The family had finished their meals, and not a second later did they see Isanari and Raiha walking by.

Isanari:"Well, well, well."

Maruo:"Uesugi. If I wasn't sitting, I would have tried to evade you."

Isanari:"How cold! I was just going to say hi to the missies."

Itsuki:"Hello, father."

Yotsuba:"Raiha-chan!"

Ichika:"it's been a while."

Nino:"Fuu-kun's dad still looks cool."

Maruo twitched at that comment.

Isanari:"You hear that? I guess I am pretty cool."

Raiha:"Don't mind my dad, he gets super uncool like this."

Isanari:"R-Raiha-chwaaaan!"

Raiha went over to the sisters while Isanari was trying to pick up the broken remains of his heart off the ground.

Raiha:"By the way, have you seen big brother?"

Yotsuba:"Ah, I saw him a while back, but he went somewhere. I thought he would come back with Itsuki but he isn't here..."

Itsuki:"..."

Nino:"We can try calling him."

Ichika:"Already on it."

Despite the fact that it seemed the call was making it through, Fuutarou didn't answer.

Raiha:"Is that normal?"

Yotsuba:"Maybe he has it muted?"

Miku:"He's usually good at checking it."

Nino:"Maybe he got kidnapped."

Ichika:"That's hard to believ-Miku, put the fork down."

Maruo simply stood by while contemplating life. While the girls were wondering what Fuutarou was doing, Itsuki raised her hand.

Itsuki:"Uesugi-kun did tell me."

Nino:"He did?"

Itsuki:"Yes, right before going to the auditorium, we were talking with one another."

Yotsuba:[So they did see each other.]

Itsuki:"Well, he didn't specifically say where he would go…"

{Fuutarou:"Itsuki, I have something I need you to do."}

Itsuki:"He got lost."

Ichika:"He what now?"

Nino:"Was his head in the books so often he never figured out the map of this place?"

Miku:"He did a good job going around the stalls though."

Itsuki stroked her chin, clearly trying to remember something.

Itsuki:"Ah! I told him I was bad at these things! At least he wrote it down."

Yotsuba:"I hope it's not a grocery list."

Itsuki:"Let's see...I think this is some sort of riddle..."

Yotsuba:"A-A riddle?"

Nino:"That's really weird."

Ichika:"Well, go ahead and read it."

Itsuki:"Right. This is what it says: 'Even the smallest drink is a lifetime of prosperity. A life of 18 years felt like a dream. I don't understand what life is, and certainly not death. But they might be dreams that I wish to wake up from. Away from hell, I stand closest to heaven. In the moonlit night, with the clouds of attachment, I relax my mind as I wait for someone to find me.'"

Yotsuba:"I have no idea what any of that means."

Nino:"It sounds...kind of familiar?"

Ichika:"Ah, I forgot everything we learned…"

Miku:"That sounds a little like..."

Itsuki:"...I think one of us knows the answer."

Isanari, having finally gotten back up, came over as well.

Isanari:"Yo, Maruo. You're a genius, you got any idea what they're talking about?"

Maruo:"Hmm, I've never heard it before, but it sounds like a poem more than anything."

Miku:"It's inspired by..."

Miku got up from her chair.

Yotsuba:"Miku! Do you know the answer?"

Miku nodded.

Nino:"...I think I get it now."

Ichika:"A riddle disguised as a poem."

Yotsuba:"...Ah!"

Miku:"..."

At that moment, the girls came to the same conclusion.

Yotsuba:"That means…"

Ichika:"Yeah, that must be it."

Nino:"What a roundabout way."

Itsuki:"It wouldn't be Uesugi-kun otherwise."

Miku:"...I think I have to go."

She suddenly left the table, but turned around before she got too far.

Miku:"Don't worry, Raiha-chan and dad. I'll bring him back quickly."

Raiha:"Okay!"

Isanari:"Wait, are you talking to me or him?"

With that, Miku left. Maruo locked his hands together and began to think. But Nino put a hand on his shoulder.

Nino:"Papa. If you're thinking about what I think you are, I will stop you."

Maruo's eyes widened just a little. The other three girls aso got out of their seats and came together in front of their dad.

Ichika:"We'll make sure you can't get past."

Yotsuba:"We'll be a big wall!"

Itsuki:"And there's nothing you can do to stop us."

Maruo:[So this is how much they've grown…]

Isanari went over to Maruo.

