Chapter 38 – The Morning That Shattered Everything

Morning arrived too soon.

Sunlight slipped through the curtains of the hotel room, soft and almost kind, as if it didn’t know what it was about to witness.

Aiko woke with a dull ache in her head and a heavier ache in her chest. For a brief moment, she forgot everything. The shoot was over. The party. Yuji’s collapse. Mai’s small arms around her.

Then she heard it.

“Aiko…”

The voice was quiet. Careful.

Aiko turned.

Mai stood beside the bed, rubbing her eyes, hair sticking out in every direction. She was still in her pajamas, clutching a stuffed toy someone from the staff had gifted her.

Aiko sat up instantly. “Mai. Did you sleep well?”

Mai nodded, then frowned. “I couldn’t find Papa.”

Aiko’s heart skipped. “He’s… probably outside. Let’s go look, okay?”

Mai smiled and took her hand.

The door opened before they could take two steps.

“Aiko.”

Her father’s voice cut through the room like ice.

Hiroshi Hoshizora stood there, dressed perfectly in a dark suit, eyes sharp and controlled. Two men stood behind him. Silent. Watching.

Aiko froze.

“Father…?” Her voice barely came out.

His gaze shifted downward.

To Mai.

His eyes narrowed, calculating.

“So this is the child,” he said calmly.

Mai squeezed Aiko’s hand. “Aiko?”

Aiko pulled her closer. “Why are you here?”

Hiroshi ignored the question. “Get dressed. We’re leaving.”

“For what?” Aiko asked, dread pooling in her stomach.

Hiroshi stepped inside, shutting the door behind him. “Your wedding.”

The word rang in her ears.

“…What?”

“Tomorrow,” he continued, as if discussing a meeting. “Everything is arranged. The groom is waiting. You will return home today.”

Aiko felt the room spin. “You can’t do this. I never agreed.”

Hiroshi’s eyes hardened. “You will. I had a heart attack last night.”

Mai looked up, confused. “Heart attack?”

Aiko’s face drained of color. “What…?”

“I collapsed,” Hiroshi said evenly, placing a hand on his chest. “Doctors said stress nearly killed me. Stress caused by you.”

Aiko staggered back, tears forming instantly. “Father, please…”

“You will marry the man I chose,” he said. “If you refuse, you’ll be the reason I die.”

Mai clutched Aiko’s sleeve. “Aiko, are you okay?”

Aiko knelt, hugging her tightly, shaking.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. Somewhere inside her, something was breaking.

The door opened again.

Yuji stepped in.

He stopped when he saw Hiroshi.

The air changed.

Yuji’s eyes moved to Aiko’s face. Then to Mai. Then back to the man standing there like he owned everything.

“So,” Yuji said quietly. “You’re here to take something again.”

Hiroshi finally looked at him.

Disgust flickered across his face. “You.”

Yuji stepped forward instinctively, placing himself between Aiko and Hiroshi without even realizing it.

Mai grabbed his leg. “Papa.”

Hiroshi studied the scene. The child. The man. The way Aiko trembled.

His lips curled slightly.

“I see,” he said. “You truly are a disease.”

Yuji’s jaw tightened. “Say what you want. We’re leaving.”

Hiroshi smiled coldly. “Good. Take the child and go. You have no place here.”

Aiko looked up sharply. “No—”

Hiroshi cut her off. “You will not see them again.”

Yuji didn’t wait.

He lifted Mai into his arms.

Mai looked over his shoulder. “Aiko…?”

Aiko reached out, fingers shaking.

But she didn’t move.

She couldn’t.

Yuji held Mai tighter and walked past Hiroshi.

At the door, he paused.

“Don’t worry,” Yuji said without turning around. “We won’t exist anymore.”

The door closed.

The sound echoed.

That afternoon, Yuji packed.

Silently.

Mai sat on the bed, watching him fold clothes into an old suitcase.

“Are we going somewhere far?” she asked.

Yuji nodded. “Yeah.”

“Will Aiko come?”

Yuji’s hands stopped.

“No,” he said after a long pause. “She won’t.”

Mai looked down at her toy. “Oh.”

Yuji turned his face away so she wouldn’t see his expression.

“We’ll be okay,” he said. “Just you and me.”

Mai nodded slowly.

She trusted him.

That made it hurt more.

As Yuji zipped the suitcase, he didn’t look back.

He didn’t allow himself to imagine Aiko standing alone in that room, crying.

He didn’t allow himself hope.

Because tomorrow, she would belong to someone else.

And tonight, he had to teach himself how to leave forever.