BGM: Sicilienne, Op. 78, by Gabriel Fauré

"…"

He slowly woke up to a welcoming warmth. His mind turned on and began to take in details. He was in a small room, and he was leaning against huge pillows, almost sitting up on a small bed, which was just long enough to take him in that half-lying positon. But it was soft. Everything was soft. There was a refreshing exotic scent everywhere. Lavish curtains covered the windows. A rich ceramic set, one large bowl and three smaller ones, with silver cutlery. An ornate antique clock graced one side, ticking softly. This was no hospital ward. A private residence, then? Why was he even here?

"…"

Ah, yes. This is a mansion. He has come to talk to Miss Nanjou. So she actually took him in, huh? But he didn't expect it to be like this. What if he just went to the hotel instead? Maybe going straight to her own gate was a little extreme.

But he was here for Nanaka. Miss Nanjou knew Nanaka. She got to listen to him.

"..."

Yoshiyuki let the drowsiness overtake him once more. He was missing his girl again; so far his sleep was dreamless but perhaps this time he'll meet her. He went back to rest.

A short while later he felt a soft hand touch his cheek, checking if he had a fever. He relished it; with a weak smile he took hold of it and kept it on his cheek. "Nanaka…"

Anna stared down at him uneasily, but allowed her hand to rest on his face for a while. At length, she very gently slipped it out of his grasp, whereupon his eyes fluttered open. "What…" he groaned hoarsely. As his blurred vision resolved itself he saw her, focused on him with a look of concern. "Nanjou…senpai?" He quickly roused and sat up in bed. "You came for me." He was about to lunge at her and make his desperate plea, but she stilled him with a wave of her hand and motioned him to take his soup.

#10. An Old Friend of Nanaka's

Soon, they were eating together in awkward silence, but he only picked absently at the food. Anna made the hot chocolate herself and poured the both of them a cupful every now and then. Finally, he broke the silence. "I'm good now. I don't really need…"

"You don't need to eat?" she said pouring him another cup.

"I don't intend to be a bother."

She dropped an extra sugar cube and offered it to him. He continued,

"I only want one thing."

"I know," she said softly. "You don't have to tell me. That's why I must treat you with a bit more hospitality. Because I can't give it to you."

What do you mean you can't? How could she have read him so quickly?

He grinned trying to wave it off. "You don't understand. I'm only asking you to talk to Nanaka. I don't know how you'd convince her, I just want her to take me back."

"I told you I can't."

What is this nonsense?! Can't you invoke old times, cajole her, bribe her even? You have the world in your hands, you're nothing short of useless if you can't pull off something as simple as this.

He was arrested by a tender rub at the back of his head. Anna tried to smile at him, but the sadness seeped through her face. "Let me tell you a short history."

The ticking of the wall clock seemed to have grown a bit louder in the stillness of the room.

"Do you remember the Kubo sisters? They once vacationed here in the islands when they were little."

The family stayed over at a manor-like guesthouse in the wooded hills of Otou-san with one other family. At the end of the first week the other family has left, and with the parents on some business at the Nanjou estate on the other island, the children were left with just a single governess in a large and largely empty house.

"Ahahahahah!" The two girls, nine-year-old Arisa and five-year-old Ai, chased each other all over the second floor, making a racket with the wooden flooring and giving the servant a headache.

"Madam, please!" cried the governess joining in the pursuit.

But there were so many nooks and corners, with room upon empty room, and soon enough the girls were playing hide-and-seek with her. "Nee-tan," whispered Ai excitedly, "let's creep to garden!"

"Shhhh! I'll test our chances. You stay here."

Arisa crawled from under the bed and stood on her toes, and carefully peeked out the door. The governess was off to the end of the corridor with her back to them. She bolted out of the room, but the servant caught the thud of her footfalls. "Madam!" She rushed after the kid. Arisa was now grinning with sheer thrill pounding the stairs hard on the way to the backyard. Ai saw the governess sail past through the gap in the door and quickly scrambled out of the room to go in the other direction. Pulled both ways, the old lady sure won't catch the both of them now.

On other days, they rolled around in the lawn, where lay countless wild blooms, disturbing the butterflies, while the governess sat on a tree stump in the distance yelling at them to stay within sight. She was in fact already thinking of asking for a raise, having to deal with kids.

Idyllic days, they were.

To children, a few such days can feel like fifty years, so when Papa came back home dejected before the week was out with some shocking news, it was the end of an age.

Mama clung to the girls tearfully as Papa explained that Arisa will have to stay behind with the Nanjous. He had made a reckless, half-drunk bet with Mrs. Nanjou over a game of craps. His money was largely gone. And now the woman was demanding a playmate for her lonely little daughter in lieu of the money.

