Chapter 16

“See you later, Brother.”

“Stay safe, and don’t come home too late.”

“Who are you, my dad?”

“See you, Kenji-”

“Don’t come back too late, alright!?” Kenji shouted as the pair drove away. 

While others had work tomorrow, Amaya didn’t because Starbeach didn't open on Mondays. Mamoru, on the other hand, often does freelance work, so maybe he didn’t have anything either.

Kenji returned to the house, heading straight to the living room. He planted himself on the couch, his hand taking the controller. Peace and quiet, a rarity in this household. Kenji heaved a sigh, resting his back on the sofa. He had already turned on the console; now he just needs to select a game.

“Phew, that was nice.” The bathroom door slid open. 

Tsukiko appeared from inside, a towel over her head. Wet hair peeked from beneath the towel, the fresh smell of shampoo wafting into his nostrils as she approached.

Kenji’s heart skipped a beat. She looked very cute. He wanted to get up and hug her, but he returned his attention to the TV, trying his best to calm his beating heart.

“Has Amaya left?” she asked.

Kenji’s eyes floated to her hair. “Ye- yeah, just a while ago.”

N- No, I shouldn’t be staring!

He tried looking at her eyes, only to remember how beautiful they looked, just like an emerald. Tsukiko noticed his stare, her eyes floating to the towel above her head. Her cheeks reddened slightly, and she plopped herself in front of Kenji’s legs.

“Ts- Tsukiko!?”

“Did you remember when you used to dry my hair?”

“Wh- when did I do that!?” Kenji lied. “I never did such a thing!”

“You forgot?”

“You must be mistaken!”

Back then, they played together a lot, which meant they took showers and bathed after each other often. Sometimes Kenji dried her hair, sometimes she insisted on doing it for him. Tsukiko always liked it, though. Even as they grew older, she kept asking him to do it. It only stopped the year before she moved.

Ah…

Memories returned to his mind. The last year of middle school. Even before Tsukiko told her, something was up. Things felt… different. A chasm began forming between them. At first, a small gap, which grew larger as time passed. The chasm never truly separated them, but the distance was noticeable.

“I don’t believe you.” Tsukiko pouted, returning his attention to the girl in front of him. The girl, who after so long, came back. “But oh well, why not do it now?”

Kenji’s brain went into overdrive to find excuses. An idea appeared in his mind.

“You’re an adult, right? Adults can do these things for themselves.”

“But today, I wanted to be treated like a child. I want… to be taken care of…” Tsukiko’s voice faded away in the end, but it was still clear enough for Kenji to hear.

Kenji let out a faint groan. How could he say no to that?

She’s so honest… so brave…

He sighed. “Fine.”

While acting as if he absolutely hated the idea, Kenji leaned forward. Carefully, he grabbed the towel, then slid it across her head. She let out a tiny giggle as her head swayed side-to-side.

“Don’t move, or else you won’t be dried.”

“You actually remembered, didn’t you?” Tsukiko teased. “There’s no way you’ve forgotten.”

Kenji gritted his teeth, not sure what he should say.

“Why are you embarrassed?"

“I’m not embarrassed."

“Yet you tried so hard to pretend you forgot it.”

How did she know? Kenji thought, his hands continued moving. 

The smell of the shampoo was much more noticeable now that she sat in front of him. Amaya had used the same shampoo, but he never noticed it. Granted, she didn’t come asking for head rubs either.

“Say… Kenji…”

“Yes?”

“How much did you remember?”

Was she still talking about head drying?

“What do you mean?”

“About our past. How much did you remember?”

Kenji averted his gaze, looking instead at the television screen which showed the game he had hovered above. Orim Party. His sister loved playing that game, although it did feel a bit lacking with just two human players.

“Umm… Why do you ask?”

“Just out of curiosity.”

“A bit, I guess?”

Many years have passed. Sure, they talked online occasionally, but things were different when they no longer spent time close to each other. Their relationship didn’t collapse completely, but the distance between the two placed a noticeable strain on it. Had it continued for a few more years, they would have turned into complete strangers.

The idea hurt him. Someone he was so close to turned into someone he couldn’t recognize. Yet, she lived her own life. Kenji had no right to interfere.

“Sometimes I wonder… had I not left, would we stay close like this?”

“Maybe?” Kenji asked.

“Would I end up dating you?”

“… Guess that’s not entirely out of the picture?” Kenji answered, doing his best to hide the embarrassment.

“What… do people even do on dates?”

“Aquariums, dinners, the beach.”

“Our front yard is the beach.”

Tsukiko chuckled. “Summer festivals, watching fireworks together. Those kinds of stuff…”

“I see.”

“I wonder… Would we be married right now?”

Kenji’s hand stopped. They lived under the same roof. Sure, they didn’t share a room, but it’s pretty close to a typical marriage, wasn’t it?

“... Huh?”

“Just a joke, a joke, really. You didn’t have to tense up like that.” Tsukiko hopped and turned around, smiling brightly.

“I- I didn’t tense up.”

“Don’t say you’ve imagined things like that.” She poked his shoulders. “How many kids did you imagine?”

“I didn’t imagine any!” Kenji retorted. “Who went straight to kids in the first place!?”

Tsukiko laughed. “Well, that’s what a lot of people joked about.”

“People who?”

“You know, in those-“ Her phone rang. Tsukiko took it out of her pants pocket. For a second after she saw the screen, her expression darkened. It regained its usual cheer the next.

“Sorry, need to pick this up.” She took her towel and swung it over her shoulder, then headed out of the room.

Kenji sighed, sliding his back into the couch. He looked up at the ceiling, his mind replaying the event that had just happened. That really caught him off guard.

If only… If only I could say it.

If only he could admit how much he wanted her to stay.