Chapter 36: My Family Finally Returned… But Why Does Everything Feel So Different?

Family is supposed to be a sanctuary, the one place where the world makes sense. So why is it that as soon as they return, I feel like a trespasser in my own home?

The key was heavy in my hand. For some reason, I hesitated to turn it. My pulse was thrumming with a nervous energy I couldn't quite name. I had waited for this day for so long—the day my parents finally stepped back onto Japanese soil. I should have been thrilled. Should have.

Click.

The door yielded.

"Ah, Kengo. You’re home."

The voice hit me like a physical weight. My mother stood in the living room. Her brownish-black hair was unchanged, as was her gentle smile. But looking at her felt like staring at a well-remembered photograph of a place I hadn't visited in years. Familiar, yet hauntingly distant.

"Your father is here too," she added.

I stepped inside, my movements stiff and deliberate. On the sofa sat a man radiating a quiet composure. My father.

"It’s been a long time, Kengo."

"...Yeah."

That was it. No cinematic embrace. No dramatic tears. Just a mundane exchange that felt far too ordinary for the years that had passed between us.

"This place is spotless," my father noted, scanning the room with an efficient eye.

"Yeah, we did a deep clean yesterday," I replied.

"Good."

Short. Efficient. Done. I stared at the floor. The awkwardness was thick enough to choke on, which was absurd considering these people shared my DNA.

"Ah, Kengo-nii!"

A burst of sunshine shattered the stagnant air. Kanon bounded into the room with a wide, effortless grin. "Auntie, Uncle, welcome home!" She lunged forward, wrapping my mother in a tight embrace, like someone reclaiming a treasure they thought they’d lost.

"Kanon-chan... you’ve grown so much, haven't you?" my mother asked, her voice softening.

"Of course I have!"

"Isn't your schedule packed?" my father inquired.

Kanon’s smile didn't waver. "I’m living here now, so we can be together all the time!"

"H-heh... I see..." My father looked slightly overwhelmed. "As long as you don't do anything... strange," he added under his breath.

"Where is Shouta?" my mother asked, her tone shifting slightly.

Hitomi and I exchanged a knowing glance. "Rare for him not to be back yet," I said.

Of course, I knew the exact reason. His math and English scores from last month were a total train wreck.

"Don't worry," Hitomi said casually, stepping toward the door. "He’ll be back."

I, my father, and even Kanon felt a collective chill run down our spines. When Hitomi speaks with that level of calm, there is usually a casualty involved.

The door swung open.

"OW!"

We all jumped. Hitomi’s hand had blurred in a flash of predatory speed. Shouta had been trying to lurk in the shadows beside the door, but now his ear was being pinched with zero mercy.

"There," Hitomi said serenely. "He’s back."

"I was just... observing the situation," Shouta squeaked.

"Observing or hiding?" I asked. "Sorry, I'm your brother, not your lawyer."

My mother stepped forward. The atmosphere changed instantly. It was the stillness before a typhoon—quiet, but high-pressure.

"Why didn't you just come in?" she asked softly. "Shouta... what were those grades you got last time?"

Shouta turned to stone. "M-Mom... before we discuss that... please put down the broom..."

"I'm not angry," she said calmly. That was infinitely more terrifying.

"I swear I'll study harder—"

"I wasn't finished talking."

Shouta went mute. My father suddenly found his newspaper very fascinating. Hitomi finally released her grip.

"I'm not angry because your grades were poor," my mother continued. "But I will not have a son who runs away from his responsibilities. Failing is human. But running from the problem... that is unacceptable."

Shouta lowered his head. "...Yes, Ma'am."

I exhaled. At least the first storm had passed.

"And you, Kanon-chan."

I looked over. Kanon was sitting perfectly still. Too perfectly.

"I heard you’ve been making things difficult for Kengo?"

Kanon blinked innocently. "Me? Never."

The silence that followed was deafening.

"I just wanted to spend time with my family..." she added in a small voice.

I gave her a flat stare. "What was that? You once made me carry five shopping bags at once."

Shouta and Hitomi let out stifled laughs. My mother sighed. "Kanon, I'm glad you're close with Kengo. But don't take advantage of him."

"Yes, Auntie..."

Slowly, the ice began to melt. We ate together, talked, and laughed. On the surface, everything looked like a perfect domestic puzzle. But one piece still felt like it had been forced into the wrong slot.

My family was finally back... so why did everything feel so fundamentally altered? And for some reason, I felt a premonition. Something was coming—something that would inevitably shatter this fragile peace.

Night.

Mitsuzu stood on her balcony, the breeze tugging at her hair. Her thoughts, however, were far from calm.

"How am I supposed to say it...?"

She stared at her phone. Kengo’s name was pulled up on the screen.

Type. Delete. Type. Delete.

"If I tell him directly... he’ll probably just nod..." She offered a bitter, lonely smile to the moon. "And that would hurt even more."

Fiancé. The word felt like a lead weight in her chest.

"Heartbreak Society..." She let out a dry, hollow laugh. "Funny, isn't it?"

The girl who always gave advice on matters of the heart—and now, she didn't even know how to speak one simple sentence.

"Maybe... tomorrow."

She darkened her screen. The night sky was peaceful. Far too peaceful. And amidst the indifferent stars, she could only pray that time wouldn't move quite so fast.