Young Anna wasted no time with her new housemate. The first month, she was playing with Arisa everyday at tea time.

"Jan-ken-pon!" Anna lost. "Awww~ Guess I must take the penalty. Here." She tapped her cheek with a cat smile. Arisa, trembling, raised her fist but weakly, intimidated by the bevy of servants surrounding them, one of whom was a muscular valet. She threw a weak punch that merely glanced Anna's face.

"Jan-ken-pon!"

This time Arisa's blood drained from her face. Anna won. "Look away!" she ordered. The poor girl gritted her teeth and closed her eyes.

Slap.

More of those blows echoed as Anna won match after match, until Arisa's cheeks grew red enough to make the servants take her away for treatment.

On another occasion Arisa escaped an enforced tea party in an ornate doll costume. The clothing felt stuffy and wasn't good at all for running, she fell at least twice before scrambling back onto her feet. She dashed aimlessly through the corridors like a headless chicken, desperate for an exit. But Anna purposely made the girl tire herself running around, before deciding to pounce at a bend only she knew about.

"Gotcha!"

It was so much fun to pin down the wildly struggling Arisa, lika a snake holding on to a frog it has caught, and in fact at that moment she actually felt like quite the predator. She bit Arisa's ear.

The chilling shriek prompted a squad of maids down to the hallway. With Anna, it always had to be at least four or five of them. They managed to pull away the Kubo girl form a loudly complaining Anna. When they showed her the bleeding wound, she quieted down with a huff. From there, there was to be no more violent episodes for the time being.

In the following weeks, Anna's malice was channeled to humiliating Arisa by treating her as a general servant girl, mostly with pointless chores. To be sure, she had done that on a maid before, but the staff have since learned to deal with Anna and formed these brigades of attendants which were not so easy to bully-and which made the young lady feel more important, anyways. The lone Arisa had no such benefit.

At some point the young heiress grew bored with just a single plaything. For a few days Arisa was left alone in her room crying for her parents, but mostly she had peace and quiet at least, and more often she slept, recovering her strength, while being attended to by the servants with the usual luxury of the Nanjou household.

At the end of that period Anna reappeared at her doorway, much to her terror. The little ojou brought with her another girl Arisa's age which she picked up from a nearby dive shop. From then on, Arisa and the newcomer shared the room.

But companionship alone could not dispel that sense of dread about what tomorrow might bring—to be sure, it will definitely bring Anna.

"Ne," she said as they lay in bed, "did they take you from your Daddy and Mommy, too?"

"Nuh-uh. I'm living with my Grandpa."

Arisa clutched her blanket anxiously. "Is he going to visit you? You must be from around here, right? He can come to you, right?" She sobbed a bit and wiped her nose. "M-Maybe I can go with you when he fetches you out of here."

"Hmmm…" Nanaka played her tongue in her cheek. "I wonder if he will."

Arisa only gaped at her.

"I told him I'll be OK, but he just kept chasing and chasing after me. I think he was gunna cry." Giggle. "Grandpa is too old to cry."

Mr. Mori met the delegation of tough-looking agents who inexplicably appeared just outside the longhouse (the only structure at the time). He knew they were form the Nanjous, who had tried to buy his property once, eyeing the magnificent cove, back when Nanaka's parents were still staying in the Kyunins. Are they going to force a deal now, knowing only he and a little kid was left?

The kid held on to him, curious about the strangers. They didn't dress like they were here to dive—business suits, shades… Aliens? What was that movie again? They were here before. Is Grandpa going to raise his voice again? Is he going to say he'd rather die in in his home than drift away someplace where he had no roots? (Is he secretly some kind of tree? wondered Nanaka.) He also told her he would do absolutely anything, yes, even die, just to protect the shop and their home. That bravado successfully communicated itself to the little girl and today she wasn't really so scared.

But this time around, what's really going on in Grandpa's head was quite different. Even back then he was afraid that if something happened to him it will be easy to hurt little Nanaka. Are they going to kidnap her now to force him to negotiate? It won't be so simple to just die if the girl is at stake.

True enough, "We need the child, Mr. Mori."

"No," he hissed.

The lead man only chuckled. "Still a stubborn old man, I see. But we'll let her decide." He took out a bag full of chocolates and sat down to the girl's level offering her the goodies and bypassing the grandfather.

"Stop with this nonsense!" roared Mr. Mori. "One more move and I will have the police over here." This, in the face of Okaa-san being so remote and the Kyunins barely having law enforcement of any kind. But he was so desperate now.

"It's just a little girl, Gramps. Or maybe you both want to live in a boat." Dry cackle.

