Chapter 18 Jiro

Machi's POV

Jiro Kuragi. I knew who he was.

He was my younger brother.

"My name is Jiro Kuragi", he said. "And your name…is Machi Kuragi."

"How do you know that", I asked.

"It was listed in this ad", Jiro revealed.

Then…he held up the advertisement for Ayame's shop.

I took a closer look, and saw that all of the models were credited.

"I didn't even notice that", I revealed.

Then, I began to think.

What do I do? He knows that we share the last name. Maybe I can tell him that I'm a distant relative or something?

"You know", Jiro started snapping me out of my thoughts. "Ever since I was a kid, I've been having the same dream."

"The same dream", I asked. "What happens in the dream?"

"Well", Jiro started. "I'm lying on the ground, and I'm cold. Suddenly, a figure hovers over me. They try to warm me up, but before they can, they're pushed away."

Hearing my brother say this took me by surprise.

That was the incident that resulted in my parents kicking me out. How in the world does he even remember that?

"I see", I started nervously. "What an interesting dream."

"There's something else", Jiro started changing the subject. "A little while ago, I found some hidden stuff in my house."

"Hidden stuff", I asked in confusion. "What type of hidden stuff?"

"It was a bunch of stuff", Jiro revealed. "But the most important thing was some pictures."

"Some pictures", I asked in confusion. "What where in the pictures?"

"The pictures were of my mom and dad", Jiro revealed. "And they were with a girl. A girl that looked just like you."

Once again, hearing my brother say this took me by surprise.

Those must've been some old family photos.

"Machi Kuragi", Jiro started snapping me out of my thoughts. "Who are you?"

Upon Jiro saying this, I began to panic.

I need to come up with a lie, and quick.

"I'm…", I started. "I'm…I'm a distant relative."

"You're a distant relative", Jiro asked in shock.

"Yes", I lied. "You see, my parents died when I was young, so your parents took me in and raised me as one of their own."

"They did", Jiro asked in confusion.

"They did", I lied. "But then, they had you, and I felt like that they should focus on taking care of their own child. So I decided to move out."

"I see", Jiro started. "But how come they never told me about you?"

"Um…", I started nervously as I tried to think of an answer. "They probably didn't want you to feel bad!"

"I see", Jiro replied before began to ponder what I said.

Please believe me. Please believe me.

"Well then", Jiro started. "I'm glad to now know that."

Hearing this made me sigh in relief.

"Well", Jiro started as he stood up. "I should probably get going home. It was nice to meet you Machi."