Loose Ends (END)

Yorikane Miya’s Story

Yorikane Miya was 16 when he entered his second year of high school. He knew that there was only one more year that he was allowed to do whatever he wanted before he had to focus on his future. His parents allowed him that much. He wasn’t looking forward to his third year and college after that.

He was surprised by the announcement board he found upon entering through Sunray High’s gate on the first day of school. His phone began to blow up after he grasped the situation. It was as if the universe was helping him have one last hurrah before the boring stuff began. But it wasn’t actually the universe who created the announcement board, it was the student council president, Akemi Tamura.

Yorikane’s new class had many familiar faces and he received warm greetings. At least he could keep these greetings during his third year, but it could change once college began. He was dreading the future once again.

He got his mind off of the future and enjoyed his time at school with his many friends and after school as well. He tried to avoid any free time that would force him to be alone with his thoughts. Casually playing soccer helped as well. His team wasn’t popular so they rarely played against other schools but it was still fun. All of his teammates were nice.

When he received a text from a girl named Rose, he was more than happy to talk to a new friend. But he made a mistake with her. He pushed her to meet when he shouldn’t have. Her text after the incident made him feel bad. Others were having a harder time than him… Did he deserve to be worrying so much about his future when others were still recovering from trauma in their past?

He continued filling up all of his free time, even when his parents asked him to hang out at home with his younger siblings, he played with them all day with their ample amounts of energy.

When he eventually learned who Rose actually was, Saki Shiotani in his class who he noticed might have been having a hard time before, and saw glimpses of her face hidden behind her glasses and bangs, he realized what her trauma might be related to. Something happened to her, she was wounded on her face, and now she has to live with that for the rest of her life.

He knew he shouldn’t bring it up and continued to be nice to her. Whenever he saw her, he almost wanted to apologize again. But she seemed to be happier each day. She was recovering from her trauma at her own pace. He admired her. Maybe with time, he could figure out his future better and learn to be happy in the adult world.

Then something happened. One of his new friends, Kishi Horiuchi, a year younger than him, confessed his feelings to him. His cute face was bright red and he seemed to be trembling. He was afraid to admit his feelings but he managed to do it. Yorikane realized that. But it almost came out of nowhere for him and he wasn’t sure how to answer. He told Kishi that he needed time.

He took months of time to think about his feelings and how he should approach this confession. He never thought about being in a relationship with anyone. Of course he found some people cute and often listened to his guy friends talking about the girls they liked. But he never thought about his future with someone by his side, married with kids. That’s what his parents wanted for him but he figured he didn’t have to think or worry about it until he graduated. He just wanted to live carefreely with many friends to go around.

Kishi’s confession threw him off completely. He may have noticed the way Kishi looked at him, how he was often blushing, and how in the days before his confession, he asked him out alone several times. He even touched his arm and smiled brightly whenever he saw him. Was that love? Could Yorikane feel that way too?

After the confession, Yorikane distanced himself. It became awkward between them. He noticed Kishi’s absence. Did he actually mean more to him than he realized? Should he just accept his confession?

The day he decided to accept him, even just to try it out, Kishi hesitated. Didn’t he want him to accept? Does he not like him anymore? But then he spoke.

“Miya-san… Are you sure?”

Yorikane was confused. Why was he asking that? Shouldn’t he be happy and be hugging him now or something? Isn’t that how it works?

“I don’t want you to force yourself if you don’t really like me…” Kishi continued.

“I like you. Didn’t I already say that?”

“Yes, but… I want you to be happy. Will you be happy with me, or will you be uncomfortable?”

Happy… He realized that he had all of these friends but none like Kishi. Kishi truly cared about him and wanted the best for him, even at the expense of his own feelings. His other friends just liked to hang out with Yorikane, having a fun time because of him, not really caring if he was having fun as well. They never asked him about his problems or really what he wanted. Kishi was different…

“Horiuchi-kun… I want to try. I think I’ll be happy with you. Can’t we try?”

“If that’s what you want,” Kishi beamed.

Yorikane had noticed his cute looks before, from way before, from his picture on the announcement board from Akemi. He didn’t mind having a boyfriend this cute…

Yorikane didn’t think much of sharing this news. He thought everyone would accept him since they were his friends. But there were some reactions that caused certain friendships to fizzle out. He realized it was because his significant other was a boy instead of a girl. He questioned if he wanted to share this news with every single person. He hadn’t even told his parents yet.

He thought he had to feel uncomfortable and alone in this, just like he had been worrying about his future this whole time. But Kishi reached out to him, asking if he was alright. He hesitated to share his feelings with him. But then he wondered why he couldn’t talk about it, especially with the person who is closest to him.

“Saki once asked if I felt comfortable with my group of friends, if I felt like I could talk to them about anything… And if I couldn’t, then they might not really be my friends. It’s hard when you lose friends or realize they weren’t your real friends in the first place. But I’m sure you’ll feel a lot better putting boundaries between yourself and those who make you feel uncomfortable. You should surround yourself with true friends and those who truly care about you, those who truly love you… You deserve to be happy.”

Kishi’s words hit deep. It was a hard pill to swallow, but a lot of his current friends didn’t seem to be true friends. Yorikane wants to be happy. Even with the unsure looming future ahead of him. If his future is with Kishi and true friends like Saki, then maybe he can be happy.

Yorikane’s life improved in ways he didn’t realize were possible. Removing superficial friends from his life helped him take care of himself and appreciate those who were his true friends. He talked with his parents about his feelings and they accepted him. They helped him prepare for college and his third year went smoother than he thought possible.

He appreciated Kishi coming into his life and shaking things up. Now he only wanted him by his side from this moment on. His future didn’t seem so unsure and scary anymore.