Nanaka, for her part, was dazzled at the sweets, but still looked to Grandpa for permission. He looked quite confused, unable to tell her what to do, so she simply recalled what she had heard from him before. If Grandpa said it's better to die protecting the shop, this one shouldn't be too hard. She stepped forward and took the chocolates, much to Mr. Mori's horror, and much to the men's perverse delight. The rest immediately escorted her. "Gooood girl! Her brain's still fresh. It will only get better."

"Nanaka!"

She only looked back as though she just forgot something.

"You can't trust them! Listen to me. They will lock you up!"

She smiled sunnily, ever the cheerful girl. "Grandpa, I'll be fine. I'll be back tonight."

"Nanaka!"

"Please look after the shop." Giggle.

"Ciao!"

Before she knew it, it was morning already.

Arisa stared in horror as Anna herself entered their room with her troop of maids dressed in her tea-party doll costume—a sure sign she was up to no good. Can't she spare them even just an hour to themselves?! But Anna had already pounced at the foot of the bed making Arisa cling to Nanaka in fright. The girl only regarded Anna quizzically. "Ohayou, Ojou-sama. You're dressed so early this morning."

"Ohf courz! We're having an all-day tea party today. And our very first game will be… jan-ken-pon!"

Arisa's hair stood on end. "Don't play it!" she whispered loudly in Nanaka's ear. "She'll hurt you!"

"Liar!" snapped Anna. To Nanaka, "Don't listen to that sniveling runt. It's fun! The funnest thing you'll ever know! I had so much fun with it, so why not you?" She grinned maliciously and made a menacing motion with her hands as with an eagle claws ready to catch its prey; Arisa instantly knew and frantically shielded her breasts with the pillow. "The loser," continued Anna, "will have to take off her bra as punishment!"

Everybody gasped and the butler, shocked, tried to talk to Ojou but was thrown back by a fierce look. No way will these dummies spoil her fun.

Nanaka gulped. She looked troubled for a moment. She certainly didn't like to be touched, either, but, "Ojou-san, what if I win?"

"Eh…?"

"I wouldn't want to do that to Ojou-san.

"We had plenty of visitors at the shop who had fabulous figures and we never did that to any of them. Grandpa said they'll be mad at us if we did. So maybe Ojou-san'll be mad at me if I did."

"..."

A state of bewildered dismay seized Anna and the servants around her, while those at the back (as well as Arisa) snickered under their breaths. The one next to Anna whispered to her to just let them go. "Arrrgh!" she yelled at Nanaka. "That's why I'm not gonna lose to you!" She huffed and stormed out of the room with the embarrassed servants in tow.

"Alright," said Anna later at the game. She faced Nanaka as they sat on the carpet while Arisa poured them tea as their slave of the day. "This will be best of three. Consequence: The loser will sniff the winner's pits."

Everybody was uneasy at this new gimmick but it was worlds better.

She raised her arm to emphasize. "Lookie. My pits are the whitest in all of Japan. I'm sure you wouldn't mind sniffing these. Right?" She suddenly lunged at Nanaka. "But I won't lose to you, you hear?! I'll have none of your gross peasant sweat!"

They began the round. Nanaka won. She seems to be pretty experienced with this. Maybe Grandpa taught her. "Wait," said Anna. "That's just a warm-up. Let's make it best of five. This time's for real!"

Nanka happily agreed. She was enjoying the game way more than Anna, and drawing it out only made it better. She won again. "Let's make it ten!" Then ensued, much to Arisa's astonishment, a furious play where each side bested the other in equal measure, but in the end… Nanaka won out. Anna only managed to prevail on individual turns, while Nanaka took all the matches, three, five, and ten, as though she was Alexander the Great. She giggled at the blanched-faced Anna.

"Want to make it twenty?" she said raising her armpits. They were every bit as white as Anna's.

Anna was in no mood to tire herself any further. There's nothing left but to take the penalty. "I hate peasant sweat!" she whined.

"Ojou-san, you keep changing the rules. Now you must let me change the penalty."

"No fair!"

"You want my spicy pits? Sure, go ahead!" Giggle.

Anna went limp. "OK," she groaned, hoping the girl won't outdo her in malice. She turned an eye on her servants silently telling them to dampen the punishment, but they only looked away.

"This time," said Nanaka getting close to her, "the winner will hug the loser. Haggu shiyo!" And she wrapped herself around her.

Gasp.

So… So soft…

So warm.

Anna couldn't tell where this mysterious feeling was coming from, but it felt the same as that half-forgotten age when she was five, a simpler time when both her parents took her to the garden in her mother's house, the old guesthouse in Otou-san, and played with her the whole afternoon. Back before her father went away for months on end, and her mother's old gambling friends came over in his stead.

In the following days Anna had them do a music video with assistance in such things as the camcorder from the servants. For their part, Anna gave them each an… umbrella?

