What Are We Doing?

After a short rest, they continued walking. The intense summer heat and humidity of the island made them feel suffocated, and they tried to walk in the shade of the trees.

 Finally, they reached the steps that led down to the path to the beach.

"Hey, Mika, look at this!" Saya exclaimed, running towards something she saw.

"What's going on?"

Saya hurried down a bit more, stopping in front of what she had mentioned earlier, and examined it closely.

"What is it?" Mika asked from a distance.

"Vladivostok 769km, Osaka 485, Tokyo 311..."

"Hmm, they're actually quite close," Mika said.

"We're practically close to Russia from here."

"Yeah, it's like we're on the easternmost island of Japan or something."

"I wish I could go there," Saya said, looking out at the ocean.

"Go where?"

"To Russia..."

"Why?"

"My mom and dad met there."

"Oh, really? I didn't know that. Although being biracial explains a lot."

"Yes, they met under fireworks on Christmas Day. Isn't that romantic? It used to affect me even more when I heard the story," Saya said, her voice sounding sad yet enchanted.

"Maybe you'll go someday."

"Maybe."

They continued to descend.

"Why is the path to the island so narrow?" Mika asked.

"I don't know, but it's an interesting sight," Saya said.

Just then, two middle aged women walked past them.

"Look at these young people, they came all this way for this place," one of them commented.

"How romantic," the other added, and they both burst into giggles.

Saya looked down, embarrassed.

 "Let's just go to the other island and see what's there," Mika suggested.

"Okay."

As they passed through a small crowd, they heard someone say, 

"We don't have much time, we have to hurry."

"Yes, let's take a look and go back," another voice from the crowd said.

"What are they talking about?" Saya asked curiously.

"I don't know, maybe they don't have much time," Mika said.

They crossed to the opposite island together.

"What's that?" Saya wondered.

"I think it's a guide map. It tells you what's where."

"Hmm... doesn't seem like there's much here, but if you want, we can walk along the beach path."

"Sure-"

"Please hurry, the path will be flooded soon," a staff member warned. People were already walking quickly toward the connecting path.

"The path will be flooded?"

"I think this place is a natural bridge that opens and closes periodically. We might be a little late." They had no choice but to turn back. They climbed the stairs again.

"Why are there so many stairs?" Saya panted.

"I don't know, and I don't want to know," Mika said. Exhausted, they finished climbing the stairs and sat on a stone step under a tree. Wearing bathing suits and flip-flops made everything even more difficult.

"Should we turn back?" Mika asked, trying to regain control of his breathing.

"No, there's another place," Saya said, panting as she lay on her back.

"Where?"

"A little further west, there's a place called Onagame. We can take the bus."

"All right, then."

They rested while they waited for the bus. When it finally arrived, Mika forced himself to get on again. 

This time it was less difficult compared to the previous bus, but his whole body was still tense. Saya held his hand, and they arrived at Onagame together.

"Now all we have to do is walk uphill," Saya said. He didn't have much energy to walk, but his legs felt relatively better.

"Where to?"

"That hill," Saya said, pointing with her hand.

"Whaaat?" Mika was surprised.

He hadn't realized it before, but even the thought of walking uphill felt uncomfortable.

 "Come on, we've come this far. We still have about 800 meters to go, let's go!" Saya said, pulling Mika's hand and urging him on.

"Saya, you owe me after this," Mika said, swallowing hard.

"Okay, whatever you want," Saya agreed. There was a short silence, then Saya blushed and shouted, "But not whatever you want!"

"All right, why are you blushing like that?" Mika asked. 

"Mind your own business! Let's just go."

After a climb that wasn't extremely long but felt pretty long to them, they finally reached the top. No one else was around. The sun was setting, but it wasn't completely dark yet.

"We made it!" Saya exclaimed. They were both out of breath and drenched in sweat from the effort, but they had made it.

"We're finally here," Mika said. His body ached from the bus rides and long walks, and he was holding his stomach again.

"What can I do? I do what navigation says," Mika muttered.

As they argued, Mika suddenly caught sight of the view ahead. He began to stare at it silently.

"What's wrong? You're just zoning out, not listening to me!" Saya snapped in annoyance.

"Look at this," Mika said, still not looking at Saya.

Saya looked too. The sun was peeking through the clouds. They could see everything around them: the ocean, trees, mountains, and more. The sun illuminated the path they had taken, creating an almost otherworldly sight. 

Behind them was a stone pillar that resembled an ancient lamp. Mika leaned against it and looked down; they could see the entire path they had walked.

"Amazing..." Mika whispered in awe.

Saya suddenly turned to Mika with a smug look on her face. 

"I told you it was worth coming here. You used to tease me about it, huh?" she said.

"You were right, I apologize," Mika said.

Mika's sudden apology left Saya stunned, not knowing how to respond.

"I-it's okay."

They both looked at the scenery in silence for a while.

"Hey, Mika."

"Yes?"

"Do you think the view at Lake Suwa is better or the view here?"

"Hmm, I don't think we can compare the two, since they are completely different places. Lake Suwa felt very unique, but this place is a whole different realm."

"You're right..."

They started to eat the fruits they had packed in their bags. As they looked out, they also indulged in some snacks.

The sky was starting to turn orange.

"Isn't this a great place to watch the sunset?" Saya asked as she ate grapes.

"Yes. By the way, what time does the bus arrive?"

"Let me check." Saya took out her phone and started checking. 

"I think it's at 7."

"What time is it now?" Mika asked, biting into an apple.

"It's currently 6:55," Saya said.

They looked at each other in silence for a moment. Then Saya's eyes widened and Mika, surprised by her sudden expression, looked at her.

"We're not going to make it!" Saya suddenly stood up and yelled.

"RUN," Mika said. They both gathered their belongings and started running downhill, the wind blowing against them. Saya's hair, with its loose clip, was blown in all directions by the wind. They were in a hurry, running down the gravel path in flip-flops.

"MIKA!"

"YES?" He had to shout for his voice to reach Saya.

"WHAT ARE WE DOING?" Saya yelled, laughing at the same time.

Mika looked to his left. The sun was setting, and they were running as fast as they could downhill to catch the bus. He couldn't even think about what would happen if they missed it. His feet hurt from the flip-flops, and he was also thinking about the bus ride.

"I DON'T KNOW, I THINK WE'RE GOING CRAZY," Saya laughed even harder.

"WHY DOES EVERYTHING HAVE TO BE SO MUCH FUN?" Saya said, enjoying the rush of running downhill as she waved her hands.

"ARE YOU SURE? THIS FEELS MORE LIKE TORTURE TO ME," Mika said. He couldn't think of anything but the pain in his feet, but despite everything, he felt strangely good. This run was making him feel better than he thought it would.

 Under the reddish sky and orange earth, they ran through flowers and grass. He didn't even realize that he was smiling. 

Unintentionally, he laughed. He remembered the old days. The days when he used to run and have fun with Yuki.

 His stomach and shoulders felt as if they would lift him up. He wanted to run more. 

Have more fun...