Shoji Iwasaki’s Story

Shoji Iwasaki, age 17, prided himself on being the Vice President of the student council. He formed high expectations for himself and he worked hard to reach those expectations every day. Some of Akemi Tamura’s actions threw him off course occasionally. She was his closest friend and the woman he served on the student council. He felt something for her but wasn’t sure what it could be. Her very existence caused him to make mistakes when he normally wouldn’t.

Just like in his own household, he strived to be someone independent and reliable at school. He helped those in need or looked like they were in need, usually women who seemed weaker than him, and carried out his student council duties to make sure it ran smoothly under Akemi’s reign.

He was used to his way of living and saw nothing wrong with it. He knew he had to be the one to take care of his household since the man of the house who was always there was now gone. Everyone took that news hard. Except that Shoji has a hard time remembering that time of his life. It appears that one day he made a vow to fill in the empty space to the best of his ability and continue moving forward. He hasn’t looked back since.

With his busy lifestyle, he had no time to make friends. The people he interacted with on the student council, or past members of the council, could be considered his friends. The only person that he’s closest to is Akemi. She knows all about his home life and the way he’s living. While she wants to help him, she also knows she has to focus on her own goals and move forward in her own way.

When he entered college, using inheritance money, he only thought about working towards a high paying office job of some sort. He needed to earn more money than his job at a convenience store could provide to continue taking care of his family. He wanted his younger brother to go to college someday as well. An office job seemed fitting, something his family would be familiar with, because a member who was no longer there used to work in an office setting.

Besides college though, he also asked Akemi out, realizing his feelings after seeing his other friends and how they were in love. Akemi accepted and they began their relationship together. Their relationship was new but they did their best to work out any problems and see each other often despite their busy schedules.

Shoji happened to talk with a woman in one of his classes. He found that she was pleasant to talk to and felt like he could talk about anything with her. He mentioned his family life and all the things he’s done to maintain a happy family life. The woman was open and honest with him. She mentioned that that doesn’t seem like a very healthy family life. When she asked about his father, he blanked.

The woman showed concern for him. She told him what others couldn’t and mentioned that therapy could be beneficial. He was clearly repressing memories of his father and his death. He needed to stop taking care of others so much and focus on himself for once. His own health is important.

His eyes had been opened. He wanted to begin therapy to help recover from his trauma surrounding his father’s death and find a way to care for himself more and still look out for his family. He told Akemi and she supported him, along with the rest of his family.

Akemi Tamura’s Story

Akemi Tamura only cared about one thing: Living life to its fullest. After one tragic day when she lost her younger brother, she decided to pick herself up and live happily for him. Her parents did the same. They will always remember him and will always love him. They keep him in their hearts every moment of the day.

Akemi wanted to become the student council president of Sunray High School after picking herself up so that she could care for the whole student body. She had lots of fun and made many friends in the process. She felt like this was the life she was supposed to live.

When she finally made it through her last year of high school, her closest friend had confessed his feelings to her. She was a bit taken back. She hesitated for a moment. Then she thought, my closest guy friend is asking me to be his girlfriend. If I should be anyone’s girlfriend, shouldn’t it be him? After that thought, she accepted and tried to be a good girlfriend to him.

Life got busy and college life was different from high school. She met a more diverse variety of people. She loved meeting new people and making friends. There was a specific woman in her class that caught her attention. She was beautiful and had a great smile. She was kind to everyone and had a calming aura. Akemi wanted to be near her.

While going out with Shoji and making time for this new woman as well, something clicked one day. Akemi thought to herself, is this love? She felt conflicted after realizing that. It wasn’t her closest guy friend who she was now going out with that made her feel this way, it was her new girl friend.

Akemi knew that she found girls cute. But she wasn’t sure if that meant anything. She didn’t feel particularly strongly toward men. Her new friend made her feel stronger feelings for someone than ever before. She finally realized that she liked women. It was a hard truth.

She had to tell Shoji, she couldn’t continue leading him on like this. When she told him, he was of course heartbroken. But he respected her feelings and preferences. They stayed friends after Shoji took some time to process this information.

Akemi waited to pursue anything with another woman. But when her friend actually returned her feelings, they decided to go out. At that point she told her parents about her sexuality. They needed a moment to process it, but in the end they accepted her. She carefully told her friends and some supported her, while others felt uncomfortable.

In the end, Akemi had people who truly cared about her surrounding her and her girlfriend.

Other Stories

Kishi was happily in a relationship with Yorikane. He pursued creative writing in college and eventually managed to publish a book. His classes helped him write his book, along with Yuasa’s feedback as a reader. He wanted to be an author and his family and friends supported his decision. His boyfriend, Yorikane, found work in a sports store, surrounded by something he loved.

Yuasa began to work with his father when he entered college. He was very busy going to school and working, but made time to see Saki and be with her in their free time. He saved up for an apartment that they could live in, away from his judgmental parents and to have some alone time.

Saki got an office job while doodling in her free time. She showed her artwork on the internet and drew commissions for extra money. She eventually worked on a webcomic with Kishi which did well. She wondered if she could quit her office job and draw for webcomics full time. Yuasa supported her decision, he wanted her to do what made her happy.

Saki wanted to move into an apartment with Yuasa, but she was also worried about leaving her father all alone. He said that as long as she visited often, he wouldn’t be lonely. Yuasa bluntly told him to find a woman to go out with and move on from Saki’s mother. They both weren’t happy with his comment. Her father decided that he wouldn’t love another woman, unless it was his daughter.

The six students from Sunray High School were discovering themselves further while working towards their goals in life. They grew up and while some relationships stayed the same, some began to change. They all took on whatever life had in store for them and lived as happily as they could for the rest of their lives.

(Thank you for reading.)