She made them stand by the pool with the things open and sing something being played from the phone. So far only Nanaka was able to put up a satisfactory performance, while Arisa got constantly yelled at for her often squeaky voice. It was the same with the dancing; Nanaka had little trouble following along with the maid, being the more athletic one, though Arisa was making some progress. Other times Nanaka would stop to coach her on the spot while Anna looked on impatiently.

Over time, there were fewer yells as Arisa caught up, and even the servants were hugely enjoying the sweet girl voices and fluid girl moves that graced the poolside.

One day, "Ahright!" Anna said jumping up from her beach chair. "Time for the star of the show to join in. Ansley, give me an umbrella."

Insert Song:

Marine Border Parasol

Lyrics: Aki Hata; Composition: Akira Sunset and Ulala; Arrangement: Kyou Takada.

They had a few more shoots of the performance after that.

In the evenings, as if to make up for the day's business, Anna brought them sweet treats in their room after dinner, and would regal them with boastful tales of places she had been to and luxuries she enjoyed all over the world, which only Nanaka cared to listen to, while Arisa's attention was on how good the macarons were.

One day Anna placed a new demand: they must swim clear across the pool and then sing a line or two, right after they get out of the water. "But that's what I see on TV!" insisted Anna, obviously without the least inkling about video editing, even as both girls were appalled. Arisa couldn't swim, and even Nanaka knew for a fact that moving through the water was no joke. This time the servants were quite vocal protesting to the young heiress to let them go just this once, but she would have none of them. With a megaphone, she got up on a lifeguard chair and ordered the girls to the poolside.

"Ojou-chan!" called Nanaka. "Let me teach her to swim first!" That was it. She threw down the megaphone in a fit of rage and stormed away from the pool yelling they weren't to have any dinner tonight. But Nanaka didn't mind her one bit. "Hora," she told Arisa, "let's do the basics first, OK?"

They spent the rest of the day in the pool watched over by sympathetic maids, until Arisa was somewhat familiarized with the water. By late afternoon she was teaching to Arisa to use her feet and to keep her body light in the water.

This whole time Anna had been watching from behind the curtain on the third floor, longingly, seeing those two having a good time at the pool without her.

The following day Anna canceled the music video, and from then on she left the two alone most of the day, contenting herself with snide remarks, mostly to Arisa, whenever they ate together at the table, and with visiting in the evenings to play board games or teach barista tricks she copied from Ansley and mastered at a tender age. It was at these visits that they noticed her taking a particular liking to Nanaka. "Hey," she once said, "can you tell me a bedtime story?" And she would cuddle up on her lap seeking that same warmth from that earlier hug, even as Arisa rolled her eyes. What a baby.

"Careful now," she told Nanaka as soon as the ojou dozed off, "she might pee on your skirt for all I care."

Nanaka only laughed. "Don't worry, Arisa-chan, you're next. You two will be my babies tonight." Wink.

"Eh? N-No, I'm OK. I can make myself sleep."

"Oh? But you were crying sometimes. I don't want you to put yourself to sleep."

"Urrrr…" What else is there to say about this? "What do you care…?" she said weakly. "I can still put myself to sleep, that's the point."

"But oh, I got really really good stories. You heard what I just told Ojou-chan? The tale of The Monkey and the Turtle is funnier." They were startled by Anna stirring in her sleep. "Shhhh…" And they both giggled softly. Arisa crept over and joined Nanaka in gazing at Anna's sleeping form. She looked unusually pretty. Well, maybe everybody looks cuter when asleep, but if so, then they learned it first from Anna. And Nanaka had no qualms telling that to her face first thing in the morning.

"Oh, indeed?" said Anna smugly, hearing that as they walked down the garden path, her back to them as she strode ahead in her alpha-girl position. "All of Mama's card amigas tell me that. You're so dumb not to realize it sooner."

Arisa whispered to Nanaka. "Is it really a good idea to say that? She's gunna launch into another self-important speech. You just wait for it when we get down to tea."

"Now that I think of it," continued Anna, "I also realized something." She paused for dramatic effect as Nanaka awaited her breathlessly and Arisa scowled impatiently. She turned to them in a magnificent flourish. "You, Nanan-chan, you're also supremely cute!" She grabbed her in a fierce hug and whirled her round and round laughing like a toddler. "You're worthy to be in my inner circle."

Arisa secretly wanted to roll her eyes again, say something sassy again, but much to her chagrin she felt something else entirely, and it showed. "And what about me? I'm not cute?"

Nanaka just laughed it off and hugged Anna in return—the little ojou loved that—and then went to Arisa to hug and whirl her around, too, even while the girl wailed in fright. Now the both of them were picking on her! More than that, she sat Arisa on her lap and pinched her cheek. "You're the cutest little baby around, ne, Ojou-chan?"

