Chapter 15:
A fake family
HIKARU TO ONNA
The heavy tension in the air dissolved the moment Onna stepped out of her room, her eyes heavy with sleep. Seeing the group huddled together in a tight, whispering circle, she leaned against the doorway and asked in a low, tired voice, "What are you guys doing?"Kuroba quickly straightened up, forcing a casual smile to hide her surprise. "Oh, nothing! Just chatting about random stuff."Without energy to press further, Onna simply turned around and went back to bed. Staring blankly at the ceiling, her mind drifted back to that final day at Makato’s hospital. She vividly remembered asking that one crucial question: What did you name the boys?A sudden, sharp realization hit her, sending a chill down her spine. If that boy really was Yuki, then where on earth did his elder sisters—Haru, Keito, and Mika—come from? The pieces of the puzzle just weren't fitting together, and the mystery was starting to keep her awake.The mystery is getting intense! To help me write the next part of the story, tell me:Do you want Onna to secretly investigate the hospital, or will she confront Kuroba about her suspicions?What is the real connection between Yuki and his sisters?Should Tasumi or Chi accidentally find out what Onna is hiding?
Because Onna took so long to return, Kuroba went out to the Space of Demons to look for her, only to find her standing there completely still. When Kuroba called her name, Onna turned around slowly."Onna, why are you just standing here?" Kuroba asked, confused.Onna didn't say a word. Once they got back home, she immediately went to her room and lay down. Seeing her go to bed so early, Tasumi, Chi, and Yurie huddled together, whispering among themselves."What's wrong with Onna?" Yurie asked, looking worried. "She seems so lost in thought.""Ever since we got here, she’s been acting strange," Tasumi agreed. "It feels like she's constantly daydreaming about something all day long."Just then, Kuroba walked over and sat down next to them. "What are you guys talking about so intensely?"Chi frowned slightly. "Hmm... do you think Onna is hiding something from us? What do you think?"Kuroba knit her brows, her defenses going up. "Why? What makes you say that all of a sudden?"Yurie and Tasumi leaned in closer, dropping their voices to a barely audible whisper. Right at that moment, Onna quietly walked out of her room. She stood there, silently watching the whole group. Caught red-handed, everyone instantly tried to act natural.Looking exhausted and a bit dazed, Onna asked, "What are you guys doing?""Oh, nothing at all," Kuroba replied quickly, trying to brush it off.Without another word, Onna turned around and headed back inside.As she lay back down, her mind flashed back to that fateful day—the last time she had visited Makato's hospital. She vividly remembered asking just one crucial question: What did you name the boys?A nagging thought began to consume her. If that boy really was Yuki, then where on earth did his elder sisters—Haru, Keito, and Mika—come from? The math simply wasn't adding up, and the mystery was starting to pull her deep into a spiral of doubt.
While Akari was focused on her work, Haru suddenly walked into the room.
"How much longer is this act going to last?" Haru asked abruptly.
Her sudden words caught Akari completely off guard. She looked up at her,,,, akaris eyes wide with a mix of surprise and fear. "What... what do you mean?" she stammered.
Haru sighed heavily, looking deeply worried. "Akari! Yuki keeps questioning us about his negative power over and over again. What are we supposed to tell him?"
It turned out that Yuki had started asking these sharp questions because of something he overheard from his Sensei.
Haru paced the room, the anxiety clear in her voice. "What happens if they find out that we are just a fake family? And besides... you aren't even her real mother!"
Suddenly, the scene shifts to a flashback at the Seal Ground.
A younger Haru was sitting beside her father, Kenshi. Kenshi was incredibly ill, his breathing shallow. He looked at his daughter with weak eyes. "Haru, listen to me," Kenshi whispered painfully. "After I am gone, whoever takes over the responsibility of this Seal Ground... tell them to..."
Before he could finish his sentence, Kenshi’s eyes closed, and he passed away.
Haru froze. For a few long, agonizing seconds, time seemed to stop completely.
With Kenshi gone, Haru, Mika, and Keito were left completely alone in the world. They had already lost their mother to cancer, and now, their father's sudden death felt like a deep, agonizing wound in their hearts. The three siblings—Keito, Mika, and Haru—were heartbroken and lost.
That was when Akari stepped into their lives. Akari’s husband had been a close friend of Kenshi's, so the families knew each other. But Akari had gone through her own heartbreak; her husband had betrayed her, forcing her to leave him for good.
Bound by shared pain and loss, Akari joined the siblings. From that moment on, the four of them stayed together, trying to survive as a family.
A few months after those events, Makato married Akari. He made this choice because he was constantly busy with his demanding hospital job and desperately needed someone to care for his children. Shortly after they wed, Makato gave Akari a clear instruction: she was to act as a mother to Yukito and Yuki, while Haru, Keito, and Mika would act as their sisters. He chose to remain completely silent about Hikaru, fearing that if Akari knew the whole truth, she might leave him.
Fast forward to the present day. Akari tried to calm Haru down, who was visibly upset. "Haru, don't you want to see them happy?" Akari asked gently. "Is this family really that bad? Look at Keito and Mika—they seem to have forgotten the past completely now that they have brothers like Yukito and Yuki. Honestly, even I tend to forget things sometimes. If we reveal everything to them now, it will break Makato’s heart."
Haru shook her head, frustrated. "Fine, I get it. But what about their feelings? Won’t they be completely crushed?"
"I know," Akari replied softly, her voice filled with a heavy sadness. "But there’s nothing we can do. Look at us—every single one of us lost someone we loved before we came together. Your past, my past... and yes, probably Makato’s past too. We all just joined hands to fill the empty voids in our lives."
"It looks beautiful from the outside," Haru countered sharply. "But Yukito and Yuki love us so genuinely right now. When they eventually find out the truth, that love will turn into pure hatred!"
"What is so wrong with living in this beautiful lie? Tell me!" Akari demanded.
Haru couldn't answer. A heavy, suffocating silence fell between the two women. After what felt like an eternity, Haru finally broke the silence, raising a haunting question. "But... how did Yuki end up with that negative power?"
Akari sighed, looking helpless. "I truly have no idea about that."
"Did Makato ever tell you anything about his first wife?" Haru pressed further.
"No, never."
Haru took a breath and asked one last question, "When is Makato coming back home?"
"He hasn't informed me yet," Akari said quietly, looking away.
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