Isanari:"They got you beat, man. I don't know what to say."

Maruo pondered before answering.

Maruo:"I will not do anything for now. But perhaps I'll need to schedule a very long chat with that tutor."

Nino:"...How stubborn."

Isanari:"What a doting parent."

Maruo:"I can't help it. I really hate your son, Uesugi."

Itsuki:"You're even more childish than we are…"

Nino finally left her seat and joined the others. They all turned to see Miku leave their sights.

Ichika:[I believe in you.]

Nino:[You better not mess this up.]

Yotsuba:[Go go go!]

Itsuki:"..."

{Fuutarou:"What was inside that charm?"}

{Itsuki:"C-Charm?"}

{Fuutarou:"Yeah, you were the original Rena, weren't you?}

{Itsuki:"Geh!"}

…

…

Right after Itsuki had found out about Yotsuba's past with Fuutarou, she had the idea of dressing up as a grown up version of how all five sisters looked back then.

{Itsuki:"With my mother's name, I'll be able to get close without him figuring me out...But, Uesugi-kun is not the type to trust. I got it!"}

Itsuki pulled out her charm that Yotsuba had given her during the Kyoto trip six years ago.

{Itsuki:"This should be good leverage. I'll leave a note inside saying that Yotsuba is that girl. That way, when he acknowledges himself, he'll be able to handle the truth. He did say he wanted the girl of his dreams to be really smart, and none of us fit that bill."}

Itsuki got out a piece of paper and got ready to write.

{Itsuki:"This is how a mother can help their children. This is how I can make mom proud. This is how...This is how…"}

Itsuki's hand began to move on its own. Before she knew it, she could only stare at the message she wrote with tears in her eyes.

…

-Help us-

…

…

{Itsuki:"What was in the charm? Uesugi-kun, you already know the answer to that!"}

{Fuutarou:"Eh? I do?"}

…

Itsuki:[He really has changed our lives. Thank you, Uesugi-kun, for being our tutor, for being our friend. I don't regret meeting you at all!]

…

Miku made it to the main building. Out of all the places in the school, this was the place where she believed she would find what she was looking for. This time, the doors were open due to the third day having extraa events, such as the bonfire dance. Miku walked through the empty halls, eventually reaching Class 3-1. She looked inside and blushed while touching her lips. After shaking her head, she continued on her path. After passing a set of foldable chairs, she had reached the end...at least, in the building itself. Miku was looking down, feeling an invisible push on her. But, she pushed past it and looked up to see the staircase leading to the roof. After some deep breaths, she took the first step.

…

*step, step*

Every step she took weighed on her heart, constantly causing her to skip a beat. She had to stop at one point to catch her breath, not because she was tired, but because her mind was fried. After putting her hand on her chest, she continued her way up. Miku's face got more and more red the closer she goto to the top. Her mind was filled with nothing but memories, memories that had started during her second year of high school. In just a year and a half, her life had changed so much. The memories that played in her mind were a hodgepodge of sadness, anger, loneliness and doubt. But among them were also moments of hope, happiness, serenity, gratitude and love. Love for him.

…

Miku made it to the door. She reached out to the handle, but stayed like that for a bit. Slowly, she moved the handle, opening the door with as little noise as possible. The sunset was staring right at her, causing her to close her eyes, but she could open them once she saw a figure, standing in the light. Despite the sun being right there, that figure seemed far brighter to her. The man was not looking at her, rather, it had its back turned as if in deep thought. Miku began to walk towards the man, only the far off sounds of people and the wind ringing in her ears. She came forward slowly, making no noise herself. It wasn't a long walk, but it felt like it took years to get to where the man was. But, nothing lasts forever, so she eventually made it. Miku opened her mouth but nothing came out. She was unsure of what to do at this moment. She stared at the back of his head for a bit before her eyes lowered, eventually reaching his back. He had been wearing a short sleeved shirt with the festival logo the entire festival, but perhaps due to how much he had been working, he changed into his usual button up shirt. Miku blushed as her hand began to reach for his. An unbelievable amount of thoughts went through her mind and she did her best not to pass out. But, she backed away. She looked to his back once again. Miku took a deep breath before extending her arm once again, this time to his back. At the exact same time she was doing this…

*DING DONG*

The noise signaling the end of the final day had gone off. As the announcement went off, Miku's hand reached him...

End of Chapter 94