"I'm not a baby!"

"Oh yes, you are!" Ojou-chan, come on, let's tickle little Arisa-tan!" Anna was not one to let an opportunity to do mischief on Arisa pass so she with a toothy grin she joined Nanaka.

For the rest of the morning the laughter of all three filled the garden, and from a window the butler looked on approvingly. Anna had always been sulky and mean; this was the first time since a more innocent age that she smiled like that.

One cloudy afternoon Mrs. Nanjou decided to have the three girls over at the Mystic veranda for tea. Anna was bragging to everyone about the new gadgets and designer dresses, even jewelry, she will be getting from relatives abroad and how she was becoming popular on Instagram, while Nanaka listened in fascination and Arisa only minded the custard pie.

"Afonso is a third cousin of mine," she told Nanaka. "He usually stays over at Singapore. I hear he's gonna buy a small kingdom from a sultan. Once he becomes king, he'll name me a princess!"

"Wow," breathed Nanaka. "Are they gonna write a book about you?"

"Ahf cahrz! I'll be in the front page of the news all the time!"

Mrs. Nanjou laughed indulgently. "My side have several kin who are distantly related to royalty. No wonder I named my girl appropriately, after historical princesses! No stupid storybook lasses for me, oh no. She's Mariamne Anna Komnena Ohayon-Nanjou in full. You girls are fortunate to be in the presence of blue blood everyday."

"But when I grow up," seconded Anna, "I will be the one look for a prince of my choosing before anybody can lay eyes on moi."

"Anna," her mother smiled uneasily, "the gentlemen should be the ones gathering at your feet. That's much more ladylike."

Anna laughed out very loud, and then frowned. "Iz all joke, Mama, don't be a nag." Smiling at the girls again, "Have more cake!"

As the meal was winding down the butler went up to Mrs. Nanjou and showed something on the phone. On the screen was a monitor for the street gate, and right there was Nanaka's grandfather. "Madam, isn't he the dive shop owner?"

Nanaka perked up and rushed over to see. "Jiji!" she said excitedly. "He came to fetch me! I'm gonna have a lot to tell him."

The lady sighed. "You're going to talk to him? Please tell him to come back later and contact the major-domo if he wants to talk to us properly. Ansley, go with her just to make sure."

"Uhn!" the child happily assented and dashed off.

The patter of Nanaka's footsteps receded and finally disappeared from the Mystic. Silence reigned afterwards; Mrs. Nanjou went on to finish the last of her tea, whilst Arisa and the servants froze in place, sensing something unpleasant. Anna was stiff and white as a starched apron. "Mama!" she finally wailed standing up with a ruckus that startled everybody. "Why did you let her escape?! Why?!"

"Relax, dear," she replied a bit irritably, "it's not like the man can actually up and take your girl home just like that."

"You heard it, right?!" she said grabbing Mom by the collar. "She said he'll fetch her! Stop her Mama, stop her!"

The lady stood up to go and turned her back on her child. "Don't bother me, Anna," she dismissed. "You got the servants. She's your playmate, you go after her." And she walked away, leaving the remaining servants and the hapless Arisa to deal with the lit fuse. "What are you standing there for?!" she screamed. "Get her back! If I she gets away, you won't have your month's pay, I swear it! Go! Go!"

Nanaka has already slipped past the front door before the hesitant servants could radio security about the fleet-footed girl now dashing across the open terrace, intending to actually go down the tunnel to the street gate. With a bit more exertion they caught up to her.

"Wait!" she cried trying to break free. "Grandpa's waiting for me!"

Even now, the butler wanted to at least let the girl talk over the intercom, if only Anna didn't arrive at the scene bounding across the terrace, Arisa hard on her heels. As soon as she got within reach of Nanaka's hair she grabbed her and dragged her with it. "Fool! Your Grandpa is dead! You're my property now!" The servants took them apart before everything went out of hand as Arisa stared in terror. Nanaka had been someone to hold on to through the whole ordeal of this place, and she was just literally reduced to a mere toy. She sank to her knees bawling and had to be attended to, as well.

"Lock them up," panted Anna. No lunch and no dinner for them! Hole them up at the attic! Put the mastiff at the door!"

The dog they deemed a bit excessive but they promised to have it first thing tomorrow and simply deposited the girls upstairs, slipping in a plateful of cookies every so often.

Anna in the meantime cried the whole day in her room. The threat of losing that hug was too great for her to deal with. Come evening, she went to the cell and checked on the girls through a peephole, forgetting to care about the empty cookie plates or the absence of a mastiff. But they will be detained. She did this for a few more days.

Late in the afternoon of the last day, her father arrived from Europe.

