Chapter 2: Her Tears that Seeped into my Heart
Hayato didn't wait for Yuri to say anything else.
He ran straight into her arms and hugged her tight.
Yuri-nechan, don't cry!" he cried, and this made Yuri confused.
"eh?" she asked.
He pulled away from her chest and looked up at her.
"you were looking sad again, you weren't smiling again." he said, and she realized that he had been watching her.
"Hayato-kun, thank you for being worried, but lI'm fine." she said calmly.
"Yuri-nechan, please don't lie to me.
I have known you for how long already.
The real Yuri-nechan I know would always smile and tell the truth, even if it hurt her, even if it made her cry." and his words echoed in Yuri's mind.
Her hand balled up into a fist to try to keep her from crying.
"Hayato-kun..." she trailed off, not knowing what to say to her friend.
She pulled Hayato away from her and kneeled down to his level.
"I'm sorry if I made you worry, but I'm really fine." she said, but he shook his head.
"if you're really fine, then why can I see your tears?" he asked.
It was then that Yuri felt tears run down her cheeks as she saw her friend begin to cry as well.
Yuri couldn't hide the truth any more.
Though she did not say anything, she brought Hayato into a hug as he began to bawl.
All her life, Yuri hid her true self away, but she revealed too much under her mask to him. N
ow he had cracked that mask she wore, even if it was a little crack.
Hayato wrapped his arms around her neck and calmed down a little.
While Yuri could still hear her friend's sobs, she, herself, tried not to make a sound, even though tears were already streaming down her face.
"Hayato-kun... You've been observing me this whole time, haven't you?" she asked.
Hayato simply nodded.
Yuri slowly pulled away from him, and wiped his tears away with her hand.
"thank you, Hayato-kun." she began, standing up herself.
"Yuri-nechan?" he asked.
Yuri took off her glasses and proceeded to wipe her tears away before placing them back on
"thank you, for your kindness." she continued, giving him a small but painful smile.
Hayato knew that deep inside she was still hurt, but said nothing as he fiddled with his fingers.
His eyes darted to the red spider lilies.
"Yuri-nechan, you still miss your father, don't you?" he asked, and he stole a glance at Yuri, who was also looking down at the flowers.
She closed her eyes and nodded.
"of course I do. After all, he's my father. He's family." she replied.
Her words touched his heart.
Suddenly, the doors of the Botanical Garden opened.
Their attention directed to whoever it was that came in.
"oh, if it isn't Hayato-kun and Yuri-chan." Kauruko said, stepping inside.
"Kauruko-san, we're sorry to have intruded like this." Yuri began, but she shook her head and smiled.
"I'm happy when people come and visit. Come sit down, let's have some tea." she said, heading towards the small table at the other end of the garden.
I think I'll pass, Hanasaki-san." Hayato said, but Kauruko shook her head.
"don't be shy, Hayato-kun." she said, gesturing to the table.
But Hayato didn't want to stay any longer.
He bid a quick goodbye to them before running off.
"Hayato-kun!" Yuri cried.
She was about to run after him when Kauruko placed a hand on Yuri's shoulder.
"no, leave him be, Yuri-chan. I'm sure that boy has things he needs to do." she said as she watched him run off.
Yuri just watched him disappear on the horizon.
"Hayato-kun..."