Endless waves

"It reminds me of my Mom's rented room... I'll try not to get it that dirty, though." He joked by himself and, I didn't laugh. He then kept talking about very random things about his new home. How the water pressure was just perfect, and how the ceiling was just high enough.

I'd been inside a few times by now, and the windows were at a good height. The problem though, was that the view was obstructed by other buildings, and he could only see the sky. Again.

"When I get a better house, I'm going to have all the windows in the world! I'll buy a telescope and look at people all around!" He excitedly said.

"Binoculars, not telescope. And I'm pretty sure that's a crime." I replied and he told me not to bum out his dreams. "Telescope is for seeing stars and moon and stuff like that." He just told me to shut up and it made me laugh.

After a while, I felt his voice turn groggy with sleep.

"Are you free this Sunday?" I asked, trying to stop the yawn that suddenly came out.

"Why?" He made a soft sleepy sound too. "Are you asking me out on a date?"

"Maybe I am," I said. "Will you go?"

"Don't tease me Souma, you know I don't like it." He said. "If you're done talking then go to sleep, we both have school."

"Wait, I really want to go to the beach on Sunday." He replied that I didn't have to take Yuki so seriously. "It's not because of him. We've done so many things already, right? Let's do this last one."

"Souma for sure has a sister complex, hehe..." He giggled and then didn't respond no matter what I said. I was half worried if he went to sleep or fainted again, but I decided to trust my instincts and go to sleep. The next morning, Hikari waited for me at the crossing. It would become a routine from now on, and I liked it. Just one last thing was remaining.

"It's getting colder and we can't even swim... let's just go during the Summer break."

"But then it'll be full of people," I said and he sighed. "Why are you so against it?"

"I'm not against it, just that..." He looked at me for a second. "Nevermind."

I think I know what's making him anxious, but I was not like Yuki. I'd made up my mind and I was certain of what I wanted. I care about the people who matter to me, just like Saeko used to. So, I won't make him wait anymore.

We took the bus, and it was cold.

The sea breeze made Hikari sneeze a few times and he kept wiping his nose with his handkerchief. He cursed his weak immunity and cursed me for being like a 'rock'. "I get sick more often than you think I do," I said and that just made him more angry.

When we reached, the whole place was completely empty.

We saw a small shop selling sweet potatoes, "Let's get that," I told Hikari hoping it'd warm him up somewhat. He agreed and we bought it. I don't really like sweet potato, ugh, I thought, chewing on the mushy flesh. Hikari peeled off the skin, event though it was very thin. He occasionally blew air on it, and took small bites like a mouse.

Then we started walking along the shore. "This is so boring, the whole beach is empty."

"I think it's fine, we have the whole beach to ourselves," I said. "Want to go into the water?"

"I'm going to drown you," Hikari warned.

We kept walking endlessly. The coastline was long, and we could occasionally hear fishing boats and seagulls making some noise. Otherwise, it was just the clashing sound of waves.

"Remember that children's story about counting waves?" Hikari asked.
"I'm not sure... I'm not so good with those."
"I think I made that up." He laughed.

We were both done eating, so we held hands and stood at one point for a minute. It was relaxing, and I wanted to do it again. I told him that I'd never come to the beach other than summer before, and he said that this was his first time seeing the sea. "That's insane."

"I know, right? I sound like a country bumpkin." He laughed.

He paused for a while and then asked. "What now, Souma? We're done now."

"Yeah, we're done now," I said and looked in his direction. His eyes looked glassy and I couldn't confirm whether it was the wind or if he was really going to cry.

"After this, I'm not doing anything for her anymore. Now it'll be about us." I told him and tightened my grasp on his hand. "And..." I stared into his eyes again.

I leaned in and kissed him. I kept my eyes closed, and when I opened them, I saw him open his eyes after me. "I like you too," I said, feeling sort of shy. "I'm not too late, right?"

"Almost too late."

It scared me to think what might have happened, if Hikari chose not to approach me. Perhaps, I'd still be thinking about Saeko all the time and would never get over the guilt of not knowing her well enough. Or maybe, it would all be fine too.

But Hikari and I met rather coincidentally. And that makes me glad for this turn of events. 

We stayed there for some more time until the sun had started to set. Hikari's eyes glistened with the orange sky, and the same colour reflected on the sea. The waves kept crashing forward and then running away again. It was all perfect.

"Thank you for waiting for me"