Over the table at dinner, Anna was not in her show-off mood, for one, Dad was more reserved and didn't seem as interested in her dresses, and she was also debating in herself whether to show off her girls, too, who she was still a wee bit mad at, so the conversation was largely subdued and dominated by her parents. Tch. If only that old fool didn't show up, it wouldn't have been so boring right now.

The meal began to wind down in silence, save for the clattering of the dishes put away by the servants. Anna felt like going to bed already, and her father offered to let her sleep in the master's bedroom, which let a lot more air in, but she wasn't so interested, sluggishly pulling herself off the chair.

Just then, a maid rushed into the dining hall. "Sir! Madam! The girls!"

Mr. Nanjou was surprised. "What girls?'

Mrs. Nanjou began to feel uneasy, She had neglected to inform her husband, thinking that Anna gathering playmates was par for the course. Anna herself grew very anxious, and when her father followed the maid upstairs she trailed closely behind.

Arisa lay on the floor; she had fainted from hunger, it turned out, she was too upset to eat the food the servants slipped in, not that they could do it often with Anna checking on the room by the hour. Nanaka was trying to force-feed milk into her, well at least it got her coughing and revived, though still weak. Father and daughter arrived at the scene, and he grilled the little girl at once. "What is this, Anna?! Who are they?"

When Anna could not answer coherently, Nanaka spoke up and explained everything. Whereupon Dad turned on Anna and roared at her to do her own explaining. "Why are you even bothering with them?" she retorted in fright. "Do I have to detail every last person I ever talked to?"

Slap.

Anna raised a shaking hand to her hot cheek. Did this just actually happen?! But she wasn't done with Dad yet. She glared at him and said, "I'll tell Mama you did this! I'll make sure—"

Slap.

Anna felt both of her cheeks burning, in utter disbelief. Her shocked eyes didn't notice the tears seeping through. And then… her next thought wasn't on Dad. She turned to stare at Nanaka, holding the coughing Arisa by hand. Their eyes met—she saw everything. Her Nanaka saw everything. She saw her (laid low). Flashbacks of her hitting Arisa came back to her—and for a terrible moment she thought she saw a look of satisfaction in those calm, almost blank blue eyes. It was then that she gave way to bawling. But there wasn't much time for that as Dad dragged her away screaming. Her terrified cries filled the hallway for a moment before fading rapidly into the distance, and then a heavy silence fell upon the room.

Nanaka caressed Arisa's hair just as the girl's eyes flickered open, throwing her a look that asked what the commotion had been about.

"Arisa-chan," she said,

"we're free."

Anna stood up and went over to the window. It was an east-facing one, and as soon as she drew the curtains back just a bit, a ray of golden light fell on Yoshiyuki's lap in bed. Basking in the sunrise, her face was radiant, dreamlike, as she closed her eyes and felt the early morning warmth… and recalled some more memories.

"Papa sent me to international school the following year. But I kept following Arisa and Nanaka as best I could. .. I fired off letters to them, asking to be friends again. Later, I followed their Line and other accounts. There was still a little blend of bragging the first months—I wanted to regain my face, after all—but as time went by, it felt more and more pointless.

"I wasn't the only princess in the house now. There were other children of my age and status who didn't look up to me, who weren't dazzled by me, who could talk behind my back every now and then. I had to know my place. I made friends there, yes, but at a price, I had to work hard to put up an act all the time, be polite, be nice, everything I never was. But my friends also put up an act, I never did find anyone to be truly close to. Soon I was sending letters to the islands again, I still did not apologize, no, but I didn't brag anymore and all I did was just invite them to write to me so we could at least be pen pals.

"Especially Nanaka.

"The longer I stayed at that school, the more I longed for that innocence, that genuineness… that hug… I cried in bed some nights but I can never show my tears ever again, no, even now that we can finally see other.

"I want to make it up them completely first, however I can, and then…" Her voice started to break and her lips quivered. "And then… I won't just cry. I will embrace them to me. I will treasure them, never let go. The next time they live in my house, I will show only love… nothing but love…

"But somehow I feel, nothing I ever did for them was so far was enough. It feels like I haven't even started. Nanaka, I know she has accepted me now, but I still feel I haven't repaid her in full. The largesse, the gifts, the trips, everything I've offered her she all turned down. The farthest I ever went was support the club, but even then she was just an advisor.

"She said she's happy the way she is. But… But where would that leave me?! Is there really nothing I can do for her?"

Anna paused to collect herself. "My Nanaka does not believe in wealth. She is strong and whole on her own. This is my only chance to return a favor to her on her own terms, so if you want to force a talk from her, you can't make me do it.

"And even you, please don't do it. Treat her as the pearl pendant that she is—don't crack her in an overly tight grip, but cup her in your hands as you marvel at her beauty.

"Love her. Please love my Nanaka."

