Chapter 2: Memories Remain
Kouta awoke with a start. It was as if he had a nightmare although he could not remember it. He brushed it off and climbed out of bed to get dressed. Once that was done, he walked into the kitchen where Yuka and Nana were both making breakfast. Mayu was sitting at the table, reading a book.
"Good morning." Kouta shouted.
Yuka turned around and when she saw Kouta, she smiled. "Good morning to you too. Breakfast is almost ready." Kouta seated himself next to Mayu. Yuka and Nana served breakfast and coffee and seated themselves. As he was taking a sip, Kouta noticed the grandfather clock in the back. The one that Nyu...no...Lucy...always tried to fix. It had been one year since he had last seen her. Because they thought she was dead, the organization didn't bother searching for Nana and she recovered. The four have been living in peace ever since but not a day went by that Kouta didn't think about that night.
"Kouta? Is something wrong?" Yuka asked, noticing the look on his face.
"It's nothing." Kouta chirped. "I just had a weird dream that I can't seem to remember.
"How do you know you had a dream if you can't remember it then?" Nana asked.
"Sometimes that happens. You can't remember the dream but you just know it happened." Mayu explained
Nana still looked confused but shrugged and continued eating her breakfast. Mayu giggled.
Kouta finished his breakfast quickly and left for work.
"Good bye everyone!"
Yuka, Nana, and Mayu all said their good byes and continued eating. After Kouta left, Yuka frowned. "It's been a year since Nyu left." She thought. " It must be eating him up inside.
Kouta worked in a grocery store as a clerk. It wasn't a high-paying job but it did put food on the table. He got along with his co-workers good enough and never really bothered anyone. Sometimes, however, he could be pretty clumsy. He was dealing with a pretty woman wearing a purple dress and having blonde hair.
"That will be $2.50." He said.
"Can I just put it on my tab? Thanks!" Without waiting for an answer, the woman left.
"We...don't do tabs." Kouta groaned to himself. As he was mentally preparing himself for the next customer, he noticed a pink haired girl in the far aisle. She was wearing a sun hat.
"L-Lucy?" Kouta whispered. The girl never turned her face to Kouta before she walked out of the store. Kouta was disappointed.
"I got to get over these memories." He said to himself. "She's gone and she's never coming back." Kouta stood silent for a moment before sighing. "She's never coming back."