Hyuuga was on his way to the stadium where the Winter Cup will be held. He decided to stop by somewhere, wondering about a certain girl. He knocked on the door and waited for an answer. Suddenly, the door opened, hitting him on the face. He fell backward and clutched his nose in pain. "Hyuuga-darling! What brings you here?" The lovely blonde girl greeted rather childishly. Hyuuga stood up and growled. "You could have killed someone!" He yelled at her. "How would I know that it was you?" Lilith shouted back, glaring at him. They stared into each other's eyes for fifteen minutes before Hyuuga gave in. He rubbed the back of his head and looked away, blushing. Lilith sighed in return. "So… good luck." She told him.
Hyuuga held out a single rose in front of her, still looking away. "… Take it." He told her. Lilith stared at the rose for a while and realized that it's a yellowish white – much like her pale blonde hair. She giggled and took it with both of her hands. Hyuuga felt his heart pound against his chest as her fingers brushed against his hand so softly. He bowed down and started walking away. "… When I told you that I'm not capable of loving anyone, I meant it." Lilith suddenly said. He stopped in his tracks, remembering the time when she came to see him.
"Hyuuga-darling!"
Hyuuga looked behind him to see his worst nightmare. He doesn't really see her that way anymore. "I came to see you!" Lilith was meters away from him, but not one of them dared to come near. He had a scowl in his face and he was about to ask if she was there to try to kill him again but she spoke up first. "I… I am not capable of loving anyone! But I… broke that bottle of memories. I don't know why it has to be you of all people, but if it's you, I'm ready to start again!"
He gawked at her, wondering what has gotten into her. "You drunk?" He asked. Lilith shook her head and stomped towards him. She grabbed him by the collar viciously. "Listen to me! Someday! Someday you'll give me a rose! A rose to represent my oath today! I'm so sorry for being so vicious to you all the time and for venting out all my frustrations to you but please bear with me!" She then gave him a peck on the cheek and dropped him on the ground. She ran away.
Hyuuga looked back at her with wide eyes. She was giggling girlishly and it made him want to hit her head with a basketball. "Thank you, Junpei." She said, finally speaking his first name. Hyuuga was surprised at the sudden greeting and he felt a huge lump in his throat that he was unable to let out. He turned away quickly and frowned. "Let me defeat that apologetic mushroom first before calling me by my first name." He told her while walking away. "Besides… it'll be a shame if the guy you are willing to open your heart to would lose to your 'ex-boyfriend'."
Lilith watched him walk away while sniffing the rose's sweet scent. "He won't lose that easily. But good luck, then. Sakurai and Hyuuga."
She heard the door open and she immediately looked up to see who entered. Two girls were standing in front of her and smiling warmly. "Good morning, Gale." The one with pale blonde hair greeted as she went near the young girl on the hospital bed and gave her a pat on the head. "How are you feeling?" The smallest one who had white hair and lovely hypnotizing eyes went near to her next. She looked like a really ice-cold person, but Gale felt her warmth somehow. Gale blinked at them and tilted her head. She didn't know who they were, but she kind of felt that she already heard those voices before. Lilith laughed sheepishly. "I see. So you really don't remember." She told her. "My name is Lilith. I'm your Big Sis Lilith!" She introduced herself enthusiastically. Gale nodded and turned to Lia.
Lia gulped as soon as Gale looked at her with her soulful blue eyes. It felt like the time when they first met. "I'm Lia! Nice to meet you again, Gale." She bowed down cheerfully, expecting for Gale to react. To her delight, Gale smiled at her. "My name is… uhh…" Gale stuttered. "Gala—Garan—I mean, Garanthu—Galanthus." She had trouble pronouncing her name, unable to believe that she had such a difficult name.
Suddenly, the door burst open again. "I'm sorry! I just came back from Russia this morning and—" A brunette girl was surprised to see her friends already in the room. She thought it was only Gale, then she remembered that Gale had no idea who she was anymore. Thank Lia for letting her know while she was in Russia. She stepped in shyly and held out a black ribbon between her two hands. "H-Hello…" she greeted Gale. It was really awkward for her, knowing that her closest friend doesn't remember who she was anymore. She walked slowly toward the hospital bed and handed Gale the black ribbon. "You used to put a ribbon at the back of your head. Didn't a guy called Kise tell you?" the brunette asked. Gale just stared at the ribbon without saying anything.
"My name is… Yelena." Yelena introduced herself. Gale nodded at her. "… Who's Kise?" She asked. The three girls in front of her froze in their places. They looked at one another with troubled faces. "Your Ryouta, Gale." Lia was the first to answer. Gale felt a painful jolt of electricity run through her mind. She opened her mouth to say something, but she couldn't say anything. "… Anyways, it's the Winter Cup. And just in case, Gale also forgot about what it is, it is a national basketball tournament where high school basketball teams compete against each other. That's where your Ryouta will play, Gale." Lilith explained with a grin on her face. Yelena suddenly remembered the promise she made with Kuroko. She bit her lip and prevented herself from sobbing.
"About Ko-chan… would he want to see me again?" She asked her friends. Gale had no idea what they were saying anymore. She just listened on in their conversation, trying to make herself remember. "Of course, he will… you're the person he loves the most." Lilith assured her. Lia suddenly laughed. "You have a promise with Hyuuga, too, right?" She asked her elder sister. Lilith hit her on the head and started screaming gibberish at her while blushing terribly. Gale widened her eyes at the violence in front of her, wondering if she was that violent before. Lia clutched her head, still laughing. "It's alright… Akashi's the same." She told them.
Yelena and Lilith looked at each other and covered their mouths to prevent their boisterous laughter. "A promise of protection." Yelena told them and nodded to herself. Lilith sighed and looked at Gale, who was just watching curiously. "Ours is a promise of a new beginning." She closed her eyes. Lia's lips curved upward as she reminisced about last summer. It was the most magical. "A promise of forever." Lia clutched her new necklace. It was a ring necklace and it was a "farewell for now" gift from her beloved.
They all looked at Gale, feeling a bit sad that she doesn't remember anything. Gale tilted her head at them, although she somehow found their words really familiar. What was she missing, anyway? She looked at the black ribbon on her hands blankly. "… I don't remember…" She told them.
"No matter what… you'll always be happy. Even if you can't make yourself happy, I'll be right here to hold your hand."
She suddenly looked at them again with wide eyes. "A promise… of… happiness… from whom?" She touched her forehead, wondering where that voice came from. The three girls' eyes widened. "…Kise is amazing. He really can make her remember." Lilith commented. "Well… for now…" Yelena suggested. "Let's start something new again."
They all nodded in agreement. Lilith put her arms around both Yelena and Lia and laughed loudly. Gale felt that she was quickly adjusting to them. "… After all, we now know what a pure unselfish love is, although we were almost close to killing ourselves just to find its meaning…"