Insert ED Song:

Brightest Melody

Single by Aqours

Released on February 6, 2019.

Lyrics: Aki Hata; Composition: Hajime Mitsumasu; Arrangement: EFFY.

Things have cooled down some in the following days. Yoshiyuki stayed home now even if he barely talked to his Grandmother, otherwise things went on as usual. He helped around the house and helped cook dinner. Professsor Albright dropped by every so often to talk whenever she could find the time from lecturing at Nankaisei's special Science classes. Indeed, she and Grandma sat out at the porch now, perhaps even more often than when Yoshiyuki was in high school. She'll have to return to the states in a month, anyway, so she wanted to make sure everything was alright with Grandma first. And Yoshiyuki; though relations between herself and Mrs. Minase normalized fairly quickly the silence between her hosts stuck out like a pimple so she also talked more with him to make up for the gap.

Thus, whenever all three of them were at the table there was this somewhat awkward see-saw conversation where Yoshiyuki clammed up whenever Albright spoke to Grandma, and vice versa. My, Albright couldn't help but think, smiling at herself, can I just give them one large cake for them to share? Well, Yoshiyuki was a grown young man now, maybe it simply came with age? She can't expect him to hold on to Granny like a lost toddler, now, can she?

As her flight drew near she became busier on the phone, talking to her family and her colleagues in America, as well as with Miss Nanjou, to thank her again for the support and also to arrange accommodations for another university team coming to Japan next year, and maybe dine with her one last time at the hotel.

Two days before she returned to Okinawa she once more sat on the porch one evening with Granny and Yoshiyuki for a breather, discussing with him plans for a degree apprenticeship… should he desire to move on to higher studies.

"I was thinking of finding work in Numazu," he said.

"Moh," she sighed, "you're telling me you don't have the brains for college? I'll see if I can get you a fine enough scholarship, if that will convince you."

"I'd like to see how far I can go without backing… well, just for the thrill of it, I guess," he finished sheepishly.

She laughed heartily. "Well, I must say you're still young. Alright, experiment with your life while you can, I like that attitude. But do settle at twenty-one, windows close fast, you know."

"You're only giving me two years?" he said hanging his head.

"And why not?" she retorted. "Idiot, when establishing a career you should be ahead of the pack by at least five years. My, if I'd be given a choice, I'd stay in your age year after year after year. You got plenty of work to do, if you want to impress Mori-san in the future."

Grandma cleared her throat loudly.

The two halted in their tracks as though suddenly unplugged. Was she going to going to object to yet another trip abroad? "I…" she began,

"I guess I owe you an apology."

"Hm?" Yoshiyuki only looked on curiously.

Grandma sighed. "I guess I must take some responsibility for what happened in Australia."

"…"

"I was the one who introduced Yoshiyuki to the dive shop. Blaming Mori-san now would only (redound) to myself."

Well… Alright, but why say it now?

"I admit I was quite mixed about Yoshiyuki going out in the world. I know he'll do it eventually, but…" She chuckled self-deprecatingly. "Why am I dithering like a teenager here? I guess he can just visit me once a year… once a month maybe."

Albright smiled warmly at her. This was no adolescent fickle-mindedness, she very well knew Grandma wanted only one thing.

The old woman finally stared at her grandson, quietly asking him to talk to her, but he only looked away and said, "No point taking the blame now. We got new things to do this time…" His voice fell to a whisper. "Nanaka might have forgotten me, anyway."

The evening wind blew more strongly and played with their hair as they sat letting things sink in into them. At length, "Jaa," said the professor, "let's move to the dining room. A little hot coffee will be dandy right now."

The next day Grandma phoned Mr. Mori and talked for about an hour, also saying she'll come over to Okaa-san herself, but the man insisted it was alright, that it's best to let the matter drop. Instead, he gave permission for Yoshiyuki to return to the dive shop. The rest of the conversation centered on him after that.

Saturday. The day after he will pack up and return to work, but he still has his reservations. He walked out to the beach to take stock of his situation. So Grandma had finally talked to her Grandpa. But does that mean they'd just get together as before? He can expect a degree of awkwardness, especially after Granny openly castigated her and the grandson tried to force himself on her… What an awful pair, she must be thinking if he was her, cut from the same Minase cloth. But he will work his way back into her heart. He will heed what Anna Nanjou told him… but how long must he wait on her? Can he hold his feelings back for so long? For a month, for a year even?

"Ahhhh!" he yelled throwing a fistful of sand at the ocean. What can he possibly do? Would it be truly enough for him to just see her everyday—after everything that had happened? What if a certain customer his age, handsome, certainly more polite and perhaps even more well-off, comes to the shop? Will that be the end of him?

"Will I make a good bodyguard now?" she had once asked Anna.

