

“That’s not good for your condition.”

He placed his hand on her stomach.

“What has happened cannot be changed.”

“But what will happen next is still in our hands.”

Sakura said softly, “I am just worried about you.”

“I don’t want to lose you.”

At that moment, Taki received a call from his office manager.

“Why haven’t you been coming to the office for so many days?” the manager asked.

Taki explained everything.

The manager replied, “What happened is unfortunate.”

“But work has increased a lot because you are not here.”

Taki ended the call.

Inside his mind, he thought, people only care about their own benefit.

They never care about what the other person is going through.

Taki decided to take Sakura outside.

He thought that going out might help her feel a little better.

They went to the same park.

Evening had already fallen.

Taki’s mind was filled with countless thoughts and confusion.

Inside, he felt dead.

Broken.

But he did not want to show it to Sakura.

He only wanted to see her happy.

Sakura was looking at the sky.

Taki was looking at Sakura.

He thought, everyone has died.

No matter what happens, I will not let Sakura die.

Even if I have to give my own life.

I will keep her alive.

Suddenly, Taki’s phone rang.

It was the police officer.

“We have found some information about Hoto’s murder,” the officer said.

Chapter 7 End

Written by Minus