What if one of those muscular guys around Miss Nanjou take a liking to the athletic girl?

Will that be the end of him?

Should he just decline the job and move on immediately to Numazu?

All this confusion. But there one thing he knew for sure: he wants his Nanaka. So he took out his phone and dialed, not without a little apprehension at how his call might be received, but at least he is doing what he is: a Nanaka lover. He will call and call and call because that's who Yoshiyuki Minase is, Nanaka Mori's man.

The dialtone made his blood rush. Nanaka Mori is just behind that curtain! She probably won't show herself for a good while—

"Hello," said a woman's voice.

Gasp.

He was tongue-tied, coming face-to-face with his Nanaka so soon. What excuse shall he give for calling her like this? "Urrrrgh…"

"Yoshiyuki, are you alright?"

"Uh…"

"You need meds?"

Meds? What meds? It's not like you'll sail over here right now just to give me the stupid pills.

"I'm coming."

"Hah? Ah, n-no! I-I'm still here on Otou-san."

"Wait here."

Is she actually serious? The sea looks gentle at this beach, but who knows the actual condition of the ocean around Okaa-san? Does she have the seaplane?

"Yoshiyuki, I'm right behind you."

He turned and saw his Nanaka standing there with a straw bag, in a summery sleeveless dress that reminded him of the one Anna wore when she visited the shop. She put down the phone she was holding and he hastily pocketed his, but he can't peel his gaze off of her. His mind must be playing tricks on him. This must be a waking dream, he shouldn't take his eyes off or the vision will be gone. Nanaka… If this was just a dream maybe he can talk more freely than if it were the real thing… The vision waved in his face. "Yoshiyuki, answer me please."

"Uh…"

"Yoshiyuki, are… aren't you happy to see me again?" She held his hand and immediately a change came over him. The hand holding his was real. He felt his chest overflow and would have cried aloud on the spot if Nanaka didn't put a finger to his lips. Gently she inched closer and let hers touch down even more gently. He remembered Anna again—don't come on strongly. So he just allowed the warmth of her embrace to suffuse his entire body, and let his arms find their place around her, and they held each other for a good long while as the waves washed over the sand at their feet.

Later they were walking in the wind holding hands.

"So, was Grandpa having indigestion?" he asked.

"Some. But don't mind him, he just loves to complain about that because somehow he never got sick in the past five years, I think."

"He's pretty tough, huh? Heh. I'll be planning to match his record when I get old.

The waves got rougher and began to wash over their shins, but they didn't mind.

"I was here yesterday," she said. "I didn't want to barge in, though, so I hoped you'd just find me."

"You didn't have to, I mean, I was going back, anyway."

Sweet giggle. "You know Grandpa. If you were there he'd insist on the job first and we wouldn't have the chance to talk. If customers arrived this week, it will be quite a long time before we could."

He tried to hide his elation, but Nanaka pierced him with a direct, almost taunting look, which he felt, much as he did Grandma's, so he just let a stupid half-grin through. Man, why is he so transparent to the womenfolk? Well, certain womenfolk, anyway. But he made a last-ditch effort to appear aloof. "Did you really have to have this moment so soon? Uh, not that I object." Chill down, Yoshiyuki, you're like a kid. "Maybe you were going to tell me something." Oof. Wasn't a bit straightforward, dude? But he had always been bad at hiding. Like that time he first confessed in that living room—

But she only smirked playfully. "Well, I must tell Grandpa was looking forward to your taking over the shop someday. There's not many people we can trust, and we've known you and your Grandma for quite a while already."

"That's nothing. I still have a lot to learn before I can do the management—" Wait. He threw her a wild stare as the implications began to sink in. To inherit the shop, he must…

"I guess there's nothing weird about us anymore," she continued. "It's not like we haven't known each other for years." This remembering everybody in the Aquasports Club. All those memories… ""You have lived with us for months already. And we've been on a date for almost a month." She blushed, something quite unusual for her. "And you made the first move, so I think it's only fair."

"…"

She took out a small cloth bag from her pocket and laid out the contents on the palms of her hand. She held it out to him. Rings. Not the best, they were probably cheaper imitation silver pieces. Anna could have given her something better, but she wanted something she got with her own hands, no matter how far she could manage. "I can't tell you, of course, but I hope it fits you."

Yoshiyuki looked as if to laugh at her, but she beat him to it and laughed back at him. "Hey, these things cost me, too, you know, I'll have it deducted from your salary for this month!"

This triggered their laughter together, and they held each other in their arms, kissing playfully and turning this way and that on the wet sand. At the end of it, he asked her," How many kids you wanna have?"

She gave him a little grin of her own and whispered happily, "Yes. Yes, please."

Up Next: Anna's story.